Mercenary

Mercenary
Female Byleth as a Mercenary in Three Houses.
First Seen	Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light
Promotes From	Villager (FE2 only)
Promotes To	Hero Ranger (FE8 only) Bow Knight (FE13-14)
Usable Weapon Types	Sword Axe(FE16 only)
Class Skills	Armsthrift, Patience (FE13 only) Good Fortune, Strong Riposte (FE14 only) Blade(BS only, Rogue Guard)
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The Mercenary (傭兵 Yōhei) is a combat physical class of foot soldiers that recurrently appears across the Fire Emblem Series, beginning from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light. This class wields Swords as its sole weapon of choice, though they can also wield Lances, Axes, Bows and Gauntlets in Three Houses.

While many characters in the series are commonly referred to as mercenaries (the Greil Mercenaries being one such example), they are not necessarily of the Mercenary class; they are merely referred to as such due to the sellsword nature of the services that they render to the various games' protagonists.

History in the Series

In their original inception in Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light, the Mercenary class is the primary Sword-wielding foot unit class and promotes into the Hero class when the necessary requirements are made.

In Archanea Saga, Malice acts as the first female character to assume the Mercenary class in the series. During the period preceding her entrance to the series, all Mercenaries have been predominantly male.

The Mercenary class is replaced by the Sword Fighter class as the primary Sword using foot soldier in Genealogy of the Holy War and Thracia 776, though certain Sword Fighters promote to a Hero-inspired equivalent instead of the usual Swordmaster.

In TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga, the class takes on two distinct forms: The playable Fighter (せんし Senshi) and the enemy-exclusive Mercenary (ようへい Youhei) classes. Statistically, the Fighter class is identical to the original Mercenary class, but has slightly higher stat bases. Unlike in the preceding Fire Emblem titles, Sword Fighter is presented as an entirely separate class.

The class makes its official return to the series in The Binding Blade, where, like in TearRing Saga and Berwick Saga, it is split from the Sword Fighter/Myrmidon class and coexists with it. From this point onward in the series, Mercenaries strictly promote directly into Heroes, while Myrmidons promote into Swordmasters.

In The Sacred Stones, Mercenaries are further given the option to promote into the mounted Ranger class alongside the Hero class.

In TearRing Saga: Berwick Saga, the Mercenary class is again presented as a class entirely separate from the Sword Fighter. The sole playable Mercenary is Kramer, who promotes into Bastard when he meets the requirements. A variant known as the Rogue Guard (ローグガード rōgugādo) appears among bandit groups; it differentiates itself by having the Blade skill as a class skill.

In Shadow Dragon and New Mystery of the Emblem, remakes of the classic Archanea Series, a number of characters who were first introduced to the series as Mercenaries are remodeled to assume the Myrmidon class instead, including the likes of Navarre, Radd and Malice.

In Awakening and Fates, Mercenaries are given the option to promote into the Bow Knight class alongside the Hero class, mirroring the Ranger option from The Sacred Stones.

In Fates, the Mercenary (マーシナリ― Māshinarī) class is treated as a Nohrian class and is considered to be the counterpart of the Hoshidan Samurai.

In Three Houses, The Mercenary Class is an optional promoted class of the Commoner or Noble class if the unit passes the Certification Exam at Lv. 10 with a Sword Skill Level of C or higher and an Intermediate Seal. The other option with these requirements is the Thief class. The Mercenary is also a type of Battalion.

In the koei Dynasty Warriors spinoff, Fire Emblem Warriors, the Mercenary class is the personal base class of Navarre. It acts as a clone of Lyndis' version of the Lord class. There is also an enemy-only version which acts as the Nohrian counterpart of the Myrmidon.

Overview

Combat

Mercenaries tend to possess balanced stats, replete with high HP, Strength and Skill, alongside decent Speed and Defense. When compared to the Myrmidon class, a class that similarly wields swords exclusively, Mercenaries are generally better in terms of HP, Strength and Defense, although their counterparts are usually superior in the Speed and Skill department.

Mercenaries are versatile in both offense and defense. In most cases, mercenaries are capable of dealing good damage while being durable enough to sustain quite a number of attacks. The only problem that Mercenaries potentially face is their average Movement, which may prove detrimental to their survival in situations where they are completely overwhelmed by enemies. However, high-level Mercenaries can dispatch hordes of axe-users with ease, and can even stand a chance of avoiding lance and sword attacks. They will more often than not strike their target with precision, and score a few Critical Hits due to their high Skill.

In Awakening, Mercenaries learn Armsthrift, one of the most useful skills available in the game. Because this skill can reduce or completely negate weapon durability loss, it is thus highly sought-after by players seeking to maximise the potential of their characters.

In Fates, weapon durability is no longer present, and mercenaries instead gain Good Fortune and Strong Riposte, which further increase their durability and ability to defend themselves, respectively. 

