The Men Of Hidden & Dangerous Deluxe

It's not easy to figure out which men to take; the descriptive information is sketchy and sometimes misleading. I can't give you a rundown on all the available men in the game, but here are the ones I've used, with a few remarks that might be of help:

MAJOR WILLIAM CALVERT: I've used him more than any other, yet I can't actually tell you all that much about him, because he's almost always my own character and I've mostly used him under my direct control. However, on the few occasions I've left him to his own devices while operating another man, he's proved a first-class shooter with excellent reactions and marksmanship. He can take a fair bit of punishment, too, though not as much as the real iron men; and he's pretty strong, enough to carry a good useful weapons load. I'd say you can't go wrong with this guy.

MAJOR PAUL MOUNTBATTEN: Only used him a few times and wasn't at all impressed; seemed very jumpy and flaky, though he did do some pretty impressive shooting on one occasion. Very frail, though, and weak. Really, I don't know what good he is.

LT. JOHN WHINTSON: Absolutely outstanding soldier. Good shot, decent reactions, strong as a bull and damn near indestructible. I've used him very extensively and recommend him highly.

LT. SIR THOMAS WOOLEY: Very similar to Whintson. In fact they're almost interchangeable. Excellent choice.

LT. ANTHONY SWITCHER: Useless as tits on a boar hog, the only times I ever used him. Nearly got me killed once. Only thing I know he's good for is as a sacrifice man.

LT. GEOFFREY DE THROI: Looks as if he'd be good, just reading his specs, but the only time I ever used him for anything serious he was a total slug. Time and again he didn't even fire, or when he did he was the last one to open up. I wouldn't use him for anything more demanding than latrine orderly.

SGT. CHESTER RANKING: One of my favorites. Solid as a rock; doesn't jitter around nearly as much as most - give him Guard, he'll guard. Superb machine gunner; I don't know how many times I've heard that Bren thumping away during a fire fight and felt better immediately knowing Ranking was on the case. Not half bad with an MP either.

SGT. ANDREAS GULP: Good steady man, not brilliant perhaps, not A Team material, but reliable and a surprisingly good shooter. I use him a lot on the first missions; he's plenty good enough and he's able to carry a fair amount of loot.

(Privates from here on down; this game definitely needs more NCOs.)

JOHN STIRLING: One of the best men in the game. So good, in fact, you need to save him for the tough missions toward the end. Excellent shooting skills, better than average endurance and strength, and absolutely steady.

ROBERT VANGUARD: Another fine trooper. Not as strong or as durable as Stirling, but an outstanding shot; in fact he's nearly as good as the specialist snipers, and a lot harder to kill and more versatile.

PAUL MCGATT: Specialist fast gun. Not terribly strong or rugged, not a dead-eye marksman, but reactions like nobody else I've seen in the game. If you ever are in a situation where you can watch him work, it's almost scary the way he whirls from side to side, bam bam, dropping them left and right. Good with a machine gun, too, I always have him on the .50 in the Ardennes campaign. Save him for when you really need him; he's a precious resource.

THOMAS MILLS: I like this kid. Above average shooting skills, steady under stress, not exactly a heavyweight but he can carry enough of a load to do the job. I use him a lot in the earlier missions but I've used him clear through to the end and he never let me down.

GILBERT CAVEN: A solid performer, maybe not A Team material but a good man when the chips are down. I've used him a lot.

WILLIAM WEB: One of the two specialist snipers, and I have to admit I haven't used him enough to have an opinion on his worth. Sorry.

ROBIN SMEDLEY: The other sniper, and the one I've used. A killer marksman, no question about it; when he shoots, somebody falls down. Unfortunately he's also got a bad tendency to move out from cover and get hit, and he can't take much of that. Save him for special situations, and be careful where you put him.

JAN KAZOWIETSKY: Great big powerful lug, and that's all I know about him. I've used him extensively as a pack horse in easy missions that offered lots of looting opportunities, but I've never put him into the line of fire.

BIG WILLY SLIM: Incredibly hard to kill, strong as hell, adequate shooting skills. I've only used him on the Death Ship mission, and usually in first person, so I don't really know what he's like on his own.

THOMAS ALDRIDGE: Another Iron Man, reasonably decent shot but slow to react. Good to have along if you're going to have to send a man into a high-risk situation.

JACOB WINGATE: I don't know what it is with this guy. I've tried using him several times and he always gets killed. Good shot, good reactions, delivers good performance while he's alive, but somehow he always gets his. Must be accident-prone.

IRWIN BOOTSKIN: I've only used him a couple of times but he was pretty good. Quick reactions, very decent shot. Should have used him more often, really. If only he didn't have such a goofy-ass name.

JULIO ZAPATA: A good man in some respects but he doesn't react fast enough. No matter what it says on the specification sheet, you better not trust him to watch your back. He's just not reliable.

JIRI TREBISSKY: Another one that I only used a couple of times and he never got a chance to show what he could do.

Those are the only ones I've used at all. Hope this helps.

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