All —

I have a situation where some bandits have captured some knights — standard stuff, right? Except:

I'm wondering how the actual swap of money for captives would take place, and how the communications between the two sides would work from initiation to swap. How do the bandits even approach the liege lord of the their captive knights without being strung up on the spot, or hunted down, tortured for the prisoner's location then strung up? The old message on an arrow? Cliché, I know, but relatively easy to pull off.

This is not like knights capturing knights and doing it all above-board and playing by the honorable rules of chivalry. This is outlaw scum — untrustworthy, lying, thieving bastards — extorting nobles. Who have no reason to believe the knights will be released after the gold is picked up.

If the two parties can some to an arrangement, how might the bandits make sure they get the ransom money without being immediately followed and impaled on a spike? Drop-off spots? Too easy to surveil.

One idea I had was to just keep the captive knights (there are more than one) separated and swap them one at a time. If the bandits are confident they've not been followed they will continue to release the knights in good health. If the liege gets the knights back unharmed, they will continue to pay the ransom.

Maybe the bandits will move their location every time, after a swap, etc.

Of course, the liege lord has to take it on faith that the bandits will honor the arrangement on the last exchange that the last knight will be delivered in good shape. It is in the bandits best interest to honor this deal too, so they can achieve some sort of imaginary parity with the lord when it comes to behaving honorably.

Other complications that come to mind: How are the knights held without knowing where they are so they can just come back and trounce their former captors? I reckon blindfolds or bags over the head will accomplish this well enough, though an observant knight may try to remain alert for snatches of dialog that might provide a clue as to where he is/was being held.

What other sorts of complications (and solutions) can you imagine, both for the bandits and for the nobles? I need some canny bandit tricks and some sensible counter-measures from the nobles.

I recall that one scene in THE WALKING DEAD where the heroes cover themselves in viscera to protect themselves from the zombies — then it start to rain, washing the filth right off, along with their "camouflage". Something like that would be neat to set up. Some random occurrence that makes even the best-laid plan unravel.

I tried to do a bit of research online, but I'm a little uncomfortable Googling "kidnapping", "ransom notes", and "prisoner exchange", as you can imagine! Never know when the NSA is watching! Anyway, True Detective stuff is not really my genre, so I'm looking for ideas. Any and all are most appreciated.


Thanks,


T.

I think you have good ideas there, Taliesin.

Since trust is likely to be scarce on both sides, incremental exchange limits the risks on both sides. It wouldn't even have to be over long period of time. You can even set it up as a one event, but have ransoms and knights swap hands one at a time. Spreading it over days and different locations is even safer, of course.

The bandits probably would choose a spot where it is hard for the mounted men to get up to them. Some kind of a terrain barrier would no doubt be desirable, and a dense forest is always a favorite. They could rig up some traps in advance to secure their retreat, too.

They shouldn't let the Lord / his representative know the final location in advance. Instead, have them come to a spot and then do the arrow message to tell them where the true location is: "Come to the abbey of X. You will receive more instructions then where the transfer will happen." The bandits might even make sure that the ransom party needs to hurry, thus ensuring that they can't bring hordes of hunters and footmen with them to comb the forest.

Have the bandits use a priest to deliver the message, and to carry the ransoms.

It's Sunday - everyone is at church. How would the Lord follow all of the peasants who are attending church that day?

In regards to the trust issue, you have a priest involved.

Now if you want to monkey-wrench this some, pagan bandits using a pagan priest - who has to work with a BC or RC priest.

Random thoughts...

Have one of the captive knight's squires deliver the ransom demand. If he, like the knights, has been kept ignorant of the location of their hideout and is delivered near the lords manor blindfolded and then released, he can't give up the location. Also, don't hold the captive knights in the bandit's actual hideout or at least not their main one.

Morien's idea of having the exchange take place in a location that removes the knights main advantage - horses - is (perhaps obviously given the source) a great one. Dense woods are a great choice or, if the local terrain works, a narrow, high sided valley... knights at the bottom, bandits with bows on the ridge.

Another thought: Since the ransom would be as likely to be paid in goods and livestock as in coin, the bandits could demand the horses of the ransom party as part of the payment. That leaves that lord's men on foot while the bandits ride off with their horses (hopefully they rode their second best to the meeting) and whatever cattle the ransom was paid in.

Of course, betrayal on either sides part makes for a much more interesting adventure...

The bandits, if daring, could attempt to capture the ransom party... perhaps hiding additional men around the meeting location and ambushing them. Of course, the lord could also secretly send additional men to surround the bandits and so ambush their ambush. Nested ambushes are also good things to be revealed by random chance... a flushed deer or flock of birds, a sudden wind throwing the trees aside, steal is drawn and mayhem ensues. In fact, an actual ambush isn't even necessary for that. With both sides nervously expecting betrayal, a sudden flock of birds taking flight might be all some fool needs to yell "It's a trap" and draw a blade.

There is also the old "false prisoner" trick, where the bandits actually hand over a peasant in the captured knights clothes (a bag over his head being a good way to make that work) while keeping the real knight a prisoner and perhaps ransoming him a second time, this time to the knight's (or his lord's) rival. In fact, for common outlaws that might be their best plan from the start... rather than ransoming the knights themselves, sell them to a noble who is a rival of their lord, pocket the (admittedly smaller but still substantial) loot and let the nobles play the ransom game.

Another thought: Since the ransom would be as likely to be paid in goods and livestock as in coin, the bandits could demand the horses of the ransom party as part of the payment. That leaves that lord's men on foot while the bandits ride off with their horses (hopefully they rode their second best to the meeting) and whatever cattle the ransom was paid in.

In fact, for common outlaws that might be their best plan from the start... rather than ransoming the knights themselves, sell them to a noble who is a rival of their lord, pocket the (admittedly smaller but still substantial) loot and let the nobles play the ransom game.


Very good ideas, too.

Everyone gave a lot of ideas for the bandits. Here are some ideas for the Lord.

- First of all. The Liege lord has a big problem. If he accepts the ransom he may invite others to the the same, and while nobles can be trusted to uphold their word. Do bandits do the same? so he actually may refuse to pay at all.
- He pays only part of the ransom and promises to pay the rest later. It could be he does not have the money ready. When the knights are released he sends out knights to find the bandits and punish them accordingly.
- He stalls (it takes time to gather all the goods). Meanwhile he sends out hunters to find the captives. If they are found a strike is done on the location.
- He pays the ransom ion very bulky goods or it is a lot (paying it in chickens for instance). That way the bandits needs something or a lot of people to transport the goods.
- Whatever the Lord does he will try to exact revenge on the bandits. And thus get parts of the goods back.