The Dishonourable Directory of Mercenary Companies

The following work has been compiled on the order of The Blind Seer Council of Io,

By James Thunderace

The terms “Mercenary” and “Gold” are not registered trademarks of Dicey Prospects Productions.

Any resemblance or similarities between the soldiers of fortune presented within and people alive or
dead are wholly coincidental.

Follow us for more irreverent nonsense at https://twitter.com/DiceyProspects

Published by Dicey Prospects Productions 2021

1. The Cloud Bursters

Rightfully ranked amongst of the oldest and most respected mercenary companies still operating
the Cloud Bursters have fought under half a score of captains upon a thousand battlefields. Drawing
recruits from the diverse and disparate lands they range across the Cloud Bursters are willing to take
any likely youth who proves themselves capable of putting three arrows in the centre of a target 400
feet away in less than twenty seconds. It is only upon formal induction into the company that the
real training commences under the harsh but expert eyes of the companies drill sergeants. Through
blood, sweat and tears their raw talent is refined and built upon until every member is a superb
archer. Unlike many mercenary companies the Cloud Bursters relish participation in pitched battles.
They most often take contracts with mustering armies so that they may indulge in the company’s
raison d'être; showering enemies with a horrific number of arrows. However, their current Captain
Wilma Skeet has increasingly taken to accepting short to mid-term garrison contracts breaking off
small detachments of members in order to meet these obligations. The Cloud Bursters are primarily
composed of humans and elves, dwarves and halflings are a rarity since they lack the height to
effectively use the companies signature longbows.

Appearance/Equipment – The Cloud Bursters primary weapon is the longbow. The company
maintains its own bowyers leading to a degree of standardization. On the other hand, for the sake of
expediency arrows tend to be bought in bulk at the commencement of contracts. Company
members carry a smattering of axes, short swords and maces for those rare occasions they’re
compelled to fight in melee. There’s no official uniform or dress code but members overwhelming
tend to favour studded leather armour and light grey clothing.

Slogan – Steel Rain Brings The Pain

Battle Cry – Loose!

2. The Tunnel Lions

 Hailing from the mountain bound twin cities of Stekkel-Drung the Tunnel Lions are ferocious tunnel
fighters whose niche expertise is well on the way to propelling them to fame and fortune. The
municipal authority of Stekkel sits above the entrance to the subterranean dwarven hold of Karak
Drung, the populations of the two symbiotically connected settlements mingling freely. When the
mine and outer environs of Kark Drung were overrun by hordes of hideously mutated spider like
humanoids spawned from within the recesses of the Underdark their friends and kinsmen on the
surface rushed to their aid. The cost in blood was steep as untrained miners and craftsmen clashed
with monsters in the dark beneath their homes. Despite their initial inexperience their aptitude for
teamwork and tenacious refusal to abandon their fellows eventually saw the combined forces of
Stekkel-Drung triumph. With the conflict over the majority of the tunnel fighters returned to their
everyday lives. However, a downturn in the twin cities economy brought about by the necessity of
permanently sealing large sections of the mine prompted some of these veterans to band together
once more.

Appearance/Equipment- The Tunnel Lions carry pikes, a weapon whose reach is perfectly suited for
engaging enemies in the narrow confines common to their favoured method of fighting. With no
way to outflank them any enemy seeking to close with the Lions must brave a bristling wall of steel
points. They also make extensive use of alchemist’s acid which can be highly efficacious when
thrown at short range in cramped tunnel environs. The Tunnel Lions wear battered, and rugged half
plate and splint armour every suit of which has been stamped with the dwarven rune for
invincibility.

Slogan- No Step Back, Guaranteed.

