Tactics: United Colonies of Man (UCM)

Popular styles: Massed Batteries, Long range snipers

General Characteristics:

 Average

The UCM sits in the middle of ship characteristics between all the factions. While this means that they do not shine in certain areas like other factions, it means that they do not have the same weaknesses either. The ease of use of their turreted ships combined with their overall average stats makes them very forgiving to play compared to other factions.

Their weapons batteries have very forgiving firing arcs, and with the *Linked* and *Squadron* rules they can team up and take down ships in their middle range. Inexpensive options like a group of Osakas can bring just as much firepower as a single larger vessel for the similar cost.

You also have access to some very good burnthrough laser options that you can combine with active scanning ships like the Lima. This allows you to easily take down your targets at long range where they can not strike back without exposing them to the rest of your fleet.

Do not discount UCM launch assets. While on paper they seem unimpressive, especially when compared to other fleets, they can still get the job done. When combined with a good *point defense* and/or *Aegis*, UCM fighters can clamp down on enemy close action weapons and bombers on defense, while their bombers can swarm lone ships and take them down.

### Advanced Tactics

The name of the game with the UCM is flexibility. They have easy access to ships with broad fire arcs, Aegis support, torpedoes, and launch assets. A UCM player can easily bunker under multiple Aegis ships and weather incoming launch and CAW attacks, while dishing out large volleys of railgun shots supported by long range burnthough laser fire. Limas are an inexpensive scan option to support any attack.

The second advantage is the easy access to support ships for Aegis, Detector and the rules enhancing Venice. The ability to boost ships via the Venice and the range via Limas (and inexpensive Jakartas), while defending against CAW and bomber attacks with Aegis can make the fleet much harder then the ship stats suggest.

Fighters/Bombers:

UCM has access to several carriers across the Pathfinder, Line, Vanguard and Flag slots. It is relatively easy to max out your launch, but by no means required. With easy access to aegis equipped ships a UCM player can easily get launch and CAW protection without any launch support. That being said, if you do take some launch the question becomes when to use fighters or bombers. As a general rule, it's better to launch bombers, especially when the target is within single thrust range. However, vs. certain fleets such as Shaltari or Resistance, using fighters to cancel their fighters and get your bombers through is a valid option and slightly statistically better. The difference doesn't become significant till you cancel two to three fighter tokens, so keep that in mind depending on what launch you have available.

### Burnthrough Laser Performance

As BTL weapons have a complicated dice mechanic, it is often hard to determine how well they perform. Statistical tables are provided here for reference. Critical hits ignore armor saves, a benefit when facing human ships, especially the Resistance ships with 2+ armor.

 Viper Superheavy Laser
 Cobra Laser Pair
 Cobra Laser
 Mamba Laser

### Faction Specific Space Stations

Unique space stations often require opponent's consent and have very specific rules for deployment. This limits their effectiveness, as some standard missions do not have room to deploy them, while others may put them in a location where they cannot contribute much to battle or are easily focused and destroyed. Generic space stations can often have longer range or more effective armaments.

#### UCM Defense Hangar

A small space station with a fighter/bomber compliment. Best used for narrative and special missions as opposed to a general fleet addition. ￼

#### UCM Munitions Platform

Armed with four torpedoes, this small station is better used for narrative and special missions as opposed to a general fleet addition.

### Famous Admirals

#### "Granite" Halsey - Washington Supercarrier

Halsey has a powerful bonus: the ability to manipulate the SR of a given battlegroup by 4. This can give you the initiative on key battlegroups, as often an opposed group will be very close in SR, say 4 vs. 6, or 10 vs. 11. Suddenly you can out-activate things like Agrippas, or your dread can move out of the way of an enemy Cthulu. He also allows more launch, but given the Washington comes with almost all the launch you need anyway, this is more a small bonus then any real strategic choice.

#### June Havelock - New York Battleship

Another carrier-based admiral, Havelock gives a bonus to UCM railguns on heavy or superheavy ships. Pair her with a Moscow, Beijing or Atlantis/Johannesburg for best effect. ~~She cannot be taken with a London, as awesome as that would be, as dreadnoughts must have the admiral when taken in a fleet.~~ FAQ now allows admirals and Dreads, making this a punishing combination. As such her ability will generally only affect one ship in your fleet, two if you really go all-in on Moscow, and keeps what would be an S-tier ability down in the B tier.

#### Commodore Tayne - St. Petersburg Heavy Cruiser

Tayne works to make the St. Pete a good damage dealer in low point games. For the cost of one hull point, the St. Pete can fire its Cobra lasers in arc F instead of F(N), making it much easier to line up shots. He also gives a slight buff to non-weapons free ships in close action range, allowing an extra weapon to be fired. Mostly this benefits heavier ships late game when the fleets have closed the gap to near point blank range. It isn't a huge benefit, as most UCM ships will be able to go weapons free anyway at that point, but it does allow ships like the Berlin to get a few shots in with some UF-4600s while being able to turn and fire its Cobra - valuable when fighting in scrums over the center of the map.

### Super Heavy Ships

#### Beijing - Battleship

**Role:** A ship of the line, the Beijing carries lots of guns. The railgun batteries are linked, so it can fire on the move, but to bring the Python laser to bear alongside them it needs to go weapons free, which is risky as it cannot turn and its signature becomes large. Paired with a Venice, it can overcome that limitation but it is an expensive tactic. For its points it is a solid workhorse, even if it needs some planning to use effectively. Its main advantage lies in its toughness, bringing lots of hull points and PD to a fight. If you can line up a weapons free barrage with the Python and its mass drivers it can output some impressive damage and nearly destroy other battleships outright.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Often a target for enemy spike/snipe groups. Use silent running and debris fields to line up your shots and avoid enemy battlegroups.
* **Scourge:** Scourge BBs will be coming in headlong, while their BCs will attempt to snipe from cloak. Focus fire the big ones, and send launch or torpedo assets against the cloaked ships.
* **PHR:** PHR battleships come in two varieties, sniping and close-in brawling. The brawl option is far easier to deal with than an Ouriana-supported Heracles. Calypso support can neuter any fire from your battleships, but teaming the Beijing up with a heavy cruiser can force the PHR to choose which boat to defend against.
* **Shaltari:** Hematite and other long-ranged Shaltari sniping ships will target the Beijing early and often, but will start to crumple under even just railgun barrages due to their low armour. Overcome their range advantage with careful maneuvering and use of terrain.
* **Resistance:** Resistance Tridents have superior firepower, but lower scan and speed. Try to get shots off before the Trident comes into range to even the odds.

**Synergies:** The Beijing benefits from active scans on targets (often from Limas) and from the various enhancements provided by the Venice. The UCM also has several means of additional protection via Aegis to blunt enemy CAW frigate swarms. Nuuks can be effective in reducing enemy return fire from larger vessels that need to go weapons free, like Resistance Colonisers, in order to prevent the Beijing from taking too much return fire.

#### New York - Battleship

**Role:** Heavy carrier. This ship has a launch capacity of seven. In addition, it's armed with two *Linked* UF-4000 mass drivers on each side to cover the front and side arcs and close action shark missile bays. It also has two torpedoes. The main purpose of the New York is to support your fleet with its launch assets, either by attacking with the bombers or throwing up fighter screens. Launch will give the ship a minor spike each turn, so the New York is easier for opponents to target over the other battleship options. In certain approaches, the New York will come on the table later, so be prepared to do without its fighter cover for a few turns.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Usually the mirror match will have similar lists. The New York will definitely ensure you have plenty of launch assets, and even though the UCM has the worst fighters of the game, they can get the job done. Just be careful of where you deploy this ship, as your enemy might snipe it using *Burnthrough* lasers. Watch out for any Jakartas as well, due to their *Aegis* support.
* **Scourge:** The Scourge tend to rely more on their own launch assets thanks to their superior firepower and flight distance. Since the New York can send 7 assets in the same turn, you can stack fighters on valuable ships to really make this ship into a rock in the shoes of a Scourge opponent.
* **PHR:** PHR ships tend to have good armour, which the mass drivers of the New York can struggle to deal damage against. However you also get a torpedo, and while it can be inconsistent, there's the potential to cripple a PHR cruiser with an average roll. Note that the PHR assets have superior flight distance, so it may be better to concentrate a generous amount of bombers on a single target if your opponent can deploy fighter cover to it. Bombers and Torpedoes are very effective against PHR Calypsos, in order to strip their defensive ECM from larger enemy ships. Torpedoes are one of the few ways to pressure the PHR Agrippa through it's defensive drone field, although it isn't a great option.
* **Shaltari:** The *Particle* weapons of the Shaltari are really wicked. They can cripple your ship in a single shot, and since your opponent has better scan and the New York has a big 12" Signature, you may want to cover your ship behind debris and/or keep her on Silent Running until a opportunity arises. I would also suggest taking your Admiral in another ship, since this one may attract a lot of attention. Torpedoes are very effective vs the Shaltari, as they ignore the high general point defense, and the average Shaltari armor is weak. If the Shaltari player raises shields to ward off the torpedo they make their signature very large and invite fire from most of your battlegroup.
* **Resistance:** The Resistance has a lot of flexible builds, so it may be hard to give generic advice. It mostly depends on your opponent's play style and list, but generally speaking your assets should be able to do a lot of damage against Resistance vessels due to them having poor armour and PD. They can, of course, upgrade their saves to a 3+ with Ablative Armour, but they lose a weapon system for the privilege. Resistance bombers and fire ships are also a force to be reckoned with, so giving your ships enough fighter assistance is definitely worth it.

**Synergies:** Since it's a support battleship it can go with almost everything, especially when giving fighter coverage to your ships. However, bear in mind that you shouldn't bring more than one New York because of its relative lack of firepower and the overal fleet launch cap. As much of the bomber damage occurs in the end phase, the New York is less concerned with higher strategy ratings in its battlegroup.

