So I’m DM for a 10th level trio, (LG halfling rogue, CG human fighter, CG tabaxi wizard) who are traveling along the road when they are “accosted” by a scrawny young man who accidentally falls out of a tree and brandishes a crossbow that he clearly has no idea how to fire. He demands money: they claim they have none and succeed on Deception checks. The ranger manages to pry the crossbow from the man and the fighter asks him about his life. The man, who’s name is Drato, is an attempted highwayman who raids merchant caravans, but has only ever succeeded once. It becomes apparent that Drato is inept and clumsy in virtually all capacities. So rather than telling him off or just killing him, the fighter takes pity.
They end up hiring him as servant/pupil/companion for favorable pay, get him washed up, purchase him new clothes and weapons, allow him to lodge with them in a high-end tavern, and promise to train him, with the intention of elevating him to the status of adventurer such as themselves. This all goes down in just over 24 hours, by the end of which Drato is on the verge of tears and is thoroughly won over. I found it ironic that the players chose to adopt the most inept, inarticulate, unskillful NPC they’ve ever encountered and that I’ve ever produced. He's hardly strong of mind or body, has no experience adventuring, and has a slight chance of fainting at the sight of blood. He went from momentary antagonist to an NPC whom the players would risk their character’s lives to defend.
I never intended for any of this to happen, it was their spontaneous decision. I don’t want to make Drato betray the party in the end, but at the same time I am hesitant to redeem him into a cliche total badass. Any ideas of directions the character could go, things that could befall the party, or advice from those with experience in indoctrinating NPCs into the party?
PC's love their little mascots, let them run with it for a while, see how it goes.
I would stay away from turning the NPC from scrawny goof into a bad ass. Not everyone is cut out to be a PC. Let the PC's train him, give him some much-needed confidence. (probably too much) Take him on an adventure. Sure Drato has some training now, but he's still a clumsy buffoon and after a few encounters Drato realizes this is not the life for him. The next town the party passes through he informs them he wishes to start his new life here. Later on if the PC's pass through the town they find Drato has become a valued member of the community, maybe even using some of the training the PCs gave him to help fend off a few goblin or bandit attacks.
The evil DM in me would let the PCs train him, boost his confidence, treat him as a peer, let him come on an adventure, and let the PCs look on in horror as Drato is crushed/burned/eaten by a monster. A good, "all actions have consequences" life lesson thing.
I feel like there are a lot of potential story hooks here, but I don't know your PCs or your campaign so it's a tough call on what the best course of action might be. Most likely your PCs get bored of their new play thing, especially when he starts cutting into their XP and Treasure shares.
Whatever you want honestly, as long as both you and players enjoy playing it. I would personally just have him tag along as long as they want him to, and use him as a set of extra helping hands for less important / dangerous stuff, and maybe some comedy relief if that fits in.
Eventually, I'd just make him go from being incompetent to barely competent, but maybe realize (similar to what the other guy says) that he's just not good enough for this kind of work, and then maybe get a job as a town or caravan guard, or maybe some skilled or unskilled labor. They could then visit him as a contact (to get information, jobs, supplies, discounts, etc.) or maybe he could help bail them out if he hears that they're in trouble. Like maybe get a posse together and dig them out of that Bugbear lair if they get trapped or something.
If someone's a noble with the "Retinue" background feature (or someone has something similar to it) he could just end up being one of the 3 people that's part of that retinue, if you just want him around to help with noncombat stuff and add flavor.
Alternatively, if someone dies or wants a different PC, or a new player joins, he can become like a new addition to your party.
You know he is a criminal, but what if his family are all criminals and he is just a not particularly good member? He could then introduce the party to criminals that would be more useful later on in the campaign. Cheap magic items from dubious sources maybe?
Or maybe he ran away from a temple because he wasn't any better as a cleric then he was as a criminal. Maybe meeting with someone he ran from could give the party a source for health potions or revivify spells?
Or maybe he is such an incompetent criminal that when the party is next captured he is let go or given a rubbish job at the base rather then being locked up and is able to use his underestimation to break your players out. etc
1: Drato is in debt with a big crime family - hence his attempts to rob caravans rather than lone travelers, he needs the money and quick. He's so caught up in the idea of a new life that he doesn't think that his past can catch up with him. Have the party become the target of thugs and ambushes, and when they realise why, they can choose to either "settle" the debt with the crime family (either blood or gold), or ditch Drato because he negllected to mention this litte bit of information.
