[b]DATE:[/b] 12/25/13

[b]PROPOSAL BY: Kurtissketch Resident[/b]

[b]GROUP NAME:[/b] Sumfai

TYPE:

MEMBERS: Kurtissketch Resident, Voltiel Rassir

BACKGROUND: Established in 1992 by Kakihara's uncle(Katsuhiko Henusaki), Sumfai-kai was created as a drug ring initially. Unable to find a proper niche within Tokyo itself, the family relocated their base of operations to Chicago's upper east side some three years later. Kakihara is the half-brother to Poe Henusaki(26, of Hathian). He was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1981 to a Japanese businessman and a prostitute. Kaki became a son of the Sumfai-kai by being hand-picked and groomed by the yakuza's kumichō (family head) at the age of 15. At 18, Katsuhiko Henusaki(family lead) died and Kakihara assumed control over the Sumfai-kai. From there, he rearranged the organizational structure and instilled specific kobun(subordinates) that would later develop into the notorious Sumfai-gumi of present day, which is known only as Sumfai on the street. The organization flourished in Chicago for over a decade until another rather abrupt transition (rumored to have been triggered by increased attention from the FBI in Chicago) sent the Sumfai-gumi south, to Louisiana. Because of this shift of headquarters, Kakihara has transitioned the Yakuza's main focus away from the heavy handed manufacturing of narcotics and onto other potential venues such as the black market, human trafficking and the porn industry. While Kakihara's Komon (gang officers) and his Wakagashira(second in command)serve seemingly life sentences in Joliet County Penitentiary in Illinois, Kaki has recently been cleared of murder charges and is a free man once again. A fresh start, he needs to fill those empty ranks, and hit the ground running. Hathian is exactly where he plans to do that. Rank Examples(these may be simplified but this is a basic idea): (Gang Lead. In English terms, this rank is referred to as the father of the gang.) Kumicho--family head. The Kumicho is the head of the entire Yakuza gang and is typically male, and Japanese. He oversees all rituals and must approve all Sakazuki rituals before they are conducted. (officer ranks. In English terms, they are referred to as the Elder brothers/sisters of the gang) Wakagashira--second in command. There is only one Wakagashira in Sumfai at any one time, and this is a person that the Kumicho can trust to run the gang in his stead, if needed. The Wakagashira answers only to the Kumicho, but is on the same level as the Komon. Komon--senior advisors. These are the Kumicho's most trusted members. They are each given tasks and underlings to manage and answer only to the Kumicho, though they are on the same level as the Wakagashira. (Specialized ranks. Any full member can take on these ranks if they wish to specialize in one field.) Inu--enforcers. Inu is a rank designed to fit with those characters who have a bit of a violent/sadist streak that they can't quite control. They are the brute strength of the gang and typically are sent on missions involving the rare street violence/brutality, or anything else that would require the more stereotypical gang violence. Eru--deal makers. Those that take up the rank of Eru are good at making contacts with businesses, other factions/groups and excel in manipulation. They tend not to be heavy on the physical strength side, and hold a higher level of sophistication or intelligence in some cases. Bengoshi--legal stuff. Bengoshi are the ones that keep the gang's nose clean, so to speak. They assist in legal situations--should they arise, and advise and assist members, should they find themselves incarcerated. They can also assist Eru in the legal side of deal making and assist the Supai in gathering information on the legal front. Supai--intelligence gathering. Supai are the spies of the gang and typically good at disguises, subterfuge or simply appearing harmless. Supai can be just about anyone. Women excel at this rank, typically. (standard rank. In English terms, they are the younger brother/sisters of the gang.) Seikaiin--full member. Seikaiin are the bulk of the Sumfai-gumi as a population. They have been groomed and brought in by a full member and the family lead has approved of the sharing of sake(Sakazuki). They are considered an official younger brother/sister of the family. (initiate rank. In English terms, they are the potential members and not considered full family as of yet.) Kaishi--trial member. Kaishi must be hand picked by a full member and groomed for an undetermined amount of time during their trial membership. They must prove themselves worthy of becoming a full member, though it is not uncommon that a person maintains the rank of Kaishi for the long term. These trial members are valuable to the gang, as they are considered more or less the 'goons' or 'lackeys' and tend to do the dirty work. Some people enjoy that, and remain within the rank. Sumfai is unique in the complex organizational structure that it possesses. Unlike the current American gangs found in Hathian, Sumfai utilizes traditions birthed in Japan such as the hierarchy of sakazuki(sake sharing) and a variation of the traditional Japanese senpai-kōhai(senior-junior) model for its structure. Sumfai operates in a very business-like, civilized manner, when in public. They prefer subterfuge and subtlety when executing an objective, over brute force and 'winging' it. In other words, This is not the typical street gang of thugs that swarm and attack via mobs. This is more along the lines of abductions, extortion, blackmail, manipulation and forcing one's hand. To become a member of the Sumfai, a character must be hand-picked and groomed for a varying amount of time. They must complete several rites of passage to prove that they are not only loyal and devoted to their new family, but also to prove they can uphold their strict code of conduct and follow their organized nature. Members of Yakuza gangs typically are expected to sever family ties and transfer their loyalty to the gang boss. They refer to each other as family members (fathers, elder and younger brothers etc). The Yakuza gangs are populated almost entirely by men, traditionally. However, Sumfai-gumi allows select women to join (called nee-san | older sisters). When new members join, they often are required to remove their clothing so as to expose all possible permanent markings/tattoos they may possess. The Sumfai Code of Conduct overview: The Sumfai operate under a strict set of rules and guidelines for all members. Briefly these will be touched on here and some information on how the Sumfai family feel about different situations / groups will be discussed. Violence in public is low class and is typically only encouraged in the ‘enforcer’ rank of the Sumfai. Violence is a tool and is encouraged to be put to use, but not in front of a billion witnesses. Members that have a penchant for this however, are placed into an enforcer rank and used basically as human attack dogs. For the most part, the other ranks should minimize how much violence out in the open is seen by the public. Conducting business in alleys, buildings, out of the way places, is typically preferred. Respect is earned within the family. Females must work twice as hard to earn it and maintain it. In-fighting is discouraged, but clearly is not impossible to get away with. Loyalty is quite important in Sumfai. Members are expected to put their Yakuza family before any other. Betrayal is a serious offense but not a death sentence, per say. Honor amongst the family is important as well. If one dishonors their family or themselves, they must actively work to regain it. See Yubitsume below for one example on how members can make amends. However, honor amongst non family members is up for grabs. Sumfai can and will lie, cheat, steal and fight dirty if need be. They are not above less than savory tactics against non family. Being arrested is typically something Sumfai members are expected to accept with dignity though fighting/resisting is completely acceptable. Owning up for one’s own mistakes is encouraged, and using lawyers and intelligence, bribery, blackmail, manipulation to get out of charges or situations, is encouraged. It is not uncommon nor is it frowned upon, for Sumfai members to utilize the tactic of rape, torture and psychological terrorism to get what they want. Sumfai members should present themselves, in general, as intelligent, higher class individuals. Suits, dresses, business casual is preferred. However,there are ranks that are less concerned about that and are more or less the property of the gang, though they are not innately whores, but can be. Drug use is typical in Sumfai, but if it gets out of control, discipline is possible. This can be said basically about ALL the rules within the code of conduct. They are not set in stone, and can IC’ly be broken, with consequences of varying degrees. Examples of rituals: Yubitsume: The cutting off of one's finger, is a form of penance or apology. Upon a first offense, the transgressor must cut off the tip of his left little finger and give the severed portion to his boss. Its origin stems from the traditional way of holding a Japanese sword. The bottom three fingers of each hand are used to grip the sword tightly, with the thumb and index fingers slightly loose. The removal of digits starting with the little finger moving up the hand to the index finger progressively weakens a person's sword grip. The idea is that a person with a weak sword grip then has to rely more on the group for protection—reducing individual action. In recent years, prosthetic fingertips have been developed to disguise this distinctive appearance. Sakazuki: The act of sharing warm sake from the same cup. A person is not a full member of a Yakuza until a current member performs this rite of passage with them, under the direct approval of the Kumicho(family head). Those who have received sake from Seikaiin(a full member) are part of the immediate family and ranked in terms of elder or younger brothers. Full body tattooing: Many yakuza have full-body tattoos (including their genitalia). These tattoos,known as irezumi in Japan, are still often "hand-poked", that is, the ink is inserted beneath the skin using non-electrical, hand-made and handheld tools with needles of sharpened bamboo or steel. The procedure is expensive, painful and can take years to complete.