#### Tokyo - Battleship

**Role:** "See that cluster? I don't want to." This ship is armed with two *Linked* UF-4200 mass drivers (4 attacks each with lock 4+) on each side covering the F/S arcs, a Python heavy laser in the F (N) arc, Shark missile bays for close action, and finally two *Linked* UF-B-8000 Bombardment turrets (5 attacks at Lock 2+). This ship's main role is to obliterate any sector you may struggle to actually capture. With its 8" Scan, it has a little more range than the Madrid on top of way more firepower. However, you may struggle to employ all of this firepower, given the restrictive arc of the Python laser, forcing you to pick one weapon system to fire at a time. On the other hand, the ship can freely turn to fire the Python laser when not wrecking a sector, is relatively inexpensive, and durable. Ten bombardment attacks are sufficient to obliterate two smaller sectors or one of the larger, more heavily armored ones, per turn. This can be done strategically, along with drop support from San Fransisco troop ships or Strike Carriers, to tip a scoring turn in your favor by focusing your dropped troops in a handful of sectors and destroying the rest, or as a preliminary bombardment to reduce enemy troops in sectors before landing your own. Just be careful as sectors that are completely destroyed no longer count for scoring a cluster.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** A good ol' tactic of the UCM is to say "if I can't have it, no one can," and the Tokyo is the best representation of that creed. Dispatch this ship to enemy-controlled sectors but do remember that in order to bombard a city you have to be within 8" of the centre of the cluster so pay attention to the distance. Bombardment is usually best employed on the third turn, so you may want to hold the Tokyo back until them to provide fire support with its mass drivers and Cobra laser. This however is a risky endeavor, as the Tokyo's 6" Thrust may make performing a dash into range of enemy-held clusters on turn 3 difficult to do.
* **Scourge:** The Tokyo's 4+ wing turrets will feel effective against the majority of Scourge ships, save for their heavies and super heavies. However, *Scald* and Umbra lists in particular will make mincemeat of a Tokyo. It's perhaps best served here as a defensive, reactionary tool, as Scourge strike carriers can often grab the initiative through their speed, but a Tokyo sitting over a cluster will require a determined assault from the Scourge to break.
* **PHR:** PHR troopships are slow - almost as slow as the Tokyo - so you'll be able to match their pace. The Tokyo is also perhaps one of the few UCM heavies/super heavies that doesn't get too screwed over by the Calypso, given it can still go hard on bombardment regardless - however, don't discount the many other tools the PHR have to take down your big ships. Don't forget the 3+ CAW the Tokyo has - it can be surprisingly effective here. PHR troop ships are a large investment, and often too slow to commit to another cluster easily. A Tokyo can often make them spend precious turns moving to a new cluster when they should be dropping troops.
* **Shaltari:** The Tokyo is very good with the Venice in this match up, as you want it to get into the centre to smash up sectors, but want it to be able to juke and jive out of the way of Particle Lances. Watch out for Mercury groups, which will easily demolish a Tokyo. The wing turrets can also be surprisingly effective at sniping voidgates by throwing 6's at them from low orbit.
* **Resistance:** The Tokyo's wing turrets may find use against ships that have had their ablative armour stripped, but in general the Python is going to be your go-to here. The Resistance have one of, if not the best troopship in the game in the Aldrin - perhaps the Tokyo works best here as a second wave asset, coming in and bombing large Resistance concentrations flat.

**Synergies:** The Tokyo gets a lot out of a Venice, meaning it doesn't require weapons free to unleash its full firepower. Outside of that, the Tokyo doesn't require that much support - while it appreciates the active scanning support of Limas, they aren't especially necessary, and you will have better things to spend the points on. With a Vienna pack for Aegis support a centerline push with a Tokyo battlegroup will often weather CAW and bomber attacks while forcing an opponent to dedicate substantial firepower to shift it. As the Tokyo's bombardment means that it can often attrit a cluster to the point it no longer scores an opponent MUST deal with the Tokyo and its Vienna escorts in order to win.

#### Delhi - Battleship

**Role: Cluster Control Battleship**

The Delhi is a rarity, a drop oriented battleship. The exact opposite of a Tokyo, this battleship is all about claiming clusters instead of leveling them. With a whopping 4 bulk landers it can put 12 troop tokens on a cluster every turn. Think of it as two San Frans and a Rio welded together. This ship demands your opponent do something about it, as leaving it unchecked will often mean losing the cluster unless they bring two troop ships or a swarm of strike carriers to the fight as well. The Delhi's Tonnage also helps contribute to control of critical locations, providing the equivalent of three cruisers. This will be a prime target for enemy spike and snipe tactics, but since it doesn't need weapons free orders it can often move to stay out of F(n) arcs of fire and run silent early on as it sneaks to a cluster. Madrids and Vienna make good escorts for it. Madrids can remove any pesky defense batteries via bombardment, and the Vienna can provide aegis cover and some additional firepower.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Mirror Match. Expect enemy active scans and long range burnthrough fire.
* **Scourge:** It's an ugly planet, a bug planet. Dispense hordes of soap opera stars to flood a central cluster with troops from your armored bastion in the sky. Include some Vienna packs with you and stack that aegis defense to the point where entire Hydra bomber swarms evaporate. Do you want to know more?
* **PHR:** PHR have lots of good, heavy anti-armor ships. They also have big, tough troop ships. The Delhi may struggle a bit and need more support to protect it as well as get its drop out if the PHR get some defense batteries down first. This is what Madrids are for.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari have numerous anti armor weapons, from Mercury to Granite/Obsidian. However, the Delhi can move, and the massive drop it brings forces Shaltari to engage or be swarmed on the ground. Even if the Shaltari kill off the infantry the Delhi is dropping 12 infantry tokens a turn, which is more tokens then 4 Motherships. As ground combat occurs BEFORE bulk landers deploy, this means that the Delhi can often control clusters via sheer bloody body count as infantry and tank tokens both provide the same value to determining control of sectors.
* **Resistance:** Faster and tougher than the usual Resistance Drop assets, this ship does require shielding from the powerful resistance battleships and heavy cruisers. Lower overall scan ranges on the Resistance ships will allow it to get further in before it starts taking fire, but don't expect it to hang around in front of a Trident or Amazon for too long.

**Synergies:** This ship pairs well with the Pungari Thresher. The two ships bulking out your fleets hull points and providing serious scoring potential that some players will have trouble dealing with. Vienna are also a good tough escort, with stacking aegis that can make you immune to all but the heaviest bomber waves and close action weapons.

#### Hanoi - Battleship

**Role: Sniper Battleship**

Bigger is better, and the UF-12000 Mass Driver Turrets are some of the biggest weapons in the game. This ship is a back line sniper, using its weapon to stack critical hits on other large targets like Dreadnoughts and Battleships. It will often cause double criticals against cruisers, as the initial damage + cripple roll will often push ships past their critical threshold. A Beijing may output more overall damage, but the stacking criticals can often leave opposing ships unable to be used effectively. Unlike the PHR and Shaltari equivalents the UF-12000 don't have bloom, so the Hanoi is a bit harder to hit. It also does not require weapons free orders, so the ship can freely turn to engage opponents. If your opponent routinely uses dreadnoughts, this is a good choice as stacking criticals can be very frustrating.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** TBD
* **Scourge:** Cloaking makes it hard for the Hanoi to attack from range, as you waste time active scanning to knock ships out of silent running and still can't add major spikes.
* **PHR:** Beware Aggripa and Calypso support, which can degrade the performance of the UF-12000 significantly. Torpedoes are great ways to strip Calypsos out. Have your Havannas introduce said support ships to their little friends.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari Shields can mitigate some of the crippling, with the attendant increase in signature. Shaltari will often be using the same long range spike and snipe techniques, but the Hanoi has the advantage in that it does not need to line up weapons free activations.
* **Resistance:** Triumvir can mitigate the status effects from crippling somewhat. You may want to target them first. Resistance ships also don't need to line up F(n) weapons and drop spikes easily making them surprisingly slippery. The Amazon works similarly and does more damage, so it is important to use your superior range to get a first shot in, then escape to cover or silent run to avoid the Amazon's tremendous return fire.

**Synergies:** This ship pairs well with Limas or other active scan support, as it wants to hang back in the rear lines and fire from outside your opponent's scan range. You might consider taking a Rome and pushing it ahead of the Hanoi to act as a deterrent to enemy fleets closing.

#### London - Dreadnought

*"I have a very strict gun control policy: If there is a gun around, I want to be control of it."*

**Role:** Do you want guns? Because the London has all the guns, even enough PD guns to grant Aegis to nearby ships. The London is one of the easiest dreads to use because it lacks any F(N) guns - everything is turreted, letting you focus on one ship and riddle it with holes or assign each enemy ship their own personal turret. The usual dreadnought downsides apply however - when going weapons free, most ships will be able to return fire, so make sure there are none left to do so once you're done shooting. Focus fire via Limas to spike targets, or buff with a Venice for some fast movement.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** The London can spread fire to target several smaller ships or focus to destroy larger ones. Your opponent will be trying to snipe from the back of the map with burnthrough equipped units. Make use of debris fields and other obstructions to limit the arcs of return fire.
* **Scourge:** Scourge dreads rely on stealth to fire without risk of retaliation. While you cannot spike them, you can knock them out of silent running, which means their standard sig of 18 comes back into play. With a Scan of 14 on the dread, that means you have an effective 38 inch range. A single barrage should do 18 damage and force double cripple rolls on the target, if you go first on turn 2.
* **PHR:** The PHR has some powerful battleships and dreads, along with tricky ships that can spot or force your ship on silent running. The key then is to screen your ships and target these smaller support vessels prior to the big engagement.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari generally have poor armour and raising their shields means their signature increases substanitally. This can work to the UCM's advantage, but again they will outrange the UCM and ships like the Hematite will try to snipe your dread before it can fire. Silent Running orders, and the use of fast Cutters and Destroyers to harry enemy battlecruisers are needed.
* **Resistance:** Resistance dreadnoughts can be built to outshoot the London, and even the battleships can be trouble. However, the Resistance is heavily reliant on spikes to compensate for lower scan, and the dreads don't have high armour. You will need to add some focus fire from other ships to support your attack or try to get your Nuuks in close to limit the return firepower.

