lunacrescent's Comprehensive Mercenary Guide

Classic guides relating to Jobs, many of these are from the TWDomo forums. Please note that these guides are extremely old, and may not be relevant to the current game. They are preserved here for archival purposes.
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lunacrescent's Comprehensive Mercenary Guide

Post by Leirosa »

Original Author: lunacrescent
Retrieved from Aeria by Angitia.

September 2017: Images Rehosted.
lunacrescent wrote:1. What is a Mercenary?
A Mercenary can equip Heavy Armor and Shields, and has the best defensive power of all the classes. In a team, a Mercenary plays the role of protecting and strengthening their teammates. A Mercenary can equip multiple different weapons upon default and can switch between them at any time, utilizing the skills subbed from other jobs. The Offensive skills of Mercenaries have the advantage of attracting the attention of monsters, and can be used to protect team members from attack during battle.
All offensive skills of Mercenaries, whether you hit or miss, enrage surrounding monsters causing them to draw their attack to you. Mercenaries have skills that are most suitable for using an Axe and Shield, and are used mostly when fighting alone. These include attacks for single and area targets, skills that draw attention of monsters to you and skills that strengthen your defenses. Taunting monsters can be done without a weapon equipped, so it is suitable regardless of what weapon you're using as long as you are defending your team. Mercenaries also have skills that are suitable while using a spear, including special formation skills which are stronger when there are more people in your team. These skills can only be used when using a Spear and are most suitable to help defend your teammates. Lastly, they also have passive skills that allow you to equip Shields, Axes, Spears, and Heavy Armor on other jobs.
Mercenaries are able to use Axes, Spears, Heavy Armor, and Shields. However, they are also able to equip Swords, Sabers, Daggers, and Light Armor without using skills from other jobs. An Axe is a one handed weapon with high physical attack while the Spear is a two handed weapon that has good attack power and improved Critical attack rate. Heavy Armor offers the best physical defense in the game.


2. Advantages of being a Mercenary:
Weapon Suitability - Mercenaries can use a large variety of weapons without using sub skills including Axes, Spears, Daggers, Swords, and Sabers. They are also suitable to use Boxing Gloves but do not have the ability to equip it. This allows for subbing offensive skills much easier for you can switch between weapons easily without having to sub equips.
Physical Def - Mercenaries have the best defense and defensive armor in the game which makes you quite hard to kill using physical attacks.
Parties - If you are a party built Mercenary, you will have no problem finding a team because Mercenaries are always in high demand to tank and protect teams.

3. Disadvantages of being a Mercenary:
Expensive - If you're party built, you're going to be in the center of enemy attention and it will eat away your armor. Party mercs go through multiple sets of armor in one round of training and the costs can stack up.
Axe Mercs not Party Friendly - Chances are if you join a party as an Axe Merc, people are gunna whine and possibly kick you from the party because you're not built to support them.
SP - Mercenaries are always short on Skill Points, especially if you want to get all of the Equip Skills
Poor Magic Def - Whereas they have the best Physical Def, they have poor to no Magical defense at all, which doesn't make them suitable to tank Magic type monsters.

4. Good Builds for Mercenary:
Durability, Strength, and Physique can improve the attack power of a Mercenary. However, a Mercenary gets the most defense increase from Durability which is the most important stat when working in teams so you may properly protect your team. The HP increase and magical defense boost from Physique can also be helpful as well.

3 Dura (pure) - Best physical defense which is most important in teams.
2 Dura 1 Phys - Good defense and gives you an HP and magic def boost, but your physical defense isn't as strong as if you went pure dura.
2 Dura 1 Agi - Good defense, and gives you a better chance to dodge those enemy attacks.
2 Dura 1 Pow - Good defense, and boosts your strength. This build is more common among people who are Solo/Axe Mercs.

5. Spear/Party Merc - What Do I need?
Spear Attacks - Wicked Windmill, Circle Formation, Dustpan Formaton (so you can get Crane), and Crane formation.
Axe Attacks - Taunt, Mock Monsters, and Cross Chop if you think you don't have enough AoEs to hold aggro (this however uses an Axe to use).
Having a sub such as Thief or Blademaster works well too.

6. Axe/Solo Merc - What Do I need?
All Axe Attack skills.
Use a sub such as Blademaster or Thief for more offensive skills.
You can also use the Spear Formations if you're going to work in small casual parties.

