Public Backroom Gambling [HSC Blackjack Thread]

[Argos of the East]

​

"Kark this.", the Bothan complained, slamming his cards on the table and getting up.​

​

Argos whistled low and slow, mocking the man as he raged away. Puffing from his stim filled cigarette, he motioned to him - bringing attention from the other gathered guests. Twilek dancers clad in little more than leather undergarments and more than a few smugglers watched;​

​

"That's how you lose a few months pay right there, kids.", he laughed.​

​

"Seats open - lets fill her back up. I got an itching to win some more creds."​

​

Spinning his finger in a circle high above the table with a harsh whistle - a few of the waitresses came by and supplied them all with drinks. He downed the finger of whiskey he had left and poured another before he began shuffling the cards.​

​

"Alright ladies and gentleman - put your bets in."​

​

​

Spoiler: OOC Rules

​

This is blackjack using a random card generator. All cards will be posted in a private discord with HSC staff keeping accountability - and when hands are decided, a screenshots of the hands will be given out so everyone knows what the cards were at the time.​

​

To gambling, simply declare your intent IC - and send Argos of the East your bet. Minimum is 100 Ucks, Maximum is 5,000 for the sake of my bank account. Your posts are free to contain as much detail or as little as possible - talk among your fellow gamblers to make it interesting, this is still RP afterall. However, please declare your action at the bottom of your post so I can better keep track of your intentions.​

​

Your options are Hit, Stay, Split, or Double Down.​

​

All traditional Blackjack rules apply.​

​

​

​

 

[Hacks]

Hacks ran her nose along the sink top, inhaling sharply with a mechanical finger holding one nostril tight. As her head rose up to face her mirror image, she stared for a moment. The need for stims was getting worse, and so was her addiction to mods. Doc Painless had seen this coming but there was nothing he could have said to have stopped her. She turned the tap and splashed the contaminated water into her face. Fluorescent lights above flickered.

"That's good spice," she whispered, looking to the empty thumb-sized plasti bag, then checking her bank accounts that were running dry. She needed creds and quick. She wasn't the type to gamble but she was getting desperate, and they looked like they were having fun in the backroom. She pushed back from the sink, wrinkled her nose and made her way for the door.

Hacks emerged from the bathroom, four hands gripped the sides of her jacket and pulling it taut over her, readjusting the weight on her shoulders. "Chuck me down for seventeen-hundred boss," she said, hands digging into her pockets and tossing the last of her credits onto the table. That was everything she had to her name since she left Denon.

She pulled back a chair with an uncomfortable scrape across the floor and dropped herself down. As Hacks settled at the table, her four arms crossed against her chest. Her pupils were dilated, sweat gathered on her forehead, her knees bounced. It was clear the cyber-junkie was on something more than just the mods of late.

 

[Aalto Jien]

Giving this next player a patdown and search, Aalto was scanned thoroughly until he got the clear to go in. After Hacks a Duros sat at their table. Red visor almost covering his large eyes, black zip-top, dark red trousers, black leather jacket with high collar, and rust-red boots stretching below. Definitely some tech on the belt, nothing that was flagged for cheating, but they'd give him a check to be sure. There was a cold calculation to this player, measuring odds and watching the dealer most of all because that's who he was up against.

"Put me down for 400." He started low and spoke methodically, much like his way of playing would be.

Large eyes blinked behind the visor, difficult to conceal their expression fully. He didn't drink much and was contrasting to Hacks as cool Hoth. Too cool you might say. The only telltale signs from this latest gambler were the round credit chit balanced on the back of his hand, and the usual large Duros expression struggling to break free from the visor.

The credit chit rolled to the left of his hand toward hacks, he wished her "good luck," rolling it back right toward whoever was sitting next. For a Duros that rarely took risks, gambling was a hazard, his style of it to play it safe. Aalto was here to make connections at the table, and that sometimes took a limited risk.

Hacks | Argos of the East

 

[Argos of the East]

Argos spoke with the cigarette bouncing methodically on his lips, smoke trailing upwards in such a pattern it seemed to be signalling his speech on top of his word.

"Hacks.", he said with a slightly diminished smile.

"Denon not working out for ya, aye?"

When the Duros sat, Argos gave him nod of respect;

"And a man I don't know. What's your name, stranger? Isn't often I see someone sit down I don't know."

