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Do the Zhentarim fire members for killing fellow members?
Should the DM allow characters an equal opportunity to flee or avoid an encounter?Are there any alignment restrictions for Zhentarim members in Adventurer's League?I picked the wrong spells as a wizard, how do I recover?Is it a no-no for a DM to kill off an NPC the players want to kill themselves?Players skipping side quests just to have a laugh at the DMHow to make the (city) guards unable to track us?Is this possibly deadly encounter fair to run?Betrayed, Is it reasonable for my character to hold a grudge?How can my new character avoid being a role-playing handicap to the party?Long rests can be interrupted for up to 1 hour without having to restart the rest; is this limit per-rest or per-interruption?
.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__bot-mid-leaderboard:empty margin-bottom:0;
$begingroup$
A PC became a member of the Zhentarim and two weeks later killed another one.
I don’t know if there are rules within the Zhentarim against killing fellow members.
Would the Zhentarim fire a PC member who killed another Zhentarim?
He hid it from the other Zhentarim but after that was arrested by city guards. There was a trial and he was found guilty.
He escaped from the punishment, but other Zhentarim were at the court and they know he is guilty.
Would the Zhentarim fire such a member? Or maybe they don't consider it a problem?
dnd-5e lore forgotten-realms factions
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
$endgroup$
|
show 5 more comments
$begingroup$
A PC became a member of the Zhentarim and two weeks later killed another one.
I don’t know if there are rules within the Zhentarim against killing fellow members.
Would the Zhentarim fire a PC member who killed another Zhentarim?
He hid it from the other Zhentarim but after that was arrested by city guards. There was a trial and he was found guilty.
He escaped from the punishment, but other Zhentarim were at the court and they know he is guilty.
Would the Zhentarim fire such a member? Or maybe they don't consider it a problem?
dnd-5e lore forgotten-realms factions
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
$endgroup$
1
$begingroup$
Is this in reference to a PC choosing the Background Zhentarim Faction Agent?
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 16:25
2
$begingroup$
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "could". When you ask if they "could", I assume you're asking if they have the authority or ability to expel a member (PC or not). But the body of your question seems to be about whether they would want to do this. Could you clarify?
$endgroup$
– Gandalfmeansme
May 6 at 16:37
1
$begingroup$
@nautarch This PC became Zhentarim member and two week after killed other one
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 16:42
5
$begingroup$
Is it organized play? Or are you looking for lore on Zs dealing with such things? Or what, exactly, is your issue? Because if you are DM, everything you want can happen unless specific restrictions apply, but you didn't say anything about them.
$endgroup$
– Mołot
May 6 at 16:48
2
$begingroup$
If so, that would probably be a question we can answer. If you can provide the specifics on why they killed the other member and who that member was (if it's important to the why...or to the zhentarim), that would probably give us all we'd need to answer.
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 17:21
|
show 5 more comments
$begingroup$
A PC became a member of the Zhentarim and two weeks later killed another one.
I don’t know if there are rules within the Zhentarim against killing fellow members.
Would the Zhentarim fire a PC member who killed another Zhentarim?
He hid it from the other Zhentarim but after that was arrested by city guards. There was a trial and he was found guilty.
He escaped from the punishment, but other Zhentarim were at the court and they know he is guilty.
Would the Zhentarim fire such a member? Or maybe they don't consider it a problem?
dnd-5e lore forgotten-realms factions
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
$endgroup$
A PC became a member of the Zhentarim and two weeks later killed another one.
I don’t know if there are rules within the Zhentarim against killing fellow members.
Would the Zhentarim fire a PC member who killed another Zhentarim?
He hid it from the other Zhentarim but after that was arrested by city guards. There was a trial and he was found guilty.
He escaped from the punishment, but other Zhentarim were at the court and they know he is guilty.
