d10 Random Mercenary Table

1 - 4d6 unarmored pygmy short-bow archers mounted upon muscular blind & deaf slaves; these mounts are directed by their riders via the agency of a variety of leg- and toe- clutches.
2 - 3d4 veiled, shirtless death-fanatics armed with poisoned scimitars and spiked shields.
3 - 4d6 stodgy, grumbling heavy footmen in mail hauberks and iron helms, armed with spears, maces and round-shields.
4 - 2d4 athletic, dashing charioteer-lancers clad in brass-scaled cuirass and lion-helms, with attendant squire-drivers.
5 - 3d6 sneering, fearless tribal nomad pony skirmishers, armed with javelins, lances and sword-knives; clad in studded furs and hides.
6 - 2d8 unemployed toughs and labourers armed with cudgels and hatchets.
7 - 3d4 towering barbarian maul-wielders clad in banded mail and full helms, also carries javelins and short-swords; trained in breaking enemy-formations.
8 - 6d4 pikemen in colorful quilted silk armor, secondary weapons are a mixture of war-hammers, shortswords, light maces and hand axes.
9 - 4d4 hard-bitten halabardiers in black-enameled scale mail and helms; also carry kite shields and broad swords.
10 - 6d6 adolescent spear-men from the hill clans, full of bravado yet inexperienced; also carrying round shields, javelins and axes or short swords.

Some Conventional Military Forces and Technologies of Algol Men

Arquebus - A shoulder-fired laser weapon with a heavy wooden stock. The lasing mechanisms are repurposed by specially trained Technocrats from Ancient technology. The ammunition for Arquebuses, known as Sabots, consist of canisters containing compartments of various highly reactive chemicals. These weapons are chemical lasers, using the energy from chemical reactions for lasing, and get one shot out of a single sabot. Arquebuses and similar energy weapons are uncommon, expensive weapons, usually the property of aristocrats. When common troops are equipped with such weapons, they are usually issued by a quartermaster immediately before battle and than locked up afterwards.

Armiger - An fighting man of the aristocratic castes, armigers are defined by their possession of a suit of advanced battle armor, usually of Ancient origin. This armor is usually a hereditary heirloom, although they are sometimes granted along with title by nobility. Such armor that is taken from defeated armigers is often ransomed back it's armiger's house for substantial sums. This armor is usually very elaborate, full-body articulated plate, often decorated in a baroque fashion. Armigers are usually armed with firelances and Ancient or phasic swords, and usually fight mounted on heavily armored destriers such as heavy war lizards. As well as serving as officers, units of armigers are often used as shock troops to break enemy formations and artillery as well as heavy foot in the vanguard when breaching fortification. Mercenary, non-aristocratic armiger-equivalents are called Free-lances.

Babooneers - The handler of a small packs of large, trained, semi-intelligent baboons armed with clubs or light maces.

Dart Pistol - A spring-loaded pistol that holds three flechette-like darts in a revolving cylinder. A long lever mechanism mounted on the top of the barrel is used to open the dart chambers and reset the springs.

Firelance - A combination weapon consisting of a long shaft with a spear like head as well as a plasma emitter barrel, the trigger for which is usually part of a pistol-grip like assembly. Firelances are usually made by Technocrats from repurposed Ancient technology, although there are surviving Ancient firelances as well. Ancient firelances are powered by radiation crystals whereas contemporary versions use chemical sabots similar to those used by arquebeses.

Fusil - A lighter, 'carbine' equivalent of the arquebus.

Jezail - A laser weapon similar to an arquebus, but with an unusually long barrel and a highly curved stock. It is usually fired with the aid of a forked rod used to steady the barrel, but cavalry sometimes fire them while mounted with the stock tucked under the arm and held against the body. Jezails are especially prized by some nomad peoples.

Zorselars - Light skirmishers that ride Zorses (without saddle, stirrups or bridle) but dismount to melee. They are usually clad in quilted or mail coats and fight with scimitars and spears.

The Class Name "Fighting-Man" and Dune...

Dungeons and Dragons originally used the term "Fighting-man" for the adventuring warrior character class. In later editions it was changed to "Fighter," presumably in order to resolve the matter of female characters who were "Fighting-Men."

I've seen a lot of scorn heaped upon the term Fighting-Man, which is usually roundly mocked and snickered at. I'm presuming those who denigrate the term are unfamiliar with the source literature...

I'm sure many of us internet-OSR types have made the same pilgrimage, but a few years ago I made a point of reading as many books from the AD&D DMG "Appendix N" as I could get my hands on. This was greatly facilitated by an excellent local bookstore, Pulp Fiction Books, which I highly recommend.

In this literature the term "fighting-man" is used almost universally to designate soldiers, warriors, mercenaries, etc. "He had the cold eyes and savage scars that marked him as an experienced fighting-man," "We have fifty fighting-men available Lord Tyrant, with ten-score arrived on the morrow!"

Frank Herbert's Dune uses the term "Fighting-Man"...

Some say the appellation Fighting-Man is clunky, and crude. I say it's a rough word for a rough job. And honestly, I've always found the name "Fighter" to be kind of stupid, and far more dumb-sounding than Fighting-Man whenever I thought about it. I preferred "Warrior."

I presume the clunky issue was the reasoning for changing "Magic-User" to "Mage" and than "Wizard." I used to be down with Mage, nowadays I'm all about calling them "Sorcerers." A much more cool name that is far more evocative of the source literature that influences my campaign.

Some, rightfully so, point out the issue of female characters. It seems obvious to me, in my old age, that using the name "Fighting-Woman," or even "Amazon," "Valkyrie," "Shield Maiden," "Sword Bride," "Knightrix" or whatever else seems appropriate and acceptable to the player and DM. This strikes me as the sort of thing that, if he was questioned about, it would get the late Mr. Gygax to tut-tut about how the rules were never meant to be followed to the letter and so forth.

So when I started my old-school AD&D campaign, Fighters became Fighting-Men and Magic-Users were relabeled Sorcerers. And I love it. However, if someone prefers to use the term Fighter instead due to concerns about gender bias and so forth, I can understand and sympathize with their position.