**Synergies:** Venice support in larger point games can be helpful. Nuuks can limit Resistance and UCM dreads from using their full weapons complement, and work well against enemy battleships. Limas can ensure first turn shots on uncloaked opposing dreadnoughts thanks to Active Scans. Havana torpedo attacks can strip off opposing Calypsos and Opals to allow a more even exchange of fire.

#### Washington - Supercarrier

**Role:** Dropping guns for combat craft, the Washington is a larger New York. It loses the UF-6400s (an average of 7 damage on targets) for 15 launch. In most games this will be your ENTIRE launch cap. On one ship. That might not arrive until turn 3. It is wise to include some Aegis ships in the rest of your fleet to support them during periods when your Washington isn't present. The UCM has a reputation for its bombers being the worst in the game (until the Resistance bombers were released) but they are not bad in and of themselves - 15 of them will pose a problem for all but the largest ships with the most PD. Launch will give the Washington a minor spike, so it will be targetable from most of the map. It is imperative therefore to use debris fields and other objects to limit possible return fire. While it still has plenty of guns, the loss of the lock 3+ UF-6400s makes it more difficult for the Washington to engage the largest enemy ships, and it is often more effective targeting cruisers and frigates while the rest of your fleet hunts the enemy heavies.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** UCM has access to multiple sources of Aegis, so launch isn't as big a threat to the fleet in general. It also has wide access to burnthrough lasers which can be very dangerous to the Washington.
* **Scourge:** Scourge bombers are very dangerous, but aside from dreadnoughts bombers work well against scourge ships with cloaking.
* **PHR:** PHR often utilize their high-quality bombers making some sort of launch defense necessary. Their anti-dread tools tend to be the smaller Harpocrates and Electras, or the Heracles battleship and Romulus Dreadnought. Be sure to bring other ships like a St. Petersburg or an Avalon/Perth to support your Washington. Nuuks won't be as effective, as both the Heracles and Romulus can fire on standard orders.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari dreads work best at CAW range, which is still a fair distance compared to Resistance dreads, but does mean that you won't be taking as much fire turn 1 and 2 from the dreadnought. Instead, the main threat will come from heavy cruisers and battleships which can fire turn 1 if they have two groups active scan the dreadnought. Silent run for the first turn to lure them in closer.
* **Resistance:** The Resistance lists bring lots of launch by default, due to the nature of their near-absent PD. Their bombers are worse than the UCM, and they have no burnthrough lasers. Instead, they have access to lots of lock 2+ guns on cruisers and above. The Resistance dreads and battleships have plenty of hull to keep the deadly 9k and 10k guns in a fight - those will be the primary threat to your ships. The Washington's main challenge then is to do enough hull points to knock out the larger ships before they terminate it. Focus fire is the name of the game against these larger ships, as the Washington is well equipped to deal with the lower armour, low PD cruisers and smaller stuff.

**Synergies:** Venice and Limas are always helpful for most UCM ships, however in the Washingtons case it can also benefit from friendly Vienna and Jakarta Aegis escorts to free up its launch to support elsewhere.

### Heavy Ships

#### Atlantis/Johannesburg - Big Gun Battlecruiser

**Role:** Guns guns guns. This ship brings lots of guns, which while not flashy, allow it to avoid the inevitable jousting competitions that often spell the demise of ships that rely on F(N) guns for damage. It also has launch to provide fighter/bomber support. The Atlantis/Johannesburg is a good place to mount an admiral in lower point games, and a solid choice in larger games where it can deal with multiple small targets or focus one large target without being too concerned about facing.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** New Cairos, Berlins, and Avalon/Perth ships tend to fly straight at the opposing fleet to bring their guns to bear. The Johannesburg can swerve and use its turrets to keep those ships at arm's length while they fly straight into the guns of your fleet.
* **Scourge:** The advantage of numerous turrets is that the Johannesburg can split fire to take out smaller frigate swarms or focus on larger cruisers equally. Scourge will either rush into your guns or stay back and snipe. Shoot the rushers, and send bomber swarms to take on the cloaked ships.
* **PHR:** The lack of forward guns means that the PHR are at a disadvantage coming in, but have the hull and support to be very deadly close in. Try to focus down the fragile support ships like Calypsos, Harpocrates and Ouranias early.
* **Shaltari:** Long ranged but fragile. Force them to raise their shields then use bombers on the now 0 PD ships.
* **Resistance:** Resistance groups will try to spike and snipe the ship, with larger heavy cruisers and battlecruisers or with swarms of small frigates. The Johannesburg is flexible enough to deal with either approach but will need careful planning to avoid exposing your ships to too much return fire.

**Synergies:** The standard Lima-Venice combo is always helpful. Viennas can also add some direct firepower, but limit flexibility. Pairs well with Osakas and Rios in high SR battlegroups, or the humble Toulon.

#### Avalon/Perth - Battlecruiser

**Role:** Let's be honest, you saw "Viper Super Heavy Laser" in the fleet builder and said "yes please." The Viper does deliver, averaging 6-7 damage on most targets for an instant cripple against anything not in the superheavy category. You won't be using the backup UF-4200s much unless you are getting Venice support, but they can be effective when dealing with pesky light ships. This is the classic backline sniper since the introduction of the game, and prior to the introduction of the Shaltari Hematite was one of the best. Lima support is almost mandatory for this ship to spike and shoot in the same activation. The main downside of the Perth is the same all ships with F(N) guns have - you are tied into approaching the enemy fleet and will therefore be an exposed priority target. As of the v2.5 update this now lost bloom on the Viper, making it a little harder for opposing fleets to counter snipe it.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Good counters to the Perth are Kyivs and Reykjavik swarms, which use the lower SR to fire first on the approaching spiked Perth.
* **Scourge:** Scourge tend to rely on cloaked ships to attack from range without risk of retaliation or must rush the guns with smaller ships and burn it down.
* **PHR:** Watch for sneaky Harpocrates and annoying Calypsos, both of which can neuter your Perth. Either target them with other ships first, or choose to target something not protected by the Calypsos.
* **Shaltari:** The Shaltari Hematite is a better version of the Perth. Try to take it out with Havana or Reykjavik groups so your Perth can deal with the Shaltari cruisers.
* **Resistance:** Resistance ships will need to risk the guns of the Perth to fight it effectively, but do have more hull points in general to tank a hit. The Atlantis/Johannesburg is generally a better choice against them than the Perth.

**Synergies:** Lima support is a must. Venice support is optional but always helpful. Aegis support from other ships is also nice, but by no means mandatory. Viennas compliment it in higher SR groups.

#### Rome - Torpedo Delivery System

**Role:** Yeah, you saw those heavy torpedoes and are all about that damage. You want to delete a ship - a big ship - with them. Well, while it CAN happen, what then? You end up with a big Aegis platform armed with a cruiser's secondary guns. Temper your enthusiasm, because while yes, this ship can make a big impact in the game, it is not assured. Torpedoes take effect at the end of the next turn activation, can be shaken off by course change orders or flying through debris fields (or both, curse you Agrippa!), which means the Rome's huge damage may not even stick. The heavy torpedoes also have a max range of 18 inches, which is almost knife-fight range in Dropfleet. While aegis will protect you from suicide squads of frigates, you will be a prime target for burnthrough lasers and heavy guns without any real means of retaliation for a few turns. You really want to use this ship against enemy battleships and dreadnoughts, but most of those can destroy the Rome long before it gets into range. You will need to be sneaky to use this ship and conceal it behind debris fields, or field other, more immediate threats to pull attention away from it. The Rome really works best as area denial - park it over a big critical location or behind a central debris field and your opponent won't want to send anything cruiser-level or heavier its way.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** The UCM has lots of options to snipe the Rome, so you will almost always be using silent running.
* **Scourge:** Aegis helps with CAW rushing frigates and cruisers. The main threat will be cloaked ships trying to snipe, which the Rome will have to rely on support from other ships to deal with.
* **PHR:** A surprisingly good matchup on paper, as both the PHR and Rome want to get close, but this is only before you remember that the Agrippa is the hard counter to the Rome. Since it can create debris fields and course change at will, the Agrippa will delay or lose torpedoes constantly. Outside of the Agrippa, the Rome is a very effective counter to Minos, Rhadamanthus and Kairos as it ignores the effects of any Calypso support.
* **Shaltari:** Torpedoes are normally very good against the Shaltari, as they ignore PD and if the Shaltari raise shields then they suffer a much higher sig. The downside is that the Shaltari will greatly out range the Rome and can snipe it. Silent running is a must to close the gap.
* **Resistance:** The Triumvir is a counter to the Rome, since its Box of Scraps rule will prevent a ship from dying to the torpedo salvo and then the Rome really doesn't have much in the way of follow up. You will need another group to finish off the targeted ship before it can get another token.

**Synergies:** Pair with some Madrids to crush a cluster and claim the critical location from orbit, without deploying any drops, or keep this ship alongside some San Frans to outdrop your opponent. It works well in high SR groups due to its reliance on launch for damage.

#### Venice Command Battlecruiser

**Role:** A very, very important ship for a great many UCM lists, the Venice is a point sink that makes the rest of your fleet way better. The Venice's ability to allow a ship to fire one more weapon than normal is its standout ability, allowing many ships in the UCM to access their full firepower while on course change orders - something that is especially useful for ships with F(N) weapons, like the Beijing and St. Petersburg. This feature can also allow for smaller UCM ships, such as the Reykjavik, Taipei or Toulon, to achieve far larger threat ranges than normal by allowing them to fire their weapons on max thrust. The Venice's 4" bonus to thrust can also be useful. One thing to keep in mind is that the bonus conferred to the thrust characteristic of the ship, which is done before special orders are declared - this means that the bonus is added to the ship's overall thrust before doubling said thrust for the max thrust special order (in other words, you can yeet a London 20" up the board). This can be really useful for getting the slower UCM ships, such as monitors, up to the center in a quick fashion. The Venice's final ability, allowing a ship to change orbital layers even if it would not be able to normally, is the most niche of its three buffs, but can still find its uses - keep it in mind especially for ships going on weapons free. The Venice's extra command cards buff seems minor, but feels anything but on the table - you want to be burning through your command cards fast while using a well-built Venice list, and you will often find yourself with a few cards you might want to play normally (e.g., the free Rio/Toulons card, holding on to an espionage, etc).

