Haakon's Mercenaries - Treacherous Ground

**Haakon's Mercenaries** are, simply put, the mercenaries that work for [[Lord Haakon|Haakon]]. They guard his interests, patrol his city, and enforce his will all over the world. > [!infobox|right wikipedia] > # Haakon's Mercenaries > ![[fable 2 bandit - edit.webp|cover hsmall]] > ##### General > | | | > | ---- | ---- | > | **Category** | Military Organisation | > | **Headquarters** | [[3-Places/Settlements/Prosperity.md\|Prosperity]] | > | **Leader** | [[4-People/People/Maethelgar.md\|Maethelgar]] | > | **Faction Alignment** | Lawful Evil | # General Despite the name, Haakon's mercenaries are not a rag-tag group of miscellaneous toughs. Rather, they are more akin a properly outfitted and equipped police force. Each wears a black armband as a uniform and is armed with a [[matchlock pistol]]. The pistols themselves serve as the more distinctive badge of office – because of Haakon's monopoly on gunpowder, personal firearms are rare outside of his forces. The armbands have given rise to the nickname "Black Shoulders" or simply **"the Shoulders"**, though this is rarely used by the mercenaries themselves, who typically refer to themselves as "the army" or "the force". Mercenaries also receive some rudimentary training when they join and at scheduled intervals, in order to maintain a minimum standard of competence. However, discipline is notoriously lax when out of sight of the officers, and mercenaries are known to use their status to bully, intimidate, coerce, or worse, with only the most egregious acts meriting punishment. This is by design; in order to keep the enlisted mercenaries happy and enthusiastic, the officers grant them significant leeway. Since most mercenaries join out of a desire to engage in violence, there is an overall policy to rotate squads and battalions into high-action postings on a regular basis. Broadly speaking, the mercenaries perform three main functions: * They patrol and police the city of [[Prosperity]], enforcing order. They are the city's law enforcement and Haakon's personal enforcers and bodyguards. * They guard Haakon's assets and interests outside the city. They are marines and gunners on his merchant ships, and security for his warehouses, manufactoria, and mines. * They hunt and destroy sky pirates wherever they can be found. A significant number of mercenaries and ships are assigned to an expeditionary force that is engaged in a years-long effort to eradicate all piracy from the Mountains. The **Spear-marshal** in command of the entire force is **[[Maethelgar]]**. He is fanatically loyal to Haakon and ensures that the other superior officers are similarly devoted. Due to Haakon's wealth and ambitions, the mercenaries are the largest and most well-equipped standing army in the world. Although Prosperity is the smallest of the major skycities, it is the only one able to project military power beyond its metaphorical walls – a fact which occasionally disturbs the [[Vinsklar Raed]], and would surely disturb them much more were it not for Haakon's current attitude of apparent disinterest. # History During [[The Riving]], most of the [[Rejkenur Clan|Rejkenur family]] were killed while commanding the defence of [[Rejken|the city]]. Haakon and his personal guard looted the Rejkenur vaults and initiated the civilian exodus early, leaving the rest of his family to die. Upon arrival in [[The Monastery|Gudesberg]], Haakon immediately used some of his sequestered wealth to hire other refugees as guards. Aldhere, the head of Haakon's personal guard from the Rejkenur forces, commanded these mercenaries. They proved their worth when, weeks later, the refugees rose up and killed the other surviving nobles in the Massacre of the Nobles. Haakon was the only publicly known noble at Gudesberg who survived that day, his hired guards forestalling any attempts to end his life. Since then, Haakon has always been surrounded by armed men whose loyalty to him is assured. As Haakon's commercial empire grew, his need for security increased proportionally. When sky pirates became a true threat to trade and shipping, Haakon was forced to drastically increase his forces, at the expense of his other ventures. During Prosperity's construction, Aldhere's son Maethelgar took command of the mercenaries as Aldhere retired, and Haakon