Mercenary & Hero/Bow Knight
The Mercenary class in Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest serves as a versatile offensive unit, excelling in both swordsmanship and adaptability. Mercenaries are known for their balanced stat growths, particularly in Strength, Skill, and Speed, allowing them to perform well against several opponents. Their innate skill, Avoid +10, provides a passive bonus to their evasion, making them more difficult to hit and allowing them to survive engagements where other units might fall. This makes them excellent for scouting ahead or engaging enemies in less-than-ideal positions. On maps with numerous enemy archers, their increased Avoid can be a lifesaver.
Upon promotion, Mercenaries can become either Heroes or Bow Knights. The Hero class, as detailed previously, gains access to axes in addition to swords, becoming a formidable melee combatant with strong offensive and defensive capabilities, further enhanced by the Sol skill for self-healing. This makes them ideal for sustained combat and for taking on multiple enemies. The Bow Knight, on the other hand, transitions into a mounted archer, gaining proficiency with bows and retaining their sword skills. Bow Knights possess exceptional mobility due to their mounted status and the Rally Speed skill, which can boost the Speed of nearby allies. Their ability to attack from range while maintaining high mobility makes them excellent for hit-and-run tactics, picking off enemies from afar, or supporting other units from a safe distance. They are particularly effective against flying units and can exploit terrain advantages.
When developing Mercenaries, focus on maximizing their Strength and Speed to ensure they can deal significant damage and double-attack enemies. Their Skill is also important for accuracy and critical hits. Their Resistance can be a weak point, so pairing them with units that can absorb magic damage or provide magical support is advisable. Consider using a Second Seal to reclass a Mercenary into a Fighter for a pure axe-focused offensive unit, or into a Cavalier to gain access to lances and mounted combat, before returning them to their advanced class to optimize their stat distribution. This allows for a highly adaptable unit capable of filling multiple roles on the battlefield.
- Mercenary Base Stats (Example): HP 22, Str 7, Mag 0, Skl 8, Spd 9, Lck 5, Def 5, Res 2, Mov 5
- Hero Promotion Bonus (Example): +2 Str, +1 Mag, +2 Skl, +2 Spd, +2 Lck, +1 Def, +1 Res
- Bow Knight Promotion Bonus (Example): +2 Str, +1 Mag, +1 Skl, +3 Spd, +1 Lck, +2 Def, +1 Res