Under New Management (Modern mob/hitman inspired sandbox game)

[RampantDesires]

Current Thread Listing

Thread Listing and Descriptions

Recruitment - Still and always open.
General OOC - Chit chatting and what not.
Game OOC, Requests, and Announcements - A thread so that questions and specific requests don't get lost.
Setting Information and Character Roster


The Continental Hotel (Public Areas) - The general public areas of the hotel, street outside, lobby, front desk.

The Continental Hotel (Private Areas) - Personal rooms, the surgery, places off limits to those without invitation.

The Continental Hotel (Basement Club) - Still trying to come up with a name.  A place to unwind, seek companionship, have a drink. 

St. Bartholomew's Church - While you can still attend confession the church has a rather ... liberal view on traditional sinning.  Used by many as a meeting place for both contracts and deliveries.

New York City - The city that never sleeps, from the upscale appointment of a mob family's penthouse apartment to the dingy alleyway where your latest kill awaits their dinner reservation.  All of the action that occurs inside the city but outside the hotel itself.

The Great Wide World - Everything that happens outside New York, traveling, other jobs, ect.

So to get this out of the way, yes I watched John Wick last night and rather enjoyed the experience.  My brain almost immediately latched onto the idea that it would make a fairly fun group game and it has been unwilling to let that go so I thought I'd at least put up a quick proposal/interest check to see if anyone else agreed.  (Let's face it, who DOESN'T want to write a badass contract killer?) 

I apologize somewhat in advance because I can be kind of long winded.  Thank you for bearing with me!

The Basics
Distilled down a bit from Moraline's Topics to Cover in Group Games List

What is it?
A modern day non-system based game set in New York city which would probably go in the Non-consensual Human Group section here on E.  Third person past tense writing please.

Who's it open to?
Anyone and everyone is welcome to join with characters of any gender or sexual orientation.  New players will always be welcome, the nature of a hotel is to have people constantly coming and going which makes it ideal for dealing with idle players as well.

Any prerequisites?
You don't HAVE to have seen the movie, but it might be helpful in setting the general tone and feel (just watching the trailer is probably sufficient really).

Who's the GM?
Yours truly.  I think I've got my group game groove down pretty well and am not looking for a co-GM at this time.  I'm a fan of ooc dialogue be it in a group thread, PM, or some kind of messenger service so please don't hesitate to share questions/comments/concerns. 

What kind of characters will be involved?
With the majority of the action taking place in The Continental Hotel, a neutral ground for the who's who of assorted undergrounds, mob families, and contract killers, most characters will generally be either one of the before mentioned guests or staff in the hotel. (I'll give a list of characters that I'm specifically interested in recruiting later on along with a character sheet to fill out, this is just a quick summary).  All characters are HUMAN.  Granted some are super badass humans, but there are no paranormal elements to the story, and your characters is not going to be the best at everything.

Game pacing and tone?
I realize that people's posting speeds can be wildly varying.  There isn't going to be a post requirement, but try to stay in contact with your fellow writers and keep scenes from stalling out (if it has been over a week since we've heard from you expect a polite 'hey what's up?' message in your inbox.   While it is a sandbox game and people are welcome even encouraged to bring their own angles and drama into the fold there will be GM driven events and story lines in which player participation is optional.    How often these events occur depends on general posting speed and we'll work out how time shifts as we go (will likely start just by opening up the full day for general posting and trust players to look at time tags to make sure everyone is on the same page).   I generally see moving to a new day every month or so.  Not terribly fast paced but steady is the goal.

All of this kind of depends on how many other people are interested but I would like to start out with three main IC threads.  One with the hotel public areas (the street out front, check in, lobby, bar, basement ect), another for private rooms (where any sexytime activities will  likely be kept, there can be as much or as little sex involved as you'd like here, but nothing inherent to the game), and another for anything that happens outside the hotel. There will be a small collection of GM created NPCs put out there for general use, players should feel free to use them in their posts or even make up new NPCs that fit for their scene.  There will be a lot of NPC death I imagine.  However there will also be NPCs that are restricted to only GM posting who are untouchable without prior discussion.  These will be clearly marked and I don't see it being a problem really.