When the bets came in - he passed out the cards. To himself, he laid one face down, and then an 8 of Diamonds face up.

"Dealer holds on 16, gentleman. And Hacks."

For Hacks, he gave two cards - the 10 of Clubs and a 2 of Diamonds. Simple, clean, not a great hand but not the worst.

And for Aalto Jien he passed a 7 of Diamonds and a Queen of Hearts.

"Play your peace. What brings you both to Nar Shaddaa?"

Hacks

 

[Hacks]

The stims were settling in now. Her knee bounced as the Duros took a seat beside her, "Hacks," she introduced herself with a smile crossing her lips. Her confidence was artificially heightened by the spice, far more social than she ordinarily would be. When the alien offered her a quick good luck she replied with the same.

She turned to Argos, an intense stare burning through the fixers eyes. "Denons a shithole, not that this place is much better," Hacks said, "Darkwires lost their nerve and the Corpos aren't doing much about it with the senate breathing down their necks. Creds running dry for a shadowrunner like me, it's best that rats like me jump that sinking ship. I stay and it's lose-lose."

Hacks trained her eye on Argos' hands as he dealt out the cards. Her mind was racing. She was good with code, it was her life. She spent so long running netspace that living the flesh just didn't feel real sometimes. Code wasn't about luck or chance, code couldn't be random. This was different. Her mind was racing on how she should handle this, overthinking her place. It was the last of her creds on the line.

Her knees bounced, fingers tapped the table. An overstimulated brain burning fire in her mind. Code wasn't random, but it could simulate it. It came down to chances. Standing would get her nowhere here, she sits and loses it or risks it and maybe lady luck would save the night. Her brain raced with the calculations. "Hit," she said to Argos.

 

[Aalto Jien]

"Aalto," the Duros nodded respectfully back, happy to make a new connection. His watchful large eyes never left the cards when they were being dealt, making sure everything was clean. "How about yours?

At a seventeen tally Aalto was already in a good spot, "stay" the Duros replied. He was the last person to risk gambling further when he was ahead. Which may become predictable over the night, cards could tell you a lot about a person if you watched their game. How they bet, when they bet, how they took victory or defeat. It was a one-point difference but the odds favored staying so he did.

The first drink of the night, a Lothal Spicebrew was sipped in the smallest measure possible so as not to break his concentration on the game. Listening to Hacks talk about Denon, Aalto didn't have a strong feeling on it or anything much outside of his own business. Talking about business, was there an opportunity to broker a shadowrunner with one of his clients, act as the middleman and make a cut. The night would see.

"Shadowrunner? Tough line of work," his rolling credchit came to a stop, "people don't appreciate experts like they used to." If he had clocked her jitters, he didn't say a word. Jitters, debtors, and those down on their luck were one of his trades. You didn't want to get started on that highway, each stop along the way you ended up in more debt or worse off than the last. A business he'd talk about on the next deal, depending on how that opening went.

Hacks | Argos of the East

 

[Argos of the East]

"Chit happens.", Argos offered back passively.

"Reality is, Denons getting domesticated. Gentrification. Go hard against the dying of the light. My guess, The Family and Darkwire are going to get a rude awakening on what it looks like going up against the Republic that took down the Sith Empire."

He asked his drug filled cigarette and waited for their inputs. Aalto played it safe and Hacks went for a hit. Simply done, simply given.

Hacks, at 12, got another card. Argos laid it down and -

Got exactly what she needed. A 9 of Clubs leading her to 21. Argos smiled, tapped it - and offered his congratulations.

"Looks like you can pay your tab tonight."

"You two looking for a job?"

Argos moved to his own hand and flipped. In addition to the 8 of Diamonds, he had the 6 of Clubs. A total of 14, he had to hit - as per house rules. He threw the card down and scratched his chin.

A 6 of Hearts. 20, enough to keep some - but not all of his money.

"Better luck next time Alto."

"But serious, gig. You guys looking?"

He collected the cards and shuffled them again.

Aalto Jien / Hacks

(Will post acreenshots of proof when able.)

 

[Hacks]

Hacks turned to look the Duros in the eyes as he spoke. "Shadowrunner? Tough line of work. People don't appreciate experts like they used to." Hacks held out an open palm in dismissal, "That's because all the good shadowrunners got flatlined. I'm the only one still standing of the original Darkwire crew."

