Brokering
From Atlantic Roleplay Wiki
Brokering by Dymm
James Reynolds couldn’t remember ever feeling more angry – aggravated – betrayed in his entire life. How could his own brother, his own blood that worked with him for so long sell him out like this? His entire fortune made in Vesper’s newspaper industry has all come to naught. The guards were sure to be upon him at any moment. He had to get out of Vesper – and now. But, before he did that, there was one last stop he had to make.
Pushing the tavern’s door wildly open he saw the two men he was seeking. They were sitting where they usually sat, in the furthest corner of the dimly lit room. He had never before spoken to them but he’d heard stories. He thought he knew about enough to approach them. Stopping at their table, he interrupted what seemed to be a card game.
“I need your services,” he exclaimed. One of the men quickly slipped away. He never got a good view of his face. The other man, though, stayed and looked interested. He supposed this was a good thing.
“Calm down, calm down, fella’, before you get the whole city watching us, eh? I’ll take you to the office and we’ll work somethin’ out.”
The definition of a broker is one that acts as an agent for others, as in negotiating contracts, purchases, or sales in return for a fee or commission. For an assassin, a broker is absolutely essential. The broker is the public middleman between the assassin and the client. The broker does little actual fighting himself, but rather gets the work for the assassin and is paid a percentage of the bounty agreed upon. Without a broker to make the contract, an assassin’s identity would always be at risk. He would not survive.
· The Identity o Locating a Broker o Staying Legal o Personality and Skill
“Don’t you get in trouble for this?” the client asked incredulously.
“All I’m doing is writing. Scribes don’t get arrested, now do they?” the broker answerered with a smile.
One of the most frequent questions I get from clients is “How do I get a contract filled?” Most of them think they should meet directly with the assassin. They are unaware of the brokering system. A reason for this could be because brokers are, frankly, difficult to find. If you do manage to find one, it is hard to know how to approach him. To be a successful broker, you must always be easily communicable with and in public places at least part of your time.
The best place to be if you’re a broker is the popular taverns. Sure, it’s fun to go to some hidden, underground tavern that only rogues know about but… Where’s the business? There’s a time and a place for secret locations (which will be spoken about later) but for everyday business opportunities, the current local hotspot is the ideal place. A broker should be shady, but social. How are you to be shady? Well, just sitting around with infamous people in corners does the job. You won’t get people coming up to you all the time, but you stand a whole lot better of a chance of getting a spontaneous deal here then in any other way. Don’t be limited to taverns, either. Attend social occasions that would be suited for your character to go to. Plenty of people are willing to make a deal after, say, a sermon by a church of Virtues. Really!
For the client, it is tough to walk up and start speaking with a broker. How do they really know he’s one anyway? In an ideal world, everyone would just assume they were, but not have definitive proof. In our [slightly… Okay, mostly?] flawed world, though, not everyone hears the rumors and sees the deals. In an attempt to make things more realistic, I sometimes tell people “Just look for the [Broker, Ace].” I know, I know, no one likes to base RP off of a title, but it’s sometimes useful. Brokers don’t wear badges on their chests stating so, but anyone that has seen them around in taverns and such would probably have at least an idea of what they might be. As the broker, it’s your job to make them feel more comfortable with the situation. Don’t outright admit that you’re a broker the second that they ask, but lead them in. Never pretend like you don’t know what they’re talking about at all, unless your character thinks it’s a law officer or something. The best ways for them to approach you aren’t always the ways it will happen.
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A broker must stay legal. It’s the assassin’s job to do the illegal things and the broker’s job to remain slightly “overground” to get the business without having to worry about the law. Truthfully, brokering is probably not 100% legal. Fortunately for those in the business, no sane person would try anyone for it. For one, not many people know about it. Two, it would be very difficult to prove. If you want to stay a free, living broker, there are certain things you must do, though.
Never, ever conduct business in a public place. If someone meets you in the tavern and wants to set up a deal, bring them to an office. This is where the secret, rogue buildings come in handy. Find an office for yourself. It can be anything that has a desk and some paper. I’ve seen people use Vesper taverns, their own houses, and even butcher’s shops in Jhelom. Talk to your assassin about an office if you can’t find one yourself. They sometimes have their own that is available for us. By not doing business in public, no one has any proof of anything. Remember, there are no recording devices.
Even before you bring them to an office, though, remember to be cautious. Most everyone you meet is genuinely looking for a deal, but some might not be. Make sure to find out their true intentions before speaking outright about contracts. Stay in innuendoes for a while, use fake names, or disguise kits, if you have to.
