How to make the Jagged Alliance 3 best custom merc

Looking to make the Jagged Alliance 3 best custom merc possible? Custom mercenaries are a serious advantage early in the game, but there’s a cost. You can only make one of them.

Though this is likely to change with Jagged Alliance 3 mods, it remains the case that your custom-made I.M.P mercenary is an invaluable asset. They’re a strong contender among the best starting mercs. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know to make the Jagged Alliance 3 best custom merc through the mercenary creation feature.

How to make the best custom mercenary

Strictly speaking, there’s no absolute here. The best custom merc will be one that fits your needs, tactics and playstyle most comfortably, so what follows is just our personal take on the matter. Even so, there are some really important attributes and stats to consider.

First of all, you need to get to the merc creation screen. To create your custom mercenary, head to the I.M.P screen in the browser. Then follow these recommendations for the best attributes, traits and perks to focus on.

The I.M.P, or Institute for Mercenary Profiling is the forum through which you can ‘certify’ the perfect character for you as a mercenary. You can find the screen through the browser, which is accessible from the options menu in the strategic map view. It will offer you the chance to take the Personality Evaluation Test, or P.E.T, for a one-time upfront payment of $6,999. This is a short survey of 10 questions that will create a basic starting template for your custom merc, but you’ll be able to play around with these and change them to your heart’s content.

Once you reach this screen, you’ll be able to select the ideal distribution of attribute points, a select number of traits, and some perks. Here’s what we’d recommend.

Best custom merc attributes

We’d suggest that you focus on these attributes as priority.

• Health. It’s easy to overlook, but high health is important in this game. As you enter the late game and encounter stronger foes and deadlier weapons, making sure your merc is survivable becomes extremely important.
• Dexterity. Dexterity controls a merc’s precision and accuracy. It’s vital to have high dexterity if you want to make sure that your custom merc can hit their shots easily.
• Agility. Agility affects the distance a merc can move, and their maximum Action Points, or AP. Having high agility makes a merc far more versatile, and gives them better opportunities to reposition and shoot, or perform other important actions on a single turn.
• Marksmanship. Marksmanship affects a mercs accuracy with firearms specifically. While there are plenty of great melee options in the game, ranged combat tends to be more flexible. It’s worth putting points here to make sure your merc is highly capable of hitting shots and scoring crits.
• Medical. Medics are the unsung heroes of Jagged Alliance 3. Given how easy it is to take damage, there’s a constant opportunity for healing up your mercs and keeping them in the fight. Even if you already have a medic, having a second one, or someone capable of even slightly filling the role, can totally redefine the survivability of a squad.

Best custom merc traits

When building your merc, you’ll have a limited number of traits to choose from. We’ve already done a full breakdown of all talents, traits and perks, including the best ones. It’s worth noting as well that your available selection depends on how your attributes are spread and what your answers to the P.E.T were. If you’re following the above attribute layout and answering the P.E.T in ways that match those priority stats, our suggestion for the traits you pick is:

• Scoundrel – Makes the first weapon slot in combat free, which saves valuable AP and improves your combat flexibility.
• Auto Weapons – Gives better accuracy for burst fire and auto fire modes. Most guns in the game have at least one of these modes, so given how commonly you’ll be employing them, it’s a trait that’ll come in handy often.
• Mr Fixit – Gives a major bonus to disarming traps, picking locks, and hacking devices. These are all common things that you’ll encounter in the game, so it’s good to have a character who’s extra capable.

Best custom merc perks

You may not be able to unlock a perk for your custom merc when you create them, but they’ll level up quickly enough. When they do, we’d suggest unlocking the Beefed Up perk first. This will grant your merc an additional 20% health, making them even more survivable.

That covers everything you’ll need to design and recruit the Jagged Alliance 3 best custom merc through the I.M.P system. They might not have any weekly wages upkeep, making them the cheapest merc long-term, but your other hires will. Make sure you know how to make money in Jagged Alliance 3 to stay on top of your in-game finances.

What’s the best attribute for custom mercs in Jagged Alliance 3?

The best attribute to focus on for custom mercs in Jagged Alliance 3 is health, to maximise survivability.

How do I make a custom merc in Jagged Alliance 3?

Go to the I.M.P page on the web browser in-game, pay to take the P.E.T test, and follow the instructions.