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Old 04-17-2013, 11:14 AM   #1
A Ladder
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Introducing Hirelings

I will be running a DF gurps game for my friends soon but have a question about how you guys introduce the concept of hirelings to new roleplayers.
A few of the players have limited Other Game experience but most of them are brand new to the idea of roleplaying in general. However I have never played with hirelings before in any game I've been in.My gaming groups always had 5 or more players so we never needed to hire anyone as all the roles got filled. So I have no idea how to go about this.

I want a healbot cleric to be available to the group if no one wants to play a healer and maybe drop a few hints that the dungeon has really poor lighting so they might want to pick up a torch bearer.

-What’s the best way to introduce the idea of hirelings to new players? Or, how do you guys go about doing it?
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Old 04-17-2013, 11:18 AM   #2
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

You could simply suggest it directly. Point out that there may potential gaps in their abilities and note that they could hire people to fill them in. If they want to pursue the idea, then they can.
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Old 04-17-2013, 11:54 AM   #3
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

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Originally Posted by A Ladder View Post
-What’s the best way to introduce the idea of hirelings to new players? Or, how do you guys go about doing it?
"You have money. You need things done, that you don't want to do yourselves. Hire someone to do the boring-but-necessary bits for you?", with an unspoken implication of "... because I'm going to start making you suffer for not making certain those things are being handled."

Alternatively, "You've picked up a follower. Name of Bob, Bob Torch-Holder. He thinks you're rather awesome and has taken to following you around. Poor sap. Might want to take care of him o' heroes; looks bad to have a starving teen following you around when you're dripping with cash. Someone might get, ah ... 'ideas'."
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Old 04-17-2013, 12:04 PM   #4
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

I gave my players a price list for available hirings and an explicit promise that if they didn't try to bring the non-dungeoneering hirelings into the dungeon, I wouldn't kill the hirelings outside of the dungeon.

Something like, "if you hire a guard to watch your camp while you're in the dungeon, I won't have some wandering bandits come and pillage it. If you don't, well, you can take your chances and it's pretty low risk, really." Even if they decide not to hire the guard, they've had to have the discussion about hirelings anyway.
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Old 04-17-2013, 12:37 PM   #5
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

Thanks a bunch guys! All these ideas are really helpful.
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Old 04-17-2013, 12:38 PM   #6
Peter V. Dell'Orto
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

Quote:
Originally Posted by A Ladder View Post
I will be running a DF gurps game for my friends soon but have a question about how you guys introduce the concept of hirelings to new roleplayers.

- tell them they can hire additional help, both bargain henchmen and potentially useful sidekicks-for-pay.

- give them the prices for doing so.

- give them reasons to do so. If they want to carry their own torches or continual light sources, walk around at medium or heavy encumbrance because their carry their own gear into combat, or watch their own flanks, let them. But tell them they can offload this task.

- deal with the hirelings fairly - don't make them all doppelgangers or instant auto-kills for monsters, or they're a waste.

- have hirelings offer their services. Make up a few of them and have them show up at the tavern and say "I'll come with you and help if you pay me $30 for the day" and maybe they'll say yes. If they don't, hireling goes back in the pile in case they change their mind. Some players will say yes because they think it's a hint.
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Old 04-17-2013, 12:49 PM   #7
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

If you've got pre-gen Hirelings lurking about the Town, you could give the appearance that they're going on off-screen adventures with other parties in other dungeons if the PCs aren't hiring them (and/or show some of them starving and/or just camping out at the tavern with a tab like Norm and deriving most of their nutrition from ale depending on their competence and tone of the campaign)... one session Random Torchbearer #4 is a fresh-faced, eager kid... a few weeks later, he's got an awesome scar and a thousand-yard stare.
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Old 04-17-2013, 01:12 PM   #8
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

On this subject, is there a list of DF-friendly basic hirelings (linkboy, teamster, guard, porter, etc) and their costs anywhere? Looked around a bit last night and couldn't come up with one. Finding them in a Job Table somewhere and working from that is doable, of course, but if someone's already done the work...
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Old 04-17-2013, 01:21 PM   #9
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

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Originally Posted by Dustin View Post
On this subject, is there a list of DF-friendly basic hirelings (linkboy, teamster, guard, porter, etc) and their costs anywhere? Looked around a bit last night and couldn't come up with one. Finding them in a Job Table somewhere and working from that is doable, of course, but if someone's already done the work...
Pretty sure there's a supplement with character write-ups.
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Old 04-17-2013, 01:30 PM   #10
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Default Re: Introducing Hirelings

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Originally Posted by Dustin View Post
On this subject, is there a list of DF-friendly basic hirelings (linkboy, teamster, guard, porter, etc) and their costs anywhere? Looked around a bit last night and couldn't come up with one. Finding them in a Job Table somewhere and working from that is doable, of course, but if someone's already done the work...
DF15 perhaps?
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