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    The Phantom

    Consulting Criminal
    Dirty Coin

    Skyrim is in havoc after the civil war wrecks the nation. Villages are torn apart, cities barely hold together, and Jarls are fumbling for answers that won't come while dealing with impatient, tired civilians. In amongst this rebuilding of Skyrim lies intricate crime lords. Those that decide who rules the nine holds, those that decide where coin goes, and those that decide who lives and who dies. Jarls are drowned in corruption and greed, docks are homes for pirates, and drugs run rampant in this once great land of the Sky Children. The Empire turns their powerful gaze towards these crime families, trying almost vainly to destroy them, and to get their northern neighbor free from the crime that won't relent. Tamriel is at the feet of these powerful few and there is but an illusion of peace looming over the province of Skyrim.

    Rules:
    Please read everything! Including CC and EC so you know what to write for the sections. I am not the only overseer of this thread, Majir-Dar is co-hosting.

    •Use correct punctuation and grammar

    •Do not meta roleplay. This is when something is explained in the OOC and somehow, your character in the RP knows magically without permission or explanation

    •Do not, unless given permission, take control of another writer's character or hold

    •Post at least one paragraph in a post

    •Post at least twice a week

    •Attempt to adhere to lore

    •Don't post in quick succession, we don't want people left behind

    •No god-characters. Do not make you're character incredibly overpowered and invincible. It hardly even fits the thread

    •Have fun!

    Guidelines:

    The basic guidelines for this thread are, in essence, your character must be the key crime lord running his empire from within one of the nine holds. You must describe their empire, techniques and fill out a full CC for your character including where their empire is based.

    Holds:
    Hjaalmarch- Unclaimed

    Haafingar- Sid

    The Pale- Unclaimed

    The Reach- AS88- Remy Gerard- Gorlas' Empire

    The Rift- Valin Oakthorn- Ri'Zashir-Dar- The Dockworkers

    Eastmarch- Majir-Dar- Thorek Ocean-Strider- The Dead Brethren

    Whiterun- The Phantom- Arthrago Frang- Arthrago's Empire

    Winterhold- Ponder

    Falkreath-


    CC EXAMPLE:

    Character Name: Arthrago Frang
    Alias: The Innkeeper (Nickname by his rivals)
    Empire Name: Arthrago's Empire
    Empire's Base Hold: Whiterun
    Alignment: Crime
    Occupation: Owner of 5 inns in Skyrim
    Birth Sign: The Lord
    Currently Resides: Large, custom built home in the plains of Whiterun
    Hometown: Unknown
    Age: 49
    Race: Redguard
    Gender: Male
    Factions: Crime
    Worships: Nothing

    Appearance:
    Height- 5'10
    Weight- 160 LBS
    Eyes- Brown
    Hair- Shaven, Grey
    Scars- None
    Description- Arthrago is a Redguard of average height and a rather skinny, unkempt build. Despite this, Frang always retains an element of grace and elegance about him. He is clean shaven and the changes in his facial expressions are minute, almost always retaining a steely calm look unless enraged. He may well be the only person capable of intimidating people by remaining calm and silent. Though he has no truly notable facial features, he has very distinctive laugh lines and what small amount of hair he has is grey. He dons brown fine clothes and a cravat at almost all times.

    Personality:
    Laterality: Right-handed
    Sexuality: Bisexual
    Marital Status: Widower, Single
    Positive Traits: Cunning, High-Intellect, Calm, Master Tactician, Good Businessmen, Well-tempered
    Negative Traits: Impatient, Cold, Calculating, Vengeful
    Likes: Revenge, Success
    Dislikes: Betrayal, Distrust, Cartel
    Fears: Death
    Aspirations: To run his business and crime syndicate successfully, To never be caught
    Quirks: None
    Description: A defining characteristic of Arthrago is the friendly and low-key exterior he maintains; he takes an active role in managing his businesses and personally tends to the bars and inns on occasion. Quiet and humble, he is incredibly careful about with whom he does business and keeps a very healthy distance from the product he sells in order to appear almost invisible. Despite being somewhat of a sociopath, a multi-city skooma distributor and crime lord, Frang carefully maintains his public profile: noticeably, he supports and sponsors the vigilante and Thane of Riften, Mjoll the Lioness and makes large donations to the Markarth Guard. Arthrago Frang is so successful, in large part, because of his cautious nature, for example, he plans ahead and has the patience to let his business grow slowly. However, the Innkeeper is ruthless and machiavellian in managing his vast crime ring, keeping the entire operation under his direct and calculated control. Arthrago admires professionalism and caution in his colleagues, and is generally calm and tactical. He employs a number of enforcers and has personally killed rivals and associates. He is poised to take over or eliminate his rivals and is someone who is poised to manipulate other people into doing what he needs them to do. Frang doesn't trust anyone who isn't as cautious as he is, as they are too unpredictable, and he prides himself on being several steps ahead at all times. Arthrago Frang is controlled, cold, calculating and sophisticated.