Would the Zhentarim fire such a member? Or maybe they don't consider it a problem?
dnd-5e lore forgotten-realms factions
dnd-5e lore forgotten-realms factions
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
edited May 6 at 21:57
V2Blast
29.2k5105177
29.2k5105177
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
asked May 6 at 16:12
OharOhar
490112
490112
1
$begingroup$
Is this in reference to a PC choosing the Background Zhentarim Faction Agent?
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 16:25
2
$begingroup$
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "could". When you ask if they "could", I assume you're asking if they have the authority or ability to expel a member (PC or not). But the body of your question seems to be about whether they would want to do this. Could you clarify?
$endgroup$
– Gandalfmeansme
May 6 at 16:37
1
$begingroup$
@nautarch This PC became Zhentarim member and two week after killed other one
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 16:42
5
$begingroup$
Is it organized play? Or are you looking for lore on Zs dealing with such things? Or what, exactly, is your issue? Because if you are DM, everything you want can happen unless specific restrictions apply, but you didn't say anything about them.
$endgroup$
– Mołot
May 6 at 16:48
2
$begingroup$
If so, that would probably be a question we can answer. If you can provide the specifics on why they killed the other member and who that member was (if it's important to the why...or to the zhentarim), that would probably give us all we'd need to answer.
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 17:21
|
show 5 more comments
1
$begingroup$
Is this in reference to a PC choosing the Background Zhentarim Faction Agent?
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 16:25
2
$begingroup$
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "could". When you ask if they "could", I assume you're asking if they have the authority or ability to expel a member (PC or not). But the body of your question seems to be about whether they would want to do this. Could you clarify?
$endgroup$
– Gandalfmeansme
May 6 at 16:37
1
$begingroup$
@nautarch This PC became Zhentarim member and two week after killed other one
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 16:42
5
$begingroup$
Is it organized play? Or are you looking for lore on Zs dealing with such things? Or what, exactly, is your issue? Because if you are DM, everything you want can happen unless specific restrictions apply, but you didn't say anything about them.
$endgroup$
– Mołot
May 6 at 16:48
2
$begingroup$
If so, that would probably be a question we can answer. If you can provide the specifics on why they killed the other member and who that member was (if it's important to the why...or to the zhentarim), that would probably give us all we'd need to answer.
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 17:21
1
1
$begingroup$
Is this in reference to a PC choosing the Background Zhentarim Faction Agent?
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 16:25
$begingroup$
Is this in reference to a PC choosing the Background Zhentarim Faction Agent?
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 16:25
2
2
$begingroup$
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "could". When you ask if they "could", I assume you're asking if they have the authority or ability to expel a member (PC or not). But the body of your question seems to be about whether they would want to do this. Could you clarify?
$endgroup$
– Gandalfmeansme
May 6 at 16:37
$begingroup$
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "could". When you ask if they "could", I assume you're asking if they have the authority or ability to expel a member (PC or not). But the body of your question seems to be about whether they would want to do this. Could you clarify?
$endgroup$
– Gandalfmeansme
May 6 at 16:37
1
1
$begingroup$
@nautarch This PC became Zhentarim member and two week after killed other one
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 16:42
$begingroup$
@nautarch This PC became Zhentarim member and two week after killed other one
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 16:42
5
5
$begingroup$
Is it organized play? Or are you looking for lore on Zs dealing with such things? Or what, exactly, is your issue? Because if you are DM, everything you want can happen unless specific restrictions apply, but you didn't say anything about them.
$endgroup$
– Mołot
May 6 at 16:48
$begingroup$
Is it organized play? Or are you looking for lore on Zs dealing with such things? Or what, exactly, is your issue? Because if you are DM, everything you want can happen unless specific restrictions apply, but you didn't say anything about them.
$endgroup$
– Mołot
May 6 at 16:48
2
2
$begingroup$
If so, that would probably be a question we can answer. If you can provide the specifics on why they killed the other member and who that member was (if it's important to the why...or to the zhentarim), that would probably give us all we'd need to answer.
