How do you crime? [Question to All Criminals]

[Darth Hauntruss]

I am trying to develop the idea for a criminal character - real Don type - the kind that runs a "legitimate" business.

But, my question to people with criminal characters is - How does one Crime on SWRP? Short of doing raids and the sexy stuff - assassinations, and such - how does one RP racketeering, gambling, drug trafficking and the like?

Short of just RPing - I have a giant gang - what are the mechanics/norms that have emerged for conducting criminal business. I was talking to a fellow RPer and the idea of submitting a Tier Company using it RP deal threads, smuggling and selling through the company or Set up factories, business endeavours, network with other 'partners', develop 'products', put muscle together.

Any pointers, advice and such would be great, much appreciated.

Obligatory musical post:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PXC7tOmRds

 

[Dunames Lopez]

Originally Star Tours was to be used as a front for crimes (moneylaundering, fencing, smuggling) but I slowly decided to let these crimes run in the background and to focus on the legitimate business to the point of overshadowing the criminal activities.

 

[Zef Halo]

[member="Miss Blonde"]

 

[Logen Brunner]

Don't be a force user and you will be unique and epic!

 

[Tyger Tyger]

[member="Darth Hauntruss"]

Everyone always overthinks and underthinks this. Really, the trick to being a criminal is actually WANTING TO COMMIT A CRIME, not to simply be famous for being an outlaw.

So, right, if you're going to be a Boss, actually have a plan for being a Boss. Make clear goals you'd like to see in the community as a result of your actions, and then plan in a linear fashion to get there. Delegate duties and responsibilities. As a leader, your job is mostly administrative. You shouldn't ever pop into a thread to duel anyone, and if you ever have to, it should be meaningful because you do it so rarely.

After you build your hierarchy, give general orders, and allow your trusted people to do the rest. "Hey, Khaleel, I need a narrative for developing a grassroots, crime-theme rebellion-viable organization on Nar Shaddaa." Khaleel then takes his people, and goes about his own interpretation as to how that's supposed to happen. You don't want to powerplay and you don't want to rush it. In fact, to keep it interesting, have your subordinates working these missions for long, multiple story-arc efforts. The goal is to make it so dense that the hosting faction really has no grounds to whine when you knock a leg out from under them.

Developing these "products," putting together your squad, cementing your empire...This should all take awhile. And, if anyone ever actually took the time instead of "1...2...3....WE'RE A SUCCESSFUL GANG PROMISE LOOK AT THE INTRODUCTION TO OUR INTRO THREAD WE'VE BEEN ESTABLISHED FOREVER," you might have something that lasts.

RPing Gambling -- Make a location sub. Advertise what it does as a front, but not what it "really" does. Invite a select few to gamble there, and refer to the place often within your own mythology.

RPing Drug/People/Sex Trafficking -- Grab one of the billions of smugglers or bounty hunters looking for work. Tell them to put together a thread where they smuggle your product from point A to point B. Repeat often. Use only those who are successful.

RPing Muscle -- Works just like any other faction. Grab good players who pack a punch. Have them hang around as your enforcers. Abra kadabra, you've RP'd muscle.

It's all pretty obvious if you give it thought. It just takes work. And again, the biggest reason why Intelligence Agencies, Criminal Empires, Military Rank and File, and Secret Societies fail is because people want the reputation more than they actually want the mechanic. Put work into the environment, not your Signature tags.

 

[James Justice]

[member="Darth Hauntruss"]

At one point James Justice was an undercover criminal. However, when people didn't want to play along with the "hush hush" I made him a well-known crime lord (At least people tell me they know him when i say that's who I play in Skype chats. )

So here is what I did:

1- smuggling. A great way to make cash and not be seen. Especially since.... That's the goal but it got old for me after a while. James started out with one clunker ship running guns for the highest bidder.

2- black mail. Gather info with a slicer and black mail NPCs into doing your will. That's half of how he gained control of his city, Soceras.

3-Nior theft: not bank robberies, cat burglary. Anyone can hold up a bank; how many can tunnel under and empty the vault?

4-Opperate our of the Outer Rim and wild space: take over banks, set up sell companies and stuff like this. Use them to run your ops. Security is low so is tech. People are poor and struggling to make ends meet. It's easy to bribe.

5-Stay out of Major Factions clouds. They tend to interfer with crime ops. Another reason the outer fringes of space are best.

6-Find the crime characters. Cut deals with them. Share and share a like. You'll win they will win, everyone will get to rp. I try to make more friends than enemies and starting out this is best for you.

7-Find your nitch, own your nitch; don't worry too much about anything else. James is good at smuggling, piracy, theft and fencing stolen goods. He doesn't try to launder or do much else because he's good at it. It's not so much a thing you make as (in my opinion) your character decides.

8-Have a flare for melodrama

9-Cut deals with James Justice

10-Have fun.

11-Cut more deals with James.

Edit: almost forgot: 12- hustle. Keep your eyes open for the opportunities that arise at every second of every flash. They are there. You just gotta find and crack 'em open.

