Jagged Alliance 3 – Tips for Choosing Mercs

Choosing Mercs

Leadership 85 is a must for IMP, this way you can train other mercs efficiently and travel fast on strategic map.

Suggestions:

1. Default difficulty.
2. In not now then at 3dt try consider pick the Indulgent mode option, so you have more margins and choices on mercs hiring.

Then some comment:

• Consider support all those skills: Mechanic, Explosive, Medic.
• Consider support all skills adding dialog options: Psycho, Negociator, Scoundrel. Many mercs has one, Psycho could have more issues with mercs hired so pick it for IMP is a good option.
• Don’t bother keep a lot of money in reserve, I’m not sure 1K is even useful, or it’s to hire some more merc along first days, like start with three mercs only.
• Consider build a team hired for 2 weeks not 1.
• Consider build a team of 5 including IMP merc, eventually you can start with 3 or 4 and reserve some money for 2 more.
• Barry is a must have, not just to manage explosive skill, but also as a great overall merc, plus an issue to lower some combats difficulty with his unique grenades. If he isn’t available at start, and you don’t want scam restart, try reserve in a slot and money for a later hire when still in island.

For skills support at the start:

• Explosive skill: If Barry isn’t an option for explosive skills, you can consider Red but he is an elite cheaper than multiple Veteran but more expensive than all Recuits. And if neither Barry nor Red are available, then consider a temporary explosive skill support, I felt it was annoying to choose the IMP for supporting explosive skill but it’s definitely an option. Otherwise perhaps Hitman or Meltdown.
• Mechanic skill: There’s many good possibilities. Kalyna but she is constantly increasing her salary so it’s just for first weeks. Likewire quite less good in combats but better for hacking intel, and for mechanic check. Steroid lacking a bit of AP but still a solid combat mech and quite good for Mechanical.
• Medic skill: I doubt it’s important in first steps to have a very high level Medic, so a first choice replace later is an option. So start with Burns or Blood is a fair enough start. But Fox is a fine choice too. MD is definitely a fairly good option, but he is very special, on start he certainly has a stealth penalty and you need manage it, secondly it isn’t good for combats so you’ll need consider training.

Some other comment:

• Igor is good for stealth and close range, and a good start merc option. Morever if you hire him first and Barry after then Barry won’t request a salary augment at first hire.
• Meltdown, Burns, Ice, Hitman, Red are a very solid start merc choice. For sure You can’t pick many to start, target more one of them.
• Blood is more to exploit melee, but it’s a bit questionable when for now there’s a doubtful infinite melee attack hole, and without the hole I doubt he would be so popular.
• Igor, Steroid, Grunty are ok second choice to stay in budget and fill the squad.

But then this is a lot about a start merc group with 5 including IMP, clearly 4 is another option.