Battle Cry- [Largely inaccurate but enthusiastic imitations of a mountain lions roar]

3. The Guild of Financially Elucidated Evocators

It doesn’t exactly take a tactical genius to work out that the ability to shoot bolts of lighting from
your hands or make fire rain from the skies may have some military applications. The Guild of
Financially Elucidated Evocators is made up of wizards who upon completing their apprenticeships
realised they didn’t want to lock themselves up in a tower conducting research until one of their
out-of-control experiments kills them eighty years down the line. Instead, the company’s members
pursue a life of excitement and massive profit margins by travelling the world, meeting interesting
people and disintegrating them. While undeniable effective and utterly remorseless in actual
combat, the Guild have little appetite for hard work or physical labour. As far as they’re concerned
enemy soldiers are there to be immolated or frozen in ice storms and never actually fought. Their
ideal contracts are those in which they can turn up, collect their exorbitant fee, generate as large a
magical explosion as possible and then head home for some brandy and cigars while someone else
mops up whatever’s left of the enemy.

Appearance/Equipment- Despite their deep distaste for the minutia of actually warfare the
Elucidated Evocators go to considerable effort to look the part of proper battle mages. They don sigil
etched golden cuirasses, elaborately crested war helms and blades sculpted from living fire. Each
 striving to outdo their fellows in ostentation and impracticality. Underneath this gilded and
overblown panoply members tend to wear voluminous silks of scarlet and umber.

Slogan- Total Annihilation At No Extra Charge.

Battle Cry- AlakaSlam!

4. The Swords of Valour

The Swords of Valour is but the most recent incarnation of a mercenary company that has proudly
borne dozens of names. The reason for these frequent rebranding’s is obvious to anyone able to
piece together the company’s inglorious history. Truth be told the majority of mercenary work isn’t
particularly difficult. It’s mostly shaking down frightened peasants and standing around looking
vaguely intimidating. In these roles the Swords of Valour excel. The problems arise on those rare
occasional when they’re expected to actually fight. It can be a nasty business combat. There’s an
awful lot of weapons flailing around and someone’s likely to be hurt. Under their rakish captain
Count Benjamin Von Fuffelburg, the company has fled every single battle or clash of arms that they
have ever participated in. Often this is a simple enough process of robbing their employer before
marching off. When fighting alongside other, less cowardly or treacherous troop, Fufflelburg and his
subordinates are forced to get creative, often setting fires or faking enemy attacks before slipping
away in the confusion. The company changes its name frequently and travels widely, always careful
to stay one step ahead of their reputation.

Appearance/Equipment- The equipment and look of the Swords of Valour has been carefully
modulated to project the correct image. They should be heavily armed enough to intimidate and
bully farmers but slovenly and ragtag enough that no one would mistake them for actual soldiers. As
such its members are dressed in an eclectic mix of patched chainmail, rusted breast plates and
studded leather. Naturally their armaments are equally motely and personalised. The various
incarnations of the company have all had signature and outrageously notable items of clothing or
accessories, adopted, and discarded to further obscure the companies past.

Slogan- Death or Glory

Battle Cry- All right lads, lets get the heck out of here!

5. Hawkwoods Dammed Regiment

Major Theodore Hawkwood is a veteran mercenary commander who in his youth rose to a position
of modest notoriety through his skill with a blade, empty charm and utter lack of scruples. The
trajectory of Hawkwoods career was forever changed when he discovered an enchanted obsidian
sword in the catacombs of a fortress he and his fellows had been hired to sack. Hawkwood was
initial appalled to discover that the blade bound the souls of all he slew to him, the constant curses,
and recriminations of the restless dead gnawing away at his sanity. After an indeterminate period of
spiralling during which he experimented with redemption, Hawkwood quite by chance discovered
that he could compel the spirits of his victims to manifest and fight on his behalf. Quickly lapsing
back into his old ways Hawkwood took to commanding this collection of vengeful revenants as he
 would a flesh and blood regiment, pursuing contracts and committing war crimes with reckless
abandon. Swift, lethal and utterly yoked to their masters venomous will the dead are a true terror to
behold. Best of all, from Theodore’s perspective, they never ask for a cut of the spoils.

Appearance/Equipment- The dead manifest as semi translucent approximations of their former

selves, often still bearing marks of the violence Hawkwood inflicted upon them. The Major himself is
rather fastidious about his appearance, wearing finely tailored black velvet under a silvered set of
half-plate.

