Warhounds 2026: How to Unlock All Secret Mercenary Characters

Warhounds is the kind of tactical game that can make you feel like a genius one minute and punish you for a single bad decision the next. Its alternate-future African setting, brutal firefights, faction politics, and detailed base management create a campaign where preparation matters just as much as shooting skill.

After spending time with the game, one thing became especially clear to me: your regular recruits are useful, but the hidden mercenaries are where things get really interesting.

These veteran operatives aren’t simply stronger versions of generic soldiers. They come with unusual abilities, specialized equipment, and traits that can completely change how I approach certain missions. Some are tied to faction reputation, others require very specific combat challenges, and a few are practically invisible until you’ve done something that the game never clearly tells you about.

So if you’re trying to build the strongest possible squad, here’s my breakdown of how to unlock the secret mercenary characters in Warhounds and what makes each one worth chasing.

Why Secret Mercenaries Are Worth Hunting Down

There is nothing wrong with standard recruits. In fact, I used plenty of them during the early stages of a campaign. They’re flexible, easy to replace, and can be developed around whatever role the squad needs.

The problem is that they don’t have the same identity as the veteran characters.

Secret mercenaries arrive with specialized passive abilities, unusual equipment combinations, and unique battlefield roles. Instead of spending several missions turning a random recruit into a competent specialist, you can bring in an operative who already has the tools for a particular job.

This becomes even more important because of Warhounds’ approach to combat.

The game doesn’t rely on the kind of abstract hit-or-miss system that makes some tactical games feel like you’re rolling dice against the universe. Positioning, visibility, firing angles, cover and weapon characteristics matter enormously. When a veteran has a passive ability that improves recoil control, stealth, medical recovery or defensive fire, that advantage can influence an entire engagement.

In my experience, a good veteran doesn’t just win more firefights — they change the way you plan those firefights.

Warhounds Secret Mercenary Unlocks At A Glance

1. The Crow – The Scout Who Rewards Patience

The Crow is probably the secret mercenary I find most interesting because the character encourages a completely different approach to missions.

The Crow specializes in reconnaissance, stealth and battlefield manipulation. Rather than charging into the first group of enemies you see, this operative is designed to get information, identify threats and create opportunities for the rest of the squad.

The unlock revolves around the hidden side contract “Shadows Over Luanda.”

How to Unlock The Crow

First, you’ll need to improve your relationship with the local regional militia until your reputation reaches Friendly. Once the necessary relationship is established, the infiltration contract should become available.

This is where things get tricky.

The mission needs to be completed with a 100% stealth rating. That means you can’t simply sneak past most enemies and then start shooting when things become inconvenient. The objective is to reach the classified logistics data without triggering an open firefight or alerting the base sentries.

My advice is simple: don’t treat this like a normal combat mission.

Bring tactical scanners, smoke equipment and a dedicated scout. Use line-of-sight to your advantage and take your time. There is absolutely no reason to rush an infiltration mission when one careless movement can ruin the entire unlock.

Successfully extracting without raising the alarm triggers a recruitment transmission from The Crow at your mobile base.

For stealth-focused players, this is one of the most satisfying unlocks in the game.

2. Danger Dave – Bring the Shotgun, Forget Subtlety

Then there’s Danger Dave, who is basically the answer to the question, “What if I stopped worrying about subtlety and just kicked the door in?”

Dave is built for close-quarters combat. His specialty is breaking defensive positions and taking advantage of point-blank engagements where his abilities can turn a dangerous push into a devastating assault.

The requirement is also one of the more entertaining challenges in Warhounds.

How to Unlock Danger Dave

You need to complete a Level 4 or higher fortress raid with exactly two squad members on Hard or Iron Hound difficulty.

Yes, exactly two.

This is not something I’d recommend trying during the first hours of your campaign. You’ll want solid equipment, reliable armor and weapons that can actually finish enemies quickly. Tier 2 body armor and upgraded kinetic weapons make the challenge considerably more manageable.

The key is environmental awareness.

Look for explosive objects, destructible structures and narrow approaches that prevent the enemy from surrounding your tiny squad. With only two operatives, every angle matters.

And this is where Warhounds’ deterministic ballistics become incredibly important.

You don’t want to gamble on long-range shots. Instead, manipulate the battlefield until your soldiers can establish absolute flanking and point-blank positions. If you can force enemies into situations where your weapons are at their most effective, you can eliminate targets before they have an opportunity to overwhelm you.

Once the fortress falls and you successfully return to the logistics base, Dave should request to join your roster.

Honestly, this is one of those unlocks that feels like an achievement in itself.

3. Simba – The Machine Gunner I Always Want In The Squad

Simba fills the heavy-support role and is arguably one of the most useful secret mercenaries for players who enjoy controlling space rather than constantly pushing forward.

His enhanced cone-based Overwatch zone is the big attraction. It covers a significantly larger area than the standard machine gunner defensive arc, allowing Simba to lock down corridors, entrances and other predictable approaches.

How to Unlock Simba

This unlock has two major requirements:

• Reach Exalted reputation with the Pan-African Coalition.
• Build the Advanced Training Facility at your mobile base.

Getting the reputation is where most of the work happens.

You’ll need to consistently accept contracts that benefit the Pan-African Coalition while being careful about taking jobs that damage your standing with them. Warhounds doesn’t let you remain everyone’s best friend forever, so faction management becomes a real strategic decision.

