The Roundels

Type
Factions: Secondary Faction

Description
Refounded by the Davies Brothers, the Roundels were once the princes of Northern London. But after the battle of the Bang Bang, they were reduced to a small rump state in Hackney, tolerated only as they serve as a buffer zone between more powerful gangs. The final Davies Brother spends his days tweaking out of his skull in his radio studio, leaving his gang and lieutenants to flounder without guidance. But do not mistake these sharp dressed men and women for pushovers, even at this low point they remember when the gang’s roundel marked all of Northern London’s street corners and they dream of when that may happen again.

Location
Hackney

History/Background
The history of the Roundels begins in two places, there is the gang before and after the war. The pre-war Roundel gang has its roots in Camden as one more group of hooligans making trouble. They took part in the battle of the bang bang and were thoroughly defeated and ultimately driven out of Camden into Hackney. The original gang was ultimately little more than a historical footnote. As time went on, attacks by Hooligans and their old enemies, the skinheads, the gang’s numbers dwindled until it was all but forgotten. Many said the gang died, but they could never have known that the gang was not dead, but merely in hibernation.

The Davies brothers, Peter and Keith were born in the cesspit that was northern London in the hollowed out remains of a council estate in Hackney. They learned the typical lesson of such a  childhood, that strength was what protected you but they had a level of charisma that set them apart from the typical street tough. From the beginning they had a small gang around them, but it was when they found the Roundel Scooter Shoppe that they really began to take off. In it they met Roger Moon, one of the last of the original Roundel gang’s members. Moon regaled them with stories of the old world and the old gang as well as introducing the boys to his impressive holotape collection. Under his guidance they reforged their gang into a new mold, they eagerly adopted the Mod look and style and the Roundel gang was reborn. Moon taught the brothers and gang as a whole how to use the scooters they were able to scavenge and soon they were geared up to spread far and wide, something the ambitious brothers were eager to do.

With their newfound scooters and a level of mobility and speed unavailable to other gangs, the gang was able to rise above the various north London Hooligans, conquering or assimilating all rivals. They surprised the city by overtaking and subjugating the Skinheads in a surprise sneak attack. This was compounded by founding of Roundel Radio. Part propaganda service, part mass communication service, and part music station, Roundel Radio announced to anyone tuning in that North London belonged to the Roundels. Success begat success and soon the gangs’ territory covered most of Northern London east of Camden and north of the Thames. They were even able to refuse to pay the Gentry Tithe as they began drawing up plans to overtake them. They eagerly sought to return the Gang to Camden, but Camden would turn out to be the Roundel’s downfall.

Camden was its own world and the local punks didn’t take kindly to the encroaching “posh, scooter riding bastards” and were especially disgusted by the Davies brothers strongman rule. At first the Roundels were able to make steady expansions into Camden, pushing out the Punks, using the same blitzkrieg tactics that had served them so well before. But then disaster struck.

The Punks, long since unified and not keen on rule by outsiders, launched a counter attack. They coordinated and attacked multiple Roundel bases throughout North London simultaneously, attacking their command structure in particular. At the same time, the Skinheads, now unified under Miller’s Leadership, took advantage of the confusion to rise up in the middle of ROundel territory and wreak havoc. the Roundels were soundly defeated as the punks stabbed at their overextended front and the Skinheads cut their territory in half. Worse, their eastern flank was attacked at the same time by the IODS, pushing them back towards Hackney from the south east. Attacked on all sides, the Roundels were forced back until all that remained was their core territory in Hackney. Many Roundels were killed, decimating their forces. Worse though, one of the Davies brothers, Keith, was killed in the battle. Miller personally came across the prince of the roundels as he retreated from camden and stoved his head in with a pipe. He would die, his brain bleeding, in his brother’s arms.

This devastated Peter, and though he was able to keep himself together long enough to prevent the full collapse of the Roundels and stop further incursions by Miller’s Skinheads into Hackney, he soon collapsed in on himself, falling into a drugged stupor, trying to dull his pain with drugs and drink. These days he spends his days DJing Roundel Radio, alternating between manic and depressive as he rots his brain away. His Lieutenants wring their hands and know that something must be done, but hesitate to actually remove the leader who brought them to such heights, even as they pity him. They even had to humble themselves and return to paying the Gentry tithe for extra protection. Everyone knows something must be done, the status quo cannot hold and the future of the Roundels stands in the balance.

Prominent NPC
“Prince” Pete Davies

“Prince” Keith Davies

Roger Moon

Joan Shrimpton

Dennis Blandford

Manchester Mike

Assorted Information

 * The gang is headquartered in the Roundel Scooter Shoppe. It has been reinforced and turned into a mini fortress. It also has the tower for Roundel Radio.


 * The gang uses scooters as one of their major edges. Sadly many were destroyed in the war that tore down the gang and as such, those that remain are precious.
 * Sometimes called “Spots” “Spotty bastards” or “Posh Spots” by people who don’t like them.
 * Roundel Radio is a shadow of its former self. It plays the occasional song, but is mainly Prince Pete’s depressive mumblings or amphetamine fueled screeds as he bounces between manic and depressive.
 * The Roundels don’t like the punks overall, but more or less respect them. They DESPISE the Skinheads for killing one of their leaders, leading to the breakdown of the other and stealing much of their territory.
 * Reasons for Pete’s mental break: the main reason for his collapse was the loss of his brother, but there’s also the issue that Keith was the face of the gang, and had the charisma to run things smoothly. Pete was always the brains and, while not socially inept, doesn’t have the same personal magnetism that Keith did. Despite saving the gang in its time of greatest need (cutting off nonessential territory, falling back to their core territory, holding off an incursion by the skinheads) he feels inadequate to fill his brother’s shoes.

Soldier Types

 * The types/ranks of soldiers the faction uses (if applicable) [Ranger this seems incomplete]

Associated Quests

 * I Can See For Miles: Get Roundel Radio up and running again.
 * Behind Blue Eyes: Get Prince Pete to clean up his act and get back in control of the gang, or overthrow him and replace him with someone else.
 * Dedicated Followers of Fashion: Receive a bounty for any mod suits or dresses the player turns in
 * Quadrophenia: Collect scooters/scooter parts for the gang