Lots of strategy games like to imagine what the Cold War might have looked like if it had gone hot, with Soviet and NATO forces clashing across Europe and beyond.Broken Arrowinstead envisions a fully modern conflict, showcasing the Russian Federation and its military as it exists today.

Playing as Russia in Broken Arrow means relying on small, specialized detachments to get the job done. From a gameplay perspective, this makes the faction less forgiving of mistakes overall. If you’re not sure which units to deploy, try these top picks - they offer the most reliability overall if you don’t know what your opponent has in store.

Recon

Russia’s Recon units have plenty of infantry, vehicles, and drones to match the USA, but youmay need to tinker with their loadoutsin the Armory a bit more to get the precise setup that works for you.

PDSS

The PDSS areone of the game’s best infiltration units; their high Stealth helps them close to lethal range with their weapons, which can shred infantry and light vehicles in an ambush, and theirdecent Armor rating and smoke defenseshelp them survive long enough to fade away without taking any casualties.

PDSS units are alsoamphibious and able to paradrop, so nowhere is safe from them.

The only real disadvantage to the PDSS is that theycan’t mark units with lasers, but they’re so deadly on their own that they might not need to.

Orion Drone

While you canoutfit Russia’s drones with weapons, their default use is forobservation and laser guidance.The Orion is head-and-shoulders above its peers in this regard, witha much longer Optics range.Try to keep at least one Orion in the air at all times so that your enemy can’t do anything without you knowing about it.

Infantry

Russian infantry squads tend to bebetween four and eight soldiers, and are typically centered around a heavy weapon. They can’t afford to be out of cover for any length of time, soalways deploy them in vehiclesand fortify them in buildings straight away.

Desantniki

Desantniki are unique among Russian infantry units in Broken Arrow in that theyactually have strength in numbers.They aren’t that much more expensive than their more specialized counterparts, either, so if you really need to hold a position,having a few more bodiescould be the difference between success and failure.

While the Desantniki are primarily used for fighting other infantry and maybe taking out light vehicles with their grenade launchers, they also have a rocket launcher and enough rounds to make tanks and helicopters think twice before approaching their position.

Shturmoviki

Shturmoviki don’t have the punch of Russian heavy weapons squads, but they can do some considerable damage with their grenade and rocket launchers,and they’re among the cheapest infantry options for the Federationat only 50 points. If you just need to hold a position until the proverbial cavalry arrives, the Shturmoviki are a cost-effective way to do so.

Vehicles

The Russian tradition of big tanks with big guns is alive and well in Broken Arrow; the faction is a treadhead’s dream to play.

T-90

The T-90 tank is agreat economy choice.It’s only slightly slower and less armored than its larger counterparts like the T-90M and T-72B3, but has similar firepower for a much lower cost.

T-14 Armata

If you’ve got the resources to spend, the T-14 Armata haseverything you need to seize control of a tank battle.Its main gun canobliterate nearly any ground target in one to two shots, and it has two machine guns and plenty of active countermeasures to defend itself as well.

Deploying the T-14 is expensive,costing nearly 400 points, so ensure that you can protect it, especially from above. Once your opponent sees it, destroying it will likely become their top priority. The cheapest radar vehicle available to Russia is the Biryusa, which will run you another 80 points.

Support

Russia’s support vehicles are expensive, but well worth the cost for the extra options they offer.

PTS-4 Duplo

Thisamphibious transporthas a large capacity for both vehicles and infantry, making it a great way to get a large force somewhere that would otherwise be blocked by water without risking an air drop. Be sure tocover its advance with smoke roundsor provide an escort, though, as it doesn’t have stealth or any defenses to speak of besides its Kord HMG.

2S19M1 Msta-S

Artillery is very effective if you’re able to set up a fire mission safely, so even a single Msta-S is capable of turning the tide. You’ll need forward units, ideally Recon, to spot targets, but once the shells start falling, your opponent will have little choice but to give ground or take heavy losses.

Helicopters

Russian helicopters make great workhorse troops, able to keep control of the skies at a reasonable cost.

Ka-52 Alligator / Ka-52K Katran

The Alligator and the Katran have identical costs, and are tied for thefastest choppers in the Russian arsenal.The primary difference is their armament; the Katranhas greater armor penetration but fewer missiles, while the Alligator can stay in the fight longer with more rounds, but might struggle against extra-hard targets.

Ultimately, which helicopter you choose is a matter of preference, but in most cases the Alligator should be able to handle anything the enemy throws at it.

Mi-8MTV-2 Pchela

The Pchela is a great transport helicopter for infantry, and it has a little bit of room for vehicles too. With a decent speed and enough armaments to defend itself, it can usually reach its target unescorted, but it’s better to be safe than sorry and clear the way before committing to a drop.

Aircraft

Russian planes focus on air superiority, with awide array of fighterscompared to bombers and gunships. Make sure that enemy radar units don’t spoil your fun, and you’ll be able to do plenty of damage from above, provided you have enough resource income to fund expensive air missions.

MiG-35

The iconic MiG islightning-fastand is bristling with weapons; if something is on the field, a squadron of MiGs can make it go away. Of course, that effectiveness comes with a price; each plane costsover 400 points to deploy, and their low fuel capacity means they can’t stay in the air for long. The strategy with these planes is to get in, blow something to bits, then get back out.

Tu-22M3

This bomber has one of the better payloads for its cost, coming equipped with threeKh-32bombs capable of destroying nearly any target from above. They’re alsofaster than the more-expensive Tu-142, helping them reach their target in a timely manner.

The only real drawback to the 22M3 over the 142 is itssmaller fuel tank, which can prevent it from making strikes deeper in enemy territory.

Technically, it also has five fewer hit points, but planes are fragile enough in Broken Arrow that if they’re taking any damage at all the extra health won’t matter in most cases. All in all, the extra speed and bigger bombs for 50 fewer points are well worth the tradeoff.