Slogan- When Things Look Grave, Look to Hawkwood

Battle Cry- [The forlorn moans and sibilant whispers of the dammed]

6. The Tyrant Breakers

The names of mercenary companies are a hugely important part of their marketing strategy. Their
first opportunity to impress potential clients and communicate something of their character and
capabilities. As such many of them sport rather grandiose or eye rollingly macho names. The Tyrant
Breakers are a rare case of a mercenary company whose name actually undersells them. This is
because the company is composed of a trio of young dragons who have banded together to combat
the insidious forces of unchecked and bloody handed militarism. Initially the trio would respond to
any pleas for aid they chanced up, arriving unheralded and tearing apart any wrongdoers they found
on the scene. The problem with this strategy was twofold. For starters it was surprisingly difficult to
just happen upon a really satisfying injustice in progress. Secondly may of the humanoids they
rescued vociferously declared the dragons subsequent inquires for modest, even tokenistic,
remunerations to be akin to extortion. Upon incorporating as a mercenary company, the Tyrant
Breakers found that people in need actively sort them out. While all those unpleasantries about the
exchange of gold and a cow or two to eat each could all be worked out beforehand. Thanks to the
Tyrant Breakers embattled villagers who see a dragon swooping towards them now squint to see if
they should run or break out the negotiating table.

Appearance/Equipment- The Tyrant Breakers are scary winged clydesdale sized reptilian monsters
covered in stone hard scales of various bright metallic hues. Taken alongside their ability to project
flame from their mouths they don’t really see the point in burdening themselves with redundant
equipment.

Slogan- Freedom is the right of all sentient beings…which I suppose includes humanoids

Battle Cry- Draan Krii Zu’u! (Leave this one for me to kill)

7. The Redgarrian Remnant

Around twenty or so years ago the kingdom of Redgarria fell, its proud four-hundred-year history
culminating in an invasion by the rabid forces of the Gnolligarchy. As the kingdoms remaining people
fled northwards their king, Ermenius Bloodtither prepared to make a last stand within his ancestral
keep determined to die with sword in hand. While he did not fight alone, surrounded as he was by
leal men and women, he did so without the royal guard which had been dispatched in its entirety to
 escort his infant heir Princess Alexandria to safely. The youngest of this guards still fight today,
standing shoulder to shoulder with their fellows’ children in the Redgarrian Remnant. Captained by
the Uncrowned Queen herself, the Remnant almost exclusively draw recruits from Redgarrian
refugee communities. Uncrowned and disposed as she is Alexandria is still fiercely protective of her
people and a full half of the gold the company makes is given in alms to the scattered children of
lost Redgarria.

Appearance/Equipment – The Remnant go into battle carrying the traditional arms and armour of
the Redgarrian royal guard. This mainly consists of suits of plate armour of an ornate and archaic
design offset nicely by their wicked looking halberds. The giant vermillion plumes of the old guard
have been excised in the company’s sole concession to practically.

Slogan- An Army Fit For A Queen

Battle Cry- Remember Redgarria!

8. The Gentleman Scroungers

The Gentleman Scroungers would probably be the first to admit they’re not exactly top draw when
it comes to mercenary groups. They recruit mostly from the desperate and dissolute patrons of
gambling dens and shady taverns. Proudly unisex despite their name they attract the kind of men
and women with little to lose and plenty to get away from. Their Captain Argus “Nose-biter” Truckle
while a shrewd enough operator is far from a tactical genius or famed warrior. No songs are sung of
their great victories for the Scroungers have none. Indeed, they were once completely routed by the
bachelor party of amateur adventurer Ralph the Earnest. This lack of any genuine combat expertise
or even the pretence of military discipline means that the Scroungers have to sell their services
cheaply. They’re most often find themselves in the service of armies who have hired all the soldiers
they require but found themselves in need of someone to dig the latrines, patrol for mimics and test
the water for cholera. In order to make ends meet the Gentleman Scroungers have cultivated their
true specializations, looting and petty theft. With no concept of the sanctity of the dead and a
willingness to do things and search places that even the most cutthroat of soldiers would find
beneath their dignity, the Scroungers scratch a modest living from the horror and desolation that is
war.

