Mercenary

Mercenaries are professionals who sell violence as a service. Unlike gang members or syndicate enforcers, they don’t care about territory, reputation, or intimidation rituals — they care about contracts, clear objectives, and getting paid.

In SWURPG encounters, Mercenaries represent a noticeable step up in competence. They fight clean, use cover intelligently, and don’t waste actions on bluster or threats. They’re commonly hired to guard valuable assets, escort dangerous shipments, or serve as neutral muscle when syndicates don’t want their fingerprints on a job.

Mercenaries aren’t loyal to causes, but they are loyal to survival. If a contract becomes untenable, they’ll retreat, renegotiate, or abandon the job entirely rather than fight to the death. This makes them excellent recurring adversaries — or temporary allies — depending on how the party handles them.

When Mercenaries appear, it’s a signal that someone has resources, foresight, and the sense to outsource their dirty work.

Mercenaries fight methodically and without emotion. They open engagements from partial cover with steady heavy blaster pistol fire, focusing on exposed targets and forcing enemies to reposition.

Weapon Discipline represents clean fundamentals: they don’t waste shots, they don’t spray, and they take the angle that gives them the best odds. If the enemy closes distance, the Mercenary swaps to a vibroblade and fights decisively rather than flailing or posturing.

Improved Initiative lets the Mercenary shape the first moments of a fight. Use it to ensure they act early when it matters — drawing first blood, taking a strong position, or putting pressure on the party’s most vulnerable target.

If wounded, the Mercenary uses Medpac I when there’s a brief lull or when allies can screen them. Mercenaries don’t die for pride: if the contract turns ugly, they withdraw intelligently, keeping distance and escaping rather than making a last stand.