Deal with gangs

[DeathScyther]

Like the title, I really don't know how to deal with them, so would you all please give me some advices? I really appreciate it. And I want to know how you work on regime, too. Thank you.

[Frazzledragøn the Trustworthy]

Question: What about them is difficult for you?
Do you not understand how they work, do they beat up your guards too much, are they occupying too many rooms of yours?
http://steamcommunity.com/games/233450/announcements/detail/808745953675570705
This should be helpful.

[DeathScyther]

Yes, I don't even know how they work, what their role in prison, why their cell is enlighted, why they kill other immates, or even guards, and how to prevent fighting between gangs.

I appreciated your help. Guess it would be useful.

[lissa_981]

Gangs exist for no other reason then to make things difficult for you, the warden. If 1 gang member gets in a fight all other gang mebers close by will join in. They will claim terrritory, starting with thier cells and including yards and common rooms that incluse phones, weight benches ect. They will not work, but will spend any work time as if it were free time, so they will not earn money; instead they will charge admission to any non gang member that would like to use objects in thier gang controlled teritory. If a member of a rival gang enters thier territory they will fight. If you have a gang leader he will recruit members from your prison, appoint luetenents and contest other gang territory. If a gang leader is punished all the members of his gang will increase the heat of your prison untill there is a full scale riot.

[DigitalImpostor]

http://devwiki.introversion.co.uk/pa/index.php/Gangs

[Frazzledragøn the Trustworthy]

So, i only just noticed that I didn't post the correct link earlier today.
I'll repeat it now and edit the previous post, just to make sure you actually get to see what I meant.

http://steamcommunity.com/games/233450/announcements/detail/808745953675570705

[goblin.queen]

Hi OP,
I can't really comment on how to deal with gangs, because I am still figuring that out myself. But, I can tell you how I schedule my regime, and why I do it the way I do.

Once you research micro-management (and I suggest you do that really early on in the game), it give you the opportunity to split the regime for each type of prisoner (lo-sec, med-sec etc) so that you have them doing different things at different times of the day. This way you can avoid your Supermax (very dangerous/volatile) prisoners having to share canteen space with lo-sec prisoners, for example, or sharing the same yard at the same time. This reduces fighting quite a lot. Micro-management also allows you to edit the program schedule ie. you can change the times that your programs run, which gives you more flexibility on your regime. You can start work hours when you choose rather than having to start them at 6am (as some are automatically set to crazy early times like that.) in order to have your prisoners attend the programs.

Imagine the regime/scheduler almost like running a school. Each classroom in a school would serve different groups of children over the course of a day, with group A going to classroom A for an hour, then moving on to classroom B. Then group B goes to classroom A when group A has moved on to classroom B, and so on. In Prison Architect, it is much the same principle, only you are moving different types of prisoners to service buildings: canteen & yard, or giving one group free time while the others are either working, or going to the yard. Again, having each group do something different to the others means that they are mostly kept apart from each other, and this reduces incidences of fighting among the different types, overcrowding at doorways to places (where fights always occur).

Keep tweaking your regime and do spend some time watching how your prisoner types respond to it. If something is not working, tweak it again.

I hope this helps.

[DeathScyther]

Can't express my thanks to you, it helps me a lot to understand how regime works. I'm trying to find the way to manufacture my prison from low to super max immates.

For gangs, I still don't know how to deal with them. Set them to super max, send them to my tight security cells seems to be not a good way. But I guess I need to dig more informations.

Once again, thank you very much.

[Frazzledragøn the Trustworthy]

Originally posted by ImLiar:

For gangs, I still don't know how to deal with them. Set them to super max, send them to my tight security cells seems to be not a good way. But I guess I need to dig more informations

If you have the room for it: Set them to Low/Med/Supermax to make sure they never cross paths with one another. However, in most prisons, that are not specifically built for gangs, this isn't possible, so you could simply provide several territories so they don't fight over the same one.

Gang Leaders are -extremely- rare, so without mods it's almost impossible to get two rival leaders. That means you basically don't need to worry about constant gang wars.
Just treat gang members like you would treat dangerous Max Sec prisoners. Keep 'em happy, and keep extra guards at hand, because if one gang member fights all gang members fight.

I just have all my gang members mixed in with general population, I'm not worried about them.

[Kirron]

An easy way to stop them is to install the Rifle Guards mod, this means every guard will supress them and if they do fight will likley insta-kill them.

[goblin.queen]

You are very welcome. :}

[DeathScyther]

I have just tried to treat gangs like other prisoners. It seems they don't create much trouble like I did when I set them in one high security zone. The remain problem I don't know how to deal that gang members seem don't want to work. I guess as long as they don't make trouble, I'll be fine.

And one other thing that not relates to topic, but I'm really in trouble. It is about the Literacy and Recreation. As far as I know, Literacy is about books and Recreation is about television, right? But those stats always keep red even though I set a lot of tv and bookself. Can't figure out the reason yet.

[goblin.queen]

I've just put all security prisoners into shared cellblocks, and the 3 different gang members I have, have killed SIX people this one morning alone. :{

Recreation comes from pool tables, radios and TV's. Either put them into rooms, yards, common rooms (or the prisoners won't use them) and canteens. They will also only use them during free time, and sometimes, I think, during work mode, if they don't have jobs.

[goblin.queen]

PS. I think bookshelves have no literacy or recreation use. I mainly use them as decorations in offices and in cells, to raise room quality for prisoner privilege.

[GhostPartical]

A library helps the literacy part, bookshelves placed in cells brings up cell hapiness. Makes them feel more warm and cozy being in their cells.

As for gangs, gang members will do as they please. You wont be able to control them or search their cells. Dont worry about gang members to much unless you have them scattered about your prison and have a gang leader hanging around some where (gang leaders can only come in as a legend prisoner, however there are mods and you can actually go to the saved file and create gang leaders from current members.)

The best way i have been able to control gangs is building a max security cell block that contains the cells, showers, yard, canteen, and kitchen. Max Sec prisoners dont get to wander in any other area of the prison except their own cell block. Once you have accomplished that you post one or two armed guards in the max sec block at all times potroling. That pretty much suppreses them and keeps them from fighting. And by using the max sec block it keeps them from fighting non gang members out in the other areas of the prison.

Seperating your prisoners by cell block security is the best way to keep a functioning prison going. Also keep your eye out for snitches and ex law enforcement prisoners. Make sure you build a PC Block or you will end up with dead prisoners, especially from the gang members if you dont keep them seperated.

[lissa_981]

This is a comcept prison I am working on to deal with the issue of gang held territory/turff wars, thre is no yard, instead I use the canteen to satisfy all thier rec needs.
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=541066308
I have also installed the functional object mod which makes bookshelfs, and a few other things, work. So far things are very quiet and all thier needs are met. I have had min sec for quite a while, and added a normal sec mirroed wing that is also doing fine for the 20ish days (so long enough to say it is working fine too). I just finished the Max sec wing, but it only has 100 prisoners in it for around 4 days.. so far so good though..