Strictures: Activity, Loyalty, Secrecy
Resources/Dues: Luxury. With an online casino and several examples in the latest in VR and BTL sex, and Choson Ring pretty much has a license to print money. Which they sometimes do, as a sideline.
Description: Every organized crime outfit in the world has long known the importance of having a virtual com- ponent—along with good Matrix security. The Choson Seoulpa Ring, though, has been in the leading edge of Matrix crime for years, and they continue to exist as an entirely virtual entity. The ring does not have any official facilities, though any of its higher-ranking members’ lux- ury homes can serve as impromptu meeting locations. But why bother with the meat world when they have such wonderful Matrix facilities? The ring runs the Anieyo Ca- sino, which is a mammoth deluxe virtual gaming site. Any kind of gaming you’re interested in can happen there, from obvious things such as card games to slots, to sports betting, to the sort of activities lots of governments and corporations frown on. Wanna lay odds on the number of bodies that will turn up in the Barrens Thursday morning? You can do that. How about betting on the outcome of a hot trial? Sure, that’s available too.
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That’s no big thing—people just guessing about current events. Why would any government or anything care?>
Chainmaker>
Because governments had too much experience with people making certain bets, then going out to influence the outcome.>
Kay St. IrregularWhile you’re in the back rooms, be sure to check out the Choson Ring’s selection of BTLs. Snuff films, porn, virtual drugs—you name it, they’ve got it. If you think you have a complete understanding of the full extent of metahuman depravity, examine their holdings. You will find whole new appalling ways people have of getting themselves off at the expense of others.
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Let me just jump in before the speculation or list-making begins and say this: No.>
GlitchThe business is lucrative and the customer traffic is high, but the Choson Ring deals with a particular chal- lenge that has kept other organized crime outfits from diving fully into the virtual world. When things are going well, organized crime outfits can keep violence to a min- imum, but they still rely on the threat of violence to keep things moving smoothly. One reason they are able to maintain the peace is because would rather comply with them rather than cross them, and the reason they do that is fear. The challenge, then, is how do you instill that fear in people when your organization is virtual, and you can’t round up your gang to pay a visit to the people who are causing you trouble? Matrix attacks, forced reboots, de- vice bricking, and bio-feedback are all tools a virtual gang has at its disposal, but what do you do about the person who crosses you and then disconnects entirely? How do you put the hurt on them?
This leads to some significant tasks for the Choson Ring’s Matrix personnel. Naturally, they have a lot to do maintaining the casino host, bringing in new program- ming, and making sure customers behave themselves, but they can’t just focus on that. They have to keep a very careful eye on critical people such as suppliers, bribed law-enforcement personnel, and high-value customers, just in case anything goes wrong with them. They are required to be expert trackers, able to give the physical location of any person at a moment’s notice (which means yeah, if you go to the Anieyo and make waves, you’re going to be noticed and someone is go- ing to try to track you. So behave yourself). They’ve gotta be skilled in Matrix assault, but they also need to have a database of hired muscle they can send to almost anywhere in the world at short notice. Keeping that database accurate and up-to-date is important, if not glamorous. Calling on help that betrayed you in the
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TRUE HACKERS, LUSERS & DIRTBALLS >>
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past, or is actually dead, is not a good way to maintain your reputation in the ring.
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Slamm-0! is right that maintaining the database is not glamorous, but think about the end result—an accurate database of reliable, skilled muscle. There is plenty of value there.>
Thorn>
Just remember that they are reliable for the Choson Ring, not necessarily anyone else. Keep that in mind when you think about how to present yourself.>
KiaThe Choson Ring will take on skilled, loyal hackers, but this is not a position you latch onto for fun and pres- tige. There are no dues, because joining the ring is all about sweat equity. You’re supposed to earn your keep. If you sign up, you need to be working on ring projects. And it should go without saying that you need to not talk about what you are doing or who your associates are, and you should never double-cross them. Orga- nized crime has never desired a reputation for mercy.
