FourtyTwo

Game of Thrones : The Pact of Ice and Fire (Always Open)

@NecroKnight

Potentially tomorrow night, though I'll have to see. Quite busy atm.

Gonna write a nice little post shortly after.

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

@JDolan@ONL

Yup, get it up ASAP. Lukasz/Felix is about to be done, I'm really sorry for stalling for everyone else. I'll see if I can set up the IC- it should really put in motion the beginning of the meeting of characters.....and one ugly Nazi motherfucking bastard you're gonna want to stab/strangle/murder straightaway. Rest assured...you will.

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

@Lady Selune

Oh, shit :( Shame to hear, keep us in mind if you are interested!

For everyone else- I've gotten too tired today, and wasn't able to make the character. I'll wait on a couple more chars to go up before I make the IC/and my last character for tomorrow evening :)

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

Updated my CS now! Robert and Valerie have been added in, Lukasz should come tomorrow night (and I'll kick off the IC shortly after so that we get the rest of our characters in).

@Lady Selune

Also, sorry I didn't reply- it makes sense I suppose :D

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

@Ulstermann

Excellent CS. I really should get to work on mine...but don't worry, it'll be a fine specimen when I do :) You can post it in the Character tab if you like.

@DepressedSoviet

Excellent. That can work quite nicely. For some, this is an escape strategy- a way of bailing out of Germany, with cash. The Argentina-route and all that. They're particularly useful as they can bring on board people under them, to do their bidding- more people knowledgeable of the heist may be a bad thing, but it allows for more to be accomplished.

@Force and Fury

Good CS- I'm definitely liking her slant, the way she is portrayed.

@ONL

Glad to have you on board. I'm going to assume four things:
1) You will make a Norwegian character
2) He'll be called Jakob Nordheim
3) If not, then I'll be disappointed
4) He'll definitely be sarcastic and generally enjoy killing Nazis

-----

Overall very very happy about how people are getting into it. I would say that chances are your characters probably know of "Centurion"- something I'll explain better when I make all my CSes. Apologies in advance that I didn't do a lot- I've been hit by revision and a few other blues today, but it should all be done tonight :)

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

@Lady Selune

Yup, absolutely fine. Keep in mind they're gonna be a little out of place- so perhaps giving them an alias, or a way to get into Germany undercover may be an idea. After all, when somebody goes

WHHHHERREE ARE YOUR PAPERS?

A .45 to the head isn't always the answer :D

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

(HEAVY WORK IN PROGRESS)

Robert

Name (or known Aliases): Lieutenant Commander Robert Terrence Fitzroy

SOE Codename: Centurion

Age: 40

Nationality: British

Affiliation: SOE Double Agent within the Abwehr. Feeds information to both- conducts intelligence gathering on facilities and train networks, feeding both sides information- though predominantly towards the SOE the net benefit of information comes through.

Role: Spy, Fixer, Cell Leader of SOE Agents in Baden-Wuttenburg and Bavaria.

Useful with a Sten in a pinch. Robert connects dots, he keeps a wide network and is a support to other inteligence operators, given he's in deep. He's the cell leader, which to the Abwehr, indicates he's a hell of a catch. It works the other way around.

Appearance:



Robert is about 6"0, with a distinctive Northern accent when speaking English, though his German sounds far more regular, with a Bavarian tinge due to his experience in the South of Germany. He has brown hair and brown-green eyes, wearing a leather jacket in the cold winter in the foothills of the German Alps.

Personality:

Robert is level-headed, and simply put, has the stiff upper lip of a British gentleman. Of course, military service has changed that a little, though being a Naval Officer, Robert is probably too comfortable. He's got a certain charm and intelligence, able to play himself off to different people at once, but he knows he can't always keep doing it. He's got no pleasure in killing Germans- he almost sympathises with them, but knows the job has to be done for King and Country. Lining his own pockets in the process is a worthwhile cause to him- he wants to walk away from the stress with something to show for it, seeing it as a kickback of the job to steal the gold and take it maybe for himself. He isn't a born thief- he's just an opportunist, and sees a way of making money.