UNIQUE: I have many ideas for Sumfai. I will give a brief overview of the ones I think are most attractive and have the most potential to generate strong storylines and solid, quality role play. Human Trafficking: Obviously the whole slave thing has been done to death or is in the process of being redone so I'm not interested in really going that route. I do believe it would be interesting to run a child vendor of sorts. Quick and completely illegal adoptions for people who otherwise would not be able to get approved for adopting a child. Quick cash for infants that are not wanted. There is also the possibility of 'baby farming'. Female characters (addicts, people needing cash or in a bind) that are 'hired' to carry a child to term under the guise that they are merely pregnant with child. Upon birth, the child is given over and payment is made either over time (monthly) or in one lump sum once child is born. Baby is then put into the pool of children available for 'adoption'. Tainted Drug Disbursement: Everyone and their dog is doing drug selling etc these days, so I want to change it up a bit. Kaki's goal is to cut deals with the current drug dealers in Hathian. Sumfai wants to be their supplier for seemingly closeout prices. But there's a catch. The drugs are tainted with various things. Bath salts, Krokodil, DMT, for example. This creates poor product for the dealers and their clientele will become upset. Which will then make the dealers upset with Sumfai. All of which will generate countless conflicts and branching of roleplay story arcs and plots while offering ample opportunities for character and gang developments. Black Market Imports: Is your business not doing so hot financially IC'ly? Are you getting robbed often, vandalized? Sumfai can become your wholesale vendor for anything from alcohol to designer hand bags. They're priced so cheap, who would think they're shoddy knock offs and basement hooch? Your customers will, and boy will they have things to say about it! Instant RP generation for your store/business as well as your character toward Sumfai, and Sumfai toward the community. The Dog Fights of Hathian: This is relatively obvious to understand by the title. Kakihara breeds purebreds for attack dogs. Sumfai could easily hold underground dog fights in Hathian now and then. A bunch of violent people getting together around an organized gang in order to fight dogs for sport and profit? What could go wrong?! Everything! Events could be organized via underground means such as "the only way to be invites is to receive a pocket watch from someone who went to the last fight. Then you meet the guide at a designated pickup point and present said pocket watch, and are led to the location of the fight." This could spur quite a lot of role play. Anything ranging from those upset about the abuse of the animals in question, animal roleplay, violence amongst those attending and even Hathian Police Department getting wind of it and trying to bust those involved. Players who enjoy RP'ing animals in CD could also find new story within this idea.