2: Drato becomes just about competant, and realises that the adventuring life the party is leading is too dangerous for him, so seeks out his own adventures - thanking the party and promising to buy them all drinks/whatever next time they meet. When they find Drato again, he has become a remarkably powerful warlock, and his patron may not be too friendly to the PC's sniffing around as to the "how" of Drato's miraculous transition from inept to adept.
3: As above, Drato decides to go on his own adventures. In the few adventures before he leaves the PC's have him discuss how he wants people to know his name, and how he will carve his initial onto the wall of anywhere he has saved from evil. Some levels after Drato has left, have the party sent for an important retrieval mission, and when they get there, find that the item is gone and a "D" is carved in the wall. They can make the link to Drato, or not, and trace this "mysterious" thief back to a thieves guild, where they will find Drato as a high ranking person - having found a penchant for stealing treasure from dungeons, he is now rich and powerful. He's all too happy to help them find the item in question, perhaps to the distaste of other guild members. Maybe he even gets kicked out for telling them who it was sold to, as the thieves guild must never talk.
4: He dies, and does so after encouragement from a player (have him scared or questioning his abilities). His last thing is to look at the PC who encouraged him, with a heartbreaking "you lied!" look of betrayal. Have Drato come back as a revenant, for extra heartbreak. Make sure you know your players won't find this one too much before you run it though!
I would say don't make him into a badass. The party adopted a clumsy inept thief, I say keep him that way. Give the heroes someone to feel heroic next to, someone who looks up to them, someone who's comically unhelpful that the players have to look out for. He's not a help in combat, rather he adds a new element to a fight because now not only do the players need to worry about killing the bad guys, but now they also need to protect Drato. An inept, cowardly, yet endearing companion should add more gameplay possibility, not just help out in fights.
Instead, I would focus more on the journey that takes Drato from bumbling thief and overall awkward and morally dubious kid, to the party's enthusiastic squire, the soul of the party, the person that believes in the heroes with every fiber of their being. That emotional growth should be what you focus on with him. Every good hero needs a Watson.
So I’m DM for a 10th level trio, (LG halfling rogue, CG human fighter, CG tabaxi wizard) who are traveling along the road when they are “accosted” by a scrawny young man who accidentally falls out of a tree and brandishes a crossbow that he clearly has no idea how to fire. He demands money: they claim they have none and succeed on Deception checks. The ranger manages to pry the crossbow from the man and the fighter asks him about his life. The man, who’s name is Drato, is an attempted highwayman who raids merchant caravans, but has only ever succeeded once. It becomes apparent that Drato is inept and clumsy in virtually all capacities. So rather than telling him off or just killing him, the fighter takes pity.
They end up hiring him as servant/pupil/companion for favorable pay, get him washed up, purchase him new clothes and weapons, allow him to lodge with them in a high-end tavern, and promise to train him, with the intention of elevating him to the status of adventurer such as themselves. This all goes down in just over 24 hours, by the end of which Drato is on the verge of tears and is thoroughly won over. I found it ironic that the players chose to adopt the most inept, inarticulate, unskillful NPC they’ve ever encountered and that I’ve ever produced. He's hardly strong of mind or body, has no experience adventuring, and has a slight chance of fainting at the sight of blood. He went from momentary antagonist to an NPC whom the players would risk their character’s lives to defend.
I never intended for any of this to happen, it was their spontaneous decision. I don’t want to make Drato betray the party in the end, but at the same time I am hesitant to redeem him into a cliche total badass. Any ideas of directions the character could go, things that could befall the party, or advice from those with experience in indoctrinating NPCs into the party?
PC's love their little mascots, let them run with it for a while, see how it goes.
I would stay away from turning the NPC from scrawny goof into a bad ass. Not everyone is cut out to be a PC. Let the PC's train him, give him some much-needed confidence. (probably too much) Take him on an adventure. Sure Drato has some training now, but he's still a clumsy buffoon and after a few encounters Drato realizes this is not the life for him. The next town the party passes through he informs them he wishes to start his new life here. Later on if the PC's pass through the town they find Drato has become a valued member of the community, maybe even using some of the training the PCs gave him to help fend off a few goblin or bandit attacks.
