Mercenary Companies

[jonasnee4671]

eh, what do you think a guy with a repeater rifle or a revolver is suppose to represent? they are basically cowboys.

[AnaWinters]

You want a list of prominent Native Americans that could be turned into mercs? Here’s a list.

Arapaho
Dakota
Dakhota
Ojibwe
Creek
Inuit
Nez Perce
Osage
Blackfoot
Hopi
Shoshone
Choctaw
Chickasaw
Pueblo
Omaha

I could continue, but here’s some fairly major nations that have no representation in the game that were relevant at this point and could be turned into mercs. The two Dakota + Arapaho in particular could be turned into mercs for the Lakota.

[BjornViking20]

@AnaWinters

You want a list of prominent Native Americans that could be turned into mercs? Here’s a list.

Is there any precedent to native tribes/civilizations hiring mercenaries? Honest question; I think at least in the case of Aztec the answer is no.

[GazeofJustice]

@BjornViking20

Is there any precedent to native tribes/civilizations hiring mercenaries? Honest question; I think at least in the case of Aztec the answer is no.

Well the Otontin were mercenaries used by the Aztecs but DE changed the macehualtin to them.

@ArrivedLeader22

I don’t know if there are still good candidates of Native American units to add to the mercenary type. Maybe some experts could help me out.

I know others would suggest specific tribes but I would go with a different approach. Something more agnostic of tribes:
Reservation Police - An anti-native unit mercenary. Probably a ranged cavalry.

Army Indian Scout - Stealthy skirmisher mercenary. Probably have the same ability has the salteador or something that increases it’s line of sight.

Fur Trapper - A mercenary villager. Very good against treasure guardians. Has a training limit.

[Bramkurtzio]

@GazeofJustice

Well the Otontin were mercenaries used by the Aztecs but DE changed the macehualtin to them.

They may have been renamed to the “Otontin” but they don’t look anything like them. If the Otamies were to be based from their respective dress code in the Aztec army then they would wear an emerald green “tlahuiztli” (war suit) together with a tear drop shaped back banner that was for the most part green as well according to this website called Warriors & Legends.

However, once the in-game unit gets upgraded to Champion/Legendary these so called “Otontin Slingers” resembles a “Papalotl”, which was a military rank given to warriors that had taken 3 captives and it was distinguished by them wearing a back banner that was supposed to look like butterfly wings. In terms of ranking the Otamies were one of the highest ranking warriors in the Aztec military, only second to the “Cuachicqueh” (Shorn Ones), so it is very weird that they get upgraded to a lower rank warrior.

I am in favour of renaming the “Otontin Slinger” to the [Metl Slinger] instead or something similar to it, where the word “Metl” is apparently the Nahuatl word for “Maguey” which was the material that the Aztecs used to make their slings.

Here is a depiction of the Otami warrior:

[MUTYLATOR5553]

While I want more Native American content (from the Americas, but especially South America), I think it should also be in the form of Minor Civilizations. I have a hard time imagining Native Americans as Mercenaries or Outlaws. A better solution is to add more American maps and at the same time add some new Minor Civilizations.

Brand new American Native civs should be:

1. Niswi-mishkodewinan (from Anishinaabe to English: Council of Three Fires)
2. Mapuche
3. Tupi

optional civs:

1. Mayans
2. Muisca (if the Mayans became a full-fledged civ then Musica should too. If not, Muisca like the Mayans should be a revolution option in Gran Colombians civ)

[M00Z1LLA]

There’s a few options mentioned in this discussion:

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/3jwcqe/did_the_aztecs_and_native_americans_have_things/

Overall, soldiers for hire don’t really seem to be a much of a thing in native societies. And the approach of unrepresented people = mercenary is not really a good one.

[ArrivedLeader22]

Otomi and Ashaninka (jungle bowman) were closest to what we think as mercenaries, but they got incorporated into the regular roster.

I still think it would be better if mercenaries are limited to actual mercenaries or elite units.

Edit: Chichimec people might be a good option.

[BjornViking20]

@M00Z1LLA

Overall, soldiers for hire don’t really seem to be a much of a thing in native societies. And the approach of unrepresented people = mercenary is not really a good one.

Thanks for the info, very insightful and agreed. Minor civs seems the way to go.

[AnaWinters]

@ArrivedLeader22

or elite units.

This is the stand-point of which mercs would mostly operate off of in North America. Warrior societies like the Dog Soldiers, the Shield-Bearers, or Gourd-Dancers are the type of societies that would make good Merc-type units.