A final thing tip to never get caught while brokering is to avoid physical fieldwork. That’s the assassin’s job. Sometimes, the broker will assist the assassin in a contract, but it’s dangerous. If someone notices you doing this, you are basically an assassin without a cover. An assassin without a cover often becomes a deceased assassin. Assisting your assassin will be covered in more detail later.
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Personalities for brokers differ as much as personalities as any other character type. Just because your character is a businessman does not mean he is limited to being a stereotypical suit-wearing, briefcase-carrying bookworm. On one hand, you do need to be suitable to do business (this means no killing every person you meet) but you can expand your character. Is your broker intimidated by his assassin client? Is your broker more like a boss over the assassins? Does he like being a broker or is he trapped in it? Add some flavor to your broker. After all, brokering isn’t the only thing he does, is it?
As for skills, there is no definitive list of “skills a broker must have to be successful.” In fact, a newly made character could be a successful broker if the right person is playing him. However, there are certain skills that are more useful to the profession of brokering then others. Poisoning is an obvious use. If your assassin does not know how, you can help him there, or even give your own weapons a little something more. Hiding and stealth are both extremely useful for a broker, especially in surveillance missions, and are probably the most “must-have” of any of the skills. Magery is good by simple virtue of its general usefulness and the ability to gate assassins around or gate clients to an office. Archery is also a useful tool if you plan on giving the assassin an extra punch needed for a hit once in a while. It’s significantly better then fencing or other melee skills because of its range factor. You are able to conceal yourself inside buildings or beneath their shadows. Most skills can be found to have some use for a broker and you can mix and match however you feel fit.
· The Deal o Gaining Trust o Negotiating the Price o Stipulations o Contract Etiquette
“Sonny, you’re offering me 200,000 gold coins to off the mayor?”
“Yes, will that be sufficient?”
“250,000 and we have a deal.”
“What?!”
“Feel free to find someone el-… That’s better.”
Getting the contract signed and the deal settled is the most important part of the job of a broker. It’s how he makes not only the assassin’s bread and butter, but also his own, as well. Gold is what makes the world go round in the Underground, after all. Any successful broker should have an intimate knowledge of how to work a client. They need to know the balance between being fair and being realistic. They need to know how to properly write a contract. This section will cover all of the above.
When you first meet a client, they usually don’t trust you – with very good reason, mind you! No matter if they’re evil, neutral, or good, they’ll be wary of what you’re trying to do. Your first job as a broker in getting the contract made is making the client feel comfortable. If the client is trustworthy of the broker, he’ll be more willing to speak freely. While you want them to feel comfortable, you also want the mystery of the situation to remain. There’s nothing special about going to a broker’s office if the client doesn’t have some suspicions. It’s a balance the broker must keep.
The first step towards gaining the trust of a client is being able to relate to what they’re doing. Most clients are skeptical, at best, as to what your job really is. By using innuendoes to hint at the fact that you do, indeed, work as a broker for an assassin, the client becomes relieved. They will be more willing to speak openly now, so that’s the time to bring them to the office. If you have a desk, seat them at one side of it. From here, you must be in control of the situation. The client probably isn’t sure what to say to start it off. It’s your show, now.
Even if you’re new, make it seem like you know what you’re doing. Ask them the questions that need to be asked, but don’t get into anything personal. Stick to business, unless they start on the tangent first. Clients usually would rather not discuss why they want the person killed, and that isn’t our job to find out, anyway. Do not ask them to sign anything. Save the price negotiating for the last part of the deal, since this is usually the most disagreeable part for both parties. Once you have them comfortable, though, the bidding begins.
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As a realistic broker, you want to try to get the most possible gold out of every hit as you possibly can. Not every hit is worth the same, though. To kill a general of a successful arm will cost significantly more then killing a peasant boy that stole some gold coins. There are a few main factors in determining the price of the kill: the fame of the mark, the difficulty of the contract (including stipulations, to be spoken of later), and the total spending capacity of the client.
The fame of the mark is an easy concept to grasp. It usually is in regards to guild masters, or other higher-ups in their guilds. It can also, though, mean individuals who have become famous without a guild, or are not famous for their guild. The more well-known a target is, the more publicity the kill will receive, the harder it is to get away successfully. No one’s going to notice the death of poor Johnny the sheep boy, but you can be sure one or two people might be slightly offended at their spiritual leader being knocked off.
The difficulty of the contract takes several factors of its own into account. The most obvious one, of course, is the personal combat skill and equipment of the mark. The stronger the mark himself is, the harder he is to take down. Difficulty of the contract, though, can also include things like guards. Some guild masters are not particularly strong themselves, but are always holed up in a stronghold, or constantly surrounded by their members. If a mark is hard to get to, the price is raised. If the mark in question is a part of a non-warring guild, or no guild at all, that could also be a factor. It is more difficult to kill an unaligned person. Not only are they marked blue to assassins, but also it is signicicantly more difficult to predict where they will be.