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 17:21
$begingroup$
If so, that would probably be a question we can answer. If you can provide the specifics on why they killed the other member and who that member was (if it's important to the why...or to the zhentarim), that would probably give us all we'd need to answer.
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 17:21
|
show 5 more comments
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
The Zhentarim might expel you, or worse
It's understandable to be unsure what would happen in this situation. After all, it's hard to predict how an organization that values ruthlessness and personal achievement will view those values when directed against one of their own members.
The honest answer is that your DM will have to decide. There may be members of the Zhentarim who would reward a carefully managed (and subtly hidden) assassination of certain of their own members: perhaps if the murdered member had been very unpopular, unprofitable, or had been a traitor to the organization? But don't expect that response: you could definitely be expelled for killing a fellow member. Or they could take a more... permanent approach to the problem.
The reason it's hard to know what to expect is found in the central Beliefs of the Zhentarim (findable on their faction overview).
Beliefs
The Zhentarim is your family. You watch out for it, and it watches out for you.
You are the master of your own destiny. Never be less than what you deserve to be.
Everything—and everyone—has a price.
Naturally, these beliefs could be defined or prioritized differently by different individuals, but they give the broad strokes of how a member of the Zhentarim is expected to act. So how the Zhentarim react to you may depend on how much your action upholds or violates these beliefs. But depending on a couple of factors, these beliefs might be seen to defend or condemn one member murdering another.
1.) Did you "watch out for the Zhentarim" by killing one?
This depends on why you did it. If you killed a Zhentarim member for betraying the faction, then probably you didn't violate this tenet. But if you killed them to stop them from robbing a friend of yours, you're probably in trouble. If you can claim that your actions overall helped the Zhentarim, that'll help your case.
2.) Were you trying to "be what you deserve to be"?
Maybe you killed this Zhentarim for selfish reasons: trying to rob them, or take their place in the Zhentarim heirarchy. Although this would definitely seem to violate belief #1 above, it might be defensible as upholding belief #2: that you won't let anyone (even fellow members) force you to be "less than what you deserve to be." Depending on how the Zhentarim prioritize their beliefs, you might be able to defend your actions by this tenant.
Of course, that doesn't mean you'll be in the clear, because...
3.) Everything has a price
If you killed selflessly in the defense of the Zhentarim, you could defend what you did by belief #1. If you killed selfishly in the name of yourself, you could defend what you did by belief #2. But either way, that doesn't mean you'll get off scot free, because "everything has a price."
By killing a person the Zhentarim decided to welcome into their ranks, you've stolen something from the organization as a whole. Everything that person ever would have done for the Zhentarim will now never be done: everything they would have given to "take care of" their Zhentarim family will never be given.
You'll need to somehow make up that balance. Maybe you could try and argue that the act of killing him balances the books in-and-of itself: if he was a traitor, or dead weight, you might feel that killing him made the organization stronger. But taking it upon yourself to make that decision, without consulting any other members, is likely to have a price of its own: after all, if anyone in the organization can just decide to kill any other member when they want, what does belief #1 even mean?
What kind of faction is this?
Ultimately, how the Zhentarim react to this murder will not only depend on your justification or reasons for committing it: it will also depend on how your DM views the Zhentarim, and how unusual it was for this to happen in the DM's version of the faction. Maybe your DM views the Zhentarim as an ultimate Darwinian free-for-all: a Sith like organization where the culling of weak members is not only tolerated but encouraged. In that case, you may be in the clear. But if your DM views the Zhentarim as a group that looks after its own, that protects both its members and its reputation, and that would only permit the killing of one of its members for a serious infraction (like, say, killing one of its members)...
Well, you may need to prepare yourself for the worst. After all, the Zhentarim are a family. You were the master of your own destiny. And everything has a price.
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
$endgroup$
1
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
add a comment |
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$begingroup$
The Zhentarim might expel you, or worse
It's understandable to be unsure what would happen in this situation. After all, it's hard to predict how an organization that values ruthlessness and personal achievement will view those values when directed against one of their own members.
