Create and control start up scripts in BusyBox

I have compiled a custom linux kernel in BusyBox. BusyBox init does not support runlevels. When the kernel boots up in BusyBox, it first executes init which looks for the specified runlevel in /etc/inittab. BusyBox init works just fine without /etc/inittab. When no inittab is found it has the following behavior: ::sysinit:/etc/init.d/rcS This part is very clear to me, but I would like to know how to manage daemons that start up networking, create serial ports, or start java processes. I have looked in the scripts that reside in /etc/init.d/ but I don't understand how to manage them. I am looking for a good tutorial or solution to control these services myself without an automated tool like buildroot. I want to understand how these scripts work and how to create devices in /dev/ (right now I only have console and ttyAM0).