Crimson Crescent

## (K0) New Group on the Block

The Crimson Crescent pirate band is a massive transgalactic organization that specializes in anything illegal. They sell weapons to enemy nations and factions, smuggle items onto planets, traffic people, produce and sell drugs, kidnap and ransom important people, assault or kill people (sometimes at random), and more. The Crimson Crescent has a dotted history, however:

### History:

The Crimson Crescent was originally a small criminal organization stationed in and around the planet of Archimedes, but had ties to Mars and several other planets. The group stayed mostly off the radar of Kodian Empire forces until after Archimedes was destroyed. Once the planet exploded, the group found itself exposed during the investigation to determine how the planet had been taken in the first place. Once the corruption was found and the higher members of the group captured or killed, all seemed lost. That was until the remaining (and AWOL) members of the Archimedes PGF arrived and took over the group. The group, although officially disbanded in 301 PND, was immediately brought back into the underworld's forefront in 302 PND, when Keiko Frost, the PGF commander for the Archimedes Secundus mining installation, took over the Crimson Crescent and started it's headquarters on the planet of Parable. Frost and a small band of her comrades from the PGF (Stanislav Leon, Harrison Outlaw, and Charles Zillioner) landed on Parable and immediately began setting up a new base for the Crimson Crescent.

### Modern Times:

Now, the Crimson Crescent rules as the single largest, most pervasive, and most influential criminal organization in the K0 Universe, beating even the once-infamous Face Gang by a massive margin. The group is almost untouchable, and continues to use their ties to the military to their advantage. Few operations have been successful in damaging the group, although many guilds of merchants and even several planets have declared open-season on anyone or anything owned, occupied, or produced by the Crimson Crescent in an attempt to cease their activities in a particular area. The results of these activities have yet to be determined. Currently, their headquarters sits on the planet of Parable, and is named The Ironblade Sanctum.

## Description:

The Crimson Crescent was founded in late 2020 CE, shortly after The Fiscal Suicide of 2020, in response to the collapse of several governments. Also referred to as the Blood Moons, Crescents, or CC's (pronounced: 'Cee-Cees'), the Crimson Crescent is the largest organized criminal syndicate in the Sol System; the group has expanded its operations beyond the bounds of Earth's atmosphere faster than some Megacorporations, and continues to solidify its position within the criminal underworld in all places where the police lights do not reach. The Crimson Crescent is rivals with the Maofu Clan, the Barrenderos, the Raiki, and to a lesser extent the Regime; the Crescents maintain few alliances and only cooperate with other criminal organizations for as long as they need to. The Crimson Crescent is not affiliated with any major Megacorporations; however, the Crescent's sheer size and influence has allowed it to accrue a roster of legal businesses, rackets, and smaller corporations which fall under the group's direct control, including: Alpire Security and Spritegate Networking Solutions.

### Organization:

#### Headquarters: Unknown

The Crimson Crescent is such a large and complicated organization that no one outside of the group's upper echelons even know who or how it functions. The Crimson Crescent operates under an incredibly strict hierarchical structure, with clearly delineated benefits and responsibilities, in order to manage the sheer size of the group; current research indicates that the Crimson Crescent is led by a council of ruling bosses, referred to as the "Crescent Congress." Each council member, referred to as a Congressman or President, dictates the activities of an entire continent or region of a planet; this council had 4 founding members, and now has [REDACTED]. Only the Congressmen get to vote on decisions at the top level, and all lesser bosses are obligated to obey the result of the vote, whether they support the decision or not. The council members each vote on larger matters which concern the entire organization, and territory is very clearly laid out to prevent skirmishes or conflicts between members. Below this council sit the regional leaders, referred to as "Vices," or "Vice Presidents," who each control territories the size of countries; below the regional bosses are the "Governors," who control state-sized regions or entire Supercities. These "Governors" are mid-level bosses who oversee the "Mayors," or local bosses in control of neighborhoods or small regions no larger than a few hundred square miles. Each level of boss is accompanied by a "Cabinet" of advisors, commanders, and aides that support the boss. The collective term used to describe all the bosses, regardless of level, is "Statesmen". Mayors all rule their domains from a "Town Hall," or building which serves as the local HQ for Crescent activity; these buildings are frequently sources of income for local operations, like nightclubs, brothels, theaters, businesses, or apartment buildings. Income is tithed from Mayors by Governors, who send it up the chain of command until it reaches the Congressmen; tithes, referred to as "taxes," are measured by the upper-level Cabinets according to predictions and complex computer algorithms. If a boss's taxes are short, an investigation is launched to determine the source of the decline in profits or the thief responsible for the missing funds; corruption is not tolerated within the Crescent, despite its criminal nature, and all members regardless of rank are expected to be fiercely loyal. Taxes are generated by a local branch's rackets, businesses, and illegal activity, collected by local muscle, and counted by local accountants; upper management is not involved in the processes below their station in order to diminish the risk of arrest or discovery by authorities. Local members are referred to as "soldiers," although the public calls them "mobsters" or "gangsters."

Within that overall structure, the CC is split into a number of departments, nicknamed "Branches." These Branches all operate as semi-independent, self-sufficient criminal organizations that serve a greater, specialized purpose within the CC's larger network; this redundant system prevents significant damage from being done if one group is arrested or killed, and limits gaps in security and weaknesses in supply chains. Branches are split into the following categories:

1. Treasury: Led by Treasurers instead of Mayors, these members are in charge of counting and managing the CC's funds; depending on their rank, experience, and reputation, some Treasurers may handle finances for only local CC groups, for regional groups (at the Governor level), or for the uppermost levels of the CC.
2. Mint: Led by Minters, or Bankers, instead of Mayors, these members focus their operations on making, counting, and cleaning as much money and assets as possible; these members then lend the money and resources out to other local CC groups for their own uses, and help to maintain a region's tax payments.
3. Embassy: Led by Ambassadors instead of Mayors, these members are in charge of negotiation, inter-organization deal-making, business transactions, and inter-cell cooperation; they manage the CC's relations with other criminal groups, manage relations between the Crescent and local Megacorporate holdings/assets, and manage relations between local CC member groups. The role of Ambassador often comes with Corporate Immunity from one of the CC's Megacorporate puppets, and can operate at any or all levels of the Crescent's operations.
4. Military: Led by a General instead of Mayors, these leading members are responsible for training, maintaining, arming, managing, recruiting, and deploying armed members of the Crescent to whatever "fronts" need the extra help; these members often have military or police backgrounds, and are well-educated in their fields of expertise.