South Korea

South Korea, officially known as the Republic of Korea (ROK) is a nation on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. A presidential republic, it is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east and North Korea bordering to the north. Its capital city, Seoul, is the largest city in South Korea and one of the world's largest metropolitan cities. Korea has a 5,000 year history, making it one of the oldest civilizations on Earth. South Korea has been split from North Korea since the end of the World War II and tensions between them are high, though South Korea continues towards a peaceful re-unification. A democratic nation, South Korea maintains a strong alliance with the United States.

Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction
South Korea is one of five factions in Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction.

While the regular South Korean Army is part of the Allied Nations forces, a separate detachment called the South Korean Union (SKU) exists as a covert operation group funded, fostered and backed by the CIA, in the person of Special Agent Mitchell Buford. These SK soldiers take their orders from Langley, VA. The South Koreans are after the reunification of Korea, and have moved aggressively to establish a strategic foothold. Needless to say, they are not happy about China's designs on their northern neighbors.

The South Koreans control technology much like the Allied Nations, and provide access to stealth fighter and bomber support (courtesy of the CIA). Agent Buford typically tasks the player with rescue/recovery missions or crippling infrastructure attacks that he does not want traced back to the South Koreans, though by the third "act" the SK and Chinese forces are engaged in open warfare. SK jobs can vary, most of them involve having to rescue an operative and pit the player against the North Koreans, the Chinese, and occasionally, the Russian Mafia.

South Korean Union
Most SKU soldiers are equipped with the same basic weaponry as their AN counterparts, such as M4A1 Carbines, grenades and AT/AA rockets. But their vehicle camouflage tends more towards a wintry white/grey/Blue pattern than the blue/green jungle/grassland color scheme of the AN machines, while their soldiers wear fatigues with entirely different color schemes, mostly blue or dark grey and most wear sunglasses (closely resembling the uniform worn by South Korean military police in the Joint Security Area of the DMZ). A few SKU Soldiers carry the G36K Prototype Rifle, which is also used by some of the all-female commandos of the ROKA 707th Commando Battalion. SK snipers carry Sniper Rifles, while some officers and 707th commandos carry Covert Sub-Machine Guns. Some SKU troops have also employed RPGs and other anti-tank weapons. The SK motorized and mechanized forces feature TOW-armed variants of the Allied HMMWVs, APCs and powerful attack helicopters. However, since it is a covert unit, the SK forces lack heavy armored support. Speed and mobility are the South Korean forces' primary assets, as they do not have the heavy armor or manpower to engage in sustained combat with Chinese or North Korean forces.

Collecting WMD blueprints (small white metal boxes with nuclear symbols on them) and/or destroying NK monuments (usually giant statues of General Song) will increase South Korean favor toward the player. Killing NK, Mafia, or Chinese troops in the presence of SK troops will also raise favor for the player as well.

It's worth noting that, while the South Korean forces are referred to as the SKU in the instruction manual, this title, or the notion that the SK operation is a covert one, is mentioned nowhere else in the game. Viewing a soldier through the binoculars brings up the acronym ROKA; Republic of Korea Army, although this is probably due to the SKU being made up of soldiers from the ROKA.

Soldier Classes

 * Regulars - The basic ROKA grunt is dressed in a blue uniform with an MP helmet and sunglasses, and is normally equipped with a Carbine. The text on their helmet reads 헌병, or "Military Police" in Hangul.
 * Heavies - The Heavy soldiers of the ROKA resemble a Regular, but equipped with body armor and a large backpack used to store their ammo. Their helmet also differs by having the ROK flag. They are usually equipped with SMAWs, Stingers, or Prototype Rifles.
 * Officers - The Commanding officers of the ROKA, Officers of the South Koreans normally wield Carbines or Covert SMGs. Their outfit differs mostly from basic soldiers with the addition of a black vest over their standard uniform.
 * Snipers - These professional marksmen utilize the Dragunov with deadly precision.
 * 707th Commandos - The elite of the South Korean military, the Commandos of the 707th Special Unit wield the whole gamut of the ROKA's arsenal, and are a force to be reckoned with in considerable numbers.
 * ROKA Spy - Special agents who have been assigned to infiltrate and spy on the PLA. They wear the same uniform as a regular PLA soldier without the helmet and they have a different face.

Named Characters

 * Agent Mitchell Buford - A veteran, burnt out, undercover and covert CIA agent who has been working in Seoul for 30 years and has formed a strong bond with it. He is glad to work with the mercenary and cares greatly for his soldiers and prefers to be left alone by the other factions. He is the de facto leader of the SKU.
 * Major Park - Buford's assistant and the official leader of the ROKA soldiers in the field. He is said to be in charge of South Korea's operations in the theatre, but this is most likely a diversion to keep the press from learning of the CIA's involvement in the war.
 * Lieutenant Yung Kim - An officer placed in charge of communications in the conflict. He is seen inside the HQ sitting by the radios. He sends all of Buford's e-mails to the mercenary.

Unnamed Characters

 * The Guard of the South Korean Headquarters.
 * A spy tasked with monitoring Chinese activities in Pyongyang Airport.
 * An officer overseeing the capture of an NK POW.

Infantry Weapons

 * Carbine
 * Anti Tank Missile Launcher
 * Anti-Air Missile Launcher
 * Sniper Rifle
 * Prototype Rifle
 * Covert Sub-Machine Gun
 * RPG

Aircraft

 * LHX "Comanche" Light Attack Helicopter
 * K-60 Troop Transport
 * K-53 Sea Stallion (Only seen delivering supplies during SK contracts)
 * F-117A Nighthawk (Aircraft used for the Stealth Fighter Attack Air Strike)
 * B-2 Spirit (Aircraft used for the Stealth Bomber Attack Air Strike)
 * AC-130 Spectre/Spooky (Aircraft used for the Gunship Support Air Strike)

Ground Vehicles

 * K1025 Scout
 * K966 Scout
 * K200 APC
 * K200 Surveillance
 * Cargo Truck

Diplomacy
Allies: Allied Nations, China (During the first half of the game)

Enemies: China (During the second half of the game), Russian Mafia, North Korea

Trivia

 * The SKU are the only faction in Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction that feature female soldiers, the ROKA 707th Commando Unit along with the KPA forces who utilize Song's personal female guard.
 * The regular South Korean uniform is actually the winter version of the Republic of Korea Army's United Nations Command Security Battalion who guard the Joint Security Area (JSA). Officially they are classified as Military Police as the armistice agreement under which hostilities ended during the Korean war forbids the stationing of regular combat troops within the DMZ. The Korean text on their helmets 헌병 ("heonbyeong") translates to Military Police, which "M.P." is a common abbreviation for.
 * South Korea is the only military faction (every faction except the Russian Mafia) that doesn't have a heavy vehicle. This could be for balancing reasons, as the South Koreans have some of the most powerful vehicles in their respective classes
 * Mattias Nilsson mentions "one of those Spookies the South Koreans been usin'" early in the game, suggesting that in the game's fictional world, the ROK Air Force acquired AC-130 gunships from the United States for its own use. In reality, the AC-130 is exclusively owned and operated by the US Air Force. Agent Buford's presence in South Korea could explain how the South Koreans acquired them.