When building a list with a Venice, it's best to start with the Venice first and build around it - it's a significant force multiplier, but you need that to make up for the fact that it's taking up nearly 15% of your fleet in a standard 1500 point game. On the table itself, the Venice is a paperweight - keep it protected, at the very back of the board, preferably with a portion of the rest of your fleet and a few debris fields between it and the enemy. This unit will be targeted by fast-moving enemy cutters and destroyers like Jasons, Sagittarii, Reykjaviks, Parasites, etc early and often.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** The UCM have a plethora of fast ships that can easily take care of a Venice, but of particular note are Lima-supported Kyivs, Havanas, Taipeis, and Toulons. The first three have the threat range and/or firepower to quickly burst down a Venice, while the Toulon's preferred style of skirmishing and attempting to bully an opponent's backline is perfectly suited for taking out a Venice. An opponent with a Venice and Reykjaviks can achieve a first turn firing solution and drop 10 hull points on it, crippling and putting the ship at risk.
* **Scourge:** Scourge options to kill the Venice are numerous, quick, and deadly - bombers, CAW attack groups, and Umbra-buffed Oculus gunboats are all capable of quickly reaching and tearing through a Venice. Keep some fighters handy.
* **PHR:** Echos, with their decent save and out-of-atmosphere firepower, can be surprisingly effective at taking out the Venice, as can PHR destroyers. Sniping with Ourania support is also possible turn 2.
* **Shaltari:** Utilize silent running to try and negate the Shaltari's high threat range, and keep a careful eye on Particle Lance ships. Mercury and Gallium groups are also worth your attention - there is very little you can do once they get in striking distance of a Venice, so try and stop them from getting there.
* **Resistance:** Watch out for potential Galileo wombo combos. Decent groups of Senecas or Armstrongs can also pose a threat, but Sagittarii are going to be the largest danger. With Galileo support, they can strike from 36' away - not as dangerous as Reykjaviks, but still a significant threat from a lower-cost option for a turn 2 attack.

**Synergies:** A Venice contributes little to its battlegroup. Avoid putting it with anything that even somewhat prefers to have a decent SR, as not only does give it a pretty substantial +10 to SR, but it is also highly likely the battlegroup will suffer from coherency penalty with the Venice hiding in the back. Things like troopships and strike carriers can fit in nicely here. Viennas and Jakartas can blunt CAW frigate packs and bombers, leaving only cutter groups of Sagittarii, Galliums, Wraiths, Parasites and Reykjaviks as big threats.

#### Moscow - Classic Gun Cruiser

**Role:** The exemplar of the UCM, and game in general, the Moscow has numerous railguns, good hull and average armour. Flexible, able to deal with groups of smaller ships or focus fire on a single larger ship, the Moscow is a solid if unspectacular, workhorse. No flashy big lasers or heavy torpedoes, but a solid and easy to use choice. However, is it better then three Rios? Probably not. This tends to be the choice if you can't afford an Atlantis/Johannesburg.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Turrets allow the Moscow to evade burnthrough ships and use terrain while forcing its adversaries to close. Bully your opponent's smaller ships until you can get range on the larger ones.
* **Scourge:** The Moscow works well in fighting smaller frigate swarms or hitting larger cruisers, just watch out for cloaked snipers when going WF.
* **PHR:** Superior to the PHR Hector, the Moscow suffers a bit from the armour and hull deployed by the PHR, which makes its guns less effective. It still has the range advantage over most PHR cruisers but will lose out in confrontations with the Pompeius in head-to-head matchups.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari Impel tricks are less effective on the Moscow, and their poor armour makes them more susceptible when it throws its wall of dice. Combined with bomber support, you can really force the Shaltari to make hard choices about raising shields. They still have the range advantage though so be sure to use debris fields to limit return fire with careful positioning.
* **Resistance:** A good ship against Resistance, as the smaller frigates and cruisers don't have the armour to take a beating, but the larger Gladiator and Centurion can be tough opponents. Resistance ships are generally as easy to use, so victory will stem from positioning and focused fire.

**Synergies:** Limas and Venice obviously. Toulons, Osakas and Rios all have similar weapon loadouts and flexibility, so they often work well in groups if you don't mind the high SR.

#### St. Petersburg - Heavy Cruiser

**Role:** Once a difficult ship to use effectively due to needing weapons free orders with F(n) weapons, the St. Pete has been reworked into a smaller version of the Perth in the v2.5 rules. Now it can fire its Cobra laser pair on standard orders and as such is far easier to use. Like a big Berlin, it can zap at priority armored targets and then late game get some potshots in with its wing guns. When dealing with the PHR, the St. Pete works when combined another threat like a Perth or some New Cairos to force the enemy to use Calypso bonuses to either deflect the St. Pete or the other ships, but not both.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Not a bad idea here - the St. Petersburg will be capable of cutting down UCM Cruisers and trading efficiently against the larger UCM ships, but it is a very tempting target for the UCM's powerful, smaller anti-armour tools, namely New Cairos, Kyivs and Havanas.
* **Scourge:** Stealth and Full Cloak, when paired with the low threat range of the St. Petersburg, means it may struggle to get to the targets it wants to go after, namely Scourge Heavies and Super Heavies. It will be able to easily core anything it can get at.
* **PHR:** The PHR's mix of Calibre (H) weapons, Fusillade, and the Calypso gives the PHR all the tools they need to easily shut down a St. Petersburg. However, a St. Petersburg should be more than capable of engaging high value PHR targets like troopships, dreads, and carriers effectively.
* **Shaltari:** Don't joust against the Shaltari. Shields make the UCM's BTLs less valuable against the Shaltari, but the Shaltari's Particle Lances are almost tailor-made to destroy the St. Petersburg in particular, although careful maneuvering can alleviate this to an extent.
* **Resistance:** Possibly the best place to bring a St. Petersburg. The high armour of the Resistance give value to BTLs and the low thrust, low scan but average signature of the Resistance enable a St. Petersburg to go to town on Resistance Heavies and Super Heavies.

**Synergies:** Limas can also help extend its threat range, which is often necessary given its low thrust. Some form of Aegis or fighter protection may be nice to have as well, depending on how central the St. Petersburg is to your list and the matchup.

#### Centurion - Mightly Glacier

**Role:** Initially a bonus one off ship, this version predates the Resistance list release but shares the main strength of that force, durability. 14 hull, 2+ save, with broadsides and a 2+ lock turreted gun, but hindered by the low scan and thrust. UCM is unique in that they can easily compensate for the low PD compared to Resistance lists. Compared to your other choices in the Vanguard slot the Centurion doesn't fit well with traditional long range UCM attacks or massed firepower. Its overall damage output is similar to a Moscow or St. Pete for about the same cost. This ship wants to go straight up the middle and soak up enemy attention, something that the UCM seldom wants from an expensive vanguard choice but can be a nice change of pace. In low point games it also makes a good admiral bunker compared to other choices.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Burnthrough sniping is usually the bane of this ship, but careful use of silent running can let it go forward. Still, the UCM has plenty of tools to deal with a slow, low range ship even with its vaunted toughness.
* **Scourge:** Vulnerable to Scourge CAW without support, but the 2+ save is surprisingly effective against the longer range Oculus weapons.
* **PHR:** PHR heavy caliber weapons are very effective at punching through the 2+ armour, so it makes for a poor matchup.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari have lots of particle weapons to ignore the armour and ludicrously out range the Centurion.
* **Resistance:** Like the PHR, the Resistance have lots of access to lock 2+ guns or Heavy Vent cannons to deal with the Centurion. A Gladiator will out damage it and make up the cost difference.

**Synergies:** Limas obviously, and Viennas to mitigate the poor PD. The Venice can help with this ship, but you cannot pull off the same types of crazy moves as you can with a St. Pete.

#### Pungari Thresher - Xenos Swarm

**Role:** Another exclusive ship like the Centurion, the Thresher offers bombers, bulk landers and Corrupter-token weapons. Crewed by essentially Halo Grunts, they fling themselves into boarding actions and ground assaults with equal cluelessness. While the UCM has access to good bulk landers and decent launch options, the Thresher lets you combine both into a single ship in the Vanguard slot, which is a rarity. Corrupter weapons deal damage-over-time, so you want to stack them early and often, but with a Scan of 4" that will be difficult. Generally, this ship should dive on a critical cluster and use its drop to help control it while using bombers to scare away light cruisers and frigates. The Corrupter "guns" can start stacking 1-2 Corrupter tokens on ships every turn, but that isn't huge damage, and it's delayed till the cleanup phase, making it far less impactful. There are better options across the UCM list, but if you want a distinct and flavorful ship this can fit the bill. Of note the reinforced armor rule on this ship makes it very tanky, and it can really bulk out a list to the point an opponent may struggle to burn all your ships down over the course of a game, especially if taken with other hull point efficient choices like Madrids and Delhi.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** With good PD, Aegis, and long range, most UCM lists have little to fear from this ship.
* **Scourge:** Scourge CAW packs can prey upon the Pungari, but its bombers are not trivial and if left alone it can cause problems for the Scourge player's attempts to control a cluster.
* **PHR:** The PHR can easily deal with the Thresher - leave it at home.
* **Shaltari:** The Shaltari have the same ship with better scan and shields.
* **Resistance:** The Thresher would fit right in a Resistance list, but that means that they also have the tools to deal with it.

**Synergies:** Works well with Jakartas and Viennas. Not much synergy otherwise - notably it doesn't get much help from the Venice aside from a movement buff. Fits right in with San Frans, Delhi and Madrids for a heavy drop/bombard group.

