This is Shadowrun

Russian Mafia “Vori v Zakone” - The Russian Mafia has risen from humble origins to be the number two power in NYC. This has less to do with their inherent advantages and more to do with their sheer ruthlessness. Of all the syndicates the Russians are the ones most feared for their willingness to do anything to archive their objectives. Their is literally no limit to the levels of brutality they will commit in the name of their cause. The Vor’s power base is also widely distributed through out the City, with major concentrations in the industrial/port facilities in Newark and to a lesser extent Staten Island. They also have the largest presence of all the syndicates in the ultra secure neighborhoods of Manhattan. Aside from the Port authorities the Vor does not have that large a penetration into any of NYC government apparatus, but is well insulated within some of the corporations that hold NYC various maintenance (sewer, water, trash) contracts. It also has a large number of oversee suppliers of the various goods it distributes. The Vor is lead by Victor Putin, a kingpin like figure who rules the Vor with an iron fist from the top. The entire organization is loyal to him out of an unusual combination of fear, ambition, and loyalty.

The name of the Vor’s game is smuggling. Their treaty with the Mafia gives them exclusive control of this business in return for wholesale rates on their smuggled goods. If you have need of some illegal good, chances are the Vor at some point had it smuggled into the city. They also handle inter-borough smuggling which can also be lucrative for isolated boroughs like Manhattan. While the Vor has its hand in other criminal operations, the are not major players in these areas. Indeed the Mafia distributes more of their smuggled goods then they do. Still NYC vast size and huge demand for illegal goods easily stand as number one on the strength of this business alone.

The Vor’s muscle is almost entirely in-house. They have a large stable of goons, most of which are themselves Russian imports and cybered up to the gills with a huge variety of illegal cyberwear. While their ground forces may not be as large as those employed by the Triad, they are all individually much more skilled and augmented. And all far more willing to do what needs be done to accomplish their objectives. The Vor also employs a number of gangs to protect the neighborhoods around its more sensitive operations. If the Vor was week in any area it was magical operations, they have relatively few mages they can trust on payroll. A large part of its Matrix operations are handled by overseas hackers, but these operatives are very formidable non the less.

The Vor is a large employer of Shadowrunners. There always seems to be more dirty deeds that the Vor needs done then their in-house muscle can handle. Putin sees himself as an equal opportunity employer and will contract shadowrunners for any of the jobs he needs done, showing little discrimination between thugs he has on staff and those he contracts. However he also holds those runners to the same steep standards he holds his own employees, meaning failing a Vor job can have some nasty consequences.