She counted down on her hand, "Frankie got whacked by the Corpos when she knew too much, Enigma got kidnapped and had his mind plugged straight into the net while his body rotted on a surgeons table in a biolab. Angel got filled with lead on an op with bad intel."

Her attention returned to the cards as Argos laid flat the slicers winning hand. A deep smile spread across her lips, a mechanical hand clenched into a fist as she punched the air above her, "That's what I'm talking about!" She pulled her creds in and paid no attention to Argos' jab about her debts. Her eyes turned to his when he asked, "You two looking for a job?"

"Eh," she muttered as Argos cut her off and pushed the envelope. "But serious, gig. You guys looking?" Hack tapped her nose with her thumb and sat back into her chair. Her eyes hadn't left Argos'. "It depends, what is the job? I can't say yes without the deets, boss."

 

[Aalto Jien]

"Sounds rough."

Losing the credits was met with a measured nod, Aalto always had a plan, depending on how much the dealer tolerated it. Most dealers let you double up a couple of times before they objected. Sat there measuring odds, sipping on his drink, as if one drop of foam spicebrew could last all night, the Duros calculated his next move, and three moves after that.

"Your luck is looking up." Aalto put the glass down, "my job is introductions," putting people in contact with other people, "brokering contracts, goods and services" It seemed like one was about to be offered in front of them, and that had his attention.

"We might be interested, if not, I can put you in contact with someone that is." We indicated he had some connections to draw on, the Exchange and Triads had muscle when or where it was needed, as yet he left out who he was working for. In preparation, the Duros pulled out a datapad of contacts and left it resting near his drink, blinking large eyes beneath the visor.

"800" Aalto bet predictably, getting his bet in early, to recover his losses if possible and turn a small profit. Always the middleman working between the lines. Testing to see if the doubling up strategy would be allowed for a few hands. He was surprised the house wasn't taking any cut, it put the odds in a more even setting.

Hacks | Argos of the East

 

[Argos of the East]

"Got some problems rising up in the Consortium. Our little council needs some counselling.", he said, motioning to Hacks .​

​

"You throwing in another bet?", he said to her before continuing.​

​

"Here's the deal, I need information on the workings of The Family and the Kraken Coalition. One of them falls and nobody's around to hear it - I need a recording of that. What they eat in the morning to what they eat at night - the full shindig. If you want to know why, mind your business. It's good pay."​

​

"So, what do you guys say?"​

​

Aalto Jien​

 

[TC-CS-4820]

Overhearing the job at hand, a silver plated RA-7 Protocol Droid sat down at the card table. His plating was dulled in some places, as this model was obviously well used, while it gleamed in other areas. It's arms layed by its sides, it's posture tall and formal while even sitting. It's black optical sensors stared at everyone at the table as it rotated it's head to look at all of their faces before it spoke.

"A job like that requires a team of specialists for espionage, not just a duo. I am willing to offer my services... if the credits are right." The vocabulator's voice was harshly synthetic and cold, the Huttese spouted as deadpan and empty as the droids own gaze. Said gaze was turned back to Argos, the head tilting to its side awaiting a response. Even though this was a simple RA-7 droid, the words it strung together managed to convey a confidence and intelligence found in few members of its line. "The other question is, once the contract is finished, is the information meant to stay private or may we sell it to others? Even the information you ask of is valuable to others."

 

[Hacks]

"Got some problems rising up in the Consortium. Our little council needs some counselling," Argos said, then motioned to Hacks, "You throwing in another bet?" Hacks declined, knowing she would only screw herself over if she continued. "I'm desperate, but not stupid. I play another round and I won't win, odds are against me," she said, tapping a metal finger to her head.

Argos continued, "Here's the deal, I need information on the workings of The Family and the Kraken Coalition. One of them falls and nobody's around to hear it - I need a recording of that. What they eat in the morning to what they eat at night - the full shindig. If you want to know why, mind your business. It's good pay. So, what do you guys say?"

"I'm not going back to Denon if that's what you're asking, don't care to sniff around the Family, all I know is they're up to something nasty in Corporate space. I can sell you the intel I already got on 'em, but it's surface level, except a secret meeting they had with Darkwire a few months ago," Hacks said, all four arms crossed tight against her chest. It was clearly a subject she wasn't going to budge on. She didn't want any business to do with Denon, it was a one way ticket to getting zeroed if she ever returned. Too many enemies, not even the Corpos could protect her there.

