Mercenaries

How It Works

"You encounter a Covered Wagon filled with mercenary warriors who clamor loudly for your favor, eager to join you in battle."

"For the price of only X gems, one of them will fight at your side for a while."

Cost: 1 gem (default cost setting)

Daily Limit: 2 hires per day (default dailyuses setting, 0=unlimited)

Hiring Method: "Toss a gem over the wagon. The one who catches it will join you."

Duration: Random 5-15 rounds per mercenary (Drunk Dwarf: 3-13, Knight: 8-18)

The 7 Mercenaries

1. Almarea the Paladin (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Almarea the Paladin catches the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack buff: +50% (1.5 atkmod)
• Defense buff: +20% (1.2 defmod)
• Rounds: 5-15
• Round message: "The Paladin draws her sword and attacks with a frenzy"
• Wearoff: "The Paladin has tired, and leaves you in search of Ale"
• Assessment: EXCELLENT - best attack buff

2. Longstepper the Ranger (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Longstepper the Ranger snatches the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack buff: +40% (1.4 atkmod)
• Defense buff: +30% (1.3 defmod)
• Rounds: 5-15
• Round message: "The Ranger attacks the {badguy} with a vengeance"
• Wearoff: "The Ranger disappears through the forest"
• Assessment: EXCELLENT - balanced offensive/defensive

3. Dagnar the Veteran Knight (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Dagnar the Veteran Knight catches the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack buff: +50% (1.5 atkmod)
• Defense buff: +50% (1.5 defmod)
• Rounds: 8-18 (+3 bonus duration!)
• Round message: "The Veteran Knight's skill at arms is let loose on the {badguy}"
• Wearoff: "Dagnar can no longer maintain your pace, and retires"
• Assessment: BEST OVERALL - highest buffs + longest duration

4. Tavaril the Elf Archer (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Tavaril the Elf Archer beats the others to the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack buff: +40% (1.4 atkmod)
• Defense buff: 0% (1.0 defmod - no defense bonus)
• Rounds: 5-15
• Round message: "Tavaril's aim is true and an arrow strikes {badguy}"
• Wearoff: "Tavaril runs out of arrows and returns to her clan"
• Assessment: GOOD - attack only, no defense

5. Bjorn the Pikeman (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Bjorn the Pikeman snags the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack buff: +10% (1.1 atkmod)
• Defense buff: +30% (1.3 defmod)
• Rounds: 5-15
• Round message: "{badguy} has a hard time avoiding the Pikeman's jabs"
• Wearoff: "The Pikeman retreats when his weapon shatters"
• Assessment: MODERATE - defensive focus, weak attack

6. Tryxlk the Blind Troll (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Tryxlk the Blind Troll somehow catches the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack buff: 0% (1.0 atkmod - no attack bonus)
• Defense buff: +20% (1.2 defmod)
• Rounds: 5-15
• Round message: "Tryxlk seems to sense the {badguy}'s position, and swings his sword"
• Wearoff: "The Blind Troll loses sight of you"
• Assessment: POOR - defense only, no attack help

7. Grog the Drunken Dwarf (14.3% chance):

• Message: "Grog the Drunken Dwarf falls on the gem and will fight with you for a while!"
• Attack PENALTY: -20% (0.8 atkmod - HURTS you!)
• Defense PENALTY: -20% (0.8 defmod - HURTS you!)
• Rounds: 3-13 (-2 penalty duration)
• Round message: "The Drunk Dwarf proves more of a liability than a help, and stumbles against you"
• Wearoff: "Grog passes out behind a shrub"
• Assessment: TERRIBLE - actively harmful, you're better off without him

If You Don't Have Gems

Penalty: Mercenaries attack you for lying about payment

• Lose 9% of current HP (rounded)
• HP cannot drop below 1
• Message: "You promise to give the mercenaries X gems, however, when you open your purse, you discover that you don't have that many. The mercenaries draw their weapons and attack you."
• Don't hire if you lack gems!

Forest vs. Travel

If cities module is ACTIVE:

• Forest event hook returns 0 (never appears in forest)
• Travel event hook returns 100 (always appears during travel)
• Hire mercenary while traveling between cities

If cities module is INACTIVE:

• Forest event hook returns 100 (common in forest)
• Travel event hook returns 0 (never during travel)
• Hire mercenary during normal forest fights

Probability Analysis

All 7 mercenaries have equal probability: 1/7 each (14.3% chance)

Mercenary	Chance	Value
Veteran Knight	14.3%	BEST (+50%/+50%, long duration)
Paladin	14.3%	EXCELLENT (+50%/+20%)
Ranger	14.3%	EXCELLENT (+40%/+30%)
Elf Archer	14.3%	GOOD (+40%/0%)
Pikeman	14.3%	MODERATE (+10%/+30%)
Blind Troll	14.3%	POOR (0%/+20%)
Drunk Dwarf	14.3%	TERRIBLE (-20%/-20%)

Expected Value: 5/7 outcomes (71.4%) are positive. 1/7 (14.3%) is terrible. Worth the gamble at 1 gem cost.

Settings

• cost: Gems charged per hire (default 1)
• dailyuses: Max hires per day (default 2, 0=unlimited)

Strategy

Always Hire If You Have Gems: 71.4% chance of positive buff vs. 14.3% chance of dwarf disaster. Good odds.

Daily Limit: Use both hires (default 2/day) for maximum buff coverage during forest grinding.

Best Outcome: Veteran Knight = +50% attack AND defense for up to 18 rounds. Massive combat advantage.

Worst Outcome: Drunk Dwarf = -20% attack AND defense for 3-13 rounds. Avoid combat until he passes out.

Gem Economy: At 1 gem cost, mercenaries are cheap combat buffs. Trade gems for combat power.

Before Boss Fights: Hire mercenary immediately before challenging difficult opponents (Professor, PVP, VE).

Stacking: Cannot stack multiple mercenary buffs (hiring new one replaces old one). Use sequentially.