Political depth and story

[Benejeseret]

How do most people add in political depth and intrigue?

I really dislike the good/evil mentality and believe everyone is acting to their own ideals of 'good'.

So, I need some neat organizations to throw into my mercenary style war campaign. Basically, the setting is the fringe/mountain coastline of a large cosmopolitan empire where a highly industrial and militaristic race of troglodytes are invading.

Here is what I want to fill:

Main Army - I want to avoid a fighter/knight or pally dominant group. Looking for unique ranger, wilderness military organization.

Main Merc Core - Looking for a organization, like Blackwater, of personal militaristic swords for hire.

Gangs - In the main nearby town I would like at least 2, likely more, gangs or families trying to gain influence and power within the region. So far I have only a variation on the Dragonblade Ninja Clan (CAdv).

Other - Any deep, neat organizations others have used for my PC's to join, fight, or interact with?

[Driderman]

How about large merchant leagues with their own private armies?

I'm thinking Baldurs Gate here, if you haven't played it:
The main enemy is part of an unscrupulous merchant league called the Iron Throne, which usually involves itself in all sorts of legitimate and illegitimate business. In this particular case, the Iron Throne has hired two bands of mercenaries, a hobgoblin warband and some evil humans, to cause an iron shortage, ensuring a monopoly.

Guilds might also be an idea. In the real middle ages, various guilds were VERY protective of the secrets of their work and didn't allow non-members to practice their craft, sometimes under threat of death. Being a highly ranked member of an artisans guild meant money and political power.

Secret societies. Like the Freemasons. Clandestine groups formed by the elite of society, meeting in cozy lounges where they can smoke cigars and plot world-domination, or whatever your campaign requires.

Also, holy orders, although that may come too close to what you want to avoid. Still, in the really real world, orders such as the Teutonic Knights, the Hospitaller Knights and the Knights Templar had political leverage and both the finances and arms to back it up. Also, they supposedly had God on their side but that never prevented other Christian rulers (like the Pope) from backstabbing them if it was beneficial.

Wilderness Military Organization: Some sort of scout brigade, patrolling the wilderness? Possibly based in an out of the way location and direct control is held by a favoured vassal of the local ruler. As long as said vasssal pleases his sovereign he is allowed to command these rangers, although in reality they are more loyal to him than to their king?

Another thing: In a coastal area there will be maritime trade. Maritime trade means smuggling and possibly even piracy. Or maybe just wreckage robbers. You know, those guys who fake a lighthouse at night, have the ship wreck on the beach, kill off the surviving sailors and steal the goods. It was a rathr popular pastime for poor coast dwellers not far from where I live not that many years ago :)

Nobility: If you have an empire, there's bound to be nobility. After all, an empire has an emperor, an emperor has kings as vassals and kings have all sorts of oddly named vassals. Nobility all over the place.
I'm not sure how much you know about the Holy Roman Empire (Medieval Germany) but even though it is considered a single entity today, it was actually a number of rival fiefdoms that often competed, or even warred, for resources or political power.
Noble families, of course, wants their family to be the top family, so they will try to outmaneuver their rivals one way or the other. They also often have access to large amounts of cash and may or may not have a large standing army at their command.
Nobles can easily need mercenaries for all sorts of things. Courier jobs, assasinations, maybe they need a stand-in for a duel (a rather common practice in real medieval society) or they just need someone to rough up the local merchants/brigands/heathens/hippies/whatever.

[Stormcrow]

I like the idea of a non knighted army and If you wanted to go for something a little bit out there then prehaps this;

A force of ranger/rogue skirmishers who find forrested/canyoned areas and litter them with traps and snares and the like, then draw their quarry into these scenarious for ambushes. With hit and run tactics on the flanks of the opposing force to draw them in.

On the subject of mercenary cores, they are a product of their environment, if they fight a lot of heavy fighters, there will be a lot of heavy fighters. Lots of mages, lots of mages. And the leaders of mercenaries are usually A) Someone the other mercs can't take and/or B) someone they respect and finally C) Someone who takes care of their interests.

