Mercenaries

OK, if no one minds, I'll try my hand at this.
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Dark StarBolt

Dark StarBolt is a rather unusual group for several reasons. The first being that, currently, only one person makes it up, and two, he has a rather different way of doing things. He registered as a mercenary merely for the fun of it, and he doesn't take every job, only the ones that interest him. Most of those jobs have to do with fighting/eliminating threats in the jungle or large groups in Negav. His prices are extremely cheap, usually about half of what another group would charge, provided he takes the job. This, combined with his off-the-wall behavior, has been a problem for many who have tried to hire him.

Ranking

Dark StarBolt is currently ranked in the top ten due to his 99.9% success rate at the jobs he takes. However, he is currently on a probation of sorts after he eliminated not only the target who was attacking his charges, but half the charges as well. None the less, he has gained quite a reputation since he succeeded in a job to take out a giant predator. No one knows how he did it, but the fact stands that he did.

Members/History

Dark StarBolt is currently a one man team. He refers to himself as Minus to those he doesn't trust, and Nagi to those he does. His motivation for becoming a mercenary is unknown, when questioned he simply responded "Because it's fun." He registered legally, but operates in a questionable manner. Little is known about his history. He appears to be a dimensional traveler, and uses a large sword. His skill with it earned him first place at a sword fighting competition, and he is quite a skilled mage, as well.

well i have an idea of mercs called wolf platoon.They were a band of legendary mercs that had survived for 35 years and were known to only recurit members when one dies.sadly though when they where contracted to kill My OC Mac. They were wiped out. systemmaticly killed one by one until there was one left.he is the last man standing.there will be a one chapter story to flesh this out.
(when i mean systematicly kill one by one.i mean like how they predator picked off those speacil forces troops)

sparkythechu wrote:

OK, if no one minds, I'll try my hand at this.
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Dark StarBolt

Dark StarBolt is a rather unusual group for several reasons. The first being that, currently, only one person makes it up, and two, he has a rather different way of doing things. He registered as a mercenary merely for the fun of it, and he doesn't take every job, only the ones that interest him. Most of those jobs have to do with fighting/eliminating threats in the jungle or large groups in Negav. His prices are extremely cheap, usually about half of what another group would charge, provided he takes the job. This, combined with his off-the-wall behavior, has been a problem for many who have tried to hire him.

Ranking

Dark StarBolt is currently ranked in the top ten due to his 99.9% success rate at the jobs he takes. However, he is currently on a probation of sorts after he eliminated not only the target who was attacking his charges, but half the charges as well. None the less, he has gained quite a reputation since he succeeded in a job to take out a giant predator. No one knows how he did it, but the fact stands that he did.

Members/History

Dark StarBolt is currently a one man team. He refers to himself as Minus to those he doesn't trust, and Nagi to those he does. His motivation for becoming a mercenary is unknown, when questioned he simply responded "Because it's fun." He registered legally, but operates in a questionable manner. Little is known about his history. He appears to be a dimensional traveler, and uses a large sword. His skill with it earned him first place at a sword fighting competition, and he is quite a skilled mage, as well.

....

A one man mercenary band, who is obviously entirely unprofessional and doing it "for fun", achieving a 99% success rate and ranking in the top ten? This guy is a master swordsman AND mage? With a ridiculous name like Dark StarBolt?

I know we're supposed to be nice to newcomers... but hasn't anyone given you the "Boring OP Character" talk yet? Because this is pretty exemplary of it.

I would say so. but for a one man team, he himself wouldn't be rated traditionally, but rather on how an individual would perform. success Rates doesn't really matter personally on a record, that is ultimately how an employer looks on a mercenary they're hiring; But in terms of powerhouses,Jaetts right, very unoriginal and i wouldn't accept it unless it had a plethora of detail to why he's like that.

ravaging vixens wrote:

I would say so. but for a one man team, he himself wouldn't be rated traditionally, but rather on how an individual would perform. success Rates doesn't really matter personally on a record, that is ultimately how an employer looks on a mercenary they're hiring; But in terms of powerhouses,Jaetts right, very unoriginal and i wouldn't accept it unless it had a plethora of detail to why he's like that.