 

[Thraken Barbarossa]

<--- Hiss Hiss btw

[member="Logen Brunner"]
Check and Check


[member="Tyger Tyger"]
This is exactly what I was thinking. Excellent advice my good man thank you.

I'm thinking I'm going start with him running a dummy private bank, submit it as a company in the Tier Submissions, have it used for money laundering
and loan shark activities they suck income from those that are in his gambling dens. So its a self-feeding cycle. He owns the gambling dens with draw demand from the loan sharks and then pay the gambling dens, so from there he expands with basic financial capital gained into much more high-risk enterprises
trafficking and the like.

Definitely RP the Gambling Dens, Business Deals, attract foot soldiers - really want to get involved in politics too, buy a few politicians, have them as patrons.

I guess its like anything else. RP, RP and RP. People appreciate actual world building.

[member="James Justice"]
Sound advice. Thanks man. I'll tag yah sometime

 

[Logen Brunner]

[member="Thraken Barbarossa"]

excellent! Now, lets cross paths......... once my ship is space worthy!

 

[Tyger Tyger]

Another idea is, once you actually develop a group, build it as a subfaction to a Major Faction that isn't crime-related. Then leverage your criminal empire's support against the major faction's standing government for support in Dominions and Invasions.

What gives factions and the people control who control them power is the fact that they can, hypothetically, make a bunch of people actually DO something.

 

[Thraken Barbarossa]

[member="Logen Brunner"] [member="Tyger Tyger"] [member="James Justice"]

For those interested to RP later - http://starwarsrp.net/topic/92442-thraken-barbarossa-corellian-don/#entry1345432

 

[Sedge]

[member="Thraken Barbarossa"]

I'm struggling with my muse atm, but here's one unaffiliated smuggler/killer looking for work.

 

[Veino Garn]

Now you make me want to write a criminal character. Thanks Hiss Hiss.

 

[Lysle of the Hydian Way]

[member="Darth Hauntruss"]
I am incredibly thankful for how successful my character and my organization [Red Ravens] were as criminals. But I don't think the success of the Ravens had anything to do with raids, assassinations, burglary or whatever else have you. It had a lot to do with theme and setting. I put a lot of effort into finding the right music to add to the Ravens threads, as well as accompanying images. The Ravens felt like it was more than just any other criminal faction, it felt uniquely different. Any Raven from the early days could tell you how iconic our threads had become within the criminal circle on this site. You didn't need to see who was in it to know it was a RR thread, the music and images alone told you who it was.

Everything else, storylines and writing just naturally followed with the theme and setting we laid down.

Probably not the advice you're looking for, but it's all I got. An example of theme and setting can be seen here [x].

Edit: Although James suggests making friends with all criminals, where's the fun in that? Being a criminal isn't about anarchy or chaos, it's about logical conflict, Ravens wanted notoriety, the Black Suns were weak, Lysle capitalized on a large albeit weak target, it was logical, it was business. Breaking or bending the rules. A bad criminal is one who breaks the law because it's 'fun', a good criminal is one who breaks the law because he needs to to get the job done. I made sure the Ravens stuck up for the little guys, and even when we were a tiny flock we were already causing chaos for the Black Suns. Go big or go home.

You don't always win-win with criminals when you both agree on a deal, if that had happened the Ravens would still be operating in a tiny cantina on Nar Shaddaa, and wouldn't have become a galactic criminal organization like they had been in days gone by.

 

[Flannigan Mcnash]

[member="Darth Hauntruss"]
Well, for what it matters how I handled thugnomics, I'd set up an OOC pre-post set teams up and if the planet had a faction occupation I usually asked for permission and if they wanted to join. Criminology is all about respect.

Second I'd start with an introductory paragraph, make it exciting make it pop! Its your job as the writer to make it worth peoples time so skip the fluff and get to the point. Use dot points responsibly e.g

Location:
Mission:

And this is advice for all levels of RP, make it personal people love themselves so dropping a few names and what they did goes a long way in getting people interested, ego is a wonderful thing.

 

[Darth Prazutis]

[member="Darth Hauntruss"]

It all really depends on what avenue your looking for. If your going for a crime family Don type than its a lot of protection rackets, arms dealing, gambling, fight fixing, murder for hire, bribery. You take a neutral viewpoint in major conflicts and supply both sides for maximum profit while bullying your rivals and competitors into submission. You can check out a few of the New York City Five Families for inspiration here too and just apply it on a grander scale in the Star Wars Universe.

 

[Davin Jusik]

[member="Darth Hauntruss"]

Step 1: Criminal Conspiracy
Step 2: Actual Crime
Step 3:??????
Step 4: Profit

Really just do what you want and take your time with it, you can model it after your favorite movie/historical crime lords if you want. It's totally whatever you want, everybody has their own system.

If you're looking to add a sorta realism flare to it I recommend looking up how folk have done things in RL. IE: Capone (Just make sure you pay taxes), The Five Families, Whitey Bulger, hell you could even go the Bronson route and be all "psychotic prison king".