Mercenaries have always been a big part of comics. Men and women selling their talents to the highest bidders, mercenaries make great additions to just about any comic universe, whether they be heroes or villains. They bring a lot to the table; when they're heroes, they present an interesting moral quandary, as they must decide whether the money outweighs the greater good. As villains, they bounce around, working for the highest bidder while fighting all kinds of heroes.

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There are all kinds of mercenaries in the Marvel and DC Universes and they all bring something unique to the table, but which are the best? Let's take a look.

10 Batroc The Leaper

Batroc The Leaper vs Captain America

Batroc the Leaper doesn't get enough credit for just how great he is. Mostly fighting Captain America, he's known for going where ever the money is the best. A master of the French martial art savate, Batroc has an acrobatic fighting style that allows him to go up against some of the toughest enemies around, all the while dishing out cutting barbs as only a sarcastic Frenchman can.

Batroc's costume is kind of lame for modern sensibilities, with its bright color scheme, but that shouldn't hold him back. He's skilled and entertaining and one of the best mercenaries around.

9 Deadshot

Deadshot

Deadshot is a strange case for a mercenary. He's highly skilled, easily one of the greatest hired guns in the DC Universe, but he mostly spends his time now with the Suicide Squad, cutting down on his time taking jobs. However, Deadshot's sheer skill cannot be denied.

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An expert marksman and hand-to-hand combatant, when Deadshot is taking jobs there are few who can hang with him. Always armed to the teeth and ready to rumble, Deadshot has proven just how good he is over the years.

8 Merlyn

Merlyn - DC Ninjas

A member of the League of Assassins, Merlyn is known for his skill with his bow and arrow. Starting off fighting Batman whenever he tangled with Ra's al Ghul, he would go on to also face Green Arrow, which made a lot of sense, as both men's weapon of choice overlapped. The two have fought it out on multiple occasions.

One of the most loyal members of the League, Merlyn has used his skills to take out any target he's paid enough to kill and if they're a costumed hero, all the better.

7 Elektra

Elektra throws her sai

Elektra is one of those heroic mercenaries who left her old ways behind, for the most part. However, she's still been known to work for S.H.I.E.L.D., taking jobs that are more beneficial to the world than her time as a hired gun for crimelords like the Kingpin. She's changed a lot since then, becoming the hero that she was always meant to be.

Elektra is one of the most skilled hand-to-hand combatants in the Marvel Universe, trained as a ninja by Stick of the Chaste and the Hand clan of ninjas. These fighting skills have made her one of the most dangerous mercenaries in the Marvel Universe, one who enemies think twice about going up against.

6 Lady Deathstrike

Lady Deathstrike and her super sharp nails.

Lady Deathstrike is the kind of assassin who holds a grudge. Her father created the adamantium bonding process that Weapon X used on Wolverine and although she's been known to take jobs for all kinds of patrons, she always finds herself going after the Canadian mutant.

Armed with cybernetic enhancements that enhance her physical abilities, claws, and a cybernetic healing factor, she's a match for just about anyone she comes up against. Her focus on Wolverine makes people forget the fact that she works for the highest bidder, but she's easily one of the deadliest and underrated assassins in the Marvel Universe.

5 Taskmaster

Taskmaster

Taskmaster is a mercenary's mercenary. His photographic reflexes allow him to copy any fighting move he's ever seen and that's a pretty big deal. Over the years, Taskmaster has battled a who's who of the best fighters in the Marvel Universe. He's armed himself like those he's copied and has a repertoire of moves that make him one of the hardest foes to beat in a fight.

On top of all of that, Taskmaster has taken it upon himself to train the next generation of henchmen. This might preclude him from taking a lot of jobs personally, but when he does the heroes are always in danger of taking a nasty beating.

4 Sabretooth

Sabretooth X-Men barring teeth

Sabretooth is another character who people forget is a mercenary because of his focus on fighting Wolverine. The two mutants have been battling for years, with Sabretooth indulging his sadistic side against Wolverine. However, when Sabretooth isn't fighting Wolverine or trying to trick the X-Men into thinking he's on their side so he can hurt them badly, he works for the highest bidder.

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One of the most experienced mercenaries alive, having fought in just about major conflict of the last hundred years, Sabretooth's healing factor, superhuman strength and agility, and claws and fangs make him one of the deadliest hired guns on the planet.

3 Bullseye

Bullseye

Bullseye is a godsend to the criminal community. Whenever there is a hero sniffing around their operations, Bullseye is just a boatload of money away. As insane as he is skilled, nothing that Bullseye throws is anything less than deadly and he's used some crazy things as projectiles over the years. Beyond his uncanny throwing ability, he is also a formidable hand-to-hand combatant, able to hold his own against some of the most skilled fighters around.

Bullseye has gone so far as to have some of his bones replaced with adamantium to make himself more durable and more dangerous to the heroes he fights. Strong, crazy, and skilled, he is nearly a perfect assassin.

2 Deadpool

Deadpool Good Bad Ugly

Deadpool is one of those meteoric success stories that no one would have predicted. Evolving over the years from a run-of-the-mill bad guy with an attitude to the Merc With A Mouth that everyone loves, Deadpool is the greatest mercenary in the Marvel Universe. Now Wade Wilson mostly works with the heroes, making friends along the way in spite of his more annoying tendencies.

Armed with what is probably the best healing factor in comics, Deadpool keeps fighting long after he should be dead. He is also supremely skilled, well versed in a wide variety of weapons and fighting styles. Deadpool finishes the job no matter what, even if it costs him an arm, a leg, and a spleen. And a liver. Et cetera.

1 Deathstroke

Deathstroke with swords

Deathstroke has become the standard by which every other mercenary in comics has to be judged. That's just how good he is. A former Army Ranger, Slade Wilson was enhanced in a super-soldier experiment, gaining superhuman strength and speed and having his brain enhanced, making him one of the best strategists around.

Deathstroke can singlehandedly defeat entire teams of heroes and is one of the most skilled fighters in the DC Universe. When someone hires Deathstroke, they're getting the best of the best.

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