BornUntoTrouble

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  1.   1.  Phase I
    1.   1.1  A series of strange happenings...
    2.   1.2  The Deal
  2.   2.  Phase II
    1.   2.1  Schism
    2.   2.2  Missing
    3.   2.3  Guard Duty
    4.   2.4  Scouting/Border patrol
    5.   2.5  Recon
  3.   3.  Phase II Update
  4.   4.  Phase III
    1.   4.1  August 2019: The Trade Deal
    2.   4.2  November 2019: The Insurgence
    3.   4.3  December 2019: Addendum
    4.   4.4  Spring 2020: Scarcity
    5.   4.5  Summer 2020: Larceny, Arson, and other Crimes
    6.   4.6  Late Summer 2020: Boiling Over
    7.   4.7  Fall 2020: Conclusion

1.  Phase I

An apprehension lingers in the air. Something on the tip of everyone’s tongue, but hardly ever spoken in mixed company. Many new faces have come to call the Del Cenere Gang home -- strangers who call themselves family. Eyes. Ears. Watching. Hearing. One thing is certain, the Del Mar family has made their lasting mark, and one can never be too careful.

It began in July when the Gang was young, Boone Winthrop along with Briarblack and his uncle Ronald, made contact with a powerful family. Fate, Augustine – the kindly Del Mar Patriarch -- had called it. Blood ties were a powerful thing, bordering on the mystic. “Magnetic,” he’d called them, for family always united in the end.

A deal was made to bring everyone prosperity, a fair deal, and Boone returned home victorious with a wagon full of Del Mar goods to trade through the Ugly Coyote in Charmingtown. The goods moved fast, filling the Gang’s stores with grain and food and wealth. A fair cut was taken by their benefactors, overseen by the icy natured Carlo Del Mar, Augustine’s son and heir to the Del Mar seat of power.

It was good. For a time.

But all good things come to an end.

Misfortune came in the winter with the snows. When the storage building collapsed, the gang found not only their dues to the Del Mar family soiled, but their own personal stores were ruined as well. The threat of famine lingered, and the Camino wrestled with the implications of asking for outside help. However, before a final decision could be reached between the Comandante and Rey Salvaje, the Del Mar procession arrived.

Ash, the bastard born son of Carlo Del Mar, sent word of their struggle and the Del Mar family came to the gang’s aid with an extravagant feast.

The terms, however, changed. A debt is owed, and the Del Mar family demands more grain, more pelts – more than the gang can sustain through trade. The wound bleeds slow, but the time of plenty comes to an end.

A rider comes in the night. Augustine is dead.

Power is up for grabs. With a bastard boy in the ear of the Comandante, the powderkeg will soon blow.

1.1  A series of strange happenings...

Innocuous situations, nothing to be thought of in the least - at least, at face value. Could they be a part of something grander?

  • The Comandante has been tight lipped. Some say they've seen him tilling a field, but he gives no explanation.
  • A rudimentary and haphazard still - not one stored with the rest of the gang's, sits abandoned, overgrown, in a forgotten alcove along the bluffs. They smell strongly - alcoholic, incendiary, beneath the slow creep of moss and rust. It remained unknown - until now.
  • Someone venturing through some of the more overgrown backtrails of the Debouille Reserve finds stashed goods - things that should've been sent weeks ago, sitting in hiding.
  • The rookery of the Parish has been notably busy as of recent - every other day, it seems, a scraggly raven has been seen going to-and-from the chapel grounds at dawn. He croaks lowly, raspy, and does not seem keen on Luperci - but who's been taking the messages?
  • The nights are dark, humid, come to life with the buzz of insect wings and waking cricket song as spring grows warmer. On a distant bank across the lake, a small fire glimmers and dances off the black waters.
  • The birds stir at night - an altercation at Irving. The voices are hoarse, and muffled; in their wake, come morning, there's dried blood on the wall, and a broken bottle.

1.2  The Deal

In the wake of the Del Mar's feast, the family has since tightened their grip on Del Cenere's wares to a strangling hold. What had started out as a 50-50 split in trade and goods now sits off-kilter and tipped largely in their favor - 75% of all supplies - grain, dried meats, pelts, herbs, production - all goes to the deep Del Mar pockets to foster dependence of their wayward Del Ceneren brothers. But the stores don't seem as empty as they should be?

