Warriors in the Campaign (DK)

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Warrior characters have the greatest impact on a DARK SUN campaign through force of arms. With their own incredible fighting skills and armies of followers at their command, high-level warriors confront mammoth creatures and whole nations armed with obsidian and steel.
==Arrival of Followers==
Followers are warriors impressed with the character's prowess and accomplishments. Work the arrival of followers into the unfolding campaign. Players shouldn't simply roll up a new unit and add it to a roster on their character sheet, with no regard for the present campaign situation. The tables in the DARK SUN rule book serve as DM guidelines.
When it's time for new followers to arrive, ask, "What potential source of followers has this warrior impressed recently? Who did he probably impress the most?" The answers narrow the possibilities and make the followers' arrival more realistic.
Another approach is to roll up or otherwise create the warrior's next unit of followers well in advance. Then bring them into the campaign as allies or foes, long before the warrior character should be "looking" for them. By careful planning, the DM can make the character "earn" his next followers, either by joining them or gaining control of the unit through role-playing.
==More Uses for Followers==
A DM can fall into a terrible trap with followers. Large forces can pull the campaign focus away from the player character and onto the clash of armies.
But tens or even hundreds of warriors don't have to direct the campaign toward large-scale warfare, at least not from the viewpoint of the warrior character. Some further uses for followers:
Incredible monsters: Some monsters, such as drakes and emerging dragons, can lay waste to dozens of low-level warriors at a time, especially when caught out in the open. If a warrior isn't careful, monsters of great power can whittle his units of followers down in a short time. A warrior might use his units to flush out and engage these huge creatures rather than take the risk alone.
Credible monsters: Large numbers of smaller monsters can be equally devastating. Even when monsters are disorganized, clearing them or keeping them away from a stretch of land can keep large numbers of troops busy. A warrior may divide up one or more units into patrols to keep an area clear of monsters, and losses among such patrols can be quite high.
Loans or tribute: When a warrior finds no pressing need for his soldiers, others certainly need them. A warrior can make money hiring out followers as mercenaries, or he can gain favors by loaning troops where needed. To keep a sorcerer-king at a distance, a warrior might give followers as tribute to serve under the tyrant. Of course, using followers as tribute will cause unrest among the remaining followers, unless the warrior convinces them he has some ulterior motive.
Construction: Though not trained for it, followers can be construction workers. Field fortifications are well within their talents, especially if led by high-level fighters. More complicated tasks such as buildings or permanent structures are also possible, provided the soldiers get instruction from skilled artisans. Long periods spent in construction can hurt overall morale, however, as the followers become impatient for the glory of battle.
Independent missions: A warrior can send his followers on missions where he won't be directly involved, but the risks to the unit are many. Sending them out of the owning character's direct command is dangerous-it strips the player of control over his PC and opportunities for role-playing. However, a unit with clear instructions might indeed perform a task without (or despite) great losses.
For instance, a warrior may want a unit to patrol the road from Altaruk to South Ledopolus and back, scouting for threats and dangers. The warrior gets his information when the entire unit comes back intact, or when the few survivors straggle back to his camp. When he's not there to make decisions for them, his unit's attrition is likely to be high.
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==Getting Away From It All==
Some stories work best when the warrior leaves his followers behind ("billeted") for extended periods of time, but the effect on the followers might be drastic.
Accomplishments: While the followers are billeted, it is unlikely that they will accomplish anything. It is not in a soldier's nature to work hard when not involved in combat. They may carry out or ignore specific instructions at the DM's discretion. Worse, they might earn the wrath of locals by letting field fortifications fall into disarray, fighting among themselves, etc.
Impatience: A warrior can expect to leave his followers for a period of one week without incident. After that, each unit has a non-cumulative chance of 5% per week to abandon their posts. No matter what the warrior's reputation, a unit may get weary of waiting and seek another champion.