OSR How much does your party use Retainers, Henchmen and Strongholds?

I've been looking at a few OSR systems as of late for a potential campaign, and I still see there's fair bit of emphasis placed on retainers/henchmen/followers, etc and on strongholds. From back in the 2e days when I first started playing, we rarely delved into using retainers or built strongholds because:

A) Retainers meant another character sheet to have to manage, and players usually didn't want to do this, or they'd be forgotten about entirely. At the time, we were a big table - about 7 to sometimes 8 players, so that was one factor. We were also always adding more and more rules to expand the boundaries of what we wanted to do with characters, making the game bulkier. Today, I'm looking for less complexity, not more, so adding extra rules is not likely. If retainers are a key part of play, I want to make sure I highlight that.

B) Building strongholds/domain management was a style of play that not every player was into. One time, the thief character wanted to start their own guild, and got incredibly "INTO IT", while the paladin and cleric players could care less. Again, probably would handle this differently today, but even now, I don't forsee the group I'm playing with wanting strongholds to be a big thing.

However, when looking at fighters in particular, building strongholds is still one of the big crowning features of the class in games such as OSE and other retroclones, as are the use of retainers.

For those who play OSE or any other OSR game that has these features, how often do they come up in your play? Are they crucial to either the classes that feature them (particularly martials), or to the survivability of PCs? Or alternatively, are they holdovers from the wargaming past and not something that I need to wrap my head around in order to make the most of the system?

Thanks for your thoughts!

I use them always. Even in 5E, I still use the ancient BECMI advancement rules.

Most players are happy to have a retainer or two. Often a 'buddy' to help them in combat. But some clever players use them to guard things, fetch things and do other tasks. And often fill in holes.....like a fighter having a diviner retainer to "do magic stuff". While character's do just hire some, at least half are met on adventures and join the group.

Henchmen are often hired for a task.. As the players will often pick a spot as a "base", they will fill it up with henchmen.

And by Name Level (9th) most players are looking to do more then just "adventure like 1st level". And this is where Dominions come in. This adds a whole new level of play.

And then...at the peak of Master Level play.....is the Quest for Immortality. Yet another level of play.

I have had many players follow this long path over years...making their personal mark in the game world and loving it. Though only a few ever made it to immortality.

It is a LOT of record keeping and keeping track of things....but then that is what any player in my game must do from first level.

Retainers were essential for my OSE party. With only 3 PCs, the large Number Appearing meant every single encounter was a likely TPK, making it difficult for the party to progress.

Adding a trio of fighters and a cleric with access to Turn Undead leveled the playing field a bit more in their favor.

Our campaign ended before we progressed to the Expert levels (4+), but I'd imagine that mercenaries would be similarly important for the same reason once we did, to handle the massive sizes of wilderness encounters.

They've always been a part of the game in my campaign. Hirelings are brought on board as staff, ship crew, occasional bodyguards, troops, whatever. There is usually a henchman or follower in the party, sometimes several. Most parties will have one or more members who engage in building various things. Two of the most recent groups have refurbished ruins to use as strongholds and worked hard to protect and develop adjoining settlements and another has built a canal system to allow greater trade between specific areas in the world. It just seems to naturally proceed from the types of games we play where high-level characters often find themselves becoming movers and shakers in their environment.

Don’t forget hirelings!

bloodtide said:

Most players are happy to have a retainer or two. Often a 'buddy' to help them in combat. But some clever players use them to guard things, fetch things and do other tasks. And often fill in holes.....like a fighter having a diviner retainer to "do magic stuff". While character's do just hire some, at least half are met on adventures and join the group.

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So, if you have players NOT familiar with OSR, and NOT familiar with the idea of hiring retainers, and choose not to - does the game still work, or do I have to guide players into doing this?

Wolfpack48 said:

Don’t forget hirelings!

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They have so many names!!

Always include them. Don't forget they're the ones who fill leadership positions in your domain and lead your army units in battle.

ldvhl said:

Always include them. Don't forget they're the ones who fill leadership positions in your domain and lead your army units in battle.

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But what if no one wants a domain?

TiQuinn said:

So, if you have players NOT familiar with OSR, and NOT familiar with the idea of hiring retainers, and choose not to - does the game still work, or do I have to guide players into doing this?

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Well, for any complex game the DM needs to guide the players at the start.

TiQuinn said:

But what if no one wants a domain?

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Not every player does. A time or two the players have set up the retainer or such to run the domain.