The Red

The Red is an association of rogues based in Canton City, the capital of the Canton Kingdom. The Red get their name from the road that served as their original turf, Rua de Vermelho - rival gangs will frequently derisively call them "vermies" or "vermin".

The Red has never dabbled in the deeper forms of corruption that take place in the city. They formed several years ago along the Rua de Vermelho in reaction to other seedier gangs moving in and causing havoc for the shop owners. The Red tend to steal from other crime syndicates and corrupt officials then try to hurt the common people - after all, the corrupt officials tend to have the most money anyway. By far, they are not crusaders for a good cause; they are just looking out for their own self-interest.

The current leader, who goes by the name Bulwark, has forged a shaky alliance with Marshal Julian Broussard. Another guild known as the Canton Underground has started to muscle in and cleaning the collective clocks of The Red, taking over parts of Red territory. Word on the street is, shortly before the king died, The Underground received a big infusion of cash from someone very high up among the nobles. At the time no one really sure who it is, but Cassius, one of the leaders of The Underground had been using that money to hire more thugs and generally make life for the other guilds miserable.

Bulwark felt they needed a powerful benefactor themselves to survive, and took a chance on the Marshal. So far, it's been advantageous; the Red inform on other gangs, mostly The Underground, when they catch wind of something about to go down, and are allowed a portion of seized goods and a small measure of looking the other way when it's all said and done.

The Death of the King

Bulwark had a falling out of the Marshal's good graces after The Underground pulled off two huge jobs in the city and The Red knew nothing about it until after they occured.

Theft of the Crown Jewels

First was the theft of the crown jewels - a pair of two-bit thugs, half orc brothers named Karrak and Marrak, were approached by someone with a good deal of gold. To earn this ransom, all they had to do was steal the jewels, and then sit on them. The opportunity had presented itself as the jewels were on display at the Ducal Council until a new king was chosen. The contact provided the day to steal, and the way in to get the jewels; it was a simple grab and run even inexperienced thugs like the half-orcs could pull off. Unfortunately for Karrak and Marrak, a group of soldiers working for one of the Dukes found them and relieved them of their hard won swag - and word on the street was that soon after capture, the regent Thomas de Agueda had relieved the thieves of their heads. The biggest surprise was finding out Karrak and Marrak's crew was recommended for the job by The Underground. The man who hired Karrak and Marrak was rumored to be the same as The Underground's contact.

The Abduction of Lady Krysta Carver

Second was the abduction of Duke Eric Carver's daughter, Lady Krysta. The city had a long standing problem with were-creature living in the sewers, and with their new found wealth, The Underground had recruited several of them for jobs for a long time. Everything seemed to go as planned, until that same group of guards happened upon the scene and chased the kidnappers down.

End Game: Assisting the Future King

For this type of money to be pushed around so quietly meant Cassius himself had to be involved, and very deep in on the planning. Marshal Broussard was biding his time with the information, but once someone's life has been put in danger - specifically a duke's daughter - he was not content to just sit by.

Bulwark helped Broussard by providing Creeps, a young upcoming soldier in The Red, to the Marshal, who in turn Offered his assistance to Duke Eric Carver. Late in the night Creeps and Carver's men assaulted the headquarters of Canton Underground and captured Cassius, along with enough evidence to put Thomas de Agueda in prison. The Red undoubtedly will try to use this to curry favor with Carver, who ascended to the throne of the Canton Kingdom shortly after.