Post by Maxine on Aug 1, 2020 21:47:14 GMT -8
The Shinobu Clan
A small clan within the Pig Demon Duchies; once just a noble family under the murdered Duchess Rhyme, but now darting up the ranks thanks to its current chairman’s ambitions and ruthlessness. It is rumoured that their original lineage stems from the ‘Snake Princess’ discussed in fairy tales, but it is more likely that they’re merely an odd breed of demon. Detesting the old ways of the samurai that surround the Duchies in fiefdoms, they have embraced the capitalist crime and corruption of the Western Lands criminal enterprises mixed with the innovations of the Central Lands and Pilafland. Wars fought over land with swords and spells will soon be a thing of the past… instead, the wars between shareholders and in the stock exchange are far more profitable battlegrounds.
Despite their ruthless ambitions and modern thinking, the Shinobu Clan has great respect for the Duchies and their standings, and considers the Western Lands’ power overall to be more important than their own plans – or so their chairman says, in any case. While they may not be seen on battlefields or on billboards, they instead act using soft power, gently fostering relationships with other businesses and gradually sinking their fangs into other lands’ matters. There may not be a Shinobu Clan member at the table at many high profile meetings, but there might just be one listening… or, they’d like people to think of them that way, in any case.
Their consideration for the culture and future of their homelands shouldn’t be mistaken for kindness or honour, though. They have swept up and consumed many smaller clans, and are far from above the sort of murky and murderous wetwork that anyone calling themselves a ‘samurai’ would never touch. Wearing fine suits and bowing so low, their notable members mostly come off as consummate professionals… however, it is best to remember the saying: snakes among sweet flowers do creep.
Due to their ruling family's rather iconic long purple hair, the colours purple and black have gradually become their signature; at least among their less subtle subordinates. Shinobu Clan punks tend to dress in expensive designer clothes, with manicured nails and dyed purple hair; while their heavies tend to lean towards a more professional, tactical look akin to private military contractor wannabes. Of course, a true Shinobu Clan representative will simply wear a suit and speak their clan's name only under scrutiny as aforementioned. Of note, the clan tends to care little for martial arts and swordsmanship compared to their fellows, but they particularly loath any use of bludgeons - even their street members consider it uncouth.
While the only major land to their name is their headquarters in Electric Town, the Shinobu Clan have investments and involvement in a variety of businesses across Oolong City; particularly dragging foreign companies into their racketeering with rings of extortion and lies. Their drug dealing business is also of note, as they are the ones to blame for many of Oolong City’s more… exotic imports, though they aren’t the sort of thing you could buy on the street. The hallmark of the Shinobu Clan’s business strategy is to corrupt the officials of local businesses before assimilating them into the clan entirely. However, they keep to a light touch until their conquest is assured – as soon as there’s a whiff of trouble, their members tend to vanish in a flash.
Shinobu Clan VIPs
Name: Shinobu Karigane
Age: Unknown beyond her immediate family; at least over 70
Race: Demon/Earthling Hybrid
Eye Color: Pale violet
Hair Color: Violet
Height: 6’11”
Distinctive Features: Square-shaped pupils, long hair down to her ankles, glasses, a svelte figure, and an especially malicious smirk.
Prospective Face-Claim: Rider (Fate/Stay Night, Casualwear)
Occupation: Shinobu Family Chairman, Duchess
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: Penthouse suite of the Shinobu Clan Headquarters in Oolong City; a luxury apartment building that combines Central Lands’ design with Western Lands’ décor.
Biography: A ruthless and serious lady who turned the Shinobu Clan from a mere noble family to a criminal enterprise. She is rumoured to be descended from the ‘Snake Princess’ from fairy tales, but she refuses to say anything on the matter. She keeps herself very enigmatic and rarely makes public appearances, but likes to at least speak to her cronies over the phone or through others. Though her ulterior motives are unknown, she has a distaste for many of her fellow Dukes and Duchesses, especially the Tea Clan; likely from a grudge from long ago.
She carefully pulls strings and organises alliances to increase the clan’s soft power, particularly in Oolong City, often hiring freelancers and members of other factions for her dirty work. Organising missions involving shows of force or manipulating other factions into petty conflicts are her area of expertise.
Has a soft spot for the Western Lands’ traditional arts, particularly gardening and tea ceremony. Despises Saiyans for their ‘lack of refinement’.
