How Do You Handle Hirelings and Retainers?

General topics, including off-topic discussion, goes here.
Post Reply
Kane
Posts: 51
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2022 4:08 pm

How Do You Handle Hirelings and Retainers?

Post by Kane »

Hirelings and retainers ('henchmen') are a very important part of many old-school games, adding to the combat capabilities, versatility and carrying/engineering capacity of players.

The way I have handled it in the past is as follows:
Hirelings are anyone you might hire. In the case of soldiers, I tend to follow the model of a few gold pieces per month plus the costs of room & board (this can be rather more expensive than their actual pay, especially when relying on dried rations at 1gp/day). Such hirelings are generally unwilling to attack fortresses, go into caves full of monsters, or do anything that entails extraordinary risk. They will march around with the party, take watch on camp, protect the horses (a safe distance away), and stand on the ramparts against attack. Characters may have as many hirelings as they can find and afford.

Retainers are special characters, usually classed, recruited by individual PCs. They are loyal to specific PCs, and usually get a share of treasure (~15%). For purposes of dividing up XP, Retainers gain 1/2 a share (even if they are unclassed). Characters are limited by their Charisma to a certain number of Retainers.

I usually like a party to have 4-6 PCs, with a Henchmen apiece and enough hirelings to bring the total to 10-12 characters. I find this is enough to be effective at exploration and adventuring without filling the hallways with NPCs who exist only to absorb traps. This puts the 'mook' hirelings out of action for dungeon exploration and bandit camp raids, while imposing a credible gold and experience penalty on the party for having their Retainers along. As characters gain more retainers through play they will require Hirelings less for the muscle and more for logistical issues.
User avatar
Dimirag
Posts: 3613
Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2011 1:24 pm
Location: Buenos Aires (C.A.B.A.), Argentina
Contact:

Re: How Do You Handle Hirelings and Retainers?

Post by Dimirag »

The core rules, page 39 has rules for Retainers, Specialists and Mercenaries.
Sorry for any misspelling or writing error, I am not a native English speaker
Drawing portfolio: https://www.instagram.com/m.serena_dimirag/
Kane
Posts: 51
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2022 4:08 pm

Re: How Do You Handle Hirelings and Retainers?

Post by Kane »

Dimirag wrote: Sat Nov 26, 2022 7:42 pm The core rules, page 39 has rules for Retainers, Specialists and Mercenaries.
Yes, and that's what I started with, but I cobbled together more odds and ends from OSRIC and other places. I'm probably going to integrate some tables to make it more uniform with the results of strongholds, so that a similar variety of mercenaries and henchmen are found in different areas.
Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Boggo, Google [Bot] and 20 guests