======Mercenaries======
Mercenaries are independent troops that any nation can hire for three months by paying a one-off fee of gold.
There are dozens of unique, named mercenary groups in the game, but only a small, random selection will be available at any given time.
Mercenaries always have a commander which usually has troops accompanying them, although there are some mercenary companies with only the leader such as Pak-ur the ??Ettin?? and Terminus the ??Assassin??.
===== Mechanics =====
To gain control of a company of mercenaries, select a province and hit the Mercenaries button on the strategic overview or press **(b)**. You will see a list of available companies, as well as those already on someone's payroll, which is indicated by that nation's flag. You can only bid on mercenaries if they are free or if they are on their last month of service for a nation.
{{ :wiki:mercenaries:mercenary_screen.png |}}
* Use the [[https://larzm42.github.io/dom5inspector/|Mod Inspector]] to determine what each mercenary company includes.
Hiring mercenaries is not immediate; first you need to bid an amount of gold. All groups have a minimum hire fee based on the number/quality of the available troops; this will decrease if the company takes casualties.
{{ :wiki:mercenaries:bidding.png |}}
At the end of the turn, all nations' bids are compared; whoever bid the most will gain control of the company. A nation bidding on their own mercenary group whose contract is about to expire will have their bid count for double, so it's easier to retain control once you've already hired a group. Note that if the province the bid is placed in is lost before the bid resolves, bids to hire and rehire will automatically fail (even if a fort in that province is still under your control).
Once hired, the mercenary group will appear in the province that was originally selected, ready to receive orders. If an existing contract is renewed, the mercenaries will remain in the province that they moved to/stayed in the previous turn rather than being teleported to the province selected to renew the contract.
==== National Discounts and Penalties ====
Some nations have a national discount to acquire certain companies. This lowers the starting bid required to obtain the mercenary company. For example, ??God's Enforcers?? are willing to fight for [[Marignon]] at a lower price than other nations.
Other nations, like [[ermor-ma|MA Ermor]] and [[lemuria-la|Lemuria]] pay a higher initial price to bid on mercenaries. This represents the unwillingness of said mercenaries to fight for those nations.
====Disbanding====
Mercenary groups are persistent; if they take casualties, those troops do not come back. This can make them cheaper to hire in the future but also reduces how much they bring to the table.
If a mercenary group suffers too many casualties (generally half of the original group size, rounded down) and nobody hires them at the end of their contract, they will disband forever and no longer be available for hire.
====Items====
Mercenaries will not give away any items that they are equipped with. This applies not only to any items that they have by default, but also any items you equip them with after hiring.
==== Twiceborn Stealing ====
If a mercenary leader has any skill in {{misc:magic:death.png?14&nolink}}death magic (or are [[empowering|empowered]] into it), it is possible to steal them permanently by having them cast [[Twiceborn]]. Mercenaries have their home province set to -2 by default but twiceborn resets their home province to wherever they cast it, effectively granting you permanent control over the mercenary. This can be a great way of improving magic diversity, especially with mercenaries like Göte the ??Circle Master?? and Urvikel the ??Troll Shaman??.
This does not carry over to any troops in their entourage. Upon becoming twiceborn, any troops over the mercenary leader's normal leadership limit are dumped into the province and can no longer be interacted with, and will disband at the end of the turn due to having no leader. The remainder will continue to follow the mercenary leader but cannot be given to another commander.
If a mercenary is stolen through this method, it can be annoying to have the remainder of their retinue follow them around as the entourage can limit movement. One way to remove them is to kill them off. A safer method is to equip the leader with a ??Ring of Water Breathing?? and attempt to move them underwater, selecting the option to leave troops behind that cannot follow. The ring can then be removed, the movement order cancelled, and the units will no longer be under the mercenary's command.
=====Strategy=====
Mercenaries can improve early game expansion for nations with a poor starting army or national troops. This cannot be relied upon as other players may be bidding for the mercenaries themselves, but it is always worth checking the mercenary tab in year 0 to see if any are worth hiring. Alternatively, if you are playing a nation with relatively easy expansion you can hire good mercenaries simply to deny them to your less fortunate opponents. Some mage mercenaries have a very low minimum bid and can help with research as well as site searching for magic paths your nation lacks.
