mafia server lore!

```The Game```
For as long as people have decided what's right and wrong, people have thought of ways to get around those notions. A crime for one may be a necessity for another- though, said necessities can always be turned around for profit. Groups that specialize in items and actions that go against our social standard are far from uncommon, and people have learned to live with them regardless of their walk of life.

Both the mundane and the *unusual* are tempted by the sights and sounds and vices of the criminal underground. Wolfsbane wine to intoxicate the lycanthropic, the thick fur coats of selkies given by the hour, blades of silver and iron, shimmering concoctions from another world- all are sold just as readily as average weapons and street drugs. There are many players in the game of the black market, and few discriminate between the paranatural and the supernormal. The first person to break into a market stakes their claim on it- the ordinary are far from excluded.

Chicago. 1994. Tensions between two of the major supernatural crime families in the city are reaching a fever pitch. While La Alborada looks to hand off the reigns to its remaining golden child, the Hayes family rules the rest of the city with an iron fist and struggles to maintain its territory. Meanwhile, other gangs from far and wide coalesce, joining the power struggle in hopes of taking advantage of another's weakness while local authorities desperately try to keep the peace- and keep the average citizen from uncovering the secret hidden behind the glamour of city lights.

Rumor has it, the tensions between La Alborada and the Hayes family might boil over. Rumor has it, they'll bring the whole city down with them. But, that's just a rumor, don't you think? (for ads only: Maybe you should figure it out for yourself.)

[Content warnings for the server as a whole include: Gang violence (including but not limited to gun violence, mentioned character death, and blunt force trauma), mentions of sexual harassment and prostitution, cult-adjacent behavior, and mentions of drug trafficking. Some of this may be untagged. However, common content warnings (suicide, self harm, excessive violence and sexual content) will be tagged and spoiled appropriately.]

```The Players```
`The Hayes Family`
Old money, the Hayes family has made themselves friends of the city for generations. Nobody's questioned the friendly atmosphere that the patriarch exudes, or the way that people seem to hang on his every word. When you join the family, you're involved for life, and you will be treated as one of their own. As far as gangs go, the Hayes family is one of the oldest and one of the most difficult to break apart- a little money can go a long way, and blood is thicker than water. But... they can't all be related, can they? In general, the Hayes family deals with the vices and virtues of daily life, from funding public works within the city to running pleasure dens underground, dipping its fingers into human drugs and those of a stronger, more magical variety. It's difficult to go much of anywhere without finding a place that the Hayes family hasn't touched. Their defining traits, many of which are proudly displayed in day-to-day life, include a lunar crest, impeccable (if not overly formal) fashion, and stark blue eyes.

The Hayes family has a reputation that is difficult to break, but there are those in the underworld that rage against their machine. Most notably, a similar magical gang named La Alborada has begun encroaching on territory marked by the Family. This is a new development- in the past, La Alborada (particularly the gang that would later find itself at the syndicate's head) was friendly to the Hayes family. Rumors say that they split across because of a business transaction gone wrong- others say that love got too bittersweet to bear. Whatever it is, don't bring up the gang in front of Hayes family superiors unless you aren't particularly close to your tongue.

`La Alborada`
What was once a loose federation of vaguely associated gangs has, over the past two decades, coalesced into an organized force to be reckoned with. While primarily running protection rackets around the city, La Alborada is staking its claim on more and more territory previously held by other gangs. Acts may be as small as the street robberies of mortal gangs or as large as the blackmail and drug trafficking favored by the Hayes family- whatever it is, their name is on it, as not to let credit go to the undeserving. The implication sent with their expanded area of influence is clear: join them, or fall.

While certainly a threat to the status quo, there is something to be said for the ripple effect that they are causing. Those that previously had a stranglehold on markets are loosening their grip. Storefronts with the backing of La Alborada flourish. [add an extra thing here or reorganize for better flow] While individual members are granted the gift of anonymity, the gang itself is making itself a very public figure, placing itself in the same broad daylight that makes up its crest. Said crest, a stylized sigil of a rising sun, is tattooed on members as a symbol of becoming made in the gang. While the symbol can be *hidden*, odd magic makes it impossible to remove.

La Alborada was not *always* as organized as it is today. Previously, it was a chain of gangs, very loosely associated with one another and ultimately cautious. Showing somebody else your back makes you liable to be stabbed. As the story says, one of the most prevalent gangs in the syndicate held a close alliance with the Hayes family before suddenly, violently breaking ties. That faction's heir never spoke a word about what happened- he simply got to work. He pulled more of the other gangs together into La Alborada, and any records of aid from the Hayes Family were struck from the record.

