Friends, Hirelings, and Side-Kicks

[Dalin]

Originally Posted by restlessgriffin

If you have a small group say only 1 or 2 players, what is a good way of allowing NPCs controlled by the GM as members of the party while NOT outshining the PCs.

One way to not outshine the PCs is to build the hirelings on a lower point budget. In order to remain useful, they should be highly specialized in whatever niche they are meant to fill. Martinl created a set of henchmen a while back that illustrate the principle.

Originally Posted by sjmdw45

Is there any special reason you need the GM to control the hirelings? ... I've found that players really enjoy collecting even fairly mechanically-pathetic hirelings, and will invest in their welfare and work to keep them safe, as long as they have some sense of "ownership" over the hireling, and letting the player mostly control the hireling does that.

Strong agreement here. This lets you focus on the opposition while the players can enjoy additional tactical options through their hired help.

This doesn't have to be all-or-nothing either. I often let the PCs control their hirelings most of the time (definitely in combat) but I'll step in to roleplay them in campfire scenes and whatnot. This can be a great conduit for additional information in a game, too.