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Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred is bringing back a series staple ever since Diablo 2: the Mercenary system! These rough and tough companions are here to accompany you to hell and back but this time around, they’re characters of their own and not just NPC templates. To learn more about them and utilize them to their full extent, here’s our Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred Mercenary guide.
How to Unlock Mercenary Companions in D4: Vessel of Hatred
Of course, you’d need to have the Vessel of Hatred expansion as the quest related to Mercenaries, and the Mercenary hideout called The Den is located in Nahantu, the expansion region.
Thankfully, the Mercenary mechanic is part of the expansion’s main quest and all you have to do is progress the Vessel of Hatred questline. You’ll eventually unlock the Mercenary mechanic and The Den area.
Finish Three Other Side Quests to Unlock Other Mercenaries
Initially, however, you’ll only unlock Raheir, the Shieldbearer or the one-handed tank character to whom you’re introduced at the start of the main Nahantu quest.
There are a total of four Mercenaries and you need to finish the side quests for the three others. All in all, here are the Mercenaries in Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred, their role, and how to unlock them:
| Mercenary | How to Obtain | Role |
| Raheir, the Shieldbearer | Main expansion storyline | Tank, crowd-control |
| Varyana, the Berserker Crone | Side quest | Physical damage, buffer |
| Aldkin, the Cursed Child | Side quest | Shadow/Fire damage |
| Subo, the Drunken Archer | Side quest | Ranged DPS, crowd-control |
Each one of them specializes in a certain archetype and no two Mercenaries are alike. Once you’ve recruited some or all of them, all you have to do is go back to The Den and talk to them to recruit them.
Note that you can only have one Hired and one Reinforcement Mercenary active with you at all times.
How do Mercenaries Work in D4: Vessel of Hatred?
There are key differences in the Primary and Secondary Mercenary roles, so you should be wise in how they fit into your build or what you need from them. In summary, here’s how the Mercenary system works.
| Hired Mercenary (Primary) | -If selected as Hired, they come with their skill tree that you need to level up. -Primary Mercenaries are always with you and can fight for you. |
| Reinforcement Mercenary (Secondary) | -Reinforcement Mercenaries only appear under certain triggers or conditions that you can customize (i.e. whenever you cast a skill). -Limited skill and assistance. |
Both Primary and Secondary Mercenary, however, have a reward system called Rapport that will grant you skill points and items the longer you fight with them. So you’ll eventually want to try out all the Mercenaries to get all the rewards.
