New Company of Heroes 3 DLC just added four fearless factions to the WW2 RTS

Company of Heroes 3 has just introduced four more factions to its roster, all focused around more ambitious strategies. The WW2 RTS game continues to deploy battlegroups DLC, and new addition Dare and Destroy is a bundle with the potential to approach combat in a variety of distinctive ways. Stall enemy assaults with a strong defensive line, aim to punch through enemy fortifications with mobile siege specialists, harass your enemy backline and deny resources, or simply aim to outpace your foes with sheer military might.

The new Company of Heroes 3 DLC Dare and Destroy pack starts off with the ‘Free French’ battlegroup, which is actually a US Forces specialization that excels at defenses and stalling tactics. It employs French rifle sections who can construct field defenses and lay landmines. Specialize them into offensive tactics with grenades, focus on holding out with improved damage reduction while retreating, or call upon railway artillery to clear the area.

Unlock the Maginot Line upgrade for defensive turrets with anti-tank capabilities, which you can then either upgrade into forward medical points, or areas for reinforcements to arrive through underground lines. You’ll then be able to employ concrete bastions and gates to lock down zones even tighter, restricting infantry and vehicle movement. Finally, fight back with the Char B1 heavy tank, shrugging off enemy fire as you push back against your aggressors.

Prefer to be on the attacking side? The Wehrmacht gets the ‘Siege Breaker’ battlegroup, designed to find even the smallest crack in the enemy line and break it wide open. Its siege specialists deploy all manner of explosives, which you can support using a dedicated, bunkered-down mortar team. Alternatively, push in with reinforced combat vehicles equipped with S-mine launchers – deploying the devastating anti-personnel mines known best as ‘Bouncing Betties.’

By assigning a vehicle as your siege leader, it takes less damage from the front, with no munition costs and significantly reduced ability cooldowns. Or you could recruit the Sturmtiger heavy tank; each shot it takes might require an involved manual reload, but its giant 380mm shells will leave nothing behind. Equip your troops with satchel charges, incendiary grenades, and breach capabilities to use them with reckless abandon, or flamethrowers to flush out entrenched enemies.

The British ‘Special Service’ battlegroup are hand-picked “for their tenacity, resolve, and ability to improvise.” Its three-man commando section will infiltrate enemy sectors, disrupting supply lines from within, or using Lewes bombs to level buildings and neutralize vehicles. The SSB sniper can pick off infantry from range or slow vehicles by targeting their operators, while desert raiders deprive the enemy of their supply lines and steal munitions for your own use. Alternatively, recon tools can intercept enemy movement, and the Havoc ability creates “longlasting damage that is difficult to repair.”

Upgrades for the Special Service let you blind your enemies with the photo-flash bomb of Operation Thunderclap, or uncover dead drops across the map that can provide healing, vehicle repair, and reinforcement. The 30CWT desert trucks boast mobility without sacrificing firepower, and you can even call on the RAF to provide air support, overwhelming defenses and breaking enemy morale.

The last addition on the list is the ‘Elite Forces’ battlegroup for the Deutsches Afrikakorps. Want to dominate the battlefield? Panzer grenades and Kar 98K rifles put your troops at a headstart; support them with a surplus of medical supplies and first aid training, or instead inspire them to avoid incoming fire and earn bonus experience for clearing enemy sectors. Call in Stuka spotters to grant your vehicles unobstructed vision of the nearby area, or the Ace Squadron strike wing, which ranks up and gets deadlier with each strafing run.

If you’d rather lean into heavy armor, the Command 8 Rad can capture territory, boost allied fire rates and experience bonuses, or call in light artillery strikes. The Field Modifications upgrade makes your vehicles stronger, while Long War Veterans gives specialist training to your crews, increasing their experience gain and combat proficiency. Lastly, you can either unlock the elite Tiger Ace heavy tank, or refit your Panzer 3s and StuGs with stronger weaponry.

Company of Heroes 3: Dare and Destroy is out now, priced at $24.99 / £19.49. You can take a closer look here if you’re eager to put these new factions through their paces.

Alongside this expansion, Company of Heroes 3 update 2.4.0 deploys a wide range of balance changes across the core game. Relic has been targeting buffs to mobile anti-air, a reduction in stutter-stepping and firing delays for infantry combat, and adjustments to late-game pacing. It notes that there’s still too much of a reliance on ‘blobbing’ together mass infantry units, so expect “wider changes that affect the overall game starting in update 2.5.0.”