Appearance/Equipment- Most of the Gentleman Scroungers wear cobbled together leather armour
over or around several layers of frayed rags. They carry a ragged assortment of mostly looted
weaponry amongst which spears, crossbows and hand axes are particularly well represented.
Virtually every member of the Scroungers possesses an item or two of of genuine value recovered
the battlefield, such as golden rings, silver lockets or jewelled daggers. However, they keep these
treasures hidden from one another out of fear and petty jealousy.

Slogan- Last Off The Battlefield

Battle Cry- That’s right Harry grab his boots! They look expensive!

9. The Skull-Chewers
 Named for a particularly memorable and distasteful incident in their past the Skull-Chewers are
entirely composed of berserkers. When battle is upon them the warriors of the company throw
themselves into a state of frenzied fury so profound that they lose all fear of death. Inured to pain
and injury, their minds are subsumed entirely by their rage and bloodlust. The exact trigger for this
transformation varies from warrior to warrior and ranges from alchemical concoctions and
possession to mystic rites and tearstained high school report cards. Once upon a time the Skull-
Chewers were a highly respected mercenary group whose effectiveness on the battlefield meant
that their services were both expensive and highly sort after. However, their increasing volatility and
the impossibility of reining them in once unleashed upon the enemy means that they are now rarely
if ever hired to be part of an army or fight alongside other troops. Nowadays they deal mostly with
warlords, criminals and corrupt aristocrats, their contracts stipulating the need for the complete
annihilation of their enemy. Fragmenting in search of work the Skull-Chewers are now on the verge
of splintering apart although, a division which ultimately has its origins in the radically different
stride lengths of its goliath and dwarven members.

Appearance/Equipment- Axe salesmen are amongst the biggest winners when the Skull-Chewers
come to town with money in their pockets although there’s also a fair smattering of greatswords.
Woad features heavily throughout the company often being applied in highly personalised and
symbolically meaningful patterns.

Slogan- Blood For Gold

Battle Cry- [Various incoherent exclamations of rage]

10. Ravnaks Beast-Lords

It’s fair to say that mercenary work is a profession with a tendency to attract the morally ambiguous.
After all, if you want to get really reductionist about it, they’re people who commit acts of violence
for money. Ravnak founder and captain of the Beast-Lords, can confidently say that his previous
career path was every bit as distasteful and morally dubious. When the performing circus that
employed him as an animal keeper was forced to close thanks to those meddling druid activists
Ravnak was left with nothing but his whips, his branding irons and the pair of Owl Bear eggs hidden
in his luggage. When Ravank returned from his self-imposed exile he did so backed by two ferocious
beasts happy to maul anyone he commanded them to. For his part Ravank was more than happy to
give such commands in extra for a purse or two of gold. Rather than resting on his laurels Ravank
reinvested these initial earnings, taking on staff and purchasing more monster eggs from the black
market. The Beast-Lords are now a renowned and much feared mercenary company that have at
their disposal a formidable collection of, mostly, tamed monsters.

Appearance/Equipment- Ravnak himself dresses in a gaudy parody of a circus ring masters outfit,
accessorized with an enchanted whip and throwing knives. The rest of the Beast-Lords wear cloaks
of hide or scale and hide their faces under bronze masked shaped to resemble the snarling visages
of their charges.

Slogan – Where There’s A Whip There’s A Way

 Battle Cry- Sick’em Bettsy!

11. The Bluebloods

The younger children and extraneous relatives of the high nobility that wish to step out of their
families shadow and embrace a life of adventure are faced with a dilemma. Adventuring is a
frequently dirty and demeaning activity. Adventurers have to trudge through sewers, sleep in caves
and associate with all manner of riffraff and undesirables. The Bluebloods are the solution to this
problem. A mercenary company of the highest quality that allows the scions of high society to travel
the world putting their martial prowess to good use without the need to forgo the luxuries to which
they have become accustomed. Unsurprisingly, the Bluebloods are weapons grade snobs, new
recruits must be of impeachable noble descent and have their character vouched for by at least
three existing members. Their byzantine and elaborate initiation trials largely consist of imbibing
enormous amounts of alcohol and displaying a willingness to trash their servants for minor or
entirely imagined infractions. Arrogant and openly contemptuous of any they consider beneath
them the Bluebloods fees are every bit as extravagant and outrageous and their famed after battle
parties. That anyone puts up with their behaviour long enough to hire them is testament to their
martial skill and status as one of the known world finest units of heavy cavalry.