And even then, I wouldn't acknowledge such a character without a little something called an Exploitable Weakness.

Why not, I'll put my idea up. I dont feel like retyping, so...

gt500x wrote:

I was going to propose a centaur species based on Pegasus, but /Fish/ did a pretty good job on that already (which saved me a lot of work)... hope he doesn't mind me using the idea to make one particular tribe. I would like to get his permission. Hopefully someone knows where he vanished to. Edit: Because I can't get permission from /Fish/ to use the name "Pegasai," I'll be calling this group Winged Centaurs instead.

/Fish/ wrote:

Pegasai
Centaur Subspecies

Cousins of Felarya's giant centaurs, pegasai are mostly reputed to live far off the current known map. They are characterized by their especially graceful demeanor and large, feathery wings extending from either side of their equine lower half. They normally do not grow to over eighty feet in height, and colors of the hair and feathers vary greatly between individuals.......

....They face harpies directly in air combat. Newcomers are lent armor as a handicap, but are expected to at least pass in one round before resigning. Pegasai can be recruited to a cause that seems just to them, but you must first prove the worthiness of your leadership. When real battle is upon them, they don full armor and battle-ready lances. They are said to have taken part in past wars between harpies and sphinxes, though no one is sure just what side they favored. Though reputed to live far off the current known map, there have been various reports of them occasionally heading to and from some place up north...

The Winged Centaurs of Helicon Island
Danger Level: Medium
Occurance: Rare (Common on Helicon Island)

To the west of Iracal Island lies a smaller island where the Helicon Centaurs guard a fortress built by a highly magical tribe of giantesses, called the Oiriopata, that vanished from known existence. These Winged Centaurs are extremely tight lipped about the history of Helicon Island. Judging by the statues, the Oiriopata appeared to have had a warrior culture much like the Helicon Centaurs have now. It may very well be that the Helicons are carrying on the legacy of the warrior giantesses, living by a fiercly enforced code. Showing cowardice in battle was far worse than defeat to the Helicons. Honor was entirely in the way a warrior fought and died, and had little to do with the cause that the warrior was fighting for. They have been known to act as mercenaries to hunt a specific target or to simply lead an army, so it was not unthinkable that two of them could end up on opposite sides. The Helicons have no qualms about this as indicated by one of their most famous sayings, "There are no friends on the battle field." They will even hunt their own if one of the Helicons is known to have fled a battle in fear.
The Winged Centaurs of Helicon Island can be found throughout Felarya, often contracted by humanoids as guards or escorts. They are believed to be extremely trustworthy by potential clients. Stories shared by past clientele tell of Helicon warriors going without food for days and not so much as flinching at the sight of a human they were commissioned to protect. If a humanoid wished to request their services, there are liaisons in the form of humanoid women in almost every major civilization; women who were specially selected by the Helicon Centaurs themselves. The highest authorities among the Helicons are twin sisters by the names of Myrine and Pontu, but they make peculiar references to the Oiorpata as a possible higher power. It is unknown if the Oiorpata still exist as physical beings or if they are merely held as Goddesses due to the Helicons secretive nature.

Now runs out with my hands over my head to block the projectiles thrown.

Heh. You know, I'm all for paramilitary groups, so I may as well try my hand at this. Maybe I'll include these guys in a story.

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The Mujina Snake-Eaters
Originally composed of several soldiers from the world of Mujina, the group has grown somewhat to include over one hundred men and women. Their ranks are mostly human, although they don't discriminate against nekos and other able bodies. In fact, nekos are often respected for their speed and agility, since the Snake-Eaters prefer the art of swordplay above all else.

The weapon of choice for elite members is a curved blade similar in construction to a katana, but with a longer hilt to easily accommodate shifts between one-handed and two-handed grips. This is because the Snake-Eaters have a unique and extremely flashy style of swordsmanship, which usually involves flipping the blade between grips in long, swooping arcs, which is useful for defending from multiple attacks, but requires a lot of practice to be effective. Recruits often use more standard swords, polearms, or shortbows. Guns are less common (but not unheard of), as ammunition cannot be found or constructed as easily. Spellcasters can also be found among their ranks, but even Snake-Eater mages are familiar with the art of the blade, and incorporate it into their spellwork.

