Introducing players / PCs after the start

[Lanathar]

So the hook for the adventure is the desire for revenge on Gaedren. This in theory gives some individuals a reason to work together.

But what if someone dies relatively early or joins after Gaedren dies.

How do people hook them in? Is it just that they need a link to being an adventurer employed by the guard? Do people find much is lost by them not originally meeting the Queen?

And I assume on of the Crimson Throne campaign traits will not be necessary (although I suppose having someone who has suffered at Gaedren's hands encounter his killers could help bind them together)

What have other GMs done?

The final snag is due to a complicated set of circumstances I have a player who received the card and the initial hook but now seems unlikely to make a session until after Gaedren is dead (I can probably delay the queen meeting by encounters on the way).

Should I just let it play out that he has found the people who he met after they killed Gaedren and see what happens? Or should he just make a new character using the leads I asked about above? (I don't think he would want to)

A further complication would be that his character would not be in the fishery whilst the anarchy breaks out. I am currently struggling to see what consequences this would have

It is far from an ideal scenario!

[Skeld]

I had something similar happen this past weekend. We kicked the campaign off, but due to scheduling problems, two of my five players weren't able to attend. My solution was simply to play the other two characters as NPCs until their players make it to a future session.

To me, players and charactes are separate entities. If a player can't make it to a session, that doesn't mean the character needs to sit out too. My group has a long history of NPC'ing characters for absent players. Everyone is pretty comfortable with it.

-Skeld

[Seren]

Temporary absence: The player can choose between the character being in the foreground or background. If they're in the background, they're assumed to be lurking just 'off screen' but can provide out of combat healing or other support when the party isn't threatened. If they choose 'foreground', then they participate, but have hitpoints and run the risk of dying. If they choose background, adjust the combats. Removing one of the lieutenants / mooks from most combat will do the trick.

Permanent absence: Depends on where we are in the story, but there are lots of ways out that could work. Examples:

Spoiler:

They're satisfied that Gaedrin is dead and want to move on. They're staying behind in Korvosa to help Cressida organize the resistance. They run off with Trinia

New player: Lots of NPCs can have a reason to join the PCs. Give them the overall view of the character and let them customize. For instance, if they like Trinia, they can come in with either Trinia the bard, Trinia the rogue, Trinia the Sorceress, or Trinia the multiclass fighter/rogue/enchantment specialized sorceress.