Front Faction Article

The Phoenix Front are based off the various factions that were rising in 1969 in our own world in Northern Ireland. However, the actions of the Syndicate and Allied Nations has instead directed the hatred outward instead on on each other. Where the Confederacy, the MIR and other revolutionary groups has their limits, the Front is more willing to take extreme actions for their cause.

## What They Want

**The Phoenix Front, above all else, wants a free and united Ireland.** Note that the Front means "Free of everyone" in this case. They want the Syndicate and Allies out for how they're treated the situation in Belfast, considering the situation a regression to pre-treaty times.

* **Their allies are the enemies of everyone else.** The Front knows that they have allies of their own worldwide, especially in the Confederacy and the Soviet Union. While both of these can be seen as somewhat reasonable, their alliance with the GLA is where it should be shown that, in their eyes, even the force that uses terrorists and toxins is preferable to the Allies and Syndicate.

* **They want to protect civilians.** If you wanted to use the old D&D equation, the Front are a chaotic good. They will use underhanded means to survive, but they're trying to pursue what they see as the right course of action. That means civilian casualties should be avoided as much as possible.

* **Apollo Fowl must die.** Unlike the Poles, the Front weren't betrayed by a group. That an Irishman willingly betrayed his people and threw in his lot with the Syndicate highlights a larger belief; a traitor to the cause is a paper target, nothing more. In Fowl's case, the Front has a high bounty on him. Various attacks on his power are a daily threat, and Fowl manor is considered a prime target.

## What They Know

* The Front, more than the Allies, knows that something bad is underneath the Ambrosia Cola. Their operations have uncovered strange money trails between various companies inside the sprawl, activity by Legion Security where it wouldn't make economic sense, and have heard whispers of an organization called SPIDER, though there's nothing they know for sure about it.
* They also know just how fractured ACIN is. Able to contact the KGB, the Confederates, and GLA more easily than expected, the Front knows now what it can and can't get away with better than most. They're also learning fast that INTERPOL is nearly useless, since the amount of guns they're getting in and out should not be happening under Allied laws.

* They do not, however, know about the Talon. The Talon sees a tool to weaken the Syndicate, but the Front, if they discover the Talon, would lash out against them too if they ever discovered that opinion. For now, the Talon is patrolling the sprawl themselves, looking for evidence of the Cult and eliminating targets of opportunity.

* In the wider world, the Front could honestly care less. They want a free Ireland, and only care about anyone who can help with or hinder that goal.

## Who They Are

* Let's not mince words. The Front is the IRA. However, in this context, they're an IRA that is focused on realignment of their cause. Where the IRA in our world is still a group willing to endanger civilians to fight for their cause, the Phoenix Front is actively trying to shield civilians from the worst excesses of the Syndicate and inaction of the Allies.

* They're not sectarian. Thanks to the building of Satellite City, the Catholics and Protestants know who the real enemy is. While the Syndicate did cut down on the fighting like they promised, they also tried to completely wipe out the Irish language, culture, and nationality with their attitudes. The Front has stepped in, offering Catholics and protestants the opportunity to fight.

* They're poor, more so than any Confederate militia or GLA cell. Spending all their money on weapons, the Front is constantly in a deficiency of money. It's why they can't afford any vehicles or powerful units. Infantry are all they can afford to field.

* The common rioters and volunteers are young and angry, patiently waiting for the order to attack. Their attitudes towards anyone that isn't on their side is unflattering, to say the least.

* More experienced members are the big picture thinkers, looking towards the future and the greater situation around them. Even as much as they hate the Allies, the leaders of the Front are hoping that maybe Allied actions inside the city might show the Allies exactly what they're letting into their homes.

* The reinforcements are the Éire Aontaithe, that is basically the Front's mouthpiece in politics and their elite soldiers from the returning Wild Geese to Scottish highlanders. Even other players such as the Irish clergy, makes an appearance within the party to provide medical aid to the Front's soldiers.

* The Front's supporters are tired of empty promises from foreign powers. Now, seeing the Front fighting for the Irish, they want to throw whatever support their way. Spreading word about potential attacks, keeping the Irish alive, and helping the Front hide when the heat builds.

* **OVERUSING THE OIRELAND STEREOTYPE IS BAD.** Yes, the Irish drink and sing and fight. The writer of both factions is Irish, and knows there is heavy drinking, singing, and fighting. But there is a difference between drinking and being a drunk. Members would never drink on duty, and have very strict rules about substances in the organization. The Irish in the Front aren't "Kiss the Blarney stone and may the love of St. Patrick watch over ye". They're, "Shoot this fecker in the kneecaps and leave him for the PKs."

* **WATCH THE CATHOLIC/PROTESTANT ISSUE.** Even today this is tricky to talk about without offending someone, so here's a common rule; Don't try and make one side in the right and the other wrong. The Front is focused outwards against other threats, not sectarian fighting.

* **The Front are Far Left.** Surrounded by forces that have oppressed them economically and civilly, the Front has fallen into thinking that the only answer is the opposite political ideals that their oppressors hate. They're not Soviets, but they hold some radical ideas on workers rights and economics that the Allies and Syndicate are worried about.

## How They Fight

* The Front prefers to strike from a distance, or blow the enemy up when they're not looking. Even if the rioters are on the Front, the volunteers and snipers are covering them at a distance. But that strength is also their weakness, since without vehicles or speed they are beautiful targets.

* Like all the rebel groups in Paradox, the Front isn't averse to fighting dirty. They are, however, fighting dirtier than most. They're beating collaborators in the streets and country roads, planting bombs in ostensibly civilian structures used by the enemy, and some are considering launching attacks on Allied Cryo-Command.

## Can They Win?

Like most guerrillas, the Front will never win a straight fight. What they working in their favor is the fact that they're literally a few hours from one of the biggest Allied capitols in Europe, and are in spitting distance of Cryo-Command. Politically, they're in as strong a position as the Confederacy simply because of where they are. Their contacts with other groups also makes them a surprisingly terrifying organization, as they know exactly what makes the GLA, Confederacy, and Soviets tick. The Allies have been used to dealing with rebellions around the world, but this one being so close to Europe itself, at a time when their own organization is under threat of fracture, is forcing them to try and crush it before it gets out of hand.

General Setting Details • Faction Bibles (Paradox) • Faction Bibles (Echoes) • Faction Bibles (Quantum) • Faction Bibles (Annihilation) • Faction Bibles (Null) • Faction Bibles (Pandemonium) • Faction Bibles (Insanity) • Faction Bibles (Extremist) • Faction Bibles (Silentium)