1. Captive was probably not the best word choice. I was running out of synonyms for shills, allies etc.. Stooge might have been better.
2.I wanted to keep this around a thousand words, so I just stuck to the Reichstag example, but I agree.
3. Millions is all it will take. The IRA never had more than 100 shooters at a time.
Minions, myrmidons, lackeys, lickspittle lapdogs...