THE COOPERATIVE
Members: 10
Strictures: Dues, Privacy
Resources/Dues: Middle. Dues are 600 nuyen per month and are used to bolster security and secrecy for all group members. This includes online measures (im- proving their abilities, enhancing the Resonance Library, registering sprites) as well as offline ones (including funding safehouses and hiring shadowrunners).
Description: One of the longest-standing techno- mancer groups in existence, this group formed shortly after the Emergence, before most people had any idea what technomancers were. The three original mem- bers—Cortex, Wizbyte, and Slashdot—helped each oth- er understand what was happening to them. Since that point, they have been very active in any matters involv- ing technomancers, including exploring and exposing the corporate machinations surrounding technomancer experimentation. This did not put them on good terms with MCT and NeoNET, and the mutual grudge between those corps and the Cooperative continues to this day.
The original trio was very cautious about expansion, only allowing people they fully trust into their inner circle. Many people, including technomancers, have worked with the Cooperative in different circumstances over the the years, and it usually takes multiple such exposures before the Cooperative will invite a new member in. Most of the time, of course, the invitation does not happen at all. By 2072 the group had expanded up to seven mem- bers; in the intervening years they have only grown to ten. That growth is the result of four additions, not three, as the group lost a member in 2074. One of their mem-
bers, Engram, traveled to Las Vegas to participate in the anti-Horizon demonstrations taking place there. Of course, members of the Cooperative do not just travel someplace to wave AR signs and chant slogans. Engram was right in the middle of the Strip when technomancers launched their assault on Horizon (and any other nearby corp) holdings there, and as a result she was one of the first people killed in what became known as the Techno- mancer Massacre.
The Cooperative is not going to forget what hap- pened in Vegas, but they are also not foolish enough to believe that ten people, no matter how powerful they might be at manipulating the Matrix, are going to bring down a megacorporation. They also know that it’s very possible someone in Horizon discovered Engram’s iden- tity and traced her back to the Cooperative, as Horizon is not without hacking talent of its own. That means a substantial part of what they have been doing in recent years is playing defense, covering their tracks and iden- tities as much as possible to keep anyone, including Horizon and corporations that still might be interested in technomancer testing, from finding them.
Playing nothing but defense is not in their nature, though. They see opportunity in the CFD situation to bring some pain to one of their old nemeses, NeoNET, and they are anxious to find any evidence of their involvement in the events that led to the CFD virus. If you find anything interesting in your travels, make a copy if you can—the Cooperative may pay you handsomely for it.
That’s a lot to keep them busy, but they are not go- ing to forget about Horizon. They understand that the key is not for them to take on Horizon single-handed- ly—they’re pretty much a dirtball when compared to a mega. Their job is to find the right ally (or allies) who will do their dirty work for them. The Megacorporate Revision presents them a good opportunity. Double-A corps who were passed over for AAA status in favor of Horizon have long resented the megacorp, and the possibility that they might actually be downgraded is infuriating to them. They don’t need much of an excuse to start bringing the pain to Horizon, so the Coopera- tive is going to do all they can to provide excuses. Fak- ing memos from Horizon executives targeting certain AAs for downgraded status, exposing security vulner- abilities in certain Horizon holdings (especially in port areas, which have become hotspots in the rising con- flict), and leaking information about the domestic and travel habits of Horizon board members are all part of their activities, and all things they might bring outsiders in to help with. If you throw in with them, just remem- ber: Horizon may be the “nice” megacorp, but they’ve already proven quite willing to get blood on their hands when the Consensus tells them they should. Or when they get mad enough.
Naturally, the Cooperative requires members, or anyone who knows about them, to keep things on the down-low. They are unforgiving about this. Any bit
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of sloppiness, any speech out of turn, anything that might reveal anything useful about the Cooperative to outsiders is enough to get you kicked out. They have been careful enough about who they admit that to this point it has not been an issue.