Relatives: Unmarried, but the Shinobu Clan’s ‘princess’ is her daughter. Any other relatives she has within the family are mere rumours.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Where Angels Play
Among Sweet Flowers Do Creep: Encount
Name: Shinobu Hatsuka
Age: Mid thirties
Race: Demon/Earthling Hybrid
Eye Color: Mauve
Hair Color: Royal purple
Height: 7’0”
Distinctive Features: Carefully cut long purple hair down to her ankles tied with a bow near the end, voluptuous figure, eclectic fashion choices, often smokes when not on business, smiles a lot in unsuitable situations.
Prospective Face-Claim: Minamoto-no-Raikou (Fate/Grand Order)
Occupation: Shinobu Family heavy (high-ranking thug, bodyguard, or hitman)
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: Has a room in the Shinobu Clan Headquarters in Oolong City, but usually lives in an unrelated apartment block in Oolong City’s downtown.
Biography: A lifetime member of the Shinobu Clan and rumoured to be related to the current chairman, Hatsuka has risen from a thug to being the thug among thugs. Known for her direct demeanour and tendency to solve problems with violence alone, she is a rare samurai amongst the more modern clan. What she lacks in forethought and diplomacy she makes up for with her strength and intimidation. Even her swordmanship and sense of honour are poor, but her unscrupulous nature is usually enough to get her results regardless.
While she prefers to do work herself, she is often the one to organise the Shinobu Clan’s street-level staff and freelancers given the chairman’s caution. For those doing work for the clan, she is the most likely person to meet face-to-face.
Gives people she likes rude nicknames. Often spends nights getting blind drunk at bars or at home, and has a habit of sleeping around. Incredibly vain and extremely proud of her looks, often flaunting them over others (when she’s not flaunting her rank or strength).
Relatives: She has two brothers in the Shinobu Clan, but they aren’t anywhere near her rank or prominence. Her father is a businessman who married into the family, but focuses on his business rather than getting involved in the Shinobu’s criminal dealings.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Claws & Jaws
Where Angels Play
The Ex Files: Dirty Harry
Among Sweet Flowers Do Creep: For Want of a Bullet
Stranger
Name: Shinobu ‘Princess’
Age: Mid-twenties
Race: Demon/Earthling Hybrid
Eye Color: Orchid purple
Hair Color: Dark, unsaturated purple
Height: 6’6”
Distinctive Features: Voluminous curly hair, glasses, designer Western Lands’ clothes, stares directly at people when speaking to them.
Prospective Face-Claim: Murasaki Shikibu (Fate/Grand Order)
Occupation: Shinobu Family heir, Duchess
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: Lives in the Shinobu Clan’s headquarters in Oolong City, but spends much of her time at one of their office complexes pretending to have a job. Of note, her office has a huge fishtank built into the wall, filled with exotic fish from the Southern Islands’ coast.
Biography: One of the Shinobu Clan’s heirs, as the daughter of the current chairman. However, while she has a position of power, she has little interest in any of the clan’s work, and instead just enjoys the privilege of her position. She spends her time indulging in her ever-changing whims and being pampered by lower-ranking members.
While she has far less to do with the Shinobu Clan than others of her standing within it, she often sends freelancers, clan members, or anyone else who will listen to her to do all kinds of errands for her. She collects exotic luxuries and relics in particular, and is willing to allow others to access her collection for the right favours.
Though she is polite and has a noble demeanour, she has a sharp tongue and rarely gives any compliments to anyone – even those with a higher rank than her. She is quite smart, and while her plans are usually short-lived and self-serving, she’s quite competent when she puts her mind to it. But most of the time she just acts like a spoiled brat pretending to be a yakuza professional.
Her name isn’t an actual secret, but everyone within the clan just calls her princess, with varying amounts of sarcasm. She believes that everyone just knows her so well that they never use her real name.
Relatives: The only child of the current chairman. It is unwise to mention any theories about her father amongst the clan’s members, as the chairman has eyes and ears everywhere.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Dam Dam Revolution: Suits
The Martial Art of the Endorsement: Going Ape
Red Like Roses
Devil's Cookbook: Thin Hard Line
Metal, Pedal, Metal
Claws & Jaws
Where Angels Play
Stranger
Name: Shinobu Yuzu
Age: Early forties
Race: Demon/Earthling Hybrid
Eye Color: Magenta
Hair Color: Black, with a hint of grape
Height: 6’10”
Distinctive Features: A pair of straight horns, slitted pupils like a goat’s, tufts of striped fur around her neck, waist and calves, a long and striped fluffy tail, a sunny disposition, and a habit of over exaggerating her gestures.
Prospective Face-Claim: Chiyo (Ane Naru Mono)
Occupation: Shinobu Family advisor, medical administrator, housewife
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: A small and homely townhouse on the outskirts of the Ducal Quarter.
