Four problems present themselves
sooner or later to nearly every Dungeon
Master:

    1. What can be done with all of those mid-level characters who want to establish a permanent base or small stronghold?
    2. To whom are all those cavaliers supposed to have sworn allegiance?
    3. How does one introduce variety and
stimulate player involvement in the governing
of the countries in your campaign
setting?
4. Where and when can one take their
players to experience new vistas of
adventure?

The answers to all four of these problems
may lie in an area that the ?official?
rules have generally neglected to develop:
the feudal system.

An in-depth study of the feudal form of
government would consist of an article in
itself. The feudal system, in basic terms,
was a form of government based on a
military pyramid with a powerful warrior
(such as a king) at the top, a network of
greater and lesser warriors (the nobles)
beneath him, and, at the very bottom of
the ruling structure, tenants and vassals.
In this system, the less powerful were
subservient to those above them; they
swore oaths of allegiance and fealty to
their rulers and provided military service
in return for a portion of land and military
protection from the lesser warriors? enemies.
Each person in the chain of command
might himself be a vassal of a more
powerful lord, holding land deeded him by
that ruler. This system was in wide use in
Europe during the Middle Ages.

Mid-level strongholds
The question of what to do with those
mid-level player characters (4th-8th level)
who want to set up shop, but have not yet
attained the normal minimum level limit to
do so, can be easily solved by manipulating
the feudal system to meet their personal
needs. Have the ambitious PCs visit one of
the lords with whom they happen to be on
good terms and arrange a deal with that
particular lord for territory on which a
minor fort or stronghold may be built. For
this article?s purpose, a lord is any highlevel
character with an established freehold
or stronghold; optionally, he is one
who is just setting up such a territory. A
?standard deal? for land might consist of
an agreement to receive the land on terms
that the PC must present himself and a
body of soldiers (the number varies with
the size of the territory received, normally
at least five men per level of the PC) for
military duty for a certain number of days
a year, as specified by the lord ? perhaps
20 days a year ? plus emergency service
in times of war. The deal usually also
allows the PC to keep a percentage of the
tax collected by the PC from his territory
each month (usually 2 sp out of the
amount collected per person, per month).

If the PC agrees to these terms and then
proceeds to violate the terms of the agreement,
the former owner of the land is
within his rights to regain the land
through any means at his disposal, and he
may not be a very forgiving fellow. The
size of the territory ?given? to the PC is
another matter altogether and usually
depends on the PC?s personal wealth and
power, the wealth and power of the lord
being petitioned, the location of the lord?s
territories, the location of the lord?s enemies,
the relationship between the lord
and the PC, and the extent and specifications
of the PC?s requests. The results of
these negotiations should be determined
on an individual basis by the DM. Just
because one PC is turned down does not
mean another will also be turned down.
Use your own personal discretion when
determining the size of the territory, but
at no time should a mid-level character?s
territory exceed that which can be gained
normally by the character?s class at name
level (i.e., under a 20-mile radius for fighters).
If the territory is gained in the above
manner, no extra followers are attracted,
although they can still be hired and a small
settlement and castle established.

Those crazy cavaliers
In finding a haven for all those budding
adventurers, we have also dealt with the
question of to whom all those cavaliers are
loyal. Instead of serving one?s own family,
a religion, or some powerful lord, a beginning
cavalier may be sworn to a mid-level
lord or, if he comes from a distinguished
family, a high-level lord. This arrangement
may have been set up by the cavalier?s
family for political, economic, or religious
reasons. The starting cavalier does not
receive a land grant, but he does receive
the convenience of his lord?s hospitality at
any time, within reason of course (the lord
will not stand for being taken advantage of
in any manner). The young cavalier must
still provide military service to his lord as
per the first section of this article.
An established cavalier may still serve
his former lord and retain his privileged
hospitality, or he may seek a new lord but
still retain ties to his old lord. In either
case, he will likely receive some sort of
territory in return for his services. A highlevel
cavalier may not wish to maintain a
lord at all, and may go off to establish his
own territory or seek an even more powerful
liege. What?s good for the goose is
good for the gander, so the cavalier may
wish to gain vassals of his own as he rises
in power. If cavaliers can do so, why not
fighters and rangers as well? (Paladins are
not mentioned, since they serve the
church, but something similar could still
be worked out for them.) The DM should
discuss his ideas on these topics with the
players involved and work out a system to
suit their own needs.

Revitalizing governments
Are your players tired of the same overused,
stereotyped government day after

day? If so, then introduce a little feudalism
into their lives. The feudal system of government
offers an enormous opportunity
to expand the role that governments play
in a campaign. When PCs ally themselves
with one lord, they may also gain several
other allied and enemy lords at the same
time. Just because two lords are part of
the same country does not mean they are
life-long friends. What happens to the
clever adventurer who has gained land
grants from two neighboring lords when
they go to war with one another? Internal
and external conflicts and politics bring
sparkle to many an adventurers? eye, and
even the most powerful lords are loyal to
some greater power. Most of the feudal
holdings are on the outer edges of countries,
especially on the borders where
enemy territories meet.

Vistas of adventure
The system presented in this article
creates more involvement for PCs in the
macroscopic events of their own particular
world at a much lower than normal
level, and also unites the small lord with
the mighty king in the political chain of
command. See if your characters have
time for goofing off when they must negotiate
with their lords, keep tabs on their
vassals, and deal with political and military
struggles every week. (?Sire, there?s an
army of 10,000 men approaching. . . .?)
The feudal system presented here is a
simplified version of feudalistic Europe,
and all are welcome to adjust the system
to their own tastes. Use some cunning,
ingenuity, and common sense when creating
adventures for newly landed player
characters, and have fun.