“Do you know what makes us different from pirates Sargent?”
“Honor sir?”
“No, this piece of paper from the MRBC!”
In this article we’ll look at several rules from prior/out of print supplements and house rules (also introduced in MekHQ/MegaMek) for managing and organising mercenary companies and other forces.
These rules may be used in conjunction with the rules in Campaign Operations (and Chaos Campaigns) – they also draw from the following out of print (Fan Pro) books:
- Field Manual: Mercenaries (Revised)
- Mercenary Supplimental
- Mercenary Suplimental II
Formation and Ownership
Mercenary units may form in many different ways. These are some of the common historical examples:
- A group of MechWarriors all owning their own BattleMechs/units come together
- A house unit deserts and becomes a mercenary unit
- An organisation e.g. Corporation or Nobel buys some BattleMechs and hires MechWarriors to pilot them
However a mercenary unit forms, it’s important to understand how the unit runs financially and who owns the military equipment in the unit.
Registration
All mercenary units must be registered with a legitimate authority. This may depend on the era that the campaign is set in. Some “mercenary” units are not infact recognised by all parties and may only be recognised by a single house/organisation e.g. Word of Blake backed mercenaries were treated as little more that pirates and criminals after 3067. Operating in an area where your mercenary status is not recognised will lead to the mercenary unit being treated as pirates.
- Succession Wars 2789 – 3052- Mercenary Review Board (ComStar)
- 3052-3067 – Mercenary Review and Bonding Commission (Backed by the Allied Mercenary Command (Outreach) and Wolf’s Dragoons) is formed, after Operation Scorpion leads to the Word of Blake Schism.
- 3067-3081 – Total Chaos – Outreach is destroyed by the Word of Blake, no official mercenary organisation, each unit has its own backer (including the Word of Blake). After Galatea is freed from the Blakists in 3076 the MRBC moves to once against set up on that world.
- 3081-3152 – MRBC reformed under ComStar/Republic of the Sphere on Galatea.
- 3151 – Clan Sea Fox starts its own Mercenary Review Board, after the HPG blackout causes ComStar to go bankrupt, followed by the Republic of the Sphere falling.
In this article replace the term MRBC with the name of the current era specific organisation.
Mercenary units must log the following information with the MRBC:
- Unit name, logo and colours
- Commanding Officer, Executive Officer and any other officer and their responsibilities
- All personnel including ranks
- Complete Table or Ordinance and Equipment (TO&E)
- Full financial records
- Copies of all contracts
- Wills for any unit member/dependents
- Full personnel files including criminal records
- Full list of shareholders
MechWarrior Ownership and Shares
In this model, each MechWarrior owns their own BattleMech, like the Knights of old terra owning their horses. BattleMechs may have been inherited (passed down through the generations), gifted, salvaged (legitimately) or stolen (by theft or desertion).
When the mercenaries come together and decided to form a unit, each mercenary is given “founder” status and a share in the unit. The unit must also elect (by vote) a commanding officer, who will then assign other officers. A unit is required to have one norminated officer per Lance. A typical company sized unit will have 1 Captain who is the Commanding Officer (CO), a Lieutenant (senior grade/Lt. sg) who acts a Executive Office (XO), and a Lieutenant (junior grade Lt. /jg). Larger battalion or regimental units will also have a Major or a Colonel ,respectively, as the CO. All other MechWarriors in the unit typically have the non-commissioned (non-officer) rank of Sargent.
When any situation arrives where decisions need to be made, it is typical for mercenary companies to vote, with the number of shares they have determining the weight of their vote. In tactical situations or emergency situations, the CO has fun authority to make unanimous decisions without a vote.
The number of shares a mercenary has can vary with their position and experience. Not all members of a mercenary unit will hold shares/have founder status, but by vote new shareholders may be added and can be awarded non-voting or voting status.
Shareholders still draw a salary from the financial reserves – but may elect not to in time of financial crisis. Shareholders may not withdraw funds from the financial reserves without a vote. CO/XO may spend funds in a tactical emergency, but outside of such emergencies they must secure a vote. The unit may decided to award a wind fall and take a share to the financial reserves and split it amongst the share holders (especially in times where the going is good).
Mercenary Supplemental II ( pg 99-100)
| Rank/Role | Shares |
| MechWarrior or AeroSpace Pilot | 2 |
| DropShip or JumpShip Captain | 2 |
| Vehicle Commander or Infantry Platoon Leader | 1.5 |
| Battle Armor Trooper or Chief Tech/ChiefMedic | 1.5 |
| Vehicle/Spacecraft Crewman or Chief Administrator | 1 |
| Conventional Infantry | 1 |
| Non-Chief Support Staff | 0.75 |
| Conventional Infantry (AntiMech Trained) | +0.25 |
| Lance CO (Lt .jg) | 0.50 |
| Lance CO (Lt. sg)/Company XO) | 0.75 |
| Company CO (Captain) | +1 |
| Battalion CO (Major) | +1.50 |
| Battalion XO (Captain) | +1.25 |
| Regimental CO (Colonel) | +2 |
| Regimental XO (Major) | +1.75 |
New Hires/New Blood
After a unit has formed, new personnel may join the unit without being awarded shares. These personnel are payed a salary from the mercenary units finances. Typically these newly hired personnel do not bring units BattleMechs or other combat units with them. If a personnel is hired owns their own BattleMech they are often given shareholder status or can be hired under temporary contract.
