Hogosha Info

[chopper]

1. Is there an exact history for them? The only things that I've found are vague... to say the least.

Disco history :

"Hogosha translates literally as "guardian" or "protector," reflecting the organization's rather romantic view held not only by its own members, but by a large portion of the Kusari population -- though by no means the majority. Far from protectors, the Hogosha are actually descendents of the organized crime syndicates that grow within the shadow of any sizable human society -- though the Hogosha have an oddly symbiotic relationship with both the government and Samura.

Their political connections would make any serious attempt to dismantle them an embarrassment to Kusari as any number of secrets and deals that had been kept out of the public eye came to light. However, neither do the Hogosha have a free license to operate. Arrests of low-level Hogosha operators who flaunt their activities are frequent and help keep up appearances -- very important in Kusari. "Hard" crime, such as drug smuggling, is not tolerated.

Individual opinions vary, but most police consider the Hogosha a necessary evil required for the smooth functioning of Kusari society. The government simply treats the Hogosha like any other large keiretsu. The Kusari population as a whole has a similar attitude: It is pointless to like or dislike the Hogosha; they are simply a fact of life.

The Hogosha handle Artifact and gun smuggling and the fencing of stolen goods. They also do occasional dirty work for Samura. They view the Blood Dragons as a major threat to their existence and have engaged in turf wars with them, mostly in the asteroid fields of Tokyo. The Golden Chrysanthemums are a new problem, as they have few qualms about dealing in the drug trade or its consequences. Since they have no corruptible leaders or long associations with Samura or the Kusari government and police, The GC -- like the Blood Dragons -- are dangerous to the Hogosha way of life. They view the Junkers as their only real competitors within the Sirius Sector, and their only obstacle to expansion into the other Houses. They have approached the Corsairs to assist them in their plan, although no concrete steps have been taken.

The Hogosha made a recent arrangement to purchase Artifacts directly from the Corsairs on the cruise ship Hawaii, a move that infuriated the GMG, who formerly served as the middleman between the two crime syndicates. It also raised the ire of the LSF, who applied pressure on Orbital Spa to deny landing privileges to the two factions."

4. What would be good naming conventions for the faction and its characters? I want to keep as much OORP out of it as possible. Would just Kusari names be good?

I don't know about faction name.. Black dragon society did sound good, though it's designation was (in my opinion) pretty bad (-{BD}-Kusariname.Kusarisurname).
Reasons for it's failure? Not enough people interested in RP-ing as Hogosha.
I never understood this, because Hogosha is one of the factions with greatest potential for RP-ing.

. Did the Black Dragons disband due to inactivity?

The answer to that, I believe, is yes. No incentive to trade artifacts between Crete and Kusari due to massively borked trade prices. Little activity. Though Kusari has warmed up a -lot- with the GC/BD/NPG roaming about.

Yes, it is the answer. Our leader has left due to RL problems, and our co-leader has left because of RL too.
Juan Arquero is missing too, I don't know why though.
Lodden is the only one, besides me, that actually plays his black dragon sometimes.

2. Did the Disco mod add any bases for them?

Guard base, yes. Kanagawa Depot. Kabukicho is a vanilla (original) base.

3. Have there been any changes in diplomacy for them within the Disco mod?

I don't know about vanilla, but I do know about Discovery diplomacy.
In Disco, they are hostile to GMG - because of taking over artifact smuggling from GMG.
They are hostile to Junkers because they are the only other 'quasi-legal' organization that fits the description of mob, though not Kusari mob.
Junkers could easily take over the Artifact smuggling and everything else 'profitable' but unlawful business in Kusari, if it weren't for Hogosha.
Hogosha is very well connected with the government, and thus keeps the Junkers away - with the help of the government.

6. Is the Hogosha guard system the same thing as a home system, and if so, is it currently open?

Open for what? Buying? Sure, it is. Just make a faction first, so I can join.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.

In essence, Hogosha is an organization that knows too much - and thus can't be easily 'erased'.
It's a necessary evil, as it's infocard says.
Plus, they are traditionalists, which fits the KNF needs, especially in war against Brettonia.
It also fits the Farmers, as they want to destroy the foreign influence.

Glad to see someone interested. Quite amusing it is.

Oh, and just to add that Hogosha is probably getting it's own very sexy (not heavy) fighter (VSF) in the next version.
So, people might get interested then.

Heh, I'm feeling like a Hogosha freak now.. People mentioning me and all. Fame and glory! Symbols and stuff!

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It is every Corsair's responsibility to die a beautiful death in defense of Crete, regardless of how OORP or how capwhoring the opposition is. Launch your fighter, joust the battlecruisers and die a beautiful death. Then, drink it down in the bar.

Can't let you bash folks in your sig Chopper-Del