Company of Heroes 3 – Scarlet Bison (2.2.0) is live as of 10am PT and brings new multiplayer maps, four fresh Battlegroups, major balance shifts and a long list of bug and stability fixes. The update ships alongside the Endure & Defy Battlegroup DLC and adds four new Battlegroups for multiplayer and co-op: US Forces – Italian Partisan, Wehrmacht – Last Stand, British Forces – Polish Cavalry, and Deutsches Afrikakorps – Kriegsmarine. Players should expect new tools for sabotage, improvised defenses, heavy weaponry and naval fire support to affect how matches open and close.

Relic says many fixes came from player feedback; the patch mixes quality of life and stability work with aggressive multiplayer rebalancing aimed at slowing early call-ins, reworking heavy tanks and changing faction systems like the Afrikakorps Armory. Four community maps join the pool: Bologna (1v1), Wadi Darnah (2v2), Oliveto Citra (4v4) and Powderkeg (4v4). The update also reallocates a few large maps into higher player-count pools after a resize investigation: (4) Semois and (4) Djebel Pass now appear in 2v2; (6) Road to Primosole is in the 3v3 pool. Map fixes and QoL touches include consistent fuel-point icons, new loading screens, and dozens of small pathing and cover adjustments across the competitive pool.

Vehicle loading and tank riding were overhauled: infantry disembarking now follow a vehicle’s attack-move, vehicles keep momentum when loading, and move commands can be queued after load. Reinforcement and garrison systems changed so units can reinforce inside holds and occupants no longer die when a constructed garrison is destroyed. Garrisons now grant a +50% damage reduction while occupied. Other broad changes: casualties remain alive far longer to allow medics to reach them, medics per structure were reduced, vehicle collision and pathing were smoothed to reduce phasing, and direct-fire team weapons no longer provide light cover when exposed.

Without further ado, you can find the full patch notes below:

General

• Several stability fixes addressing rare crashes during loading and save-game operations 

• Battlegroup abilities that appear on the right side of the screen are now sorted bottom-up with active abilities coming before passive abilities, resulting in a more predictable allocation of ability hotkeys 

Maps

New Maps added to all modes

Bologna – (1vs1) 

Community mapmaker Brian makes his debut in this wonderfully realized urban battlefield. Controlling each plaza and securing your flanks are key to survival in Bologna. 

“We are losing ground everywhere. The earth feels heavier beneath my boots now than it did just days ago. This once-beautiful city is our last stand in this cursed campaign. Orders from the high command are clear: hold the city at all costs. But what “costs” are they prepared to pay?”

Sightlines are key in this bombed, urban landscape. Maintain control of plaza and courtyard alike, and prepare for flanking attacks between ruins.  

Wadi Darnah – (2vs2) 

Community mapmaker TheSphinx made serious waves with this new North Africa map. Beautifully designed and expertly crafted, this map was well-deserving of the first place prize in GBPirate’s latest map making competition. 

In the barren regions of North Africa – where only sand, stone and the most stubborn of foliage persist – water has become the most valuable resource. 

Settlements and armies alike, since the Ancient Romans, have clung to any source they can, often in the form of Wadis, which run through shallow gorges and avoid the baking heat of the sun. 

Oliveto Citra – (4vs4) 

Community mapmaker DutchToast makes a return with another vast 4vs4 map. Oliveto Citra features distinct lanes of hedgerows and critical areas for our players to battle over. 

The Germans have dug in a central defensive line, cutting off access to the main road in an attempt to secure the local logging operations for the war effort – a scar across the countryside. 

Once secured, the allies can push through to San Angelo and then onto Monte Cassino.

Powderkeg – (4vs4) 

Surrounded by groves, vineyards, and long outer approaches ideal for wide rotations, Powderkeg combines a compact urban center with expansive outer farmland.  With multiple approaches into and around the center, teams have plenty of room to dictate where the fight happens 

“Freedom is like air: you realize how precious it is once you start running out of it.” – Piero Calamandrei 

The Armistice of Cassibile arguably marked the most dangerous turn of events for Italian Partisans. Fathers, brothers and sons that were destined to return home to their families after Italy’s surrender were instead press-ganged into service or servitude under the Wehrmacht. Italy was not free – it was held hostage. Over 70,000 Partisans, ex-soldiers and civilians were killed in combat or reprisals – a harrowing toll for a nation under occupation by its former ally.

Map Quality Of Life Improvements

We have multiple bug fixes and improvements across our Multiplayer Maps, Thanks as always to feedback on the Official Discord. Please be sure to leave comments in the map-feedback section if you have any additional map feedback or issues for future updates.   