The total spending capacity of the client is an interesting one. If a rich noble guild master orders a kill of the Regent, the price will be high. If a famous, but not particularly rich person orders the kill of the Regent, the price will be lower. Double standards? Absolutely. It may sound unfair, but the price must be scaled to fit the budget of the buyer. 300,000 might be about equal to 30,000 for someone else. Even though the gold is a realistic part of brokering, the role-play is the most important part. Rarely should a contract be turned down because of the inability to spend big money on the part of the client. It is throwing away valuable role-play just because of money. With this in mind, though, remember not to scale prices too far down. That same Johnny the sheep boy should not and does not have the money to spend on killing the Regent. Some marks are just too important to be given scraps payment for.
There are other, smaller factors involved in negotiating the price with a client, also. The fame of your assassin is actually one of them. People are more willing to pay the big money for someone they’ve heard of and seen results from then for a new assassin. But, if you happen to have a new assassin, get him famous! The only way is to start small. Other factors sometimes come into play, but figuring them out is part of the fun of being a broker. Experience is sometimes the best teacher.
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Stipulations always make a contract more fun… not for the assassin, though. Stipulations are other things that must be accomplished in order for the contract to be satisfied. There is always a kill involved, but sometimes the client will want something a little extra. One of the most common stipulations is framing. A client will often come to the broker with hopes of getting someone killed but putting someone else in line for the blame of hiring the assassin to do the job. Another common stipulation is to provide some sort of physical proof of the kill. This can be a role-played item or some small, inexpensive thing actually taken (with the consent of the player behind the mark, of course.)
Stipulations inflate the price of the contract - think of them like pizza toppings. “So, you wanted one assassination with a framing of Magincia and some proof on top. Is that right?” Some stipulations are easy enough to add on without adding signicifantly to the price (like getting the victim’s blood in a vial) but some do require extra expenditure. Let the client know if something is going to cost him extra, so he isn’t as surprised by the price you may be asking.
Other stipulations, though, are just ridiculous. If you hear a ridiculous stipulation added to a contract, immediately tell the client that it’s not what we do. Try to make him back away from the stipulation, but if he doesn’t you’ll be forced to abort the contract and possibly refer him to someone that can help better (a mercenary company, perhaps.) Some ridiculous stipulation examples are killing entire armies, killing within a strict time limit and killing in very public places. Although these may not seem ridiculous to the client, an assassin should never have to do them. Know how to handle situations in which your client is asking too much.
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Contract etiquette is simply knowing how to put together a well-made contract. You have to know the ins-and-outs of payment plays, your slice of the deal, how to physically write one, and the terminology used in doing it. These are all important jobs that any broker should be familiar with.
Payment plans are something you have to work out with your client before finishing the contract. The most popular form of payment plans in the Underground is the “half now-half later” plans. This is when a client pays half of the bounty up front and the other half after proof of the kill is delivered. This is probably the most effective since neither side can get totally swindled. Variations of it are sometimes used in which more or less then half is given. When dealing with respectable, trustworthy people, payment plans usually aren’t very important, as you can probably trust the client to deliver the bounty.
The broker’s slice is very important to any broker – it’s his money! This is one of the few things about the contract that is worked out with the assassin and not the client. The assassin and the broker usually come to an agreement as to where they will split the bounty before a contract comes in. The assassin always gets the vast majority of the bounty, but the broker’s slice could raise dependent on how difficult the client is to deal with. Dealing with an evil superpower with their own army and city is a lot more stressful then dealing with the friendly neighborhood gardener that had her plants run over. Because, when it comes down to it, if the job isn’t complete, it’s going to be the broker’s door they’re knocking on to find out why. A fair standard for a broker is usually around 10%, but it can go as high as 40% dependent on outside factors. The broker’s slice also works to give the broker more of an incentive to get as high a price as he can.