Light armor is issued to new members, while more ornate sets are reserved for officers and commanders. The standard set of armor is a flexible leather bodyglove with padded steel plates on the shoulders, biceps, chest, thighs and shins. These plates are arranged for minimal restriction while still protecting vital strike zones, meaning the joints are free and covered with only the thinnest leather. The armor of higher-ranking mercenaries substitutes the leather for more expensive snakeskin, and often features stylized plates. Helmets are very ragtag compared to the standardized armor: warriors are encouraged to use whatever feels right, and many go without any head protection, preferring instead to rely on their blade for defense. Various symbols are often painted onto armor, mostly images of snakes cut in half, or other serpentine creatures such as nagas.

Discipline isn't as enforced as a true military, but Mujina Snake-Eaters are expected to follow the orders of officers and obey basic protocol. Individual squads tend to number between ten and twenty warriors, with one officer leading them, and they prefer to ambush opponents and strike them down quickly.

Okay, I made some small changes (AWSUM is back to being the FACE again) and I created a new mercenary group, the Assassins' Guild.



Blackjack Mercenary Squadron

The Blackjack Mercenary Squadron (or Blackjacks for short) are a classic example of a group of mercenaries who have been trapped by their employer. Formerly lead by Westler, the creator of Westler's Weapons and Explosives Emporium, they wound up becoming his private security force after he created his new business. Made up of those with special talents who are too stupid, desperate or loathed to get a job anywhere else, the Blackjacks are still registered with the NMBRC, but their contracts are typically given to them through Westler, even though he hasn’y gone on a mission himself in years.

Fairy Assualt Corps Elite

Occasionally, a young fairy will leave their pack because they are tired of being told they can do whatever they like. They will rebel against the long held fairy traditions of anarchy and disorder and begin having strange ideas of obedience to authority, organization and responsibility. These youthful fairies will typically join the Fairy Assault Corps Elite, a mercenary squad which operates out of the Motamo Docks, outside of Negav. This group is made up of roughly a dozen fairies at any time, as well as around half a dozen supporting warriors of various races. It has a very high turnover rate, as young fairies will often leave after a tour with them, getting their desire to be ordered out of their system and then heading back to their packs, and the supporting warriors have a nasty habit of being lynched if they return to Negav (or sometimes disappear mysteriously…). They are lead by Drekka, a Crimson Maiden who was kicked out of her home for being too strict. It is rumoured she has never lowered her voice below a shout and has stared down Leviathan Mermaids without flinching. The FACE is one of the more hated mercenary groups around Negav, but it is also one of the more successful, so it continues to get contracts, despite its employers reserved feelings. On numerous occasions the FACE has actually been targeted by fairy hunters or other mercenary groups, with little success.

The Grunts

The Grunts are known to be a group of soldiers who specialize in domestic protection - i.e. being bodyguards inside Negav. New recruits are trained in the basics of urban warfare, given a sub machine gun and a bullet proof vest and sent on missions straight away. While they are not the most skilled soldiers out there, they are cheap, and there are always more of them. It is mostly made up of those too under qualified or infamous to get a job with any other mercenary group. As a result, it is expected that a new recruit will join the Grunts under a pseudonym and there are no background checks performed. They will gladly take on any job, from guarding bars to guarding VIPs, to fighting for a particular military - with one big exception. The Grunts will NEVER take a job that requires them to go outside of Negav. The more senior members of the Grunts view such an action as suicide and a waste of personnel who would be better sacrificed to fulfil contracts where they might actually get paid. They are currently under investigation by the NMRBC after rumouurs of a link between them and the Assassins’ Guild.