Service History:

Robert Terrence Fitzroy was born into an upper-class, nearly stereotypical family, the eldest son to his father, the Rt Hon Harold Fitzroy of Wensleydale, was a former Colonel in the British Army during the Boer War and the First World War, and a serving MP in the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. Robert's childhood was filled with private schooling and tutoring, as well as an expectation that he would also join the services.

He joined the Royal Navy as an officer in 1930, after graduating from Oxford University with a degree in Germanic Studies, thanks to his father's connections, perhaps rather more than his academic wit. He found the work was relatively simple, and was promoted to Lieutenant Commander, with his linguistic skills proving useful and making him an attache of the Navy to Germany, outside of tours of duty in South Africa, India and the Far East.

That was until 1938, when he was implanted into Germany, as a military intelligence asset in the northern reaches of Germany, asked to spy and gather information on the Kriegsmarine's naval capabilities. On the outbreak of war in 1939, he was still on the other side. And was unfortunately caught six months later relaying information from Beligum, yet Robert did not see any qualm in adapting his cover. After all, he had been an implanted agent for a while- the Abwehr saw use in Robert, the stereotypically British spy being a useful double agent. He already got to work when he returned to the United Kingdom, following an escape, and reported in to the SOE...and so the game began.

He returned to Germany, and promptly began to play both sides, feeding as much useful information to the SOE as possible, this time moved from naval intelligence to the south of Germany, in order to break his previous cover. He was tasked with agents, the Abwehr having a few leads on agents that didn't exist, aware they had one of the SOE's cell leaders in their pocket. Yet Robert played them more- finding out movements of trains, raw materials and reserve divisions. Of course, to keep his cover Robert provided information to the Abwehr when he was in the United Kingdom, some of which was true, some of which was false. Sometimes people needed to be eliminated, someone who knew too much, on either side. It's an unfortunate side-effect, but playing a double agent is an incredibly tricky line, and so Robert got used to being always paranoid, always cautious, and always suspecting of those who might undermine his short.

And recently, Robert has found something even more interesting that the Germans are doing. The SS are overseeing the movement of gold reserves from countries that the Axis occupy, including most recently, the Italian and French gold reserves. Enormous sums of money, relatively unguarded, being moved quietly and discreetly across Germany. It's so discreet, because most of the trains are moved under the guise of transporting containers filled with lead. Yet there's more guards than usual, and the places they're coming from...aren't lead mines.

Robert understands the risks he's playing here. The chance to make a significant sum of money, while serving King and Country, is undeniable. It might blow his cover open- but as a double, nearly triple agent, it makes no sense to carry on because he'll either get shot by one, or the other. A decisive and hard strike, making as much money in the process seems to fit him. He might have the privilege and perks that he likes waiting for him at home, but more money is more more money. He knows he'll need a crew to pull of the heist, and nobody really at home is going to be easy to bring in.

So with it, Robert uses his network to gather a group of people who want to help hit the stolen German gold reserves in Ulm, with a ruler-accurate plan on how to get the job done, and steal the bricks.

Other:

Robert is a particular drinker of beer, and has grown particularly attached to spending time in German beerhalls. His mastery of the language makes him sound almost like a native, with Robert proficient in some degree of French too due to his education.

His weapon of choice tends to be a suppressed Sten IIS, or a Welrod for closer range. An MP40 is fine in his hands if he can't get a hold of a Sten- being comfortable with it given his frequent contact with the Abwehr. He has a relatively decent proficiency with small arms, but is mostly constrained to SMGs and pistols, rather than rifles or larger weapons.

