04 Night's Watch.pdf - Chaos Bleeds

CHAPTER 1: The Night’s Watchto acquire votes enough to secure the seat. While open politicking isfrowned upon on the Wall, many brothers will call in favors, or evencovertly intimidate others into giving them the support they need.Charm and Convince are favored techniques, though Incite is oftenused to turn people against the participant’s rival, and even Intimidateand Bargain can be used to promise specific rewards for those who allythemselves with the brother who started the Intrigue.Seduction even makes an appearance among the techniques usedalong the Wall, though with less frequency than it is used in the South.Wildling women have been known to convince a Sworn Brother to sharetheir bed in return for protection, or to learn secrets of the Watch. Thewomen who work the brothels of Mole’s Town also have their prizes,and have been known to use Seduction to ensure repeat business, favoredtreatment, or even a blind eye towards their frowned-upon business.It is also notable that Seduction need not end with a sexual encounterbetween the two involved—it is merely a technique used to gain thefavor of another through innuendo and implied impropriety. Brotherswho win friends over with their bawdy stories from before they took theBlack use this technique to great effect.Desertion“You have not deserted—yet. Here you stand. If we beheadedevery boy who rode to Mole’s Town in the night, only ghostswould guard the Wall.”—Lord Commander Jeor Mormont,A Game of T hronesclothing to replace the telltale black woolens that mark them as fugitivesfrom the Wall. The trouble this makes for the smallfolk population makesdeserters as unwelcome south of the Wall as they are on the Wall itself.The execution is to be carried out immediately upon the apprehensionof the subject by either the local representative of the King’s Justice(usually the local lord where the deserter was found), or by the SwornBrothers who captured the deserter. In either case, the deserter’s head issent back to the Wall, both as proof of his apprehension and as a reminderto the remaining brothers that their role with the Watch only ends withdeath, no matter where they might try and flee. Often this reminder isenough to change the heart of someone who had been considering desertion,though every population of brothers has at least one who is eithertoo afraid to be wise, or considers himself too clever to be caught.Like much about the Wall and the Watch however, the truth of thematter is often far different from public perception. Who does and doesnot qualify as a deserter is a gray area around what would seem to be ablack-and-white issue. The brothers take pride in their ability to policetheir own, and a deserter often shows signs of his intent long before hegrabs a horse and rides south. The ranking members of the Watch havebeen on the Wall long enough to recognize these signs as they arise,and often make certain watchers are in place to prevent a deserter fromfleeing his sworn duty.A deserter’s cohort is often called into service when these issuesarise—the bonds forged by training run deep, and a cohort loses a greatdeal of face if one of their number forsakes his vows. Often, a sternrebuke from his brothers is enough to convince a would-be deserterthat his course is at best, foolish, and more likely suicidal. Because ofthe effectiveness of these techniques, and because the need for men toSeldom spoken of in any military unit, desertion is as great a threatto the Night’s Watch as any that lurks beyond the Wall. The constantcold of the inhospitable north worms into a man’s soul and weakens hisresolve against acts he might once have viewed as despicable. The unreasonablestress of constant assault, and the savagery of men with toolittle sleep and too much time on their hands can be even worse thanthe weather, especially for those who find themselves on the wrong sideof a well-positioned brother.This section is designed to look at how the Watch approaches thetopic of desertion, as well as how they deal with those who try to fleetheir sworn oaths. In addition to looking at both the official and unofficialpolicy which members of the Watch take when it comes to deserters,it also looks at some of the reasons why a Sworn Brother mightleave the Wall, and how to incorporate desertion themes into yourNight’s Watch campaign.Desertion &the Night’s WatchOn the record, the Night’s Watch have an extremely straightforwardresponse to desertion: the penalty is death, usually by hanging over theWall for those the Night’s Watch catches, or by beheading for thosewho fall into the hands of Northern lords.Friendless, and afraid to been seen openly, the deserter often resortsto acts of thievery simply to provide for themselves, and many try to find19