To write a contract, you must be able to use the proper terminology to discuss the things involved. Though it sometimes differentiates dependent on what assassin you are dealing with, there are certain terms that almost all assassins are comfortable and familiar with. In writing a contract, keep these words in mind. Below is a short list of commonly used words in the Underground. 1. Assassin: the killer who will be taking out the contract 2. Broker: the assassin’s agent; middleman between client and assassin 3. Contract: the binding document that secures the kill for money; to have a hit out for someone (e.g. “I’ve got a contract on Jimmy Downe.”) 4. Client: the person that has taken out the contract 5. Mark: the target of the contract 6. Hit or knock off: to kill the mark 7. Bounty: the amount of gold agree upon in the contract 8. the Underground: the secret system of information transmitted between assassins, middlemen and other shady character
You should also find a consistent way to write contracts. It’s neater, easier to understand and includes all the information you need. Books are the best place to keep contracts. Try to limit one contract to one or two pages so that it can be easily viewed all at once. Each broker may have a different way of writing contracts but the general method in the Underground is to have each bit of information on one line: 1. Name [Guild] – The top centered line is the name and guild of the mark 2. Client – This includes the name (or nickname at least) of the buyer for future contact 3. Broker – this is the name of the one who has made the contract 4. Assassin – the name of the will-be killer of the mark 5. Bounty – the amount of gold agreed upon 6. Date – the date the contract was made upon 7. Status – the current status of the contract (e.g.: pending, cancelled, etc.) This changes to the date of the kill when it is complete 8. Notes – this section is usually left blank but is kept for any stipulations that need to be noted. Be brief. Don’t write the whole thing, just something to remember the whole thing by.
As you can see in this template, all the vital information is listed. There is no doubt on whom payment goes to, whom payment is coming from, the stipulations and even the time it took to complete the contract. Not every broker has to use this exact template for a contract, though. Take off or add to this, but always keep the bare essentials – the bounty and the mark’s name, for example.
Keep your contract book somewhere where you are positive that no one will be able to see, except for the people who need to. It contains valuable information that cannot be leaked. In case someone somehow relieves you of it, you may be in trouble with the law. Remember, though, that not of the names are to be signed so that it is not definitive proof. Extra-careful brokers will sometimes not even write names down, preferring a bit more security with a bit more annoyance. If you feel inclined to use names but don’t trust yourself to hold onto the book, nicknames and codenames are a good alternative. Let all of this, though, be a last resort. Keep your book safe!
Now that we are done with the deal, let’s move on to the fun stuff.
· Public Codes o Cards o Bagball o Others
“Ace of Spades to Queen of Hearts tonight,” the dark-clothed man muttered to his associate.
“Ace of Diamonds over Jack of Spades for the win,” his associate said, as he placed his ace over the jack.
The two men smiled, as if the card game held some ancient secrets that only they know – silly young men and their games!
Not every conversation you want to have will be in an ideal location. You don’t want to go through the hassle of dragging your assassin back to your office every time you want to tell him something. Plus, talking in secret codes is just plain fun. When speaking public places, such as taverns, you cannot speak about business outright. If you do want to speak about it, though, there are ways to do it. You just need a little creativity. When speaking of business with an assassin, always be sure to stick to the code. The other people won’t pick up on it and even if they somehow do, there’s no way to prove anything. You can use existing, better-known codes, or even make up your own. Really, anything works.
In the Rogue Underground, the most popular form of public code is playing cards. This is not always actually speaking, but it remains a form of communication, nonetheless. Thanks to the popularity of playing card games, most tavern customers would never suspect anything suspicious. Basically, each playing card is representative of a mark, except for the aces. The four aces are assigned to the assassins.
The cards are placed on a table, as if it’s a real game. A mark’s card next to an ace signifies that’s there is a contract. An ace covering a mark’s card signifies that the contract is already completed. Phrases can also be used to convey other messages, such as “Aces are wild tonight” could mean that the kill is planned for tonight. Make up your own phrases, but keep it in the context of a card game.
Assigning cards is easy once you get the hang of it. You could use anything you like to signify what the cards’ symbols and faces mean, but here is the general outline that I use for the suits: 1. Clubs: the clubs suit is usually used for marks of physical brute. Clubs are often assigned to warriors, paladins, or highly defensive individuals. 2. Diamonds: as an inverse to the clubs, the diamonds suit is usually used for mages or others that rely on mostly magic. 3. Spades: the suit of spades is slightly more dynamic. It’s most often used for hybrids of melee-skilled individuals that also rely on magic. 4. Hearts: the hearts suit is often reserved for females, but it can also be used for someone that is very social. And for the faces: 1. King: a male guild master or other highly influential individual. Kings are reserved for the most important people. 2. Queen: usually reserved for female guild masters, female higher-ups, or other female influential figures. 3. Jack: Jack is most often used for people that are in a high position but do not actually run a city or guild of their own. 4. Ace: always used to signify assassins. In the case of aces, the suits outline is not as strictly used. 5. 2-10: these are rarely used. They are to be used when an appropriate face card is already in use or for someone of little fame (the smaller, the lower the number) 6. Joker: the most rarely used. When used, though, usually means an entertainer, bard, or some other non-combatant.