Hacks eyed the protocol droid that joined the table, speaking in lengthy Huttese that left her confused. She didn't speak the language, nor had a translator handy. "Do I look fat to you?" she asked the droid, "You can speak basic here, Gorba isn't here to complain. Names Hacks." She turned back to Argos, "But this Kraken Alliance?" she mused, "Ain't ever heard of 'em." She threw out a hand, "What's their deal?"

 

[TC-CS-4820]

The droid had subtley pulled its neck back in supprise, showing shock in the question the woman asked. His processors tried to navigate if that question was genuine or just a minor jab. A few nanoseconds of thought led him to realize she was referring to lack of knowledge of the Hutt language. He paused for a few beats, before his head snapped towards the netrunner. The voice was just as cold and emotionless as before, but almost moreso than his Huttese the droids words seemed to show something was not as it seemed with the unit.
"I... I understand. I apologize. I prefer to keep language kept to the most unique common language between the group, to make it harder for others to listen in and understand well. My name is complicated... but this form is RA-7-2. You seem to be a very well known slicer, going down the more dangerous netrunner path. Am I wrong?" Personality was shown through the droid as he was stunned at the beginning, through the entirety of the synthetic drone it was obvious he tried to regain the neutrality he had before.

 

[Aalto Jien]

What did Aalto know about the family, nothing at all. So he sold it. "That could be arranged," there had to be someone at the exchange that could broker that kind of data, then if not his Uos Family contacts, if not he would check the local shadowports. Bounty net might be online in the next month if all else failed. Working with unknown outsiders, was always a risk he was wary of. Working between the lines with people you knew would sell you out was one thing, working with strangers who smiled and said they wouldn't, was always a reminder to trust exactly one person, yourself.

He clutched his credchit in his blue hand, mulling it over and waiting for the cards to fall as they may. "How much are you reimbursing us for this, useful, information." He had heard of the Krackens by third-hand reputation, triad rumors about the Zann Consortium working with their ship on a job. Not much to go on but a start.

With the new droid sitting down, Aalto was wary of strangers offering their assistance, honestly, he was wary of everybody, but not to dwell! Strangers were how you made contacts, and contacts were what got things done. The droid did make some good points, and Hacks was wary to head to Denon.

"The other question is, once the contract is finished, is the information meant to stay private or may we sell it to others? Even the information you ask of is valuable to others."

That was a great question. Calculating a plan, "we could share this," looking at Hacks, "you could investigate the Krackens," looking at the droid, "you could investigate the Family," he leaned back in his chair, "and my contacts will back you both up." Which of course is where he'd put himself, the middleman as always, with as little risk as possible.

Hacks | Argos of the East | TC-CS-4820

 

[Argos of the East]

"Don't gotta go back - just listen in on their holomails.", he said to hacks.​

​

"Ten bundles.", he offered to Alto.​

​

"But you're free to sell it to whoever you want after - Republic SIA would be a good start."​

​

TC-CS-4820 // Hacks // Aalto Jien​

 

[TC-CS-4820]

The droid bobbed his head from side to side in thought, calculations running through his head before his head moved back into a neutral position to then look over to the other two. His eyes returned to the being who would attempt to hire them before he spoke with the same deadpan voice.
"I feel that ten may be low balling atleast me. With my special skills, and how I would have to get in there for extended periods of time, I feel twelve would be best. And as always, I need half up front. The issue is here everyone needs to agree or else this plan crumbles."

 

[Argos of the East]

Argos gave the Droid a long stare and a moment of silence. His brow slowly fell as tension grew on his face;

"You're a clanker I've never heard of, not IG-88 reborn. I'm offering good creds for modest work.", he said with annoyance.

"I'll give 11, but thats all or nothing."

TC-CS-4820 // Aalto Jien // Hacks

 

[TC-CS-4820]

The droid nodded slowly as his disguise began to shift, the silver plating elongating and thinning out. His form grew thin and round, the head shrinking down into a narrow tube. The visage of IG-88 sat at the table, his clawed hands resting in his lap as the eye assembly stared down at the man.
"I can be if you'd like, but unlike him I don't need the image to be recognizable to strike fear. My goal is to be striking without warning after all." This voice was still quite synthetic, but this time it was more calm and human. The voice changed to match the form, which was just a minor show of just what he can do.