Build:Team - 7 Hero Mercenary Mesmerway

Mercenary team composition suitable for all general HM content and elite areas. Blood is Power fuels the mesmer midline while a Soul Twisting ritualist provides party-wide protection. Features both Melee and Caster variants which work well with any player DPS build.

ESurge 1
[build prof=me dom=12+1+3 fast=11+2 insp=6+1][Energy Surge][Cry of Frustration][mistrust][Unnatural Signet][Shatter Hex][Spiritual Pain][Power Drain][Drain Enchantment][/build] Variant Equipment Main article
 * over for increased AoE shutdown for more difficult areas/quests.
 * Rune of Superior Vigor
 * Rune of Attunement
 * 5 Prodigy's Insignias
 * 40/40 Domination Magic
 * Domination Magic Hero

ESurge 2
[build prof=me/rt dom=12+1+3 fast=11+2 insp=6+1 resto=2][Energy Surge][Cry of Frustration][mistrust][Unnatural Signet][Shatter Hex][Spiritual Pain][Power Drain][Flesh of My Flesh][/build] Variant Equipment Main article
 * over in areas with annoying AoE hexes. Do not run as a melee due to the risk of the hero running into the front line.
 * Rune of Superior Vigor
 * Rune of Attunement
 * 5 Prodigy's Insignias
 * 40/40 Domination Magic
 * Domination Magic Hero

ESurge 3
[build prof=me/rt dom=12+1+3 fast=11+2 insp=6+1 resto=2][Energy Surge][Cry of Frustration][mistrust][Unnatural Signet][Shatter Hex][Drain Enchantment][Power Drain][flesh of my flesh][/build] Variant Equipment Main article
 * over for increased damage.
 * Rune of Superior Vigor
 * Rune of Attunement
 * 5 Prodigy's Insignias
 * 40/40 Domination Magic
 * Domination Magic Hero

Ineptitude Command
[build prof=me/p ill=12+1+3 fast=9+1 command=9][ineptitude][Wandering Eye][Accumulated Pain][Signet of Clumsiness][Arcane Conundrum]["Stand Your Ground!"]["Fall Back!"][Resurrection Signet][/build] Variants Equipment Main article
 * over if the player build has
 * over for a hard res. Disable and micro for optimal use.
 * in areas with touch-heavy foes.
 * Rune of Superior Vigor
 * 2 Runes of Attunement
 * 5 Prodigy's Insignias
 * 40/40 Illusion Magic
 * Illusion Magic Hero

Soul Twisting Prot
[build prof=rt/p commun=12+1+3 spawn=9+3 command=9][soul twisting][shelter][union][displacement][armor of unfeeling][boon of creation]["fall back!"][Signet of Creation][/build] Variant Equipment Main article
 * over -- only as a martial players without any enchantments running the Quintuple Mesmer Variant (due to the loss of ).
 * Rune of Superior Vigor
 * 2 Runes of Vitae
 * 5 Blessed Insignias
 * +60 HP staff
 * Soul Twisting Prot Hero

BiP Resto
[build prof=N/Rt resto=12 blood=10+1+2 soul=8+2][blood is power][blood bond][signet of lost souls][spirit transfer][mend body and soul][spirit light][protective was kaolai][life][/build] Variant Equipment Main article
 * Replace with:
 * Rune of Superior Vigor
 * 2 Runes of Attunement
 * 5 Tormentor's Insignias
 * 40/20/20 Restoration Magic staff
 * Blood is Power Healer Hero

Quintuple Mesmer Variant
In lieu of a third backline hero, a fifth Mesmer can be run instead of the SoS Resto. An extra mesmer provides additional damage and shutdown at the cost of reduced direct healing. This substitution is preferred (a) if the player is running a defensive build, (b) if the player is running an SoS ritualist, or (c) in areas where the extra healing is unnecessary. The fifth mesmer can either be an additional Domination Magic Mesmer (for more offense) or a second Illusion Magic Mesmer (for stability): {| border="2" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="6" rules="all" style="margin:1em 1em 1em 0; border-style:solid; border-width:1px;" class="collapsible collapsed" width=58% !align=center colspan=2 style=background:#d7a9f6| Quintuple Mesmer Midline Variants !style=background:#ededed align=center|Offensive setup !style=background:#ededed align=center|Defensive setup
 * align=center|
 * align=center|
 * align=center|


 * }
 * }

SoS Prot Variant
It is situationally advantageous to run Protection Prayers secondary on the SoS Melee Support Hero over Restoration Magic. This variant is preferred in scenarios in which the player is expected to tank a large share of the damage. This is often the case with aggressive playstyles or when frequently employing tactics such as cornerblocking:

A downside of Protection Prayers (compared to Restoration Magic) is its lack of direct and party healing and is thus weaker in areas with heavy degeneration or area of effect damage.

Zei Ri or Single Mercenary Variant
If you only have access to Zei Ri or a single Mercenary Hero, this build can be adapted by replacing the Ineptitude Command with a Blinding Surge Command Elementalist. This substitution maintains both a source of AoE blind and command support:

Players without access to Zei Ri or Mercenary hereoes should use a separate composition
 * See also: 7 Hero Offensive Mesmerway

Usage

 * Hero AI mode:
 * Set backline heroes to guard Guard.png
 * Set midline heroes to fight Fight.png or guard Guard.png
 * Fight Fight.png will make heroes more proactive when engaging the enemy and less likely to waste time kiting.
 * Guard Guard.png will prevent heroes from accidentally aggroing nearby groups.
 * If you play this team as a melee, micro the splinter weapon support hero to maintain [[Strength of Honor@8] on you.
 * 1) Invite the hero to your party.
 * 2) Click on the number next to the hero in the party window. This opens the hero control panel.
 * 3) Hold down left shift and left click once on strength of honour. A red crossed circle shows that it is disabled.
 * 4) Target yourself (standard hotkey: F) and left click once on strength of honour. The hero will now cast the enchantment on you and maintain it.
 * 5) Repeat step 4 if the enchantment gets removed in combat.
 * Advanced users can set a custom hotkey for Action: Order Hero # to use Skill # in the controls options to force heroes to use certain skills. If playing a melee frequently it is recommended to make such hotkeys for both strength of honour and [[Splinter Weapon@16].


 * Before starting a particularly difficult fight, you can force the communing prot to use [[Shelter@16]↦[[Union@16]→[[Displacement@16]⇥[[Armor of Unfeeling@16] so your team is fully protected right away.
 * If you're afraid of area damage, you can also flag the heroes apart. It is recommended to place them in a single line, so heroes won't push forward to get into casting range of foes and thus ball with the heroes in front of them again.
 * Natively only the first three heroes can be commanded individually. For the remaining four heroes you need to set up custom hotkeys in the controls option for Action: Command Hero #.

Exemplary Video
Demonstration run of Cathedral of Flames (Hard Mode) as a Dagger Spammer: