Hireling growth?

[zuljita]

The 62 point hireling was voted MVP in a game last night (saved the half-ogre swashbuckler from a bear grapple *and* managed to revive him from unconsciousness in time to kill a watcher at the end of time before he started cutting off important bits from the wizard). Should I give such a hireling character point growth? Would it change his going rate?

[JMason]

Originally Posted by zuljita

The 62 point hireling was voted MVP in a game last night (saved the half-ogre swashbuckler from a bear grapple *and* managed to revive him from unconsciousness in time to kill a watcher at the end of time before he started cutting off important bits from the wizard). Should I give such a hireling character point growth? Would it change his going rate?

By RAW, when the players look for and find a hireling, they will be 1/4 or 1/2 of the characters' points. I use the group average. If they are looking for the same character that they had hired in the past, then he'll have grown by a percent of the characters' growth.

So as the group average character points increase the hireling will also become more skilled... but so will all the other hirelings that the players have yet to use. So for every 2 points over 256, a 1/2 CP hireling gains 1 CP, and a 1/4 CP hireling will gain one at 252 and one for every 4 after that.

Nothing is stopping you from doing things your own way, but by my reading of rues on Exploits p. 90, this is how things would work.

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by zuljita

Should I give such a hireling character point growth?

If you like! The care and feeding of hirelings goes beyond the scope of the Dungeon Fantasy Roleplaying Game, which tacitly assumes that no greedy delver is going to pay $200 to $400 per week, plus expenses, for longer than absolutely necessary.

Hirelings are built on 1/4 or 1/2 as many points as PCs; scale earned points accordingly. If you award each delver 4 points, a 62-point hireling gets 1 point and a 125-pointer receives 2 points. They might go through the same hell as the adventurers, but they make none of the big decisions and they avoid risk (failed Loyalty roll = no, missed pay = no, etc.). They don't have what it takes to grow into a great hero at breakneck speed.

Originally Posted by zuljita

Would it change his going rate?

Not for this mission – the rate for which was contracted at hiring time – but certainly on the next one! Weekly rate is ($3.20 × point total), rounded to the nearest $5 to avoid annoying numbers.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Kromm

...rounded to the nearest $5 to avoid annoying numbers.

Always wise to avoid annoying the numbers.

[JMason]

I threw this together for a quick reference. It shows CP and cost for 1/2 and 1/4 Hirelings based on party CP.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...it?usp=sharing

[Kromm]

Also, be aware that a hireling or mercenary who serves for pay isn't the same as an ally or sidekick who serves out of devotion. The latter kinds of NPCs can have any point value, aren't subject to Loyalty rolls (make appearance rolls instead: "Sorry, chief. Death in the family."), and don't demand pay (though they still need to upgrade and replace gear, find a place to stay, etc., so the PCs should ensure these NPCs receive shares of the loot if they want to keep them around). They're more like GM-controlled junior delvers, and they ought to earn points at the same rate as the PCs.

In GURPS, such NPCs would cost somebody points as Allies. In practice, this is hard to assess when devotion is to the whole party rather than to a single PC. There's nothing wrong with just having somebody like this accompany the party as a de facto full group member controlled by the GM, but such dedication ought to be earned by saving the follower's life, accepting a mission to save that person's entire village, or completing a quest that has someone's faithful service as a reward (possibly in lieu of cash or goods).

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Kromm

In GURPS, such NPCs would cost somebody points as Allies. In practice, this is hard to assess when devotion is to the whole party rather than to a single PC. There's nothing wrong with just having somebody like this accompany the party as a de facto full group member controlled by the GM, but such dedication ought to be earned by saving the follower's life, accepting a mission to save that person's entire village, or completing a quest that has someone's faithful service as a reward (possibly in lieu of cash or goods).

Be aware though of the the difference between "useful NPC ally of the party" and "super competent GM PC", the latter is rarely fun for anyone else.