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The Mercenary is a combat physical class that debuted in Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.

History in the Series[]

The Mercenary is an infantry class that recurrently appears across the Fire Emblem series. Historically, this class wields Swords as its sole weapon of choice. In Fire Emblem: Three Houses, the class is also capable of using LancesAxes, Bows, and Gauntlets, but does not have proficiency with those weapon types.

The mercenary class is not to be confused with the mercenary profession. Numerous characters that are mercenaries by trade, such as the Greil Mercenaries of Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn, work as mercenaries but in gameplay terms are a variety of different classes.

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.

Fire Emblem: Archanea Saga debuted the first female member of the Mercenary class in Malice.

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

The class reappears The Binding Blade, where 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 Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones, Mercenaries are further given the option to promote into the mounted Ranger class alongside the Hero class.

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

In Fire Emblem Fates, the Mercenary class is treated as a Nohrian class and is considered to be the counterpart of the Hoshidan Samurai.

In Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, the class is promoted from the Villager class and is male exclusive.

In Fire Emblem: 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. The Mercenary class has a primary skill experience class bonus to Swords (+2) and a secondary to Axes (+1).

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

Other Games[]

In TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga, the class is enemy-only, but mirrors the playable Fighter class. Statistically, the Fighter class is identical to the Mercenary class, but has slightly higher stat bases.

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 appears among bandit groups; it differentiates itself by having the Blade skill as a class skill.

In Vestaria Saga I, the Mercenary is an enemy-only class. There are two variants of the Mercenary. One that wield swords and greatswords and one that wields axes. While no mercenaries are playable, the Gladiator, their promotion, is playable.

In Vestaria Saga: The Holy Sword of Silvanister, the class became playable. In this iteration of the class, it's stats lean towards Strength, Speed and Skill while having low Defense and Resistance.

Uniform[]

Across all games, the Mercenary class's uniforms have consistently comprised of simple clothing and light-to-medium armor of varying styles. In artwork for the Fire Emblem TCG, generic Mercenaries wear light breastplates, a helmet, shin-guards, and wrist braces. Many of these elements have appeared as Mercenary class garb in later games, along with clothing such as leather vests or heavier coats.

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 maximize 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. 

In-Game[]

Base Stats[]

HPStrMagSklSpdLckDefResMovConWtWlvCha
FE1164-8100507--Sword 8-
FE2248-8100414--Sword-
FE3164-8100507--Sword 2-
TS22405503-5--TS Sword 3-
FE618/164/3-8/58/604/2059/8-Sword D-
FE718/164/3-8/58/604/2059/8-Sword D-
FE818/164/3-8/58/604/2059/8-Sword D-
FE1116408100507--FE12 Sword E-
FE121840890507--FE12 Sword E-
FE131850870505--SwordIconFE13 E-
FE141750762525--FE14 Sword E-
FE15248-8100414----
FE16259610108625--FE16 sword icon C0
FEW628210108555--FEW Sword E-

Maximum Stats[]

HPStrMagSklSpdLckDefResMovConWtWlvCha
FE15220-20202020207--Sword 20-
FE25240-40404040404--Sword-
FE34220-20202020207--Sword 20-
TS60191520203018-12--TS Sword 18-
FE66020-20203020201520-Sword A-
FE76020-20203020201520-Sword A-
FE86020-20203020201520-Sword A-
FE1160202020202020207--FE12 Sword A-
FE1260202020202020207--FE12 Sword A-
FE1360272030263025235--SwordIconFE13 A-
FE1440221524222021195--FE14 Sword B-

Growth Rates[]

HPStrMagSklSpdLckDefResMovConWtWlvCha
FE380%30%-20%20%0%30%0%-----
FE680%40%-40%32%30%18%15%-----
FE780%40%-40%32%30%18%20/30%-----
FE880%40%-40%32%30%18%20/30%-----
FE1160%20%-20%25%20%0%5%-10%-----
FE1250%20%-20%25%20%0%10%-10%-----
FE1345%/80%20%/35%0%25%/40%20%/35%0%/30%10%/25%5%/15%-----
FE1410%15%0%20%15%5%10%5%-----
FE15120%50%-50%50%0%50%0%-----
FE1620%5%/15%0%0%5%/10%0%0%/10%-5%/-10%---FE16 sword icon +2 FE16 axe icon +15%
FEW3H15%10%0%0%15%0%0%0%----5%

