The Mercenary role involves working as a gun for hire. On Foot Mercenary work is recognized by the Pilots Federation, which bestows ranks to commanders based on their success and profits. Mercenary work aboard ships, which requires fighting in Conflict Zones and amassing Combat Bonds, is tracked as part of a commander's Combat rank.
Ranks[]
Mercenary Elite icon
Note that Mercenary ranks only apply to On Foot activities.
| Rank | Total Profit Required | Cosmetic Unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| Defenceless | 0 | Dominator Suit Body Suit Livery (Bronze) |
| Mostly Defenceless | 10,000,000 | Dominator Suit Torso, Arms, and Legs Livery (Bronze) |
| Rookie | 30,000,000 | Dominator Suit Helmet Livery (Bronze) |
| Soldier | 60,000,000 | Dominator Suit Body Suit Livery (Silver) |
| Gunslinger | 125,000,000 | Dominator Suit Torso, Arms, and Legs Livery (Silver) |
| Warrior | 350,000,000 | Dominator Suit Helmet Livery (Silver) |
| Gladiator | 450,000,000 | Dominator Suit Body Suit Livery (Gold) |
| Deadeye | 880,000,000 | Dominator Suit Torso, Arms, and Legs Livery (Gold) |
| Elite | 1,550,000,000 | Dominator Suit Helmet Livery (Gold) |
| Elite I | 2,605,000,000 | |
| Elite II | 4,003,000,000 | |
| Elite III | 5,364,000,000 | |
| Elite IV | 6,734,000,000 | |
| Elite V | 8,118,000,000 |
On Foot[]
Mercenary
Rewards[]
- Frontline Solutions
- Combat Bond Vouchers: Similar to ship rewards, Conflict Zone missions accepted from Frontline Solutions at Concourses will award combat bonds per kill, and can be redeemed after completing the mission and returning to the Concourse.
- Reputation: Fighting for a specific faction will improve your relation to it. Reputation increase appears to be equal to that of a normal ship mission.
- Missions: Standard three-option reward of either credits, or a combination of credits and items and/or bonus reputation/influence.
Risks[]
- There appears to be no risk associated with Conflict Zone missions. If a mercenary is killed or critically injured, they will be redeployed to the dropship and returned to the Conflict Zone with the same suit and weapons. No items, credits, or uncashed combat bonds are lost.
Missions[]
All On Foot mission types count towards the Mercenary rank ladder. Mission types are highly varied, ranging from simple, potentially non-combat tasks, to illegal raids on settlements. Missions can be accepted from a Concourse's Terminals and local mission providers. When interacting with local mission providers Commanders can negotiate for increased rewards, with the highest level of success potentially doubling the maximum possible rewards.
Mercenaries can also participate in large-scale battles for control of settlements by accepting missions with Frontline Solutions. Combat bonds from these encounters will also grant Mercenary rank progress.
Ships[]
Rewards[]
- Combat Bond Vouchers: Choosing a side after entering the Conflict Zone will increase the value of earned Vouchers substantially. The reward for each kill will increase from 3000 Cr per Voucher, to anywhere from 4,000 Cr to 80,000 Cr depending on the ship killed, see Combat Bond Voucher.
- Reputation: Fighting for a specific faction will improve your relation to it. It is fairly ineffective for grinding Reputation, compared to other activities.
Risks[]
The amount of enemy ships in a Conflict Zones can be overwhelming, especially if they focus their attacks on a single ship. Therefore it is recommended to have some combat experience and a sufficient fighter ship, or a wing before entering.
Missions[]
Missions can target different factions and NPC roles and are most commonly spawned by factions in conflicts or unrest. Over 100 kills may be demanded by a single mission. The total reward and reward per kill both increase with the number of kills demanded.
If the player has multiple missions to kill certain targets, then kills will count towards the first Mission accepted until it is accomplished. This makes mission stacking less profitable than accepting large missions.
Doing this as wing of players makes it safer and more efficient.
Bugs[]
Please be aware that after accepting a mercenary ship combat mission and traveling to the mission sector it is ill-advised to respond to Unidentified Signal Sources. If you find a USS event that updates the mission with the abandon reward or an alternate target, it resets your kill counter. Solutions:
- Ignore USS and focus on eliminating the mission target.
- Search USS first, but keep reputation in mind. It is generally a bad idea to suddenly go kill traders or security forces affiliated with a friendly faction.
Sometimes, there will be no Conflict Zone at the designated mission location. Currently, there are no workarounds for this bug, as leaving and returning to the system does not resolve it. Find a USS with the NPC that offers the alternative abandon mission and accept that.
Notes[]
- The Mercenary rank ladder was introduced in Elite Dangerous: Odyssey.
Videos[]
Gallery[]
