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The Mercenary (傭兵 Youhei) 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.

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.

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, Skill and Defense, although their counterparts are usually superior in the Speed 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

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---

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%20%0%25%20%0%10%5%----
FE1410%15%0%20%15%5%10%5%----
FE15120%50%-50%50%0%50%0%----

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.

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

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 Nabarl.

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 - Originally Lord Raymond of House Cornwell and the older brother of Priscilla. Seeks revenge against Ostia.
  • 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 competitive girl from a distant land who strives for perfection. She has pledged her elite services to Camilla.
  • Laslow - A familiar philanderer from a distant land who is skilled in the art of dance. He has pledged his elite services to Xander.
  • Soleil - Laslow's daughter. A confident, cheerful girl who is popular with other girls and enjoys flirting with them.
  • Zhara - A swordsman formerly renowned for his skill, now reduced to a common sellsword. (encountered as a boss; must be captured)

Gallery

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