  • Trade with Outsiders is now Limited - if your character intends to barter for the good of the gang (Remember, the tariffs of share ;) ) please don't hesitate to reach out to DCG leadership to discern what can be traded off!
  • The stores are now under lock and key. IC repercussions for being caught stealing are more severe! This, of course, is if your character is caught. Reach out to leadership for details!
  • Nazario has been doubling down on the insistence of everyone's contributions, where as Boone seems less concerned. Maybe you want to organize a donation project? Maybe you want to petition otherwise?

2.  Phase II

Through the night of June 22nd, Del Cenerens gathered to celebrate the coming of age of the Gang's first litter. Dizzying festivities slowly fizzled out and dithered away into the waning hours, where everyone tucked away into their beds to nurse full bellies and buzzing headaches.

Well, almost everyone. The small band of stragglers worked tirelessly through the night to extinguish a mysterious fire in Irving. The Comandante, come dawn, is quick to jump on the Del Mar incursion as its source and throws Nazario's name into the ring of blame, where the Rey Salvaje himself puts the pressure right back onto Boone's shoulders to an audience of Ashen, and a concerned family, now with one missing child.

In the wake of the argument, a unanimous decision was made - Whomever responsible for this fire, and for this kidnapping, must be held accountable. However the Rey Salvaje and Comandante come across from this, though--

2.1  Schism

While Nazario and Boone have reached an agreement that something needs done for these transgressions, the each of them have reached their conclusions through vastly different means. Months of their headbutting in regards to methods have culminated in an ugly fight, and each seem wholly keen to pursue their own ideas as to how to proceed. Cracks are starting to form.

Nazario's course of action is to lay low, to keep a state of relative peace - investigate thoroughly, and deal with things as they should rightfully be dealt with: With a clear head, and a mountain of evidence behind him.

On the other hand, Boone is keen on hitting first, asking questions later - he's certain behind the cause of their problems, and aims to hit them quick, and hit them hard, to make them yield to the Gang's will. As they each plot their course of action, the two seek out supporters for their individual cases - on which side of the coin do you fall?

Nazario's Loyalists

  • Andrew Winthrop
  • Morrigan Archeron
  • Helena Troy Lykoi
  • Pontifex Troy Lykoi
  • Mannuelle Del Mar
  • Auger de la Croix
  • Hosea Courtright
  • Evelyn Escuella
  • Eusebia Troy Lykoi
  • Waynescott Wyatt

Boone's Loyalists

  • Santiago Tejada
  • Briarblack
  • Lyssa Fontaine
  • Johnathan Winthrop
  • Juleo del Bosque
  • Peony Braithwaite
  • Daniel
  • Skeleton Key


2.2  Missing

Luciana Escuella has gone missing in the wake of the fire, to what end? Upon turning up more of a search, it's been discovered that both Ash Del Mar and Thelma Del Mar, along with the horse, Wormwood, are no where to be found, arousing suspicion and lending credibility to the Comandante's suspicions as to who is behind the kidnapping and arson.

Boone has put out an order to find the remaining Del Mar - Mannuelle and his brother Andrez, who at the time were still in their room at the Trailside Inn, and take them into the custody of the Drunk Barrel for questioning. Nazario has ordered the full closing of the border until further notice - No one comes into Charmingtown, no one leaves without clearance.

2.3  Guard Duty

  • Hosea, Andrew, Peony

2.4  Scouting/Border patrol

  • Azade, Johnathan, Boone, Skeleton

2.5  Recon

  • Morrigan, Helena, Peony

3.  Phase II Update

Tensions build throughout the month of July, until the two brothers - Rey Salvaje and Comandante - rarely speak, and operate instead throughout their allies, communicating their desires for secrecy and making one thing clear:

The opposition is to know nothing of the other side.

It becomes a game of chess, the two leaders attempting to out-maneuver one another on the search for information. When Mannuelle and Andrez's leads ran dry, the duo of Del Mar twins were released from custody; whatever it was that Ash and Thelma (deserters, now) schemed, it seems as though they've had nothing to do with it.

However, late one night a camp was discovered outside the Southwest border of Del Cenere's territory, through the Broke-Leg Marsh, and Nazario's band returned with haste to report their findings. Unbeknownst to them - and to the Rey Salvaje - they had a tail.

Boone, in true Boone fashion and armed with this new information, chose to strike first.

Interlopers! The camp's occupants were discovered to be two Courtrights - Ulysses and Marilyn (uncle and cousin respectively to Hosea Courtright and his brood) - and the encounter did not fare well.

