Mercenary

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A mercenary is a soldier who takes temporary assignments fighting for wages rather than as an official member of an army. There are a number of different types of mercenaries.

Sellsword

A sellsword is a professional mercenary who may or may not own a horse. Men usually become sellswords only after they have had battle experience. Therefore, the typical sellsword is an experienced soldier. Sellswords are more common across the narrow sea than they are in Westeros. The Free Cities make heavy use of sellswords to fight over the Disputed Lands and the Stepstones. Many sellswords in the east are organized into long-established companies. Some sellsword companies include the Brave Companions, the Second Sons, the Long Lances, the Company of the Cat, the Windblown, the Stormcrows, and the famous Golden Company.

Freerider

Though mounted sellswords are sometimes called freeriders, a freerider is usually a mounted soldier who joins an army for subsistence or in hope of achieving a permanent position. Unlike sellswords, freeriders do not receive a regular wage. They take their pay by sharing the army's food and plundering after battles. Freeriders generally serve as scouts, outriders, foragers, and light cavalry. Some freeriders are little more than farm boys who were burned out of their homes and have nowhere else to go. Others are experienced fighters who hope to be taken into a lord or knight's service.

Sellsail

A sellsail is a mercenary sailor who engages in naval battles for pay. Sellsails may work as pirates or smugglers when not employed.