The Assassins’ Guild

Occasionally, Felarya’s dimensional warps pull in someone truly horrible – a person who would normally be found in an oppressive secret police, ruthless sadists with no morals to speak of. If this person is skilled enough to survive the trip to Negav they are usually recruited into the Assassins’ Guild, a group of mercenaries that is famed for its cunning and deceit. Due to the high number of manipulative sociopaths that make up the Assassins’ Guild, life as a member of the Assassins’ Guild is a constant power struggle against other members, with scheming and backstabbing a part of every day. The current leader, Augustus (last name unknown), achieved his position when his predecessor accidently fell backwards onto a steak knife twice. Oddly, it is also well known and respected by many other organizations within Negav, including both the Vishmitals and the Ps'isol Magiocrats, even though it can often be found engaging in small-scale political maneuvering with the Isolon Fist.

F.O.O.D.

There's two main characteristics that tell F.O.O.D. apart from other mercenary groups- the first is the F.O.O.D. bio policy. If possible, F.O.O.D. absorbs all the risks, and most F.O.O.D. operatives will give themselves up to a predator, seasoned, flavored, and struggling as much as it takes, if all other options have been depleted and that is necessary to get their charges spared. The second thing is that it holds training sessions, so that anyone willing to enroll is free to become a mercenary- or just train with them. The training itself is free, and this allows F.O.O.D. to replenish its numbers much faster than any other private security contractors. Even then, as far as quality goes, F.O.O.D. isn't the best.

F.O.O.D. is a very loose organization- its members are classified in two groups: "green" and "seasoned", depending on whether they've been fielded yet or not, but this initial distinction has no real effect, not even as an internal status symbol. Matter of fact, often there's no greens anywhere in the organization for long periods of time: they only go for greens every 3 months and these greens often go out of season uneaten. At any time, there's probably 68-82 operatives in F.O.O.D., with an average turnover of 16 members per season (in their defense, nearly a third of them quit, average).

Aside from special occassions, the usual unit in which F.O.O.D. operatives operate is a platoon (or, as some people call it, a plate), composed of twelve people each. Though most of the time a single platoon will do, if they're expecting strong resistance or escorting a large number, they might add one or two more plates to the course- and sometimes, they send teams where there's not enough F.O.O.D. to fill a plate. There's two leadership positions within a platoon- the platoon leader and the first mate. The platoon leader is the one that makes all the decisions, with a first mate to act as their left hand. The first mate also has the responsibility of leading the platoon if the platoon leader is incapacitated. Interestingly enough, first mate is the least coveted position in a platoon- if the platoon leader invokes bio policy, he must always be the first to go, and the fist mate must always be left over to guide the charges, even if no one else in the platoon is left to help them with it. First mates are often very vigilant- in a real plate nobody wants to be the lonely leftovers. Both positions must be held by seasoned members: it's wishful thinking that a plate of greens will get you through the day in the wild, you'll need at least a little seasoning to make it go smoothly- though rarely, they lead a plate with greens. However, they're never greens they raised themselves, but adventurers who had prior experience; they're often referred to as wild greens. It is, however, regarded as a little desperate to make a dish with wild greens as the main course.

Platoons are trained to fight on foot, but generally use vehicles for transport. Well over half of F.O.O.D. operatives rely on submachineguns, while the rest relies on a variety of weapons, including some subduing tools such as dart guns, net casters and tasers. All operatives carry one backup melee weapon, usually a large hunting knife or small sword, though this isn't regulated, so as to accomodate for personal preference. Each platoon usually carries two flamethrowers for great predators, relying on their sheer shock factor more than their actual killing power, with varying backup weapons to account for fire nagas, fire elementals, and reckless, starving giant pyromaniacs- usually one flashbang grenade per person, used only as commanded by the platoon leader.

Though F.O.O.D. accounts for personal preference, currently they have a standard issue uniform equipment set of sorts. Aside from proper flavorings for themselves, they wear fully edible clothes with either a special flavor or no flavor but capable of absorbing the wearer's flavor and magnifying it- in general, pants and a long-sleeved shirt, with a thick, camo overcoat and boots (those last not edible). It's not unknown, however, for members to eat their clothes out if they aren't comfortable in them: sleeves are usually the first victims of uncomfortable operatives who need to freshen their armpits. For obvious reasons, edible underwear and socks are no longer issued by this organization.