• Fuel Point icons on Tactical Maps have been updated to be the same quality. A smaller scale version was being used for some points 

• Unique loading screens have been added, featuring this update’s new units and maps 

• The default skirmish map (the first map players will see when loading their first skirmish on a fresh installation of Company of Heroes 3) has been changed to (2) Blinder Alley 

• (2) Crossing in the Woods – minor adjustment to heavy cover in the West and East corner fuel points, better balancing how much cover they provide on the offence and defence 

• (2) Tuscan Vineyards – Reduced dense sections of vineyards to better enable ultra-light vehicles to path around the map. Minor adjustments to cover and pathfinding 

• (2) Villa Fiore – Minor adjustments to blocking rocks, preventing units from firing through cliffs. Additional adjustments to heavy cover outside the Northern HQ sector that isn’t mirrored on the Sothern sector. All cover in these areas are now light cover 

• (4) Day 101 – Removed duplicated foliage, which was causing lighting errors and flickering 

• (4) El Alamein – Added an atmosphere transition to improve visibility as matches run longer. Minor adjustments to map craters and to the Western Victory Point 

• (4) Road to Primosole – Territory has been adjusted to reduce reliance on the outskirts of the manor, pulling resources closer to the map’s center and frontline 

• (6) Catania Crossing – Minor adjustments to blocking rocks, preventing units from firing through cliffs 

• (6) Gothic Line – additional blockers have been added to the concrete bunkers featured in the maps central cliffs. This will help prevent Anti-Tank guns from firing through the terrain 

• (8) Black Gold – Added ultra-light impass under a large rock formation near the Northern depression, preventing ultra-light vehicles from clipping into the cliff 

• (8) Monte Cavo – Updated the Eastern entrance to the central compound, enabling better access for ultra-light vehicles. Our recent changes to ultra lights made one entrance impassible to them unintentionally. We have also added additional locations for off-map units to enter behind the player HQs. Previously they were forced to enter via the road in the HQ areas 

• (8) Sousse Stronghold – Added ultra-light impass to a large rock formation, preventing units from clipping into the terrain
  

Resize Investigation

As part of our ongoing balance and quality of life improvements to the map pool, an investigation was started into some of our most heavily downvoted maps. Among them, it was determined that some feel too large for the number of players they were originally made for. After some experimentation it was determined that three maps in particular were suitable for adding additional players. 

• (4) Semois has been added to the 2vs2 map pool for Quick Match, Custom Games, Skirmish and Vs AI modes. 

• (4) Djebel Pass has been added to the 2vs2 map pool for Quick Match, Custom Games, Skirmish and Vs AI modes. 

• (6) Road to Primosole has been added to the 3vs3 map pool for Quick Match, Custom Games, Skirmish and Vs AI modes. 

The above maps feature larger HQ areas and some minor adjustments to their territory layouts to accommodate the increased player counts. 

The original maps, (2) Semois, (2) Djebel Pass and (4) Road to Primosole will all remain available in their respective game modes for now. 

General Gameplay 

Core Mechanics 

Vehicle Loading & Tank Riding  

Tank riding and infantry loading have been overhauled to improve responsiveness and coordination between squads and vehicles. 

• Infantry that disembarks from a tank now follow that vehicle’s attack-move command, preventing them from being left behind during pushes  

• Vehicles no longer come to a full stop when loading infantry. Instead, they retain momentum, making combined-arms advances more fluid  

• Move commands can now be queued after a load command 

Reinforcement & Garrison Improvements  

Units inside holds are now easier and safer to use.  

• Infantry can now reinforce while inside buildings, halftracks, and other holds if a reinforce source is nearby, opening more tactical options for mobile or fortified play 

• Losing a constructed garrison (such as bunkers or fighting positions) will no longer kill its occupants, encouraging players to hold positions longer without being punished for committing to defensive structures 

• Engineers in holds will automatically ungarrison to repair when commanded 

Vehicle Pathfinding & Collision 

Vehicle movement has been adjusted to create cleaner, more predictable interactions on the battlefield.  

• Opposing vehicles are now less likely to phase through each other, allowing intentional body-blocking and positional traps  

• Allied vehicles can still soft-pass through one another to prevent traffic jams, and exceptions remain on bridges or tightly enclosed paths where no alternative route exists

Campaign

• Fixed softlocks in missions Capture Gela Square and Wreckoning 

• Loyalty no longer decreases when declining popup missions 

• Updated the distress call dialog to clarify mission launch options 

• Fixed Monte Cassino bombing event plane spawns 

• Adjusted artillery barrage hotkey positions for Indian Artillery Company 

• Fixed incorrect icons and notifications for depots and affectors 

• Fixed narrative and tooltip inconsistencies across missions 

• Fixed Partisan Siege spawning in Winter Line towns 

• Fixed Uphill Battle mission icon resolution 

• Fixed Flak 36 reinforcement crew issue 

• Fixed Sherman 76mm upgrade misplacement on command card 

• Fixed campaign loyalty and resource cache build requirements 

A.I.

We did some focused playtesting and iteration vs the A.I. for this update. We noticed a number of critical issues that were making it less satisfying to play with and against. The following changes should improve the experience of playing with the A.I., though don’t expect it to take the top spot on the leaderboard just yet. The A.I. will have some new clever behaviors and a more verbose set of tools at it’s disposal. 

