Mordheim

37 TIPS FOR MERCENARIES

My name is Sebastian Kurtz. I am a murderer.

No, no, no don't look so surprised. I'm too poor and too cold to give a damn about social niceties anymore. I am a mercenary and I kill people for a living. I lead a group of cut-throats, convicts and burnouts that can't get a job anywhere any more cushy.

A few realities for you before you set out to follow in my bloody bootprints. You have to know about the way the world treats mercs.

Firstly, if you are a soldier; you are trusted. You must have the trust of whoever it is who employs you. You are responsible for their safety and that of your family. Without that trust, because of prison time, theft or betrayal, you are quickly unemployed. So where does a man who's only skill is steel go?

You become a merc.

A few differences between a soldier and a merc. A soldier is a inner keep. By that I mean that all untakable castle fortifications have an outer wall, an inner wall and a central keep. The central keep is the Last line of defence, something rarely used, but built all the same for the security it offers. Soldiers are like that. They offer security every day, all the time, though many live out their lives in boredom only having draw steel once or twice.

Now, if your enemy attacks, and you fear your men are not enough in number, what do you do?

You call a Mercenary.
You call me.

I see more action in one year than many soldiers do in a lifetime. My men and I (those that have survived) could fight for your home town one day. We may stay for a month, maybe two. Once the threat has ended we still have to eat, but few nobles will pay for excess soldiers (which we have then become). So off we go to find another war.

Some places, like Telia, you can always find work. It's just a matter of who you are willing to kill. This seems harsh to other people, but I say you have never been hungry enough to kill.

You should be thankful for that. I get that hungry at least once a year, sometimes twice. We must appear skilled, more-so than the competition so we can get work. Then we must be skilled. Mercenaries who die in combat are unlikely to be paid. This mean we are the first sent in, the last to leave, the most of those who die. We rarely work twice for a general who uses us too much in this fashion, if we have a choice.

Anyhow, enough of my prattling. I have accumulated a set of rules for mercenary commanders... I think it is time to pass them down to someone else.

Sabastian's Laws:

1- The enemy of my enemy is my cannon fodder. We are not friends.
2- Go home alive.
3- Gold is needed, but it can't buy a good nights sleep. Sleep when you can, you don't know when you will get another chance.
4-Never assume; anticipate.
5- Never shit in your own tent.
6- Never shit in anyone else's tent, they'll become cranky quickly.
7- You can over-think but not over-plan.
8- Impossible is for the lazy or unprepared.
9- The 10 crowns you make on the campaign won't save a frostbitten toe: buy blankets.
10- You don't have to like your employer. You just have to fight and die for them.
11- That prisoner may be you one day. Treat them humanely.
12- If your pride piles debts your ass can't cover your next exchange will be from the Bank of Morr. 13- Honor is nice, ambushes are better.
14- That old man you are about to try to mug may be me.
15- Never leave an enemy alive at your back.
16- A Mercenary should never combat enemies, only opponents on the field of conflict.
17- Adapt... Fast!
18- Your most potent weapon is your mind.
19- If your gut tells you to walk away, walk away.
20- Never carry more than you can stand to lose.
21- If at first you don't succeed, LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES!
22- Never leave a friend or team-mate behind.
23- Always consult your team.
24- Training and Equipment are better than blood and gold.
25-Never strike at a bog octopus' tentacles. Go for the head. Tentacles grow back, brains do not. 26- Always have two more of anything than you think you need.
27- Find a hobby. Being able to kill with every weapon imaginable won't pass time in your old age. 28- Live every moment as if it were your last, it might be.
29- Check your gear.
30- Check it again.
31- Know the terrain
32- Ranald's dice sometimes come up snake-eyes. Be prepared.
33- Always know why something may be done, but never ask it. (Know what you're getting into). 34- If only 1000 things have gone wrong, it's probably a successful battle.
35- The lives of your men are worth more than your own. Treat them that way and they will follow you against the hordes of chaos themselves.
36- Orders must always be obeyed.
37- Yes, even if you don't like them.