7. Skills of a Mercenary:
ImageAx Attacks: (require an Ax to use)
ImageSplitting Chop - A powerful ax attack that seems to split the heavens. User is vulnerable for a short time after use - Single target
ImageOwl Slash - A powerful single target attack skill with low accuracy. User is vulnerable for a short time after use - Single target
ImagePrecision Strike - Focuses on a target's weak points, increasing attack and accuracy - Self target
ImageBetter-Blocker - Protective Shield blocks which increases defense and block rate but decreases movement speed (requires a Shield to use) - Self target
ImageTaunt - Attracts the attention of a monster and draws its attacks. User is vulnerable for a short while after use - Single target
ImageCross Chop - An Ax attack that makes a cross shape, damaging nearby enemies. User is vulnerable for a short while after use - Multiple target
ImageAll Bets are Off - Ignore damage to self, sacrificing HP, and engage the enemy in a contest of power. User is vulnerable for a short while after use - Single target
ImageAll or Nothing - Sacrifices defense to raise attack - Self target
ImageIron Curtain - Creates an iron wall using an axe that temporarily increases physical and magical defense - Self target
ImageMock Monsters - Attracts the attention of a group of monsters and draws their attack to you. User is vulnerable for a short while after use - Multiple target


ImageSpear Attacks: (require Spear to use)
ImageStabbing Strike - A thrusting spear attack. User is vulnerable for a short time after use - Single target
ImageWicked Windmill - Damages all enemies in the surrounding area. User is vulnerable for a short time after use - Multiple target
ImageGoose Formation - Offensive formation that increases movement speed and attack at the expense of defense. More people improve effect - Multiple target
ImageCircle Formation - Defensive formation that increases defense. More people improve effect - Multiple target
ImageDustpan Formation - Defensive formation that increases magical defense. More people improve effect - Multiple target
ImageStick and Twist - A thrust followed by a twist of the spear inside the wound. User is vulnerable for a short time after use - Single target
ImageCorkscrew Slice - A penetrating thrust followed by a screwing action. User is vulnerable for a short time after use - Single target
ImageArrow Formation - Offensive formation that increases attack. More people increases effect - Multiple target
ImageSnake Formation - Defensive formation that increases defense, block, and attack speed. More people increases effect - Multiple target
ImageCrane Formation - Offensive formation that increases magical attack. More people increases effect - Multiple target


ImageMercenary Skills:
ImageEquip Spear - The ability to equip Spears on any job without penalty
ImageEquip Axe - The ability to equip Axes on any job without penality
ImageEquip Heavy Armor - The ability to equip Heavy Armor on any job
ImageEquip Shield - The ability to equip Shields on any job
ImageSpear Mastery - Allows spears to be used regardless of job at x% of original strength
ImageAxe Mastery - Allows axes to be used regardless of job at x% of original strength

8. How Do I become a Mercenary?:
When you are level 10 or higher in any job, go talk to the Mercenary Association Leader in Swan Lake (374, 439). Accept the job, and he'll give you three weapons. Take the three weapons and fight monsters with them until the durability on them is 99 each. Take the weapons back to the NPC to finish the quest.

9. Life Quests:
Level 20:
When you are level 20 or higher, go to Placid Plains and talk to Stanford (248, 505). He'll ask you to bring him a Vitamin A pill. Get the pill, and take it back to him. Careful, because you'll be engaged into a battle with 3 level 24 Mercenaries (you will have Stanford assisting you).

Image

Defeat them to complete the quest.

Level 30:
When you are level 30 or higher, talk to Stanford in the Eversun Inn (168, 276). Follow his orders and find another two Mercenaries to add to your team. Once you have two mercs in your team, go back and talk to Stanford.
After talking to Stanford, go to Placid Plains and find the Assassin Gang at (565, 353) with your team. You will be engaged into a fight with 3 level 24s, 2 level 30s, and a level 35.

Image

Go back and report to Stanford in Eversun to complete the quest.

Level 40:
When you are level 40 or higher, go to Swan Lake and talk to the Mercenary Association Leader (374, 439) to get the invitation to start the quest. Go talk to O'Shea in Collington (482, 460) to trigger the movie. After this you have to fight the elemental Rat Bosses (it's the same for all level 40 life quests) in the following order:

Giant Metal Rat - Copperhorn Mountain (270, 362)
Giant Wood Rat - Placid Plain (361, 398)
Giant Water Rat - Swan Lake Basin (318, 297)
Giant Fire Rat - Blakatoa (348, 572)
Giant Earth Rat - Grassgreen Square (232, 420)

Try taking a team with other people that also have to kill these rats - they're tougher than they look. After killing all the rats in the proper order, go back to O'Shea to finish the quest.

If there is anything else you would like to add or elaborate on, please do so!
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