Will there be PvP?
Yes and no.  While it is a game of mercenaries/killers and generally 'bad guys'  The Continental Hotel is neutral ground.  Anyone breaking this truce is dealt with swiftly and with brutal effectiveness (read a bullet to the head).  PvP will be allowed on a consensual basis.   If you want to start a rivalry/take a hit on/be a jerk toward another character then send a PM and discuss things first.  There isn't going to be a combat system, just all of us being adults together and working things out before hand. 



Alright I think that's all of the nuts and bolts stuff that needs to be covered, kind of boring really.  Thank you for reading through it all though :)  Soon to come the flavor!

• Setting Information
• Character Creation

[RampantDesires]

The Continental Hotel

1 Wall Street Court, located at the intersection of Wall Street, Pearl Street, and Beaver Street.  Built in 1904 the building has undergone several renovations over the years, the most recent of which being three years ago.  Outwardly not  particularly impressive it blends in well with the New York City skyline drawing only passing attention from tourists or passerbys.  Inside it is a picture of lavish comfort.  No expense was spared, no corners were cut in the renovations.  Polite, efficient and knowledgeable staff  provide any service you might require ... as long as you can pay of course. 

General Rules
1) No business on hotel property. Most cardinally, no hassling/killing of other guests.
Upon further reflection there really is only one rule...
*if you have to ask what the rules are you don't belong here
     ~The Management

The Continental prides itself on being civilized.  Though the world they live in can often be brutal and ugly the hotel has distanced itself from those darker aspects, at least upon the surface.  When calling for a body clean up, you don't mention how many corpses, instead you make a dinner reservation.  One does not simply call down and ask for a M40 to be delivered to their room.  They ask to speak to the concierge about a 2009 vintage with a full body suited to attending a party tomorrow with five of your friends who are traveling in from quite some distance (lets her know you need a sniper rifle, preferably an M40-A5  with all the options which came out in 2009, by tomorrow). 

People staying on permanently in the hotel is a rather rare thing.  Part of being neutral territory is not allowing any one group to use their property as a base of operations.

As of right now there are:
Management and their personal security.  (Swords' Killian will likely fall in this group)
Cesar, as head of security it is important for him to be on hand, his desire to make a break from his background also makes him a bit of a special case.  Also owns property in upstate New York.
Tori, having been effectively been adopted by a member of Management at a young age she's been at the hotel off and on since she was 11, she's willing to work insane hours and devote herself to the operation which has earned her a room shared with Sadie.
Sadie, being on 24/7 call it is important to have her on the property and makes her easier to watch.
Chase, keeping the good doctor ready to attend to emergencies and under surveillance seems like a good idea too.
Sophie, another kind of adoptee her room is available whenever she's in town.
Vivian, likely has her own apartment as well as a room at the hotel because she is required so often to attend to odd requests at all hours of the day.

(that's the current list, if you'd like to make a case for your character to be moved onto it I'm all ears.. err, eyes?)




The Management
Though the people running the place have slowly changed over the years one thing has remained constant.  They are scary enough to keep the boogeymen of the criminal underworld in check.  In order to maintain their neutral status is it important for the hotel to not have a single owner, there are always at least two, sometimes as many as five members of Management at any given time. Moving into the Conteniental is both a matter of timing as well

Winston - Old school Italian mafia there was a point that Winston and his family almost seemed to run the streets of New York.  (The rather impressive gentleman you see from the movie)
Tamara - Born in Russia her rather eventful life led her all over the world, collecting favors and international contacts like they were candy. (Rampant's Management NPC, sheet in progress)
Cerigo's a Slacker - A DA or politician of some kind he's very good at making legal problems and the like go away with connections both dirty and legitimate. (He says he's working on this and up for connections plotting :P)




Coin System
Resembling gold krugerrands their gold content alone puts their value at somewhere around $1.5k USD, but no one has thought of melting one down or selling one for scrap.  A symbol of status, of skill, they are traded among the criminal elite, purchasing favors and things that mere money alone cannot.  The Continental only accepts these rare coins as payment for a room (depending on the length of the stay and the demanding nature of the guest this amount can vary). 

The coins themselves and the tradition of using them among the criminal elite is actually much older than the hotel itself and the Continental has merely adopted and refined the practice.

Img is kind of a place holder until I find a better one.