The Comandante's display of force was perceived by the duo as excessive - provoking Ulysses onto the defensive - and in the skirmish, Ulysses perished. Marilyn surrendered to custody in the wake of her father's murder, and was thrown into the Drunk Barrel, and the cache of bows and arrows and torches were seized. At current, she's remained mum -- though with a few days hunger, she has let slip the name of Arturo Ardoix - a high ranking fellow who heads the Ardoix family in Palisade.

In the wake of his brother's brash decision, Nazario has decided to take a more proactive stance - and figures that they can use the captured Marilyn as a bartering chip for the return of Luciana -- an exchange is closer than expected.

The trade off goes awry.

An injured Del Ceneren is in dire need of medical attention in Charmingtown.

  • Briarblack (w/ Nazario mentioned as NPC), Morrigan, Sugabear

Guard duty for Del Cenere's newest prisoner

  • Rhodes, Remy

An utterly chaotic plan is cracked

  • Boone, Santiago, Skeleton, Peony

4.  Phase III

4.1  August 2019: The Trade Deal

Comandante Boone Winthrop, with the fresh-born Del Cenere Gang, sets out on a trade trip with Briarblack and Ronald Winthrop towards Portland. By fate's design, they encounter Mannuelle Del Mar, and learn of the existence of Palisade - and by extension, the familial connection between Boone and the Del Mar empire.

He strikes up a deal with the Del Mar patriarch, Augustine, and returns home posthaste to deliver the good news to the Rey Salvaje.

4.2  November 2019: The Insurgence

Fresh trade deals with the Del Mar bring an influx of Palisade members from all families to settle with Del Cenere - some more insidious than others.

In an exceptionally blustering winter storm, the Gang's rudimentary storage building, poorly constructed, collapses and pins Ronald Winthrop, who sustains an injury, and worse yet, condemns the fledgling Del Cenere to its first hard winter with destroyed supplies and ruined goods. Friction builds between the Rey Salvaje and his Comandante as they butt heads on how to proceed - do they embrace independence, or call on the aid of others?

4.3  December 2019: Addendum

Unable to see eye to eye, someone else steps in.

Ash Del Mar sends word to his father of the pack's impending lean winter, and storage troubles whilst compounding doubt in the Comandante's mind by leaning into his ear. The Del Mar trade party arrives and throws a feast for Del Cenere - with mixed reception.

In private, the terms of equal trade, made with expectations of mutually prosperity, are re-assessed - Carlo Del Mar, son of the (rather suddenly) deceased Augustine Del Mar and heir to Palisade's throne, adjusts his tariffs for recompense to bring the Gang to heel, and set a political example back home.

4.4  Spring 2020: Scarcity

With the new trade deal, Del Cenere bleeds - Trade is somewhat slim, but manageable; a new storage building has been placed in Irving, and is under relatively close watch - Trade goes down to Palisade, and a steady, but slim, supply line runs back North. Relations start to sour, though, as missives are sent to Leadership about discrepancies in the stock sent -

Until the Rey Salvaje catches a thief, mid-act; the Comandante steps in and claims the thief was acting under his direction, creating a palpable rift between the brothers.

4.5  Summer 2020: Larceny, Arson, and other Crimes

Summer is a season of plenty - and things start turning around for Del Cenere as the first brood of children born hit maturity and perform their Bautizo. In the wake of the clean up for the feast, however - a fire is set in the Comandante's prized tobacco field, accelerated by alcohol, and worse yet, Luciana Escuella has gone missing.

Ash and Thelma Del Mar are conspicuously missing, allegedly under orders from a third party, and brothers Andrez and Mannuelle Del Mar are left holding the bag, and taken into custody in the early hours. Charmingtown, and the borders, are temporarily shut while the Gang scrambles for clues. A full schism forms between Comandante and Rey Salvaje as people take sides on how to handle the situation.

When nothing turns up, and no information is gleaned from the two Del Mar heirs in custody, the borders reopen and the duo are tentatively released from the Drunk Barrel, but are kept under watch.

Hosea Courtright, Peony Braithwaite and Morrigan Archeron discover an encampment just beyond Del Cenere's southwest border near the Canaan Bog, and the transmission of this information is intercepted by Lyssa Fontaine and Briarblack, who turn the information over to the Comandante - who's solution is to act immediately.