FLAW: The biggest flaw that Sumfai-gumi has is it is not a huge organization. It is well known IC'ly but its membership will never swell past a relatively small size. Kakihara values quality over quantity and initiation and apprenticeship into the family can be somewhat longer than the typical American 'jumped in' gang traditions. The code of conduct for members of Sumfai is quite strict. To break the code means dishonor, and members will have to struggle to regain their honor over time. Traditionally, Sumfai members view females as a lesser part of the species. Because of this fact, female members will find it more difficult and challenging to earn and maintain a place within the family. Obviously, this bias is a flaw.

POTENTIAL ENEMY: Kakihara has abducted, tortured and exploited over half a dozen characters as well as terrorized countless others in his time within Hathian already. Because of this and the IC notoriety for being the Kumicho of the Sumfai-gumi, the gang itself can have an almost limitless list of potential enemies. Individuals, law enforcement, businesses, rival gangs, victims and their families. Any and all are potentially enemies for members of Sumfai. Any current gangs, businesses, individuals or groups such as the HPD have the potential to collaborate with Sumfai, and also become enemies. I wanted to create a gang that could extend to every type of RP'er so everyone could be involved in some way, if they chose.

EXPERIENCE:This is my other main here in Crack Den. I also play Kakihara's half-sister, Poe. I have RP'ed here for almost 2 years now and I am an RP Lead for the Clam Convenience store on Poe. I've been role playing in Second Life since about 2007 or so, and have been a storyteller in the CoLA chain for entire factions as well as being a high ranking officer as well. I've RP'ed in dozens of RP sims in the almost 7 years I've been rp'ing in SL, all of which have different settings and situations. In RL, I am a Game Designer and Computer Programmer by profession and am working on a third degree in Game Design as well. Crafting characters, plots, story lines and interactive experiences for others--is not only my job, it is my passion. I have been creating games and role playing for over 20 years. I have led, and am currently leading multiple factions, guilds, groups and projects in all manner of areas--ranging from game development to table top gaming groups to 6 year old RP guilds in various MMO's.

IDEAS:The ideas that I proposed with this gang are designed to branch out to new and old players alike, as well as those who are interested in different aspects. Players that join Sumfai will be kept up to date on IC activities and I will work to host events and RP that spurs other RP accordingly. The idea that Sumfai would seek out businesses and individuals, as well as host things such as dog fights--I believe will help engage new players looking to develop some storyline within the sim and get their feet wet with all that Hathian has to offer. This gang will not fall into a clique habit, ever. We will remain small in numbers to ensure quality of RP is maintained.

OTHER:Kakihara has abducted, tortured and exploited over half a dozen characters as well as terrorized countless others in his time within Hathian already. Because of this and the IC notoriety for being the Kumicho of the Sumfai-gumi, the gang itself can have an almost limitless list of potential enemies. Individuals, law enforcement, businesses, rival gangs, victims and their families. Any and all are potentially enemies for members of Sumfai. Any current gangs, businesses, individuals or groups such as the HPD have the potential to collaborate with Sumfai, and also become enemies. I wanted to create a gang that could extend to every type of RP'er so everyone could be involved in some way, if they chose.