The Bloody Ould Sixth: A Gangs of New York mod (Alpha2 is out, see p.75)

[Alan Q Smithee]

Big news: The alpha, which is still pretty rough but has the general flavor of the mod intact, is available for developers to download on the separate dev forum. Several initial developers/contributors have been named and I hope to see them register shortly; anyone else interested in helping the game along by making scenes or models, contributing to item balance, etc., post in this thread and we'll talk about it.

They had a dreadful fight, upon last Saturday night,
The papers gave the news accordin;
Guns, pistols, clubs and sticks, hot water and old bricks,
Which drove them on the other side of Jordan.

Then pull off the coat and roll up the sleeve,
For Bayard is a hard street to travel;
So pull off the coat and roll up the sleeve,
The Bloody Sixth is a hard ward to travel I believe.

The Bloody Ould Sixth

Gather round, b'hoys and g'hals, and hear me tale. 'Twas playin' the Gangs o' Glasgow mod when it struck me, the gang warfare and political corruption of mid-19th-century Manhattan is a ripe source for a good game. I've only just started, by doing a ton of research, devising a map and skinning a few outfits, but with some help this could be pretty bitchin' rad.

July 4 edit: The story

April, 1865. The three-pronged attacks on President Lincoln, Vice President Johnson and Secretary of State Seward have succeeded, throwing the country into complete turmoil. In New York, meanwhile, congressman and former mayor Fernando Wood sees an opportunity. He regains his seat for a third term with the help of the Tammany political machine and reconsiders the plans he laid out before the war to turn New York into its own domain, the Free City of Tri-Insula. He begins gathering a power base, an army of thugs and politicos ranging from sluggers and shoulder-hitters to his own Municipal Police force and former Confederate generals. They call themselves the Sons of Saint Tammany.

At the other side of the island, Metropolitan Police Chief Theodore Roosevelt senses the coming storm and responds. Knowing that the federal government is too embattled to effectively restrain Wood and Boss Tweed, he employs the aid of Allan Pinkerton and his detective agency in an effort to thwart the plan for New York City secession. The 7th Regiment, the only Federal Army in the area not called to quell the rioting nationwide, also proves a strong ally. With its headquarters in the infamous Tombs prison, the League of Honest Coppers is born.

And in the middle, in the streets, are the gangs of New York. It's a field day for every crook and lowlife, the ongoing violence an inferno to the flame that was the Draft Riot two years earlier. To survive and thrive amidst the chaos, coalitions of gangs form along regional and socio-political lines:
The Bowery Bunch in the East, a cementing of Nativist groups to the long-established Bowery Boys. They hope to drive unwelcomed newcomers out of the city for good.
The Five-Point Guard in Central South Manhattan, Irish groups such as the Dead Rabbits and Plug Uglies. For them, banding together is a matter of survival.
And in the South, headquartered in Battery Park, the Blood and Battery Boys -- a loose grouping of the most violent gangs, including the Daybreakers, Slaughter Housers, Tub of Blood Bunch and the Hook Gang. They've turned their attention from the waterfront inward, where the real action is.

And then there's you, the player. Put on your best vest and tophat, grab a meat cleaver, and choose a side -- or establish your own criminal empire.

----

Features:

Map: Lower Manhattan, from 14th Street on down, as it appeared circa 1865. Done in a street-and-city-block style, so travel would be restricted to established roads. Locations would include Five Points, Tammany Hall, the Tombs, and assorted slums, brothels, theaters and speakeasies. Upon visiting owned property one would not "collect rent" so much as "extort protection money." Also, replace tournaments with bareknuckle pugilism.

Factions: Generally, the Tammany Society, various gangs and some honest coppers, all lead by historical figures such as Boss Tweed and Lew Baker; Bill "The Butcher" Poole and John Morissey; and Teddy Roosevelt and Allan Pinkerton.

Troops: Wide range, from street urchins and pickpockets, to sluggers and enforcers, to Civil War soldiers and constables. For flavor, a scattering of "Black Joke" firemen and Knickerbockers "base ball" players.

Gear: Focus on small hand-weapons and pistols. Knock a few heads with a brickbat or give 'em the ol' Glasgow Grin with a straight razor!

Preview of a couple hats and outfits:

(click to show/hide)

So I'm posting this thread to see if I can catch anyone's interest and get some dedicated help on scene making and basic but time consuming coding like troop trees and items.

Needful things, how you can help:
* Suggest or create faction banners.
* Input on troops
* Help us change every last bloody word of Native so this doesn't come off sounding like a modern-medieval hybrid where you buy a Colt Navy for denari.
* Appropriate models if you got 'em.

July 9 update:
Map. (Not in-game, but it represents the landmass and where things are)

(click to show/hide)

Things are progressing. A lot of historical research is going into it, so for the most part I won't just make up the name of a town or "king"; it has to represent a real place or person. (Believe it or not, when you read some of this wild stuff...) That's why the list below will be updated little by little, as I hash these things out.

