Jims Pottery Smashers is a gang that originated in the city of Highcliffe as one-time cover story concocted by Remus (Galen Lovage) and his associates after a bungled attempt to steal from his uncles estate. The group, seeking to hide their involvement with the theft and destruction of valuable porcelain, devised a scheme to create a false gang that would take the blame for their actions. They named this gang after Jim, a fictitious man who supposedly specialised in smashing valuable pottery. To give greater credence to the lie, Remus then paid local ruffians to form an actual gang and they began carrying out acts of vandalism and theft in the city.
The gang's initial purpose was to cause a nuisance for the wealthy elite of Highcliffe, who were the primary targets of their actions. They would paint or carve their symbol, a stylised depiction of a grinning face surrounded by shards of pottery, on the walls of the wealthy part of the city, disrupt public events, and steal or destroy small valuables whenever possible. The gang was intended to be only a temporary fixture, but they proved to be more successful than expected, as many nobles took to hiring them to carry out hits on their rivals.
Six months later, markings of Jim the pottery smasher could be found on the side of many of Highcliffes wealthiest estates. The pottery smashers became self-reliant, and many nobles began providing intel and resources to assist them in destroying or stealing their rivals' finery in order to cause them embarrassment or discomfort. Although the gang was harmless and the nobles were aware of their true nature, they would loudly proclaim their woes of being victims of the pottery smashers, using them as a scapegoat to hide their own involvement in the feud.
The town guard arrested dozens of suspects over the following year, but none were convicted of any crimes relating to the theft or destruction of valuable pottery. On one occasion, a young officer of the watch rounded up 54 different Jims for questioning in a single evening. Only two of the suspects were formally charged, as it was discovered that they were in fact not named Jim and were wanted for crimes related to other matters.
Despite being a fictional gang created to cover up a failed mission, Jim’s Pottery Smashers became a successful and self-sustaining organisation, carrying out hits on behalf of the wealthy elite of Highcliffe while maintaining their facade as a group of petty criminals.