The honest answer is that your DM will have to decide. There may be members of the Zhentarim who would reward a carefully managed (and subtly hidden) assassination of certain of their own members: perhaps if the murdered member had been very unpopular, unprofitable, or had been a traitor to the organization? But don't expect that response: you could definitely be expelled for killing a fellow member. Or they could take a more... permanent approach to the problem.
The reason it's hard to know what to expect is found in the central Beliefs of the Zhentarim (findable on their faction overview).
Beliefs
The Zhentarim is your family. You watch out for it, and it watches out for you.
You are the master of your own destiny. Never be less than what you deserve to be.
Everything—and everyone—has a price.
Naturally, these beliefs could be defined or prioritized differently by different individuals, but they give the broad strokes of how a member of the Zhentarim is expected to act. So how the Zhentarim react to you may depend on how much your action upholds or violates these beliefs. But depending on a couple of factors, these beliefs might be seen to defend or condemn one member murdering another.
1.) Did you "watch out for the Zhentarim" by killing one?
This depends on why you did it. If you killed a Zhentarim member for betraying the faction, then probably you didn't violate this tenet. But if you killed them to stop them from robbing a friend of yours, you're probably in trouble. If you can claim that your actions overall helped the Zhentarim, that'll help your case.
2.) Were you trying to "be what you deserve to be"?
Maybe you killed this Zhentarim for selfish reasons: trying to rob them, or take their place in the Zhentarim heirarchy. Although this would definitely seem to violate belief #1 above, it might be defensible as upholding belief #2: that you won't let anyone (even fellow members) force you to be "less than what you deserve to be." Depending on how the Zhentarim prioritize their beliefs, you might be able to defend your actions by this tenant.
Of course, that doesn't mean you'll be in the clear, because...
3.) Everything has a price
If you killed selflessly in the defense of the Zhentarim, you could defend what you did by belief #1. If you killed selfishly in the name of yourself, you could defend what you did by belief #2. But either way, that doesn't mean you'll get off scot free, because "everything has a price."
By killing a person the Zhentarim decided to welcome into their ranks, you've stolen something from the organization as a whole. Everything that person ever would have done for the Zhentarim will now never be done: everything they would have given to "take care of" their Zhentarim family will never be given.
You'll need to somehow make up that balance. Maybe you could try and argue that the act of killing him balances the books in-and-of itself: if he was a traitor, or dead weight, you might feel that killing him made the organization stronger. But taking it upon yourself to make that decision, without consulting any other members, is likely to have a price of its own: after all, if anyone in the organization can just decide to kill any other member when they want, what does belief #1 even mean?
What kind of faction is this?
Ultimately, how the Zhentarim react to this murder will not only depend on your justification or reasons for committing it: it will also depend on how your DM views the Zhentarim, and how unusual it was for this to happen in the DM's version of the faction. Maybe your DM views the Zhentarim as an ultimate Darwinian free-for-all: a Sith like organization where the culling of weak members is not only tolerated but encouraged. In that case, you may be in the clear. But if your DM views the Zhentarim as a group that looks after its own, that protects both its members and its reputation, and that would only permit the killing of one of its members for a serious infraction (like, say, killing one of its members)...
Well, you may need to prepare yourself for the worst. After all, the Zhentarim are a family. You were the master of your own destiny. And everything has a price.
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
$endgroup$
1
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
add a comment |
$begingroup$
The Zhentarim might expel you, or worse
It's understandable to be unsure what would happen in this situation. After all, it's hard to predict how an organization that values ruthlessness and personal achievement will view those values when directed against one of their own members.
The honest answer is that your DM will have to decide. There may be members of the Zhentarim who would reward a carefully managed (and subtly hidden) assassination of certain of their own members: perhaps if the murdered member had been very unpopular, unprofitable, or had been a traitor to the organization? But don't expect that response: you could definitely be expelled for killing a fellow member. Or they could take a more... permanent approach to the problem.
