Acquafredda Gang

Formerly a loosely organized gang of criminals, racketeers, and street thugs, the Acquafredda rose to prominence as Freeport's central power between season 4 and season 6. During their reign, they controlled the majority of Freeport's landmass and territory.

## History

The Acquafredda family was originally a part of a larger gang, the name of which has long since been forgotten. Some years before season 2, they took over, and the gang quickly rose in power, soon becoming one of Freeport's leading powers, with only the Falcodisangue to truly rival them. While their methods of extortion and intimidation were similar to the Falcodisangue, the Acquafredda were far less refined, primarily due to their origins as opportunists, as opposed to an organized mafia.

Under the leadership of Ciriaco Pier Acquafredda, the gang gained a reputation for their unforgiving treatment of traitors and their willingness to accept anyone who swore loyalty. Towards the end of Ciriaco's reign, he began trying to refine the gang, especially after the Falcodisangue returned to the high seas, leaving much of Freeport's territory unclaimed. Not long after that event, however, Ciriaco died.

He was replaced by a somewhat distant relation, Ersilia Graziella Acquafredda, who continued his work, eventually shaping the gang into a much more organized and refined group. Some of its old characteristics remained, however: Ersilia was just as harsh towards traitors as her predecessor, and the gang still welcomed anyone into its ranks.

Under Ersilia's ruthlessly effective command, the AQF quickly grew in power, breaking the Alliance forged against it, and, by 2380, the start of season 6, approaching total control of the city. With a new, undead militia at their beck and call, the AQF demonstrated savage tactics through sabotage, public displays of power, and precipitating mass-casualty events. Prior to season 6, an alliance was formed between the Farmers' Guild and the Rizhearts known as the Crusaders which became the primary opponents to the AQF's forces in Freeport, seeking to stamp out the undead plague and uproot the gang's oppressive rule. Over the course of season 6, numerous battles were fought against the gang, with the opposition most often composed of forces from the Adventurers' Guild, miscellaneous agents of Kairosian origin, mercenaries, and members of the Crusaders.

Following a particularly tough loss in the form of the theft of Ersilia's cache of comet-summoning scrolls and a massive defeat of her undead army in the Groves, Ersilia played a new card to retain power: marrying off one of her two daughters, Telila, to solidify the family's stability and hold on the city. This would be her undoing, however, as her selected groom was one of her highest-ranked lieutenants, an adventurer named Soren, who had been intending on turning on Ersilia when given the opportunity. During the wedding, billed as the society event of the year, four high-ranking Crusaders infiltrated the Roost in Oldtown along with a Brigadier General of the Brazen Brigade. Following two separate interruptions to the ceremony, including Telila's apparent girlfriend and a mysterious wedding enthusiast, the party sprang into action. While Ersilia's powers were formidable, using her power over undead to draw up fighters, she eventually fell to her former underling.

During his time with the AQF, Soren had been collecting information on their hideouts, informants, and market networks, which he turned over to the respective leaders of the Crusaders and the Brazen Brigade, enabling them to begin the process of rooting out the remaining family members. The power vacuum the AQF's fall caused in Freeport enabled the Crusaders—the *de facto* dominant faction at that point—to install a pseudostructure of a government with which to promote the external checks on guilds' power through the development of a parlay system and establishment of a neutral ground for discussion and negotiation to take place under.

## Practices

Already a ruthless gang before the departure of the Falcodisangue, the Acquafredda became even more so once they gained control of the majority of Freeport, continuing their former practices and introducing several new ones.

### Docking Fees

This practice was in place for generations: anyone who wished to dock in Freeport must pay the Acquafredda. This payment was most frequently simply monetary; however, if a ship brought goods of interest to Freeport, the Acquafredda may instead choose to take some of its cargo. Failure to pay this fee could result in prevention from leaving or reboarding the ship, confiscation of the ship's entire cargo, or, in some cases, disappearance of crew members. With the turn of 2400, this practice formed into a more concrete business, eventually developing as the Freeport Ferry Company. The company employs a small fleet of seacraft across the atoll's waters as a transit network around the city.

### Patrols

The Acquafredda frequently patrolled Freeport, usually in groups of two to three. The groups always contained two members considered the muscle of the gang, and were sometimes accompanied by a caster. The stated purpose of these patrols was to ensure the streets remain safe. However, as many even outside the gang knew, the true purpose was to catch any who would oppose the gang before they could take action.

### Safety Taxes

All those who called the Acquafredda's territory home, or even who simply spent a lot of time there, were required to pay the gang a safety tax. Businesses in the territory had to pay this tax as well. According to the gang, this allowed them to better patrol the area and protect its inhabitants. Those who refused to pay this tax were known to disappear suddenly. They occasionally reappeared later, but usually no longer refused to pay the tax; if they did, they disappear and were not seen again.

### Bannering

Businesses in Acquafredda territory, in addition to paying the safety tax, were required to display the Acquafredda's blue banner above their doorway. Any business with this banner was considered "Acquafredda property," and the gang demanded its goods and services be provided to gang members for free. Businesses who refused to provide free goods and services lost their banner, and, much like with the safety taxes, the owners of the business disappeared soon after.

### Executions

The Acquafredda executed people for a variety of reasons, ranging from disloyalty of their own members to dissent of citizens. While these executions were usually carried out in private, the gang occasionally conducted public executions to make an example of traitors.

## Notable Members

* Keise Enesi Acquafredda, identical twin to Telila Asoau and adopted daughter to Ersilia; left hand to Ersilia and succeeded her as the gang's leader following Ersilia's demise in 2381 (NPC)
* Telila Asoau Acquafredda, identical twin to Keise Enesi and adopted daughter to Ersilia; right hand to Ersilia before Ersilia's demise in 2381 (NPC)
* Ersilia Graziella Acquafredda, the leader of the gang in 2371 (during season 5); remained leader until 2381 (during season 6) when she perished at the hands of adventurers following the failed wedding of her daughter, Telila (NPC)
* Tiberio Giosuele Acquafredda, a distant cousin of Ersilia and one of the gang's most prominent enforcers (NPC)
* Ciriaco Pier Acquafredda, the leader of the gang before Ersilia, now deceased (NPC)