Faction "kings" (bosses) and "lords"

Sons of Saint Tammany
Boss: Mayor Fernando Wood
Lords:
Boss Tweed
Slugger Lew Baker
Municipal Chief Matsell (hesitant to fight)
Street Commissioner Devlin
Muni Capt Big Bill Devery
Alderman Croker
Diamond Jim Fisk
Confederate Agent Thompson
Policy King Addams
Muni Capt Ackerman
Honest John Kelly
Slugger Dan Kerrigan
Slugger Paudeen McLaughlin
Slugger Isaiah Rynders
Slugger Dirty Face Jack
Slugger Jim Turner
Slugger Yankee Sullivan
Slugger Country McClesster
Slugger John Mahan
Confederate Gen Sam Cooper

League of Honest Coppers
Boss: Police Chief Teddy Roosevelt
Lords:
Detective Pinkerton
Captain Gastlin
War Secretary Stanton
Maj Gen Sandford
Inspector Carpentor
Inspector Folk
Captain Bogart
Commissioner Acton
Commissioner Bergen
Captain Dickson
Sergeant Banfield
Sergeant Burdick
Sergeant Copeland
Sgt Fighting Mac McCredie
Col Winslow
Col Jardine
Captain Allaire
Detective Dorcy
Captain Walling
Fire Chief "Handsome" Jim Gulick

The Bowery Bunch
Boss: William "The Butcher" Poole
Lords:
Mose the Fireboy
Syksey
Chuck Conners
Charley Lozier
Reddy the Blacksmith
Johnny the Mick
Mary Varley (f)
Jack Dempsey
Jim Farrell
Whitey Sullivan
Burly Bohan
Boiled Oysters Malloy
Owney Geogheghan
Jack Frency
Ludwig the Bloodsucker
Big Nose Bunker
Baby Face Willie
Sheeny Mike Kurtz
Circular Jack
Little Freddie

The Five Point Guard
Boss: "Black Dog" Aidan Bourke
Lords:
Shang Allen
Kit Burns
Tommy Hadden
Jack the Rat
Old Smoke Morrissey
Danny Lyons
Danny Driscol
Dandy John Dolan 
Piker Ryan
Red Rocks Farrel
Big Josh Hines
Bull Hurley
Pretty Kitty McGowan (f)
Fig McGerald
Mike McGloin
Slops Connolly
Baboon Connolly
Googles Corcoran
Hoggy Walsh
Dorsey Doyle

The Blood and Battery Boys
Boss: Slobbery Jim.
Lords:
Bill Lowrie
Patsy the Barber
Nicholas Saul
Bill Howlett
Sow Madden
Cowlegged McCarthy
Suds Merrick
James Coffee
Terry leStrange
Tommy Shay
Slipsey Ward
Piggy Noles
Molly Maher (f)
Sweeny the Boy
Hop Along Peter
Bum Mahoney
Skinner Meehan
Dutch Hen
Jack Cody
Sam McCracken

July 25 update
Some banners.

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[Adorno]

Well, you have me interested. Not that I can help with anything, but you need someone to play it, and I volunteer 
Good luck with it. It seems like a lot of work. Especially finding decent textures for buildings in NY in the 1860's.

[shalictar]

sounds very cool.

Especially finding decent textures for buildings in NY in the 1860's.

defiantely gonna be challenge.

[zenla]

New York version of gangs of Glasgow huh. Sounds fun

[Soldatto]

This sounds really interesting, good luck with the mod.

[Austupaio]

Gangs of New York style eh? Damned good idea,  I can't really contribute, but I hope you make some progress with this. Good luck.

[Flanged]

I'll keep an eye open for textures that would fit 1860s New York when I'm on my travels through the building texture places.

CGtextures is a good place to start, though the buildings are mainly medieval or modern (some of both would fit the period with a bit of tweaking).

Am I right in thinking the streets were mainly cobbled or completely unpaved (Five Points being basically a giant mud bath)?  There are a lot of good cobbles textures at CGtextures as well.



This one would be good for a firehouse.

http://www.cgtextures.com/

Hope you can put in some good ol' Tammany vote-rigging and "diplomacy" !

Good luck with this

 

[Alan Q Smithee]

I'll keep an eye open for textures that would fit 1860s New York when I'm on my travels through the building texture places.
 

Nice, thanks. I've been using Flickr primarily. I also lucked out and found dozens of costume photos from a huge auction.
--
Here's a couple more outfits:

[Arnach]

the one on the right looks like a pirate lol

[Alan Q Smithee]

That CG texture thing reminds me, I could do with some top-down views of old buildings.

Here's an example, by the way, of the wealth of historical stuff to base the mod in:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_historical_gang_members_of_New_York_City

[-Peter-]

I could help out with making some weapons, scene objects and what not in about a weeks time if you want.

[SupaNinjaMan]

speakeasies didn't exist during the 1860's.

they came with prohibition in the 1920's.

Map: Lower Manhattan, from 14th Street on down, as it appeared circa 1865. Done in a street-and-city-block style, so travel would be restricted to established roads. Locations would include Five Points, Tammany Hall, the Tombs, and assorted slums, brothels, theaters and speakeasies.

[Alan Q Smithee]

I could help out with making some weapons, scene objects and what not in about a weeks time if you want.

Perfect! Something I haven't been able to find is a model of a straight razor. A lowpoly horse and buggy for a map icon would be great too.

[-Peter-]

If you can get some reference pics for me and pm them I'll work on them. I shouldn't be busy for ages after Saturday night like.

[SupaNinjaMan]

a straight razor?
well, i've never really modeled for anyone before, but here is a basic razor, took me like 30 minutes.

160+ polies.

a new record.

but it'll be modified, beautified, etc.