The reason it's hard to know what to expect is found in the central Beliefs of the Zhentarim (findable on their faction overview).
Beliefs
The Zhentarim is your family. You watch out for it, and it watches out for you.
You are the master of your own destiny. Never be less than what you deserve to be.
Everything—and everyone—has a price.
Naturally, these beliefs could be defined or prioritized differently by different individuals, but they give the broad strokes of how a member of the Zhentarim is expected to act. So how the Zhentarim react to you may depend on how much your action upholds or violates these beliefs. But depending on a couple of factors, these beliefs might be seen to defend or condemn one member murdering another.
1.) Did you "watch out for the Zhentarim" by killing one?
This depends on why you did it. If you killed a Zhentarim member for betraying the faction, then probably you didn't violate this tenet. But if you killed them to stop them from robbing a friend of yours, you're probably in trouble. If you can claim that your actions overall helped the Zhentarim, that'll help your case.
2.) Were you trying to "be what you deserve to be"?
Maybe you killed this Zhentarim for selfish reasons: trying to rob them, or take their place in the Zhentarim heirarchy. Although this would definitely seem to violate belief #1 above, it might be defensible as upholding belief #2: that you won't let anyone (even fellow members) force you to be "less than what you deserve to be." Depending on how the Zhentarim prioritize their beliefs, you might be able to defend your actions by this tenant.
Of course, that doesn't mean you'll be in the clear, because...
3.) Everything has a price
If you killed selflessly in the defense of the Zhentarim, you could defend what you did by belief #1. If you killed selfishly in the name of yourself, you could defend what you did by belief #2. But either way, that doesn't mean you'll get off scot free, because "everything has a price."
By killing a person the Zhentarim decided to welcome into their ranks, you've stolen something from the organization as a whole. Everything that person ever would have done for the Zhentarim will now never be done: everything they would have given to "take care of" their Zhentarim family will never be given.
You'll need to somehow make up that balance. Maybe you could try and argue that the act of killing him balances the books in-and-of itself: if he was a traitor, or dead weight, you might feel that killing him made the organization stronger. But taking it upon yourself to make that decision, without consulting any other members, is likely to have a price of its own: after all, if anyone in the organization can just decide to kill any other member when they want, what does belief #1 even mean?
What kind of faction is this?
Ultimately, how the Zhentarim react to this murder will not only depend on your justification or reasons for committing it: it will also depend on how your DM views the Zhentarim, and how unusual it was for this to happen in the DM's version of the faction. Maybe your DM views the Zhentarim as an ultimate Darwinian free-for-all: a Sith like organization where the culling of weak members is not only tolerated but encouraged. In that case, you may be in the clear. But if your DM views the Zhentarim as a group that looks after its own, that protects both its members and its reputation, and that would only permit the killing of one of its members for a serious infraction (like, say, killing one of its members)...
Well, you may need to prepare yourself for the worst. After all, the Zhentarim are a family. You were the master of your own destiny. And everything has a price.
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
$endgroup$
1
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
add a comment |
$begingroup$
The Zhentarim might expel you, or worse
It's understandable to be unsure what would happen in this situation. After all, it's hard to predict how an organization that values ruthlessness and personal achievement will view those values when directed against one of their own members.
The honest answer is that your DM will have to decide. There may be members of the Zhentarim who would reward a carefully managed (and subtly hidden) assassination of certain of their own members: perhaps if the murdered member had been very unpopular, unprofitable, or had been a traitor to the organization? But don't expect that response: you could definitely be expelled for killing a fellow member. Or they could take a more... permanent approach to the problem.
The reason it's hard to know what to expect is found in the central Beliefs of the Zhentarim (findable on their faction overview).
Beliefs
The Zhentarim is your family. You watch out for it, and it watches out for you.
You are the master of your own destiny. Never be less than what you deserve to be.