Appearance/Equipment – The Bluebloods ride to war dressed in silk and ermine wreathed suits of
shinning plate armour. Each member proudly displays their own iconography that both takes
inspiration from their family’s heraldry and references the warriors own deeds and
accomplishments. They arm themselves with only the most knightly and chivalrous of weapons such
as lances and broadswords.

Slogan – You’ve Tried The Rest, Now Hire The Best

Battle Cry- Tally-Ho!

12. The 201st Light Goblinoid Division

The last remnants of a fallen Dark Lords once uncountable legions the 201st Light Goblinoid Division
began life as one of literally hundred of administrative units designed to keep a number of goblins
well fed and armed enough that they could theoretically make some small contribution once herded
into battle. A quirk of the petty rivalries and cutthroat politics of the Dark Lords inner court saw the
goblins placed under the command of a cabal of the hordes most aggressively ambitious lieutenants
trigging the painful metamorphosis from cannon fodder into a murderously effective band of killers.
Finding the goblins to be ineffective front-line soldiers even on the rare occasions that they could be
to convincing to stand and face the enemy head on, their benefactors schooled them in infiltration
and the art of asymmetrical warfare. When the Dark Lord to whom they owed allegiance perished as
the result of a centuries long ploy by one his former apprentices involving a magic sword, a
werewolf, and a flock of angry owls, the 201st were away on their first trail mission. Returning home
to find everyone dead the goblins resolved to capitalise upon their new skills and enter the
mercenary business, carving out a profitable niche.
 Appearance/Equipment – Prioritizing speed and stealth the mercenaries of the 201st Light Goblinoid
Division sport leather armour and camouflaged hooded cloaks of a variety of different patterns.
Regular yoga sessions and obstacle courses through the lava plains amidst which they were trained
have ensured that the surviving goblins become adept at negotiating difficult terrain. To supplement
these abilities the Goblins often carry grappling hooks or have climbing spikes built into the
forearms of their outfits. In hand to hand combat the 201st favour a profusion of wicked looking
scimitars and daggers which are supplemented by nets and other entangling weapons. For
circumstances in which stealth is a priority every Goblin carries a supplemental blowgun and darts
coated with a fast-acting poison.

Slogan- The Solution To Your Problems, No Questions Asked

Battle Cry - Gizzslech-dur! (Down you go)

13. Hagmans’ Harvesters

Amongst the foremost reasons why groups or individuals procure the services of a mercenary
company is that they covert something which isn’t strictly speaking theirs. The Harvesters led by
their beloved captain, the heavily scared and mutated Hagman, specialise in meeting this demand.
While securing objects of significance or natural resources on behalf of their clients is the type of
work that may seem like it would bring the Harvesters into competition with bands of adventurers
sheer scale differentiates them sufficiently. If a king sends the Harvesters on an expedition to the
barrow complex of his ancestors, they will crack open every tomb, scour every antechamber and
return with carts laden with burial goods, great and small. If a wizard feels the need to acquire
timber from a magically resonate species of tree or sentient crystal formations, then the Harvesters
will hew down the entire grove and hack the crystals clear from the living rock. The Harvesters
typically take a rather relaxed view towards collateral damage always killing a few of their current
prizes rightful owners to show they mean business before driving the rest off as a matter of
expediency.

Appearance/Equipment – Every member of the harvesters is marked with a tattoo of the company’s
symbol, a crossed scythe and axe, on either their neck or wrist. They wear hardy leather and canvas
coveralls complimented by yellow painted metal helmets. In terms of weapons, they commonly
favour spears and javelins with which they pelt and drive off the enemy. Of course, the nature of
their specialisation means they’re also well supplied with mauls, axes and other fearsome industrial
implements that can be pressed into battle.