Once the reputation requirement is reached and the appropriate base facility has been constructed, a special recruitment event becomes available on the global tactical map.

The biggest mistake here is spending all your money on other upgrades before you’re ready.

Keep a financial reserve.

Base construction, medical bills, recruitment costs and equipment upgrades can eat through your credits surprisingly quickly. I learned pretty fast that having a shiny new facility isn’t much help if you can’t afford the personnel needed to take advantage of it.

Simba is particularly valuable on missions where the enemy has limited approaches. Put him somewhere with a strong firing lane and suddenly an area that was dangerous to cross becomes a nightmare for the opposing force.

4. The Witchburner – Turn The Battlefield Into A Weapon

If your favorite part of tactical games is destroying things, The Witchburner is the secret mercenary you’ll want to chase.

This Grenadier specializes in heavy demolition and battlefield denial. She comes equipped with custom heavy armor and a modified grenade launcher capable of using experimental incendiary micro-munitions.

But unlocking her isn’t tied to faction reputation or a particular mission.

Instead, the game wants you to destroy things.

A lot of things.

How to Unlock The Witchburner

You need to cause 50 environmental structural collapses using explosives over the course of your campaign.

The important detail is that you’re not necessarily looking for enemy kills.

Wooden buildings, support structures, platforms and volatile fuel installations can all become targets. If you see a structure that looks like it might come down, there’s a good chance you should consider putting an explosive into it.

This is one of those objectives that can happen naturally if you regularly use demolition tactics, but players who concentrate exclusively on shooting enemies may find themselves nowhere near the required number.

You can monitor your general progress through the internal achievement tracker under the base logistics systems.

After reaching the milestone, a distress-signal mission appears in a dangerous war-zone region. Complete the mission and escort The Witchburner safely to extraction.

Once she reaches the extraction zone, she becomes a permanent member of your roster.

And yes, I’d absolutely make room for her.

The ability to reshape the battlefield with explosives isn’t just about damage. Destroying structures can remove enemy cover, expose defensive positions and create entirely new firing lanes.

How I Recommend Hunting Secret Mercenaries

The biggest mistake you can make is trying to collect every secret character randomly during one campaign without thinking about the consequences.

Warhounds’ faction system makes that approach unnecessarily difficult.

Explore Before Completing Objectives

Don’t sprint toward the main objective every time you enter a sector.

Use scouts and tactical drones to investigate the surrounding area. Hidden data pads, abandoned vehicles, valuable commanders and other discoveries can reveal Mercenary Clues that eventually point toward secret locations or recruitment opportunities.

Exploration isn’t wasted time here. It can directly improve your roster.

Think About Factions Before Accepting Contracts

Faction reputation isn’t something I’d treat as background flavor.

If you’re specifically hunting Simba, for example, you should prioritize contracts that strengthen your relationship with the Pan-African Coalition. Taking every profitable job regardless of who offers it can eventually lock you out of opportunities you actually wanted.

I recommend deciding which veteran you want next and then shaping your campaign around that objective.

Don’t Spend Every Credit

This sounds obvious, but it is surprisingly easy to forget when you’re constantly upgrading your mobile base.

Keep some money available for recruitment events.

Some secret operatives join after completing their associated mission, while others may require additional financial resources. Missing a recruitment opportunity because you spent everything on an unnecessary upgrade would be a pretty painful way to lose a powerful veteran.

Warhounds Budget Management Guide: Top Mercenary Finance Tips for Beginners

The Best Secret Mercenary Depends On Your Playstyle

There isn’t necessarily one character who completely replaces everyone else.

The Crow is the obvious choice for stealth and reconnaissance players. Danger Dave is perfect if your answer to most problems involves getting close and hitting hard. Simba excels at defensive control and sustained fire, while The Witchburner is ideal for players who love turning enemy cover into rubble.

Personally, I’d prioritize The Crow and Simba early because information and battlefield control have enormous value throughout a campaign. After that, I’d work toward Danger Dave or The Witchburner depending on the composition of my current squad.

That’s also what makes these unlocks worthwhile. They’re not just four stronger soldiers dropped into the game to make your life easier. Each one encourages a slightly different tactical philosophy.

Warhounds Guide: How to Recruit Unique Bio Mercenaries, Boost Squad Popularity, and Max Out Renown

Final Thoughts

Finding every secret mercenary in Warhounds takes some planning, and that’s exactly why I like the system.

The game doesn’t simply hand you a list of legendary recruits and tell you where to find them. Instead, the unlocks are tied to stealth challenges, extreme combat scenarios, faction relationships, base development and even environmental destruction.

That fits Warhounds surprisingly well.

If you’re going after The Crow, learn to stay invisible. If you’re hunting Danger Dave, prepare for a brutal two-person fortress raid. For Simba, start thinking about faction politics and your mobile base economy. And if The Witchburner is your target, stop looking at buildings as scenery and start looking at them as ammunition.

The most important thing is to avoid playing these objectives like chores. Build your campaign around them and let the unlock requirements influence the way you approach missions.

Once those veterans start joining the roster, your squad feels less like a collection of randomly generated soldiers and more like a hand-picked group of specialists.

And in a game where one bad firing angle can ruin an otherwise perfect operation, having the right specialist at the right time can make all the difference.

Warhounds 2026 Early Access Demo Playthrough (PC)