Maffi / Zhao Guidebook

For the MUSH, Maffi / Zhao org provides a place to RP the underworld in a story-focused fashion, bringing the fringe to life in a unique, mafia style. We provide an antagonist to the heroes of the galaxy and seek to be known as one of the best orgs for RP and dramatic story out there with an underworld theme.

Org policy is implemented to both protect the org, and to present a realistic criminal environment for characters and storytelling. An organized crime syndicate is a dangerous territory to be involved in. It demands loyalty, commits grave acts, contains many secrets and is very serious about itself. Involvement in a crime syndicate is both rewarding and a gamble. Failure to perform to the expectations of its rulers can lead to unfortunate punishments, while success can lead to great wealth and power. Criminal masterminds are penned for their paranoia and members of their syndicates are penned for their short life spans. If you are not interested in this type of story or org, then Maffi may not be for you. Please review all of the Policies presented in this section and decide for yourself before going any further with Maffi org. Continuing membership after reading these policies means that you consent to them and are willing to explore the dangerous lifestyle of the Maffi org.

PC Death
Membership in Maffi and Zhao is granted only to those who are OOCly willing to understand and accept the danger inherent in being a member of an organized crime syndicate. A syndicate demands loyalty from its members. The further up the ladder of ranks and power one moves in a syndicate, the more permanent their membership tends to become. As characters learn the inner workings and secrets of the Maffi, its ruling council considers them more and more dangerous. To this end, any character attaining a rank of made may never leave the Maffi Syndicate on pain of death. Any character betraying the syndicate, or selling it out to external powers will be hunted down and destroyed. Lower ranked members of the syndicate are typically ignorant of the intimate workings and agenda of the higher positioned members, and so are given a little more room to breath in terms of their employment. Pledges, Workers and Soldiers are allowed to leave the syndicate in the case of extreme circumstances, and on the condition that they really never came to understand any sensitive secrets. These situations are judged on a case-by-case basis, depending on the story of the character in question, and the exact nature of their relationship with the Maffi Syndicate. Once a character becomes made they take an oath to the syndicate, and it is understood that they have dedicated their career to the success of the syndicate as a whole. Made characters are treated with great respect by Maffi, protected, sponsored, granted rights and powers within the organization, and responsibilities. However, it is also on the shoulders of made characters that the full expectation of perfect loyalty rests. Characters are made for a reason; they, above any other, have shown their true commitment to the success of Maffi.

Punishment
Maffi is a dangerous organization. Strict rulings and laws are laid down for its members by leaders and rulers, and are enforced by various characters. Failure to abide by the laws of the syndicate, follow direct orders from superiors or observe the general etiquette and social order within the syndicate by your character Icly may cause your character to be punished in various ways. Depending on the severity of the infraction and on a case-by-case basis, these punishments can range from relatively mundane consequences such as a docking of pay, or restriction of freedom, to physical and corporal punishment from thrashings to mutilation and scaring. How many mafia movies have we seen in which one of the gangsters has a missing pinky finger? The realities of a criminal syndicate are often dark and frightening. OOC consent to punishment being imposed on your character is a requirement to be a member. This does not mean your character must submissively accept such scenarios your characters reaction to the situations and scenes is your own to decide. Your characters obedience and observance of Law and direct orders is completely your call. Consent in this instance simply means that you will not OOCly demand a scene be halted or that your character not be threatened with punishment in the instance that trouble arises. Worry not, Maffi is not in the habit if terrible and permanent punishments of its members for minor to medium infractions. Situations where extreme punishments occur are rare.

Arrest
Due to the nature and operations of a criminal syndicate like Maffi, it is a real danger that characters affiliated with it may be arrested and detained on criminal charges for the various acts and crimes committed during the course of employment. It is unfair to have a character involved with Maffi or any criminal org and reap the benefits of such a relationship but not be willing to explore the consequences. Other PCs are involved with protecting governments, organizations and factions and will provide ample opposition to many of the goals and acts of Maffi. It is only fair that the opportunity for them to succeed in arresting Maffi members be available to them. Therefore your OOC consent to be arrested, charged with crimes and potentially detained or imprisoned is required for you to participate in Maffi with your character.

IC-Knowledge
In the underworld, knowledge is power. In an organized crime syndicate, this is doubly so. Knowledge and information of the details of the syndicate is very sensitive and often shrouded in secrecy. This is for both the protection of the syndicate, and the protection of its individual members. The more a character knows about Maffi, the more they are held responsible for and accountable to that knowledge. Pledges, Workers and Soldiers are not typically granted any sensitive knowledge of the inner workings of the syndicate. They only know that they are involved in something larger than themselves, and that they stand to gain power and wealth by climbing the ranks through hard work and patience.

Pledges do not even know the true name of the syndicate. They dont know who is a member, and who is not. They only know the immediate circumstances and surroundings in which they work. They have no knowledge of other operations of their employers or other locations in the Galaxy or planet operated by their employers. In essence, a pledge is in darkness and blind to the true extent and power of their peers.

Likewise, Workers are in the same boat, and only understand the jobs they are given, and only know the people they come into direct contact with. Workers are not explained why they are given a job, or what the greater context of their job entails for the org. They often only know the people who give them direct assignments.

Soldiers are more in the know. They are employed in a more mobilized fashion and so often come into contact with more than one syndicate operated location during their time as a soldier. They are given assignments by more than one superior and are privy to more information about the context of their work. Soldiers are often the most heavily employed member of the syndicate, and are always used in combat situations. They are higher paid and more informed and stand ever closer to the point of no return.

