factions of the san saba

While the town of Bravado is the primary setting of our story, there are more survivors in the world than just live in our tiny town. The nearby region is mostly controlled by several powerful Factions, made up of common workers, soldiers, merchants, and leaders that work together to achieve their mutual goals. During an event, you might encounter various agents and representatives of the major factions, and your actions can help or harm their success in the San Saba.

In the new DR Live book “Social Creatures”, you can read more about network-level factions like the Arbiters of the Bond and the Ossuary Society, but it also outlines the basic function for how Societies function in the game.

Branch Specific Societies

While Network-Wide Societies shape the larger game world, Local Societies are designed to define the culture, power struggles, and history of an individual branch. These groups—whether they are trade guilds, outlaw gangs, family dynasties, or secretive local organizations—exist only within a specific settlement and are used to drive branch level local storytelling.

Local Societies are a narrative tool, meant to provide a deeply personal, settlement-specific role-playing experience. Unlike Network-Wide Societies, they do not come with unique mechanics, custom items, or plot kits, and they do not extend beyond a single branch. Instead, they serve as a reflection of the local game’s culture and conflicts, allowing players to become deeply involved in the settlement’s politics, traditions, and power struggles.

  • Settlement-Focused Role-Play: Local Societies allow characters to form tight-knit factions within a game’s specific political, economic, or social landscape. Whether it’s a gang of smugglers controlling trade routes or a governing council managing the town’s laws, these groups define how the settlement operates.

  • Localized Storytelling: Since these societies exist only within a single game, they serve as story engines for local narrative arcs. The rise and fall of these groups are driven by the choices of players and storytellers at the local level.

  • No Custom Mechanics or Items: Unlike Network-Wide Societies, Local Societies do not have unique abilities, skills, or special mechanics. Their value is in role-playing and storytelling, not mechanical advantages.

  • Community & Culture: Many settlements develop distinct cultures over time, and Local Societies reinforce that. These groups reflect regional themes, traditions, and ideologies, adding depth to the game’s environment and history.

Society Membership mechanics

Each character may join up to four (4) Local Societies and up to two (2) Network-Level Societies.

There are only a handful of current blueprints that actively use the Society Membership mechanic, and you find more about these blueprints on the Juno Database.

  • Codex Insignia

  • Document Case

  • Glitter Gulch Raider-Ride

  • Go Haul Armored Trailer

  • The Only List That Matters

  • We All Lift Together

  • Esprit de Corps

  • “Member’s Only” Rotating Crypto-Lock

  • Proprietary Filing System

  • Shared Hands

  • Social Construction Tools

  • Social Distancing

  • Social Life Strengthener

You can read more about how Local Societies function in the DR Live book, “Social Creatures”.

Branch-level Society Memberships

Local societies operate at the level of a single settlement, and the nature of their obligations tends to be more fluid than those of the larger, global institutions. These groups represent the political, economic, and social fabric of the settlement, ranging from family dynasties to trade unions, from criminal enterprises to ideological movements. Membership in multiple local groups may be possible, but only to the extent that a character can reasonably maintain their standing, obligations, and usefulness within each one. Eventually, alliances will create conflicts of interest, and membership in one group may come at the cost of another.

Local Societies of the San Saba:

  • Rusted Rail Combine (RRC)

  • Grave Council

  • Junkerpunks

  • Law Dog Union

  • The Peacekeepers

These are the five major local factions in the San Saba, the immediate 10-mile or so range around the settlement of Bravado. These organizations have been major influencers in the region over the last few years and have nearby headquarters or settlements of note. You can expect to encounter agents of these factions during a DR:TX event and membership in these factions can involve in you in the local stories and intrigues of that group. You can find more details about these organizations below.

Other Optional Societies of the San Saba:

  • The San Saba Republic

  • Murder Inc: The Volsteads

  • Criminal: The Rotguts

These society memberships are ether niche or sunsetted factions that may not come up as often as other local Factions. You may still choose these as one of your four societies, but you should understand that you will rarely if ever encounter a mechanic or story that requires or rewards this connection.