designated that office "Spear-marshal", where previously it had been simply "commander". # Organisation See [[#Ranks]]. Haakon's mercenaries are concentrated in [[Prosperity]], of course, but are also stationed near his holdings in [[Vinsklar]]. Due to a semi-official (and since discontinued) policy of harassment by the [[the bailiffs]], the mercenaries typically do not stray far from their postings and are not often seen in other parts of the city. Haakon typically uses less conspicuous errand-runners for his business outside the Industrial Quarter. The mercenaries are also assigned to every airship Haakon owns to act as marines, enforce order, repel boarders, and operate the ship's weaponry. There are many purpose-built gunships with whole crews of mercenaries that perform convoy security or are sent on individual missions. A significant fraction of the mercenary force is allocated to an expeditionary campaign in the remote northeast, hunting down sky pirates and destroying their havens. # Membership Haakon's Mercenaries are a fighting force, first and foremost. Anyone wishing to become a mercenary must have a Strength or Dexterity score of at least 13. They must defeat a Mercenary Trainer in combat (non-lethal) to prove they have what it takes. Each member, upon joining, is an Armsman/woman/person. They are given a [[matchlock pistol]] and 5 black cloth armbands. Promotion is based on both merit and favour. After two total years of service as an Armsman, a mercenary becomes a Senior Armsman automatically. **Benefits:** **Gear:** Each Armsman is given a matchlock pistol and 5 black cloth armbands. These symbols of office _must_ be carried and worn, respectively, at all times while on duty. If lost, pistols can be replaced at a cost of 150 gp, and armbands at a cost of 1 cp each, at any Mercenaries armoury or barracks. **Access to items:** Any member can purchase basic weapons and armour at any Mercenaries armoury at a 10% discount. **Salary:** While working, a member earns the salary provided in the table below. Additionally, members are entitled to free lodging (room and board) in any Mercenaries barracks, which provide a Poor lifestyle, free of charge to members. **Reputation:** Haakon's Mercenaries are well known throughout the Mountains. You have a +2 bonus to Charisma (Intimidation) skill checks while acting as a member. Other groups and individuals may treat you with more or less respect based on your membership. # Ranks ### Standard Ranks * **Armsman:** Basic soldier. * **Senior armsman:** Veteran soldier with no command authority. * **Knot-leader:** Leader of a small combat squad ("knot", 5 – 10 armsmen). * **Under-captain:** Leader of several knots. * **Captain:** Commander of a company (15 – 20 knots, with variable under-captain structure). * **High captain:** Commander of multiple companies. * **Spear-marshal:** Commander of all forces. Currently [[Maethelgar]]. ### Specialised Ranks and Groups * **Wardens:** Commander of a district, fortress, or installation. * **Marchwarden:** The commander of the pirate-hunting expeditionary force. Currently Tancred. * **Provost:** Commander of law enforcement in Prosperity and internal discipline for the mercenaries. Currently Egbin. * **Under-provosts:** Regional deputies of the provost outside of Prosperity * **Ironshields:** Haakon's personal guard, household troops, and loyal core. # People The following people are members of this group. %% DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: start ```dataview TABLE WITHOUT ID file.link AS "Characters", gender AS "Gender", home AS "Home", char_status AS "Status" from "4-People/People" where faction = this.file.link where publish = true sort char_status ASC, home ASC, file.link ASC ``` %% | Characters | Gender | Home | Status | | ----------------------------------------------- | ------ | -------------------------------------------------- | ------ | | [[4-People/People/Lord Haakon.md\|Lord Haakon]] | Male | [[3-Places/Settlements/Prosperity.md\|Prosperity]] | Alive | | [[4-People/People/Maethelgar.md\|Maethelgar]] | Male | [[3-Places/Settlements/Prosperity.md\|Prosperity]] | Alive | %% DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: end %% # Services Services offered. # Gallery > [!example]- Image > ![[fable 2 bandit - edit.webp|center|800]] > Bandit concept art – Fable II