In the mid-to-late game mercenaries keep their utility as instant raiders and can be useful bodies as part of a larger army, but generally wane in significance as magic becomes more important for winning major battles. Mercenaries can also be hired directly onto sieges - they won't apply their siege strength on the hiring turn, but it can still be a safe way to add siege strength. Watch out for any mage mercenaries that can forge much-needed [[magic boosters]], as well as good {{misc:magic:death.png?14&nolink}}death mages to steal via twiceborn.
=====Mercenary Companies=====
^ Name ^ Units ^ Min. Bid ^ Era ^ Comments ^
| Abhiraja's Archers | Abhiraja, ??Atavi Chieftain??\\ 30×??Atavi Archer?? | {{gold}} 120 | All | |
| Agyraspides | Seleucus, ??Hoplite Commander??\\ 40×??Hoplite?? | {{gold}} 200 | All | |
| Arnaud's Archers | Arnaud, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Archer#33?? | {{gold}} 150 | Early, Middle | |
| Bernard's Brave Men | Bernard the Brave, ??Captain#293??\\ 30×??Pikeneer#289?? | {{gold}} 220 | All | Can use (Double) Line formation, and quite effective at repelling with experience stars and pikes. |
| Bindar's Mighty Markatas | Bindar, ??Atavi Chieftain??\\ 40×??Markata Archer?? | {{gold}} 30 | All | |
| Black Bone's Pirates | Black Bone, ??Captain#870??\\ 25×??Pirate#871?? | {{gold}} 180 | All | |
| Brave Breakers | Grom Brave Breaker, ??Captain#293??\\ 30×??Heavy Crossbowman#288?? | {{gold}} 150 | Late | |
| Burelk's City Guard | Burelk, ??Commander#35??\\ 60×??Militia#18?? | {{gold}} 140 | All | |
| Celestial Apostates | Bajie, ??Celestial Servant#903??\\ 10×??Celestial Soldier?? | {{gold}} 350 | All | [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhu_Bajie | Zhu Bajie]] ditched the Journey to the West and is now selling his services as the leader of several celestial apostates. Celestial Soldiers are quite powerful sacred troops, so this company has extra utility if you've taken a bigger bless and can bring a priest to bless them with. |
| Dagan, the Renegade Sage | Dagan, ??Sage??{{path>S1}}\\ 5×??Swordsman#287?? | {{gold}} 40 | All | Dagan has {{misc:gui:research.png?15&nolink}}15 and costs only {{gold}}40 to bid on, so he makes a good research mercenary. |
| Dante's Stingers | Dante, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Spearman#285?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| Durand's Cavalry | Durand the Great, ??Heavy Cavalry#292??\\ 10×??Heavy Cavalry#292?? | {{gold}} 200 | Middle, Late| |
| Elephant Corps | Hannibal, ??War Elephant#150??\\ 5×??War Elephant#150?? | {{gold}} 80 | All | Hannibal, leading... Greek-flavoured War Elephants? Very cheap minimum bid price considering War Elephants cost {{gold}} 100 apiece, and surprise trampling can be devastating for an unprepared early-game army. |
| Eternal Knights | Orion, ??Eternal Knight??\\ 8×??Eternal Knight?? | {{gold}} 100 | Late | Orion comes with a ??Flambeau?? and an ??Amulet of Missile Protection??.\\ The Eternal Knights' Flambeaus are all armor-piercing weapons, so they can help take down high prot thugs or elite units. Orion's special Flambeau allows him to cast ??Holy Pyre??, so this company is surprisingly useful against undead/demons too! (An interesting side-effect: Orion's 500 XP gives him several stat buffs, and means he'll displace a Hall of Fame resident the instant he's hired.) |
| Farstrikers | Guillaume, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Longbowman#55?? | {{gold}} 160 | All | |
| Ferdinando's Footman | Ferdinando, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Swordsman#287?? | {{gold}} 160 | Middle, Late | |
