Field Manual: Mercenaries

Note: There was a "corrected 1999 printing" of this sourcebook.

Field Manual: Mercenaries is the third in the Field Manual series detailing the military forces of the BattleTech factions. As its name implies, this book examines many mercenary units, though not necessarily the most famous ones. Field Manual: Mercenaries updates the stories of the units covered (listed below), as well as providing their deployment and employer status as of 3059.

Field Manual: Mercenaries also describes how to run your very own mercenary unit, from creation to combat to administration. To this end, it provides a fictional treatment to Outreach and the Outreach Mercenary Training Command, as well as common mercenary employers, markets, and contract types. In the rules section, players find rules concerning creating their own mercenary unit from scratch, developing supporting assets, figuring out logistics, negotiating their contracts, and determining their Dragoons Rating. FM:M also introduces the rules for the Gray Death Light Scout Armor.

From the back cover
"For nearly 300 years, war has raged across the Inner Sphere as the rival Successor States fought one another and fearsome invaders called the Clans. This maelstrom of conflict has created untold suffering and destruction -- and a never-ending demand for the services of mercenary soldiers.

BattleTech Field Manual: Mercenaries provides an in-depth look at mercenaries in the 31st century, from the inner workings of a mercenary unit to detailed profiles of more than forty prominent mercenary bands. This how-to manual for would-be soldiers of fortune includes the histories, officers and favorite tactics of select mercenary units. special rules that reflect the unique capabilities of each mercenary command, and rules for creating and running your own BattleTech mercenary units."

Contents

 * "A Day in a Merc's Life"
 * Introduction


 * Professional Soldiering
 * Mercenaries Throughout History
 * Modern Mercenary Life


 * Outreach
 * Mercenary System
 * Mercenary Database
 * Training


 * Employment and Contracts
 * Assets and Organization


 * Mercenary Unit Briefs
 * Ace Darwin's WhipIts
 * Avanti's Angels
 * Barber's Marauder IIs
 * Battle Magic
 * The Black Omen
 * Blackstone Highlanders
 * Blue Star Irregulars
 * Brion's Legion
 * Bronson's Horde
 * Burr's Black Cobras
 * Canopian Highlanders
 * 21st Centauri Lancers
 * Crimson Crusaders
 * The Dioscuri
 * The Furies
 * Gray Death Legion
 * Grim Determination
 * Hansen's Roughriders
 * Hell's Black Aces
 * Jacob's Juggernauts
 * Kell Hounds
 * Khorsakhov's Cossacks
 * Kristen's Krushers
 * Lindon's Battalion
 * Little Richard's Panzer Brigade
 * Longwood's Bluecoats
 * Mobile Fire
 * Narhal's Raiders
 * Quint's Olympian Groundpounders
 * Ramilie's Raiders
 * Romanov's Crusaders
 * Rubinsky's Renegades
 * Smithson's Chinese Bandits
 * Stalwart Support
 * Storm's Metal Thunder
 * 4th Tau Ceti Rangers
 * 12th Vegan Rangers
 * Vinson's Vigilantes
 * Waco Rangers
 * Wannamaker's Widowmakers
 * Wilson's Hussars
 * Wolf's Dragoons
 * Wolverton's Highlanders


 * Mercenary Employment Roster


 * Rules
 * Creating Scenarios
 * Unit Generation
 * Mercenary Commands
 * Training
 * Mercenary Battle Armor
 * Gray Death Light Scout Armor


 * Creating a Mercenary Unit
 * Running a Mercenary Unit