Advice for a Thrallheard

[Valor]

I recently started playing an Elan Psion Telepath Thrallheard in my current D&D group. While the campaign has just started the plays have been together for some time. The location we are in is a large city. One of the ideas we came up with as evil characters is to try for a long term plan is to take over the city. While it has not been decided yet we would like to do this, for now anyway, in such a fashion as to avoid big hack and slash encounters with the city watch.

The way we have thought to do this is to create a noble House, with the PCs being the primary members. And slowly take over the city in and economical and social way. Kind of like a mob would. My question is this. What do I do with my Thralls and believers? After playing a few matches with the character I have come to realize that you can’t really go around with a group of 40 or so people. Most of the time it is just not practical. While yes it works to bring your biggest baddest underling with you for a personal bodyguard, what should I do with the all the others? What do you think would be the most efficient and profitable way to use there people? The campaign is much more oriented towards social problems then massive amounts of combat. While there are a good deal of fights it is not the biggest part of the campaign.

I had thought of possibly setting up some of the believers with various jobs and what not to make the House some money. A Blacksmith, Woodworker, Engineer, so on and so forth. While keeping a few around as guards and such.

My character is of neutral evil alignment, if that helps.

Also I’d like to hear from other Thrallheards to see what they use their Thralls and Believers for.

Valor

 

[griff_goodbeard]

Let them be you're eyes and ears on the street. Integrate some into regular jobs (as mentioned before). Depending on the political stucture of the city, gaining some influential beliver there would be good too. And I'd probably try to get involved with a gand of street toughs, maybe the drug trade or something.

 

[FrostedMini1337]

I have/had (campaign might be over) a Thrallherd right now. Bear in mind that I'm in a sort of split-city. The half that govern the city are cool with me, and we have pretty much the same agenda. The half that actually funds most of the city (merchants, etc), are NOT cool with me.

It really depends on what they are and how you get them. I personally let my DM randomly choose every one of them. Made a huge table, rolled them all up. Start with the basic table of NPC, but then expand on it. We had about 50 on ours I think. They all show up and swear fealty ro me. Then I utilize what I had, which was a lot (Your leadership score should be sickly high).

For example: he rolled 5 smiths. 2 of them now for me, in my keep making arms for the few warriors I have, and equipment and reairs/fortificaitons for the rest of the joint. The other 3 have all found jobs in the rest of the city, and are tampering with their business. (They're making shortswords with inferior metals, allow the party rouge to sneak in and mess stuff up, swipe materials etc. The alchemist and rouge have been tampering with a brewery in the city.

I kept some of the commoners (no levels in anything but commoner), to be eyes/ears in taverns and whatnot, and let the rest go. (If your DM won't let you dismiss them, kill them).

I have a 4th level nobleman. I now have his "sway" to add to my own and his household pretty much follows me as well.

Remember that if anyone of them dies, it doesn't effect your leadership score, only your reputation, and even then people have to know it was your fault. If the gain is big enough, the loss may be worth it.

I have 200+ followers, so if I do assemble en-masse its pretty hard to stop. You only have 40,but that's strictly your followers, they have friends they can bring, and you have allies who aren't followers that you can bring. Now, I'm not taken to acts of violence, but if my people march to the Court to protest some trial, and the guards turn on my followers #1 I don't care I get them back in 24 hours, and #2 the guards are going to look like bad men for killing 200 unarmed people. So use the "mass" of your people if need be, but don't throw it around.