Slogan – Beyond Pillaging

Battle Cry - The Harvest Comes!

14. The Forsworn Brotherhood

Those who cross paths with the Forsworn in a non-professional capacity often wonder at their small
numbers which appear radically disproportionate to their reputation for destruction. Those who
meet them in a professional capacity rarely have time. Occasionally mistaken for an enlarged
 adventuring party what the Forsworn lack in numbers they more than make up for in brutal
efficiency and sheer spite. Every member of the Brotherhood is a fallen paladin, a holy warrior who
has in some way broken with their sacred oaths. While the justifications and reasonings behind
these sundering’s vary greatly between the companies’ members each have walked a long and bitter
road which has ultimately led them to abandoning their former ideals. Their once noble spirits
curdled by a deep self-loathing the Forsworn have dedicated themselves wholly to a twisted form of
nihilism. They now seek to prove through the delivery of mayhem and misery that the ideals they
once championed are hollow lies they were right to discard their oaths. Surprisingly affordable the
Brotherhood are far more interested in the woe they can unleash than the money they make as
mercenaries. That people are willing to pay them to commit such horrible deeds is seen as just
another validation of their bleak philosophy.

Appearance/Equipment- The warriors of the Forsworn Brotherhood wear rusted, and corroded spell
wrought plate armour that they refuse to clean as an outward manifestation of their contempt for
knightly traditions and what they sardonically label as performative heroics. They also wear cloaks
crudely sewen from scraps of banners taken from defeated foes and sacked settlements. Each
brother carries a small armoury’s worth of weapons on their person, ready to humble any foe.
Usually at least one of these weapons bears some manner of destructive enchantment.

Slogan- Pay What You Can, Get What You Deserve

Battle Cry- Into Oblivions Jaws!

15. The Sub-Marine Corp

Traditionally the denizens of the ocean have had three strategies for dealing with air breathing
humanoids. Ignore them, kill them, or sing about how much you want to meet them. The Sub-Marine
Corp are pioneering a fourth methodology which combines the best aspects of the others, have the
filthy air breathers pay you to kill their equally filthy air breather enemies. The best way to sink a ship,
be it a modest fishing vessel or a grand man o’ war is to puncture it below the waterline. While fully
aware of this naval military doctrine has never really progressed beyond heading straight for the enemy
with a big ram because by its very nature the sea makes access to these submerged portions of the ship
difficult. A collection of sea elves, various species of fish-men, cephalopods, and a dolphin the Sub-
Marine Corp are perfectly placed to take full advantage of this weakness hammering and prying open
holes in the bottoms of vessels. When a ship proves too swift or its hull too durable for the Corp to ply
their usual tactics, they steel themselves for exposure to the Great Dry and swarm up its sides slaying all
they come across. Highly effective the Sub-Marine Corp have found lucrative employment with shipping
consortiums wanting to cut down on the competition.

Appearance/equipment- The Corp eschew armour of any kind, prioritising the speed and
manoeuvrability they require to catch and latch onto their prey. They carry hand-drills, chisels and
hammers for breaking through hulls and utilise grappling hooks, pincher sticks and reverse harpoons to
aid their boarding action. Additionally, many of the Sub-Marines carry tridents which they view as
definitive proof of their superiority to the air breathers and their stupid mono pointed spears.
Slogan: We Rule the Waves But You Can Rent Them

War Cry: Death To The Airbreathers! Gods below, I hate airbreathers. It’s the lungs that do it, totally
obscene.