`Kariudo-gumi`
Crime, both mundane and magical, is not isolated to one place. One group's reach can be nationwide, while another can be global. The Chicago branch of the Kariudo-gumi is an arm of a yakuza organization based in Fukuoka. While it's rare for yakuza to be globalized, the head of the Kariudo-gumi saw an opportunity for expansion and profit in the United States, sending one of her favored underlings to establish a stronghold. In contrast to the Hayes family and La Alborada, the Kariudo-gumi is surprisingly organized for being so new to the city. Members walk relatively openly, unafraid of repercussions (mostly because their actions are not explicitly illegal). The gang tends to work economically, setting up their own businesses (such as bars, arcades, and casinos) and cultural landmarks to launder money and earn from the populace in a somewhat legitimate way. However, beneath the veneer of city lights, they become somewhat more of a threat to the peace. Intimidation, blackmail, and weapon trafficking are all in the Kariudo-gumi's repertoire, a stark reminder that the gang is a force to be reckoned with.

`The Autumn Court`
Organizations (be they groups or places) in the city that find themselves entirely unaligned with the nature of gang politics are few and far between. Even fewer are the places that actively cater to the gangs in the city's underbelly. The Autumn Court is a cheeky reference to the fae that hide in various underbellies across the world. Equal parts cabaret and pleasure den, it specializes in otherworldly comforts of many varieties. While its operation is not *technically* legal due to prostitution and the distribution of drugs, the Autumn Court's enigmatic owners take care of their own, skirting the law to keep the lights on and enacting justice when anyone threatens those considered family. The doors are open to anyone in the club for anything you need, from a decent sawbones to a better drink to some company for the night. The only rule in what may otherwise be a lawless wasteland is that any other ties and fights are left at the door.

`The Summer Court`
It's uncommon for the Fair Folk to interfere with mortal affairs, too preoccupied in their own politics to meddle much with lesser beings. That being said, mortals do have things to offer the fae, and there are many ways of taking them. The Seelie are unique in that they dip their toes into mortal crime, their reach as wide as their territory (fae generally disrespect mortal borders, and the Seelie are seen across the world). The Summer Court's influence on Chicago specifically is not as great as other gangs, but it has agents in corners that you may not expect.

`Chicago Department of Magical Inquiry`
Sheer criminality is not the only concern of members of the city. The ordinary, true mortals without an ounce of magic, very rarely have use for the extraordinary. While most gangs are amicable to avoiding mortals in their day to day lives, said mortals *are* an untapped market, and still have money to give. The Chicago Department of Magical Inquiry [CDMI] acts as a semi-formal law force that keeps knowledge of the magical world secret. They deal with glamours for events that are harder to hide and counseling for the poor soul that stumbles upon what's better left alone. They aren't officially considered part of the Chicago Police Department, but they fill a similar enough role for those in the magical community that can't necessarily report a crime to CPD. This means that CDMI receives the same privileges and scorn that many CPD has earned. Additionally, there are similar organizations across the world, but there is no centralized governing body for magical law enforcement yet.

```The Rules```
- **All members are expected to be over 18 years of age** due to the content of the server and comfort of server members. If you are found to be under 18, you will be banned from the server- no exceptions. Similarly, all characters must appear (and physically be) over the age of 18. Given the fantastical nature of the server, there will be discrepancies in physical age and biological age. However, by no means are we allowing a 4000 year old that is in the body of a 6 year old, nor are we allowing 10 year olds to be physically 26. **Characters must be physically and emotionally over 18.**
- While this is an 18+ server, **please do not roleplay smut in any channel** and please keep all smut content in #nsfw. While this is not a safe for work server, it's also not a server meant for erotic roleplay. Thank you for understanding!
- The roleplay does not reflect personal beliefs or attitudes to any individual within the server itself. While characters may fight, this is not indicative of personal biases between rpers. In short, **in-character actions taken towards a character is not indicative of out-of-character feelings towards a roleplayer.**
- **This RP is for original characters only.** Self inserts will not be allowed.
- **Respect your other roleplayers.** If somebody asks to move a topic to a different place or drop a train of conversation, please do so. The moderators are around to settle debates, but please keep out-of-character conversation civil and respectful.
- Additionally, please observe proper in-character conduct. **No godmodding, autoing, force-shipping, or metagaming.** Don't assume that your character knows everything that you do out-of-character. Don't hound people for threads or enter a thread without permission. Please give people time for a response- we ask that you don't ping or bump a reply for at least two days.
- We love creativity! Please feel free to talk with the moderators about potential plot ideas or character concepts. The mods will try to help you work your idea into established lore! That being said, the moderators reserve the right to reject characters that don't fit the setting or may not be a representation of a concept made in good faith. Please ask your moderators if you have any questions about this rule, as it changes from concept to concept.
- Any piece of art posted into the server must be sourced. This is not a suggestion.