Uniform

Across all games, the Mercenary class's uniforms have consistently comprised of simple clothing and light-to-medium armour that varies between games. Not much of the class's outfit can be seen in earlier titles, but according to the TCG depictions, generic Mercenaries wear light breastplates, a helmet, shin-guards and wrist braces. In TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga, Fighters and Mercenaries are featured wearing basic clothing with a leather vest and a belt containing the sheath of their sword. In Awakening and Fates, the uniforms of Mercenaries are very similar to the ones from TearRing Saga, but are different in terms of the heater shields that are strapped to their left biceps like rerebraces, in addition to the light leather vest and gloves that they don, with the difference being that Mercenaries from Fates are shown with a heavier leather jacket and a more military-styled uniform than in Awakening. Enemy portraits of Mercenaries in both games show them wearing a head-guard covering the forehead and sides of the face, with Fates's Mercenaries wearing head-guards that appear almost completely metallic in design. Echoes sees another redesign for the Mercenary class, showcasing the same head-brace from Awakening and Fates but with a far more simplistic appearance; these Mercenaries wear "wanderer"-esque uniforms with considerably less armor on them than prior (only wearing a single breastplate and pauldrons made of cloth/leather with some creature's jawbones attached to each one) and a tattered cloak draped over them.

In-Game

Base Stats

	HP	Str	Mag	Skl	Spd	Lck	Def	Res	Mov	Con	Wt	Wlv	Cha
FE1	16	4	-	8	10	0	5	0	7	-	-	Sword 8
FE2	24	8	-	8	10	0	4	1	4	-	-	Sword
FE3	16	4	-	8	10	0	5	0	7	-	-	Sword 2
TS	22	4	0	5	5	0	3	-	5	-	-	3
FE6	18/16	4/3	-	8/5	8/6	0	4/2	0	5	9/8	-	D
FE7	18/16	4/3	-	8/5	8/6	0	4/2	0	5	9/8	-	D
FE8	18/16	4/3	-	8/5	8/6	0	4/2	0	5	9/8	-	D
FE11	16	4	0	8	10	0	5	0	7	-	-	E
FE12	18	4	0	8	9	0	5	0	7	-	-	E
FE13	18	5	0	8	7	0	5	0	5	-	-	E
FE14	17	5	0	7	6	2	5	2	5	-	-	E
FE15	24	8	-	8	10	0	4	1	4	-	-	-
FEW	62	8	2	10	10	8	5	5	5	-	-	E

Maximum Stats

	HP	Str	Mag	Skl	Spd	Lck	Def	Res	Mov	Con	Wt	Wlv	Cha
FE1	52	20	-	20	20	20	20	20	7	-	-	Sword 20
FE2	52	40	-	40	40	40	40	40	4	-	-	Sword
FE3	42	20	-	20	20	20	20	20	7	-	-	Sword 20
TS	60	19	15	20	20	30	18	-	12	-	-	18
FE6	60	20	-	20	20	30	20	20	15	20	-	A
FE7	60	20	-	20	20	30	20	20	15	20	-	A
FE8	60	20	-	20	20	30	20	20	15	20	-	A
FE11	60	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	7	-	-	A
FE12	60	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	7	-	-	A
FE13	60	27	20	30	26	30	25	23	5	-	-	A
FE14	40	22	15	24	22	20	21	19	5	-	-	B

Growth Rates

	HP	Str	Mag	Skl	Spd	Lck	Def	Res	Mov	Con	Wt	Wlv	Cha
FE3	80%	30%	-	20%	20%	0%	30%	0%	-	-	-	-
FE6	80%	40%	-	40%	32%	30%	18%	15%	-	-	-	-
FE7	80%	40%	-	40%	32%	30%	18%	20/30%	-	-	-	-
FE8	80%	40%	-	40%	32%	30%	18%	20/30%	-	-	-	-
FE11	60%	20%	-20%	25%	20%	0%	5%	-10%	-	-	-	-
FE12	50%	20%	-20%	25%	20%	0%	10%	-10%	-	-	-	-
FE13	45%/80%	20%/35%	0%/0%	25%/40%	20%/35%	0%/30%	10%/25%	5%/15%	-	-	-	-
FE14	10%	15%	0%	20%	15%	5%	10%	5%	-	-	-	-
FE15	120%	50%	-	50%	50%	0%	50%	0%	-	-	-	-

Class Skills

	Skill	Requirements
FE13	Armsthrift Patience	Learned at Level 1. Learned at Level 10.
FE14	Good Fortune Strong Riposte	Learned at Level 1 and higher. Learned at Level 10 and higher.

