How to deal with Commandos

[puschit]

So, there is a new deck that is seen everywhere. Well, it's actually not new at all but due to the recent additions of cards like Commando Raid it got out of control ... or does it?
Before, Commando decks were annoying but far from unbeatable. Like many british decks it just didn't feel good to lose to it. But the commando play had to work for his meal, had to make smart decisions when to play his few commandos. The new incarnation can generate so many of them that they can just spam them, wasting a few isn't a problem, so they can afford to play sloppily. This is the main factor why this deck is so popular right now - not the actual winrate. It's easy to play now.

But, there are actually TONS of cards that work well against commandos and the associated deck! And I don't mean specific niche cards that are next to useless in other matchups. So I thought I'll list them to give you some tools and ideas. If you think I missed something, feel free to suggest in the comments, I'll keep this first post up to date. But don't suggest regular removal like The Hammer - of yourse it does kill a commando but not in a especially efficient way.

Note that some cards only work against unbuffed Commandos. But if you got enough tools to deal with them, the opponent will sooner or later be forced to play them unbuffed. This is a general thing: Don't just defend yourself. You still need to pressure the commando player.


GERMANY
Buzz Bomb is great because it kills an unbuffed commi right away and if they are already buffed you can just aim at the HQ and draw a different card. Same applies if the opponent plays a different deck.

Nebelwerfer is not that great here but a solid pick in general, killing an unbuffed commi right away.
Similarily, Dive Bombing can be used just for a cheap unbuffed kill while the extra ability will most likely not do anything against Commando.dec, but it comes in handy against other decks like the also popular russian tank deck.

Eagle Claws now has a safe spot in my GER/US midrange tempo deck thanks to commandos.

Rally is an excellent underrated card that is back from Reserved status. It doesn't do anything against commies but the commando deck typically relies on pin for defence. Rally can surprise them hard, winning you tempo and the damage race. And thanks to the +1 damage and especially the card draw this is never a useless card, regardless of the opponent!

Crossfire works great against commies, especially if you have enough other cards that do some damage. Typically the opoponent will have commandos of various toughness levels due to Cup of Tea and such. Crossfire will wipe the board clean with a littl bit of planning. Doesn't work nearly as well against other decks, I am still experimenting but thought I mention it anyway to give ideas.

113. Schützen sports the fight mechanic which is useful in general. It ignores smokescreen and other combat rules so it'll just squash a commando and still leaves a warm body after the ordeal.

Pak 40 is a universally useful card since it only cares for the cost, so it will kill commandos no matter how much they are buffed.

Heinkel HE 219 is a funny one since the opponent will ping himself with his commandos if it hits your HQ. Since commandos deal their damage randomly this will average in 5 damage to the UK player. So, if you stay in the damage race, this is a good choice, especially if you also have Rally in your deck.

Comet just won't be there when the commandos shoot. Of course that means more damage to your HQ, so, again, you need to keep the tempo and/or on top of the damage race (which this list is all about).

Maus . There is nothing more satisfying against a commando player than plopping down this super-heavy tank, killing all of his commies buffed or not and dealing massive damage to him in the process! Now, I don't recommend to put this in your deck because it's way too clunky but you can get it from Afrika Korps and Contest Doctrine !

USSR

Winter Warfare , obviously.
Bloody Sickle , one of the most played cards in the game, still holds true. Even if it doesn't kill, you still draw a card, so this is a no-brainer.

456th Rifle Regiment will statistically grow at the same pace it gets damaged, so it will only die to bad luck against commandos. It's also it's own deck, so there's that. If you run a russian-self-damage deck, the commando player might be in trouble from the get-go.

60th Cavalry Regiment should be in way more decks than it currently is. Doesn't do anything against the commandos but severly hampers the opponent in his ability to cast orders. Has decent stats for 2 kredits and wreaks havoc on a selection of other decks as well, most notably japanese self-kredit-denial.

KV-1 1941 is a traditional enemy of any UK based decks because they love to draw extra cards. Here it will also soak up 6 damage. It messes with so many decks that I consider it an auto-include in any deck that runs the USSR main.

4th Guard Rifles are super-strong against most decks. Against commandos they soak up 9 damage and propose an immediated danger when blitzed to the front. Since the commando player draws a lot of extra cards this will be cheap or even at 0 kredits. Try to hold to them until then and count how many No.9 Commando they already played (because these guys can ruin everything).