Everything—and everyone—has a price.
Naturally, these beliefs could be defined or prioritized differently by different individuals, but they give the broad strokes of how a member of the Zhentarim is expected to act. So how the Zhentarim react to you may depend on how much your action upholds or violates these beliefs. But depending on a couple of factors, these beliefs might be seen to defend or condemn one member murdering another.
1.) Did you "watch out for the Zhentarim" by killing one?
This depends on why you did it. If you killed a Zhentarim member for betraying the faction, then probably you didn't violate this tenet. But if you killed them to stop them from robbing a friend of yours, you're probably in trouble. If you can claim that your actions overall helped the Zhentarim, that'll help your case.
2.) Were you trying to "be what you deserve to be"?
Maybe you killed this Zhentarim for selfish reasons: trying to rob them, or take their place in the Zhentarim heirarchy. Although this would definitely seem to violate belief #1 above, it might be defensible as upholding belief #2: that you won't let anyone (even fellow members) force you to be "less than what you deserve to be." Depending on how the Zhentarim prioritize their beliefs, you might be able to defend your actions by this tenant.
Of course, that doesn't mean you'll be in the clear, because...
3.) Everything has a price
If you killed selflessly in the defense of the Zhentarim, you could defend what you did by belief #1. If you killed selfishly in the name of yourself, you could defend what you did by belief #2. But either way, that doesn't mean you'll get off scot free, because "everything has a price."
By killing a person the Zhentarim decided to welcome into their ranks, you've stolen something from the organization as a whole. Everything that person ever would have done for the Zhentarim will now never be done: everything they would have given to "take care of" their Zhentarim family will never be given.
You'll need to somehow make up that balance. Maybe you could try and argue that the act of killing him balances the books in-and-of itself: if he was a traitor, or dead weight, you might feel that killing him made the organization stronger. But taking it upon yourself to make that decision, without consulting any other members, is likely to have a price of its own: after all, if anyone in the organization can just decide to kill any other member when they want, what does belief #1 even mean?
What kind of faction is this?
Ultimately, how the Zhentarim react to this murder will not only depend on your justification or reasons for committing it: it will also depend on how your DM views the Zhentarim, and how unusual it was for this to happen in the DM's version of the faction. Maybe your DM views the Zhentarim as an ultimate Darwinian free-for-all: a Sith like organization where the culling of weak members is not only tolerated but encouraged. In that case, you may be in the clear. But if your DM views the Zhentarim as a group that looks after its own, that protects both its members and its reputation, and that would only permit the killing of one of its members for a serious infraction (like, say, killing one of its members)...
Well, you may need to prepare yourself for the worst. After all, the Zhentarim are a family. You were the master of your own destiny. And everything has a price.
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
$endgroup$
The Zhentarim might expel you, or worse
It's understandable to be unsure what would happen in this situation. After all, it's hard to predict how an organization that values ruthlessness and personal achievement will view those values when directed against one of their own members.
The honest answer is that your DM will have to decide. There may be members of the Zhentarim who would reward a carefully managed (and subtly hidden) assassination of certain of their own members: perhaps if the murdered member had been very unpopular, unprofitable, or had been a traitor to the organization? But don't expect that response: you could definitely be expelled for killing a fellow member. Or they could take a more... permanent approach to the problem.
The reason it's hard to know what to expect is found in the central Beliefs of the Zhentarim (findable on their faction overview).
Beliefs
The Zhentarim is your family. You watch out for it, and it watches out for you.
You are the master of your own destiny. Never be less than what you deserve to be.
Everything—and everyone—has a price.
Naturally, these beliefs could be defined or prioritized differently by different individuals, but they give the broad strokes of how a member of the Zhentarim is expected to act. So how the Zhentarim react to you may depend on how much your action upholds or violates these beliefs. But depending on a couple of factors, these beliefs might be seen to defend or condemn one member murdering another.