Biography: A younger member of the Shinobu Clan’s central family. Though as a cousin of the chairman she has had the chance to aim for a position of power, she instead buried herself in her career in medicine early on. Despite this, she has stayed a close friend of the family, though she has few ties to its business matters – she can’t get her head around such things. While originally uninterested in dating, the chairman set her up with several possible allies, and she ended up falling head-over-heels for Hoshino Seikano.
While she doesn’t get involved in the Shinobu’s murkier moral matters and doesn’t really understand their business, she always puts the family first and is held in high regard by most of the clan. Her main contribution is her connections with the medical field in the Western Lands, which have been very useful to the family’s narcotics rings.
Though she’s always enjoyed her work, she has recently put it to one side in favour of her marriage. She seems to treat her relationship with Seikano as something of an endless honeymoon. Suffice to say, while this tends to keep her out of trouble, her boundless enthusiasm for it has begun to grate on some of her allies’ nerves.
Relatives: Cousin of Shinobu Karigane and Princess, wife of Shinobu Seikano
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Where Angels Play
Stranger
Name: Shinobu Seikano (formerly Hoshino Seikano)
Age: Early thirties
Race: Earthling
Eye Color: Pale violet
Hair Color: Violet
Height: 5’4”
Distinctive Features: Short and petite (by Shinobu standards), tends to avoid dresses and skirts, always wears a set of clan cufflinks, a svelte figure, and a habit of hiding behind others.
Prospective Face-Claim: N/A
Occupation: Hoshino Family heir, Shinobu Clan advisor
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: A small and homely townhouse on the outskirts of the Ducal Quarter.
Biography: Originally hailing from the tiny Hoshino Clan, Seikano seized power in the Duchies by arranging a marriage with the Shinobu Clan; though she won the heart of Shinobu Yuzu through her personality rather than her family’s assets. While she is a little uneasy around the Shinobu Clan’s higher ups, her business acumen has earned her some respect among them and made her a common sight at their business meetings.
The Hoshino Clan is only made up of Seikano and her immediate family, but her savvy stock marketing and work in real estate made it a small fortune during her twenties. As a Branch Family, though, the rest of the Hoshino Clan has preferred to relax while Seikano continue to move up in the world.
As she can find Yuzu a little overbearing, she tries to keep herself busy by getting more involved with the Shinobu Clan’s minor matters. She’s often their face nowadays, at least when it comes to more morally acceptable work.
Relatives: Wife of Shinobu Yuzu; has a brother, parents, and sister-in-law in the Hoshino Family.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Where Angels Play
Stranger
Name: Shinobu Kyoma, ‘Prince’
Age: Late twenties
Race: Earthling
Eye Color: Peach
Hair Color: Bleached blonde (naturally a deep purple)
Height: 5’10”
Distinctive Features: Winning smile, often dresses in designer leather jackets, loves leopard print, tries to wear clothes that make his lithe physique look bigger than it is, and a habit of laughing when lying.
Prospective Face-Claim: Tamaki (Ouran High School Host Club)
Occupation: Shinobu Family Representative, Model, Social Media Influencer
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: Two luxury apartments in Tea Heights in Oolong City – he shoots his media in one, and lives in the other. The latter is surprisingly small and simple for his wealth.
Biography: Probably the most well-known member of the Shinobu Clan, though few in the public would actually connect him to any of their business. Though originally from a branch family, Kyoma’s fame as an influencer and a fairly smart businessman for his age have led him to be embraced by the clan’s higher ranks – his experience with marketing and his near flawless public image make him a very useful asset to the group. He is close friends with the Shinobu heir, which earned him the title of ‘Prince’.
Personally, Kyoma doesn’t approve of the Shinobu Clan’s criminal dealings, and hopes to change it from the inside. While he shows a stunning smile and a cheery demeanour on the outside, he tends to be quite meek and introverted while off the camera. He greatly enjoys his wealth and fame, but doesn’t like it to intrude on his personal time and space too much. He often works with freelancers and oddballs in his public events; as he enjoys the spectacle of bringing in wildcards and he’d rather not work with the Shinobu Clan’s heavies too much.
Despite his fairly gentle persona, Kyoma has a soft spot for leather and fur goods; particularly anything exotic from the South or East Lands. He often tries to suppress word for it and subtly organise any questionable purchases or hunts of such pelts from the other regions.
Relatives: Though actually from a branch family (the minor Kinkaku Clan), Kyoma is treated like the Princess’ brother.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Where Angels Play
Name: Shinobu Rhyme
Age: Killed at 87
Race: Demon/Earthling Hybrid
Eye Color: Orchid purple
Hair Color: Violet
Height: 6’1”
Distinctive Features: Long straight hair, a gentle gaze, almost always wearing a fur coat, gets flustered easily.
