I’m not encouraging this as an idea because I’m not sure it’ll end with the results you want, but the brief for guilds mentions hiring people for specialist tasks-
If you wanted to put ranks into your Free Company, then hire on Winterfolk specialists you could totally do that. Just, they’re not from the League and definitely aren’t your equals. In that scenario, it’d probably be best to have your friends work out what they’d actually be specialists in, and why they’d be worth hiring.
On the subject of Wintermark and Heroism as opposed to merc work- a Suaq hero who works as a mercenary to fund their hall’s food and so on is probably a hero, but it’s all subjective either way.
Group design is one of those areas where you can easily sabotage or guarantee your fun for a game. At this stage I would strongly suggest that the best way to make sure everyone in your group has a good time is to be willing to compromise a bit. When I came to Empire with a bunch of mates we first decided we wanted to be a group together, then we took it in turns pitching concepts that we could play in different nations. Eventually we settled on an idea that everyone thought was cool. I strongly recommend that method; it is almost always better to play in a well designed group in your second favourite nation than a bad group in your favourite. Heck, probably better to be in a good group in your least favourite nation.
Our Merc company (The Holburg Haudegen) regularly hire specialists to aid us. Having a group of navarri skirmishers or some wintermark shields to flank around a pike block is big and clever.
It sounds that having 2 distinct groups that can act independently but then work together when needed may be a better way of doing it.
I want to thank everyone for their input. I am meeting with my friends soon and we will talk about everything you guys told me. While I still only got a handful of replies on ranks in other nations, you all helped me understand groups in general a lot better.
Replying to you in particular to answer some things.
So why hire us, I imagine it would be as us being sent to fill in any potential needs in the line. Increase the shield wall. Cover this flank. Guard that location. Something that doesn’t necesarily have as many volunteers or positions in.
We were definitely planning on offering our services for free one or two times in order to get our names out there. We are aware of that at least.
We also understand the numbers part which is another reason why we’d do things for free a bit at first too. For potential recruitment as well.
We do also have group colors. Black is the main one for the Black Wolf company. There is also accents of red and blue so far, though red is a bit more prominent due to my kit.
The mechanics are a big thing though and is one of the major points my group will be talking about soon.
I actually really like the idea of this in particular. I’ve heard of the Deathwatch but never really knew much about it but that sounds like a cool idea.
Group colours are a brilliant way of getting a Guild Look, . Especially if everyone has a signature bit of kit in the colour (i.e. a mask). I would maybe think again about black if you want to have a recognisable brand.
It’s a larp. Every larper and their dog wears black.
Black is hugely popular in Highguard because of the brief. similarly in Wintermark for priests and Kallavesi.
Wolves are also a League emblem.
This means that “Some Leaguers in black saved our asses, I think some had wolf badges?” is not memorable.
“Those lot who all wore lots of blue and red and had a massive black wolf painted on their armour/standard” is memorable.
You don’t have to go to huge expense to do this. You could make or buy some wide sashes which are half blue material and half red, and stencil a big wolf head on them. Using the rest of your cheapo blue and red material, make a big flag and paint a wolf on it. Put it on a broom handle. If you can’t sew, you can use glue or fusible webbing. It’s not as good, but for starting out it’ll let you have a simple, unified look.The other cheap kit upgrade is “matching masks in blue and red” or “Matching hats”.
Rank-wise, you had the only real answer in the first few replies.
There are only three military ranks of any significance:
*General
*Small Military Unit owner (often called Captains, but this word has such a profusion of meanings as to be useless)
*Everyone else
Importantly, Generals and SMU owners can only give orders to their downtime army. In uptime, their suggestions to other players strictly carry no legal weight.
On the field, there is a great profusion of lieutenants, captains, sergeants, etc, but these typically mean “I have convinced some people that I know what I’m doing on the battlefield” and are broadly limited to what you can blag.
There do exist internal group structures, but these only hold any significance inside a player’s group. So Adina’s Charge have a rank structure of Lancer/Lance-Jack/Watchmaster/Banneret/Castellan, but we don’t expect anyone to know what we mean. We also send our Castellan to Highguard military meetings of “Captains”, where that is understood to mean “military leaders for a chapter or small group of chapters”.
@RomanHeretic, Don’t rely on people to give you your role. You will have more fun by making your role and applying it. Be a shield wall/ pike block/skirmish mob and how to flank, support and fight in that group. (FYI come find the Houdagen camp and have a drink IC)
I can’t echo what Haystacks and Jim are saying here nearly enough- standing out, looking good, and doing one thing and doing it well is something that gives you a reputation. As an example, I used to be one of the kohan of the Flames of the Coast- even if people don’t know them by name, they usually know from sight and style (and from Vito, but that’s besides the point). Stand-out fighters who leap into combat, charge off to kill lone foes, and make really stupid risky moves that usually pay off- and it leads to a reputation. You don’t give the kohan orders, you point them in a direction and they’ll kill whatever’s there.
Of course, the kohan style of fighting is antithetical to the League, where discipline and pomp are in high demand. Even despite that though, there’s a lot you can do to make yourselves stand out. Consider your weapon choices, consider your philosophies, consider your Virtue if you feel that’s appropriate, and build your tactics from that rather than trying to do whatever.
. Especially if everyone has a signature bit of kit in the colour (i.e. a mask). I would maybe think again about black if you want to have a recognisable brand.