Hansa hire mercs?

[Colt Ward]

Fluff on the Hansa say they do hire mercenaries for their defense forces.  But they are way way out there . . . its hard to imagine them travelling to Outreach or Galatea- or even Arc Royal & Noisiel since they might be considered closer.

But to hire mercs in the IS, the Hansa have to travel basically parallel to the Exodus Road which puts them behind the OZs.  Then they have to circle around the Periphery to enter the Lyran state to go to a hiring world . . . they have no HPGs or even a real way to tie into the network.  Even if they arrive at a Lyran Periphery world and use the HPG to hire remotely through the MRBC or other factors . . . its still a huge transit time.

So . . . where/how do they hire?  Might there be another merc hiring hall somewhere in that area of the periphery?

[Frabby]

Perhaps they hire those desperate ones who go out there and offer their services. At least, the Hansa will get the mercs' JumpShip then. :)

On a more serious note, everyone hires mercs everywhere, all the time, in BattleTech. Even Kurita during the Death-to-Mercenaries era had a handful of merc units on their roster, plus some intra-Combine merc units that apparently didn't hire out through the MRB (like the Amphigean Light Assault Group, or Tyrell's Terrors). The MRB handles most, but not all merc contracts. And there is sliding scale from merc to pirate, especially in the periphery.

Hmm... makes me wonder about the privateer concept in BattleTech...

[Colt Ward]

Honestly, not too much difference between privateers and mercs on a contract to raid.  The differences exist but they are more in terms.  Contract vs Letter of Marque, salvage vs loot & salvage, command, duration and legal standing.

I am actually surprised during things like the 4SW, Operation Guerrero or say Op Sovereign Justice no letters were issued.

[Archangel]

Its unlikely that there is anything like a full-blown mercenary hiring hall (likely not enough of a market) but there probably are places where individual mercenaries/mercenary units can hang their 'for hire' shingles if they don't approach potential employers/mercenary units directly or are approached by the employer/mercenary unit ("When your tour with the HSF is finished why don't you come work for us?").  I imagine it would be similar to how mercenaries in Europe found employment over the centuries.

[glitterboy2098]

it could also be that they hire from the Clan's 'dark caste'. the clan worlds are closer, and certainly there are enough Dark caste with weapons, including mechs vehicles, etc, that might be willing to hire on in exchange for steady supply and upkeep on their gear.

[Colt Ward]

Hmm . . . Hansa supporting Dark caste . . . though to be honest, after the Wars of Reaving how many are there really left.

[Diamondshark]

Hmm . . . Hansa supporting Dark caste . . . though to be honest, after the Wars of Reaving how many are there really left.

No matter what, there will be outlaws and bandits--that being said, I doubt they will be mech-toting pirates anymore, more like scared refugees hiding in a hole. But I would bet all my Kerenskies that they exist.

[glitterboy2098]

actually i could see the dark caste having more mechs and such after the reavings.. shattered units from extinct clans trying to find a safe haven. Society cells with no orders coming and and trying to escape the purges. bandits and pirates raiding old caches or picking over battlefields on the sly..

[Colt Ward]

Yeah, but would they hang in the area or run far away?  With the genocidal purges I am leaning to run far and run fast (well, as BT interstellar travel allows).

[Terminax]

The way I've handled the Hansa/Mercenary relationship in my games is that the mercenaries are usually lower-quality, smaller commands without their own transports and the Hansa provides logistical/transport support and keep the mercs on a fairly tight leash - something along the lines that the way Draconis Combine does thing but less formal. The mercs are used mostly to do the dirty work the RDFs doresn't want to do and when the mercs get too ragged to do the job, they're either encouraged to merge with other Hansa mercenaries or quietly "retired" and their equipment re-purposed. Working for the Hansa is like working for the mob, as long as you're useful and making them money you'll be fine but fall out of favor, and you're just dead weight.

Of course, after the ejection the Hansa from Neuva Castille and worse, after the Goliath Scorpions ended up there and created the Scorpion Empire, the Hansa probably would like to hire a larger mercenary command or two but reputable mercs are not only getting thin by that time, but if the Periphery is avoided like the plague, then the Deep Periphery is really going to get shafted.

[Offworlder]

Seems that the Hansa is the origin of some merc units itself. In fact one, namely Cynthia Hickock of RDF 3, was a merc, prior to her becoming Captain General. Also, FM Periphery says that the Hansa also brokered contracts for the states of Nueva Castille. I take this to mean that there is a home-grown merc industry in the Hansa - and why not, they are merchants after all.

Also note that the Hansa has actually incorporated mercs in its rosters which led to an improvement in their quality rating. Could it be that occasionally the Hansa uses parts of its own military forces as mercs?

As to mercs from the IS working with the Hansa, its quite credible. We are told that they travel long distances in the deep periphery to trade with the Jarnvolk, so why wouldn't they travel to the IS. Of course, only small, hard luck units would probably go there, but why shouldn't they? If even parts of the shattered Ice Hellions operated in that area as mercs, why wouldn't others? *BTW we know of one such unit, the Langford Wraiths, who operated in the area as well.

[jackson123]

Out that far mercs are pirates who want to try to go legit.