Cover Art by Jason Pedersen
The 9th volume was another that appeared after I had already started the series and planned the entire plot. The Mercenary Prince filled a gap that I didn’t realize I had made. Well, I felt that I would eventually, but then I realized I was wrong. Once I outlined the original volume 8, I had to made two more. This volume was designed to focus primarily on one champion: Delvin Cunningham.
Poor Delvin debuted during the third act of Family of the Tri-Rune and then he casually integrated. There was never a book to highlight him or give him a grand adventure to join the group. He simply happened to be in the right spot and got recruited due to his destiny. Even the other champions accepted it without question and that was the end of it. Not much concern about his past or interests. One would think was be a disaster, but I got this to work in my favor. Mostly, Delvin eventually realized that he was seen as ‘just there’ when the champions were discussed. His ego and sense of purpose got hit, so he headed home to find himself.
The Mercenary Prince allowed me to do a lot that I never realized I needed too:
- I established the mercenary leadership system. It was hinted at before, but now it has more clarity. This created a better culture around mercenaries.
- I got to bring back Delvin’s original mercenary crew since he didn’t want to bring the champions with him. I had a lot of fun with these guys.
- Yagervan Plains was just an unused part of the map. The entire area was built up as well as establishing a nomadic tribe culture. Each tribe was named after a bird. I also finally gave a name to Pynofira Forest (originally Conifer Woods), Crysvale Tundra (originally just Tundra), and the Frost Barrens (originally Cold Desert). Not sure if I used the Tundra or Frost Barrens.
- Much more character development for Queen Trinity as a subplot with her, Nyx, and Stephen Kernaghan went on a collision course with Delvin. This also helped me do more with Stephen and make him clearly more deranged.
- Finally, I used this as an introduction to the Dawn Fang vampires. These would be the focus of the War of Nytefall series. The character who debuted was Mab. She was popular and helped to show how these special vampires operate. It also made it clear that they weren’t all monsters.
All that being said, Delvin was the one who I wanted to focus on. He no longer felt like he deserved to be a champion. He also was heading to a home where everyone thought he died at the age of 8. So, I ended up designing his history and some old enemies as I went along. Lots of fun and I think it finished clearing up some loose ends between what one could consider the two halves of the ‘Prophecy Temple Story Arc’. Okay, I just made that up, but it did stop me from having 6 temple adventures in a row. Got to do some great world-building and character development here as well as setting things up for future series. After all, Darwin Slepsnor (my newest hero) starts off in Yagervan Plains, so The Mercenary Prince helped me get an idea of his origins too.
Can’t think of anything I would do differently. This book was one the stories made to suit a specific purpose instead of just being there for the main plot. Not that the other books were bland, but they always had an eye to the future. The Mercenary Prince was all about the past and present. I knew it would impact the rest of the story, but that would be tertiary. I gave Delvin his book to shine and settled more of the loose ends that I couldn’t push any further. The foundation I established for what happened next was always going to happen, but now it was much more stable.
Some fun questions:
- What do you do if you feel unimportant?
- Are heroes wrong to be upset if they feel their deeds go unnoticed?
- If you were a fantasy mercenary, what would you name your group and why?
Legends of Windemere 
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I find #1 interesting. Feeling like you’re unimportant isn’t part of egotism. It’s more closely associated with low self-esteem and feeling worthless. If a hero reached this point after doing many great things, they would start to question their choices. Everyone likes to get some recognition. The idea that a true hero doesn’t need it is the idealistic fantasy version.
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To answer the map question . . . Yes. 😁
It’s a shame that heroing is thankless.
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I am unimportant, so I always feel normal.
Heroes are heroes because they don’t think about what others think.
My mercenary group would be called The Crunch Bunch. (no job too big or small.)
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Kind of a shame that feeling unimportant is normal. One would hope humans being so smart would be able to make everyone feel special.
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My unimportant status is a matter of choice.
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1) What do you do if you feel unimportant.
To me, this is freeing. Nobody cares what I do, so I do what I want. I write the stories I want and publish them when I want.
2) Are the heroes wrong to be upset if they feel their deeds go unnoticed?
No, if they really went all out for a cause, it is painful to be overlooked.
3) If you were a fantasy mercenary, what would you name your group and why?
I would pick something really vague and dull, like The Sparrows or The Librarians, to conceal how deadly we were.
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For some reason, The Librarians sound like a frightening mercenary group. Smart, organized, and skilled at silencing their enemies.
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LoL, I didn’t think of the shushing aspect!
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I tend to retreat into myself. I am largely unimportant, and if someone doesn’t need me, I am the better friend to myself. I don’t believe heroes are wrong to be upset. We recognize ingratitude as humans, and fictional characters should, too. My own team would be cool. Something like, “Anything for a Buck,” or “Brotherhood of Extermination.”
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Love ‘anything for a buck’. Right to the point.
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Don’t know what happened there. Number 3 vanished and the reply got posted!
Anyway. 3. Wolf. It’s the name of the band in my Wolves of Vimar series. The group vowed to be as a wolf pack, caring for each other as a family of wolves do.
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I think people confuse humility with being a doormat. If a hero suffers and routinely puts their lives on the line with no acknowledgement then it could wear on them. I think they should since they’re human, especially if they see others getting praise for actions.
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