Core hiring mechanics (read first)
Four facts change how you read every recommendation below.
- Price does not reflect stats, talents or traits. Hire cost depends only on background, level, and the gear the recruit shows up with. A 600-crown poacher isn't better than a 300-crown one unless he's carrying a weapon.
- Expensive backgrounds = higher floor and ceiling, not guaranteed quality. Premium backgrounds have better stat ranges and rarely roll bad traits, but rolls and talents are still random within the range.
- Wages are fixed per background + level. If two recruits share background and level but one costs more per day, the pricier one has the Greedy trait — avoid him.
- You buy their gear whether you want it or not. Cost includes equipment at market value, so waiting for a poorly-equipped version of your target background genuinely saves money. Naked backgrounds (Wildmen) show their true base cost upfront.
Daily wage scales with level (first 11 levels are the base; beyond that, base × 1.03^(level−11)) — a lv11 Hedge Knight runs ~91/day, ~122/day by lv21. Each brother also eats ~2 provisions/day, so roster size is a food cost. Nicknames hint at traits ("the Ox" → Tough/Strong, "the Slow" → −Initiative, "the Craven" → morale penalty) and are a free pre-tryout filter. A few traits (Fat, Huge, Tiny) are visible before paying; everything else — and all stars/talents — stays hidden.
Tryout: when it's worth it
A tryout costs roughly 10% of the hire price and reveals traits only — never stars or talents (hidden stars are intended). So tryout to dodge bad traits, not to find good rolls.
| Situation | Do this |
|---|---|
| Premium background (Hedge Knight, Sellsword, Swordmaster, Raider, Noble) | Skip or optional. They rarely roll bad traits, so the floor is high. A cheap one is near-instant buy. |
| Cheap/average background, and you already have a solid team | Always tryout. A lesser background must roll good traits AND attributes AND talents to earn a veteran's slot. Catch traps (Clumsy Militia, low-Resolve Vagabond) first. |
| Short on cash | Use tryouts to prioritize which recruits are worth the full hire. |
Don't save-scum for perfect stars — you don't need perfect bros to win. Instead estimate the recruit's level-11 stat line (current base + expected growth) and weigh it against the wage. Two valid schools: optimize for level-11 potential (long game), or value bros useful right now — most of a campaign is played at levels 5–7, not 11.
Backgrounds, tiered
The complete roster, ranked. Sortable — click Tier to group best-to-worst, or Phase/Cost to plan a shopping trip. Star bias is community-observed (backgrounds that can't star a stat tend to concentrate stars in the others); it's not official wiki data.
Tiers: S elite · A strong · B cheap core · C situational · Filler warm body / non-combat · Avoid overpriced · Event origin/crisis-only, not a normal hire.
— type to filter the hiring hall.
Starting attribute ranges
The hard numbers the tryout hides: each background's min–max starting attributes. Sort by any stat to see who rolls highest — e.g. Hedge Knights top Melee Skill and HP, Farmhands top Fatigue, Hunters top Ranged Skill. A recruit rolls somewhere in these bands, then talents (hidden stars) decide how fast each stat grows on level-up.
All hireable backgrounds A–Z. Standouts to sort for: Swordmaster tops Melee Skill (72–77) and Defense (10–20); Hedge Knight and Wildman top HP; Wildman and Farmhand top Fatigue; Hunter and Companion (Ranged) top Ranged Skill; Ratcatcher tops Initiative.
Campaign hiring arc
| Phase | Where | Who to sign |
|---|---|---|
| Early (low funds) | Small farming villages, large coastal cities | Core: Brawlers, Butchers. Filler: Farmhands, Fishermen, Messengers, the odd Thief for a tank. Meatbags only for events/tiles. Keep the company lean — wages + food will sink you. |
| Mid (a few thousand banked) | Towns with relevant buildings | Fold in a Hunter (priority archer), Militia, Squires, Witchhunters. Tryout these average backgrounds to dodge bad traits (especially Clumsy on Militia). |
| Late (funds flowing) | Anywhere premium appears | Hedge Knights, Sellswords, Raiders, the occasional cheap Noble or Swordmaster. Cheap premium finds (~2K Sellsword/Raider, ~3–4K Hedge Knight) are near-instant buys. Replace your weakest early bros. |
Keep a roster slot free for event recruits (unless Lone Wolf). Wait for poorly-equipped versions of your target background to save on gear. Check nicknames before paying for a tryout. Evaluate by projected level-11 line vs. wage, not by save-scumming for stars.
Sources & further reading
Mechanics are facts from the Battle Brothers Wiki; tiering and star-bias reflect community consensus, and the analysis is our own.
Battle Brothers Wiki — Character Backgrounds · Attributes · Company Origins