In the interest of fairness we're probably going to restrict players from starting with more than twenty of these coins in their possession (and you need a damn good reason why you've started with so many).  There will be ways to earn more through out game play, both from GM events and from other players.  This isn't going to be a heavily tracked system, it is just to keep everyone kind of on the same playing field.

Common Uses
Clean up and disposal of bodies.  Called requesting a dinner reservation there is a crew of professions who, for the price of one coin per body, will make sure that all evidence is taken care of and your building is left in pristine condition.  When arranged through the hotel it is also understood that SHOULD there ever be an investigation all of that mess will be taken care of for you as well.

Entrance to the club in the basement of the hotel.  The single coin covers your night's entertainment, any food or drink or ... hotel supplied companionship you might request.  The fee also covers your own +1 if you so wish, favorite cousin, girl you're trying to impress, business acquaintance what have you, so long as they  understand what's going on and you accept responsibility for their behavior. (For those without ready access to coins this benefactor can be an NPC, I'm not trying to exclude any one, just emphasis the kind of elite nature of what you're dealing with here). You need not be staying at the hotel to come and staff have their own entrance.

Contract work.  While some might offer money, coins are by far the more preferable currency.  Easily portable, untraceable and worth more in the long run.  Not just killing, buying information and other favors all fall under this umbrella.  The actual fee is worked out between both parties.

[RampantDesires]

Character Creation

Please fill out a character sheet and either PM it to me or post it here in the thread. 

Name: Feel free to include nicknames, former names, and aliases here
Title/Status: A very brief summary of your character's affiliation (staff, looking for work, mob family affiliation)
Age:
Height:
Weight:
Hair:
Eyes:
Physical Description: Model =
Please stick to realistic images.  We're not going to do a face claim list I trust that y'all can scan through the list of characters and not make duplicates.

History: I like details. He was born, now he's awesome. The End.  Does not work for me, but nor do I need a yearly break down of everything that has happened to your character.  Please aim for two or three paragraphs and account for the special skills your character has.

Skills:  Feel free to be brief here.  This is more for the hitman characters. 
Personality/Motivations: Pick a few adjectives that describe your character (both good and bad) and talk about their general temperament/drive
Likes (non sexual): The good stuff, what does your character enjoy
Dislikes (non-sexual): Pet-peeves, allergies, whatever, the bad flavors that make up your character :P
Sexual Preference: A brief discussion of your character's sexual leanings and experience
Turn Ons : Alternately (or in addition to) please feel free to link to your personal O/O's
Turn Offs:

RP Thoughts/Plans:  What are you excited about writing? Looking for ties with other players?  What are some places/situations that people might find your character?

Code Select Expand


[float=right][img height=250 padding=8] your image link here [/img][/float]
[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Title/Status:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Height:[/b]
[b]Weight:[/b]
[b]Hair:[/b]
[b]Eyes:[/b]
[b]Physical Description:[/b] Model =
[b]History:[/b]

[b]Skills:[/b]
[b]Personality/Motivations:[/b]
[b]Likes (non sexual):[/b]
[b]Dislikes (non-sexual):[/b]
[b]Sexual Preference:[/b]
[b]Turn Ons :[/b]
[b]Turn Offs:[/b]

[b]RP Thoughts/Plans:[/b] 


I'll be making the front desk person as it seems the easiest way for me to be active as a GM and what not.

Positions to be Filled

Old Requests

At least one Doctor (possibly two and or a nurse) - Someone has to patch these people up when they come back
Bartender - Even hitmen need to blow off steam.  The basement of The Continental is a fully stocked bar/club area.
A Personal Shopper (someone who knows how to find pretty much anything you need) Reopened and actively seeking.
A Member of Management  - Indeed, one of the new bosses needs to be a player character I think.  This is going to require a lot of chatting with me both during character creation and during the game so be up for that please! DarkAngel111 has expressed interest
Security is taken very seriously.  While largely self policing there are times that peace needs to be restored and offenders need to be punished. Full up for time being.
The Cleaning Crew - "Will you be needing a dinner reservation?" That makes me laugh every time.  But the disposal of bodies and evidence is a rather important task and they get paid VERY well for it. Though other members of the same cleaning crew or a rival team could be possible.

1) I'm still open to another member of management.  Keep in mind this character is going to be a bit older, less killer extraordinaire and more criminal mastermind. 