#### Burnaby - Experimental Battlestar Carrier

**Role:** Mounting a burnthrough laser, UF-6400 battery, and launch, this ship is a swiss army knife, with a tool for every occasion. However it has difficulty bringing all three to bear efficiently. It is part of the Experimental Cruiser pack released in 2022 and built from the standard UCM cruiser sprue. Cost reduced in the v2.5 update it is now less of a millstone around your fleets neck and more like a weird fusion of a Seattle and a Berlin.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** TBD
* **Scourge:** TBD
* **PHR:** TBD
* **Shaltari:** TBD
* **Resistance:** TBD

**Synergies:** A Venice can allow the ship to fire both the cobra laser and the UF6400s without weapons free orders, making it much more flexible.

#### Palantine Command Barge - Command Ship

**Role:** An event exclusive. It is a pre-invasion design common to all factions, this ship has 12 inches of scan, unusual for its Golden Age pedigree. It also has other tricks, such as the ability to fire while on Max Thrust or Silent Running orders, as well as a whopping 12 PD. It also has a rule that allows your Admiral to escape destruction if another Heavy or Superheavy ship is nearby when the Barge is destroyed. The ship's main drawback is its relatively lackluster armament of 8 lock 4+ shots which will do two damage on average to armor 3+ ships. In general, the Palatine doesn't output enough damage to seriously threaten most heavy cruisers and above. What this ship can do then is bully smaller craft like cutters, frigates and destroyers, using a combination of movement and silent running to avoid retaliation. It can also be used in a flanking maneuver to go after rear line ships, as when paired with an active scan platform like Limas it has an effective range of 46 inches (12 scan, 12 from a major spike, 16 move, 6 target signature). The durability of the ship should not be understated, as the 2+ ablative armor and 15 hull put it at the same level as a Centurion or Gladiator, and the 12 point defense make fighter support less important. It ok to cruise around and target smaller support ships, active scanning vessels, and motherships. This ship can also be used by the PHR and Resistance.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Back line Limas are a premium target early to cripple UCM spike+scan tactics.
* **Scourge:** 12 scan can really pressure partial and full cloak ships such as Scourge destroyers and things like the Akuma. You might be able to force your opponent to make a mistake and chase the Barge vs. some of your more fragile ships. It is unlikely to kill an Akuma, as the 2 damage will take more turns than there are in a game to make the kill.
* **PHR:** This ship can target Calypsos, Ourania and other PHR support ships early and often, forcing them to use those ships abilities to defend themselves rather than a larger ship. Don't try to jump the battleships or heavy cruisers, as those have far more firepower then the Palantine and it will struggle to focus one down over the course of a game.
* **Shaltari:** Send this ship after Ceasiums and motherships. just don't park in front of all those particle lance weapons. Laugh when your opponent suddenly has a ship shooting at their motherships turn 1 and quickly tries to turn all those granites and Obsidians to take it out. Time it right and you might be able to catch them between the Palantine and the rest of your fleet in a pincer movement.
* **Resistance:** Target enemy Galileos and active scanning frigates to give yourself an advantage. In general though the bigger ships 2+ armor saves makes them relatively immune to fire from the Barge.

**Synergies:** Rays are able to keep up with the Palantine and make good escorts. It can also work as an admiral bunker in lower point games, but it is a significant chunk of points. Can also work with Limas as an active scan group to spread energy spikes across your opponet's fleet.

### Medium Ships

#### Rio - Cruiser

**Role:** The Rio is a very bog-standard ship that is in a somewhat unusual place in the UCM cruiser line up. Squadron (2) encourages you to bring them in pairs, but if you are taking them purely for the 3+ mass drivers, an Osaka pair can do the same thing for cheaper, while being faster. As a single cruiser, the Berlin brings more firepower and the Seattle is a more flexible while bringing equivalent firepower on standard orders. The one thing the Rio has is its linked 4+ shoulder mass driver turrets, which are only accessible on weapons free - it doubles the amount of dice the Rio can throw at a target, but those extra dice are unlikely to do much against a target with decent armour. The Rio is perhaps best utilized as a brawler taken in pairs, driving down the middle in a way Osakas typically do not want to thanks to their inferior armour and hull - its wide arcs make getting a weapons free off multiple times a game a feasible proposition, and it doesn't typically demand a super low SR or specific activation strategy in order to do its thing.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Brawling against the UCM is not a terrible idea, but UCM armour is typically good enough to render the Rio's 4+ mass drivers as not especially useful. Osakas if you want to take a pair and a Berlin if you want to take a single cruiser are probably better options, but the Rio should still perform decently.
* **Scourge:** The Scourge's poor armour means the Rio capable of dealing decent damage on weapons free, but brawling against the Scourge requires careful play - with the UCM's easy access to Aegis it can be done, but charging in without much care will see your Rios quickly removed.
* **PHR:** Not really worth it against the PHR - if you want 3+ mass drivers, just take the Osaka instead. The 4+ mass drivers will rarely do much of anything against PHR armour, and brawling against the PHR is typically a bad idea - their combo of Fusillade, good armour and high HP guarantee that.
* **Shaltari:** The Rio be a somewhat compelling brawler against the Shaltari - throwing a lot of dice at the Shaltari can give good returns, but unless you have a way to force shields to be raised, a pair of Rios are going to have to survive a hail of deadly Shaltari firepower before getting a shot off themselves.
* **Resistance:** Rios can perhaps prey effectively on ships that do not have or have lost their ablative armour, but are not especially effective at getting Resistance ships to that point - Resistance Grand Cruisers in particular are very effective brawlers against the Rio. Again, the Osaka and Berlin are probably better options for the respective niches the Rio can fill here.

**Synergies:** The Rio does want to do weapons free, but doesn't gain enough out of it to justify taking a Lima group with them. However sources of Aegis (especially the Jakarta, which is fast enough to keep up with a Rio at full speed) can increase their longevity, especially against the Scourge.

#### Berlin - Cruiser

**Role:** The combo of wing turrets and a Cobra heavy laser seems off-putting to many players who fear that they won't be able to use both effectively compared to a New Cairo squadron. However, the real advantage of the Berlin is the toughness it can bring to bear. This is a center line ship, used to approach an opponent and will last longer than the fragile new Cairos while bringing CAW and wing turrets to add some punch late game. 12 points for some extra hull, PD and guns is a small price to pay for those advantages.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** The Cobra laser has a 40% chance of crippling a light cruiser in one shot. A New Cairo will only cripple a Berlin 25% of the time. So the advantage lies with the Berlin even if the wing turrets are not included. This is where durability can win matches vs a UCM list reliant on lighter platforms.
* **Scourge:** The lower armour of Scourge makes the wing guns more effective, but the Berlin still needs support against CAW packs.
* **PHR:** A good matchup, the Cobra works well on the tougher PHR ships and the wing guns can pick off lighter support ships like the Calypso, Harpocrates or Ourania.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari will want to raise shields to reduce the threat of the Cobra, but that does make them more vulnerable to chip shots from turrets, even if not the same target as the Cobra.
* **Resistance:** The cobra laser is effective against the more heavily armored ships like the Centurion or Trident, and the wing turrets work well against the lighter armored frigates, destroyers and cruisers. With the flexibility of Resistance guns, keeping targets in F(n) can be difficult as they will not joust with the Berlin.

**Synergies:** Limas, a Venice, Jakartas, Viennas, and even the humble Toulon can work well with a Berlin or augment it.

#### Madrid - Bombardment Cruiser

**Role:** If you can't have that cluster, no one can. Send in these inexpensive ships to level clusters you don't intend to occupy. As a bonus, they have good hull and their wing guns can threaten smaller ships, forcing your opponent to commit limited anti-cruiser weapons to defeat them or lose valuable real-estate. Augment them with Jakartas to help with bombers and CAW packs and send them off as an independent group. Your opponent must deal with them somehow, and with the standard cruiser hull and 3+ armour it will be non-trivial to do so. As a bonus these ships rarely need to WF, so they can silent run to force your opponent to move ships to intercept rather than rely on backline snipers.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Reykjavik or Kiev squadrons can burn these down, but expose themselves doing so.
* **Scourge:** Scourge will want to use their CAW packs to hunt these down, as sniping them leaves your sniper ships unfettered to do their jobs.
* **PHR:** The PHR also has good bombardment/drop options on very tough cruisers. By going full bombardment on the same cluster, you can win the points efficiency race, but you will be in prime broadside range to do so. It is a high risk, high reward strategy.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari gates can let them move troops from cluster to cluster to salvage a bombed-out sector or two, but if combined with corvettes to hunt down gates you can maroon their limited drop.
* **Resistance:** Very effective against the Resistance due to the cheap hull and good targets in the fragile light cruisers and frigates. The Resistance also struggles to drop on multiple clusters, so denying one via bombardment can be difficult for them to respond to.

**Synergies:** Jakartas work well to provide some anti-bomber/CAW support. San Frans to provide some drop while you level an opponent's sectors can work but a canny opponent will just drop on your sector to avoid losing troops.

#### Seattle - Fleet Carrier

**Role:** Light carrier/ mainline ship

Surprisingly for a "fleet carrier," the UCM Seattle can be extremely flexible and aggressive. It swaps out the middling 4200 triple mass driver turrets for hangars, giving it a launch of 3 in total that is sadly below the launch of other equivalent ships in other fleets. While it can be useful to launch friendly fighters for support, that role is generally taken up by Aegis from frigates, Vienna, or the Rome battle cruiser. Where it shines is using it as an assault carrier, firing the 6400s in tandem with launch assets to make it extremely annoying to deal with. Careful positioning will be required for this type of play, however.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Once inside 12' bomber range, this ship can do some damage and is a common mainstay for UCM fleets.
* **Scourge:** Bombers don't care about cloaking or stealth. Fighters add PD to mitigate Scourge CAW attacks. A very good choice.
* **PHR:** PHR don't have great PD, but do have great bombers, making some sort of launch defense a must. Either load up on fighters or get enough aegis cover to defend yourself. Either way you can make a Seattle work, and it's UF6400s are still generally effective.
* **Shaltari:** Guns+ launch are an effective combination. Force Shaltari to raise shields and expend fighters to defend from your bomber waves. Each is a losing proposition for them.
* **Resistance:** The Seattle is generally better than its equivalents in the Resistance lists. Making it an attractive choice.

