Mercenary Generals

Original Article on French Games Workshop website, translated by D’Argent.

Right, here’s the basics:

• In 5^th Edition, Nigel Stillman created rules to allow you to take “Major Hero” (Known as “Lords” now) choices from non-human armies and have them in your Dogs of War army.
• Recently, the French website for Games Workshop has hosted a PDF document which contains the rules which were shown in White Dwarf back in 5^th Edition.
• Seeing this, D’Argent decided to do his best of translating it so that Dogs of War players all over the world could use them. I mean, you can’t have wargame rules for only a certain country, right?

So, below are the Mercenary Generals that you can take:

(Note, all take a Lord choice, as a normal human Mercenary General would. Rules for race particular weapons can be found in their army books or in the Warhammer© rulebook.)

Human Mercenary General

(See the Dogs of War army list)

The Human Mercenary General can take a Quirk of Character and Common Magic items to the maximum total value of 100pts.

Dwarf Mercenary General

Few Dwarfs become mercenary generals and captains. This is because any Dwarf with the qualities of a leader will be utterly loyal to clan and ancestry. Dwarf mercenary captains are likely to be outcasts for some reason, or cherishing some terrible grudge against all their kin. What else could force a Dwarf to associate with the kind of treacherous scum who become mercenaries? Furthermore, the payment of gold to hired sell-swords and the sharing out of plunder is something that would tear at the heart of any true Dwarf. Indeed they, and any Dwarf who becomes a mercenary general or captain, must have a strange saga to tell. It would be wise not to delve too deeply.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	Pts
Dwarf Mercenary General	3	7	4	4	5	3	4	4	10	135

Equipment: Hand Weapon.

Options:

• May have either a Great Weapon (+6pts), or a pistol. (+10pts)
• May also carry a crossbow (+15 pts), or a Dwarf handgun (+21 pts).
• May wear light armour (+3 points) , heavy armour (+6 pts) or a gromril heavy armour (+12 pts) and carry a shield (+3 pts).
• May choose magic items from the common magic item list and the Quirks of Character, with a maximum total value of 125 points.

Special Rules: Ancestral Grudge, Resolute, Relentless (See page 6 of the Dwarf army book.) An army with a Dwarf Mercenary General cannot have any Greenskins characters or units.

Orc Mercenary General

The Greenskin races enjoy fighting and raiding. Burning villages, battle covered with the broken bodies of their foes and fistfuls full of loot. Some times, the lure of Tilean gold lead many a Orc to the service of a Merchant Prince. The only problem for the many Greenskin generals is finding mercenary regiments reckless enough to follow them. Few humans can bear to share a camp with Orcs, and so Orc mercenary generals tend to lead armies of particularly savage, uncouth and primitive mercenaries such as, for example, Ogres.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	Pts
Orc Mercenary General	4	6	3	4	5	3	4	4	9	110
Boar	7	3	0	3	4	1	3	1	3	+24pts

Equipment: Choppa.

Options:

• May have a great weapon (+6 points), an additional hand weapon (+6 pts) or a spear if mounted (+3 points).
• May wear light armour (+3 points) or wear heavy armour (+6 pts). May also have a shield (+3pts).
• May ride a Boar. (+24pts)
• May choose magic items from the common magic item list and the Quirks of Character, with a maximum total value of 100 points.

Special Rules: Choppa, Ignore goblin panic. (See page 6 of the Orcs and Goblins army book.)

Elf Mercenary General

The few High Elves or Dark Elves who become mercenary generals are often exiles, banished from their realms for dire misdeeds or forsaking their kindred with a self-imposed exile. One or two have had the misfortune to be shipwrecked and stranded in distant lands. After trying in vain to fight their way across the known world, they have been forced to sell their fighting skills in order to survive.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	Pts
High Elf Mercenary General	5	7	6	4	3	3	8	4	10	125pts
Elven Steed	9	3	0	3	3	1	4	1	5	+18pts
Great Eagle	2	5	0	4	4	3	4	2	8	+50pts

Equipment: Hand Weapon.

Options:

• May have a great weapon (+6 points), an additional hand weapon (+6 pts), a halberd (+6pts) or a spear if mounted (+6 points) or a lance if mounted (+6pts).
• May also choose a long bow (+15pts).
• May wear light armour (+3 points) or wear heavy armour (+6 pts) or wear Dragon armour (+8pts). May also have a shield (+3pts).
• May ride a Elven Steed (+18pts), which may have ithilmar barding (+8pts), or a Great Eagle (+50pts)
• May choose magic items from the common magic item list and the Quirks of Character, with a maximum total value of 100 points.