16. The Stone Crackers

The stereotypical depiction of dwarfs presented in the songs and fireside tales of bards is that they are
gruff and stubborn but unyieldingly, unflinchingly, honourable. A thing about honour that they seldom
tell you in songs is that if it does not bend a little here or there eventually it will break. That’s precisely
what happened to the Stone Crackers captain Buldrath the Beleaguerer. A formerly fair and even-
handed woman who was crossed once too often Buldrath now holds that any slight no matter how small
most be answered swiftly and severely. Parlaying a belly full of spite and her expertise as a mining
engineer into a career as a mercenary Buldrath and her extended family seek to ensure that no one is
ever in a position to take advantage of them again. A highly specialised mercenary company the Stone
Crackers are much sort after by besieging armies. Composed of former miners the Stone Crackers work
relentlessly and unseen. Toiling beneath the earth to undermine and collapse a fortresses walls or else
break into an undefended basement and carry the citadel the inside.

Appearance/Equipment- The Stone Crackers wear heavy layers of dust and dirt encrusted chainmail and
specially thickened and brimmed helmets. In particularly extreme and hazardous environments
members may done sealed helmets supplied with air through leather pipping and an ingenious system
of pumps located upon the surface. In battle the Stone Crackers wield pickaxes and sharped shovels
which are supplemented by their heavy use of alchemical explosive devices. Buldrath herself wields her
ancestral axe in one hand and an experimental device for the projection of flame in the other.

Slogan – Demolition with Precision

Battle Cry – Crack the Stone, Break Their Heads!

17. The Disciples of Urdenesh

We have already established that most half-way sane mercenary companies try to actively limit their
exposure to the rigours and privations of war, let alone the horror and carnage of battle. Few within the
industry have ever accused the Disciples of Urdenesh of being sane. They march into the embrace of
battle with a zealous fervour matched only by the most broken of berserkers or unpalatable cultists. If
hired to do so they will remorselessly slaughter all who stand before them regardless of age or
innocence. Yet they do so with bitter tears in their eyes and will perform elaborate funeral rites and acts
of contrition. The Disciples are notorious within the profession for accepting virtually any job over a
certain pay threshold regardless of survival prospects or morality. They appear happy to lose as many
warriors as necessary to successfully fulfil a contract yet have been observed to share obvious bonds of
camaraderie. The reason for his dysfunction can be traced to the motivation behind the company’s
founding. The Disciples hail from a far-off city ruled over by the ancient dragon Urdenesh. Every five
years the dragon descends upon the city to issue its increasingly unhinged proclamations and gather its
tribute. If this sum of gold and jewels is to be found somehow wanting, then it levels entire sections of
the city visiting ruin and death upon its citizens. With trade stymied and their natural industries all but
exhausted the Disciples fight in a desperate attempt to gather the requisite gold, the last hope of their
imperilled homeland.

Appearance/Equipment- The Disciples wear scale armour lacquered a deep scarlet in grudging tribute to
their lord and tormenter. Advancing in remorseless lock step they carry heavy tower shields and broad
bladed spears. They also carry a pair of short swords each as back up weapons should their formation
break apart or prove too restrictive.

Slogan- Defeat Is Not An Option

Battle Cry- Sate The Dragons Wroth!

18. The Homevaster Rangers

Halflings are on the whole an adventurous and industrious type of people so its not altogether surprising
to find a number of them gravitating towards mercenary work. It’s just that once inducted into bands
they tend to occupy support positions such as cook, quartermaster or hamstringer. The Rangers, who
are entirely composed of halflings, are therefore something of a rarity within the mercenary community.
Of course, this otherwise notable fact is totally overshadowed by the interest provoked by the Rangers
mounts. Hailing from a land of mighty mountains, grand forests and raging rivers located in the distant
west the warriors of Homevaster exclusively ride giant flying squirrel-otters. These strange and adorable
looking mammalian mounts are exceptionally adept climbers and swimmers and are capable of gliding
considerable distances even while supporting the weight of a rider. Indeed, there are many who believe
that the giant flying squirrel-otters are too good to be true and rumours swirl that the Rangers paid
some wizard a fortune for their creation. Whatever the truth of the matter the Rangers are trackers and
scouts par excellence using the agility and sheer adaptability of their mounts to locate their quarry
across even the most challenging of terrain.