It's ironic that F.O.O.D. is prepared not to be eaten. Most operatives are briefed on the dangers and critters of the area they'll visit before they are fielded, and tactics are often worked out ahead of time, keeping them general enough and with sufficient backup plans to be flexible. However, F.O.O.D. has a major weakness compared to most other private contractors- namely, that it's most definitely not a military. Their training just isn't as effective as most militaries' training, which then goes on to prepare the people that eventually join other mercenary companies. While F.O.O.D. isn't some bunch of hapless lugs, not at all, they're still far from the best- and this makes the difference. Most individuals who become F.O.O.D. and survive end up turning to a different mercenary company, one that doesn't have such a creepy policy and pays better: payment in this organization is deliberately low, as they don't want anyone to join for the money. As a final weakness, F.O.O.D. always counts on outnumbering its targets. Outnumbered itself, F.O.O.D. is quickly put to the ropes, and they know it: while other contractors might have a vulnerability to great predators, F.O.O.D. has bigger issues with hostile tribes and bandits.

The sort of people who flock to F.O.O.D. are also an interesting bunch, but not as crazy as one would think. While plenty of them have suicidal tendencies at least at joining, the training and indoctrination they receive during training often makes them LESS suicidal than they started, ironically! In general, F.O.O.D. is reliable- though success is not guaranteed, they almost never lose charges they were dedicated to protect. It's worth noting that F.O.O.D. only operates outside eye range- they are not trained for urban operations and they know it.

(It's not necromancy)

I think it might be possible for successful adventurers, explorers, etc to 'apprentice' or fund younger and/or less rich ones with the money they've earned from their loot/findings/treasure.
This would turn into small adventurer bands that could be easily hired by rich patrons.
Nobody really goes into the jungle alone (if they want to come back that is). Therefore; nobody hires just one adventurer, they hire many. But going around, finding and hiring individuall is tedious, not to mention that those hired are likely to be unfamiliar with each other. Having bands that were familiar with each other would be a boon, as such bands would make the hiring of adventurers and explorers easier and improve survival rates.

The question is, who manages them? Would it come under part of the NMRB's management?
I think it might, which is why I'm posting this here.

Hello common that I haven't seen in awhile.

I have been gone since my visitation to japan (being a Marine that is) has causen me to have a very barren aura of activity in the fourms, though would like you to know that I haven't forgotten how i would like this mercenary thing to be structured as best as possible.
With the help of my current job occupation, I have learned a great deal about the mercenary buisness ( or so called private contractors at least in this world) that can assist me on making a few segments here and there about common concerns that people have been asking. Such as:

Q:How are companies/individuals rated?
A: Platoons,Companies,Battalions and regiment sized contractors will be different then individual raitings with two seperate and respective categories.

Q:Does success rate really matter with the rating?
A: I wouldn't really say so. Really because you can't determine how to grade a person if they were alone, compared with how they are with other associtates. So small bands/units like in these circumstances like this don't get an official raiting as much as a mercenary unit that had a composition to company level would. So instead they would have a typical slant of a 'N/A' Hussar rating compared to a bigger unit because of how widely they can be used in an operation for a mission.

Q:How much are predators/mechs (those above the 15 meter mark) worth in Numbers to a mercenary unit? or at all in an organization?
A: To be safe, I imagined a hypothetical situation, that a platoon (twenty-five to fifty individuals) of well armed and competent soilders would be able to take down an individual predator so that no so ludcrously skilled teams could manage the same. So a predator in a typical military structure (at least for a felarya standard) would be equivalent to a platoon of infantry.

This is really a rough draft basis that I came up with sofar. So if you have have questions on this particular subject, don't hesitate to personal message me your addition to this so that we can Help the felarya community understand the General basis of being a mercenary on this oh so dangerous world.

Next thing I post might be pretty massive, as its about my personal mercenary force that is apparently legendary, Kensha Hussars. (months later probably)

So keep it frosty