These mercenaries are cheaper and more resilient than Black Guards, so villains can throw them into the sacrificial pit with greater benefit (I haven't thought about balance yet; if they are too strong, I can reduce the bonus by half).
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THE PROMISED REBALANCING IS OUT.
The mercenaries have lost some stats and 3 abilities: "deadly gaze," "no retreat," and "wall of shields" – the first two were too powerful, and the third was removed for balance.
The mercenaries have gained "double attack" and +1 to initiative – now, our Viking, with damage comparable to an average plate-armored unit, can deal some serious damage, just like a TRUE FEARSOME NORTHERNER