Fighter, Professional Soldier

Whether having served in the state army of the kingdom, or as part of a mercenary warband, the professional soldier has been trained in the ways of war and battle for all his life.

The Quintessential Fighter

Author Matthew Sprange

Publisher Mongoose Publishing

Publish date 2002

He is a solid and dependable fighter, fully understanding the benefits of combined unit and party strength in the face of terrible enemies and will strive to ensure the safety of all members. Long-serving professional soldiers are usually hardened and drizzled individuals who have witnessed the carnage and death ever-present on the fields of battle first hand. Having fought their way up the non-commissioned ranks, all the while watching friends and rivals fall to the weapons of the enemy, many achieve the rank of sergeant or unit leader and are most capable of both giving and following orders to the letter.

Adventuring: Professional soldiers tend to enter adventuring ways of life through one of two routes. Most simply grow weary of killing for a living, earning very small amounts of gold and yet risking their lives every day. Others may find their army or warband no longer requires their services after war has been fought and won – whereas their past comrades may turn to drink as they bemoan the stat of peace and relive old glories, the true professional soldier will resolve to fight on as an adventurer if he cannot find employment. Either way, the professional soldier’s skill in arms and tactics make him a superlative choice for any growing party of adventurers.

Role-playing: The professional soldier often seems a very grim individual. Whilst excelling combat, he can appear extremely callous when others suffer injury or death. Whilst
he will always respect the death of a worthy and honourable fighter, the professional soldier has seen too much death already in his lifetime to be overly moved by any more. A small number will take death as a way of life to the extreme, and will often become addicted to adventure, combat and excitement, going out of their way to find trouble in order to provide a spark to an otherwise monotonous day. Those adventuring with them may soon come to suspect their new comrade actually has a death wish?

Bonuses: The professional soldier may take the Weapon Specialization feat at first level, due to his vast experience in combat. He must still have the Weapon Focus feat for the appropriate weapon and he may not take a second Weapon Specialization feat until he reaches 4th level, as normal.

Penalties: Despite his consummate skill in battle, the professional soldier tends to be very poorly paid for his services and often leaves an army or warband with little more than the weapons and equipment he has been able to steal or allowed to keep. The professional soldier begins the game with only 4d4 x10 gold pieces to be spent on starting equipment.