Merryweather Security Consulting is a private military company and security contractor featured in Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online. They are one of the main groups of antagonists in GTA V.
Events of Grand Theft Auto Online
Sometime before the game's start, Merryweather is cleared by the American government to begin operating on U.S. soil, both in service of the government and of other organizations in the private sector.
It begins experiencing setbacks and problems almost immediately after their clearance. During GTA Online, many of its aircraft and supplies are stolen by the player, who was contacted by Lester Crest. Lester also sends the player to steal documentation and cargo guarded by Merryweather on numerous occasions. Underground crime lord Martin Madrazo has also hired the player to destroy Merryweather equipment. Ironically, the Online protagonist can call for backup, boat and helicopter pickups or airstrikes.
Heists Update
They also make some appearances during the online Heists, most notable during the Humane Raid - Insurgents heist setup mission, where the players must steal two Insurgents from a Merryweather test site in Davis Quartz.
GTA Online: Further Adventures in Finance and Felony
In the Further Adventures in Finance and Felony update, numerous crates of supplies and weaponry are stolen, particularly through convoys of helicopters and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage caused to pursuing units.
GTA Online: Gunrunning
In the Gunrunning update, Organizations and/or Motorcycle Clubs steal millions of dollars worth of Merryweather supplies, including armored tanks, pickups and weaponry. The stolen equipment is broken down in Bunkers and sold off for profit.
GTA Online: Smuggler's Run
In the Smuggler's Run update, Organizations and/or Motorcycle Clubs yet again steal Merryweather supplies, including armed helicopters and weaponry. The stolen equipment is stored in Hangars and sold off to private companies for profit.
GTA Online: The Doomsday Heist
Though barred from accepting contracts in the US, Merryweather is still present on US soil, conducting training and storing high grade military vehicles such as the Avenger and Chernobog. Many of the latter are stolen at the behest of (and later for stopping) Avon Hertz.
They are first encountered during The Data Breaches, assaulting the Satellite Relay Station. It is revealed at the end of the mission they were evidently paid off by Bogdan's Crew.
In Act III, they are shown committing more illegal activities, kidnapping Agent 14 and ransoming him off to Avon and then later the International Affairs Agency.
Events of Grand Theft Auto V
- Trevor: "Do some research on Merryweather Security Consulting, friend. They'd be on trial for humans rights offenses if the US government didn't protect all its contractors from any kind of suit - military or civilian. They're immune from prosecution, and they behave like they are. Murdering, stealing, high on power, guns, and anabolic steroids. Lucky bastards."
- Floyd: "Look, I don't know about that stuff."
- Trevor: "You're right. You don't. Merryweather are employed by the richest, greediest scum on the planet to shit on the poorest and the neediest. So we're going to enjoy shitting on them."
- —Trevor to Floyd
Later, during Grand Theft Auto V, Merryweather suffers many problematic setbacks at the hands of the game's main protagonists, particularly those of Trevor Philips. During the game, Merryweather has one of the experimental weapons they were guarding for the U.S. government stolen; one of their planes, which was carrying millions of dollars in weaponry, hijacked and taken down; one of their courier trains, carrying millions of dollars worth of priceless artifacts, derailed; dozens of their men killed at a massive shootout in the Kortz Center; several men killed after an unsuccessful house invasion, dozens of their men killed while unsuccessfully attempting to stop a heist at the Union Depository Building and (depending on the player's choice) dozens of their men killed in a foundry while attempting to kill Franklin Clinton, Michael De Santa and Trevor Philips, and one of their chief board members kidnapped, stuffed into a car, and rolled off a cliff.
By the end of the main storyline, Merryweather's reputation is in shambles after so many catastrophic failures, causing several of their regular clients to drop them from their payroll, including the U.S. government. After losing the government contract, Merryweather loses clearance to operate on American soil and is forced to shut down several operations they'd started in the country, costing them millions of dollars.
In GTA V, the player can visit their official website, Merryweathersecurity.com and also buy their stocks in the Lcn-exchange.com website.
Divisions
There appears to be three divisions of Merryweather Security. Like Gruppe Sechs, the first division provides onsite and property protection with uniformed guards; these guards can be seen patrolling properties in marked cars or walking the premises with a guard dog. Other guards can be seen guarding Humane Labs and Research during Monkey Business, and have different outfits with a red and black color scheme. They provide private security to shareholders such as Devin Weston, and they rarely help the public law enforcement in major incidents, one of which was a shootout following a bank robbery. It also acts as a neighborhood watch group, as seen in Vinewood Hills.
