OG 5e rules
so my players were mostly murderhobos killing their way through everything i gave them...until recently, one of them finally remembered they can knockout with non-lethal instead
they inquired if they captured enemies, would they be able to hire them for their bastion or businesses. i told them they can, but the NPC they capture might not be willing to listen or follow their orders - it'd be determined on a case by case basis
now the party is knocking out everyone and everything they can. humanoids, goblins, wolves, ghouls...even that random shopkeeper, guard, or tavern owner that catches them trying to steal. every single thing they fight, they're now knocking them out just to try to hire them. intimidation checks, torture, nothing is off the tables for my players trying to hire these NPCs - they're dead set on trying to hire them one way or another
i mean, i guess it's an improvement from straight up killing everything...
any ideas on how to handle this mess?
EDIT:
to clarify, the players didn't start as murderhobos. the dice gods willed it in that direction. basically, multiple bad rolls in a row led to panic rolling which led to Nat 20 on the players doing the first thing that pops into their mind
the campaign has already been derailed off a cliff. i try to set it back right, but RNGesus has other plans
don't get me wrong - it's hilarious, but as the DM, it's been one giant facepalm after another