Approved Player-Led Local Societies:

  • The Road Royals

  • Blood & Bone

  • Misfits & Maidens

  • Shields of the Lonestar

  • The Lucky Ram MC

Player-led Local Societies must have at least eight (8) active characters in regular attendance and must be approved by the DR:TX gamerunners. These groups will need to submit Design Docs detailing themes, narrative, and local membership requirements, and can be removed from the list if they fail to maintain an active presence. You can inquire more about adding a group to this list by sending an email to info@dystopiarisingtx.com.

Network Level Societies:

  • Blacktide Hunters

  • Wells Society

  • Ossuary Society

  • Arbiters of the Bond

Note, Network-wide societies are not necessarily involved in our local DR:TX stories. As these become available to join locally, we will update our information on this page.

For players, advancement within these societies is a long-term journey, not something earned overnight. Rising through the ranks of a Network-Wide Society requires consistent engagement, influence, and time—at least one year of active participation per rank increase. These organizations are not designed for rapid progression; their weight and impact in the world come from history, stability, and the cumulative efforts of their members. A character climbing the ranks of their society is not just proving their worth to their local settlement but becoming a recognized part of the organization’s broader structure.

Rusted rail combine (rrc)

Formerly known as the Railroad Conglomerate, the newly reorganized faction has claimed the name of the Rusted Rail Combine, or RRC. While they were once the seat of economic power in the San Saba, the fortunes of the various Elitariat families have waned after the war.  A powerful, semi-corporate entity has emerged, specializing in reclaiming, refining, and distributing salvageable resources from the ruins of the old world — metals, tech, fuel, even clean water. They operate like a mix between a logistics firm, a mining company, and a mercenary-backed salvage operation.

The various tradesmen, union workers, and crafters combined their shares of the company into a new public takeover known as the Trust, placing the faction under communal leadership rather than relying on one charismatic figurehead.  The RRC leverages their control of the Oxline, a network of arduously maintained rail lines that connect the San Saba, for profit and technological advancement. As the “safest” travel option connecting the settlements near Bravado together, the RRC brings new resources and connections with the power of the mighty OX, the last reminder of their former glory.  With the resources found delving into the ruins of Morgan’s Folly, the RRC hopes to rebuild their fleet of locomotives to expand their influence once more.

Grave Council

The Grave Council is loose confederation of the various outcasts and unwanted in the wastes, primarily of the more monstrous lineages.  The oldcestors once said that nothing is certain in life but death and taxes, and the Council claims authority over the Mortis Amaranthine in the San Saba.  Through diligent morgue maintenance, fines for careless necrological behavior, and a skilled network of tax collectors and grave robbers, they represent the memory and conscience of the Lone Star itself.

Through their tireless efforts the Grave Council has earned a place of respect and power, as the balance of life and death must be carefully monitored and protected. After the war, the focus of the Grave Council has instead turned to new advances in Necrology as well as ensuring that they are the foremost experts and auditors of the Mortis Amaranthine in the region, while keeping careful watch for anything that would threaten the careful balance of the grave.

junkerpunks

Whether they travel by foot, ship, or rubber, the Junkerpunks are a rambunctious merchant faction in the San Saba. The Junkerpunks used their influence to establish a new trading port called Drywater, across the lake from Bravado, and have created a safe haven for free spirits and criminals alike.  With a philosophy that prides personal freedom and a free spirit over stuffy regulations and authority, the faction is united in a mostly lawless anarchy and shared bonds of kinship forged by travel.

Having exiled the Grave Council from Drywater, strange doings seep from below deck and are certain to become a nuisance for Bravado. Drywater is now awash with back alley deals and the kinds of goods clean hands never touch, and the criminal gangs like it that way.

