Warbard

Career

Qualifications

Technically there are no qualifications necessary to become a Warbard, but only an individual who believes they are talented at singing, songwriting or playing music would consider becoming a Warbard. Traditionally a Warbard is expected to do all three, write the song, play the music and sing the verse. However, Warbards often form War-Bands and each member has their own responsibility like any other band.

Career Progression

The Warbard generally starts their career as a camp follower, trailing an army on campaign and entertaining the troops around the camp. At this stage of their career they are little more than beggars, but if they garner the notice of an officer they may be hired as part of the Military Band, where they will receive wages for entertaining a particular unit or playing tunes. If a Warbard has talent in songwriting they may be commissioned by higher level officers to create songs in dedication to a particular battle, a memorial, or related material. If these commissioned works are well received the Warbard may become part of a military commander's personal retinue, serving as their personal entertainer and biographer. Once a Warbard has their name attached to a General or other major military figure they tend to no longer need to ask for work, instead being requested for commissions or events.

Payment & Reimbursement

How a Warbard is paid depends on what stage they are in their career. If they are a Camp Follower they play for tips from the soldiers. If they've been formally hired by a military unit they receive wages similar to that of a camp cook or other laborer. If they become a retainer they receive an officer's salary and receive sizable commissions for songs written under contract.

Perception

Purpose

A Warbard or War-Band are a mixture of a biographer and a musician. They are paid to accompany armies on campaign in order to chronicle their deeds as song-stories. These come in the form of poetic sagas, marching tunes, and all manner of melodies. Commanders justify commissioning Warbards as a positive for morale, and this aspect is often true. However, the primary purpose of hiring a Warbard is for the Commander's own ambition and legacy. Warbards write the legend of a conflict as it happens, the goal is to write a melody that immortalizes the deeds of an army in song. Additionally, marching tunes benefit drill and good Warbards help maintain morale by entertaining the troops and implicitly promising that their deeds will live on if they do not.

Social Status

Warbards have a variable status depending on the civilization that employs them and their level of talent. Top level Warbards are celebrities known far and wide, their reputation increasing the bids to attain their services. In societies such as the Auslind Confederation this puts them a status adjacent to nobility, and they can become wealthy enough to invest their money in land or industry, thus becoming nobility. More often a Warbard is the favored servant of an affluent figure and become a noble retainer, acting as a more traditional entertainer when their benefactor is not on campaign. However, the majority of Warbards are not at this level and are unlikely to even become a retainer. Warbards that aren't famous are viewed in contradictory terms, particularly by the soldiers who's deeds they are meant to chronicle, and varies quite a bit based on the Warbard's talent. Warbard's are seen as singing vultures looking to elevate themselves upon the mounds of dead. A good Warbard is tolerated by the troops, while they may love the art they don't care for the artist. It can be outright dangerous to be a bad or even mediocre Warbard, as soldiers often take songs wrote about their deeds personally. It's not uncommon for unpopular Warbards to be assaulted or even murdered by the troops they follow, and due to their low standing it's also not uncommon for these crimes to go unpunished or even uninvestigated. A low level Warbard is a nobody, just a non-essential camp follower, although they have the potential to ascend to the heights of the social hierarchy. In cultures such as the Gezakt, entertainers are not valued and are always destined to be considered low class regardless of how popular or affluent they become. Warbards in the Gezakt Union in particular are viewed in the same light as prostitutes or battlefield scavengers. Gezakt Nobility often refuse to learn the names of Warbards, and even if a wealthy Warbard uses their resources to gain land and title the other nobles will continue to look down on them.

Operations

Tools

A Warbard's only tool may be their voice, but any instrument they are skilled in becomes an essential tool for their trade. Warbards that want to reach the heights of success will need pen and pad to write down their work for posterity.

Workplace

A Warbards workplace is a military campaign trail. Therefore they regularly find themselves in fortresses, war camps, and marching alongside the army. The truest test of a Warbard however is to join their benefactors on the field, observing the battle up close so that the work they base off it can be a first-hand account and experience.

Provided Services

Warbards entertain military units on campaign and higher level Warbards are commissioned to write songs about specific military exploits and individuals.

Dangers & Hazards

While Warbards don't serve on the frontlines, being an asset of an army on campaign exposes them to many of the dangers inherent to war. If the army they serve is cut off from supply they are regarded as non-essential personnel and their rations will be among the first to be cut in an emergency situation. If the army a Warbard accompanies loses they may well find themselves in a dangerous situation, especially if the Warbard was uncharitable to the opposing force in the songs they commissioned. Due to a Warbard's purpose being the glorification of the forces they accompany, very often they deride the opposing side, and in turn make themselves a focal point of the enemy's animosity. Despite Warbards not generally engaging in combat they have an exponentially higher chance of being executed by the enemy post-defeat. It is also not altogether rare for a Warbard to be stalked and murdered by a survivor of a battle they had written a song about, displacing their anger on the easiest enemy they can find.
Another danger is one that's often of the Warbard's own making. It's not uncommon for a Warbard to act as a spy and report their benefactor's movements to the enemy. This is usually done purely for financial gain, but some do it for reasons of conscious, and on occasion for insanely self-serving reasons, such as wanting to influence the outcome of a battle in order to be able to write a better song about it. Naturally, this means that Warbards are often regarded with suspicion, and they may be executed for espionage or treason, sometimes on the mere rumor that there's a spy in the camp.

Type

Entertainment

Demand

Luxury Service