You’re staring at the inn in Middlegate. Your party is level 1. You’ve got a handful of gold, a rusty shortsword, and a Paladin who misses more often than he hits. In Might and Magic 2: Gates to Another World, the difficulty curve isn't a curve—it’s a vertical wall of spiked granite. This is where the Might and Magic 2 Gates to Another World hirelings guide logic kicks in. You need help. Real help. Not just some random NPCs, but the specific heavy hitters hidden across Cron that turn a wipe into a win.
Hirelings are weird. They aren't just extra bodies; they are expensive, high-maintenance mercenaries who take a cut of your gold every single day. If you don't pay them, they leave. If you don't use them right, they’re just an extra mouth to feed that drains your experience points. But honestly? You can’t beat the Mega Dragon or survive the elemental planes without a couple of high-level specialists backing you up.
The Economics of a Might and Magic 2 Gates to Another World Hirelings Guide
Most players make the mistake of hiring the first two people they see in the Middlegate Inn. Big mistake. Huge.
Hirelings cost gold per day based on their level. In the early game, this is a death sentence for your finances. You’ll be adventuring for three hours only to find out you owe "Sir Hyron" or "Hairy" more money than you actually earned from that dungeon crawl. Here is the deal: hirelings are tools, not family. You hire them for a specific mission, like clearing the Caverns of T’sen-Ang or tackling a specific quest, and then you let them go when the bill gets too high.
Early on, stick to the low-level recruits if you must, but the real power lies in the high-level NPCs found in the later towns like Tuidon or Luxus. They come with better gear and spells you won't be able to cast for another twenty hours of gameplay.
Where to Find the Best Recruits
You’ll find hirelings scattered in inns across the world. Each town has a specific flavor. Middlegate gives you the basics. Atlantium? That’s where the gods live.
Middlegate is your starting point. You’ve got characters like Sir Hyron (a Paladin) and Sherman (a Bishop). They are fine for about ten minutes. Honestly, their stats are mediocre. If you’re struggling to survive the walk to Castle Woodhaven, grab them, but don't get attached.
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Sandbar and Tuidon offer a step up. This is where you start finding specialists who actually have enough Spell Points to be useful. If you find Flory or Presto, you’re in much better shape for the mid-game grind. Presto, specifically, is a Sorcerer who can actually land a hit with a fireball, which is a luxury in the early stages of Cron.
Atlantium is the holy grail. The hirelings here are often level 15 or higher. Red Baron and Donovan are names you need to remember. When you are ready to take on the late-game content, these are the guys you want. They have the hit points to survive a round against a pack of Cuisinarts, which is more than I can say for your starting Sorcerer.
Managing Your Roster Without Going Broke
The math in this game is brutal. A level 20 hireling might demand 2,000 gold pieces a day. If you have two of them, that’s 4,000 gold every time you rest or transition.
You need to be ruthless.
Keep your hirelings dead. It sounds mean, but a dead hireling doesn't charge a daily fee. Some veteran players actually keep their high-level hirelings in a state of "unconsciousness" or death until they reach a boss door. Pop a Resurrection or a Raise Dead spell, have them nuke the boss, and then let them go back to the inn. It’s cold, but it’s efficient.
Also, remember that hirelings take an equal share of experience. If you’re trying to power-level your main six characters, having two hirelings tagged along slows your progression by 25%. Only bring them in when you are hitting a wall. If you can clear a dungeon without them, do it. The extra XP on your main Knight or Archer is worth way more in the long run than the temporary safety of an NPC.
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The Gear Swap Trick
One thing the Might and Magic 2 Gates to Another World hirelings guide veterans always mention is the equipment. When you hire an NPC, they come with gear. Sometimes, that gear is better than what your main party has.
Check their inventory immediately.