The evil DM in me would let the PCs train him, boost his confidence, treat him as a peer, let him come on an adventure, and let the PCs look on in horror as Drato is crushed/burned/eaten by a monster. A good, "all actions have consequences" life lesson thing.
I feel like there are a lot of potential story hooks here, but I don't know your PCs or your campaign so it's a tough call on what the best course of action might be. Most likely your PCs get bored of their new play thing, especially when he starts cutting into their XP and Treasure shares.
Whatever you want honestly, as long as both you and players enjoy playing it. I would personally just have him tag along as long as they want him to, and use him as a set of extra helping hands for less important / dangerous stuff, and maybe some comedy relief if that fits in.
Eventually, I'd just make him go from being incompetent to barely competent, but maybe realize (similar to what the other guy says) that he's just not good enough for this kind of work, and then maybe get a job as a town or caravan guard, or maybe some skilled or unskilled labor. They could then visit him as a contact (to get information, jobs, supplies, discounts, etc.) or maybe he could help bail them out if he hears that they're in trouble. Like maybe get a posse together and dig them out of that Bugbear lair if they get trapped or something.
If someone's a noble with the "Retinue" background feature (or someone has something similar to it) he could just end up being one of the 3 people that's part of that retinue, if you just want him around to help with noncombat stuff and add flavor.
Alternatively, if someone dies or wants a different PC, or a new player joins, he can become like a new addition to your party.
If you have an extra character why not use him.
You know he is a criminal, but what if his family are all criminals and he is just a not particularly good member? He could then introduce the party to criminals that would be more useful later on in the campaign. Cheap magic items from dubious sources maybe?
Or maybe he ran away from a temple because he wasn't any better as a cleric then he was as a criminal. Maybe meeting with someone he ran from could give the party a source for health potions or revivify spells?
Or maybe he is such an incompetent criminal that when the party is next captured he is let go or given a rubbish job at the base rather then being locked up and is able to use his underestimation to break your players out. etc
Here are some of my knee-jerk ideas:
1: Drato is in debt with a big crime family - hence his attempts to rob caravans rather than lone travelers, he needs the money and quick. He's so caught up in the idea of a new life that he doesn't think that his past can catch up with him. Have the party become the target of thugs and ambushes, and when they realise why, they can choose to either "settle" the debt with the crime family (either blood or gold), or ditch Drato because he negllected to mention this litte bit of information.
2: Drato becomes just about competant, and realises that the adventuring life the party is leading is too dangerous for him, so seeks out his own adventures - thanking the party and promising to buy them all drinks/whatever next time they meet. When they find Drato again, he has become a remarkably powerful warlock, and his patron may not be too friendly to the PC's sniffing around as to the "how" of Drato's miraculous transition from inept to adept.
3: As above, Drato decides to go on his own adventures. In the few adventures before he leaves the PC's have him discuss how he wants people to know his name, and how he will carve his initial onto the wall of anywhere he has saved from evil. Some levels after Drato has left, have the party sent for an important retrieval mission, and when they get there, find that the item is gone and a "D" is carved in the wall. They can make the link to Drato, or not, and trace this "mysterious" thief back to a thieves guild, where they will find Drato as a high ranking person - having found a penchant for stealing treasure from dungeons, he is now rich and powerful. He's all too happy to help them find the item in question, perhaps to the distaste of other guild members. Maybe he even gets kicked out for telling them who it was sold to, as the thieves guild must never talk.
4: He dies, and does so after encouragement from a player (have him scared or questioning his abilities). His last thing is to look at the PC who encouraged him, with a heartbreaking "you lied!" look of betrayal. Have Drato come back as a revenant, for extra heartbreak. Make sure you know your players won't find this one too much before you run it though!
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I would say don't make him into a badass. The party adopted a clumsy inept thief, I say keep him that way. Give the heroes someone to feel heroic next to, someone who looks up to them, someone who's comically unhelpful that the players have to look out for. He's not a help in combat, rather he adds a new element to a fight because now not only do the players need to worry about killing the bad guys, but now they also need to protect Drato. An inept, cowardly, yet endearing companion should add more gameplay possibility, not just help out in fights.
Instead, I would focus more on the journey that takes Drato from bumbling thief and overall awkward and morally dubious kid, to the party's enthusiastic squire, the soul of the party, the person that believes in the heroes with every fiber of their being. That emotional growth should be what you focus on with him. Every good hero needs a Watson.