Temporary Contracts
Personnel who bring units with them such as DropShip Captains, MechWarriors, AeroSpace Pilots or Combat/Vehicle Tank Crews may be hired on a contract by contract bases. They are awarded temporary shares and then may at the end of the contract draw share of the funds from the contract payment and optionally any bonuses, spoils of was or salvage depending on how the contract is drafted. they may then choose to leave the mercenary unit or continue to the next contract. Their temporary shares does not give them access to the funds from the main financial reserves of the unit.
Leaving a unit/Retirement and Death
When a shareholder leaves a mercenary unit either by choice, permanent retirement (by age or medical reasons) or by vote (share holders may be voted out) they are entitle to their share of the entire mercenary financial reserve, plus their share of the value of any commonly owned equipment, and of course they get to keep their own personal BattleMech or unit. If this is not possible the unit is declared insolvent and is instantly disbanded and any commonly held assets sold and divided by share.
Some MechWarriors who retire, still remain part of the mercenary unit and take part in votes, and may even loan out their BattleMechs/units.
When a MechWarrior is killed in action – their share and their unit are part of their estate and may be inherited by their next of kin. If a Mercenary dies in the line of duty, their unit may be passed on as part of their last will and testament. It is common however that while on combat operations in a contract where it would be considered to be a risk to the mercenary units safety, the unit retains temporary ownership of the unit until the end of combat operations or the contract. If the unit is destroyed, the mercenary unit must then reimburse the estate by the recognised C-Bill cost of the unit. If the unit survives the contract, then the unit passes into the estate. Many people who inherit a unit in this way may often not want a BattleMech, Tank or AeroSpace Fighter, so will offer it back to the mercenary unit to buy.
It is common practice for mercenaries who have no family to bequeath their unit to the mercenary unit, as that is all the family they have. There are many recorded cases (and holo dramas) where a suspicious bequeathment or this type is made (and even after the suspicious death of that pilot). This may lead the MRBC to review the case, and even other lawyers of family members to seek such. Review. The MRBC have even had mercenary charters revoked after such an incidence. This is why when ever a unit is destroyed or a personnel is killed, a large amount of paper work (from autopsy reports, after action reports and death certificates) need to be filed with the MRBC. If no next of kin is named then it may take months before a court awards the estate to either a not-named next of kin or after some time the estate may be awarded back to the mercenary unit.
Leaving a Mercenary Company during a contract is considered “bad faith” and often results in a poor reference being filed with the MRB, plus penalty clauses such as the loss of earnings from the contract. When a member leaves they are justified to claim a share of the companies assets.
In cases of dishonourable discharge, e.g desertion, attacking a fellow mercenary in your unit, murder/war crimes, the MRBC may fine the mercenary some or all of their share, and either pass that back to the company or as compensation. The MRBC can also fine a mercenary unit for breaching the mercenary charter, and it the most server cases can bankrupt and dipped the company.
Optional Rule – Bequeathment.
When a mercenary shareholder with a BattleMech/unit dies roll on the below table.
| Roll | Outcome |
| 2-4 | The unit a bequeathed to the estate – the estate elects to take possession of the unit |
| 5-8 | The unit a bequeathed to the estate – but they offer to sell it back to the mercenary company at its base C-Bill value. A negotiation roll may be made. |
| 9-12 | The unit is bequeathed to the Mercenary Company, it is added to the companies officially owned assets. |
To calculate the size of the share a mercenary has, simply find the net worth of the entire mercenary unit (the sum of all units/equipment and facilities) and subtract the value of any equipment that the mercenary owns. Units may also decided to pay off shareholders with assets such as combat vehicles.
Ownership and use
Typically, no one may use a MechWarriors own personal unit without their permission. The one exemption to this, is that the CO/CO may, in times of crisis, or when the owner is medically unfit (4+ wounds) temporarily pass control to another member of the unit for that tactical situation.
Wanted Rogue/Mercenaries
Any mercenary placed on the MRBC black list or wanted/rogue mercenaries is considered a pirate and may not be hired (legally) by any mercenary unit. O f course, some wanted fugitives are sometimes protected by their unit and still employed “off the books” but such an act risks the entire mercenary group being dispanded and condemned as pirates.
Organisational Ownership
Rather than units being owned by the mercenaries it may be that all units are instead owned by an organisation e.g. A Great House/Periphery State will own the “house units” of one of its military formation, planetary governments may own militias, corporations may own the units that are garrisoning facilities, Nobels may own units for personal defence or as part of an investment.
art ownership/Sponsors
It may also be the case that an organisation has “part ownership” due to an initial insertion of funds into the unit. In this case the organisation owns a number of shares determined by their input of funds. As a rough rule of thumb, for each 5% of funds put into an organisation (as a percentage of the units net worth) they will expect 1 share.
Selling out
A mercenary unit may at some point vote to decided to sell out to an organisation. In this case the organisation must pay each shareholder enough to buy them out of the unit and may buy their unit. This either happens when a mercenary unit falls on hard times and has debts it can’t pay, or when a mercenary unit has worked for an employer for such a length of time, they effectively become a house unit.
Chaos Campaign
The above rules may be adjusted for Chaos Campaign by instead of making shareholder payments in C-Bills, instead shareholders decrease the WarChest points of the company if the dies or leave the unit.
ComStar 