Promotions

	Base Class	Promotion Method	Promoted Class
FE1	Mercenary	Use a Hero Proof on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero
FE2	Villager	Visit a shrine after reaching Level 3.	Mercenary
FE2	Mercenary	Visit a shrine after reaching Level 7.	Sword Fighter
FE3	Mercenary	Use a Hero Proof on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero
TS	Fighter	Use a Hero Proof on a Level 10+ Fighter	Hero
FE6	Mercenary	Use a Hero Crest on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero
FE7	Mercenary	Use a Hero Crest on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero
FE8	Mercenary	Use a Hero Crest on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero Ranger
FE11	Mercenary	Use a Master Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero
FE12	Mercenary	Use a Master Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero
FE13	Mercenary	Use a Master Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero Bow Knight
FE14	Mercenary	Use a Master Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.	Hero Bow Knight
FE15	Villager	Visit a shrine after reaching Level 3.	Mercenary
FE15	Mercenary	Visit a shrine after reaching Level 7.	Myrmidon
FE16		Have a Level 10+ Commoner or Noble with a Sword Skill Rank of C or Higher and an File:FE16Intermediate Seal take a Certification Exam	Hero (Male only) Swordmaster Assassin
FEW	Mercenary	Use a Master Seal on Navarre.	Hero

Notable Mercenaries

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light

• Ogma - A once slave gladiator turned mercenary who serves Princess Caeda.
• Navarre - A skilled fighter known as the Scarlet Sword who prefers his blade to do the talking.
• Radd - A citizen of Port Warren who joins the Archanean League with Caesar.
• Caesar - A mercenary hired to protect Port Warren.

Note: Navarre and Radd are Myrmidons in the remake.

Fire Emblem Gaiden

• Saber - A mercenary who will take on any job if he's paid enough.
• Kamui - A mercenary hired by Valbar
• Jesse - A mercenary who tries, but fails, to save Est from Grieth.
• Promotion for: Gray, Tobin, Kliff, Atlas

Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem

• Samuel - An impersonator of Navarre.

Note: Samuel is a Myrmidon in the remake.

Fire Emblem: Archanea Saga

• Malice - Daughter of Dice and is constantly in pursuit of gaining riches.

Note: Malice is a Myrmidon in the remake.

TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga

• Xeno - A former slave.
• Attrom - The younger half brother of Renee and the half brother of Holmes

TearRing Saga: Berwick Saga

• Kramer - A farmborn sellsword that dreams of being a legendary hero.

Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade

• Dieck - Leader of a small mercenary company hired by Eliwood
• Ogier - A mercenary from Ilia hired by Ostia

Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade

• Raven - A noble heir who works as a mercenary to enact revenge.
• Glass - A Sacaen swordsman who tries to steal the Mani Katti.
• Puzon - A mercenary hired by a group of bandits plaguing Caelin.

Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones

• Gerik - The leader of Gerik's Mercenaries; known as the Desert Tiger.
• Zonta - A mercenary hired by Tirado as bait to lure Ephraim into a trap laid out by Orson.

Fire Emblem Awakening

• Gregor - The wandering "Swell Sword" whose refreshing personality is a result of his age and his unique speaking style.
• Severa - Cordelia's daughter from the future. A snarky girl with an inferiority complex who aspires to be like her mother.
• Inigo - Olivia's son from the future. A shy dancer like his mother, but has the habit of hitting on nearly every woman he meets.

Fire Emblem Fates

• Selena - A familiar snarky girl from a distant land and one of Camilla's retainers who's devoted to service.
• Laslow - A familiar philanderer from a distant land and one of Xander's retainers who has a flair for dancing.
• Soleil - Laslow's cheerful and not even slightly shy daughter who looks up to cool women.
• Zhara - A swordsman formerly renowned for his skill, now reduced to a common sellsword. (encountered as a boss; must be captured)

Etymology

Traditionally, mercenaries are soldiers who are hired to fight for a certain cause, as opposed to fighting out of loyalty or duty.

Gallery

Concept artwork of the female variant of the Mercenary class from Awakening.

Concept artwork of the male variant of the Mercenary class from Awakening.

Concept art of a female Mercenary from Fates

Concept art of a male Mercenary from Fates

Concept artwork of the Mercenary class from Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.

A Level 10 generic Mercenary, as he appears in the fifth series of the TCG.

Generic CG artwork of the Mercenary class from the DS titles.

Generic class portrait of a Mercenary from Awakening.

Generic class portrait of a Mercenary from Fates.

Generic class portrait of a Mercenary from Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.

Generic portrait of a Mercenary from Berwick Saga.

Generic portrait of a Mercenary from Berwick Saga.

Generic portrait of a Mercenary from Berwick Saga.

Battle model of the Mercenary class from Gaiden.

Battle model of the Mercenary class from TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga.

Battle model of Xeno, a Fighter from TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga.

Animation featuring Raven performing a critical attack as a Mercenary.

Battle model of Gregor, a male Mercenary from Awakening.

Battle model of Severa, a female Mercenary from Awakening.

Battle model of Laslow, a male Mercenary from Fates.

Battle model of Selena, a female Mercenary from Fates.

A Mercenary from Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.

Battle model of a generic enemy Mercenary in Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.

Map sprite of the Mercenary class from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.

Map sprite of the Mercenary class from Gaiden.

Map sprite of the Mercenary class from Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem.

Map sprite of the Mercenary class from TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga.

Map sprite of the Fighter class from TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga.

Map sprite of the Mercenary class from The Sacred Stones.

Map sprite of the Mercenary class from the DS titles.

Map sprite of the enemy variant of the Mercenary class from the DS titles.

Map sprite of Gregor, a Mercenary in Awakening.

Map sprite of Selena, a Mercenary in Fates.

Village sprite of a Mercenary from Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.