**Synergies:** Relatively flexible, Seattles can benefit from active scan but are best used as a supporting ship firing at the same target as prior battle groups. You can combine them with Jakartas or Viennas for aegis support to free up some bombers or have them as a 2nd line force to deal with ships trying to flank. They are less concerned with activation order as well, and as such can be in higher SR groups and later activations.

#### Osaka - Light Cruiser

**Role:** The UF6400 is a good gun, but not spectacular. Putting it on a flexible hull like the Osaka lets you quickly put guns where needed without worrying about weapons free or facings. Often out shown by the more deadly New Cairos, the Osakas are best used to help hunt down frigates, light cruisers, corvettes or on a flank to get behind larger ships where they have the time to do damage without risking return fire. The flexibility of their forward turrets and fast movement make them superior to New Cairos when dealing with lighter, faster ships.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Used on a flank, Osakas can provide steady damage and deter frigate or cutters from diving too close.
* **Scourge:** Vulnerable to scourge CAW ships, but Osakas can be sent to deal with full cloak heavy cruisers like the Akuma by using terrain to move into scan range.
* **PHR:** Generally less effective due to the high armour and hull of the PHR.
* **Shaltari:** Good against the shaltari, where weight of fire, speed and positioning are needed to push back on the superior range.
* **Resistance:** Resistance has a dichotomy of low armour and high armour ships. Osakas work best preying on frigate, corvettes and Cutters.

**Synergies:** Osakas work well with Tuolons and Jakartas.

#### New Cairo - Light Cruiser

**Role:** Carrying a single Cobra Laser, New Cairos are faster, more maneuverable ships intended to focus on higher armour opponents. A favorite of the backline sniper crew, the downside of these ships is their relative fragility. Be sure to protect them from cutters, frigates and corvettes that will happily trade to take out their firepower. Don't drive them straight at your opponent trying to use the burnthoughs, even station keeping them to keep them back. This will just light them up for longer range attacks by frigates, destroyers or cutters.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Lots of ships can counter New Cairos at range, given their lower armour. It really comes down to individual fleet composition.
* **Scourge:** Generally a poor choice, as most high value Scourge targets rely on cloaking to mitigate any range advantage, and swarms of light craft can overwhelm the New Cairos before they get a targeting solution.
* **PHR:** A good choice vs. the heavier armour and rare frontal armaments of the PHR.
* **Shaltari:** The Shaltari Mercury is a faster version with a similar gun. In general an Osaka is a better matchup.
* **Resistance:** Can be effective when focused on the heavier resistance ships, but vulnerable to swarms of lighter frigates, cutters and artillery cruisers.

**Synergies:** These typically need scan support from Limas to be effective.

#### San Francisco - Troopship

**Role:** The battle bus drops troops, and does it fairly efficiently. The UCM doesn't have many choices for bulk landers, the only other option is a single Pungari Thresher. It is too bad that the drop bay replaces the UF6400s, unlike the Seattle, as a bulk lander that could fight would be very, very powerful. You need to screen this ship with aegis, frigates or some fleet assets to allow it to get to a drop location. It can't really defend itself aside from some token shots.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Keep it hidden from long range sniping and suicide attacks from CAW frigates.
* **Scourge:** A prime target from Djinn swarms, as it has to move into range to score. Y
* **PHR:** Able to be more agressive due to the lack of forward guns but can't outshoot an Orpheus. It will need backup if over a contested cluster.
* **Shaltari:** Try to use debris fields to shield you from early sniping attacks from the longer range Shaltari units.
* **Resistance:** Aldrins are the lower hull counterpart to the San Fran and seen frequently. Aldrins are more points efficient but are more vulnerable. You will need to prioritize the Aldrins to win the drop race.

**Synergies:** San Frans need support, either dedicated Aegis or to stay in an Aegis zone, in order to survive as they are high priority targets to prevent scoring. Screen them with other ships, and pair them with either bombardment or strike carriers as dedicated drop groups.

### Light Ships

#### Toulon - Frigate

**Role:** The standard frigate of the game and the yard stick you should judge every other frigate by. With average firepower (somewhat improved by adding squadron in a later patch), average range and average thrust, this frigate is exactly that, average. It does what it does and can be a good source of added firepower in mixed cruiser/frigate groups, or even as a larger wing of frigates. Lock 4+ guns are better for armour 4+ and worse, but everything counts in large amounts. The Toulon also does not need weapons free, and can focus firepower in front and side arcs, making it easy to use and forgiving of positional mistakes.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** While not spectacular, Toulons are good to hunt New Cairos or get behind other cruisers to fire from relative safety.
* **Scourge:** Able to max thrust past screening ships to harass things like Akumas or Banshees running silent but will lose out to CAW dedicated ships. Scourge Harpies have lower total damage output but are more effective vs. armour.
* **PHR:** Toulons have a hard time with PHR armour, and are at risk from Ajax and other calibre (L) broadsides.
* **Shaltari:** lower armour means Toulons are generally more effective, but still have to manage the Shaltari's superior range. Use defense in depth such that any ships that dive on the Toulons face destruction.
* **Resistance:** Toulons are good counters to the lower armour frigates, and unarmoured cruisers.

**Synergies:** Toulons work well with most ships in the UCM fleet. Leave the armour busting to burn through equipped ships and go after lighter armour targets with them.

#### Taipei - Missile Close Action Frigate

**Role:** Close Action weapons are high risk, high reward. The Taipei can out damage a Toulon but must get very close and thus risk retaliation to do so. Much like the Toulon the facing doesn't matter making them flexible, but with lock 4+ missile turrets they are not as effective on heavier ships. Focus on other frigates and light cruisers unless you are running a large unit to overwhelm opposing point defense.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** UCM has large access to point defense in Aegis, making Taipeis hard to use.
* **Scourge:** Scourge are the premier CAW faction, but that doesn't make them immune to it. If you can dance around the faster scourge ships their lower armour and average point defense will not save them. Scourge also lack aegis, meaning most of their PD can only be supplimented with figther support. This is good because every fighter token removes some of their excellent bombers from the table.
* **PHR:** PHR ships tend to have low PD, but good armour. This does blunt a Taipei rush a little bit, but the smaller ships will still succumb. Just watch out for the Ajax, Pegaus and Echos.
* **Shaltari:** High PD would make the Shaltari somewhat a hard target, but Taipeis can do lots of work against the lower hull, lower armour shaltari when their shields are up. Target shielded ships to cause big damage.
* **Resistance:** The Resistance lack PD, and many ships have poor armour, making Taipeis solid choices.

**Synergies:** Taipes work best in dedicated CAW hunter packs, either alone or alongside Santiago Corvettes or Havana Destroyers.

#### Jakarta - Aegis Frigate

**Role:** Far from flashy, yet reliable, fast and efficient, the Jakarta is in many ways a quintessential UCM ship. Aside from providing protection from launch assets and CAW, Jakartas often work well as active scanners, being decently cheap, expendable, and with a low base sig. Keep them close to your brawling frontliners, or with high value targets within the threat range of enemy bombers/CAW attack groups - although keep in mind that 1-2 Jakartas will not be able to overly blunt the impact of the larger CAW attack groups. Jakartas can often change the math in the launch phase, leaving you feeling more comfortable spending more of your launch on bombers, thus forcing your opponent to spend more of their launch on fighters - which is often a favorable trade given that most factions have at worst equal bombers to your own.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Jakartas are capable of blunting the impact of all but the most determined Taipei attacks, and can also help in dealing bombers, but overall, they are far from essential here.
* **Scourge:** Extremely useful, not only given the power of Scourge bombers, but also due to the ubiquity of quality CAW weapons amongst the Scourge.
* **PHR:** While PHR CAW is rarely something to write home about, their bombers can be devestating - the Jakarta can help a great deal here.
* **Shaltari:** Where the Jakarta is perhaps the least useful. Shaltari CAW, outside of a few specific ships, is rarely of note, and in the case of said specific ships, will either have the Beam special rule, or be powerful Maulers that are simply too much for Jakartas to handle especially well. Shaltari bombers are at their worst equal to yours on paper, but the Shaltari will rarely find themselves fielding too many of them.
* **Resistance:** Resistance bombers suck against the UCM, to the point in which Jakartas can feel like insane overkill. The mediocore at best CAW of the Resistance also can make the Jakarta feel a tad pointless - however, they can prove useful in deal with small fireship attacks, although note that too many may overwhelm the capabilities of the Jakarta.

**Synergies:** Jakartas work best with your light/heavy/regular cruisers and battlecruisers - anything bigger tends to be able to look after itself well enough, and anything smaller tends to be expendable. Jakartas can work particularly well with light cruisers, being fast enough to keep up and serving as a great active scanner.

