Cheap mercenary unit

**p_nutter** · 04-10-2006, 20:01

Not the Italian infantry... the peasant.

This guy costs 0 to hire and 0 upkeep each turn after that. This is, I believe, a fair assessment of the unit's usefulness in combat. Would you hire him?

**Vladimir** · 04-10-2006, 20:56

Who knows, maybe he could, well, never mind.

**drone** · 04-10-2006, 21:01

The cheap upkeep might make them useful for garrison duty. That's about the only use I can see for them.

**bamff** · 04-11-2006, 00:58

Surely the reduced unit size of 1 would make him useless for any purpose whatsoever?

Mind you, hard to go past free stuff, isn't it....and there is an amusement factor in hiring him for not even food and board...

**Papewaio** · 04-11-2006, 01:11

I just wish you could retrain units into other units.

I would hire him and get him the best armour and weapons I could find.

BTW doesn't the act of hiring units encourage more units to appear in the province... so hiring him may attract other, better units?

**Asmodai** · 04-11-2006, 08:33

Think about their loyalty......low i think for merc of any sort, so their role as garrison duty is rather dangerous bussines. Having ticking bomb behind your back isnt good, so id rather keep any mercs in front of me, preferably sending them into best and most expensive enemy stack. Using mercs is very good tactic, if your economy is good, and you have big money to spend. So, even when mercs army will be destroyed, carnage attract more mercs to nearby inns, so there will be even more men to die for your money.

My favourite tactic is to use full stacks of mercs, preferably two or three, and when enemy armies are depleted and battered enough, my regular army beats them. And rather disbanding stacks of mercs, i throw them on the rest enemy forces, or pillage the neigbourhood. And when money drain caused by them is problem, i simply disband them.

**Alexios** · 04-12-2006, 23:04

I'm not so sure about combat. But hey, he's cheap labor. Why not hire him to clean up horse dung from your Royal Knights? Tough job, but somebody's gotta do it.

**Yoyoma1910** · 04-13-2006, 08:33

You could use him as a distractionary invasion unit... Or as your sultan's favourite peasant.

**Odin** · 04-14-2006, 18:35

Originally Posted by Yoyoma1910

You could use him as a distractionary invasion unit...

Yes, you could march him off to the right of the enemy and you bet that a unit will engage and persue. As a peasant he will flee fast so you might be able to draw an enemy unit away from thier line.

Other then that its a novelty act, put a jester suit on him and have him perform at court.

**bretwalda** · 04-14-2006, 18:47

Well, he is FREE! You can send him attack every turn and withdraw or garrison backwater territory. Its a pity that there is only one...

**Barbarossa1221** · 04-15-2006, 21:30

Maybe he is a good general......

And hes free so what the heck every army need a laugh now and then keeps morale up.
He could do shows and plays to tell how his unit got slaughtered it would be a hoot!