Special Rules: Stoic (Immune to panic when fighting a Dark Elf army.) (See page 6 of the High Elves army book.). A Great Eagle can fly. An army with a High Elf Mercenary General cannot take any Dark Elf characters or units.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	Pts
Dark Elf Mercenary General	5	7	6	4	3	3	8	4	10	125pts
Dark Steed	8	3	0	3	3	1	4	1	5	+18pts
Cold One	7	3	0	4	4	3	3	1	2	+39pts
Dark Pegasus	8	3	0	4	4	3	4	2	6	+55pts

Equipment: Hand weapon.

Options:

• May have a great weapon (+6 points), an additional hand weapon (+6 pts), a halberd (+6pts) or a lance if mounted (+6pts).
• May also choose a repeater crossbow (+15pts).
• May wear light armour (+3 points) or wear heavy armour (+6 pts). May be given a Seadragon Cloak (+9pts). May also have a shield (+3pts).
• May ride a Dark Steed (+18pts), a Cold One (+39pts) or a Dark Pegasus (+55pts)
• May choose magic items from the common magic item list and the Quirks of Character, with a maximum total value of 100 points.

Special Rules: Hate High Elves (See page 6 of the Dark Elves army book.). A Dark Pegasus can fly and impale (+1 Strength when it charges). An army with a Dark Elf Mercenary General cannot take any High Elf characters or units.

Ogre Mercenary General

Many Ogres follow the way of the mercenary. As a race, they are just as brutal and warlike as Orcs, in some cases, more so. Few survive long enough to command an army of their own, but those who do are formidable indeed.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	Pts
Ogre Mercenary General	6	6	4	5	5	3	4	5	9	200

Equipment: Ogre Club.

Options:

• May have a great weapon (+14pts points), an additional hand weapon (+10pts), an iron fist (+12pts), a Cathayan long sword (+10pts) or a pair of handguns. (+12pts).
• May wear light armour (+0 points) or wear heavy armour (+6 pts).
• May choose magic items from the common magic item list and the Quirks of Character, with a maximum total value of 100 points. The Ogre CANNOT have a Big Name.

Special Rules: Bull Charge. (See page 6 of the Ogre Kingdoms army book.) Causes Fear.

Quirks of Character

Mercenary generals often have some dark secret or quirk in their character, which would explain why they became generals. You general should not be lacking such a quality so you must pick one character trait for your general from the list below. The price of the quirk is next to the name.

Rich - 10pts

The general is immensely rich from recent campaigns or over, darker ways of gaining cash quickly. How ever he gained so much gold, the fact is that the Paychest is full and close to over-filling. You may re-roll failed Break tests within 16” of the Paymaster instead of the normal 12”.

Veteran – 20pts

The character is a grizzled veteran of so many battles that he has superior fighting skill. He gains +1 WS because of this.

Cunning – 35pts

Flip knifes hidden in sleeves, throwing mud in your eye, this guy will go to anything to catch you off. He always strikes first in close combat.

Charismatic leader – 30pts

Inspiring speeches make the troops adore this general, or maybe he’s so brutal that a single look will keep the troops in line? How ever the general does it, the general gets a +1 LD upto the maximum of 10.

Exile – 20pts

The Character was exiled by his own kind. Therefore he hates his own race. For example, a Ogre with this will hate Ogres. The general will not included any units of that hated race in his army.

Grudge – 30pts

Maybe a certain race killed his family? Or maybe his downfall in society, and being forced to become a mercenary, was caused by a certain race? Either way, he will hate one specific race of your choice. The general will not included any units of that hated race in his army.

So, for example, let us make the stats for Dark Elf Mercenary General Adiri Magusseer:

General Adiri Magusseer takes up a Lord choice in a Dogs of War. He cannot be taken in any other army.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	Pts
Adiri Magusseer	5	7	6	4	3	3	8	4	10	259pts
Dark Pegasus	8	3	0	4	4	3	4	2	6

Equipment: Biting Blade, Heavy Armour, Dragon Cloak, Shield and Repeater Crossbow.

Special Rules: Hate High Elves, Cunning (Always Strikes first.) [Represents Darkfang, his young Drake which flies around his enemies, throwing them off balance to allow his master to attack first]

So, try these new rules out. How about showing those at the Forum your Generals of Renown?

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