[Leicontis]

There's always the classic local thieves' and/or assasins' guild(s). A high-level member running an organized group of thieves/assassins. If you can make contact with them, they can be a gold mine of information (assuming you're a gold mine of, well, gold). They could also be a source of black-market goods.

Watch out for the blacksmiths' guild. Attacking a blacksmith in his forge is one of the dumbest things one can do - you're going up against a guy with an intimate knowledge of weapons and the muscles one gets from making a living by beating steel into submission.

[Benejeseret]

As to the 'army'

Rather than an all out war. The campaign is looking more like the classic 3 stage maoist model. 1) infiltration, win local poulation support, attack opposing government facilities. 2) escalate, hit military and vital formation. 3) Invasion.

My campaign is basically in stage 1. Various nation states are attempting to influence new found / free villages and establish a hold onto a new continent.

The only real difference between the formal 'government' troops and those merc troops is the difference between a government wanting to forge colonies and companies wanting to secure trade/resources.

In this case I am looking at 3 competing governments and 2 large merc groups attempting to influence the local populace. Among those 'locals' are the troglodyte empire which will bring its significant resources to resist all influence.

Thus:

Governent troops = rogues, ranges, and bards infiltrating and fighting for local influence. Not as interested in resources.

Mercs = heavy fighters, ranged fighters, employed to capture and dig in to resource regions. Not interested in influence. Merchant Nobles hire and run these units.

Gangs = rogues, ninjas, and the gambit of stealthy and fighter types. Some of the gangs are local gangs attempting to hold their areas of influence. Others are local but selling out to the new colonizers. Finally, some came with the colonists to estabish new areas. I like the costal/pirate connection.

Others = The trogs are a nearby powerful empire that will be moving in to "fight for the freedom of the locals". They will also be conviniently aquiring the local resources while they are there.

[Stormcrow]

Watch out for the blacksmiths' guild. Attacking a blacksmith in his forge is one of the dumbest things one can do - you're going up against a guy with an intimate knowledge of weapons and the muscles one gets from making a living by beating steel into submission.

It's not just that either, they don't even have to be good fighters. I watched a blacksmith from the local SCA group power through and experinced swordsman's block (Both using Greatswords) with no visible effort.

That and he knows where every nasty peice of tech is, and he's got a roaring hot fire and a hammer designed to shape steel at hand. Nasty.... Ooh.... Plot.

[Logic Cannon]

As to the 'army'

Rather than an all out war. The campaign is looking more like the classic 3 stage maoist model. 1) infiltration, win local poulation support, attack opposing government facilities. 2) escalate, hit military and vital formation. 3) Invasion.


Make sure you follow the same general formula for force composition as well:
1) loosely-knit guerrilla cells individually focusing on popular sentiment, education and propaganda. Will attack weakly-defended targets of psychological value to the enemy.
2) guerrilla cells operating in coordination with one another, primarily based on harassing enemy supply lines and exposed military infrastructure.
3) Large numbers of elite guerrilla fighters form the vanguard of a positional militia-based army equipped with loot taken from the enemy, who has either been killed or (more likely, by this point) switched sides without firing a shot.

[malusmalus]

Governent troops = rogues, ranges, and bards infiltrating and fighting for local influence. Not as interested in resources.

The rogue/ranger (with bards less as fighters than propaganda, I would think) angle could actually work nicely given that these are imperial forces. It's not uncommon for an empire to enlist into its army various specialists from different allied states and the territories under its command. Examples of this are seen in Hannibal's forces for Carthage, which included mercenary slingers from the Balearic Islands, Iberian cavalry, spearmen from Libya, and javelin-throwers from the tribes of North Africa (not to mention the elephants). I could easily see a large enlisted wilderness organization, perhaps gathered from several geographic locations for effectiveness of a variety of terrains. Militias from the fringes of the empire (especially those belonging to states that had put up a fierce resistance before conquest) could conceivably still possess some skill in guerrilla warfare.