#### Lima - Frigate

**Role:** The Lima has a single role: to light up large enemy ships for your big UCM firepower battlegroups to alpha strike. It is efficient and effective at this role, but it is a rather niche role - the Lima tends to lose its utility past turns 3-4, once the majority of both sides have reached and/or crossed the center, and it is only useful in battlegroups that feature ships that benefit a great deal from weapons free. For example, there is little point in bringing a group of Limas in the same battlegroup as a pack of New Cairos - a Jakarta and a New Orleans can replicate the same effect, while having far more utility beyond just scanning.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** A Lima squadron could be useful in assisting in targeting some of the more powerful UCM ships that function effectively on standard orders, like the Osaka and New Cairo, but also work just fine against UCM Heavies and Super Heavies.
* **Scourge:** Full Cloak means most of the larger Scourge ships are completely indifferent to Limas, and while perhaps Limas may be useful in hunting down the extremely long ranged Hydra, and perhaps the rarely seen Scourge battleships, the majority of the Scourge are capable of and willing to close the gap in a manner that makes Limas lose their utility even faster.
* **PHR:** Limas can pair well with Kyivs to snipe the PHR's normally tough Medea strike carrier from a significant range, and in general can help the UCM target the powerful backline PHR heavy cruisers and battleships, like the Heracles and Bellerephon. The slow, but tough and decently armed troopships of the PHR can also make a compelling target, especially in the early stages of a game before they have been able to reach the center.
* **Shaltari:** The Lima can help mitigate the severe deficit the UCM has with regard to scan and signature against the Shaltari, giving the UCM a bit of alpha strike ability. It can also force a Shaltari player to be very calculated with their positioning and shield management
* **Resistance:** While useful when trying to get an alpha strike off on a Resistance Heavy or Super Heavy, an equal part of the Resistance's firepower and strength lies in Heavy Frigates, which are far from ideal targets for a Lima squad.

**Synergies:** The Moscow, Kyiv and Johannesburg function fantastically with the Lima, all gaining a great deal from weapons free and having easy to set up arcs. The Perth, Beijing and Tokyo can also gain a lot from the Lima, especially the Beijing, but these all require the set up their F(N) weapons, which is harder to set up, often requiring a double activation.

#### New Orleans - Strike Carrier

**Role:** Your basic, cheap, and cheerful strike carrier with little bells and whistles, balanced between the tankiness of the PHR's Medea and the speed of the Scourge's Gargoyle. While they are outperformed in the role of delivering dropships by the Lysander most of the time, the New Orleans has an additional role in serving as an active scanner - it's low sig and cheap cost makes it a good way to throw on spikes on the enemy for UCM cruisers and especially light cruisers. However be careful with this, as a ship cannot go down an orbital layer while scanning, and you cannot scan from atmosphere - try and do this early in the game.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** They have strike carriers and corvettes, you have strike carriers and corvettes, and they are all the same - I dunno what to tell you. I suppose Kyivs will make mincemeat of them pretty easily.
* **Scourge:** The speed of the Succubus and especially the Nickar give the Scourge a very wide reach with their anti-atmosphere options, so be careful with the positioning of your New Orleans.
* **PHR:** Jasons and Echos are the two threats to look out for, both being decent at taking out New Orleans easily. The PHR also have the option of throwing buckets of 6+ dice at New Orleans from low orbit, which is marginally effective, but they will typically have better things to do given how many dice they'll need to throw. If the PHR is relying on their bulk lander destroyers and troopships, keep your New Orleans as safe as you can - you need the efficiency of armour against infantry.
* **Shaltari:** The Glass is a decent counter to the New Orleans but lacks the Rear arc on its Ion Lances - this isn't so much something you can play around as much as it is just something to keep in mind and try and take advantage of if the chance presents itself.
* **Resistance:** The Munifex will easily take out New Orleans with its high amount of quality shots, but their threat range is low, especially once they get into atmosphere - try and abuse this with clever positioning. Also keep in mind that the Resistance lacks open on any of their strike carriers or bulk lander carriers, making their drop carrying ships far less flexible.

**Synergies:** Perths, New Cairos, Osakas, and Berlins love having the scanning support of a New Orleans. Aside from that, stick them in whatever group that allows them to come on early and get into atmosphere.

#### Santiago - Corvette

**Role:** Optimized to hunt down targets in atmosphere, this and Kyivs are your best option to go after strike carriers and Scourge Frigates in that orbital layer. A squadron of these can deny a cluster to enemy strike carriers until their own corvettes or re-entry equipped ships clean them out. As such they are a solid choice to accompany strike carriers to an objective or to deny a cluster to enemy strike carrier rushes. Just watch out for Jasons, Succubus, Kyiv, and enemy corvettes.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** In atmosphere your only enemies are Kievs and opposing Santiago, so it comes down to fleet composition and focus.
* **Scourge:** Very useful against a common Scourge tactic to hide frigates in atmosphere until your cruisers are within range for a pop up attack.
* **PHR:** Medeas have good armour, but little in the way of counter weaponry. It may take longer but your Santiagos will eventually burn them down.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari glass are faster, but even more vulnerable. Engage them outside of atmosphere if you can to take advantage of your superior lock.
* **Resistance:** Munifex are slower, and about the same cost, meaning you have a slight edge.

**Synergies:** Atmospheric and outlier make these ships relatively independent. You can go with larger SR groups of 6 to dive on a cluster or have smaller packs attached to other battlegroups to go in later to take out strike carriers in clusters without corvette support.

#### Istanbul - Monitor

**Role:** Monitors are backline support. Slow, but able to bombard clusters when in scan range. In this the Istanbul is ok, but generally you don't need to bombard a rear line cluster and you could replace that rear cluster with a space station with far better armaments for the cost of two Istanbuls. The UF-9000 is an ok gun, that could punish a battleship or dreadnought that is near the center of the map, but otherwise the Istanbul isn't going to dissuade opposing frigates or corvettes from sneaking into your backfield to attack your Limas or Venice.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Good scan range means that paired with active scanning you can take pot shots at larger ships, but the slow speed means this will be late game.
* **Scourge:** 2+ armour isn't going to save the Istanbul from scald attacks, but it could find some use taking out frigates in atmosphere that are hiding behind your main fleet.
* **PHR:** Generally, the Istanbul is less effective vs. the PHR, if for no other reason that any back line units like Jasons or Odysseus will bring firepower capable of dealing with it.
* **Shaltari:** A very poor choice against Shaltari, who would out range it with weapons that can ignore it's armour.
* **Resistance:** In general the larger sigs of some Resistance ships makes them a fair target, but most Resistance are not going to rush the UCM back line, or if they do, will do so with Sagitterri which can down them with weight of fire.

**Synergies:** Independent operators, they work best tag teaming on targets that already have a large spike or dealing with light cruisers attempting to rush a flank. Without outlier or open, you don't want to pair them with any front line ships.

#### Vienna - Escort Frigate

**Role:** An alternate to the Jakarta, the Vienna has Aegis and a pint-sized burn through laser. It fills much the same role of providing aegis support for larger ships, and with a lock 3+ gun can get a point or two of damage on larger ships. The baby laser's main benefit isn't damage, but the Flash rule, putting a minor spike on a target for follow on shots from your 2nd line ships. These tend to support your battle cruisers and battle ships as they don't have the speed to keep up with light cruisers or frigates. With Aegis and 2+ armor the primary benefit of these ships is toughness. Opponents can't rely on bombers or close action weapons to make a big dent in the group.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** the ship against UCM
* **Scourge:** Very effective, as Aegis is good vs. Scourge CAW, and 2+ armor (3+ when in scald range) is still significant.
* **PHR:** the ship against PHR
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari dedicated CAW is typically beam, and with abundant particle weapons, they usually can hurt Vienna easily. However, they typically don't want to be using Granites and Obsidian to take out destroyers. This can leave them in a quandary over what to target.
* **Resistance:** Much like the Shaltari, the resistance would much rather dedicate anti-armor weapons to bigger ships, while their 4+ lock artillery weapons will have a hard time vs. the 2+ armor.

**Synergies:** Pair this with Rios, Berlins, Moscows, Bejings or other brawler ships that intend to close with the enemy. Often they will be ignored and be able to drop some free spikes on ships for your rear line ships to focus fire on.

#### Havana - Destroyer

**Role:** The Havana has one of the highest threat radii in the entire game, only beaten by the bombers of the Hydra. The Light Torpedoes of the Havana are also versatile weapons - when all launched against a single target, they can be a powerful and consistent anti-armour tool, capable of laying serious hurt on larger targets in the early stages of the game but can also serve as a way to stunt incoming frigate groups, as a single light torpedo has a good chance of destroying a frigate without being ridiculous overkill. Light Torpedoes also have a niche against stations, as there is very very little someone can do to stop a group of Havanas from destroying a whole objective from the other side of the board. Outside of the Light Torpedo, the Havana essentially becomes an overpriced and less powerful Taipei - it still can find some use in sparring with Light and Medium ships, but don't take it for the CAW.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Just a decent anti-armour tool. Keep in mind that the middling range and want for weapons free that the UCM has on its larger gunboats means range is rarely an issue against the UCM.
* **Scourge:** Scourge frigates are capable of going into atmosphere to avoid launch assets, but the Havana and the Light Torpedo is unique in being able to target the Battlecruisers and Dreadnoughts of the Scourge from across the board. Torpedoes don't care about cloaks, so that Akuma trying to sit back and snipe away is in for a bad day.
* **PHR:** Light Torpedoes are both effective against anti-armor, and ignore the ECM shenanigans of the Calypso - and while they may lack the out and out damage to take massive chunks of HP from the PHR Super Heavy ships in the same way that a large Kyiv or New Cairo group can, they are more than powerful enough to put some serious hurt on PHR troopships and heavy cruisers. They are also great for stripping Calypsos and Ouranias off of battlegroups to allow an even fight.
* **Shaltari:** Shaltari can raise shields to deflect some torp damage, however this can come with a cost to signature. Torpedoes can also reach back line Motherships, Opals, Silicons and Hematites forcing the opponent to raise shields, make a course change, or both, which can massively increase signature and make them vulnerable to fire from the rest of the fleet.
* **Resistance:** Light Torpedoes are a good way to strip off Ablative Armour from the larger Resistance ships well before they are able to open fire, although most of the time you will be at a range advantage against the Resistance anyway. They can also serve as a good way to deal with Heavy Frigates, which typically are not going to be in range until they've already gotten themselves into the mix. A swarm can also pick off vulnerable Aldrins, Galileos and troop cruisers with impunity.

**Synergies:** Havanas don't synergize too well with any other ship, giving and getting very little from anything else in the UCM roster. Since their primary tool is a launch asset, they don't especially need to have a low SR either, although this changes in scenarios that use distant approach, as Havanas shine best in the earlier turns of the game. Do not underestimate the ability to drop torpedoes via a Venice boost on back line targets. Dropping 6 torpedoes on a Hematite on turn 1 can cause massive amounts of panic, raised shields, and follow on shooting.

