Maverick Hunters

The Maverick Hunters, known as Irregular Hunters (イレギュラーハンター) in Japan, are a law enforcement organization founded by Dr. Cain, dedicated to protecting humans and the world at large from Maverick attacks. To accomplish this, powerful Reploids are deployed to stop Mavericks before they can cause any harm. However, Maverick Hunters could also become Mavericks, suffering high losses when their commander, Sigma, led a rebellion.

The main Maverick Hunter headquarters, stationed in Abel City, was featured in The Day of Σ, only to be heavily damaged near the end of the OVA.



Main Leadership

 * Dr. Cain - Adviser. As the founder, he also played a leader role before his retirement sometime pre-X5.
 * Signas - Commander post-X4.
 * X - Leader of the 17th unit after Sigma's first defeat. X and Zero also appear to act as figureheads due to their experience.
 * Zero - Leader of the 17th unit during Sigma's rebellion.
 * Colonel Redips - Far East HQ commander, turned traitor.

Units
The Maverick Hunters are divided in various different units that each specialize in certain areas. It is unknown how many units exist. Most of these units disbanded after the fall of Eurasia, including the 17th Elite Unit. The remaining Maverick Hunters reunited afterwards to assist on the efforts of restoring Earth.

0th Special Unit (Shinobi Unit)
0th Special Unit (Shinobi Unit) (第0特殊部隊（忍び部隊）), also known as the Special #0 Class Unit and Zero Unit, is a unit that appears to focus on covert missions.

Members:
 * Zero (Commander post-X2)
 * Blast Hornet (Vice-commander pre-X3) (defected)
 * Magna Centipede (defected)

4th Land Unit
The 4th Land Unit (第4陸上部隊) is a unit that focuses on land missions. It was one of the few units that did not participate in Sigma's rebellion due to their leader's constant abuse of the members for their size.

Members:
 * Flame Mammoth (Leader before defection)

6th Armada
The 6th Armada (第6艦隊) is a unit that focuses on aquatic missions.

Members:
 * Launch Octopus (defected)
 * Wheel Gator (Adjutant) (defected)
 * Bubble Crab (defected)

7th Airborne Unit
The 7th Airborne Unit (第7空挺部隊) is a unit that focuses on aerial missions.

Members:
 * Storm Eagle (Commander before defection)
 * Overdrive Ostrich (defected)

8th Armored Unit
The 8th Armored Unit (第8機甲部隊) is a unit that appears to contain members with high defense.

Members:
 * Armored Armadillo (Commander before defection) (defected)

9th Special Unit (Ranger Unit)
The 9th Special Unit (Ranger Unit) (第9特殊部隊（レンジャー部隊）) is a unit whose members appear to work as rangers.

Members:
 * Sting Chameleon (defected)

13th Polar Region Unit
The 13th Polar Region Unit (第13極地部隊) is a unit that focuses on cold regions.

Members:
 * Chill Penguin (defected)

14th Special Unit
The 14th Special Unit (第１４特殊部隊) was led by Magma Dragoon before the fall of Sky Lagoon. It primarily consists of Reploids with especially effective skills in melee and close-ranged combat.

Members:
 * Magma Dragoon (Commander pre-X4; defected)

17th Elite Unit
The 17th Elite Unit (第17精鋭部隊) contains elite Hunters.

Members:
 * Sigma (Commander pre-X1) (defected)
 * Zero (Commander during X1)
 * X (Commander post-X1)
 * Vile (defected)
 * Chill Penguin (during The Day of Sigma; defected)
 * Storm Eagle (during The Day of Sigma; unwillingly defected)
 * Boomer Kuwanger (defected)
 * Spark Mandrill (defected)
 * Flame Stag (defected)
 * Gravity Beetle (defected)

Navigators

 * Alia
 * Pallette
 * Layer
 * "Pink-Haired Navigator" (unnamed, Maverick Hunter X)
 * Iris (deceased)

Other members

 * Axl (post-X7)
 * Lifesaver (Medical control officer)
 * Douglas (Mechanic)
 * Double (before he revealed himself as Sigma's double agent)
 * Mac (defected to Dr. Doppler's army)
 * Web Spider (Retired pre-X4, joined Repliforce)
 * Volt Kraken (Retired pre-X5 due to the death of Launch Octopus)
 * "Green Biker Dude"
 * Shadow (defected to the Rebellion Army)
 * Depth Dragoon (Far East HQ)
 * Other members

Rankings
Within the Maverick Hunters is a set group of rankings to determine not just how powerful a Reploid is, but also to determine how efficient they are. The highest rank is Special A Class (特A級), given to high performance Reploids such as Zero, Vile, and Sigma. X was originally a B Class (B級) Hunter due to his personality, but later he also became a Special A Class Hunter. In Mega Man X: Command Mission, both X, Zero, and Axl are Class S (S級) Hunters.

Mega Man X5 was the first game to give a Hunter Rank to the player. Each game from Mega Man X5 to Mega Man X8 has different criteria for obtaining ranks depending of the player's performance. As ranks B, S, and SA are the only ones mentioned in the story, it is unknown if some of the other ranks such as E and AAA are part of the Hunter's ranking or a gameplay extra.


 * Rank E - Lowest rank in Mega Man X5.


 * Rank D - Starting rank in Mega Man X6.


 * Rank C


 * Rank B - Mega Man X's original rank, due to his hesitation for battle. This is his starting rank in Mega Man X5.


 * Rank A - This was expanded upon in the overseas versions of Mega Man X8, where the player could gain "AA" and "AAA" rankings, "AAA" being the highest ranking for that game. In the Japanese version these ranks are "Special A" and "S", respectively.


 * Rank SA - SA is short for "Special A" (スペシャルA). The highest rank storywise, being used for powerful Reploids such as Zero and Sigma. The mercenary Dynamo was said to have skills beyond that of a SA Class hunter. It also appeared in the Japanese version of Mega Man X8 (replacing "AA" rank).


 * Rank S - Used in Mega Man X: Command Mission, where X, Zero, and Axl all share this rank, being the only rank mentioned in the game. Also used in Mega Man X7, where Vanishing Gungaroo mentions that Zero is a S-class hunter if Zero is the lead character. Gameplaywise it was only featured in the Mega Man X series in Mega Man X4 as a ranking in Cyber Peacock's stage, Cyber Space, as well as the Japanese version of Mega Man X8 (replacing "AAA" rank).


 * Rank GA - Stands for "Gold A" (ゴールドA). In Mega Man X6, this rank is obtained by collecting 1200 Nightmare Souls.


 * Rank PA - Stands for "Platina A" (プラチナA). Notoriously hard to get in Mega Man X5, but easy to get in Mega Man X6 by collecting 5000 Nightmare Souls, easier to collect by "farming" them from Dynamo.


 * Rank MEH/MMH - The highest rank in Mega Man X5. The rank was renamed MMH is the English version, being displayed on the Mission Report screen, but the change wasn't applied in the English save screen, being MEH in both Japanese and English versions.


 * Rank UH - Stands for "Ultimate Hunter" (アルティメットハンター). The highest rank in Mega Man X6 and X7. In Mega Man X6, X and Zero can obtain this rank by collecting 9999 Nightmare Souls. This rank allows them to equip up to five Parts (which is the maximum limit for each character).