Leadership - DM's how do you handle Cohorts and Followers?

[robberbaron]

1. The player can do pretty much what he wants with his cohort, within the normal restrictions of the game.

2. Point buy, 72 points (one-for-one basis). PCs get 76 points. I am considering going back to letting the players roll but that will have to wait until a TPK or game change.
Wealth as per NPC table in DMG.

3. PC classes. See 1.

4. Player has almost complete control. I will step in if I think they are abusing the relationship but that hasn't happened yet.

Followers.
Basically the same as above, except:
They get 68 points and can be NPC classes as well. I assume that most followers will be 'normal' people - cleric's congregation, rogue's urchins, fighter's groupies.


Bottom line - I don't have the inclination to run 3 NPCs (8 players, 3 cohorts) in addition to the opposition. And don't even think about familiars.

 

[Numion]

I have a few of questions so I thought I'd organise them formally.

Section One - Cohorts
1. Do you let the player design them fully, partly or do you do them completely yourself?

Fully by PC.

2. How do you assign attributes, random rolls (what system), elite array, standard array, other?

Same method as PCs (4d6, drop lowest most recently)

3. What classes can they have PC classes, or only NPC classes or even Prestige Classes?

Any class the PCs can take.

4. In play who controls them, you or the player, or some combination?

The player. I find nothing more boring than a DM directing and rolling attacks between creatures/NPCs/entities he controls.

 

[Firedancer]

Section One - Cohorts

1. Do you let the player design them fully, partly or do you do them completely yourself?

2. How do you assign attributes, random rolls (what system), elite array, standard array, other?

3. What classes can they have PC classes, or only NPC classes or even Prestige Classes?

4. In play who controls them, you or the player, or some combination?

Section Two - Followers

Same questions but now about followers.

Cohorts:
1) if its an existing npc I would have statted it up previously. If its a new npc the player designs them and I ok them for game use. If its something new I have the right to say "change that". Rarely comes up.

2) an existing NPC will have stats asssigned according to how I feel is appropriate. If its new NPC it will be point buy....few points less than the PCs, max of 1 stat at 18.

3) no limit to classes, but cannot be inappropriate. Most often the player and I will discuss its advancement into a prestige as this is part of the npc's character.

4) the player has the character sheet, so he can do the number crunching. I'm lucky as the players will have the cohort acting accordingly (mostly!). Socially, I run the cohort.

Followers:
1) player gets to attract followers of a suitable nature, so the design might be a mixed bag with some player input.
2) often elite array, sometimes just ripped out of example stats.
3) classes are not limited, prestiges are only used if justifiable.
4) the players gives the order in combat, but I do the crunching (and this is normally generalised) and run them socially. Few followers get more than a bit part.

 

[Hussar]

Fully by PC.



Same method as PCs (4d6, drop lowest most recently)



Any class the PCs can take.



The player. I find nothing more boring than a DM directing and rolling attacks between creatures/NPCs/entities he controls.

Ditto.

Although, to be fair, I did control a recent cohort, but, that's because he was an experiment from Tome of Magic that the players let me do. They didn't have the book so they let me run the NPC. Worked very well.

 

[Numion]

I also did away with the wonky 3.0E cohort XP rules. I just checked to cohorts level against the cohort chart (that lists the cohorts level as function of the featees level & cha) and adjusted the cohorts level accordingly each time the 'owner' PC levelled.

The rank and file followers never really took off - the PC couldn't think of anything meaningful for them to do. Soo .. he just organized them into 'do-good' brigades that patrolled the countryside near their castle .. doing good. And stuff (The PC was a cleric of an LG deity).

 

[Gez]

I have a few of questions so I thought I'd organise them formally.

Section One - Cohorts

1. Do you let the player design them fully, partly or do you do them completely yourself?

2. How do you assign attributes, random rolls (what system), elite array, standard array, other?

3. What classes can they have PC classes, or only NPC classes or even Prestige Classes?

4. In play who controls them, you or the player, or some combination?

1. The player has to give me a list of cohort concepts he or she would like to have. It may be already existing NPCs or totally new concepts, or both. Then I chose one in the lot and manage to get it in the adventure in the session after the PC took the feat. I'll design the stats myself, though the player is free to provide input.

2. With elite array. First HD maxed, following HD average.

3. Any class that I have allowed to the player.

4. The player. They're a part of the player character's resources, after all. I may hijack it if needed (like if the player sends the cohort ahead to scout); but otherwise, as long as the cohort is among PCs, then it's a PC.

Section Two - Followers

Same questions but now about followers.

1. They're entirely designed by the players, but within certain parameters.

2. Standard array. Average hit points. Those are two of said parameters. Another important parameter is that they only get half the standard NPC gear value for their level. If the player wants, they may have full gear value, but then they'll want regular wage and will leave if they're not paid anymore. By default, they're poor and loyal.