Valerie

Name: Valerie Helena Mercier

Codename: "Edelweiss"

Age: 26

Nationality: Swiss

Affiliation: Swiss Gendarmerie/NDB (Military Inteligence)- known intelligence leaker to Abwehr/SOE under codename "Edelweiss". Unknown motives- she's like as blank as a white card on what she actually wants.

Role: Fixer, spy, sharpshooter, femme fatale.

She's interested in making sure the Germans keep to their end of the deal on any gold stored in Swiss vaults, but is involved in Robert's plans, signing on for his personal gain- Robert needs a fixer in Switzerland for when the gold arrives after all. Valerie is only too happy to help.

Appearance:



Drop dead-gorgeous, Valerie almost appears to be a pin-up girl, she is certainly a charmer. Red-ginger hair, a thin and short physqiue, with a certain set of feminine curves, and quite pale white skin. Yet she has a certain athleticism, not to a soldier's degree, but that of someone who knows they need to be rough and tumble sometimes. An experience of skiing in the mountains and an experience in biathlon makes that very clear- her strength is not her focus, but her cardiovascular capacity and ability with a rifle at range is remarkable. Many would have almost mistaken her for an actress, but Valerie is not just a pretty girl. She's far more deadly, and certainly a fiery character.

Personality:

Born genius, somewhat sassy and sharp, unpredictable and cunning. Valerie is clearly leagues ahead of even individuals like Robert in understanding the end game of a heist like this- she seems to have inherited much from her father on the stakes at hand, being rather logical and careful about things. Of course, she is more than willing to let go sometimes....if it gets results. She has no qualms or moral quips about doing what is needed, she's killed people in cold blood...and doesn't seem to give much away of her personal beliefs.

Service History:

Valerie Helena Mercier was born in Zurich, Switzerland to a banker of a French Swiss father, and a German Swiss doctor for a mother. A rather middle-class household, with Valerie as their only child. She had a privileged background, certainly, but she did not scupper it away when she was privately schooled, or throughout any of her tuition. She had bigger sights in mind. She was always bright, at language, maths, even in physical education, she seemed to want to do better, and do more.

And that she did, turning 21 and finished with a degree in Economics from the University of Geneva, a remarkable trait in it's own right for a woman in this time- and she joined the Police through a contact of her uncle, the Swiss Gendarmarie following straight after, despite being female. She moonlighted as a model, a dancer and even for a while from her childhood spent in the Alps, competed in biathlon events. She embarrassed many men, because of her talents with a rifle and a pair of skis...and she could of carried this on. Yet the MDB, or the Swiss military intelligence, saw potential in Valerie, they were part of the reason she'd become involved in the Gendarmarie. They needed operatives that could work in the new climate of Europe and protect Swiss interests, know what the enemy were doing, in the imminent war to come.

Her first operation was in Berlin, before the start of the war, gathering the general attitude of German SS staff on the invasion of Poland, France and the Low Countries, which....was remarkably easy. The information was so good, the higher echelons of the Swiss intelligence community were already aware of what would happen on September the 1st, and the subsequent mobilisation, where, and when. She found it simple, she had to pose as a dancer, and well, it worked so unbelievably well. It followed on, with her name changing every time she visited anywhere outside of her country of birth, tasked with finding information, and getting things done. She even visited the United Kingdom and the United States, often blending in fast as a foreigner who was there to gather information for anyone that wanted it.

She was fast, faster than most agents are when she realised that information was currency. So that was what she traded in. Sometimes you needed to kill someone, and her skill with a rifle in a belltower was second to none, if poison, a knife or a shot in the back of the head didn't cut it. None actually believed that it would be Valerie, she just didn't fit the profile. Something else, surely? The Abwehr, the SOE, OSS, Swedes, NKVD, they wanted what she was selling. A real masterclass at covering her steps, she almost seemed to change her aliases and identity like a ghost. Be it sleeping with Generals, or lone-wolf elimination, Valerie was never just a double agent. She played as many people as she could, and provided a mountain of intelligence for the NDB in the process. That and making sure that any German figures in high command stick to their promises in keeping some of the gold that they have in Swiss vaults, rather than just in Berlin. Particularly some of the gold they don't want to be traced...they wouldn't want any blemishes on it, would they?