Lieutenants are powerful members in Maffi and Zhao. They run crews and so have far more intimate knowledge of syndicate inner workings and details than any of the individuals under their command due to the nature of their leadership role and their close contact with superior ranked Maffi members. Almost universally Lieutenants are made and as such are permanent members of the syndicate. Lieutenants are in a dangerous position due to the mobility and hands on nature of their role, and are often under the most scrutiny by superior ranked Maffi.

If you are in doubt about what your character knows and what they do not assume they dont know it, or talk to an org admin. Never assume that your characters knows ANYTHING unless that information has been imparted personally to your character by means of Role Play. Only the information your character is told or overhears in actual RP is considered to be In Character knowledge. All information contained in +mafhelp files or through OOC discussion is Out Of Character information only, and cannot be used on the IC grid by your character in any fashion. This is of utmost importance and you will be expected to show maturity in your gaming and understanding the difference between what you know as a player about Maffi org, and what your character actually knows in the game world.

NPC-use
NPCs are non player characters that appear in scenes for various reasons and are posed by any player (and you) aside from their individual PC. Arbitrary NPCs like innocent bystanders, workers like mechanics, techs, waiters or people and aliens who would naturally be in a certain setting are ok to pose at will - and can often be used to spruce up a scene and help present a thriving, realistic environment. Other NPCs, however, will be soldiers, and lieutenents and powerful Maffi members, or beings with guns and equipment utilized for battles, strikes, assassinations and other aggressive and offensive roles. These sorts of NPCs, while fun to use, are easy to abuse and if not utilized correctly, can easily imbalance a scene and cause non-org players to stop enjoying the role-play due to excessive power-playing. Therefore, no one is allowed to pose NPC soldiers, ships, battle groups or other agressive NPC types without the express OOC permission of Tyy'sun, Corey or MUSH Admin. This policy is to ensure that 1: Maffi org retains the right to utilize such NPCs to augment stories, TP's and bring realism to the underworld syndicate theme. 2: Instances of abuse is kept to a minimum and other SW1 players don't view us as TWINKs. If you don't know what a Twink is - you are in danger of becoming one. Ask around and find out.

Quality
Maffi org seeks to represent some of the finest Role-play on SW1. This goal will require its members, new and established alike, to possess a skill in creative posing. One liner poses are not story-thriving pieces of literature. Consider at least 3 or 4 sentences to be mandatory - and a complete paragraph per pose to be 'on par'. Tell the story of your character! Tell the story of Maffi! Tell the story of the underworld and dont be shy to relate what is neat about any of it in your poses. Good spellling and grammer is not as important as good content - and quality of posing is essential to good scenes and good Role-play. Make us proud. Make Maffi org desirable to the rest of the mush by creating intriguing and exciting poses, which will serve the scene as a whole and not just you. One liner poses should be generally considered bad form unless there is a specific story technique involved in doing so. Vary your diction. Include hints about what your character is thinking. Include a little background in a pose. Pose the environment! It is not difficult to come up with a few paragraphs if you just take a moment and consider all the various things happening that you can express.

Having trouble thinking of something? Answer a few questions and then get writting: What does the setting smell like? What does the setting look like? Are there other people around? What are they doing? Is there a beautiful scene on the horizon? Is there a glowing planet outside the starship view port? Oh, it is starting to rain? Is that thunder in the distance? How is your character dressed today? What sort of mood is reflected in their eyes? What are they thinking? What emotion plays across their face? If they have a poker face - express that too. What dark moments in their history does the scene remind your character of? Say so.. Remember - a scene as it progresses should READ LIKE A BOOK.

OOC Attitude is nearly as important as good Role-playing.... but not quite. Still, it is required that Maffi members have a mature demeanor when dealing with other players of SW1. Laming other players, abusing a Maffi power or authority, OOC bullying, excessive fighting and complaining, bad mouthing others in a slander campaign, or any number of other petty behavior will not only reflect badly on you, but it will make Maffi org look bad as well - and I will not tolerate that excessively. If you are not in this to tell a story, and have fun - then Maffi is not for you. Maffi is not about getting a powerful character, it is not about getting a rich character, it is not about winning, and it is not about sticking it to the other guy... Maffi is about telling a story about the underworld, the galactic fringe, a Twi'lek mafia, the Brotherhood of Zhao, the dangers of organized crime, the rewards of organized crime, the tragedies inherant in these themes - and providing a villain for the rest of SW1. If you dont understand what a story is - then go find a mud to play - or some other org.

Activity
Activity & Advancement through the ranks of Maffi go hand in hand. There is no formal activity level required for you to remain in Maffi org other than the general MUSH activity policy just to have a character at all on SW1. However, players who are not actively participating in Maffi missions, Maffi Role-play and contributing to the org will simply not advance in IC rank. Players who achieve higher ranked status but taper off to an inactive level will likewise lose ranks through gradual demotion. Notifying org admin of vacations and times of inactivity before hand, with the intention of jumping back in again will not result in demotion.

Because Maffi org is about storytelling, role-play and enjoyment of the game from a standpoint of villainy and organized crime - players who utilize their characters, and contribute to scenes and are PROACTIVE will raise ranks the fastest and accumilate more IC power and OOC respect in the org. We are looking to be one of the best orgs on the grid - and it takes active, story-focused people to be that. When you play your character, mix it up, start plots, follow up leads, get into things! Don't be afraid to lose and don't be afraid to get your character's hands dirty. The more everyone in a scene enjoys your involvement - the more you will be rewarded. Likewise, the more abusive and counterproductive you are - the less you will be included. Keep a good attitude OOCly and scare the pants off of characters in the game world ICly.