Hirelings

Where they'll go

Hirelings of any kind, including men-at-arms, will never venture into a dungeon1) … or cavern, cave, pit, whatever. of Dungeon Level 4 challenge or higher.2) Based on DMG 175. DM Note: This is a good way to allow men-at-arms for lower level adventures, but get them out of the way (except for overland travel) when characters become more capable and begin to have henchmen. DMG 175 is the only clear place in the rules that defines a line for where men-at-arms can be brought. This is a game mechanic similar to a paladin's alignment restrictions; there will be no “tricking” hirelings, they simply won't go in.

Dungeon use

Hirelings will venture into dungeons and dungeon-like areas if they are paid the daily “hazardous duty” wage.3) DMG 34 contains the “Daily Employment” rule. The above rule regarding Dungeon Level 4 applies.

Alignment

When the DM doesn't know the alignment of men-at-arms, it's recommended to use the following table from the Heroic Legendarium, which we feel provides for a good spread of alignments for mercenary-types:Ex

d20	Alignment
1	LG
2	NG
3-4	CG
5-8	LN
9-12	NN
13-14	CN
15-17	LE
18-19	NE
20	CE

If the DM feels this is too far from the official books, the alignment table on DMG 100 can be used instead.

Furthermore, an override die can be applied to enact a 2-in-6 chance to override the rolled alignment with the typical alignment of the settlement. Thereby, a settlement which tends for example lawful evil will have a higher proportion of mercenaries of that alignment.

Prospective employers may get a feeling for alignment but will not be sure without magic.

Men-at-arms

Hiring

The nature of hiring men-at-arms will be specific to the milieu. If no other process is defined by the DM, the following can be used:Ex

PCs can discover what men-at-arms are available in a settlement on a given week by spending d3 hours in a tavern. The following table lists the number of rolls which are to be made on the DMG 30 table.

Settlement Size	Weekly Men-at-Arms Rolls
Thorpe	25% chance for 1 roll. Maximum of d3 individuals.
Hamlet	50% chance for 1 roll. Maximum of d3+2 individuals.
Village	1 roll.
Town	2 rolls.
City	3 rolls.

Equipment

Men-at-arms who are hired for daily duty (i.e. when the monthly rate is instead paid daily), the men-at-arms will be mercenaries who already have their own equipment. Men-at-arms who are hired at the monthly rate will require housing, food, and equipment to be supplied by the employer. In effect, there are two types then: for-hire mercenaries, and long-term soldiers.Ex

The DM will need to declare the loadouts of hired men-at-arms who are hired on a daily basis. DMG 16 is a great page for this. We typically assign one of these loadouts to all men-at-arms in a group. In cases where multiple loadouts are listed, such as heavy infantry, we roll randomly. It is recommended that the DM add variation in weapons and armor from time-to-time.

Failure to return

When characters hire hirelings and a lot of them die, hirelings will be less enthusiastic about employment with those characters.

If characters employed a group of hirelings from a settlement out of whom half or more failed to return from an expedition in the last 3 months, any group of hirelings at that settlement will require a positive reaction roll from the prospective employer. Failure indicates that group of hirelings reject employment. Any who do accept will demand double pay.