Merchant
Gender:	Male
Race/Nationality:	Caucasian
Occupation:	Merchant
Voice:	Paul Mercier

The Merchant is a pseudo-character in Resident Evil 4 created by Capcom as means for the player to upgrade, sell, and purchase weapons. Another Merchant appears in the iPhone game Biohazard: Degeneration.

Resident Evil 4Edit

BackgroundEdit

The Merchant reveals himself to Leon S. Kennedy after he escapes from the house in the valley. From then on, the Merchant will appear at various points throughout the game, offering upgrades and new merchandise to Leon in exchange for pesetas or other treasures. The Merchant usually sets up a blue torch near him when he is in business. In certain areas, he has a shop or stand set up, with many pieces of weaponry on display. The Merchant also runs the various Shooting ranges around the castle and island areas.

AppearanceEdit

The Merchant wears a tattered black trench-coat along with a large sandy backpack. A purple piece of fabric covers the lower portion of his face. The inside of his coat contains a number of belts, packs, and pockets, all packed full of merchandise. The Merchant's face shows signs of few scars. He speaks with a slight cockney accent.

Resident Evil: The Deck Building GameEdit

The Merchant appears in the Resident Evil DBG as an Action Card. The Merchant appears in several in-game scenarios including one themed around him; "Whaddya Buyin'?". The Merchant is an useful card early on in the game. It appropriately gives the player using it +1 Buy and +20 Gold, as well as 1 extra card. The Merchant can come in very handy for characters such as Ada Wong and the promotional Jill Valentine (The former having an ability to lose a Buy in exchange for an Action and the latter able to obtain a second Buy anyway). Other cards that grant additional Buys have been fauted in Alliance.

TriviaEdit

• In the ports for Resident Evil 4, the Merchant is portrayed somewhat differently, possessing red eyes like the Ganado. This should not be taken as him being a ganado, however, as he is still immune to the P.R.L. 412, but can be killed by most every other weapon.
• It is unknown what happened to the Merchant after The Island was destroyed. However, it is possible that he survived.
• Paul Mercier, Leon S. Kennedy's voice actor, also voices the Merchant.
• Ironically, the Merchant continues to call Leon "Stranger", despite seeing him in several different locations throughout the entire course of the game.
• In the Separate Ways Scenario, Ada encounters the Merchant in a building inaccessible to Leon.
• The Merchant has a blue-torch in all of his locations except for one.
• The animation that occurs after you finish looking at his merchandise (showing him close his coat) can be skipped by swiftly killing him.
• Often, the Merchant will have an actual shelter/store rather than standing alone.
• The merchant does not have his blue torches set up when Ada sees him, as he is not 'open for business' yet, though he will still do business with her.
• The Merchant has a special shop/stand which can only be accessed when Del Lago is defeated. Players can only reach this stand by boat. By climbing a ladder, moving some crates, and jumping down through a hole, players can get 'behind' the merchant. One box of rifle ammunition can be picked up by the player.
• The Merchant has an unidentified model of pistol at some of his shops that is not usable by players.
• The merchant can be killed with gunshots, the knife or explosives, however, he will simply reappear at other locations as if nothing happened.
• The Merchant's shop will be unavailable to the player if a Ganado is too close.
• Ganados will never attempt to attack the Merchant and will simply ignore him.
• In the Beta Art works of "The Art Of Resident Evil 5", it is said that the merchant (not known who) would have made an appearance but was removed in the end. Also in Resident Evil 5 (PC/PS3/360) there is a left over unused Merchant model but it has a flat Orange texture and Non-Detailed model. He seems to have been supposed to wear a tight shirt, pants, and gloves (Normal Human Appearance).

GalleryEdit

Merchant "bottle cap" in RE4

close-up of the Merchant's inventory

The Merchant open for business

The Merchant concept art

The Merchant's backpack

Unused Beta merchant model (Bio5)

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SourcesEdit