    Fighting Style:
    Weapons: None
    Description: Has no exceptional fighting skill, though he is capable of defending himself against one to two unarmed adversaries.

    Biography: Born in a small village in Northern Hammerfell, he was the son of two poor supporters of the Forebears. The Forebears were somewhat of a political party vying for control of Hammerfell against the Crowns during the time of the Empire's degeneration. Both political parties were accountable for a great many atrocities committed. One day, when Arthrago was approximately 7 years old, the Crowns launched an assault on the village. They were nigh merciless, in the massacre that took place, the entire village was butchered, killed in the wake of the civil war, including his parents. The only reason he survived was due to a sympathetic warrior shielding Frang from his comrades. He helped Arthrago escape from the village undetected, only to find himself lost in the vast Alik'r desert.

    He walked, lost, disheartened and alone for nearly two days when he noticed two figures in the distance on horseback. Through the blinding sun he couldn't clearly make them out, though he decided that his best bet would be to approach them. At first he tried calling them, though he immediately found his throat too dry for words. He then attempted to drudge across to them, waving his arms in the hope of gaining their attention. Unfortunately for him, he felt his strength fading and soon lost consciousness. However, as fortune would have it, the two horsemen had noticed him and began riding in order to inquire as to the purpose of his presence, only to find him unconscious and near death. They provided him with water and proceeded to take him back with them to their camp, far from the harsh sands and sun of the Alik'r desert.

    Upon regaining consciousness, he noticed four figures looming over him, two of which were unusually tall. When his vision had focused, he noticed that the two large figures were both donning identical black hooded robes, with gold patterns embroidered on them. Their skin complexion was a bright green or yellow, and their ears were too pointy for him to think that they could be any race of men. Although, he couldn't consider any other races at the time, as he was unaware of the existence of Elves due to the fact that he was so young and uneducated. One of them was a woman, with long flowing white hair and facial features of no particular distinction. The other was male, and held himself rather high, though he noticed that the creatures face was showing what appeared to be genuine concern. The third smaller figure was a boy, no older than Arthrago himself, who didn't appear to be grasping the situation quite so well. Finally, the fourth figure was that of a girl toddler of perhaps age three. The two full grown elves explained the situation to him, and informed him that they were High Elves and were scouts for a group called the Thalmor. The two decided to adopt and take care of the child, inviting him to live with them.

    The family's name was Thromius. His surrogate father was called Correlus and his adoptive mother was named Catha. Their children were called Ganlas and Psyna. Arthrago opted to keep his current family name of Frang. Together they were raised happily and were fast friends. They loved each other like a family and Ganlas and Arthrago became very close friends. Some point before the Great War started when they were around twenty or so years old, Arthrago and Psyna became romantically involved. Correlus and Catha were sent in to fight in Hammerfell once the Great War broke out, leaving the three of them with the large manor house in which they lived. Psyna became a proficient Mage, Ganlas a master alchemist and Arthrago went into business and politics, managing to secure himself a small role in government. Then, approximately halfway through the war, they received the news that their parents were murdered in an ambush from the Imperial Legion. They were each left with an incredibly vast sum of money and the house was left to Psyna, in which Arthrago and Psyna began to live in together. Ganlas used part of his money to purchase an affordable home nearby. Soon after the resolution of the Great War, Arthrago and Psyna were wed, and Ganlas soon thereafter found a woman whom he married. Arthrago and Psyna had two children.

    It wasn't too long after however, that this Elysian peace broke. Soon, they received word of the atrocities that the Thalmor had committed and took an active role in protests against them. At first the Thalmor viewed them as a nuisance but after nearly a half a year of incessant protests they had Psyna assassinated and took away most of Arthrago and Ganlas' money. Heartbroken, the two of them soon grew into cold, calculating and vengeful individuals. They used the remainder of their money to move to Skyrim and purchase an inn on the road to Riften. At first business was incredibly popular, especially with the pair's specialties: Arthrago handled the business and Ganlas cooked the food and brewed the ale.

    After about a year, they noticed that business was starting to drop, and there was little they could do about. That was when Frang came up with the idea that would change the outcome of their lives. He decided to put Ganlas' master alchemy skill to incredible use and produce high quality skooma and sleeping tree sap. Arthrago would then distribute it to certain customers and carefully put it in with people's orders in the inn, or a sealed packet within their drinks.

