Fun with factions: In the dungeon

 Factions add an extra dimension to the role playing part of RPGs, allowing players to ally with some and play others against each other. Probably the most well-known examples of dungeon factions are the various humanoid tribes of the Caves of Chaos in B2: The Keep on the Borderlands. Not only is the opportunity for politicking, diplomacy, and subterfuge prominent in the module, but arguably a vital part of any viable strategy for dealing with all the orcs, goblins, bugbears, and other assorted nasties far too numerous for a party of beginning characters to tackle with brute force. 

Factions in a dungeon or dungeon complex like the Caves of Chaos tend to be limited in scope (usually to the dungeon itself and possibly its immediate environs) so they're relatively easy to handle, but it's worth fleshing them out a bit so you can role play them with confidence. Here are a few details you might want to consider having ready to go in advance of actual game sessions:

What does the faction want? To put it another way, what is its reason for existing? This could be as simple as basic survival. Other motivating desires could be glory and prestige, acquisition of treasure, magic, or sacred items, conquering territory, destroying enemies or rivals, protecting a location or object, serving a powerful character or creature, and advancing a religion or ideology. Most of these aren't mutually exclusive, so overlap is possible and likely.

How are they organized? Is it a dictatorship under an absolute leader? Is it a democracy? Do they have a council, oligarchy, or some other body ruling over the rank-and-file of members? Do they have a clear hierarchy or chain of command, or is there some semblance of equality among members? How do the leaders, if any, maintain their positions and ensure the lower ranks' cooperation and compliance? Do members serve specific functions, or do they perform a variety of duties as needed?

How unified is the faction? Are there cracks, schisms, intra-faction rivalries, ideological differences, or internal power struggles that players might exploit?

What are the faction's feelings toward other factions operating in the area? Is there trust, suspicion, hatred, rivalry, respect, contempt, fear, or some other feeling between them? Is it mutual, or does it go only one way? Do the feelings of the leaders match those of the ordinary members, or are they at odds?

Who are their allies and enemies among the other factions? The feelings between them may or may not match with their practical relationships: two factions who hate each other may be allies of convenience, two who respect each other may be fighting a savage blood feud, or one faction might be manipulating another, secretly holding them in contempt while being admired as friends and benefactors. 

How stable are inter-faction relationships? Some will be almost impossible for meddling PCs to shift, while others might be malleable or even volatile. It's near impossible to turn factions in the middle of a years-long bloody feud into allies, but an uneasy peace between suspicious rivals could be shattered with relative ease.

What do the faction members and leaders value, materially and otherwise? What impresses and offends them? What could players offer them to gain their cooperation or favor? 

What would they be willing to do for a party of adventurers, and what will they absolutely not do?

What resources do they have at their disposal? What resources would they dearly love to acquire?

What kind of tactics do they favor in pursuit of their goals and in their own defense? Direct violence, deception or stealth, diplomacy, subterfuge, trade, or something else?

What secrets do they know about the dungeon, or about the wider campaign world?

How do they react in a conflict? Do they lash out indiscriminately, solidify their alliances, shrewdly negotiate, throw someone else under the bus, cozy up to the side they believe will win, cravenly capitulate, or withdraw and hope to ride it out in hiding?

How honorable are they in their dealings with outsiders? Do they honor their agreements in the long run, break them as soon as they become inconvenient, make them with the express intent of screwing over the other party, or make them capriciously with no intent to honor them at all?

This is by no means an exhaustive list, nor do you need to have every one of these details nailed down, but hopefully this provides some ideas and inspiration for populating your next dungeon complex.