Robert, knowing that "Edelweiss" had contacts within Switzerland to deal with the gold, contacted her and subsequently, set up the deal. He would bring the gold to a predetirmined location, and Valerie would arrange for trucks to take the gold away, to be melted and returned back into a Swiss vault, belonging to the individuals involved in the heist. In exchange for of course, some gold herself. Though Valerie still keeps a mind on the bigger picture....there is more than just stealing gold that will just end the war. And sometimes, not even the perfect heist can entirely work out. She knows the risks that Robert's taking. And they are high stakes indeed, even if it works out....

Other:

Valerie can speak English, German, French and Italian with little issue, she seems to be able to juggle languages almost at will.

She's normally equipped with a Welrod she's acquired through sources in the SOE, and a Karabiner Model 31 (K31) Swiss rifle, with a fixed Luger telescopic optic. Naturally, she tends to be unarmed if she can help it, preferring to stick with knives or snapping necks.

Lukasz

Name (or known Aliases):

Lukasz Wojtkiewicz

AKA

Felix Holstein

Age: 26

Nationality: Polish

Affiliation: SOE Agent- living under a fake name, as one of Robert's cell members.

Role: Saboteur and Weapons Expert. Gathers intelligence in the field, and on the general situation, being involved in sabotage and "hot" operations, as well as being a gunsmith. He is that nutcase who hauls an MG42 and hoses down anyone in his path.

Appearance:

WIP

Personality:
Crazy, angry, and genuinely lacking in morals for Nazis. He sees the Hugo Stiglitz* way of doing things as positive. He's not stupid, but he is definitely psychopathic in his tendencies, he is very engineering in creating chaos and as much fear as he can. He's come a long way in being more suitable for undercover work in Germany, speaking the language fluently but he still knows as a Pole, he's got a good chance that he won't exactly be treated well if he gets captured- not compared to a British agent- which drives this personality a little. Take as many of the evil bastards as he can. He seems to however follow a genuine want to do good, and to end the war- this Heist was Robert's idea, and he only sees a way to make money, while upseting the Nazi regime.

Service History:

Lukasz Wladyslaw Wojtkiewicz was born in Lodz, Poland to a relatively poor family, his father a coal miner and his mother a houswife. He was lucky enough to attend school up to the age of 16, being able to attain a good standard of education, working in the coal mines in his youth before joining the Polish Army aged 20. This was right before the dawn of war- and well, to say the least, Lukasz got to see his country burn as an enlisted Corporal. He was posted on the Western front in an Anti-Tank regiment, fighting to the bitter end against rolling waves of German Panzers, with pretty much everyone but him being killed on the fight just outside Warsaw. He was placed in an internment camp in Germany, and was expected to be executed, with a group of other Polish soldiers.

This is where the story gets interesting.

He escaped prison after forming a plan to distract the guards with a large fight with a group of Czech Socialists, running away with three others. They were captured, he was not, managing to flee from Dresden and heading east, sneaking onto trains and evading capture. He was able to speak German fluently and stay out of sight from the authorities, making his way back to the only place he knew where he could. He ended up in Poland, and found a few old friends from home, becoming involved in the AK- the Armia Krajowa, a small but hardy resistance network. And what they saw in Lukasz was the chance to raise all hell.

Of course, reprisals were anticipated. But some Nazis....well, they just had to go, they couldn't be allowed to live. So between running supply runs, helping to construct rudimentary Stens in backroom workshops, and sabotaging transportation where possible, Lukasz killed Nazis. SS Officers, Ghetto administrators, the worst, most evil scumbags, or just anyone, Lukasz enjoyed killing. It was reprisal for HIS losses, he thought to himself. He often killed them by any means necessary- but where possible, cut off their ring finger and kept it as a momento of another dead Nazi scum. Ambushes with a machine gun or a Panzerfaust, a rifle round, whatever worked and was unpredictable, and killed the fuckers. His tally racked up to 25 high ranking officials. The Germans put a bounty on his head....and well, eventually someone ratted him out, and collected on it.