The second division is a paramilitary force equipped and trained for high-risk operations; this division is comprised primarily of former military servicemen, which presumably includes infantry, aviation, and special operations personnel. The U.S. Government employs this division as a courier service and it is implied the FIB and IAA use them as hired back up. They own a ship; the SS Bulker which holds an unknown device. It can be destroyed during the Freighter approach for The Merryweather Heist.
The third division is a courier service that was announced [1] by Merryweather around the events of the mission, Friend Request. The service transports art, artifacts, and perishables for museums and collectors. This is attacked by Michael De Santa and Trevor Phillips and is deliberately derailed.
The fourth division appears to be a black operations unit, equipped with night vision gear. Members of this division can be seen operating around Humane Labs and Research, particularly during GTA Online in The Humane Labs Raid and during a Resupply mission and an Air Freight Cargo Steal Mission.
Uniform and gear
Four models of Merryweather operators are present in the game.
- Named "Blackops 1" in the game files, these wear relatively light gear. They can be seen wearing a cap (either forwards or backwards, and have the Merryweather logo on them) and they equip a headset when in Aircraft. They also wear shades. For the Torso, they can wear either a polo shirt and a sleeveless shirt as well, all varying colors and tattoo designs on their arms. They can either wear a bulletproof vest or just their top. For the legs and feet, they wear pants in various camouflages, a gun holster attached to their left leg, and boots.
- Named "Blackops 2", these wear heavier equipment than the previous operator. They can wear either a military cap , or a ski hat, varying color and camouflage patterns. They also wear a pair of sunglasses. For the torso, they can wear a military jacket, or a polo shirt. They always have a bulletproof vest as well. For the lower body, they wear tactical pants with holsters, baggies, knee pads and boots.
- Named "Chemsec 1" these are a bit different. They still wear the cap and shades combo, polo shirt with a bulletproof vest, pants with a gun holster and boots. However, they are fairly noticeable from the rest, since the color scheme of their clothes is red and black. Also, the word "SECURITY" is written in the back of their vests.
- Named "Blackops 3" these were added after the Heists Update. They are identical to the Blackops 2 variant, except they don't wear hats, have sunglasses of different colors and have night vision gear.
Stock
- Although one might think missions such as The Merryweather Heist, Minor Turbulence, and Derailed would impact Merryweather's finances - they seem to have no impact on its stock price, or that of its competitor, Gruppe Sechs.
- However, the events surrounding the game's finale can have a huge impact on Merryweather stocks - sending them skyward if Franklin chooses The Time's Come, or through the floor if he chooses The Third Way. In the latter option, Merryweather stocks will recover after several weeks with over 70% profit.
Known Members
- Members
- Don Percival - Founder/CEO
- Devin Weston - Major Shareholder (Determinant)
- Associates
- Molly Schultz (Formerly/deceased)
- Online Player (Determinant)
Prominent Appearances in Missions
Grand Theft Auto V
- Scouting the Port
- The Merryweather Heist
- Minor Turbulence
- Derailed
- Monkey Business
- The Wrap Up
- Meltdown
- The Big Score
- The Third Way (Option C; Wiped out after this mission)
Grand Theft Auto Online
- Various Gang Attacks
- Missions
- A Titan of a Job
- Dry Docking
- Teaser Trailer
- Show Me the Monet
- Defender
- Chemical Extraction
- American Exports
- Docks to Stock
- Docks to Stock II
- Stocks and Scares
- Heists
- The Prison Break
- Humane Raid - Insurgents
- Humane Raid - Valkyrie
- Humane Raid - Deliver EMP
- The Humane Labs Raid
- Pacific Standard - Convoy
- Special Vehicle Work
Services (GTA Online)
Merryweather offer multiple services to the GTA Online protagonist, despite being in conflict with the player and their Organizations and/or Motorcycle Clubs. Some of these services are also available as an CEO in the Interaction Menu, by navigating to the "CEO Abilities" section, albeit in the enhanced version only.
