Factions
The Shadow Over SojenkaTM Campaign setting
includes many lands, with their rulers and vassals. Some cities are controlled
by powerful, leveled individuals, others by councils or clergy. Guilds manage
the various tasks that support the pillars of civilization. NPCs and powerful
monsters have their agendas, free from the confines of an urban area.
What is a Faction
Faction – noun – a small, organized dissenting
group within a larger group, especially in politics
In the Shadow Over SojenkaTM, a Faction is a
group of people, Humans or Humanoids, that share a common goal. This goal could
be anything from the worship of a particular god/pantheon, the cheesemakers in
a town or Barony, or simply the citizens of a nation. Any given person may be a
member of multiple Factions.
Faction membership can be public, as in the case of a
merchant guild, or secret, like a thief’s syndicate.
Membership in a Faction usually confers various benefits or
disadvantages compared to those outside the group. Some Factions will have uniforms,
a common language or trade, religion, Patron, or culture.
In the Shadow Over SojenkaTM Campaign Setting Factions are an important part of maintaining the verisimilitude of the greater world. This greater world exists independently of the PC adventurers. While the PCs can and will have an impact on the world and setting, the Campaign will move and develop outside of session play, through the individual activities of the various Factions. At this level, we mean kingdoms, nations, tribes, and religions.
The finest level of granularity is the Adventuring Party
itself. This consists of your character and those of the other players, but
also Hirelings, Henchmen, Retainers, and Entourage.
From time to time the PCs may find themselves needing to
ally with one or more factions against another group or find themselves the
targets of a Faction’s ire. Some Factions and their leaders are universally
known, like the Swords of the Red Prince, or The Brethren of the
Order of the All-Seeing Eye. Other Factions are secret, or of lesser
renown, such as the Prophets of the Chosen or the Vigilant of Xattok,
consisting only of a handful of individuals.
Downtime Players and Faction Play
For this campaign, I am including a new category of participant, one I call Downtime Players (DTP), sometimes called "Patrons" or "Illegal High-level NPCs" in other places...
These Downtime Players would run what would otherwise be NPCs, individually or as entire Factions. The blog will include "Braunstein Reports" (for lack of a better term) which will sometimes include the Discord chat logs between the Downtime Players and myself, to give an idea of how this procedure works in real life. Endless pixels have been burned in discussions and arguments over the validity and value of this method of play, so I will provide definitions of, and descriptions of, how this is supposed to work in a campaign.
Definitions
Session Player
A participant in the game who attends the regular weekly sessions and runs one or more Player Character adventurers. These Players take an active role in Session play and their characters are subject to 1:1 Downtime Pacing between Sessions. In-session time may flow as fast or slowly as needed, even for the party to be able to get as far as two weeks into the future.
Session Players earn experience and are graded on how well they play their role in the game. This grade will affect the amount of time (and gold) needed for training to rise in levels.
Downtime Player
A Downtime Player is primarily differentiated from a "normal" or Session Player by not actually taking part in the weekly adventures of the player characters. The Downtime Player will run an NPC as a single character or as part of a group or Faction. Each Downtime Player will set out their plan for a monthly turn, with weekly updates/course corrections. Some of the DTP will run characters that are leveled, and some are not. All of them will have access to regular income, and regular expenses. There are other important differences from "regular" Session Player characters:
DTP Characters will not earn experience.
The actions and activities of DTP Characters will be held strictly to their alignment and personality traits. Out-of-character activities will be discussed (leaving the door open for Character development) and either modified or canceled. (As opposed to Session Players, whose choices can & will lead to an alignment change).
DTP Players will control Factions, but not Domains. All of them will be subject to the rule of the Governor and the laws of the land. This is to avoid the perception of "cheapening" or de-valuing the Domain. If a DTP wishes to pursue the creation/usurpation of a legitimate, existing Domain, that is another thing altogether. And a very interesting play idea!
An important factor in using Downtime Players for running the actions and activities of erstwhile NPC characters/Factions is that their role is somewhat limited by the Dungeon Master.
- While the NPC will be created, in whole or in part, by the DTP and the DM, the NPC will have a randomly defined personality.
- The DTP will be empowered to set the initial goals.
- The DTP character/Faction's actions or moves may be vetoed or modified by the DM to fit the Character, Setting, Theme, and Tone of the campaign.
