Would my idea for A Unique Mercenary Company for Dnd work?

marshalljames1

I've had A Idea for A Unique Mercenary Company for Dnd. Would it work?

The entire company consists of people whose father was A Commoner that did something that resulted in him being elevated to the nobility

Abersade

Interesting question.

In your world you may, of course, do whatever you want, so by that definition then yes.

If you are looking for a historical precedent for this in reality you'll run into an issue. That being: the most common way for a commoner to become part of the nobility was generally due to being granted knighthood. Knights, pretty much by definition, owe fealty to the ruling body of the kingdom they serve. That would mean that knights who sired a whole bunch of kids could run a company of trained and effective soldiers but they wouldn't really be mercenaries since the knight commanding them owes fealty.

Historically the rules get a bit looser if the commoner becomes part of the nobility in some other way, say an ancestral link was discovered which allows the commoner to inherit the title and associated lands. In that circumstance the noble still owes fealty but that doesn't necessarily mean that they owe a duty of military service (unlike knights), so they would be in a much better position to run a military merc company. If they proceed to act against their ruler's interests I think it would be fair to say that they risk some sort of retribution though, so it's a tricky path to follow.

Then again, both of those scenarios are predicated on the ruling body and general populace knowing that the newly minted noble is the leader of the mercenary company. This sort of ruse is easier to pull off than you might imagine and would keep the noble from losing the benefits of their title. Knights specifically would be less likely to follow that path though depending on the specific tenants of their code of chivalry. Alignment would factor heavily here.

marshalljames1

Its clear that you've missed the part about the mercenary group consisting entirely of children of noble birth whose fathers were of common birth  yet despite being of common birth earned a elevation to the nobility

Abersade

Sure.

"In your world you may, of course, do whatever you want, so by that definition then yes." and " That would mean that knights who sired a whole bunch of kids could..."

Abersade

Additional Point: Regardless of who actually runs the company some sort of fealty is owed by nature of their titles, so most of my first response would still apply.