Prax/Gangs

Gangs of Nexus

There are countless gangs in Nexus ranging from a bunch of children who hang out together for mutual protection to elaborate multi-generational organizations dedicated to the domination of a particular financial market. Over time these gangs change for better or for worse, dissolving or evolving based upon countless unpredictable factors. In general the character and purpose of a gang varies from district to district as they draw their personality from the locals. Below is a brief overview of each district and the gangs that can be found within as well as a few of the more notable gangs of Nexus.

Bastion

Street gangs are non-existent in Bastion thanks to the Lion Guard’s patrols, but the presence of the more sophisticated gangs extends even to the upper echelons of Nexus society. The leaders and masterminds behind Nexus’ most powerful and sophisticated gangs have residences in Upper Bastion just like the rest of Nexus’ rich and powerful. Many of these gangs also have headquarters in Lower Bastion hidden behind the façade of teahouses, temples, restaurants and high-class boutiques.

The Rose

The Atami Family

Cinnabar

Cinnabar has the fewest number of gangs of any district thanks to the large concentration of mercenary companies. Although there are some who would argue that the mercenary companies are in fact the largest and most well armed gangs in Nexus. Regardless, their presence tends to keep most of the traditional gangs out of the area. In most cases the mercenary company occupies the same niche a gang would possess in a neighborhood. And for the purpose of blackmail, the typical tactics of intimidation and violence don’t work so well against armed men who make a living out of killing people on the battlefield. After all there are plenty of easier places in Nexus to setup shop.

Still, at the edges of Cinnabar and in neighborhoods without a mercenary company to call its own you will find some of the smaller street gangs. These gangs typically begin as groupings of young men and women gathered together for mutual protection either from other gangs or roving bands of mercenaries who can be just as bad as a street gang. Some of them then get into the business of protecting their neighborhood from trouble like vigilantes, while others simply cause random mayhem out of boredom. The gangs who exist simply to cause mayhem are typically very short-lived with a lifespan of maybe two years at most and typically less then six-months. Eventually someone gets tired and takes out the leaders or the gang members themselves get bored and move onto other things. Unfortunately as soon as one of these gangs disappears a new one almost inevitably rises to take its place somewhere else. Nexus has no shortage of dissatisfied youth and revelers of wanton violence.

The gangs who begin their existence as a means to protect their neighborhood typically last longer. Some of these gangs stay true to their roots for years, keeping their neighborhood clear of the worst outside offenders. Others go into the protection business and begin charging the residents of their neighborhood for their services. After all, they’re providing a valuable service on the violent streets of Nexus and should rightfully be compensated for their hard work. At least, that’s how the rationale goes. Still others develop into small independent mercenary companies specializing in urban warfare amidst the streets of Nexus.

The Bloody Knives

The Maple Wardens

Nighthammer

Nighthammer has a reputation for having the most violent and dangerous gangs in Nexus, though this reputation truly only belongs to Nightside as few gangs wish to live amidst the soot and constant din of the hammers along the riverfronts. While almost every street and alley in Nightside has its own gang that acts variously as either local protectors or tormentors, most of these gangs are rather petty compared to the true powers in Nightside.

Hidden deep in the shadows of Nightside are the ones that knowledgeable residents of Nexus refer to as the Shadow Lords. Whereas the most sophisticated gangs and vice families of Nexus have homes in Upper Bastion, the Shadow Lords are the kings and queens of the slums. Each Shadow Lord acts as patron for a number of the smaller street gangs supplying them with leadership, equipment, places to stay. In return they use the street gangs to further their own ends and as their personal pawns to frustrate and counter the efforts of other Shadow Lords.

A given Shadow Lord’s influence rarely extends outside of Nighthammer, but within it their rule is almost absolute, checked only when the Council deigns to take notice. Since most Shadow Lords are smart enough not to engage in activity that would attract the Council’s attention this is a rare occurrenc. Shadow Lords typically trade in drugs, influence over a particular Nighthammer market, pit-fighters, silver, slaves, information, gambling houses, brothels and occasionally stolen goods.

At various times the Guild has attempted to reign in the excesses of the Shadow Lords, but without the Council’s might backing them agents sent to Nightside typically vanish without a trace. Also there is no guarantee that a deal cut with a particular Shadow Lord will last more then a season as he is either replaced or decides that the previous deal no longer suits his needs. Retaliation for treachery is possible of course, but the death of one Shadow Lord simply means that another will rise in his place.

The Dark Raptors

The Obsidian Fangs

Sentinel's Hill

Sentinel's Hill is home to a mix of street gangs and vice families. Amongst the crowded buildings, dense population, narrow streets and artisan shops there is ample opportunity for graft and plenty of victims to exploit for protection money. The majority of the gangs are family affairs with cousins, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles grouping together to protect the family business. Alternatively all of the residents of a particular apartment complex may band together to protect their home. In either case, as long as outsiders don't cause trouble they're perfectly welcome in the gang's territory and alliances between various neighborhoods are quite common. However, things get rather ugly, when the locals of a particular neighborhood start feeling expansionist or decide to retaliate against another family for a perceived slight. A single incident of perceived price gouging by a shopkeeper in one neighborhood can easily lead to years of blood feuds between two neighborhoods.

The most powerful of the Sentinel's Hill vice families control businesses in several neighborhoods and possibly other districts. Unlike the local families, these gangs tend to be more focused on profit and power rather then protection. They still have intense family loyalty to one another, but the size of the families and desire for power and profit can lead to feuds within the family itself, which can mean anything from a weakening of the power structure to complete dissolution of the family.

The Lubaht Family

The Redfield Clan

The Ten-Thousand Markets

The Ten-Thousand Markets in theory are free from all criminal activity thanks to the number of mercenaries present who are employed specifically to deal with shoplifters and anyone who interferes with commerce. However, as the largest market in the Riverlands there are plenty of opportunities for vice beyond theft. For instance many gangs or vice families buy up blocks of market space then rent it out to potential merchants, others charge their services as protectors to various merchants making themselves indistinguishable from the hired mercenaries. All gangs have to act very carefully in the Ten-Thousand Markets though. Anything perceived by the Council to interfere with commerce will quickly draw its wrath. One has to carefully walk a line between criminal activity and legitimate business practice to succeed. As a result only the cleverest gangs in Nexus attempt to do business in the Ten-Thousand Markets. The clumsy and slow-witted ones quickly fall prey to the Emissary.

Cerulean Cloud's Bazaar

The River Jackals

The Undercity

Gangs actually form the bulk of society for the Undercity and the purpose for most of them is to simply survive. The gangs closest to the surface tend to be fairly territorial and close to the temperament of most street gangs. They defend their turf and tend to steal the food that they need to survive. As one travels deeper underground gangs tend to become more like tribal societies. Exposure to any number of alchemical and mystical energies found below Nexus also tends to warp the bodies and minds of these individuals. Some groups setup shops near prominent locations underground, others make homes wherever they can find a dry warm space. A few groups are even nomadic, migrating beneath the city based upon the seasons, time of day above and the strange rhythms of the underground.

The Undercity Geckos

The Tomb Vipers