[ArrivedLeader22]

@AnaWinters

Dog Soldiers

What about using the current Cheyenne rider model (which is more appropriate for a “dog soldier” than in legacy) to revive the “dog soldier” unit as a mercenary, while giving the Cheyenne rider a different model?

[AnaWinters]

Just replace the Cheyenne minor civ with the Arapaho and turn the Dog Soldier into a Merc unit. Give the new Arapaho minor civ the Arapaho Cloud Rider as its unit (iirc Cloud Riders are a warrior society of the Arapaho) and mostly everything about them can remain the same.

[SoullessHeathen]

Pretty sure using white elephants as beasts of burden and war was punishable by death.

[M00Z1LLA]

They were a symbol of royal power, not inherently sacred. Kings could do what they like with them, and those kings did engage in elephants duels. There also was a White Elephant War so there’s a connection whether or not they actually fought.

[OperaticShip743]

@SoullessHeathen

Pretty sure using white elephants as beasts of burden and war was punishable by death.

By the way, why are there no mercenary elephants?

[ArrivedLeader22]

Coming up: gatling elephants (they were real).

[M00Z1LLA]

@M00Z1LLA

@ArkadasLlisa

except teutonic knights (a little bit out of frame?)

This is probably the least mercenary of the bunch, but they do fit the timeframe. I was struggling to come up with another potential mercenary to round out the Prussian company

I think I’ve finally found a suitable mercenary replacement for the Teutonic Knight; the Geschwindstück (thanks to HoopThrower for pointing it out).

@HoopThrower

I always pictured the Geschwindstück as the perfect option for an Artillery Mercenary. It was a weird, highly specialized gimmick gun that only could be afforded by rich states.

So instead of the Prussian Company that I initially suggested below, a Saxon Company could replace it with Teutonic Knights being swapped for Geschwindstück.

@M00Z1LLA

Prussian Company

Consists of Giant Grenadiers and Bosniaks, and Teutonic Knights. The current prospects for a Prussian civilization are slim, but they could get a little recognition with a mercenary company.

Despite their Balkan origins, the Bosniak Corps actually served Prussia.

Teutonic Knights would be a new mercenary to complete the company. As a nod to their AoE2 counterpart, they should be a swordsman with ridiculously high melee armour. They could also possess some of the same abilities as Hospitallers.

Saxon Company

Consists of Giant Grenadiers, Bosniaks, and Geschwindstück. This would be a mix of mercenaries (and other extravagantly expensive units) that fought for Saxony and Prussia. Technically a name like Brandenburgian/Brandenburger Company would be more accurate, but that’s a mouthful and it also has some not so nice WW2 connotations.

Geschwindstück means “quick-fire gun”, so obviously a rapid rate of fire would distinguish them from other artillery. Their unique method of reloading by tipping the barrel almost vertically would also make them stand out. Their rapid fire would make them a very powerful unit, but they are also described as expensive and vulnerable to damage, so a high cost and low health could balance very high DPS.

[M00Z1LLA]

I’m not sure why half the pictures I linked are corrupted by the stupidly draconian censors. It wasn’t like that when I originally posted it.

The unit I tried to mention as a Crabat replacement in the Balkan Company was Uskoks. Apparently that also got completely corrupted.

[Notonline]

@M00Z1LLA

Highland Company

Consists of Highlanders, Swiss Pikemen, and Harquebusiers. Themed around the units from the rugged highlands who also all hold to the Calvinist faith.

Can we please stop proclaiming Reisläufer as calvinists? At most they’d be Zwinglian protestant however the majority would have been catholic.

Overall, i think the idea of companies is interesting, if it also finally allows for imperial upgraded mercs for asian civs. Further i think there should always be 1 civ specific option (e.g. you play italy, one option is always italian mercs) with 2 local choices.

[M00Z1LLA]

@Notonline

Can we please stop proclaiming Reisläufer as calvinists? At most they’d be Zwinglian protestant however the majority would have been catholic.

First of all, it’s called Highlander Company, not Calvinist Company. But even so, the common denominator between all these units is coming from populations that were primarily Reformed. I’m also using Calvinist in the loosest sense to refer to all Reformed like Zwinglians, Arminians, etc even if they’re not technically Calvinist.

Highlanders would be primarily Presbyterian with a Catholic Jacobite minority. Swiss Pikemen would be a mix of Catholic and Reformed. Harquebusiers are based on the Puritan Ironsides, so they’d all be Reformed. On top of that, Harquebusiers don’t come from the highlands, so being Reformed is really the only common trait.