Mercenary

"I fight at your side, any time!"

- Mercenary's greeting to Ezio

The Mercenaries (Italian: Mercenario) are one of the three factions helping the main character, Ezio (the other two being the Courtesans and the Thieves).

The Mercenaries in Tuscany/San Gimignano are led by Mario Auditore, Ezio's uncle. In Florence, the Mercenaries are led by Niccolò Machiavelli. In Venice, the Mercenaries are led by Bartolomeo d'Alviano.

Application
Mercenaries (and all other hired help) cost 150 florins, follow you around, and make comments after a fight. They bear Heavy Weapons and are like a more powerful variation of the Brute. However, Mercenaries encountered in missions (that are not hired) are free and have Longswords and Maces. Due to their lack of armor, their effectiveness is drastically reduced and they can be outmatched by 2-3 Pazzi Guards. Ezio can order them to fight the Guards, thus providing a distraction.

The Mercenaries are not capable of free running, so it should be avoided if at all possible.

In Rome the mercenaries act much as they did in the previous game. However, unlike the Thieves and Courtesans, when you reach Rank 5 in the mercenarie's guild they don't gain any sort of extra ability. Bartolomeo d'Alviano and his wife Pantasilea lead the mercenaries in Rome from their barracks. They participated actively in the fight against the Borgia and their French allies led by Baron de Valois. When Ezio completes all of the Mercenary's Guild challenges he is awarded with Bartolomeo's Axe and a Mercenary's Guild crest which can be located in the armor section in the section of the Tiber Island Hideout.

Combat
Mercenaries are the most heavily armored of the three factions available to the player. They usually use heavy, two-handed, weapons, and fight very similarly to brutes in fights. Although, they have quite a bit of difficulty when fighting brutes.

Tuscany/San Gimignana

 * Mario Auditore (deceased)

Florence

 * Niccolò Machiavelli

Venice/Rome

 * Bartolomeo d'Alviano

Trivia

 * Mercenaries cannot perform any kind of free-running. However, Mario Auditore, who behaves like a Mercenary, can.
 * Mercenaries have weapons like Brutes, but are easily defeated by them.
 * In the Cannaregio district of Venice, you can hire groups of six Mercenaries instead of the usual four.
 * During the mission to assassinate Vieri de' Pazzi, Mario refers to his Mercenaries as his brothers, a term usually reserved for fellow Assassins.
 * While distributing Bartolomeo's men to specific spots throughout the Castello district to distract Silvio Barbarigo, his men act like normal guards instead of Brutes, even being able to sprint.
 * It is ironic that Niccolò Machiavelli is portrayed as the leader of Florentine mercenaries when, historically, he was strongly against the use of mercenaries.
 * In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, two mercenaries help Ezio operate Leonardo da Vinci's Tank.
 * In Brotherhood, they are far more powerful and can take out several guards much faster.
 * Fabrizio and Prospero Colonna are two notable mercenaries saved during one of the Brotherhood Courtesan missions.
 * Regular mercenaries can break out of your grabs; the ones in the Monteriggioni training can't unless if you're training with them.