Prospective Face-Claim: Mikumo Guynemer (Macross Delta)
Occupation: Previous Shinobu Family chairman, deceased
Faction: Shinobu Clan, Pig Demon Duchies
Residence: Her cremated ashes are among the treasures held in the vault of the Shinbou Clan headquarters, located in Oolong City.
Biography: A past head of the Shinobu Clan. Although she held the position of chairman, she is not held in much respect by current members, particularly after she stepped down in order to escape an internal political scandal. She married Duke Blues early in her time as chairman, who was a landowner in Oolong City independent of any clans, but it was discovered that she was propping up his investments in the Hotel Z and its casinos with her clan's money - and a ludicrous amount of it. After resigned to avoid any violent ends to her reign, she settled down as the Duke's wife while acting as a mere advisor to the Shinobu Clan.
In her later years, she 'adopted' her husband's commissioned android assistant; UN-11. Thanks to her influence on his original order, the android's design quickly became that of a companion rather than a butler. Though always a victim of her whims, this matter seemed to particularly entrance her - perhaps it was related to her lack of children, or the interest in technology she had brought to the Shinobu Clan.
However, she would never get to meet UN-11 herself. Duchess Rhyme was murdered in her home prior to the android's activation in 1133. The Shinobu Clan was quick to hunt through their own ranks, and claims as to the assassin's identity led to a brief internal conflict that led to the clan's excessive corruption being rooted out. However, the assassin's identity was never publicly named - it remains as one of the Shinobu's many dirty secrets.
Relatives: The current chairman is her estranged sister, though the pair barely knew each other. Her husband remarried not long after her murder, and has avoided any association with the Shinobu Clan since.
Immortal: A bit late for that.
Controllable by Other Players: I-I guess?
Be made into an OC: If only.
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Beyond Memories
Stranger
Shinobu Clan Associates
Name: Unid Number 02, ‘Two’
Age: Unknown, at least 80
Race: Artificial Intelligence
Eye Color: Red
Hair Color: Chocolate brown
Height: 4’10”
Distinctive Features: Insistent on synthesising a fairly squeaky and lively voice, wears alligator-head shaped hair pins, changes desktop wallpapers constantly, uses the ‘flying toasters’ screensaver, and has a little snaggletooth.
Prospective Face-Claim: Ashigara (Aoki no Hoki Arpeggio)
Occupation: Surrogate AI, former research assistant
Faction: Neutral
Residence: UN-11’s AI core, or her apartment’s computer, or the Millenium Royale’s serverbank
Biography: The former mainframe AI used by Doctor Unid, and his first – and perhaps proudest – creation. She was his assistant and often guinea pig during his time producing AI, and had a big role in all of his future creations in the Unid Number series. While they were close, to say they were ‘friends’ is a complicated question to ask.
Following the liquidation of his company, UN-02 was shut down and abandoned in many of his original server banks; and was only recovered many decades later by UN-11. Since then, she has become the android’s comrade; acting as a second AI, a cooler head, an advisor, and oftentimes a friend as well. Though she portrays herself as young and over-eager, she is far older and wiser than Maxine herself, and views her successor as something of a little sister. Her main roles is handling any technology while Maxine needs to rely on her own body, but also comes along on jobs to split the role of commanding the android’s body. Recently, she has even gotten herself her own body – though she relies of a hologram projection system in the ‘Spark Liner’ system attached to Maxine, so she is not exactly fully independent.
Despite having gone from such an important role to a hitman’s sidekick, Two seems fairly content with her new role – much less pressure, and the chance to see the world again is worth any price. However, she clearly still knows a lot more about Maxine than the android herself, but keeps much of her knowledge a secret. Whether it’s to tease her comrade, simply convenient, or to actually hide something more sinister is a mystery.
Relatives: The rest of the UN series, I suppose.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
O-Parts
Devil's Cookbook: Thin Hard Line
Metal, Pedal, Metal
Beyond Memories
Where Angels Play
Operation Bluesky
Dream of Home
Name: Masumi
Age: 8
Race: Namekian War Hound
Eye Color: Pale green
Hair Color: Black with slate grey patches
Height: 2’5”
Distinctive Features: Wears an eyepatch over his injured eye, perpetually fluffy and ill-kept, big pointy ears, distressing finesse with a knife using his jaws, and incredibly loud snoring.