| Ferrus, the Iron Wizard | Ferrus, ??Adept of the Iron Order??{{path>E2S2,100%FAES}}\\ 5×??Mechanical Man?? | {{gold}} 110 | All | Ferrus comes with an ??Amulet of Antimagic??.\\ You can hire him to forge {{misc:magic:earth.png?14}}{{misc:magic:astral.png?14}} items, such as the ??Crystal Coin?? and ??Crystal Matrix??. |
| Fish Master Sogg | Sogg, ??Hydromancer??{{path>W3}}\\ 1×??Monster Fish?? | {{gold}} 120 | All | Can only be hired and used underwater (while the Monster Fish is still alive).\\ Can forge you a ??Robe of the Sea??. |
| Fordo Boggit's Elite Warriors | Fordo Boggit, ??Hoburg Champion??\\ 40×??Burgmeister Guard?? | {{gold}} 220 | Middle, Late | |
| Fritjof's Archers | Fritjof, ??Captain#291??\\ 20×??Archer#17?? | {{gold}} 100 | Early, Middle | |
| Ghoul Father | Yazrid ibn Hassar, ??High Magus??{{path>F2E1S2}}\\ 50×??Ghoul?? | {{gold}} 200 | All | Yazrid ibn Hassar comes with a ??Lifelong Protection??, making him extra suitable for raiding.\\ Another mage who can forge crystal items. Will need a pair of ??Earth Boots?? to make ??Crystal Coin??s, however, and mercenaries don't give items back! |
| God's Enforcers | Guiseppe IV, ??Inquisitor#149??{{path>F1H2}}\\ 50×??Pikeneer#289?? | {{gold}} 600 | Middle, Late | The third Guiseppe must have taken a break from the mercenary life to start a small business, since Guiseppe IV comes with a swanky new ??Sceptre of Authority?? and ??Crown of Command??. |
| God's Justice | Guiseppe II, ??Inquisitor#149??{{path>F1H2}}\\ 50×??Pikeneer#289?? | {{gold}} 400 | Middle, Late | Somehow running around in the same eras as his own successors and predecessor. |
| Guifre's Swordsmen | 'Sir' Guifre, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Swordsman#287?? | {{gold}} 180 | All | |
| Göte | Göte, ??Circle Master??{{path>D2B2}}\\ 20×??Bone Fiend?? | {{gold}} 160 | All | If you are lucky enough to secure this mercenary, twiceborn him immediately and use him to break into {{misc:magic:blood.png?14}}blood! |
| Günter Blukraft's Sonnenkinder | Günter Blukraft, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Maceman#286?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| Hector's Heavy Horsemen | Hector Stark, ??Heavy Cavalry#292??\\ 15×??Heavy Cavalry#292?? | {{gold}} 220 | Middle, Late | |
| Helmut's Sappers | Helmut, ??Master Mason??\\ 20×??Sapper?? | {{gold}} 200 | All | Provides about 150 {{abilities:siege_bonus.png?14}}siege strength. |
| Hornets | Mortada, ??Captain#293??\\ 40×??Heavy Crossbowman#288?? | {{gold}} 300 | Late | |
| Iron Men | Clovis, ??Captain#293??\\ 40×??Swordsman#287?? | {{gold}} 300 | All | |
| Istana's Warriors | Istana, ??Jade Priestess??{{path>N1H1,20%W}}\\ 40×??Amazon#354?? | {{gold}} 160 | All | |
| Knight Errants | Sir Perceville, ??Knight Commander??\\ 12×??Knight?? | {{gold}} 200 | Middle, Late | |
| Günter Blukraft's Sonnenkinder | Günter Blukraft, ??Captain#291??\\ 30×??Maceman#286?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| Madam Fortuna | Madam Fortuna, ??Fortune Teller??{{path>S1,100%SDNB}}\\ 10×??Slinger#50?? | {{gold}} 40 | Late | Madam Fortuna comes with a ??Pendant of Luck??.\\ If she rolls a {{misc:magic:death.png?14}} random you can twiceborn her too! |
| Magnus's Crossbows | Rolf Magnus ??Captain#291??\\ 20×??Crossbowman#290?? | {{gold}} 120 | Middle, Late | |
| Mamor, the White Wizard | Mamor, ??Adept of the Silver Order??{{path>A2S2,100%FAES}}\\ 5×??Swordsman#287?? | {{gold}} 80 | All | Mamor comes with ??Lightweight Scale Mail??. |
| Master Gibur | Gibur, ??Hydromancer??{{path>W3}}\\ 1×??Water Elemental#408?? | {{gold}} 80 | All | Can forge you a ??Robe of the Sea??. |
| Melkorka's Green Men | Melkorka, ??Merrow Chieftain??\\ 25×??Merrow?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| Mighty Pak-ur | Pak-ur, ??Ettin?? | {{gold}} 80 | Early | Remember that mercenaries do not give items back once you have equipped them, so don't give him anything too valuable! Still, with a bit of gear he will easily be able to handle a normal amount of province defense. |
