Is there a 'realistic' use for mercenaries?

[Intranetusa]

The problem with too much mercs is that it removes a sense of urgency - you can be invaded by a large army and you won't have to worry since if you're swimming in money, you can hire huge stack of mercs 4 times a year... :(

[Digby Tatham Warter]

The problem with too much mercs is that it removes a sense of urgency - you can be invaded by a large army and you won't have to worry since if you're swimming in money, you can hire huge stack of mercs 4 times a year... :(

Good point, I don't like using them apart from cost, it's a waste of experienced gained(you can't retrain mercs). Like others have mentioned if I am assaulting walls, I may hire mercs to do the dirty work to save important troops, that's of course if the opposition looks a bit tasty.

Historically how much risk was there of mercs used as a garrison getting up to no good? I was wandering if mercs are used, that a script with a chance for the city to rebel or be sacked, might be applicable!

[Thaatu]

Historically how much risk was there of mercs used as a garrison getting up to no good? I was wandering if mercs are used, that a script with a chance for the city to rebel or be sacked, might be applicable!

There were risks especially if there were more mercs than other troops. Scripting it might be a bit tricky, since the engine probably can't check which troops are in the garrison.

[Pharnakes]

Nice idea, but could noly be done if there was a govenor in the city, which would bethe time when mercs would behave themselves, so I don't think this going to happen.

Shame, would deff be interesting. Stupid Epirotes.

[Tellos Athenaios]

Not to mention that AFAIK some units use a trick whereby they are tagged as merc in the EDU when in fact they are recruited as every other regular soldier...

[glouch]

whoa.

i just realized, i've never used mercenary units in EB, ever. XD

i doubt if that's historical.

[Zarax]

You could always put an is_peasant tag to merc units, this way they would be only half as effective as garrison, meaning higher risks of rebellion especially without governor...

[The General]

The use depends on the unit, and what I'm hiring them for.

Some might be intended to act as city guards if I can't recruit any there, and then I just, of course, aim for the best price-quantity relation.

Some mercs I might hire to act as catapult fodder/for specific combat reasons, and they'll probably get sacked after the battle (if I see no use for them anymore).

However, some mercs I might use for longer periods of time, and this includes, for example, Toxotai Kretikoi (which you can, even retrain as several factions, no?), and such otherwise unavailable troops (I might need more cavalry, for example, and have no access to recruitable types).

Of course, I prefer factional (trainable regionals included) over mercs, because of the aforementioned chevron-gaining and retrainability.