#### Vancouver - Escort Carrier

**Role:** The Vancouver is one of the four options the UCM have to bring a lot of launch assets (the others being the Seattle, New York, and Washington), and is the most point efficient launch asset carrier in the entire UCM roster. The Vancouver has the lowest signature out of these options, along with the highest thrust - two highly advantageous features, especially for a launch asset based ship. Having your launch assets spread out across different groups can also be advantageous as well. It doesn't have much in the way of secondary systems, unlike the other UCM launch options, and it does compete in the highly competitive UCM Light slot, but the Vancouver is the UCM's cheapest way to bring a lot of launch assets. If Seattles are brawling with launch support, Vancouvers are best to hang back for fighter PD support early before moving to a flank for ranged bomber support. They are more vulnerable to cutter rushes of Reys or Ceasiums then your other launch options, but by the same token can drop bombers on said ships just as easily.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Jakartas are a cheap and easy way to deal with bombers, especially mediocre UCM bombers - although with enough of them you may be able to put some extra points of damage out - but UCM launch should not be the core of your strategy in this matchup.
* **Scourge:** The Scourge have to rely on fighters to boost their point defense, deterring them from utilizing their powerful bombers, and UCM bombers can serve as a way to go after ships with Cloak and Stealth.
* **PHR:** PHR bombers are very scary against the UCM, but if played correctly, you can force them to spend a great deal of their launch assets on fighters to counter your own bombers, which are decently threatening against the PHR - the only thing you need is enough bombers to pose a threat.
* **Shaltari:** Launch assets can often be a highly useful tool against the Shaltari, uncaring about their low signature, and forcing difficult decisions with regards to shields. However these cannot be the only part of your strategy, as the other side of the equation is the poor unshielded saves of the Shaltari, which need to be threatened by standard firepower.
* **Resistance:** Resistance fighters are fantastic, but their base point defense is poor - however you can keep on hammering away at them with bombers, as Resistance bombers themselves are not a huge threat to the UCM.

**Synergies:** The Vancouver is a decent active scanner, and the mechanics of launching launch assets encourage them to be spread out amongst differing battlegroups - as a result, they pair well with UCM cruisers, light cruisers, and perhaps the Perth battlecruiser.

#### Kyiv - Heavy Destroyer

**Role:** A UCM mainstay, the Kyiv can serve as a powerful armor buster and an effective anti-atmosphere tool, while having a good stat line that is only inferior to a UCM cruiser's stat line in hull. The Kyiv does need to go weapons free in order to maximize its firepower against high armor targets, but it can punch far above its weight whenever it does so - just be sure that whatever they are shooting at won't get a chance to shoot back, as Kyivs do not have the hull points to survive much return fire from the battlecruisers and battleships they will commonly go after.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** The decent all-around armor of the UCM makes the Kyiv an attractive choice - the 3+ armor of the Kyiv itself is also a selling point here as well, as it means a UCM player will have to fall back on their more dedicated anti-armor weapons, an annoyance when those weapons are normally intended to deal with larger targets.
* **Scourge:** The Kyiv will struggle to deal with the ships they typically want to go after most - the battlecruisers and dreadnoughts - thanks to Full Cloak and Stealth, but if a group of Kyivs is capable of getting into range, they will easily dispose of any ship unfortunate enough to end up in their sights. Kyivs are also capable of dealing with the atmospheric capabilities held by Scourge frigates like the Djinn and Scylla. Oculus Beam-based ships, along with the Scourge's bombers, can quickly deal with a group of Kyivs, and Kyivs should especially avoid ending up in close action range, given the quality close action weapons on most ships fielded Scourge, along with Scald.
* **PHR:** The Kyiv's offensive strengths are on full display against the PHR, as it's one of the best tools against the PHR's combination of good armour saves and higher than average hull. Aside from the obvious targets of PHR troopships, battlecruisers, battleships and dreadnoughts, the Kyiv can be especially adept at taking out Medeas, a useful trait against a ship that is normally highly resistant to fire from low orbit. However, the PHR's bombers and and Calibre (L) broadsides are capable of quickly and efficiently taking out Kyivs, and Calypsos can often render even the most potentially devastating attack from a Kyiv group ineffective.
* **Shaltari:** The Shaltari shield mechanic, especially when paired with the Opal, can often make Kyivs feel somewhat underwhelming when trying to use them against the larger Shaltari vessels. Voidgates can be fantastic targets though, as shield or not, Voidgates are unlikely to survive a single attack from a Kyiv. Shaltari Disintegrator Batteries and Ion Aura equipped ships are capable of dealing with Kyivs with some efficiency, but both Shaltari destroyers are especially well suited for dealing with Kyivs.
* **Resistance:** The decent to high armor values of the Resistance, especially on their larger Grand Cruisers and Grand Battleships means a group of Kyivs will find value from their armor busting abilities, easily stripping off Ablative Armour. The low speed and scan of the Resistance can also help a Kyiv group stay safe, leveraging their low signature. Heavy Frigates, especially when equipped with Vent Cannons is the biggest threat to the Kyiv, alongside the Scenca Detonator, being fast enough to quickly deal with a Kyiv group.

**Synergies:** The Lima complements the Kyiv very well, creating a powerful and fast battlegroup with a long range. In general the Kyiv works very well with ships that don't mind active scanning, such as the Jakarta or New Orleans - this is not only because it allows a Kyiv group to attack large, dangerous targets from a safer range, but because it also allows the Kyiv to target strike carriers and other atmospheric vessels in the atmosphere that might otherwise be out of reach.

#### Lysander - Stealth Lighter

**Role:** The Lysander performs the role of delivering dropships more effectively than the New Orleans, given that its faster and cheaper - however it has to rely on the atmosphere and its low signature to protect itself, as it dies instantly to most things that can shoot at it. Full Cloak allows the Lysander to take normally highly risky maneuvers, such as using Max Thrust to move up up the board to contest a cluster on the enemy side of the board without much risk. Stealth Observation is an often forgotten rule which is invaluable when using the equally often forgotten Surveying scoring method.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** The UCM have a moderate number of dice to throw at Lysanders from low orbit, and an ok tool to deal with the Lysander in the Santiago. However dropships and armour will struggle against more bombardment focused UCM fleets.
* **Scourge:** The Scourge have speedy anti-atmosphere vessels that can quickly move to deal with a spread of Lysanders. However, the speed of the Lysander, which matches that of the Gargoyle, may allow the UCM to take a bit more initiative when it comes to positioning and the ground game.
* **PHR:** The PHR have the sheer number of dice at hand to threaten the Lysander with massed 6+ fire from low orbit, and have decent anti-atmosphere tools to deal with them, however the PHR's typical reliance on bulk landers over dropships makes the Lysander attractive as a cheap source of armour, while the relatively low speed of the Echo means the Corvette may struggle a tad more to deal with a spread of Lysanders in comparison to other Corvettes.
* **Shaltari:** The Shaltari's Glass is probably the best equipped ship among all the factions to destroy Lysanders given its high threat range and number of attacks. Even Voidgates are capable of taking down Lysanders in a somewhat timely manner if there are enough of them present.
* **Resistance:** The Resistance only have one anti-atmosphere ship in the Munifex, but like the PHR, they have a volume of fire that allows them to potentially deal with Lysanders through throwing handfuls of 6+ dice at them. Their low scan and thrust does make this far less reliable and often the Lysander can get some early drop in uncontested.

**Synergies:** The Lysander is a highly valuable ship. The speed and relative safety of full cloak allows it to reach clusters on the other side of the map, often shooting through the enemy fleet on Max Thrust orders to safely dive into atmosphere turn 2 on a cluster 36" away. It seldom needs to work with other ships, and few UCM ships can even keep up with it. Low SR groups are preferred, as then you can activate early and escape to the safety of atmosphere. In an emergency the Lysander can also reach those rear line space stations and drop troops on them in order to turn an opponent's guns back on themselves.

#### Reykjavik - Cutter

**Role:** Fast and bosting firepower equal to the Kyiv these are currently the king of UCM Lights. Good against other light ships, cruisers or even heavier ships they are easy to use, and the biggest danger lies in overextending them without support from the rest of the fleet. Paired with a Venice, they can often threaten ships 40' away or take out strike carriers rushing to a cluster first turn. Hull 5 makes them decently survivable even if their armour is only 5+. Generally, you should leave your opponent nothing left to return fire.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** Take out Limas and Venice hiding in the back line, then turn to take out their first wave of ships from the rear.
* **Scourge:** Cloaked ships hate these things, as they can get close enough to get a firing solution and do enough damage to strip cloaking from the target ship in many cases.
* **PHR:** Lock 3+ is effective against PHR armour, and these can target PHR support ships like Calypsos that are shielding their larger battleships and dreadnoughts.
* **Shaltari:** Target motherships to auto win the drop game, just watch out for the equally OP Ceasiums.
* **Resistance:** Brutal against the slower, blind Resistance ships. Watch out for the Baleares and Saggiterri.

**Synergies:** The only thing they really need is active scan support.

#### Nuuk - EM Harasser

**Role:** A support ship intended to force targets onto standard orders, this is currently a very hard ship to use properly, as the ideal targets are large battleships that want to go weapons free for full effect. Those tend to be in the center of fleets, making it hard to get a shot off consistently. The most common usage then is to dive on a target for a critical turn before your opponent destroys the Nuuks in retaliation. As of the v2.5 rules these now apply a Power Fluctuations status effect, damaging ships if they use special orders and knocking them out of silent running. However this isn't a huge buff and often you can knock ships out of silent running via an active scan. For now, leave these ships at home.

**Matchups**

* **UCM:** the ship against UCM
* **Scourge:** the ship against Scourge
* **PHR:** the ship against PHR
* **Shaltari:** the ship against Shaltari
* **Resistance:** the ship against Resistance

**Synergies:** ships that work well with this ship, typical battlegroups