The Mercenary is the Light Unit of the Early Middle Ages. It is trained in a Mercenary Barracks, and it is the second unlocked unit in the Early Middle Ages. It is preceded by the Soldier and succeeded by the Berserker.
The Mercenary improves by +4 attack and defense compared to the Soldier, and bonuses against fast units and in forests are slightly increased. It keeps the moderately fast mobility of the Soldier as well as their melee range as well.
Usage[]
Like previous age light units, they should be used mainly against cavalry, but they are also very effective against artillery and ranged units too especially as the Mercenary has very strong attack and defense as well as movement compared to other same age units, and below. Like all light units so far, their biggest fear are heavy units, as they have very high defense and bonuses against light units.
Against Same Age Units[]
Heavy Cavalry[]
The Mercenary is strong against the Heavy Cavalry, due to their bonuses against fast units. The Mercenary can easily two hit kill Heavy Cavalry, whilst the Heavy Cavalry will have difficulty killing Mercenaries, especially if the Mercenary is in forests or bushes.
Mounted Archer[]
Although neither side has bonuses against each other, the general weak attack and defense of the Mounted Archer means that the Mercenary can deal a lot of damage against them, especially if the Mounted Archer has rushed in to attack first. Even if the Mounted Archer does attack the Mercenary, the Mounted Archer will have difficulty killing them, especially if they are situated inside forests or bushes.
Armored Infantry[]
The Armored Infantry is a very big threat to the Mercenary. Like previous heavy units the Armored Infantry has very high defense and bonuses against light units, making the Mercenary very weak against them.
Catapult[]
The Catapult's low attack and defense automatically makes the Mercenary very strong against them despite their long range. The Mercenary can serve as a substitute for the Heavy Cavalry when fighting the Catapult as they have a strong attack and defense and moderately strong movement which easily counters the long range of the Catapult effectively, whilst the Catapult on the other hand deals very insignificant amounts of damage to the Mercenary.
History[]
Despite the age, mercenaries have always been present throughout the ages, often being considered one of the oldest professions in the world. From local gangs of free lances to uniformized mercenary companies, taking part in conflict for personal profit has always been atractive and lucrative, and making more profit meant being structuralized. The quality and capability of mercenary groups was often reflected by their price, which also reflected their professionalism. Especially during the Middle Ages, mercenaries were often better equipped and better trained than feudal levies, severely augmenting the fighting capability of those who could afford their services, however, these could easily be bribed by the enemy and betray those who hired them originally, thus they could not be relied upon for too long. European mercenaries sprawled from all the corners of the continent: Routiers from France, the Condottieri from Italy, Reisläufer from Switzerland, the latter Landknechts from the German territories and many other Free Companies. Generally, depending from company to company, mercenaries did not carry any standardized equipment, but they often fought with the latest tactics and equipment, including early firearms, polearms and body armour. Maintaining mercenaries was often expensive and only the richest city-states could afford their services for the duration of a conflict.
Trivia[]
When a Mercenary is eliminated, his own spear will fly into the air and as soon as the Mercenary collapses onto the ground, the spear goes head first and stabs its own user to end his misery.
The painful death of a Mercenary by the lake
Image[]
Three Mercenaries in a forest
Other Military Units[]
Legend: 
= Light Unit Class 
= Ranged Unit Class 
= Artillery Unit Class 
= Heavy Unit Class 
= Fast Unit Class