Only if you can persuade the gang they can't get more gold from killing you than working for you.

To build the gang you must recruit where `new-recruit-power < total-gang-power`. Since to start you are the only gang member, you can only recruit one dude who is 0.75 your strength. Now the gang is 1.75 strength, so you can go after another dude who's really strong, say 1.25. Now your gang has a strength of 3. Eventually you will be able to swallow up whole other gangs.

That is not at all how anything works. What is "gang power"? What factors contribute to it? Manpower, wealth, weaponry, or what?

Trust me it works.