Diversity is good! Systemic racism is bad. We all know this. It’s been beaten into our pores. And, Gang Busters brought the diversity to Lakefront City all the way back in 1982. I’ve spoken before about how I love the Lakefront City Ward Map. Now, I want to take things a step farther.

One of the unique features of Gangbusters is the career system which sets players into positions at odds with one another in a Braunstein-like fashion. But players, given the choice, may well all choose similar backgrounds and professions. It’s a lot easier if all the players are the police and the referee runs the crooks. But, it’s not really the intent of the game. Gang Busters is cops-and-robbers on the tabletop. It’s not about getting along. It’s about running the booze, stealing the jewels, arresting the crooks, getting the scoop, blackmailing the politician. The game is best when the players are set against one another. Why let them choose to be the getalong gang. As the saying goes, players deserve less!

What better way to do this than to ensure the characters come from a variety of neighborhoods, ethnic backgrounds, and political leanings. Luckily enough, that classic map sets this up for us. What follows is a means of generating characters whose lives are set out and defined by the realities of Lakefront City.

To generate a Lakefront City character follow this method:

1. Roll 1d1000 to determine the ward the character lives in.

2. Roll 1d100 for the ward to determine the characters ethicity.

3. If in the City Center Mixed group, roll on the appropriate subtable.

4. If of the Eastern European Working Class or Jewish Working Class roll on the appropriate Subtable

5. If one of the assimilated categories roll on the appropriate subtable

6. Check the Careers Table and roll for the character’s career based on the characters ethnicity column. If the character does not meet the minimums for the career rolled, roll agains until an available career is identified.

7. Roll for political affiliation based on the character’s ward.

So, there you have it. Character diversity in a nutshell. Every character will have a unique neighborhood they hale from, social class, ethnicity, career, and political affiliation. A guarantee for conflict.