While you can’t always strip them naked and sell their stuff (some versions of the game are pickier than others), you can often swap items if the hireling is higher level. If you find a hireling with a +7 Plate Mail and your main Paladin is wearing garbage, do the swap. Just keep in mind that if you dismiss them, they take whatever they are currently holding with them back to the inn. Don't accidentally lose your best artifact because you forgot it was sitting in a hireling's backpack.
Specific Hirelings You Actually Need
Let's talk specifics because general advice only gets you so far when you're being chased by a Gorgon.
- Red Baron (Atlantium): He’s a tank. High HP, solid AC. When you're entering the final castles, you need someone who can stand in the front row and soak up physical damage while your casters prep.
- Donovan (Atlantium): A high-level Archer. In MM2, ranged combat is surprisingly vital because of how turn order and distance work. Donovan can thin out enemy ranks before they even touch your front line.
- No-Name NPCs: Sometimes you just need "fodder." In the early game, picking up any random hireling just to have a seventh or eighth body to absorb a hit can save your main party from a "Game Over" screen.
The game doesn't tell you this, but the hirelings' stats are fixed. Unlike your main characters, you can't really "roll" for better hirelings. What you see is what you get. If their Personality or Intellect is trash, it’s always going to be trash. Use them for their level and their current spells, not their potential.
Dealing with Alignment Restrictions
Cron is a picky world. If your party is strictly Good, you might have trouble recruiting certain Neutral or Evil hirelings, and vice versa. This can be a huge pain if the one specialist you need is the "wrong" alignment.
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The workaround? Keep a "rotation" character. Have one slot in your main party that you don't mind shifting alignment for via the various shrines and alignment-changing pools in the game. Or, better yet, just build a Neutral party from the start. Neutral parties have the easiest time picking up whoever they want without the constant headache of alignment checks.
Advanced Tactics: The Hireling "Buffer"
There is a strategy used by speedrunners and high-level players involving the hirelings' spell books. In Might and Magic 2, your spellcasters are limited by their level and their gems.
A high-level Sorcerer hireling isn't just a combatant; they are a mobile battery. Use them to cast all your long-term buffs like Power Shield, Air Barrier, and Armor Antidote. By using the hireling's Spell Points for the "boring" utility spells, you keep your main Sorcerer's SP pool full for the big offensive blasts like Star Burst or Implosion.
Think of your hirelings as specialized tools. One is your "shielder," one is your "medic," and one is the "meat shield."
The Cost of Resurrection
If a hireling dies, you have to pay to bring them back, or use your own resources. Most of the time, it’s cheaper to just let them stay dead and hire a new one if you're near a town. However, if you've given a hireling a powerful quest item or a piece of unique loot, you must revive them to get it back.
Never leave a dead hireling in a dungeon if they are carrying something important. The game has a nasty habit of "resetting" NPCs if they stay dead too long or if you perform certain world-state changes.
Actionable Insights for Your Next Session
To make the most of the hireling system, follow these steps during your next play session:
- Audit your gold: Check your daily expenses. If you are losing more gold than you're making, go to the nearest inn and dismiss your hirelings immediately. You can always get them back later.
- The Level 15 Threshold: Don't bother with high-end hirelings until your main party is at least level 10-12. The XP drain is too punishing before that point.
- Seek out the 'Hidden' Hirelings: Some hirelings aren't just standing in inns. Keep an eye out for NPCs trapped in dungeons or behind secret walls—they often have unique stats or lower daily fees than the "professional" mercenaries in the cities.
- Use them for "Fly" and "Teleport": If your main casters haven't learned the travel spells yet, hiring a high-level Wizard just to teleport you across the map is a totally valid use of gold. It beats walking through the desert and fighting twenty random encounters.
Don't treat hirelings like your main party. They are a resource to be managed, exploited, and eventually discarded. Once you master the ebb and flow of hiring and firing, the world of Cron becomes significantly less intimidating. Focus on getting to Atlantium, grab the heavy hitters, and use their superior stats to carry you through the elemental zones. That's how you actually win Might and Magic 2.