Hi, did any of you run a game where the PCs played corrupt bluecloaks?

Hi, did any of you run a game where the PCs played corrupt bluecloaks?

Hi, did any of you run a game where the PCs played corrupt bluecloaks? What playbook did you use? How did you prevent them from using the vast resources of the state? What else should I know about running such a gang?

11 thoughts on “Hi, did any of you run a game where the PCs played corrupt bluecloaks?”

  1. I haven’t, but you could probably look to any cop show for why they don’t get to bring drones and SWAT every time they go out on a call.

    Your corrupt crew is corrupt, which probably means a Bluecoat’s take-home pay is for shit, else they wouldn’t be corrupt. Which means the Bluecoat precinct’s budget is probably for shit, or it’s all being embezzled by higher-ups. Or both. They’re probably in a shitty district, like Coalridge, not Brightstone. All the best stuff goes to protect the rich, just in real life.

    Their higher-ups might be in their own war for resources, and they might be losing. The brass and nobility and council might be trying to make your PCs fail. Why? Which criminal faction has control over their purses? Example from Robocop: OCP owned the Detroit police, so they could deny Murphy and Lewis backup at will if it meant protecting Dick Jones’ pet psycho and getting the company another test subject.

    If you focus on their corrupt activities, make the other Bluecoats corrupt in conflicting ways. They’re on the take for a competing faction, so the PCs can’t go to their comrades for help. Maybe the PCs encounter some of their coworkers moonlighting as muscle while out on a score and have to choose what to do with them.

  3. If we are to use tropes of modern law enforcement in media as a template then:

    You have to consider seniority; new members get the crappy assignments, grunt work, and territory.

    You have ranks. Rank can bypass seniority with younger members using competence or political maneuvering to be granted more responsibility and privilege but Tier 0 Bluecoats are starting at the lowest rank possible most likely.

    Anything beyond standard issue equipment is going to need to be requisitioned. Some gatekeeper/quartermaster is going to be tracking inventory and gear and it’s not a given they will just hand anything to low ranking grunts.

    As far as my interpretation of the setting:

    The Bluecoats aren’t the Imperial Military. They might have access to fine gear but hey wont’ have stock piles military grade equipment at their disposal.

    You might have situations where the crew would have to worry about rival Bluecoats as much as other factions. It’s not like the Bluecoats have a reputation for professionalism and honor. Be careful which territory you step into to start a protection racket for example, there might already be other Bluecoats doing the same thing and they might not be so friendly…

  4. If we look at history, the Metropolitan Police of London (a clear inspiration for the Bluecoats) didn’t have unlimited power, nor anything like the respect modern police have (through being respectable or through fear). They were a street patrol, poorly paid, barely trained, minimally-equipped, and primarily served a deterrent function. They were often drunk on duty, they had minimal oversight, and according to Wikipedia, the first one ever killed in the line of duty (while breaking up a fight between two drunks) had his death ruled a “justifiable homicide” because the police were so unpopular.

    en.wikipedia.org – Joseph Grantham – Wikipedia

  6. Well, there are Inspectors, who aren’t corrupt. If the Bluecoats keep things on the low-down, they might not bother with them. But if they get too out-of-hand, there are internal checks and balances.

  10. Keiran Sparksman

    Are you referring to the Shields origin for Vigilantes?:

    “Bluecoats, Inspectors, Spirit Wardens, and other officials who strike out on their own for justice.”

    I’m not sure if that lines up with players being “corrupt bluecloaks” like the OP stated.

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