3. Only vanilla class and races. Nothing that is important in the setting (no Dragonmark feat for an Eberron follower, for example) or for the meta-game stuff (no follower may fill a niche missing in the party, like a Healer follower in a party without a medic). Followers are basically redundant and shouldn't get ever put in the foreground, under the spotlight, because they have something that's necessary for the party. That's another parameter. If you don't have any rogue in your party, you're not going to attract shady followers.

4. The player manages his own grunt. If a little group of followers is sent ahead or left behind, and something happens to them, then I'll let all players put their regular characters aside for a moment and play the grunts until the event is over. Like in Ars Magica.

 

[kigmatzomat]

Like others:

I solicit player preferences and then build cohorts. Players may recruit the cohort or pass. They do not get to see the charcter sheet in advance; like their character, they have to decide based on incomplete knowledge.

I use elite stat array, which is on par with the PCs but makes the cohorts a bit more equivalent between players. Sometimes they get the cohort they need more than the cohort they want. Other times they get the only cohort that is rational for my plot and their particular desires (e.g. the Dragon Disciple who wanted a psuedodragon cohort; only so many ways to make that reasonable on a short time table.).

They often have PrCs and can be of any setting-appropriate race/class variations.

Once the players accept the cohort I hand over the character sheet. I do have veto power and occassionally over-ride the player's decisions but only when I see a more appropriate action for the cohort to take that is also going to be significantly more effective.

 

[Arnwyn]

Section One - Cohorts

1. Do you let the player design them fully, partly or do you do them completely yourself?

2. How do you assign attributes, random rolls (what system), elite array, standard array, other?

3. What classes can they have PC classes, or only NPC classes or even Prestige Classes?

4. In play who controls them, you or the player, or some combination?

1) Player designs 'fully', but see #3 below.

2) Random roll, same method players use.

3) We have a house rule that states the cohort must be same class as character with Leadership (including any prestige classes the PC might have). A later new/house-rule feat of ours allows a cohort to be of any class/prestige class the player desires (and it does other stuff as well). A little more restrictive than RAW, but my players are fine with it.

4) Player 95% of the time, DM 5%.

Section Two - Followers

Same questions but now about followers.

1) As 1, above.
2) As 2, above.
3) NPC classes only.
4) Nobody cares. (As 4, above.)

 

[GoodKingJayIII]

1. Player designs his cohort however he likes in terms of race, class, etc. though I as DM have final say on all cohorts.

2. Typically the same as PCs, which is a 32 point buy.

3. Whatever classes are available to PCs are available to cohorts, though again I have final say.

4. PCs control the character the vast majority of the time. Ideally I step in when player's PC is having a conversation with the cohort, so we don't get someone talking to themselves at the table . Again, I have final say on what a cohort does and doesn't do, though I'm very lenient. These is more a guideline that using a cohort for blatantly abusive stuff (free magic item crafting seems to be a favorite) will be vetoed immediately.

 

[Dragon Snack]

Section One - Cohorts
1. Do you let the player design them fully, partly or do you do them completely yourself?
I let the players design them completely. I sometimes offer up an NPC that the players have encountered, but I have yet to be taken up on that offer.

2. How do you assign attributes, random rolls (what system), elite array, standard array, other?
32 point buy, same as a PC.

3. What classes can they have PC classes, or only NPC classes or even Prestige Classes?
Same as a PC, which I allow to be pretty wide open.

4. In play who controls them, you or the player, or some combination?
The player. Beyond what the feat itself says, I don't feel the need to control yet another NPC.

We have house ruled Leadership to give you a cohort of your level -2 (tacking on penalties if appropriate), since that's what it (mostly) works out to be anyway, we just skip the paperwork. If someone had their cohort start making up magic items or otherwise "spending XP", then they would have to start tracking it.

It should be noted that I've had a cohort "advance" to PC status when their leader PC was killed.

I like the idea of someone else playing the cohort, but I don't know how exactly that would work with my group. I wish I had a co-DM...

Section Two - Followers
1. Do you let the player design them fully, partly or do you do them completely yourself?
Same as a cohort, I let the player design them.

2. How do you assign attributes, random rolls (what system), elite array, standard array, other?
Most are just "classes", left in the background, so it rarely comes up. I'll probably go with the elite array if it comes up in the future.

3. What classes can they have PC classes, or only NPC classes or even Prestige Classes?
Any class available.

4. In play who controls them, you or the player, or some combination?
The player, but as noted they rarely see any game time and are background players.

When I played, I had a 4th level Fighter follower come along with me and the DM decided to go after him (even when he ran away) specifically to teach me a lesson (that followers shouldn't hang around with their leaders, apparently). Maybe this has scared off other players from using followers in my game...

Leadership is a great feat (especially the way we play it, apparently), but even then I don't see all of my players taking it. Usually only one player will take it at a time. I've been nerfed by DMs a couple of times when I've taken it (one DM never even let me find a cohort, even though I said he could make one up for me, but considering some of the other things he did to my characters there may have been other out of game "issues" there as well), so there may be some apprehension about that as well (although I'm a pretty lenient DM).