    Though it did triple their profits, and the inn was good for an equivalent of money laundering, that was not his true demeanour. They wished to gain the attention of the drug cartel currently in Riften, in hopes of securing a business deal with them. It was not too long before their leader noticed and invited the two to dinner at his house, Honeyside. To begin with, they were all cordial and polite, they spent the night talking business and the positives and negatives of dealing Ganlas' products. Unbeknownst to Arthrago and Ganlas however, the cartel were merely feigning interest in the product. Suddenly, the leader stabbed Ganlas and had his men restrain Arthrago. He spitefully informed him that this was his turf and that if he plans dealing drugs in the Rift, they need his permission first. They then proceeded to throw a broken and crying Arthrago outside onto the docks, where he lay for hours, contemplating his life. Then he decided to dedicate his life into becoming the bane of the cartel's existence, he wouldn't stop until he had driven them out of Riften by beating them at their own game.

    Years passed but he soon managed to organise a true criminal empire with the help of his inn after relocating to Whiterun. Using the money he made before Ganlas' untimely demise, he purchased more inns around Skyrim and hired a master alchemist to take Ganlas' place as chef and drug producer. Soon his empire grew and grew, to the point where owned five different inns across Skyrim, shipping his products along to every hold (though knowing he may incur the wrath of the other crime lords), taking advantage of his carriages transporting food and goods, he secretly placed skooma and sleeping tree sap within certain food barrels to transport across the country. He became more sophisticated than the cartel and just as wealthy, although they began to mockingly refer to him as the Innkeeper.

    The Innkeeper decided it was important to maintain a good public profile and soon personally saw to certain inns and became a good friend of the public. He also made certain to distance himself from his product. When Mjoll the Lioness arrived in Riften and started her vigilantism against crime, he sponsored her crusade and publicly backed her politically, helping her attain the title of Thane of Riften. He also began to make large donations to the guard forces in many different cities to ensure he be free from suspicion. Most recently he has had himself a large manor house constructed in which he raised his two children, who are now in their early twenties. Now, at the height of his empire, Frang lives alone, plotting the downfall of all competition that might pose a threat to him.


    EMPIRE CARD EXAMPLE:

    Crime Lord: Arthrago Frang

    Empire Name: Arthrago's Empire (No designated name)

    Base Hold: Whiterun

    Base of Operations: The Bannered Mare, underground alchemy lab.

    Means of Cartel: Arthrago owns 10 carriages of which are used to transport goods across to his five inns. Each inn will be visited by a carriage twice a week. The first carriage delivers the real supplies and skooma produced at the previously visited inn. The second will be given the inn's procured supplies and cooked skooma to transport along to the next inn. Once they have been given the skooma, certain dealers who have been given monopoly of Arthrago's product by Frang himself will be given the skooma to deal in exchange for a high price payed on a monthly contract. Each inn is expected to produce roughly 100 bottles of skooma a month (Roughly 25 bottles a week) with each bottle worth 200 septims. Every month a single inn from Arthrago's Empire makes a revenue of 20,000. Altogether his empire generates 100,000 septims a month, withstanding staff payment and mortgage on the inns

    Security: Sitting beside the carriage drivers are two well payed mercenaries. They vary from accomplished archers, master swordsmen, powerful Mages but all are more than capable of fending off a lone bandit raid and surviving with minimal wounds. Although should a more professional raid arrive, like that of a rival cartel who's aware of his dealings, they may suffer more damage. Alternatively, Arthrago doesn't believe fear to be an effective motivator, thus he rarely hires thugs to intimidate people. He instead chooses to inspire loyalty and respect as he believes that a worker will work best if he is invested in the business. However, should the need ever arise, he will happily arrange the assassination or death of those who have wronged him or deserve it. When he wants someone dead, he will hire the best and most trusted assassin he possibly can.

    Empire Rules:
    1. No talking with guards.
    2. No drinking while working
    3. You always obey Arthrago Frang
     

    Majir-Dar

    Confused Khajiit

    AS88

    Well-Known Member
    Staff member
    This looks interesting. Has anyone laid claim to the Reach yet?

    *Ponders*
     

    Majir-Dar

    Confused Khajiit
    No, it's all free. My area is Eastmarch, The Phantom's is Whiterun, and Specter of Death has claimed Falkreath.
     

    AS88

    Well-Known Member
    Staff member
    Hmmmm..

    How will this work, exactly?
     

    Majir-Dar

    Confused Khajiit
    How do you mean? Are you asking how the criminal empires will function together?
     

