Maelstrom
| Maelstrom | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Gang |
| Region | Watson |
| District | Northside |
| Leader | Brick, Royce |
Maelstrom is a gang obsessed with cyberware that rules the industrial north of Watson. Its members are easy to spot by their frightening faceplates and glowing red optics, which mark both their gang and their worship of chrome. They fill their bodies with powerful and highly illegal implants, and many of them are close to cyberpsychosis, or already past it. Behind the madness, everything Maelstrom does is about business.
History
The Founding
Maelstrom was founded by a fighter called Hammer, who had been thrown out of the Metal Warriors gang for breaking its code of combat. When a rival gang nearly wiped out the Warriors in a street brawl, part of the survivors joined him. Over time the gang took in members of other combat gangs who held grudges of their own. From the start Maelstrom had no code at all, and everything was allowed.
The gang first settled in an old department store near the docks of the old downtown. It lived from small crimes and protection rackets, but its hunger for new cyberware and combat drugs pushed it towards bigger and bloodier targets.
The Bomb and After
The nuclear blast that destroyed Arasaka Tower devastated Maelstrom. Its hideout survived the blast itself, but many of its most heavily chromed members died in a wave of mad violence right after, Hammer among them. Fires then swept through the gang's territory. The survivors fought their way through the burning city to the hotel that held the Totentanz club and made it their new home.
Over the following decades Maelstrom repaired the tower and reopened the club. It drove off looters and soldiers and rebuilt its numbers by absorbing the remains of other heavily chromed gangs, often after beating them in battle. Several leaders came and went, some lost to cyberpsychosis and one killed by MaxTac. Under later bosses the gang grew rich on drugs and cyberware and became a force in the ruined Hot Zone of the city centre.
Northside
When the old tower began to fall apart, Maelstrom left the city centre for Watson. It now holds Northside and the industrial district around it, with the Totentanz in an unfinished hotel. At the time of the game, the crew at the All Foods plant is split between its old leader, Brick, and the man who overthrew him, Royce.
Maelstrom Map
The map shows the places of Maelstrom listed below.
Maelstrom map location:
Map credit by Map Genie.
Way of Life
Maelstrom wants to escape the weakness of human flesh, and its urge for more chrome is stronger than its fear of madness. Members favour pain editors, cybernetic eyes and reflex boosters, along with occult tattoos. The gang is fascinated by the occult and by any strange, otherworldly sensation.
Maelstrom tests the limits of the human body, and not only on itself. It also experiments on anyone unlucky enough to cross its path. The gang is known for brutal public executions and a wild way of fighting, and its reputation as a band of lunatics serves it well. The more rumours spread about Maelstrom, the better for business.
The gang works in small groups, each in charge of one part of its business. A patrol may be four or five members, while a raid, a hit or a valuable cargo may call for many more.
Business
Smuggling drugs and illegal medicine is Maelstrom's main source of money. The gang also takes hit jobs and carries them out in bizarre and brutal ways, and it robs heavily guarded corporate convoys. A Militech convoy stolen with inside help is how the Flathead bot of the Konpeki heist ends up in its hands.
The Totentanz brings in a great deal as well. It is the best known gangster club in Night City, a place to drink and riot where other gangers may party as long as they respect Maelstrom's rules. Rumour also says the gang makes black market braindances that are disturbing and extremely violent. The police have never found proof.
Members
The people of Maelstrom are listed below with their role.
| Name | Image | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Brick | 
|
Member |
| Dum Dum | - | Member |
| Kaiser Herzog | - | Gang member |
| Othmar Brasi | - | Gang member |
| Patricia | - | Member |
| Royce | 
|
Boss |
| Zaria Hughes | - | Boss |
The kinds of Maelstrom fighters met in combat are listed below.
| Name | Class |
|---|---|
| Maelstrom Goon | Ranged, Melee |
| Maelstrom Maniac | Shotgunner |
Jobs
The Pickup sends a merc crew to the All Foods plant to buy a Militech bot from Maelstrom. A power struggle between Brick and Royce decides how the deal goes, and the outcome decides who leads the gang at the Totentanz in Second Conflict. Many of Regina Jones's gigs in Watson also set mercs against Maelstrom.
| Name | Type |
|---|---|
| The Ride | Main Job |
| The Pickup | Main Job |
| Chippin' In | Side Job |
| The Prophet's Song | Side Job |
| Sacrum Profanum | Side Job |
| Second Conflict | Side Job |
| Dream On | Side Job |
| Hippocratic Oath | Gig |
| Lousy Kleppers | Gig |
| Rite of Passage | Gig |
| Scrolls before Swine | Gig |
Places
The places held or used by Maelstrom are listed below.
| Name | Type |
|---|---|
| All Foods Factory | Abandoned protein processing factory |
| Totentanz | Bar |
| Ebunike Docks | Docks |
| Northside Docks | Docks |
Notes
Maelstrom's leader for the rest of the story depends on the choices made in The Pickup: Royce, Brick, or Patricia if both men die.
All Gangs