This was his second time in prison, and well, they should have shot him again. That was, until someone decided to half blast apart his cell in the Lodz Ghetto with dynamite, killing three Germans and leaving Lukasz with two of his left fingers almost blasted off. An irony, but the AK hadn't forgotten his actions, and busted him out before it was too late- with Lukasz killing five Germans with a prison shank on the way. He realized quickly he couldn't hide among the AK's ranks anymore- he had caused enough of a shitstorm, and began organising an exfil from Poland in 1942, managing to make it to Gdansk and sneak aboard a fishing trawler that headed for Sweden. The SOE's contacts wanted Lukasz on board from their communication prior, and from Sweden, he made his way to the United Kingdom, trained properly and prim in undercover work. He joined a small network of Poles in exile that fought for the British, and whilst tempted in re-enlisting in the Polish forces in England, he knew his real talent lay in killing Germans, behind enemy lines.

He was sent to Robert's cell in mid-1943 rather than to Poland, owing to the fact that Robert needed a specialist in weaponry and improvised resistance fighting- a gunsmith and a general psychopath made him useful for when shit needed to get done. So far, Lukasz, or as he's known, Felix, hasn't had the chance to actually kill many people. The heist in a sense is another good chance to fuck up some Nazis and do some serious damage.

Other:

Lukasz is lingual in English to a half-decent degree, and fluent in Polish and German, with little accent identifiable in the latter.

Weapons wise, Lukasz is diverse in what he can use. He's a good user of a BREN, though his personal favourite is Hitler's Buzzsaw, a MG42. Of course, Nazi killing is fast and easy with a weapon that can shit out rounds at 1200 RPM, no accuracy or tact really needed. He is able to actually develop, with the right parts and enough time in a workshop a basic copy of a Sten, the Blyskawica, though it's not the easiest thing or most accurate- point it in a direction, it'll shit out bullets and maybe some will hit. A stolen C96 Mauser joins that- an SS officer's heirloom, in his hands. He's also talented with dynamite and plastic explosives, both manufactured and improvised.

"Band of Bastards"- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP!

@Force and Fury

Preeety much. Viewed with a fucking lot of suspicion, by pretty much everyone, very likely even their own. Which is depressing, to be honest. But I like the angle- feel free to take a Russian.

@Lady Selune

I hope this an RP that isn't the traditional "we're heroes, let's kill Nazis" type. It's a little more than that. Sure, it has moments of gratuitous crazy shit (okay definitely, I mean there's gonna be moments of just pure violence) but there are some finer elements to it, that there is a lot more than just "heroes" involved. A lot of cunning, a lot of swagger, a lot of thought going into things. The individuals involved range from real people who want to end the war, to people who are genuinely in it for purely greed, money and to fuck people over is nothing to them. Who turns out to be what is what captivates me. The heist is the beginning.

Also, for everyone else....we have an OOC! Post up your CS- mine are going to be very skeletal, but lay out the basics of my three characters. I'll finish it tomorrow morning- but feel free to post yours all in the OOC then into the character section!

roleplayerguild.com/topics/163361-ban…

Band of Bastards- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP

So, OOC is here.

---------------

December 1943
Ulm, Baden-Württemberg
Germany

You've been called by a figure you are aware of in the intelligence community known as "Centurion", a British SOE double-agent called Robert Fitzroy to a beerhall in the south of Germany, in the city of Ulm. The premise he has laid out is simple, and he has reached out through his contact, "Edelweiss", a femme fatale Swiss gendarme known as Valerie Mercier to you. The two aren't often connected, in fact, Robert seems completely alien to the work Valerie does, which makes it strange to connect the dots.

