Gangs
Gangs are a type of group in Cyberpunk. By day, the street is the province of corporate movers and commuting beavers. But at night, the predators slither out from under their rocks and trash heaps, and the city howls. Call them gutterats, night crawlers, trash or streetscum; the gangs are the ultimate rulers of the city's night. Whether it's a small pack of a dozen, or an army of two hundred, each gang in Night City is as diverse as the street itself; guardians, chromers, dorphers and freaks, all thrown together in a lethal cocktail, mixed and sprinkled liberally with blood. Although there is no standard policy when dealing with gangs, due to their diversity and changing natures with few constants, deadly force is acceptable if gang activity rises to unacceptable levels, due to higher risks to public life and safety if they become out of control. Nevertheless, general standards are to let gangs operate until they become problems, so as to create a steady flow of data for street-level law enforcement, making city life safer to live in.
Gangs presence in Arcadia
6th Street
After the 4th Corporate War, a large number of career soldiers were left without jobs or prospects - the most enterprising of them formed the 6th Street Gang. Not only do they boast veterans among their ranks, but also ex-police officers, former corporate security agents and "civilians" who have had a crash course in combat training - everyone and anyone who wants to bring order to this town. The end justifies the means, and the means usually involve robberies, extortion, arms dealing and stealing cars.
Maelstrom
You can easily recognize them by their intimidating faceplates and hostile optic implants, which not only indicates their gang affiliation but also their fetishization of cyberware and cybermodification. Maelstrom is known for their exceptionally brutal and public gang executions , combine that with illegal braindance production and a manic fighting style and you've got yourself a gang with a reputation as a band of lunatics on the verge of cyberpsychosis. The truth is there's nothing crazy about how Maelstrom operates – at the end of the day it's all about biz. And the more rumors there are about them, the better.
Animals
Unlike other Night City gangs, the Animals don't have a defined territory. The Animals aren't a centralized gang , they're divided into smaller groups led by independent "alphas" males or females. The concrete jungle, for the Animals, it's not just a pretentious metaphor. From their hormone-pumping, beast-inducing implants to their love of street combat, the Animals are obsessed with the wild side of human nature. Their physical strength and proficiency in various martial arts make Animals the ideal security guards and bouncers for clubs and bars. Besides that, the Animals are known for their illegal brawls, hijacking transports and their addiction to Juice, their very own homemade hormone cocktail
Valentinos
Loud vests, flashy gold cyberware, heavy jewellery, tattoos of Santa Muerte and Jesus Malaverde, you'd have a hard time mistaking a Valentino when you saw one. Inspired by Chicano culture, their expressive style makes them seem like something straight out of a Mexican barrio. But if you look closer, you'll see anyone can join the gang, no matter their background or ethnicity. They're tied to the local communities by nearly familial bonds of friendship and by biz. The Valentinos run completely legal businesses like restaurants, nightclubs and auto shops, but all are fronts for their other, dirtier biz of money laundering, smuggling stolen vehicles or guns, human trafficking and gang warfare.
Wraiths
The first and new nomad codes elaborate the various reasons you might be expelled from your family, including "Share with others in your clan" or "Do not keep for yourself that which may help another in your clan." Reading those documents today, it's hard to fight the feeling they were written in different, happier times. These days, nomads are more often expelled from their families for murdering a fellow family member, human trafficking, poisoning the water supply or betrayal of the clan. And we have a word for those nomads: the Raffen Shiv. Once ousted, most Raffens still maintain their nomadic lifestyles. They form larger groups on the road, but nobody would call these groups family. The Raffen Shiv prowl the Badlands, ambushing unsuspecting travellers, corpo convoys or even – and with particular relish – other nomad camps. A gang of Raffen Shiv even formed outside Night City's gates: the Wraiths. They're well-organized, effective, and willing to do anything. After all, like all Raffens, they've got nothing left to lose.