What is the Purpose of Downtime Play?
To win the Campaign your Faction simply needs to achieve its objective. These can be great or small and may or may not be completed at the expense of another Faction. You are allowed to ally with or oppose other Factions as you see fit. The task of the Referee will be to adjudicate any conflicts as they arise.
By no means does this mean there can only be one
winner.
Strategic vs Tactical POV
Session Player and Downtime Player Faction objectives are
wide open, defined only by the limits of the “Sandbox Campaign”. The
overarching theme of the Campaign is anticipated to be for the Player Factions
to plumb the depths of the Lost Dungeon of Tonisborg to gain control of the
treasures and secrets it contains. The power and glory this brings can lead to
control of the city of Sojenka and even the Province of Kordun!
How you and your Faction decide to define and achieve your
goal is up to you!
For Session Players
The Domain Game Begins with Session One
In the Old School style of play, the world is a very
dangerous place. A small group of 3-5 men and women can easily be swallowed up
by the dangers of the howling wilderness between settlements. Historically the
solution is to bring some hired help on these expeditions.
PCs who hire people to assist them to survive and overcome
the dangers of the wilderness are creating the seed of their very own Faction.
In so-called “modern” play styles, the concept of these
hirelings and henchmen has been discarded in favor of making the PCs more
capable and powerful on their own.
I believe the “modern” style is a truncated and inferior
play mode. The combination of 1:1 time, multiple characters per player, and
establishing a person Faction encourages a deeper, richer, more involved gaming
experience.
Why Create a Faction
The primary reason to create a Faction for your PC is that
you dream of rising in power & reputation, all the way up to your own
Barony or Kingdom. Your PC is much more likely to survive to higher levels if
they have a cadre of trusted companions and troops of men at arms. The AD&D
Monster Manual suggests a random wilderness encounter could be with as many as
300 Orcs! Few adventuring parties can go toe-to-toe with an actual army.
Building & maintaining an organization is an expanded
concept of the fantasy role-playing game concept. It opens more possibilities
for play, more scenarios, and session ideas. Faction play means your PC can go
beyond the dungeon crawl, the hex crawl, and the urban murder mystery. You can
free the village from the raiding humanoids with your army. You can join a
military campaign with your liege to protect the kingdom from invaders. You can
get involved in regional & national-level politics.
All these methods of play provide skills useful to your PC,
not to mention Contacts and Allies when the time comes to establish your
domain.
How to Build a Faction
The first step in establishing a Faction is to recruit some
hirelings, people to join you in your adventures. A group of beginning PCs with
average starting funds can afford to hire a few men-at-arms to act as guards
and combatants. With Magic Users being so ineffective in combat, it becomes
imperative for them to create a personal guard. A first-level Fighter PC has
the experience and know-how to act as a Serjeant for up to ten men.
A troop of ten men, kitted out as Light Infantry, is enough
to prevent a dangerous encounter from becoming deadly, or fatal.
What Does a Faction Do
Over time your PC and the adventuring party will be able to
afford to hire more men, more specialist or Expert Hirelings, and dedicated
officers to lead them. By the second or third level, it will be time for your
PC to establish a Homestead. This will attract more skilled NPCs to join your
group. These trusted soldiers are very useful for guarding your accumulated
loot, treasures, and the safety of your person & home.
Your Homestead attracts hirelings who form your Entourage.
These retainers should be put to work at Hijinks like Swaggering & Treasure
Hunting between sessions or while your PC is away training or on long-term
adventures. Successful hijinks generate new Contacts, Rumors of adventure, and
possible maps to lost hoards!
Your PC will need the results of these Hijinks, Contacts,
and loot, to build or refurbish a Stronghold.
For Downtime Players
The first and best thing for you to do, if you are NOT familiar with wargaming, is to get a copy of this book by Tony Bath and read the section on How to Set Up a Wargames Campaign.
The Domain Game
After a PC has established a Domain by creating a Stronghold
and clearing the land around it of monsters and other threats, it will begin to
attract settlers. These peasants, farmers, and workers will come looking for
land and opportunity.
1 75-175
2-3 176-599
4-5 600-2,499
6-8 2,500-4,999
9 5,000-19,999
10 20,000+
Wilderness Domains
A Domain will generally begin as Wilderness. A wilderness domain gains settlers by attracting the families of the garrison and/or any workers brought in to develop infrastructure. These families can be attracted by 200 GP worth of land, a cottage, draft animals, and tools to work the land.
