Criminal

"Bailiff: The defendant is charged with:
Terrorism against the Pan-Solar Consortium, resulting in the destruction of three deep space haulers.
Murder of 473 sentient beings
Conspiracy to overthrow the rightful government of the Andromeda Sector
Unlawful possession of a deadly weapon, to wit: a Gyroc holdout 'zip gun' pistol.
Reckless endangerment of a space station
Fluid littering in a zero-gravity environment
Failure to properly recycle waste
Disturbing the peace
And finally, stealing restraints from an officer of the law.
How do you plead, defendant?""
~Excerpt from the arraignment of Tyle Creely

The Third Oldest Profession

The first full time job was trading 'favors' for goods. The second one was the biggest man making rules to tell people how much 'favors' should be worth and taking a cut of both the favors and goods for himself. The third oldest profession was telling that guy to pound sand. Criminals are as inevitable as laws. While everyone agrees on most laws most of the time, some people inevitably think there should be exceptions to every rule, and most of those people think, of course, that they should be the exception. Some people are criminals because they are desperate and can't think of a better way. Some people are crimnals because they enjoy the thrill. Some people are criminals because they think that if everyone else is playing by the rules, criminality gives them the edge.

A Submarket for Every Market

If it's illegal on one world but legal anywhere else, smugglers will make sure that the market is supplied. If a service is illegal, that means a premium can be invoked and profit margins are much higher. Everything the authorities don't want citizens to have, especially at a weaker License privilege, can be acquired on the black market with a markup.

Organized and Disorganized Crime

Police oppose criminals, that's in their job description. Most 'petty' criminals, IE those who work freelance, don't fear police nearly as much as they fear Three Suns Paradisio or the Hyperion Crime Ring. If the police catch a thief working alone, there will be a trial and a fine. The worst he can expect is a conversion to a Condemned if his theft was a robbery and enough people died. If he's caught operating on TSP and HCR turf, then what he can expect is a messy and public end.

Templates

Primary Skills

Add 16 points in skills relevant to your criminal pursuit.For example:
1. Looter: Armoury (junk) (A) IQ+1 4 points, Scrounging (E) Per+2 4 points, Brawling (E) DX+2 4 points, Holdout (A) IQ+1 4 points 
2. Mobster: Axe/Mace (A) DX+1 4 points, Knife or Guns/TL8 (Pistol) at (A) DX+1 2 points, Intimidation  (A)  (Will+2) 8 points, and Shadowing (A) (IQ) 2 points.
3. Smuggler: Disguise/TL8 (A) IQ+1 4 points, Forgery IQ (H) 4 points, Holdout (A) IQ+1 4 points, and Smuggling (A) IQ+1 4 points.
4. Thief: Climbing (A) DX+1 4 points, Electronics Operation/TL8 (Security or Surveillance) (A) IQ+1 4 points, Lockpicking/TL8 (A) IQ+1 4 points, Observation (A) Per+1 4 points.

Secondary Skills

Area Knowledge (Home base) (E) IQ+1 2 points; Filch (A) DX+1 4 points; Stealth (A) DX 2 points; Streetwise (A) IQ+1 4 points. 

Background Skills

Carousing (E) HT+1 2 points; Gambling (A) IQ-1 1 point; Merchant (A) IQ 2 points; Urban Survival (A) Per 2 points.

Type

Illicit