2) Some kind of money person.  These guys deal with multi million dollar payments, making this happen without drawing attention is important.  Cleaning money for mafia families, hell just providing retirement options to aging contract killers sounds like it could be a lot of fun :P

3) Speaking of mafia families I think more organized crime members in New York would be AMAZING.  So far Nic and Loves have members of the same family and I think they'd be open to more, but rivals would be great.  We have all of these people in the city looking for jobs, a crime war would provide a ton of work and drama opportunity., but I really don't want to end up NPCing a whole different family myself.

4)  While Cerigo is making a former DA member of Management, but I also think that there's room for more characters like that.  Lawyers, cops, politicians what have you who are all on the take in some way or another. If you wanted to go totally radical you could have someone who is genuinely interested in cleaning up the city and cracking down on organized crime, but I fear your crusader would not be long for this world.

It also occurs to me belatedly to talk about restrictions.

We have three characters with STRONG US military backgrounds (former SEALS/marines/rangers)  so I'm going to go ahead and put the cap on that for the time being.  Other military groups (Sayeret Matkal, Spetsnaz ,  SAS... damn a lot of them start with s's don't they?) are still welcome, but variety is good :)


The rest of the characters will be either other hotel staff or contract killer types. I'm actually debating opening that last part up to all 'world class' criminals who could conceivably belong to an elite club.  Art thieves looking for a safe place to stay in town, almost anything really, if you have an idea for a character just pitch it and we'll make it work.

Getting a job at The Conteniental isn't like normal places.  There is no resume or general interview process.  Most people fall into one of two categories.  Working off a debt, to Management or other important people.  Their service at the hotel is for a set amount of time where upon the debt is wiped clean.  Under Management protection.  So you or someone in your family pissed off the wrong people?  Someone paid to have you placed in The Continental to protect you from the fallout as killing/blackmailing staff is heavily discouraged. 

A Quick Discussion About Character Creation

So with each new character sheet if feels like we're suffering from a bit of power creep and I'm going to ramble for a bit.  Please keep in mind that this isn't me trying to pick on anyone.  I just want everyone to be on the same page and to start writing a story that we're all going to enjoy.

Making a character for a group game is much different from making one for a 1v1.  When you're just writing with another person all the bases are covered by either you, your partner, or any NPCs you might happen to throw in (but lets face it, writing main characters tends to be more fun in the long run).  Group games tend to be about finding your niche.  What are the few things that your character shines at which would cause others to seek them out, and conversely what are your character's weaknesses which force them to work with others to achieve a goal. 

I'm not going to try and argue that we're trying to make realistic characters here.  While it's set in the modern world it isn't the real world, it is a hyper focused criminal shadowy world.  By all means bend some history and make something that you're excited to play.  The problem comes when we transition from bending to broken.  No one likes broken. 

It takes some time to master a skill let alone become world class at them.  Natural talent only gives you so much of a boost.  We're talking years upon years here of devoting yourself to that thing.  Your level of aptitude at something should be inversely proportional to the number of other things you've been studying.  Jack or Jill of all Trades? Sure, you've picked up bits and pieces of everything along the road, but the end of that line is Master of None.  It makes you good at working solo, keeping your MO unpredictable, and lets you kind of round out a team so that you can fill in spots as needed, but you know what? All those things you can do? You're probably going to meet someone in the game who is better at one of those things. 

And that is a GOOD thing.  That's what makes it fun writing in a group. 

So I think that's my rant.  It is just kind of a general cautionary tale and something to keep in mind going forward.

I think it merits repeating :)

[Juggtacular]

I'm preemptively marking interest.

[RampantDesires]

I'm preemptively marking interest.

Excellent!

I'm only partially through doing the setting information, and the character profile section is mostly done but I'll be tweaking the looking for part of it.  However  it is one AM and my happy butt needs to go to bed. 

Please feel free to ask questions and what have you but keep in mind this info is going to heavily updated in the next day or so.

[Loves]

I knew our paths would cross again!
Sign me up :)

[Swashbuckler]

Please put me down for interest in one of the Doctor positions

[Kekec]

I'm interested as well.

[Lynnette]

Possibly interested in a shopper or headhunter, I'll see if I can come up with something :)

[Loves]

I'm thinking either a nurse, hotel manager or maid.