The two members, sitting on the encampment, are discovered to be Courtrights - Ulysses and Marilyn - the former killed in the resulting skirmish, and the latter taken into custody and thrown into the Drunk Barrel.

4.6  Late Summer 2020: Boiling Over

With Marilyn being unwilling to bend by way of information - Nazario sends word to the Del Mars to propose a trade of their prospective hostages: Marilyn for Luciana's safe return.

Unbeknownst to the gang, Marilyn and her father, Ulysses, were not sent by Carlo, but by Arturo Ardoix - known detractor to the Del Mar's seat of power back in Palisade. With Ash and Thelma briefly returned to their home, an execution was held, before Carlo and an entourage set back north again to right this wrong in their own fashion. With word of their father's demise, the Ardoix sisters return to Palisade, where Sofia takes up the mantle as the head of the household, and starts her efforts to smooth over relations between the Gang and the denizens of her birthplace.

Carlo and Ash arrived far ahead of the scheduled trade-off; and while the original mark had been to dispatch the Rey Salvaje, Ash instead murdered Marilyn Courtright in cold blood, and wounded Lyssa Fontaine in the process of his rather hands-on arrest at the hands of Peony Braithwaite, Lieselotte Temple, Remy Debois and Hosea Courtright. Carlo abandoned his son to his fate, and vanished back down the mountain trails.

With the Gang's leaders trying to reconcile their own political strain, a bastard son in custody with a loose tongue, and a threat looming somewhere outside their borders, Del Cenere reconvenes with one like-minded goal: Retrieving Luciana, and righting the extortion that the Del Mar had inflicted upon them.

4.7  Fall 2020: Conclusion

September 28th

With intel garnered by a seemingly reproachful Ash, a scouting party lead by Paninya confirm the location of a Del Mar camp, posted out in the treacherous Canaan bogs at Del Cenere's southwest border, and report back to the rest of the Ashen.

September 30th

Del Cenere convenes and strikes at dawn to dispatch this threat, and put an end to these troubles.

Rescue Team

A small group, spearheaded by Santiago Tejada, scatters the small group's few horses, and sweep in to rescue the long-missing Luciana Escuella.

Skirmish Team One

A duo of Palisade coydogs - Earl Waits and Gil Hinson, both armed with crude, short-ranged clubs, intercept some Del Cenerens, and a fight ensues.

  • Thread: [M] redemption lies plainly in truth
    • Preybot (Earl Waits and Gil Hinson), Hosea Courtright, Peony Braithwaite, and Vera Zharkov

Skirmish Team Two

Thelma Del Mar and a secui coyote, Marlon Wall, spy Luciana's rescue team making their escape and give chase, only to be cut off by Del Cenerens where they engage in combat.

  • Thread: [M] The self is not so weightless
    • Thelma Del Mar, Marlon Wall (NPC), Lieselotte Temple, Daniel, Ronald Winthrop (NPC)


The Boss

Boone Winthrop goes to take on Carlo Del Mar himself.

  • Thread: [M] Fathers and Sons
    • Boone Winthrop, Andrew Winthrop, Carlo Del Mar (NPC), Mannuelle Del Mar (NPC), Andrez Del Mar (NPC) [With Permissions from Jace]

Triage Team One

A makeshift triage for the injured is set up at Cabeza de Alce for injured Del Ceneren members - Team One is handling serious injury.

  • Thread: [M] See life as a worthy opponent
    • Nazario del Bosque, Briarblack (NPC), Morrigan Archeron, Lyssa Fontaine, Injured Del Ceneren Party (NPC), Injured Del Ceneren Party

Triage Team Two

A makeshift triage for the injured is set up at Cabeza de Alce for injured Del Ceneren members - Team Two is handling less-threatening injuries.

  • Sugabear Perrin du Lac (healer), Notch (healer)


October 1st

In the wake of the scuffle, members return to the encampment to scavenge what remains.

Clean Up Crew One

Del Ceneren members revisit the Del Mar encampment for the grisly job of body recovery - either for effigies, or otherwise.

  • Thread: [M] Shallow Roots
    • Twelve, Azade Feriqi, Morrigan Archeron, Nando (NPC)

Clean Up Crew Two

Del Ceneren members scavenge and salvage supplies for the Gang's stores, and some trinkets for their own personal use.

  • Belinda Braithwaite, Sean Butler, Auger de la Croix


October 3rd

The Trial This will be a non-mandatory pack thread.


Original info topics:

Category: Del Cenere Gang