The Ringleaders are a criminal organization and "Neo-Coalition" exclusive to demi-humans, established in the same spirit as the Coalition in the few days following the initial threat of its disbandment, and envisioned as a continuation of its legacy. They are led by the Numa, a former member of the Coalition and Austroraptor dinosaur-folk.
Much like the Coalition, the Ringleaders aspired to provide a home for demi-humans who were otherwise ostracized from society. Rather than focusing on exercising its power over Offetstine itself, the Ringleaders focused on providing amenities and protections to its recruits. The Ringleaders did away with the secretive governance and strictly hierarchical structure of the earlier Coalition in favor of a more flat structure, attributing the old model to its predecessor's downfall, to generally positive reception from its members.
History
The Ringleaders were founded in March of 1997 following the news of the disappearence of Raja, the former leader of the Coalition and lynchpin of the organization. Without his guidance, the organization quickly disintegrated, and in its wake, many former members noted their desire for an organization to fill the gap left by the Coalition. Neighboring gangs such as the Serpents took this opportunity to sweep up many remaining members of the former organization, and several "Neo-Coalitions" quickly sprung up to fill the void.
Between these Neo-Coalitions, the most prominent in terms of membership gained was the Ringleaders, headed by Numa, often lauded as a charismatic speaker by the audience she drew in. According to those fresh Ringleader recruits, her philosophy resonated deeply with the former demi-human audience of the Coalition.
Culture
Due to its diminutive membership and in an effort to evade capture, the Ringleaders followed much the same strategy as the Coalition in executing assignments. Members of the Ringleaders would regularly coerce humans to perform particularly dangerous jobs for them, often using assorted demi-human powers to ensure their compliance, allowing them to take the fall in place of the members themselves.
Most of the Ringleaders' initial membership was composed of former Coalition refugees, including its founder, Numa. Many of these veterans were granted the title "Lieutenant", under which they are sworn to watch over and care for the membership of the Ringleaders. As the Ringleaders was the most prominent Neo-Coalition and competed with the Serpents for the loyalty of the former membership of the Coalition, the Lieutenants of the nascent organization were assigned the chief responsibility of establishing their territory and asserting their status as the supposed true successor of the Coalition.
To that extent, members such as the half-dragon Lt. Ainura Sartre headed efforts from the foundation of the Ringleaders to the present, focused on edging out the Serpents and ensuring the Ringleaders remained both a palatable option to Coalition refugees and civilian demi-humans who were interested in the Offetstine underground or the organization's offerings.