The Mesa Devils

The Mesa Devils are the largest organized gang group in the Mesa district of Darkness Falls. For most people, including local law enforcement agencies, the Mesa Devils are small time hooligans whom provoke more outrage with vandalism and tagging then pose any real threat to society. But in the capable hands of a master cult leader, they can be deadly.

Report by Maggie Urquidez Templar Paradigm City Cabal

Brief Overview
The Mesa Devils first made their appearance on the streets of the Mesa District in the late 1980s, part of the surge of gang activity that plagued major cities at this time. At the onset of their arrival they were an exceptionally brutal and violent gang, carving out their territory with numerous gun battles both with other gangs and law enforcement agencies. Once they had secured their foothold and territory the gang mellowed out a great deal, becoming less and less violent until 1995, when they ceased to be considered a major threat at all.

In 1997 the Devils underwent a massive change in both appearance and philosophy. The shake up was due to a high ranking member of the gang street-named Tarantula whom, having been part of an obscure Elder God cult, rearranged the Devils and turned them toward loftier goals than petty crime: the hunt for and use of mystic artifacts and relics. Tarantula displayed a minor aptitude with Sorcery Magick, and with violent displays of elemental effects was able to hold the gang together in this new direction. However, Tarantula gained so much notoriety for the gang that Cosmics became involved. Tarantula was arrested and prosecuted, leaving the gang largely to flounder.

In 2003 the Mesa Devils again rose to prominence under a new leader, Johnny Rancid. Rancid was a formidable leader, a natural magnetic personality with tremendous occult knowledge. Under Rancid's leadership the Mesa Devils began obtaining new and stronger firepower, which they used to collect a small number of authentic relics and artifacts. Unlike his predecessor, Rancid was able to keep the Mesa Devils at such a low profile they remained largely under the radar of Cosmics.

Rancid turned the gang toward Elder God worshiping cults, introducing many of the Mesa Devils to minor Ceremonial and Sorceric cantrips and thus ensnaring them into the web of supernatural occult activity. The Cosmics may have overlooked them but we, the Darklight Society, did not. In order to counter the Devils we became involved, disassembling many of their plots and machinations under the guise of false cults, misdirection, and false leads. We were even able to eliminate Johnny Rancid from control of the group by engineering numerous false missions that exposed him to a handful of Cosmics. But we acted too late. The Mesa Devils had become firmly entrenched in cult and paranormal activity.

Today, the Mesa Devils are often found among clusters of cults and their leaders. For the Darklight Society they have become thorny foot soldiers of The Dread, and all agents should expect to encounter Devils when assigned missions to neutralize cult activity.

Hierarchy
Although the Mesa Devils are no longer a considered a coherent and self-serving street gang, they have instead become steadfast cult legions. We know of a small handful of cult leaders and power-houses that routinely call Devils into action for their stated mission of obtaining mystical power, eliminating enemies, and serving the purposes of stronger, prominent cults.

 Lord Therence Smith-Ashcroft : A prominent Southern Rose cult mastermind, Ceremonial Magician, and Sorceror. He routinely makes use of the Mesa Devils to perform his wetworks. 

 Mister Skratch : Admittedly, we have very little information on this individual or what cult it is he belongs to/leads. Agent eyewitness accounts describe him as a disembodied voice accompanied by an ambiguous but often male shaped shadow on walls or floors, able to alter the shadow shape at will. It's possible that Mister Skratch is an extra-planar entity. He seems to be an ardent adorer of unspecified Elder Gods and has a stated purpose to return them to Earth and "cover the world in a darkness that will bind with eternity."