Borderlands Domains
A Domain can become Borderlands once it has:
·
A permanent garrison, or “Watch” (50+
Men-at-arms) AND 1000 GP of infrastructure improvements (fort, Religious
Structure, etc).
·
An area set aside for a Marketplace.
·
A Population of at least 75 families.
·
Regular weekly patrols (a “Ride”) of the “home”
hex and monthly patrols of the six surrounding hexes.
Civilized Domains
A Domain can become Civilized when:
·
A Watch & Ride consisting of Citizens (# of
Families/2) AND a permanent garrison of Men-at-arms (# of Families x Might)
·
It contains an urban center of at least Market
Class 3
·
Another urban center of at least Class 5 (1500
Families) within 75 miles
·
An additional 5,000 GP has been spent on
infrastructure, including at least one Religious Structure
·
Regular weekly patrols of the six 5-mile hexes
around the “home” hex.
The Domain Turn
1.
Domain Growth
2.
Congregant Growth
3.
Revenue Collection
4.
Campaign Activities: Complete responses to the
previous month’s events. Write orders to NSPCs/PCs for the coming month.
a.
Random Events
b.
Week One – DM Resolution
c.
Week Two - DM Resolution
d.
Week Three - DM Resolution
e.
Week Four - DM Resolution
5.
Expense Payments
6.
Domain Morale
Domain Growth
Every month 1d10 families will be drawn to the
Borderlands/Civilized Domain over the course of the month. This number can be
modified by Morale. No families are automatically attracted to a Wilderness
Domain hex.
Investing in infrastructure draws in new settlers.
Transitioning from Wilderness to Borderlands attracts 1d10 families over the
course of 1 month. The transition from Borderlands to Civilized draws 4d10
families over the course of three months (25%/50%/25%).
Land/cash grants of 200 GP will attract one family.
Congregant Growth
Each month the Priest gains congregants based on proselytizing. The GM has complete rules, but the summary: 1d10 + CHA mod per month for at least 1,000 GP/month of service to the community.
Revenue Collection
Revenue consists of cash raised via trading/commercial
activities (Land use) via monthly Levies, and Taxes. These amounts are listed
per month, per Family (avg 5ppl).
Terrain Quality Value
|
Land, Poor |
D3+1 GP |
5 GP/acre |
|
Land,
Moderate |
2d3+1 GP |
10 GP/acre |
|
Land, Good |
3d3 GP |
20 GP/acre |
|
+ Forest |
+2 GP |
|
|
+ Hills |
+2 GP |
|
|
+ Mountains |
+3 GP |
|
|
Service Levy |
4 GP |
50% to
support Garrison |
|
Extra Taxes |
5d4 SP |
Svobodný Pán only |
Forests add value from Lumber harvesting, have 50% habitable
acreage.
Hills add value from Mines, Quarries and Hunting, have 50%
habitable acreage.
Mountains add value from mines, have 25% habitable acreage.
Non-Name Level Domains
Characters who begin to construct a Domain, or who take over
an existing Domain, are able to run and administer the Dmain. They can pay
families to settle in the area, because families will not migrate automatically
due to the character’s lack of fame and power.
By providing enough land to support a family (10 acres of
Good land or 20 acres of Moderate land), a cottage, and tools with which to
begin a homestead of their own, characters can “recruit” families to emigrate
to their Domain.
For Wilderness and
Borderlands hexes (five mile hexes on the regional map), the following table
shows the maximum number of families that a hex with arable land can support.
This assumes 100% habitability. Certain features or terrain effects may reduce
the number of habitable sub-hexes, and the maximum number of families.
These values increase when a
hex graduates from Borderland to Civilized.
Weeks One to Four
The Master of the Domain will plan out his activities for
the Domain Turn on a weekly basis. Orders to NSPCs or PCs will be issued in
written form at the beginning of the Campaign Turn
Expense Payments
At the end of the month, the Master pays the bills:
- Garrison (2 GP per Family)
- Men-at-arms
- PC and Entourage Living Expenses
- Domain Expenses (infrastructure construction, loan repayment, military construction/recruiting, etc.)
- Settlement Expenses (for the following month’s recruitment)
- Congregant Expenses (1 GP per Congregant)
- Taxes to Liege Lord