Dr. Hugo Mercier is an expanding, AI controlled character unlocked with The Anarchist DLC. He is one of the "Advanced" difficulty characters, alongside George Smith, Beryl O'Mara, Artur Gasparov and Carl Leonard von Malching.
Anno Union Description[]
"Dr. Mercier did not spend five years studying politics at a great university just to tow the party line. His ambitions and vision go far beyond the entanglements of government. In his mind, there is only one ideology to be embraced in this world and that is anarchy – absolute freedom for everyone! It was a mistake of the Empire then, to think Dr. Mercier might make a suitable ‘governor’. Only in hindsight is it clear he is the definition of rebellion – a man with such conviction in his beliefs, he is willing to die for them."
Personality[]
Hugo Mercier is an anarchist, believing that capitalism and social classes are a danger to all. He oposes the ruling classes, is against religion and tries to revolutionise the society via his own anarchistic ways.
Unique Features[]
Anarchy propaganda[]
As long as Hugo Mercier is present in the game, the player has access to three special anarchy propaganda articles with which they can alter the newspaper. They have no influence cost but include negative effects. Occasionally when a new issue of the newspaper can be published, Mercier offers a quest which requires the player to use one of those anarchy propaganda articles. Accepting and fulfilling the quest increases player's reputation with Mercier, while refusing decreases reputation.
| Type | Positive effect | Negative effect | Unlock conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anarchy | +125 Workforce
|
+25% Consumption
|
300  Workers
|
-90% Riot Chance
|
-10% Income
|
500 Workers
| |
+20% Productivity
|
+30% Illness Chance
|
500  Artisans
|
Defectors[]
Not everyone agrees with Mercier's political beliefs, including some of his subjects. They might get tired of his anarchistic approach and will want to leave his islands. Those defectors can decide that your islands are more suitable for them and they will occasionally ask you whether they could be accepted onto your islands. In exchange for accepting them, they will have some reward for you – money, goods or items. Additionally, some characters might agree or disagree with how you treated the defectors, which can result in increase or decrease of your reputation. When you face the decision moment, the pop-up with the question will include information about rewards you are offered and about potential effects on the reputation with other characters.
However, Dr. Hugo Mercier in particular will not be happy that people are leaving his islands and also will not be happy about you accepting them with open arms. Sometimes he will send his own agents who would hide themselves among the defectors. Accepting defectors may result in being presented with an ultimatum from your population or Mercier's agents. Those are special types of quests, and failing them would end up with incidents happening in your city, such as fires or explosions. You need to make sure to finish the quests successfully to prevent a tragedy from happening.
Unique items[]
With The Anarchist DLC several unique items become available in the game. They can be bought from Mercier, earned after destroying his ships or taking over one of his islands, granted as rewards from quests from him or the defectors. All of these sources of items are unavailable once Mercier gets defeated or when he was never added to the game in the first place. But with 
Land of Lions DLC almost all of these items can be developed in the Research Institute even when Dr. Hugo Mercier is not present in the game.
Selling items[]
Dr. Mercier as a unique expanding AI player offers items for sale at the harbour of his main island in every region. Most of these items are available only in The Anarchist DLC and are closely tied to the anarchy itself. They can be bought only when having a trade agreement with Mercier. Unlike in case of pirates or neutral traders, items he offers cannot be manually refreshed. It is necessary to wait a few minutes between each time his set of items is replaced by a new set. Buying items from Mercier can increase player's reputation with him.
Sea mines[]
Dr. Hugo Mercier is the only AI character in the game that uses sea mines. He will position the mines in strategic locations around his harbours once war has been declared on him. This will effectively stop any kind of assault by an unprepared player. In order to avoid the disaster for both trade vessels and warships, it is advisable for the player to research and use effective counters for this type of defense. Some methods are discussed below.
Detecting and avoiding the mines[]
One method of detecting the mines and avoiding them is to purchase a salvager and radar from Old Nate. However, the player must have the Sunken Treasures DLC installed and activated in the game in order to do this. Another method is to zoom in on Dr. Mercier's harbor with the in-game camera. The closest zoom level will reveal the mines just below the surface of the water and the player can then direct ships away from them.
Destroying the mines[]
Destroying sea mines presents a unique challenge and there are many ways to eliminate them, two exemplary methods are presented here. One method of destroying Mercier's mines is to equip a battlecruiser with an item that increases its attack range and attacking his harbour buildings from afar. Many players have found that destroying Mercier's trading post with this upgraded battlecruiser causes the mines to despawn thus removing them from the game. Another method of dispatching the mines is to send in a fleet of schooners before your warships.
Diplomacy[]
To form an alliance with Dr. Mercier you need to have very high reputation, as well as better military and economy ratings than him.
Apart from the varying results from "Flattering", "Insulting" and "Offering Gifts" depending on their likeliness, the relationship with Dr. Mercier can be affected with the following:
| Action / Condition | Reputation Change |
|---|---|
| Positive Influences | |
| Using anarchy propaganda | +3 |
| Having strict working conditions | +3 |
| Publishing news without propaganda | +2 |
| Reaching the workers population tier | +2 |
| Riots starting | +2 |
| Expanding botanical gardens | +2 |
| Rejecting anarchist defectors | +2 |
| Building Potato Farms, Framework Knitters, Trade Unions or Cigar Factories | +1 |
| Signing a peace agreement with Bente Jorgensen, Willie Wibblesock, Beryl O'Mara, Alonso Graves or Jean La Fortune | +8 |
| Signing a trade agreement with Bente Jorgensen, Willie Wibblesock, Beryl O'Mara, Alonso Graves or Jean La Fortune | +2 |
| Signing an alliance agreement with Bente Jorgensen, Willie Wibblesock, Beryl O'Mara, Alonso Graves or Jean La Fortune | +5 |
| Declaring war against Carl Leonard von Malching, Artur Gasparov or Admiral Vicente Silva | +8 |
| Negative Influences | |
| Taking his island over via shares | -40 |
| Becoming the owner of all shares of his island | -5 |
| Rejecting his diplomatic offer | -5 |
| Using propaganda (other than anarchy propaganda) | -4 |
| Accepting anarchist defectors | -3 |
| Having lax working conditions | -3 |
| Building Police Stations | -3 |
| Expanding zoos or museums | -3 |
| Reaching the investors population tier | -2 |
| Building Schnapps Distilleries, Breweries, Rum Distilleries, Champagne Cellars, Churches, Chapels, Fur Dealers or Clockmakers | -2 |
| Buying shares of his islands | -2 |
| Signing a peace agreement with Carl Leonard von Malching, Artur Gasparov or Admiral Vicente Silva | -8 |
| Signing a trade agreement with Carl Leonard von Malching, Artur Gasparov or Admiral Vicente Silva | -2 |
| Signing an alliance agreement with Carl Leonard von Malching, Artur Gasparov or Admiral Vicente Silva | -5 |
| Declaring war against Bente Jorgensen, Willie Wibblesock, Beryl O'Mara, Alonso Graves or Jean La Fortune | -8 |
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