Appearance/Equipment- The Rangers wear hardy travel leathers, dire beaver pelt ponchos and wide
brimmed banded hats. Their primary weapons are short bows and hand crossbows which can be easily
and accurately used from the saddle. Melee weapons which are usually used only in the direst of
circumstances are usually chosen for their greater utility, such as hatchets, machetes or skinning knives.
Their leader “Bye Gum” Leafsmoker rides a mount large and strong enough to support the weight of the
swivel mounted heavy crossbow built into his saddle.

Slogan- Obstacles Are No Obstacle

Battle Cry – They went thata way!

19. The Pack

Were-beasts have a number of dramatic advantages when compared to more conventionally or

permanently humanoid soldiers. They’re far stronger and swifter than uninfected individuals and usually
have some form of natural weaponry such as talons, fangs or tusks. In their hybrid or beast forms many
varieties of were creatures have exceptionally tuned senses or aptitude for stealth and infiltration. This
is to say nothing of their outright invulnerability to most forms of mundane weapons and non-magical
assault. These advantages have to be weighed against the sheer impossibility of convincing a significant
number of them to cooperate without proceedings devolving into a savage brawl for dominance. Even if
the subtleties of friend and foe are somehow mastered, persuading them to actually follow orders is yet
more difficult. Sheol Septuagint is both the only being to have made such an arrangement work and the
worlds only known were-tyrannosaurus rex. He does so by hunting down his fellow were-beasts and
bending them to his will with the psionically resonant silver collars he hammers into their spines.
Properly harnessed the Pack are an exceptionally brutal and effective fighting force than can command a
hefty fee from warlords and corrupt politicians. They’re also a great way to drive up the price of silver in
any region in which they’re operating, ensuring the ongoing profitability of Sheols mines.

Appearance/Equipment – Composed as it is of were wolves, rats, tigers, boars and rabbits the Pack lack
much in the way of standardisation. Some carry chipped and rusted weapons looted from their previous
victims but many prefer the visceral sensation of setting about their foe with tooth and call. Sheol wears
a silk suit, top hat and platinum rimmed monocle all of which have been enchanted to morph and
change size as he switches between forms.

Slogan- Pay to Raze Ten Villages and The Eleventh is Free!

Battle cry- [Various roars and bestial screams]

20. The Ceramic Army

The Ceramic Army is a force of artfully designed humanoid golems sculpted to resemble the warrior elite
of a long vanished civilisation. Unearthed by Cornelius Toshruver, an eminent but ultimately obscure
archaeologists, the army’s discovery caused a great stir in academic circles. This excitement never quite
spread to the man on the street however given the apparent lack of gold, jewels or curses involved in
the whole affair. This changed on the eve of the digs third year when making his way to his tent in the
dark a drunken Cornelius inadvertently animated the serried ranks of ceramic warriors by kissing a
particularly handsome looking statue. Marching forth from the dig city, a very flustered Professor
Toshruver hemmed in at the centre of their formation, the warriors homed in on the nearest active
warzone. Selecting one of the belligerent armies, seemingly at random, redware based host arrayed
themselves for battle in front of the camp of the surviving faction. The commanders of this force were
met by an extremely nervous and apologetic Cornelius who demanded from them a rather hefty fee,
payable only in diamonds, for services rendered. Taking one look at the serene blood splattered faces of
the waiting golems they agreed most magnanimously. The golems then sorted through the diamonds,
casually discarding half of them, before marching off professor and payment in tow.

Appearance/Equipment: Cornelius Toshruver wears the tattered remnants of finery having been
marched from one end of the realm to the other by the remorseless Ceramic fiends. Each figure in the
Ceramic Army wears a unique and recognisable human face. Designed to mimic a warrior in the full
panoply of war they are covered in complex repeating patterns of swirling geometric shapes. Strangely
they carry no weapons. Despite their warlike aspect and behaviour the complex from which they were
unearthed was completely devoid of anything resembling a weapon.
Slogan- Oh for pity sake please help me! I can hear them in my mind! They want more, you have to give
them more!

Battle Cry- [While the Ceramic Army have no way to speak, their mouths and faces being entirely inert,
those who have faced them in battle have reported hearing strange whispers and chanting just on the
edge of hearing]

Thanks for reading, have a great day!