JAPAN

Out of the Mist says thank you for the commie on top of killing an unbuffed one. Since this is also golden against jaggro and other aggressive decks, this should be in virtually any japanese deck.
Tora! Tora! Tora! probably doesn't need explanation.

2nd Raiding Brigade doesn't care for smokescreen, usually kills even buffed commies since it only looks for power. Is useful against most decks and cheap and fast enough to be a staple.

On The Ascent can swipe ALL of them AND add them to your hand ... just let them kill all of your guys until they are among themselves and then disband their boygroup!

USA

Vicious Salvo is a monster against commandos, usually killing one and leaving two more suppressed. Note that suppressed commis also lost their smokescreen and are attackable now. Saved my a$$ in many other matchups, too. Vicious card!

327th Pathfinders deserves a mention because if it's able to kill a commando and isn't dealt with immediatedly it will continously bounce back commandos, which removes any buffs they may have had.

442nd Infantry Regiment will soak up a lot of damage that consequently won't hit you or other units. Commando damage will only ever be dealt during their turn so unless the commie player can suppress it, this unit will just come back again and again.

Calliope is like a tougher Nebelwerfer that can kill 2 unbuffed commies upon deployment. It costs more to operate but that's less of a concern against commandos.

Devil's Brigade deserves a mention here. Even after it got nerfed it's a very useful card in general. I didn't list a lot of other cards that do some damage and can therefore kill an unbuffed commando, for example 95th Rifle Regiment, simply because those cards are only found in specialized decks. Devil's Brigade, however, is useful in and against about any deck due to it's combination of 1 damage + blitz for a reasonably kredit cost. It's also able to maintain tempo, which I can't stress enough is important against commando decks. That's why ...

... 101st Airborne is also a nice package, albeit on the more expensive side of things. But if you play a ramp deck and have problems with commandos, maybe swap one of your greedy endgame cards for this one.

Stars and Stripes is still a great card, the more commandos there are, the better. It can deal with 3 commandos that got a Cup of Tea once.

Bomber Mafia is on double duty here: Not only does it provide the ramp player with an 2damage-AOE, it can also develop B-24J which will silence up to 3 commandos. Devastating against about any deck.

Cyclone Division adds A LOT of HP to the battlefield that the commandos need to chew through! The division itself has 8 for 6 kredits but you also get a Sherman which may draw you extra cards and if the Division manages to flip it'll be repaired for free.

UK

The Desert Rats is universally useful thanks to the additional pin and therefore also used by the commando decks themselves.
Similarily, for brit air decks Albacore MK I is always useful but due to the higher cost and not being an order itself. Blackburn Skua MK II should be mentioned here as well since it's an excellent card in general, but maybe a bit too slow against commandos. Should not be your main weapon against them but additionally they are good.

Claim the Skies due to the fight part.

P-40 Kittyhawk is a staple for a reason. Kill a small dude while getting a unit with decent stats is always a good choice against any deck.

MINOR NATIONS

The White Death was once a hated card but by now players are beginning to embrace suppression, even if it's dreaded mass-suppression :)

Detached Batallion 4 like previous units, if it kills a commando upon deployment while having decent stats and abilities beyond that and if it also works against most other decks, it will make this list.

IN GENERAL
*Cards with veteran are useful because they "repair" themselves when flipped.

*Cards with covert won't get damaged by commandos until revealed. This means you'll get more damage to your HQ but it allows to amass units and to set something up (or to outright win with .

*Non-infantry-units with blitz because they can hit the opponent at least once before getting nixed by commies and usually can't be pinned between playing and attacking.

*Units with destruction will always get you at least the triggered ability which can be problematic for the commando player because he can't control when and if it'll hit them.

* It goes without saying that mass removal is nice.


As you can see that's an awful lot and I didn't even touch regular removals like Sudden Strike which all work, too, of course, they just don't add anything special against commandos and if you simply trade 1-for-1, you will not be able to get ahead. However, some of these cards in addition to the above and you'll have more than enough to beat them. For example, the mentioned Sudden Strike will be used when a commando has been buffed too much while the Devil's Brigade kills the unbuffed one.

Now let all of that sink in and revise your decks, I am pretty sure you can improve them, not just for this particular matchup.

[romy]

good job.

[ZoGoN_DragoN]

Thanks