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Although the card system is very useful to quickly convey messages about time or the most general information about contracts, sometimes more information is needed. Do not ever stretch the card code to where people might tell you’re not talking about a game anymore. It’s time to move on to a different code. This is where the “Bagball code” comes in handy.
When speaking specifically about marks, guilds, or cities, it’s easiest to use the Bagball code. No one around you will know you are talking about anything other then a recent game and you can easily understand what the message is. Instead of cards’ faces and symbols, this code uses teams and positions. For instance, if an assassin from Vesper is going to hit a mark whose guild is based in Trinsic, you could start off a conversation like: “I hear Vesper is playing Trinsic tonight.” If the person you’re speaking to knows anything about the contract already (from a card game or previous knowledge) he may be able to give you information. For example, if the mark has very good armor but cannot hit for high damage, he may say, “I heard that Trinsic’s goalkeeper is very skilled. Good defense on that team. Their weakness is their forwards, though. Can’t get a shot in”
With this code, it’s almost impossible to tell you’re talking about anything other then sports and you can get some valuable information across if you’re creative with what you say. It can even be used for other things, such as wars that the broker will be surveying. “Umbra is playing Luna in a couple days. I hear Vesper’s sending some scouts to watch what goes on.” Be creative but again, don’t stretch it.
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There are many, many more codes out there to use and limitless more then can still be created. Another example is using other languages such as Elven or Drowish to say short, quick statements outright. Be sure there is no one that understands the other language in the room, though. You can include the assassin’s cover in a code, such as a shipping business (e.g.: “We’ve got a shipment headed over to Yew tonight” – “The kill will be in Yew tonight.”) or even talk about alcohol to get your point across (e.g.: “I’ve got a rare bottle of whiskey brewed right in Britain itself.” – “I’ve got a great contract for a man in Britain.”)
Be creative with your codes. Anything can be a code as long as it is mostly indecipherable and both you and the person that you are speaking with have a good knowledge of it. Do not ever get mixed up in codes. If you’re going to use them, know them well. Mixed messages are not good. Never let anyone but members of the Underground have any knowledge about the codes – not even the clients. If you need to talk to the client again before the contract is complete, he can return to the office with you. If he knows a code, he may be a worry in the future.
· Assassin Assistance o Surveillance o Field Support
”Are you joking? There’s no way I can take this guy down within a week. He’s too heavily guarded,” said the enraged assassin to his broker.
“Guarded, huh? Then we’ll just have to use an equalizer,” the broker said with a smirk and a loaded bow.
Sometimes, a broker will have some extra work to do. You can easily ask to be paid more for the extra work, at the risk of annoying your assassin. Most brokers will do it for free, even though the assassin would usually have to pay someone else to do it otherwise. There are two main things that a broker can do for an assassin: surveillance and field support. These both endanger the broker more then has to be endangered. If caught, it can mean disaster for all parties involved. Surveillance is much harder to get caught with; therefore, it is more commonly used. Field support, though, should be used extremely rarely and only in times of absolute need.
Surveillance is mostly simple. It’s information gathering. Assassins and brokers commonly use surveillance to find out things that may make the contract easier to fill. Following the mark or the mark’s guild around before a hit is usually a good way to get information. Another way to get information is by using connections. This is where all your time spent in taverns really comes in handy. You should have plenty of friends, and therefore, plenty of connections. You can ask them for information without giving too much away yourself.
There are quite a few things you can look for while surveying an area. One of the main things you’ll want to note is where the mark spends a lot of time. Whether it’s a guild house, a local tavern, or an inn, this information is extremely valuable to an assassin. Another thing to look for is weaknesses of the mark. While these are harder to detect, they are more useful if found out.
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Field support, on the other hand, is totally different from surveillance. Field support is to actually go with the assassin to fill the contract. The best plan here is to wait and see if the assassin can finish it himself and if not, join in. Obviously, only brokers with sufficient offensive skill should attempt this. Other skills that are very useful to any broker hoping to participate in field support are hiding, stealth, archery, and/or magery.
Field support should be used extremely rarely. Usually, the assassin is plenty enough to finish a kill. Not to mention, that if the broker is found, he is basically an assassin without a cover – a sitting duck for bounty hunters or law enforcement. Stay concealed as much as possible if you use field support.
…And there you have it – an extensive beginner’s guide to brokering. I hope this can help not only aspiring brokers, but also give people an insight into what exactly it is that we do. As documented here, there is a lot more to it then just killing someone and collecting money. Unfortunately, though, not everything can be documented. Through actual brokering is the real way to learn all the tricks of the trade. Nothing can take the place of experience, so get out there and make some money!
“It was nice doing business with you.”