| Miguel's Sons | Miguel, ??Captain#293??\\ 20×??Heavy Crossbowman#288?? | {{gold}} 150 | Late | |
| Nergash's Damned Legion | Nergash, ??Necromancer??{{path>D2}}\\ 80×??Longdead?? | {{gold}} 240 | All | Twiceborn for {{misc:magic:death.png?14}}death access. |
| Obscuro, the Hidden Master | Obscuro, ??Illusionist??{{path>A2}}\\ 5×??Swordsman#287?? | {{gold}} 50 | All | Another potential research mercenary or site searcher. The air access may be useful for forging a few critical pieces of shock-resistant gear. |
| Otto the Great | Otto, ??Bandar Warrior??\\ 75×??Vanara Chakram Thrower?? | {{gold}} 250 | Middle | Otto comes with a ??Crown of Command??. |
| Poignant Pikes | Salvatore, ??Captain#293??\\ 40×??Pikeneer#289?? | {{gold}} 300 | Late | Can use (Double) Line formation, and quite effective at repelling with experience stars and pikes. |
| Quickspears | Aimery, ??Captain#291??\\ 20×??Spearman#285?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| Raiders of the Silver Steppe | Xenos, ??Chieftain??\\ 20×??Raider?? | {{gold}} 150 | Early, Middle | Potentially a great buy for the few nations which can awaken their magic tattoos. |
| Reavers of the Deep | Gladd Yog, ??Ichtyid Lord??\\ 50×??Ichtyid Warrior?? | {{gold}} 300 | All | A good way for land nations to fill in their water provinces. |
| Rexor's Barbarians | Rexor, ??Barbarian Chief??\\ 40×??Barbarian?? | {{gold}} 150 | Early, Middle | |
| Rozul's Red Raptors | Rozul, ??Raptor??\\ 30×??Raptor?? | {{gold}} 120 | All | Flight makes this an unusually good sieging force, and 30 flying lances can be an excellent surprise even if they crumple soon after. |
| Ship Wreckers | Y'gologna, ??Consort??\\ 20×??War Shambler?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | Y'gologna comes with a ??Sword of Sharpness??.\\ The Ship Wreckers are an excellent mercenary company for the cost, and are worth overbidding during expansion if you need the assistance. Remember that the War Shamblers would normally cost {{gold}} 500 to buy (excluding Y'gologna), so it's worth paying a lot more to make sure you secure the contract. They can also help you get underwater! |
| Skull Smashers | Gryf, ??Troll??\\ 10×??Troll?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| Stroumsa's Freaks | Stroumsa, ??War Elephant#150??\\ 50×??Foulspawn#455?? | {{gold}} 200 | All | |
| Swimming Men | Pau Pau, ??Triton Trooper??\\ 25×??Triton Trooper?? | {{gold}} 120 | All | The Swimming Men are unfortunately no good at walking, and can only be hired and operate underwater. |
| The Archers in White | Sanne, ??Pegasus Rider#367??\\ 20×??Amazon#348?? | {{gold}} 100 | Early, Middle | |
| The Armored Fist of God | Guiseppe del Migo, ??Inquisitor#149??{{path>F1H2}}\\ 25×??Pikeneer#289?? | {{gold}} 200 | Middle, Late | The man himself, running around in the same eras as three generations of his successors. |
| The Bandar Band | Mahapindar, ??Bandar Commander??\\ 20×??Bandar Warrior?? | {{gold}} 150 | Middle, Late | Another very cost-effective mercenary company. |
| The Black Fists | Sir Edward Blackfist, ??Captain#293??\\ 20×??Maceman#286?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | |
| The Boar Mage | Baratus, ??Animist??{{path>N2}}\\ 40×??Boar?? | {{gold}} 160| All | N1 indies are plentiful, so having him forge a Staff offers chainable N2 access. |
| The Bowmen | Lothar, ??Captain#291??\\ 20×??Archer#17?? | {{gold}} 100 | Middle | |
| The Dragon Tamer | Choznar, ??Beast Trainer??\\ 4×??Fire Drake?? | {{gold}} 80 | All | The drakes Choznar trains are perfectly capable of dousing your enemies in flames, as long as you are able to work around their undisciplined nature. |
