A lot of people have been asking the same question recently… "What's going on with those empty cities?" Well folks, today half of that question will be answered!

I am pleased to announce that the city of Chicago is once again open for business! The current heads of the occupied five cities decided that we would re-open the city in a similar capacity as Las Vegas was months ago. However, there are some big differences in the rules of this competition, with the intent to make a more level playing field and to ensure the competition is balanced and fair.

Here are the rules of the competition:

1.) Nobody over the age of 35 days old may join the competition as a leader, hand or crew member. This means from their original start date.
2.) You may only take one member with you as permanent Right Hand Man. All other members must be 'fresh off the boat'.
3.) You must have the permission of your current city head to leave and set up in Chicago.
4.) Nobody may enter the competition with more than 50 bodyguards (VWP Status and below only)
5.) Crew leaders may exceed 50 bodyguards after setting up but they may not exceed 75 bodyguards until the competition is over. (EWP Status)
6.) Demotions for bodyguards are permitted, however BG caps apply for all members of the city.
7.) Each crew may have up to 3 members with a VWP status (50 BGs); all other members are capped at Well Protected status (25 BGs).
8.) All impending leaders must announce their arrival on the street before moving to Chicago.
9.) Chicago leaders are expected to maintain the same professional standards as all cities; including punishments and standards of recruiting.
10.) No outside influence or help may be given after you enter the city. You are on your own.
11.) There is no cap on the number of crews allowed to enter the competition.
12.) You may use any means necessary to win the competition. What happens in Chicago stays in Chicago.
13.) The competition will conclude when a leader wins, by reaching the rank of Godfather.

These are the complete rules of the competition and city. These rules will be enforced by the current city heads. Should loopholes become apparent that give anyone a significant unfair advantage, the council of city heads reserve the right to amend the rules to restore the planned balance.

To those wishing to take part, good luck! We look forward to seeing the project underway!

Woooo!!! Another bloodbath!

Looks for Sgt.Slaughter

You mean that dude we eradicated in the LV experiment a while back?

PJ giggles as he wonders off

Bill steps out of his saloon onto the street corner and take a sip from his hipflask.

I must say, this is a fantastic development and idea from the heads of the cities. My father once told me about the LV experiment and what an apparent shambles it was. I believe the guidelines set out here make the competition much more interesting and as you say, a more level playing field.

I feel this idea was just what was needed in order to bring a little excitement to our world.

Bravo!

Bill takes another swig from his trusty hipflask before disappearing back into his saloon.

Good to see Chicago come back to life. I predict the streets will run red with blood for awhile till a true leading force steps forward

I think this is a great idea, look at the success of the Las Vegas project & this time the rules seem to have been thought out better to avoid all the loopholes.

A fantastic idea. Really pleased to see this getting the go-ahead. Sadly many feel the same as Bill that Vegas was a shambles, for those involved however I can assure you it wasn't a shambles, it simply wasn't easy and the grey spots in the rules made it all the harder. With these rules in place it certainly looks like having more structure and I feel that the current crop of city heads will honour the statement that indicates they will review the rules should things prove to be giving an advantage to anyone.

I must admit i was surprised by the bg rule for members but i suppose it keeps them weaker then the outside crews and more dependant on diplomacy then force.  I expect it will pay off for some as those leaving a secure crew may die if taking part in the experiment before things settle.  This clearance of some ranks and insecurity possibly making a city outside chicago a preferred choice for some as we saw with las vegas at stages.  I just hope this doesnt create a lot of disloyalty for those suddenly just wanting to up and leave their cities as has been seen before(yes i know they need their city heads auth and the possible dissapointment of being told no).

Grin looked out into Lake Michigan where the statute of the mighty Bearderus stood. Patient. Watching.

Grin looked out again. This time, he considered the statue of mighty Bearderus. It seemed a far more logical choice than his original gaze.

I whole heatedly agree with the notion the LV Experiment was a shambles. Months of endured torture and hell and what are we left with...

.... PoisonusJelly

Jax shakes his head

I love everything about this, except for one thing...

1.) Nobody over the age of 35 days old may join the competition as a leader, hand or crew member. This means from their original start date.

Having read the journals of my father, grandfather, great grandfather and so on and so forth I have heard about the friends they made, the enemies they fought with, the hard work they put in and the amazing time they had in Vegas during the experiment and it sounded like a great time.

Going to CH is something I would have considered yet I am prohibited from doing so because of my age, I think this is a bit harsh to be honest... us oldies are still capable of showing these young whippersnappers a thing or 2!!

Going to CH is something I would have considered yet I am prohibited from doing so because of my age, I think this is a bit harsh to be honest... us oldies are still capable of showing these young whippersnappers a thing or 2!!

It has been done this way so no one has an unfair disadvantage, for example an older account will almost certainly have a better gun which they could then use to take out the competition thus not giving people a fair crack, by having certain rules that are clear for all from the begining will give those wanting to go to CH a level playing field so to speak.

Actually as the days go on the 35 day rule will unbalance things & make it unfair as there will be leaders in Chicago older than 35 days compared to a newly buttoned made man that wants to setup.

I understand that Don Lancelot but as FatherJack said it could eventually end up doing the opposite of what it was intended for, could we not have a system where for 1 day of the CH experiment that passes a person of 37 days could then join, then after 2 days a 39 day old person could join? or even go from when crew #1 sets up. Gives the 35 day and under chance to grow and doesn't exclude anyone who is already outside the threshold.

Just a suggestion

This is a matter of opportunity and fairness. Starting from this point the opportunity is the same for everyone, fair chances for everyone. If someone was to setup as a 100 Days old character he could just shoot everone as there is a BG Cap set. With the "BG cap" gone, it would be viable to the fairness again.

As the rules stand now it guarantees a fair competition with whoever takes the opportunity NOW.

FatherJack and Sgt_Baker you both have valid points there and maybe it is something that needs to be looked into further as things progress, ideally once there are a few established crews there you could have a time limit where any new crews are protected from the rest for a certain amount of time so there are no obvious disadvantages to new crews but also on the other hand those who wish to set up and run a successful crew in CH will almost certainly need good diplomatic skills and be able to work with the other crews for the betterment of the city as a whole and not just for themselves.

If enough take up this opportunity then one will undoubtedly rise to the top and be looked upon as the city head, then it will be down to that person to agree certain rules and principles for that city with the other CL's set up there, after all a divided city will just crumble and the whole idea here is to see who has the leadership skills to actually run the city as it should be run, i will watch with interest anyway.

Good luck to all who participate you will live and prosper or disappear without trace only you can decide what path you take.

Is there a set amount of Bg's a Cl should have to start up?

Is there a set amount of Bg's a Cl should have to start up?

Nobody may enter the competition with more than 50 bodyguards (VWP Status and below only)

- Meaning, anyone from 0-50 bodyguards is eligable.

Personally, I think the 35 day rule is wonderful. It assures that no one can "wait in the weeds" for too long before they set up. If it gives some advantage to the leaders that stay alive for a few months in Chicago, then what of that? It just means that the experiment is destined to have a successful leader in the future. That gives people reason now to stake their claims. One of the reasons the LV experiment was such a bloodbath (at least before the arrival of a half dozen IWP mobsters) was that about the time someone appeared to have sorted things out, another person from outside the city would step in, kill a bunch of people, and then die themselves -- leaving more chaos in their wake.

In my view, this rule will bring a bit more stability than the LV project, but with the restrictions on bodyguards no one will be an insurmountable obstacle. It levels the playing field quite nicely. I like the balance it strikes.