Maybe two out of three :)

[RampantDesires]

Mere words cannot express how happy I am to see all of your faces! :)  It looks like we have enough interest to get the ball rolling at least. 

I'm currently working on fleshing out the Setting info but after that I'll fill out a few character sheets.  I'll have three kind of personal characters, the front desk, I'm thinking maybe a former IRA member (well Óglaigh na hÉireann, a Real IRA splinter group) who is currently in town laying low for some reason or another, and the third kind of depends on what people who make the 'bad guys' are looking for in the game (and also what Reaper's character might turn out as if she'd like to fill the roll I'd be fine with that :) ).  I like the idea of having someone called the Matchmaker.  A permanent resident of the hotel who respects the rule of no business on the property ... but if you were perhaps to invite her out to dinner and explain either that you were looking for work or to have something done, well, anything is possible!

Possible Players
Juggtacular - General Interest
Loves - Nurse, hotel manager, or maid
Swashbuckler - Doctor
Kekec - General Interest
ReaperDouble0 - Personal shopper or headhunter

[xPeachyPuff]

Might be interested in this, though I haven't seen the film you mentioned. Ill check out some trailers and such of it later tonight. Will have to have a think about what sort of character I'd want to play though.

- Rainbow ♥

[Juggtacular]

I think I'm gonna go for a John Wick type. All around badass who gets paid a great deal for his expertise.

[1SAZ]

My interest, you may have it.

[Aiden]

I am posting tentative interest, I have no interest in being an assassin.

I like the idea of a security/internal police/enforcer. You break the rules of the house, you die/fitting punishment.

Or a cleaner, disposer of bodies and contact for all hit men who need a clean up crew. That type of job = Lots of gold coins coming his way.  XD

[Swordsman18]

Is this like the season of people watching John Wick? I was already fishing for a partner for a solo game but this seem like a good idea as well.

[Lumasan]

Putting in my interest here. :D Will be working on a character, this is just letting ya know.

OMFG THIS SI SO AWESOME I'M SO GLAD SOMEONE ELSE HAD THE SAME IDEA.

[Lumasan]

Actually mark me down as a bartender. I'm thinking of putting in some twists there, like could she possibly fill in on slow nights for entertainment? *shrugs* Just ideas. Obviously, I don't want her to be just a bartender, perhaps she's a retired contract killer. Would be a nice spin on it.

[la dame en noir]

Is there a way to have a dancer/spy type of character? Either way i'm interested.

[ElvenKitten]

Tentative interest as a "Cleaner"  :D

[Bibliophilia]

I would really be interested in playing the concierge.  The one who can get you what you need, never casting judgement, asking questions or letting what she has seen or heard pass her pretty lips.  She would be known for being capable of fulfilling any request, no matter how outrageous or unsettling, for the right price.

Face claiming Angelina Jolie.

[Loves]

I've decided to go with the nurse role
Please, and thank you
:)

[Bibliophilia]

Name: Vivian Warner
Title/Status: Concierge
Age: 28
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 154
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue-Green
Physical Description: Vivian is a stunning beauty with strong, angular features, flawless bone structure and pleasing curves.  Her full lips and arresting eyes enhance the untouchable presence that surrounds her, a sense of distance which remains even when she is at her most affable.  She most often dresses in chic, high-end business attire, supplementing the corporate dress with her own elegant sense of style.  She has a few minor tattoos, located in places which are typically covered by her work clothes, or hidden beneath a layer of concealer and powder.  Her make-up is impeccable and tailored to enhance her natural beauty, understated for everyday, though it takes on a more dramatic tone for parties and events.

Additional Images

Model = Angelina Jolie

History: Vivian was always a very bright girl, though her intelligence was accompanied by a rebellious streak a mile wide.  These traits led to a moral flexibility and self-serving nature that prompted her parents to send her to several psychiatrists as she grew older and more difficult to control.  However, rather than helping to normalize her behavior, all this did was cause her to seek more manipulative and subtle means of getting her way.  She learned to hide her nature behind a veneer of conformity and acquiescence, all the while refining her skills at acquiring what she desired.

