From: [d--r--r] at [mustang.uwo.ca] (Dave Harper)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.dnd
Subject: Armies and PCs - Promotion
Date: Sat, 09 Nov 1996 08:15:07 GMT

        Characters who enlist for long periods of time have a good chance of
being promoted.  In general, three things need to happen for a PC to
be promoted.  First, an opening of the next highest rank must become
available.  Armies generally use the system of mass promotions,
meaning that a character will become patrol leader of his own unit,
and then strike leader, with his companions patrol leaders of their
own units, until finally (theoretically) the character is a general,
and his companions War Leaders and Force Commanders.  However, in
practice, this limits the number of openings every year to a very
small number.  Secondly, the character has competition from others;
one of the benefits of this system is that the number of competing
officers is limited to a very small number, 2 to 8 others, depending
on rank.  Thirdly, the character must have the prerequisite attribute
scores and skill for that rank.  Otherwise, they are frozen at their
current rank.
        During peacetime, the GM rolls for an opening at the desired rank once
every 6 months.  There is a 5% chance of an officer retiring, and a
10% chance of a soldier (including PLs) doing so.  In wartime, there
is also a 5% chance of an officer dying, and a 10% chance of a soldier
doing so, during the same 6 months.  As a result, in wartime the table
is rolled against every 3 months (season), the odd seasons (spring and
fall) representing the death of their commander.  Note that openings
at higher ranks have been accounted for in this system (there is, for
example, a 1/7 chance that if an opening in Force Leader comes
available, the Strike Leader in charge of the PCs will be promoted).
If the GM rolls a 00 on this roll (percentile dice), then the officer
in question has been decomissioned with extreme prejudice (they are
revealed as traitors, deviants, or imbiceles, or are otherwise
demoted, transferred or banished from the army).
        Rank is the desired rank.  Dies/Retires is the chance of that officer
retiring or dying.  Promoted is the chance of the officer in charge of
the PCs being promoted to the next highest rank (also creating a
vacuum).  Min Attributes is the minimum total score of the PC's (or
NPC's) Intelligence, Wisdom/Willpower and Charisma/Charm.  Officers,
including Strike Leaders and up, gain a bonus to their Charisma (or
penalty) from their social status, if those rules are used (see
Kara-Tur Oriental Adventures).  Patrol leaders ignore status, and
Generals add their status score as if it were a fourth attribute (if
this rule is used, they require a Min Attribute of 60).  Strategy is a
new proficiency, based on Intelligence -4 and 2 slots, used in war and
in chess.  Treat each 5% as 1 point on a d20.  In my campaign, it is a
skill that starts at 20% and goes up by 4% a level, plus bonuses for
race (humans +3%) and intelligence (up to +20%!).

Rank         Dies/Retires  Promoted   Min Attributes      Min Strategy   Base
Chance
Patrol Leader   01-05               06               24               --               01-11
Strike Leader   01-03               04               30               20%/4         01-11
Force Leader    01-03         04-05           35           25%/5     01-14
FC (jr)   01-03             04-08       39       30%/6         01-33
FC (sr)   01-03             04-06       42       40%/8         01-99
War Leader      01-03     04     44     45%/9               01-99
General   01-03             --             45             50%/10     01-33

The chance of promotion varies by the following:
+2% per attribute point (Int, Wis, or Cha) above the minimum
+1% per 3% strategy above the minimum
-3% for every alignment difference from Lawful (-3 N, -6 C)
-3% for every alignment difference from Good (-3 N, -6 E)
        Note that evil characters can get many more chances for promotion by
                 killing their superior officers.  ;-)
+1% per decoration in battle
-6% for sexual prejudice (men in a matriarchy, women in a patriarchy)
-3% to -18% for racial prejudice (elves in a human army -3%, gnomes in

        a human army -6%, ogres in a human army -15%, wolfen in a human army 
        -18%, etc)
+5% if knighted