Class Modifiers[]

HPStrMagSklSpdLckDefResMovConWtWlvCha
FE16110010001---0
FEW3H20010010000---1

Class Skills[]

SkillRequirements
FE13WeaponSaverArmsthrift
LateInitiativePatience
Learned at Level 1.
Learned at Level 10.
FE14StubbornnessGood Fortune
Patient AssuranceStrong Riposte
Learned at Level 1 and higher.
Learned at Level 10 and higher.
FE16Vantage FE16VantageMastery Ability of Mercenary.
FEW3HAxe Buster Lv 2 Axe Buster Lv 2
Vantage FE16 Vantage
Battalion Vantage FE16 Battalion Vantage
Sword Prowess Sword Prowess
Icon Combat Art FE16 Sword Windsweep
Icon Combat Art FE16 Sword Firesweep
Sword Crit +10 FE16 Mercenary's Ploy
Swordfaire FE16 Mercenary's Wisdom
Class skill.
1-star Class Mastery for certain units.
1-star Class Mastery for certain units.
2-star Class Mastery for all units.
2-star Class Mastery for certain units.
2-star Class Mastery for certain units.
3-star Class Mastery for certain units.
3-star Class Mastery for certain units.

Promotions[]

Base ClassPromotion MethodPromoted Class
FE1FE1 Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a Hero Proof on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE1 Hero Map SpriteHero
FE2FE2 Villager Map IconVillagerVisit a shrine after reaching Level 3.FE2 Mercenary Map IconMercenary
FE2 FE2 Mercenary Map IconMercenaryVisit a shrine after reaching Level 7.FE2 Sword Fighter Map IconSword Fighter
FE3FE3 Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a Hero Proof (FE3)Hero Proof on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE3 Hero Map SpriteHero
TSFighterFighterUse a TRSHeroProofHero Proof on a Level 10+ FighterHeroHero
FE6FE8 Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a HerocrestHero Crest on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE8 Hero Map SpriteHero
FE7FE8 Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a HerocrestHero Crest on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE8 Hero Map SpriteHero
FE8FE8 Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a HerocrestHero Crest on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE8 Hero Map SpriteHero
FE8 Ranger Map SpriteRanger
FE11FE11 Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a FE11mastersealMaster Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE11 Hero Map SpriteHero
FE12FEDS Mercenary Map SpriteMercenaryUse a FE11mastersealMaster Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FEDS Hero Map SpriteHero
FE13FE13 Generic Mercenary (M) Map SpriteMercenaryUse a Master Seal FE13 IconMaster Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE13 Generic Hero (M) Map SpriteHero
FE13 Generic Bow Knight Map SpriteBow Knight
FE14FE14 Generic Mercenary (M) Map SpriteMercenaryUse a Master Seal FE13 IconMaster Seal on a Level 10+ Mercenary.FE14 Generic Hero Map SpriteHero
FE14 Generic Bow Knight Map SpriteBow Knight
FE15VillagerVisit a shrine after reaching Level 3.Mercenary
FE15 MercenaryVisit a shrine after reaching Level 7.Myrmidon
FE16Any classUse an FE16 Seal IconIntermediate Seal on a Level 10+ unit and pass the Mercenary Certification Exam.FE16 Mercenary IconMercenary
FEWNavarre Warriors SpriteMercenaryUse a Master Seal FE13 IconMaster Seal on Navarre.Navarre Warriors SpriteHero
FEW3HFE16 Myrmidon Icon MyrmidonUse an FE16 Seal IconIntermediate Seal on a unit that has mastered the Myrmidon class.FE16 Mercenary Icon Mercenary
FEW3H FE16 Mercenary Icon MercenaryUse an FE16 Seal IconAdvanced Seal on a unit that has mastered the Mercenary class.FE16 Swordmaster Icon Swordmaster

Notable Mercenaries[]

MercenaryGBAIcon

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light[]

Note: Navarre and Radd are Myrmidons in the remake.

Fire Emblem Gaiden[]

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[]

TearRing Saga: Berwick Saga[]

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

Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade[]

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[]

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)

Vestaria Saga: The Holy Sword of Silvanister[]

  • Baymonk - A mercenary honing his sword skills. Wishes to become the world's greatest Swordfighter.

Etymology[]

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

Gallery[]

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