He understands your position within the shitstorm that has hit Germany- the bombing raids are increasing, and the Allies are marching through Italy with remarkable pace, and the tide on the Eastern Front has suddenly and rapidly deteriorated. The German War Machine is losing ground, and with it, the people are suffering. There's quiet dissent in the army at Hitler's meddling in their affairs, and everyone is feeling the pinch. Repression is getting harder. People are starving. There's the carting away of Jewish and other individuals the Nazis deem "undesirable", with genocide on an unprecedented and unknown scale to those who know the reality*. The SS are being diverted to deal with it, rather than being sent to the Ostfront. Casualties are mounting, enormously. A lot of people are dying for no good reason whatsoever, and the dream of Hitler's thousand-year Reich feels like it's a dying one, with the Americans intensifying their war against the Japanese and supplying armaments to the rest of the Allies. The Italians are turned.

And for intelligence operatives looking to shorten the war, everyone is aware that the German state is moving gold, stolen from anyone, melted and reformed and then moved. That gold is paying for soldiers and the war effort, to the industrialists as a guarantee in the total war effort, it's paying for oil bought from the Romanians, and the overall German economy. Reserves taken from Poland, France, Austria, being moved and juggled, that are unbeknown to anyone.

Centurion, or Robert has figured out that one such movement of almost seven and a half tons of gold is being moved from Ulm to the north, up to Berlin. It's French in origin- the gold was stolen from the direct reserves of the Third French Republic, and it's been melted and reformed so many times, with elements of melted gold even added from Jewish and Gypsies taken at concentration and death camps. It's dirty, but in times of war, it is worth tens and hundreds and hundreds of millions of Reichmarks, and hitting it would be a huge blow to the gold reserve of Nazi Germany. A small but significant act of resistance. One that could hamper the German War Machine even more, bringing it closer to collapse, the destroy one more cog by defaulting it in the only real currency that is not arbitrary, or made up. Gold never loses it's value.

The plan is to steal it, using a complicated diversion to Switzerland via Konstanz...putting it out of the hands of the Nazis. Get it across the border, and officially, the plan is to derail it over a bridge in the High Alps, destroying all traces of the gold, and making it unrecoverable. Robert doesn't want that. Robert wants gold in his pocket and in the pockets of the people helping him, and melted down again to be placed into an infamously good Swiss secret bank. But do they? That is only the beginning of the tale, as twists, turns and a chain of consequences that go beyond just a train robbery.

Some are going to be very rich. Some are going to be very dead. Others are going to help win the war. All will be thieves of the highest order.

Welcome to the Band of Bastards.

*wasn't believed in the common German populace at the time that the Holocaust was happening- though figures in the intelligence community, as well as among military leaders and inferences made it assumed that this was happening.

------------------------------

Character sheet is below:

Name (or known Aliases):

Age:

Nationality:

Affiliation: (Double Agent, Undercover, naturalised in theatre, and their loyalties. Who do they serve, or at least...who do they appear to serve?)

Role: (Soldier, Spy, or some kind of Specialist?)

Appearance (picture/description- preferably both if possible)

Personality:

Service History: (This part needs to be filled out as truthfully as possible. Blank sections are a possibility.)

Other: (The things that add a little spice to them. If you don't put it here, then flesh it out IC, as this is what builds your character's taste.)

"Band of Bastards"- WW2 Heist/Espionage RP!

@Ulstermann

I'll cook something up later this evening! I'll make skeletons for my characters so you can see what Robert, Valerie and my as of yet unamed Pole are.

@Force and Fury

So long as you're comfortable in writing in the way RPs are and know the Guild Rules, no worries. That can actually work- though explaining why someone from China is in Germany at that time period is gonna be difficult. It might actually be slightly easier to have a Soviet, given that they might be better at being a double or infiltrating into Germany, who maybe wants to steal money through the NKVD for China?