    Majir-Dar

    Confused Khajiit
    The idea is to have each organization do what criminal organizations do. Put their people in places of power (like the Jarl), gain money, take down their rivals, and etc. Drug trafficking, prostitution, piracy, anything you can do to make money and destroy your enemies.

    You are the head of your own criminal empire, think of yourself as a sort of mob boss.
     

    AS88

    Well-Known Member
    Staff member
    Yeah, how involved will the holds be with each other? Obviously this will depend on the character and other reasoning, etc.

    Will we write from within the hold, as individual characters like mini fan-fics between interactions, or will everything be done via one character? Will there be a set timeline, ie one IRL week is equal to one season?
     

    Majir-Dar

    Confused Khajiit
    Yeah, how involved will the holds be with each other? Obviously this will depend on the character and other reasoning, etc.

    Will we write from within the hold, as individual characters like mini fan-fics between interactions, or will everything be done via one character? Will there be a set timeline, ie one IRL week is equal to one season?
    The holds will be deeply involved with each other, you're more or less business rivals after all.

    As far as I know everything will be done via one character. You'll have him give the orders to his lessers, write letters, and so forth.
     

    AS88

    Well-Known Member
    Staff member
    Yeah, sounds interesting. Would there be any licence to go to a population-based interlude or mini stories? I feel like one of the weaknesses of this sort of RP is the lack of connection to the people in the hold, if you see what I mean.
     

    The Phantom

    Consulting Criminal
    I was going to suggest that. A hold based perspective could be interesting, another suggestion is that we could also portray parts from the point of view of your workers. For example, if your character wants someone assassinated, write from the assassin's perspective.
     

    AS88

    Well-Known Member
    Staff member
    I was going to suggest that. A hold based perspective could be interesting, another suggestion is that we could also portray parts from the point of view your workers. For example, if your character wants someone assassinated, write from the assassin's perspective.

    Yeah, even if it took a little ooc to explain the situation, it might add some extra depth.

    Maybe if that was used it'd be better to have a season every fortnight, to try not to stretch the writers too far?
     

    AS88

    Well-Known Member
    Staff member

    Valin Oakthorn

    Vagabond Extraordinaire
    Joseph Black-Briar
    Scales
    1784046-1343271982.jpg

    GENERAL
    » NAME Joseph Black-Briar
    »ALIAS Scales
    » AGE 1682
    » APPARENT AGE 24
    » RACE Nord
    » GENDER Male
    » CLASS Vampric Crime Lord
    » BIRTH DATE 1E 2679
    » BIRTH PLACE Unknown
    » HEIGHT 6'1
    » WEIGHT 170
    » BUILD Muscular, Sleek
    » LATERALITY Right
    » SEXUALITY Straight
    » MARITAL STATUS Bachelor
    » AFFILIATIONS The Thieves Guild, Black-Briars
    » AFFLICTIONS Vampirism
    » RELIGION None
    » HABITS None
    » HOBBIES Feeding, Sex
    » PROPERTIES Black-Briar Lodge (Now much larger and called Black-Briar Estate)
    »EMPIRE NAME The Black-Briars
    »EMPIRE BASE HOLD The Rift

    PERSONALITY
    »DESCRIPTION Joseph is extremely charismatic and charming. He is calm and collected along with funny and joyful. This is however coupled with a terrible temper, dark humor, grudge holding, a lack of care for human life, and taking joy in the hunt and catching of "prey" before he feeds. He is however bound by an extreme code of honor, and cannot break a promise once he states that he gives his word.
    »GOOD Charming, honorable, somewhat funny, and joyful.
    »BAD Dark, hateful, temper, and cruel.
    »LIKES Sex, drugs, money, blood, women.
    »DISLIKES Fools, failures, enemies, tsaesci.
    »FEARS Death
    »ASPIRATIONS Become the greatest drug lord, never die.

    APPEARANCE
    »FACE High cheek bones, strong jaw, slight underbite, handsome.
    »HAIR Very, very short stubble.
    »FACIAL HAIR Sideburns, blonde
    »EYES A cold grey
    »SKIN Medium.

    GEAR
    »ARMOR None
    »CLOTHES Large fur decorative cloak.
    »WEAPONS His claws and fangs
    »TOOLS Lockpicks
    »MISC Skooma, quill and parchment.
    »SPELLS None

    FIGHTING STYLE
    »DESCRIPTION Joseph's fighting style is not skilled nor elegent, but rather savage and ruthless. He fights with his claws and fangs. A single bite can be lethal, if he can achieve one.
    »PROS Works without a weapon. Deadly sneak attacks.
    »CONS Weak to attacks from a distance, or anyone skilled enough in combat to avoid his claws and fangs. Almost completely worthless when fighting someone whos armor covers their major pulse points.

