Hirelings, Henchmen, Specialists and Retainers
Henchmen
of various types will make the PCs lives easier (and longer!) D&D is a
wargame at its core, and wargames presume an entourage of troops and support
figures.
The best times to look for henchmen are at Festivals, because
everybody is off work and mostly feeling pretty good. Henchmen in numbers equal
to 10% of the number of families (2% of total population) will be available to
woo during festivals. More than this will be present, but taking a larger chunk
of the workforce away is at the least poor manners and at the worst, high
treason for building your own army to kill the king.
Henchmen are paid up front, and then retained for the
quarter (one season or 12 weeks) or cross-quarter (a half-season or six weeks.)
This oathbound contract serves as a basis for servitude, something like a
feudal oath made miniature. Your part of the bargain is not to throw them in
front of a fearsome monster, and to present their remains plus 25GP to their
family in the likely event of their passing on the job.
This sort of oathbound henchman will require his pay for each
delve or each week served. Retaining one without requiring service during a
particular week costs you as much as if you took them into the dungeon with
you.
Some henchmen will work per diem, but anyone with a good
reputation will want a six-week or twelve-week contract.
Good pay and other rewards will ensure higher morale; poor
pay will result in low morale or even refusal to continue employment by that
PC.
Base pay unit, either per week
of idleness or per dungeon trip:
Linkboys
are lantern and torch bearers. They can be as young as 7.
Lackeys are unskilled servants. It’s unlikely you would bring one into the dungeon.
Valets carry personal belongings, deliver messages and run errands.
Each of
these is retained for 5GP per week or per dungeon trip, whichever is more
favorable to the henchman.
Porters
and Stevedores bear heavy non-combat gear such as treasure and adventuring
supplies. They are retained for 10GP per trip. There are often per diem porters
available since it’s pretty good money on a day off.
Shieldmaidens
and squires are very brave and loyal but will not fight. They are 0-level
men or their master’s racial type. A character can only have one at a time.
This follower will be the first to ask to be promoted to Retainer. When this
promotion occurs, they become Level 1 and will do all the things a normal
adventurer would do.
Mercenaries
are 0-level Men who otherwise function as Fighting-Men.
Getting
a leveled character to hench for you is very difficult. Elves won’t work for
dwarf characters and vice versa, and neither of them will work for a hobbit.
Clerics are already henched to God, so unless you’re a cleric, it’s unlikely
you can snag one. Obviously fighting men are available to hire, and every so
often you get a wizard down on his luck who will cast spells for you when
things get hinky.
With good treatment, any of these types can convert to
Retainers, so keep your eyes peeled for a long-term commitment.
Henchmen,
Hirelings, Specialists and Retainers
We toss
these words around as if they are interchangeable, but they’re not. Henchmen
and hirelings are indeed interchangeable - they are the NPCs who work
for pay and fight on the PC’s behalf. Specialists are those with skills
other than fighting and dying; anyone from a seamstress to a swordsmith to a
solicitor.
None of these types ever gains XP, even if they have a class and level.
Retainers come in three
flavors:
Retainers must be of a lower experience level or hit die
than the character himself. Indeed, why would an NPC pledge his service to
a lord who is as inexperienced as himself? The purpose of becoming a retainer,
or follower, is to gain protection, knowledge, and reputation from the greater
lord.
On
Retainers’ Experience Levels
No
matter what level the PC is, the vast majority of those who will offer service
will be of first level. PCs of level 4 or higher will attract 2nd or 3rd level
retainers 20% of the time. (81-90 2nd, 91-00 3rd.)
PCs of level 8 or higher will attract followers up to 6th
level. (01-25 1st level, 26-70 2nd level, 71-80 3rd level, 81-90 4th level,
91-97 5th level, 98-00 6th level.)
Raising
Up A Retainer
If a PC has at least one henchman of level 1 or better, and they have henched for the PC for at least one season, one henchman of the Referee’s choice may ask to become a retainer. At which point the PC may accept, converting that paid hireling into a trusted Retainer, or the PC may decline. If he declines, the henchman will make a morale check. If failed, he will leave the PC’s company immediately in shame, anger or disgust.
Exceptions:
Henchmen Gaining Levels
Henchmen
of the normal sort never gain XP.
Retainers’
Compensation and XP
A
Retainer works for a half-share of treasure. That is, each PC takes 2 shares of
whatever treasure they find, and the Retainer takes 1.
A
Retainer levels up normally just like any character. However, the Retainer will
level slower because he is receiving much less XP. In the unlikely event one
attains the same level as his master, he will then immediately leave to seek
his own fortune; perhaps and a friend and perhaps not.
Hench
for No Man
When
your PC is unable to join in the adventure, send his henchmen instead. Make one
the captain of the troupe and play that one as if he was a PC
proper. Allow him to earn XP at the PC rate rather than at the henchman’s
customary half-rate. The other henchmen gain XP as normal, and each of them
gain treasure at the henchman rate, captain included.
This option should not be available for any hirelings your
character may employ, no matter how skilled; only Retainers can be used in this
way.
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