How Do You Use Cohorts?

[el-remmen]

I do not use the Leadership feat in my game.

If a player wants a cohort - then it has to come up in-game somehow.

The player runs the cohort - but with my input - typically asking something like "is it okay if I have [X] do [Y]? Do you think he would do that?"

 

[kigmatzomat]

Here I disagree with you. Cohorts are with the PC for a reason, and that reason isn't always a pure one.
A PC that has an evil cohort might find himself betrayed if the cohort has a good reason to do so.
Vecna and his vampire-fighter buddy are an example.
Possibly Bilbo & Gollum are another.

So what's the difference between an NPC and a cohort if both will screw you over?

IMG the general interpretation is that an NPC may or may not be loyal to you but for the cost of a feat you get a loyal ally.

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

I picked B, normally because I've rarely had cohorts travel exclusively with the party. Of the 3 characters in my games who have selected the leadership feat:

One was an Al-Quadim merchant rogue, his followers his business empire, and the cohort the guy who ran things while he adventured

Another owned a ship, the followers were the crew, and the cohort the 1st mate.

The last is a ruler of a small canton (domain) in oathbound, his followers are constables and law officials, and the cohort if his spymaster.

When they do travel with the party, the player controls a fair amount of their actions (and almost always in combat, since I have enough to keep track of), but the cohorts maintain their own identity.

Someone brought up the possibility of evil cohorts betraying the party, thats a possibility, but the cohort should be replaced with another soon afterwards. Though if you watch many popular movies, its more often than not the loyal #2 who is betrayed by the villain (unless the #2 is female).

 

[lukelightning]

Here I disagree with you. Cohorts are with the PC for a reason, and that reason isn't always a pure one.
A PC that has an evil cohort might find himself betrayed if the cohort has a good reason to do so.
Vecna and his vampire-fighter buddy are an example.
Possibly Bilbo & Gollum are another.

Gollum wasn't Bilbo's cohort. Vecna wasn't a PC.

What's next, a paladin's warhorse secretly plotting to murder someone and ruin the paladin? A wizard murdered in his sleep by his owl? A druid mauled to death by her dire bear?

 

[Stormborn]

I have only used the Leadership feat once as a GM. Due to circumstances (the Cohort had a secret reason for being with the PC) I as GM contolled the cohort out of combat most of the time (although it amounted to basically having a Veto right on the players choices for the cohort), the PC controled the cohort in combat all of the time. The player was one that like roleplaying and intrigue etc. so she prefered that I control the Cohort to allow for that. So I picked choice 2 above.

However, I think in most circumstances option 3 is the best choice. Its just never come up in games I run.

 

[BlueBlackRed]

So what's the difference between an NPC and a cohort if both will screw you over?

IMG the general interpretation is that an NPC may or may not be loyal to you but for the cost of a feat you get a loyal ally.

It comes down to the role-playing.
If you treat your cohort like a slave and regularly beat him, there is no reason for loyalty. The cohort will either leave, wait for a good moment to betray, or be a loyal toad who fears your wrath.

If your DM has your cohorts betray you on a regular basis, then that's just a bad DM.

If you play a good-aligned PC, who has a cohort with similar views and alignment, betrayal would never be an issue.

If you play a wizard with a druid cohort, and you regularly cast fireball w/o concern for the consequences, you druid cohort should leave your side. This assumes the druid reveres nature.

 

[BlueBlackRed]

Gollum wasn't Bilbo's cohort. Vecna wasn't a PC.

That's debatable.

What's next, a paladin's warhorse secretly plotting to murder someone and ruin the paladin? A wizard murdered in his sleep by his owl? A druid mauled to death by her dire bear?

A paladin's warhorse would never do that.

A wizard would have to do something particularly bad to make his owl familiar that mad at him. Most likely the owl would just leave and never return.
The same goes for the druid analogy.

An evil wizard who gets a quasit familiar should not expect the quasit to be pure of heart and have the wizard's interest as its first priority. He's hoping to bring the soul of his master back home on the day his master dies. And it will try to convince its master to performs greater acts of evil until that day.

Once again, cohorts are not mindless slave automatons. They have their own goals and ambitions. Usually they match that of their PC lord, but not always.

 

[luke_twigger]

One thing we have used cohorts for IMG is as a "spare" PC in case the "main" PC dies (and doesn't get raised). We generally assume that the main PC trusts the cohort enough to share with them important plot info e.g. copy of a treasure map, command words for magic items, etc. So rather than a dead PC being replaced by a random bloke in a tavern, instead it's somebody with better in-game links and better story continuity. Of course the ex-cohort is likely to be a level or two behind all the other PCs, so may or may not be given a quick XP boost depending on circumstances.

 

[3d6]

We've generally allowed the cohort to serve as a secondary PC, unless the player has the cohort do something contrary to his or her nature. For example, the neutral human marshal in my previous game had a neutral human cleric as a cohort. The cohort was basically a second PC for the player until he tried to assassinate the king and usurp the throne for some reason (that to this day is not very clear to me.) The cohort refused to go along with the assassination attempt and at that point worked primarily as an NPC. (That was the last session of the campaign, so I don't know how the cohort would have been handled from that point forward.)

 

[Tonguez]

but for the cost of a feat you get a loyal ally.

Thats how I interpret Cohort - a loyal ally and thats why as a DM I always require the PC to explain exactly why the Cohort is loyal.
Things like the cohort is a family member, best friend, has a debt of honour to repay are all good reasons (more creative reasons are better) and also set up certain implications for the relationship. Once the debt of honour is paid, will the cohort remain loyal? if I abuse my friend, will she stay a friend? Will Mother be happy if I write home to tell her my brother has been eaten by the Tarasque

An ally also doesn't have to be a travelling adventurer. Like having Uncle Ben the Blacksmith down in Big City being my loyal ally means that I can get that masterwork weapon I need (especially since IMC Experts can use item creation feats) when I need it. and I like the examples posted above by ehren37

Oh yeah and Cohorts become the PC if the first PC is retired (or dead)

Anyway answer 3