Mercenary Times – Part 1

Article by: Szczurek Lutek

They are beautiful, they are effective, they are available !

After latest releases for mercenary army in Dust 1947, some units became available that so far you were only able to get at special events. With these new possibilities it might make sense to have a closer look at these options – they combat effectiveness can make you a true king of the battlefield! 

EMMA

Ach, beautiful Emma Donovan, crazy, but pragmatic – unlike her sister Rosie she prefers hard cash than the star spangled banner. And performs first aid duties to whoever can pay for it. She is also one of the best heroines in the whole Dust universe – for mere 4 points we get a unit that can preform stimulant actions and bring back wounded soldiers into the battle. She ain’t an offensive ace, but she’s also not defenseless – thanks to LUCKY ability her ’45 can send some enemies on the other side. BRAVE can be useful too but in reality her second most used skill (after COMBAT MEDIC) is CHEAT DEATH. Even after recent nerfs (look at the newest FAQ), thanks to this ability she is perfect for controlling or blocking control of certain targets. An absolute must have, no matter what block or faction are you fielding.

PRO TIP: It’s worth remembering that Emma can serve numerous stimulant tokens to nearby units (each of these costs 1 action). During it’s next activation such unit will simply roll one die for each stimulant received – and then you choose the best one for the situation.

NATALIA

One Man Killing Squad, Nathalie Two Barrels, Death in Shorts – Nathalie is known under many aliases in Dust 1947, but all of these spread fear mixed with ave among the enemies. There is nothing to hide – the quality to price equivalent (ONLY 2 POINTS!) is one of the best in the whole game. Quick (3/4 move compensates great the low range of her buns, deadly (12 dices against armor 1 units, re-rollable thanks to KILLING SPREE) and ridiculously cheap, ideal as a filler when you have some points left after army building. An absolute must have!

PRO TIP: Good players use Nathalie not only as a cheap and effective blocker of enemy units and narrow passes. Tactic known as„Peek-a-boo, you &**$ $^&&!” means you will place her on the same field as other allied squads. Often already supported by a hero. This can make the enemy re-consider his attack. Now he will have to decide if he wants to divide his fire onto 2 targets or focus fire on 1 of them. This can be especially effective on cover elements.

LUISA

Not as good as other Ladies of the NNO forces, but still an intresting choice. Sister Luisa Mendoza from hot tropical Cuba seems to be quite expensive (12 points!) but comes with KILLING SPREE for her recoiless gun (range 8, explosion/1 agains enemy infantry, no cover thanks to GRENADE WEAPON). And she’s also an Officer which are always scarce among the mercs. With her personal walker „Demolisher” they create quite expensive (12 + 13 pkt), but interesting combo – well piloted this machine can provide a lot of covering AA fire, has smoke and DAMAGE RESILIENT which means it won’t go down easy.

PRO TIP: Thanks to radio in the Demolisher Luisa can use her OFFICER special action on any unit on the battlefield.

MERCENARY COMMAND SQUAD

There is no discussion here – the command squads come in different shapes and forms but their basic function is the same – using command actions. Their weapons, movement etc have a secondary meaning. If you need to use them in the fight that means that something went really, REALLY wrong. Like in the old joke: when the command squad uses it weapons? When someone survived that Priest’s dynamite throw 😉 Mercenary command squads costs the average 11 points, and does the usual stuff – reactivate, heal and repair. But man! These girls are surely the best looking command squad!

PRO TIP: If the enemy uses spies or airborne troops it’s sometimes beneficial to save your command squad by a small trick. Position your vehicles so they create a small “hole” in which your command squad can fit and cannot be seen from around (as long as your temporary cover stands of course..).

JUSTINE & CO VI

Justine girl’s in their earlier iterations were mostly known to Dust 1947 modelers and collationer’s – they had little battle worth and were mostly used as very good-looking terrain and board elements. But that’s past – version VI not only fixes vehicles like their all predecessors but they offer quite the firepower thanks to tree Thompsons and one Sten. But their best element is not the armament, or sexy outfit. Quite high price of 8 points is totally reasonable thanks to new ability – AMMO DUMP. It allows a free reload action for any units that is adjacent to this squad. And that’s just AWSOME! OH and one note – sadly Justine is not part of this box – sorry.

PRO TIP: You don’t have to be a genius of battlefield to understand that „sixes” will be best positioned next to artillery units or other that require reload or have SALVO. Gregor The Defector shooting his EXPERT autogun every round? Why not! Good old Lothar shredding the enemy each turn with his Nebels? Here you ho. Allied Six Shooter, with unlimited fire without the need to reload? Possibilities are endless here!