| The Feathered Serpent | Omecoatl, ??Couatl??{{path>S3N3H2}}\\ 50×??Lizard Warrior#423?? | {{gold}} 350 | All | Can forge you a ??Moonvine Bracelet??. |
| The Fishermen | Sho'guu, ??Ichtyid Lord??\\ 25×??Ichtyid?? | {{gold}} 120 | All | |
| The Green Horde | Murong Chui, ??Khan??\\ 40×??Barbarian Horseman?? | {{gold}} 300 | All | Large {{pillage}} bonuses can offset the cost surprisingly well, making this a nasty addition to raids in land you won't hold long. |
| The Lions | Louis, ??Captain#291??\\ 50×??Spearman#285?? | {{gold}} 350 | All | |
| The Lost Legion | The Lost One, ??Star Child??{{path>S1}}\\ 20×??Lobo Guard?? | {{gold}} 30 | All | The Lost One would probably be significantly more useful on their own. The Lost One's Lobo Guard escort prevent them from taking stealthy actions and therefore making use of their [[assassin]] ability. |
| The Master Assassin | Terminus, ??Assassin?? | {{gold}} 25 | All | Terminus brings his own ??Duskdagger?? and ??Robe of Shadows??. |
| The Master Druid | Erbum, ??Woodhenge Druid??{{path>N1H1}}\\ 25×??Vine Man?? | {{gold}} 200 | All | |
| The Merry Men | Rivaude, ??Troubadour#2107??\\ 30×??Archer#32?? | {{gold}} 100 | Late | Like The Lost One, spy/seduction are made unusable by his troops. His low leadership inflicts a morale penalty on the archers. |
| The Snake Charmer | Putin, ??Horned Serpent??\\ 50×??Militia#18?? | {{gold}} 150 | Middle, Late | Siege strength and lance fodder only. Even as bait/fodder, beware of HP routs after losing so many troops. |
| The Wet Ones | Napa Tua, ??Wet One Captain??\\ 30×??Wet One?? | {{gold}} 150 | All | Hire for siege strength only; ??Wet One??s are extremely poor units and will practically evaporate upon contact with the enemy. |
| The Whisperer | Urvikel, ??Troll Shaman??{{path>D1N1,100%EDN}}\\ 50×??Vaetti?? | {{gold}} 300 | All | Urvikel comes with a ??Lodestone Amulet?? and ??Skull Staff??, meaning he is always able to cast Twiceborn. Troll Shamans have ridiculous upkeep, so if you do decide to steal him consider drowning him as soon as possible to turn him into a wight mage and save your treasury. |
| The Whispering Legion | Saladaar, ??Spectral Mage??{{path>D1,100%WESD,100%WESD}}\\ 15×??Ghost#566?? | {{gold}} 400 | All | Saladaar is pretty expensive to pick up, but with good randoms can open up a few magic paths. If he rolls the 1/16 chance to become a {{path>W2}} then you can boost him with a ??Water Bracelet?? and ??Robe of the Sea?? to cast ??Streams from Hades?? and summon {{path>W3D3}} ??Kokythiad??s. |
| The Wind Lord | Tempestus, ??Wind Master??{{path>A2}}\\ 30×??Sylph?? | {{gold}} 240 | All | Tempestus comes with a ??Crown of Command?? |
| Urgek Beast Brother | Urgek, ??Foul Spawn#458??\\ 20×??Foul Spawn#457?? | {{gold}} 30 | All | The low minimum bid is matched by the poor quality of Urgek's company. Can be useful as cheap chaff. |
| Victor's Villains | Victor, ??Villain??\\ 10×??Villain?? | {{gold}} 30 | All | Villains are pretty bad units, and Victor doesn't really come with enough of them to be useful in any way. Maybe hire them with a minimum bid so you can immediately suicide them and replace their slot with a hopefully more useful company. Cheap enough to use as a recruit-anywhere scout, but unfit to take more than 1-2 PD. |
| William's Boys | William, ??Captain#293??\\ 30×??Heavy Crossbowman#288?? | {{gold}} 200 | Late | Even in LA, 17 prot means this unit is likely to play "frontline plus a crossbow" as often as fire support. |
| Wolfkin Reavers | Uttumvirke, ??Chief#283??\\ 50×??Vaetti?? | {{gold}} 300 | All | Weak combat units at a surprisingly small {{gold}} 50 discount, but stealth can make them a nice irritant. |