Her criminal behavior graduated from petty shoplifting, to using her charm and beauty to manipulate grown men into buying her whatever she desired.  Her intelligence served her well when it came to school, and she graduated at the top of her class, after which she moved away from home and in with her most recent conquest.  Her taste for dangerous, wealthy men led her inevitably to the bed of a high-ranking member in one of the mafia families.  From him, she began to develop the skills and contacts required to move in the criminal underworld, where her moral lassitude was an asset, rather than a flaw.  By the time their relationship ended, she had cultivated a good many friendships among those who deal outside of the law, her keen mind, looks and lack of judgement making the task that much easier.

When the management of The Continental Hotel went looking for someone to serve as their concierge, she was their first choice.  While she never dirtied her hands with wetwork, she was well-known as the woman to go to if one needed something, or required someone to fulfill a job.  Her discretion and lack of curiosity had built her a reputation that was nearly unparalleled.  The idea of working for the notorious, and renowned hotel intrigued her, and so she accepted their job offer.

Skills: Charm, manipulation, discretion, connections, adaptability, reading people/situations, moral turpitude.

Personality/Motivations: Vivian is charming company, quite clever and capable of carrying on a brilliant conversation about almost any subject.  She's quite good at reading people and situations, and adapting herself to suit them, giving others what they need in order to get what she wants out of them.  It's difficult to know who she truly is, since she is someone different for every person she meets.  At times amiable and sweet, or professional and distant, or even seductive and flattering, it all depends upon the role the person and/or situation calls for.  She's conscientious about maintaining her business relationships, knowing that to allow any one of them to grow stale would cause her more problems down the line.  Her personal relationships, however, remain largely superficial, and if she feels a lover is growing too close or asking more from her than she is willing to give, she ends things immediately.  This is the main reason she never mixes business and pleasure, and has gained a reputation for maintaining a gentle, though clear, distance from those involved in her work.

Likes (non sexual): High-end fashion, gourmet food, luxury cars, black and white movies, jazz music, Chanel No. 5, sapphires, stiletto heels, intelligent conversation

Dislikes (non-sexual): Loud people, cooking smells, bad wine, coarse fabrics, rom-coms, diamonds, stupidity, tastelessness, rap, not getting her way

Sexual Preference: Omnisexual, her attraction stems from personality and intelligence, rather than gender

Turn Ons : Men in suits, high-end lingerie, confidence, sexual tension, teasing, foreplay, inventiveness (Vivian is a switch, though BDSM need not be involved, for a more general list see my O/Os in my signature)

Turn Offs: Slovenliness, lack of discretion, cruelty, profuse flattery, low self-esteem, weak-willed partners (See my O/Os for more general information)

RP Thoughts/Plans: I haven't any for the moment.  I'd like to explore the interactions between Vivian and her clients at the hotel, as well as any employers and co-workers that end up being played.

[Lynnette]

Since Biblio took the Concierge role, I'll make my character an elite contractor or something :)

[RampantDesires]

Holy crap.  So I think I underestimated you guys :)

Alright, where to start...

I'm super happy so many of you are interested.  I'll get up game threads today so that we can get things going. 

Bibliophilia, lovely to see you again and Vivian is very much good to go.  Reaper I think that a recruiter/contractor would have a lot of action in the game and I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Swords, what can I say, I missed the movie while it was in theaters, but it DID just come out as a general release and we've already watched it twice :P

Is there a way to have a dancer/spy type of character? Either way i'm interested.

Dancer spy type character ... I suppose if would depend on who your spy was reporting to :) If someone outside Management there would be some repercussions if it ever came to light that she was working on hotel property, but it could be fun to write.  Please feel free!

Possible Players
Juggtacular - Hitman
Loves - Nurse
Swashbuckler - Doctor
ReaperDouble0 - Headhunter/recruiter
xSnorkleRainbow - General Interest
1SAZ - General Interest
Aiden - Management enforcer or Cleaner
Swordsman18 - General Interest
Lumasan - Bartender/Club entertainment (feel free to go with both yes)
la dame en noir - Dancer/Spy
ElvenKitten - Cleaner

I think that's everyone.  For people potentially interested in the same roles (like Elven and Aiden with possible cleaners) you can either get together and form kind of a team or run competing services whichever you find most interesting.  I'm sure there's going to be more than enough work to go around :D