So I was reading the Dungeon Master’s Guide whilst writing an adventure and I stumbled on the hireling rules again, and then I had a thought about how AD&D used to play, where once players reached a certain level, they started to attract followers.
And then I thought ‘wouldn’t it be interesting if the action of a game centred on the followers?’
So, basically, instead of all meeting at an inn, the group assembles as followers of one or more adventurers in, I would assume, some sort of keep. And these junior adventures have to live with their idols running off to other planes or big cities or just generally having world-altering adventures, whilst this B team has to look after the keep or mop up the odd group of straggling monsters.
Needless to say, the adventurers further up the experience track in this idea aren’t really paying much attention to their underlings, or are sending them off on low-level errands, or perhaps not-low-enough-level errands.
Or suicide missions when they get bored or fancy a wager, and so on and so on.
I think the idea might work well if I got each of the players to come up with a high-level character first and then swap them around for character creation.
‘Why would your paladin find this particular wizard enviable? Why does the rogue like that cleric so much?’
This idea is of course based on the troupe style of Ars Magica, and the group of low level drudges having to follow around a wizard or cabal of wizards.
Anyway, that’s it so far.
jot jot ïota 