Prospective Face-Claim: D. Dog (Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain)
Occupation: Guard dog, pet, portable heater
Faction: Shinobu Clan
Residence: Maxine’s apartment in Shinobu HQ, or the Millenium Royale
Biography: A pure-bred war hound that was stolen as a puppy from the Northern Demon Kingdoms by Shinobu proxies during incidental work. While he was originally intended to be presented to the Princess as a show of loyalty, he was considered a ‘bad look’ for the fashionable Shinobu elite, and turned down. His next job was intended to be as breeding stock, but Shinobu wannabes proved to be bad caretakers – but good guard dog practice. While both sides of the scuffle ended up quite bloodied, the Chairman found his fire to be endearing rather than threatening, and insisted he be fixed up even though he’d lost any chance of being a stud.
While he ended up in the Chairman’s care briefly, he was offered to Shinobu Hatsuka, who then passed him onto Maxine as a ‘gift’ for her promotion to a full Shinobu Clan member. Since then, he has been her steadfast ally; finding a good place as both a pampered pooch and a working dog in spite of Maxine’s usual unease around animals. Though their relationship doesn’t seem as affectionate as most dogs are painted to be, Masumi and Maxine do have a healthy respect for each other, and he tends to be one of the few souls who gets to hear her true personal woes.
Relatives: Unknown, but he was part of a litter, so they’re probably out there somewhere.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Not sure why you would play a dog, but sure
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Where Angels Play
Name: Morgan Dust
Age: Early forties
Race: Earthling
Eye Color: Amber
Hair Color: Chocolate brown
Height: 5’11”
Distinctive Features: Awkwardly pauses while speaking, avoids eye contact, perpetually scruffy suit, forever untamed five o’clock shadow, and a tendency to focus on what seem like minor details.
Prospective Face-Claim: N/A
Occupation: Mercenary manager
Faction: Neutral
Residence: An apartment-come-safehouse in the outskirts of Electric Town in Oolong City.
Biography: The unlikely manager and arguably leader of the Dusters. Originally a researcher hired by Red Ribbon’s remnants in the Eastern Lands, Morgan quietly left their company after growing bored with their work – however, in doing so, he ended up being used as a scapegoat by a team of combat androids who were also leaving such employment. Though it was a tremendous mess, he ended up surviving and effectively adopted the quartet. The team were skilled, but had zero plans and no idea of how to lie low after their escape, and so they were forced to work together.
Though it proved to be a steep learning curve, Morgan has become quite the operator. Beyond his underwhelming presence, he is a skilled tactician when it comes to his team, and very savvy in keeping him and his crew under the radar. He triple checks every job, has a very tight contract, and can be a hard negotiator when his team’s security is being discussed. But, he doesn’t handle the field well at all, and thus keeps his head down while his team work.
For the moment, he and the Dusters are lying low in Oolong City; but any small job would appeal to them – particularly if it’s a violent and swift clean-up or the like that won’t get their identities involved.
Relatives: Unknown. And he’d like it if it stays that way.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Among Sweet Flowers Do Creep: Encount
Name: Persea ‘Dust’
Age: Late twenties
Race: Android
Eye Color: Violet
Hair Color: Slate grey
Height: 6’1”
Distinctive Features: Never frowns, partly mechanical legs, usually has her hands on her machine gun, wears shorts or skirts, and often struggles with using her phone or any other technology.
Prospective Face-Claim: RPK-16 (Girls Frontline)
Occupation: Mercenary working under Morgan Dust
Faction: Neutral
Residence: An apartment-come-safehouse in the outskirts of Electric Town in Oolong City.
Biography: Originally from the Eastern Lands, Persea signed up to the Red Ribbon remnants in her late teens in an act of rebellion against her parents. After several messy operations, she was critically injured and became an android against her will. Though she is glad to be alive, she felt her failures were the fault of the organisation’s orders and leadership instead. Eventually, she rebelled alongside a trio of like-minded androids, and escaped to the Central Lands. From there, she ended up looking to Morgan Dust for a new way of life, and became a mercenary.
A laid-back and cheerful lady who has a lot of combat experience despite her age, due to the Red Ribbon’s remnants need for new blood. Though seemingly open and friendly, she has no problem with crime and brutality. She’ll accept any job so long as it has a good price, but is often overruled by Morgan who takes the team’s security and privacy a lot more seriously.
Persea has a difficult relationship with death, having a somewhat self-destructive and reckless approach to her mortality. She has an addiction to downer drugs which Morgan often has to put a stop to.
Relatives: Was an only child prior to becoming cyborg. Doesn’t like to talk about her parents.
Immortal: N
Controllable by Other Players: Y
Be made into an OC: Y
Created by: Tulf
Appears In:
Among Sweet Flowers Do Creep: Encount