Law Dog Union

The Law Dogs were once independent contractors, sent out to enforce the contracts of the Lone Star’s major factions; but this left many Law Dogs, who saw themselves as heirs of a legacy of selfless heroism, with a bad taste in their mouths.  Frustrated with having to enforce predatory contracts designed by the powerful to entrap the desperate, the Law Dogs formed their own union under their own elected leadership.  This new Law Dog Union protects and serves all people of the San Saba, regardless of wealth or privilege. 

Throughout the San Saba, the marshals and agents of the Law Dog Union stand ready to enforce the various town charters and laws of the wasteland.  Those caught in violation of these laws are brought before the Justices of Sin, roving representatives of the faction that assess their crimes and assign an appropriate punishment.  These enforcers serve no single master other than the Union but hold distinct contracts with the major settlements of the San Saba, save for Drywater.  The Law Dogs police their own and follow a code of conduct that ensures they can continue a new legacy for justice in the wasteland.

The peacekeepers

During the War of Antlers, the town of Bravado led a rebellion against the predatory San Saba Board and formed a volunteer military force to rival that of the Chairman. These brave soldiers defended settlements across the region in war and even fought against the undead nightmares that swarmed from Barogue and emerged victorious.

With the war over, the pressure of what to do next weighs heavily on the Militia. Bravado and the Oxkillers recruited countless soldiers, armed them, trained them, and whetted their appetites on war and violence.  Without a cause to fight for, what happens to those soldiers and weapons of war?  How does a soldier return to a life in their hometown?  Is there still a need for an active military presence, and who should lead them? The Militia is faced with unexpected obstacles in the aftermath that will determine if they can continue as a powerful influence on the San Saba.

The highrollers

In the grim and glittering world of the criminal elite, there is a class that stands head and shoulders above the rest: the Highrollers. These individuals represent the pinnacle of success in the criminal hierarchy, wielding unparalleled influence and power. Unlike conventional factions, the Highrollers are defined not by a central entity but by their exceptional ability to affect significant change through their considerable financial, criminal, and social clout.

The Highrollers are the architects of the underworld, operating at the highest echelons of power. They are the ganglords, candymen, and influential figures who shape the criminal landscape of the Greater Wastes. Their unity lies in their shared capacity to command respect and drive substantial impact, whether they choose to remain in the shadows or bask in the limelight. As lone wolves, liaisons, and power brokers, the Highrollers navigate a world teeming with both opportunity and peril. Their ambition drives them to scale new heights of success and forge empires, making them the quintessential movers and shakers of the criminal world.

NOTE: This society utilizes concepts found in the Criminal Influence content published by the Dystopia Rising Live book called Illicit Business.

Murder, Inc.

The Murder Inc. cell in Bravado, overseen by the formidable Volstead Gang, operates as a critical pillar of organized crime in the city. Under the leadership of Father & Mother Volstead, Murder Inc. has become synonymous with ruthless efficiency and iron-fisted control over the city's criminal underworld.

The cell’s core mission is to maintain dominance and enforce order within the chaotic criminal landscape of Bravado. They achieve this through a combination of strategic alliances, calculated intimidation, and a comprehensive control of illicit operations. Murder Inc. specializes in assassination, intelligence, and sabotage, wielding their power to both protect their interests and neutralize threats.

In addition to their criminal enterprises, Murder Inc. plays a crucial role in the broader struggle between Bravado and Bastion. Their influence extends into political machinations and covert operations, positioning them as a key player in the ongoing conflict. The Volstead Gang's leadership ensures that Murder Inc.'s actions align with their broader goal of securing Bravado's dominance and safeguarding their territory from rival factions and external threats. As a central force in Bravado, the Murder Inc. chapter continuously navigates shifting alliances and power struggles, balancing their violent methods with a calculated approach to maintaining control. Their strategic maneuvers and capacity for brutal enforcement solidify their position as a dominant and feared entity in the city's criminal hierarchy.

NOTE: This society utilizes concepts found in the Murder Inc. content published by the Dystopia Rising Live book called A Killer’s Mind.