    BIO
    »CHILDHOOD Joseph was born and lived a relatively normal life as a farmers son early in the first era.

    »TEENAGE Joseph, like most nords was fascinated with battle and fighting as he grew older, though with his father only a farmer he had no place to learn to fight. He attempted to teach himself but only managed to create a crude iron sword that he would flail about at hay bails some days.
    »EARLY ADULTHOOD At the rather young age of 24 the Tsaesci invaded skyrim. The farm stood unprotected. As a single Tsaesci approached the farm, Joseph ran out, sword in hand. The boy didn't even finish his swing before two long fangs pierced his neck.


    When he awoke, he ran into the farm house, only to find his parent lying in a pool of their own blood. Thrown into a rage, he began to feed each night on people of the town, however, without anyone showing him how to prevent drawing attention from hunters, he was soon forced into hiding. It was only when a beautiful young woman came into town that his life would change.

    Just as he approached her, his fangs ready, she turned around, face pale and red eyes. She too was a vampire, and after years of teaching Joseph how to act as one, a relationship began to develop. They eventually get married. However, it just so happened that the townspeople were not so easily fooled by their tricks.

    There was an old mage among them, his family had been killed by vampires years ago, and he held a deep hatred for the creatures of the night. As the two vampires slept one night in a cave, the mage rolled a stone over the entrance and cast a spell. So long as his descendants shall live, the door will never open. What the mage didn't know was that the couples ten year old son had snuck out that night to explore a nearby forest.

    This boy would go one to have children, and those children had children, all the way down to the powerful Maven Black-Briar. Maven would one day read of the story of the Black-Briar vampires, and call upon none other than the dark brotherhood to assassinate the last living descendant of the mage.

    One thousand years can do a lot to a person, especially a vampire, who wants blood. Joseph spent those years thinking about how the Tscaesi ruined his life, and how his dear wife had laid down to sleep, falling into a coma when the thirst had become to much. When that door rolled open, that vengeful vampire came out of the cave soon finding the nearest town, Riften.

    »PRESENT ADULTHOOD Joseph would come to riften, finding out that his family had gone on to establish a large mead industry making quite a bit of money in the mean while. Joseph would be accepted into the family, but it was one fateful night that he would become the most powerful man in riften.

    He was out walking the docs when he decided to step inside the old warehouse, to find a man dealing skooma. Fascinated by the drug, he slashed the mans throat, and sold the skooma for a high price. He bought more, and sold more. The drug business began for the Black-Briars.

    Years later, he began placing drops of his blood in the skooma, causing a strong addiction, only able to be filled by his skooma. However, rumors of a tree sap skooma that fulfilled the addiction even better popped up.

    Joseph created a fake business deal with the dealers, only to stab them in the back and throw one of them out on the street.

    The Black-Briars
    The Black Rose
    black_rose_coterie__537790.png


    GENERAL
    »NAME The Black-Briars
    »NICK NAME The Black Rose
    »CRIME LORD Joseph Black-Briar
    »SYMBOL A Black Rose
    »BASE HOLD The Rift
    »BASE OF OPERATIONS The Ratway
    »ORGANIZATION The orginization of the empire is based off of the insignia. The Blossom represents the crime lord at the top, and ultimate leader. The five leaves beneath it represent the other Black-Briars, including his parylized wife. The two larger leaves represent their means of making money, mead and skooma. The thorns are the different branches of employees for the empire, the thieves guild, the nobles, and the producers.
    »MEANS OF CARTEL Mead is made in the meadery and transported via carriage to clients within Riften, Ivarstead, and Shor's Stone. Skooma is made in a new section of ratway, a single drop of Joseph's blood is placed in each batch (100 bottles) causing users to have a slight feeling of loyalty toward the man for no reason they can figure out, along with an addiction only his skooma can satisfy. This skooma is sent out on carriages throughout the rift and skyrim.
    »CARTEL SECURITY Every carriage is given both a thieves guild guard and a "thorn" guard. The thorns are a group of old thieves that Joseph has turned and trained in his fighting style. This allows for a heavy security, preventing most attacks from anything, but lowers the number of carriages able to be sent out each month. They make around 600,000 septims per month.
    »ALLIANCES Thieves guild, Riften nobility.
    »RULES 1. Kill any other empire agents found within Riften's walls. 2. Do not obtain vampirism from any other location than Joseph. 3. Always respect the Black-Briars. 4. Do not commit crimes against people loyal to the rose.
     

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