The sooner the better on this one.
That’s up to you.
In my previous campaign, I had Maple Harbor unknowingly to the Guard be run under Hammurabi Law. After establishing a guard station, fending off animal attacks, the patrol caught a young thief who stole an apple from the market. Both the ‘Mayor’ and townsfolk demanded his hand be cut off, as was their tradition. (Obviously going again the patrols beliefs, they resisted) A riot ensued, I did my best at the time to make a unique conflict considering the sheer force of mice opposing the patrol. They escaped, barely, without the thief and had to cut down nearly twenty mice to do so. Lot of persona and fate burned. One of the patrol members ended up Scarred from the event. Combo of the blood of ‘innocent’ and confined spaces/havok of riot. - Fun Times
My MG campaign I ran a few years back revolved around Ironwood, Darkwater, and Wildseed uniting under the banner of an autocratic “Prosperity League" that challenged the Guard. The Supreme Leader was charismatic but borderline insane, propped up by a scheming merchant (one of the player’s nemesis) who was doing deals with Weasels on the side. Wildseed was the scene of a military coup by a retired Guard Captain who honestly believed he was working for the betterment of Mousekind, but who then turned the town into an agricultural forced labor camp to meet the needs of the upscaled industrialization in Ironwood. Darkwater grew fat on increased shipping tariffs for non-League merchants.
And yet when poor Fall forage and the lingering effects of a snake invasion left Ivydale on the brink of famine, it was the League that had surpluses to bail them out when the Guard could do little…
Right. Thanks, all helpful information.