D&D 5E How Often Do You Have NPCs Join the Party?

[Plaguescarred]

From time to time i have an NPC work with the party. (I picked 25%)

 

[Bupp]

I have 3 players in my group, so I started off running a DMPC. I've done this in the past as well, but I keep it simple. In the current group it's a dwarf barbarian with INT and CHA being dump stats so that he's only useful in a fight.

Now each of the PCs have a henchman that they run, one a fighter that they hired. The druid was the apprentice of the local druid that showed interest in their activities, the ranger part of a local group from a nearby town. Both were sent along with the group and report back to their superiors. The players run them, but I can over rule or take over at any time. They get half XP, but can become a PC if the main one falls.

In past groups, they've accumulated a stable of henchmen, but I ruled that each PC can only bring one, so they picked the ones that they thought they'd need, sometimes different players paying the different henchmen to let them try out a different class. This would help out when a player couldn't make it, they would rotate in a henchman to help fill the missing players role.

 

[Ravenheart87]

My players like using hirelings, so it's usually the players who make NPCs join the party at my table. Some of them were cannon fodders, but there were a few who became more memorable with time and were treated as if they were party members. In the previous Wilderlands campaign this includes:

• Burp, the stupid drunkard dwarf minstrel. He was the mascot of the party, who became a pretty successful comedian in pubs (no one took him seriously). Despite being a dwarf he had only 4 for Constitution. He was killed by their own cleric with a fumble during a battle with giant frogs. He got an improvised viking funeral, his bagpipes were kept as relic.
• Greenblade, the elf minstrel who earned Burp's place by winning a contest held by the party for the next minstrel. He was known for being pretty effective in combat, once beating the crap out of their own paladin. He survived the whole campaign and the cleric made him the leader of one of the brothels he opened in Modron.
• Beorn, the dwarf torchbearer. He had pretty good stats for a torchbearer, so the party quickly changed his torches and flasks of oils to axe and armor. In the last adventure a red dragon's breath killed him, but soon his death was avenged.

While the current DCC RPG campaign lacks hirelings (everyone runs several characters and there are some zero level meatbags too), I'm pretty sure with the forthcoming 5e campaign they are going to hire porters, torchbearers, mercenaries, and some of them will be just as memorable as those I mentioned above.

 

[Grainger]

The DM doesn't have the power to add an NPC to the group.

Players: We can do this mission for King John by ourselves.
DM: King John insists that one of his Knights goes with you.
Players: Oh, OK.*












*Whether the DM should do this is a different matter, but he/she definitely can. I'd say that there are lots of dramatic reasons (and also bad ones) why you could have an NPC along for the ride.

 

[Viking Bastard]

There are two ways this happens in my games:

1) NPCs are created by the players and are basically henchman for the party and possible backup characters in case of death. I always allow this if the player fears that much for their character.

2) When the NPC is important for the story. Example: The person that hired the party to help him find X, or to make sure they keep on track, or even guide them through lands they do not know.

This. As henchmen or plot reasons.

The players always run them in combat, with occasional veto from me (in case of #2).

 

[The_Gneech]

Almost always, but never as the star of the show. The NPC tends to be a "group sidekick" type (like Meepo) or buff up a hole in the party ("You guys really might want to have a healer along...").

I usually give the NPC an interesting quirk or two to make RP fun (e.g., the cleric who was afraid of undead, or the current barbarian who keeps fangirling the party wizard), and the players adopt them as one of their own.

"Mission NPCs" are a fairly common occurrence as well; I generally give one of the players the character sheet and let them do the running, with GM override as needed.

-The Gneech

 

[Umbran]

My answer is not D&D specific: Rarely.

I have not had an NPC with the party on a permanent basis in... over 15 years? And that was a 2e party where nobody wanted to play a cleric, so I provided one.

If the players *ask* an NPC to accompany them, the NPC may go along if he/she has reason. If the adventure setup really requires the NPC to go along (say, the adventurers want to go somewhere they'd really need a native guide), I will provide one. But these are arrangements for the single adventure, not permanent fixtures in the pary.

 

[DEFCON 1]

Assuming we aren't calling familiars, animal companions, sentient weapons etc. NPCs (which I don't) and assuming that "joining the party" means contributing to combats and earning partial segments of XP as an actual member of the group (which I do)... then I voted 0%.

I might have a non-player character accompany the party somewhere if the plot dictates it, but they never participate in any combats that might occur, nor do anything that should rightly earn themselves a part of the XP. I always have enough PCs at my table to do the heavy lifting. And I don't consider just travelling with the group as a walking plot device to be "joining the party".

 

[Will Doyle]

I often include allied NPCs, either as plot devices, comedy relief, backup, or just someone else for the players talk to. I generally repurpose a "monster" instead of running a full character, so I don't have to faff around with making power/spell choices.

 

[the Jester]

NPCs join the party mostly when the party recruits them, in my campaign.

I absolutely avoid DMPCs. They are ruinous to a game.

Once in a while, when circumstances call for it, an npc will join the party otherwise, but most adventuring types in my game are pcs.