| Service | GTA Online Description | In-Game Effect | Cost | Level Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammo Drop | Request an ammo crate to be dropped at your GPS location. Be sure you are in a secluded location to stop other players stealing it. | Merryweather will drop an ammo crate, which will add some ammo to the gun that you're holding when you pick the crate up. If you are unarmed or in Passive Mode you will not be able to pick up the Ammo Box | $1000 | 12 |
| Backup Helicopter | Request a helicopter to provide covering fire. | Calls for a Buzzard helicopter to fly in and eliminate hostile players and other enemies. It will circle around the character for a while until it leaves. | $5000 | 20 |
| Boat Pickup | Request a boat to bring you to land. | Calls for a private Dinghy to come at the player's location. Works like a taxi. The player can choose to kill the driver and steal the Dinghy instead. Only works when the player is in water. | $250 | 25 |
| Helicopter Pickup | Request a helicopter to pick you up. | Calls for a private Maverick to land at the player's location. Works like a taxi. The player can choose to kill the helicopter pilot and steal the Maverick instead. Has the option of rappelling down in certain locations, such as building roofs. | $1000 | 30 |
| Call Mercenaries | Choose a player to be attacked by mercenaries. | Calls for mercenaries to track and eliminate a player. They appear in groups of 4 armed operatives driving Mesas and will continue coming until the player is dead. Should they not succeed, a full refund is then given to the contractor. Mercenaries will cease their attempts to attack the chosen player if the player manages to outrun them, enter their apartment or garage, or enter Los Santos Customs for a prolonged period of time. | $7500 | 35 |
| Airstrike | Request an airstrike at a selected position. | After the payment is received, the player will be requested to drop a flare before a P-996 LAZER arrives. If the player goes underground or doesn't drop the flare before the jet flies overhead, the LAZER will fly away, with no refund given. | $8000 | 50 |
Vehicles
Merryweather's fleet of vehicles include:
- Dilettantes, used by Merryweather Security Guards with Merryweather decals to patrol areas.
- Mesas, which were heavily modified for off-road cruising. It is the main vehicle of choice for ground operatives.
- Enduros are driven by Merryweather attackers during certain Gunrunning sell missions.
- Contenders are driven by Merryweather attackers after ambushing their convoy during a random bunker resupply mission.
- APCs are found driven in a Merryweather convoy during a random bunker resupply mission.
- Patriots, used by ground operatives. Fairly common in GTA Online.
- Insurgents and Insurgent Pick-Ups, used for patrol at Humane Labs and Research and convoys.
- Dunes, used for troop deployment and blockades in End of Transmission (Import/Export update)
- Freight Trains, used for transporting high value shipments across San Andreas. According to Ron Jakowski, it passes by every month. One of them is derailed during the events of GTA V.
- Buzzard Attack Choppers, which are the main vehicles used by air units.
- Mavericks, used for transport and air support (GTA Online only).
- Valkyries, used in tandem with the US Army as a transport/attack helicopter.
- Savages, heavy gunships used for convoy escort and patrol.
- P-996 LAZERs, used for dropping ammunition crates and delivering airstrikes in GTA Online.
- Cuban 800s, alternately used for ammunition crates in GTA Online.
- Cargobobs, used for air transport of personnel and high-value cargo in Severe Weather Patterns (Gunrunning update).
- Titans, used for air transport of personnel and high-value cargo in Severe Weather Patterns (Gunrunning update).
- Cargo Plane, used by the company for special deliveries (such as government or military shipment). It is currently unknown how many of those they own, but one is hijacked by Trevor and ended up getting shot down by the U.S. Air Force.
- Dinghies, used for transport for naval operatives and naval support.
Gallery
Trivia
- Merryweather is a parody of Academi, formerly known as Blackwater and Xe Services, a private military company infamous for alleged human rights violations during the Iraq War. Like Academi, Merryweather had changed its name following an incident that resulted in negative public relations.
- The styling of the name is also derived from Academi's former Blackwater logo.
- Every GTA V-era protagonist so far has been made an enemy of Merryweather. The only protagonist that can actually use Merryweather's services is the GTA Online Protagonist.
- Devin Weston apparently owns 11% of Merryweather. If the player chooses the "Deathwish" ending and kills Weston, Don Percival buys out the majority of Weston's stock in the company.
- Throughout the story, Trevor makes references to Merryweather as the "New World Order's" private army and part of the Illuminati. Their emblem, the owl, is also a reference to the Illuminati and the Bohemian Grove conspiracy. In fact, when listening to private conversations with LSPD officers, they discuss the possibility of Merryweather eventually replacing them as law enforcement in the city.
- On their official website, a map of the World shows Merryweather has several operations and bases across the continents in locations such as Asia, Africa, Europe, North and South America, as well as the Middle East.
- In GTA Online, Merryweather soldiers called by the player will, oddly enough, attack other Merryweather soldiers during missions.
- Despite being armed in the port, when the player gains a wanted level, they start to run as if they were civilians. If standing outside, however, they will engage the player if provoked.
- Merryweather provides security for the Humane Labs and Research during Monkey Business, implying that they've been working at least once for the IAA. It is also possible to see mercenaries in the Labs area during Chemical Extraction.
- Despite endings stating that Merryweather has lost its license to operate in the U.S. in GTA V, they can still be found at the Los Santos Naval Port.
- Moreover, it seems that Merryweather continues to operate as of 2017 as part of the Gunrunning update in Grand Theft Auto Online.
- For the "Blackops 2" operator, their bulletproof vest, and pants are identical to those of the NOOSE operator. They only change color, and add the words "NOOSE" or "FIB" in the back of the vest.
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