1.) Did you "watch out for the Zhentarim" by killing one?
This depends on why you did it. If you killed a Zhentarim member for betraying the faction, then probably you didn't violate this tenet. But if you killed them to stop them from robbing a friend of yours, you're probably in trouble. If you can claim that your actions overall helped the Zhentarim, that'll help your case.
2.) Were you trying to "be what you deserve to be"?
Maybe you killed this Zhentarim for selfish reasons: trying to rob them, or take their place in the Zhentarim heirarchy. Although this would definitely seem to violate belief #1 above, it might be defensible as upholding belief #2: that you won't let anyone (even fellow members) force you to be "less than what you deserve to be." Depending on how the Zhentarim prioritize their beliefs, you might be able to defend your actions by this tenant.
Of course, that doesn't mean you'll be in the clear, because...
3.) Everything has a price
If you killed selflessly in the defense of the Zhentarim, you could defend what you did by belief #1. If you killed selfishly in the name of yourself, you could defend what you did by belief #2. But either way, that doesn't mean you'll get off scot free, because "everything has a price."
By killing a person the Zhentarim decided to welcome into their ranks, you've stolen something from the organization as a whole. Everything that person ever would have done for the Zhentarim will now never be done: everything they would have given to "take care of" their Zhentarim family will never be given.
You'll need to somehow make up that balance. Maybe you could try and argue that the act of killing him balances the books in-and-of itself: if he was a traitor, or dead weight, you might feel that killing him made the organization stronger. But taking it upon yourself to make that decision, without consulting any other members, is likely to have a price of its own: after all, if anyone in the organization can just decide to kill any other member when they want, what does belief #1 even mean?
What kind of faction is this?
Ultimately, how the Zhentarim react to this murder will not only depend on your justification or reasons for committing it: it will also depend on how your DM views the Zhentarim, and how unusual it was for this to happen in the DM's version of the faction. Maybe your DM views the Zhentarim as an ultimate Darwinian free-for-all: a Sith like organization where the culling of weak members is not only tolerated but encouraged. In that case, you may be in the clear. But if your DM views the Zhentarim as a group that looks after its own, that protects both its members and its reputation, and that would only permit the killing of one of its members for a serious infraction (like, say, killing one of its members)...
Well, you may need to prepare yourself for the worst. After all, the Zhentarim are a family. You were the master of your own destiny. And everything has a price.
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
edited May 6 at 19:31
SevenSidedDie
212k33678956
212k33678956
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
answered May 6 at 16:44
GandalfmeansmeGandalfmeansme
25.5k690146
25.5k690146
1
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
add a comment |
1
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
1
1
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
There’s precedent in the upper membership for killing rivals to advance, with what went on between Fzoul and Manshoon.
$endgroup$
– SevenSidedDie
May 6 at 19:30
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
$begingroup$
The best answer I could get
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 22:42
add a comment |
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1
$begingroup$
Is this in reference to a PC choosing the Background Zhentarim Faction Agent?
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 16:25
2
$begingroup$
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "could". When you ask if they "could", I assume you're asking if they have the authority or ability to expel a member (PC or not). But the body of your question seems to be about whether they would want to do this. Could you clarify?
$endgroup$
– Gandalfmeansme
May 6 at 16:37
1
$begingroup$
@nautarch This PC became Zhentarim member and two week after killed other one
$endgroup$
– Ohar
May 6 at 16:42
5
$begingroup$
Is it organized play? Or are you looking for lore on Zs dealing with such things? Or what, exactly, is your issue? Because if you are DM, everything you want can happen unless specific restrictions apply, but you didn't say anything about them.
$endgroup$
– Mołot
May 6 at 16:48
2
$begingroup$
If so, that would probably be a question we can answer. If you can provide the specifics on why they killed the other member and who that member was (if it's important to the why...or to the zhentarim), that would probably give us all we'd need to answer.
$endgroup$
– NautArch
May 6 at 17:21