• Added new flanking behavior for infantry and light vehicle units when engaging with team weapons

• A.I. will reposition less in short range encounters. Previously the A.I. units moved around so frequently it reduced their damage-per-second and caused them to lose most engagements

• Can now use Indirect Fire Abilities such as Nebelwerfer barrages

• More frequently use important anti-vehicle abilities such and Panzershreks

• Performance optimized for games with A.I. players

• Increased likelihood for placing emplacements to help secure points

• A.I. will retreat from engagements less often. Preferring to tough it out in fights that aren’t 100% optimal to wait for backup or delay enemy advances

• Added new logic to support more intelligent usage of Battlegroup abilities. This will lead to the A.I. using some abilities that they previously would not, or would rarely use, such as saving up for a heavy tank.

Multiplayer Balance 

General 

Battlegroup Call-In Units 

Battlegroups that have 0 CP call-in infantry have too much momentum against standard builds which require a starting building to be established. These Battlegroups can outnumber their opponent or take early map control, allowing them to snowball into the mid-game. 

Furthermore, we have noted that certain vehicle-based call-ins have short recharge times, allowing multiple vehicles to be deployed in quick succession. 

The following change will delay the arrival of early call-in infantry units and increase the delay between subsequent vehicle call-ins 

• 0 Command Point Infantry – now start on a 25-second initial cooldown before they can be deployed. Fallschirmpioneers and Heavy Machinegun Paradrop are unchanged 

• All non-heavy tank and non-ultralight Battlegroup vehicles recharge standardized to 120-seconds 

Generalist Heavy Tanks 

Significant changes have been made to obtaining heavy tanks. Currently these units are too effective in small game modes, while in team games, the game often ends before they can arrive. 

The changes below allow heavy tanks to arrive sooner when the player techs up, while delaying and increasing the cost to get a single heavy tank without the correct structure. 

We have also increased the Veterancy requirements of heavy tanks that levelled up too quickly, and their population has been increased to better reflect their effectiveness, which is better than two standard medium tanks. 

End-game Structures – Tank Depot, Panzer Kompanie, Company Command Post, Panzer Armee Kommand 

• Now immediately grant 2 additional Command Points to the player once construction is complete for a total of 3 

• Discounts the cost of generalist heavy tanks by 20% manpower and 20% fuel once the end-game tech structure has been built  

Wehrmacht Tiger, Pershing, Black Prince, and King Tiger 

• Manpower increased by 30% for all listed vehicles 

• Fuel costs increased from 180 to 250 

• Command Point cost increased by 1 

All Generalist Heavy Tanks – Wehrmacht Tiger, Pershing, Black Prince, King Tiger, Afrikakorps Tiger 

• Population standardized to 24 

• Experience values increased and standardized to 3440/10320/20640  

Generalist Mediums – Wehrmacht and Afrikakorps Panzer IVs, M4A1 Sherman, Sherman Easy 8, Sherman 76mm, Grant, Panzer III 

The veterancy of medium tanks is being changed to be more impactful. Previously, a medium tank with Veterancy struggled to stand out, even once it got to level 3. We have also changed their Veterancy to have a greater emphasis on anti-vehicle performance, rather than anti-infantry power. 

• Veterancy 1 

  • +15% Main Gun Accuracy (Affects both the Grant’s cannons) 

• Veterancy  2 

  • +20% Weapon Penetration  

  • +30% Rotation Rate  

• Veterancy 3 

  • +25% Weapon Attack Speed 

  • +80 Health  

  • Unique Bonus remains the same for each tank; Panzer III’s unique is a higher rate of fire bonus
    

Crew Shock Critical 

The effectiveness of the Crew Shock is being increased, allowing infantry to be more effective at slowing down and weakening enemy tank assaults. 

• Duration increased from 5 to 7.5 

• Now lowers affected units rate of fire by 33% while active 

Light and Medium Anti-tank Guns 

We are increasing the size of mobile anti-tank gun squads to improve their survivability against explosive weapons and tank shells, while leaving them vulnerable to small-arms fire. 

Furthermore, anti-tank guns will be more effective as they gain Veterancy with a focus on increasing offensive power. 

• Crew size increased from 4 to 5 

• Crew health reduced from 100 to 90 

• Veterancy 2 traverse speed changed to +15% attack speed/rate of fire 

• Veterancy 3 rate of fire bonus reduced from +35% to +30% 

  • Note the 2-pounder does not receive these changes to attack speed from veterancy 

Towed Anti-tank Guns – Flak 36, 17-pounder Anti-tank Gun, M5 3-inch Anti-tank Gun 

The heavy anti-tank guns had a little too much health per entity when combined with their large squad size. We are reducing their health to make it easier to clear these weapons when not properly supported. Note the M5 crew is having its health increased by 5, as it was previously lower than other heavy anti-tank guns. 

• Crew health lowered and standardized to 105 

All Direct-fire Medium Team Weapons – Anti-tank Guns, Flak Guns 

Direct-fire team weapons are too resistant to small arms fire when in the open due to the weapon providing cover. We are removing this, so exposed team weapons are vulnerable to infantry assaults. 

• No longer provide light cover 

Observation Posts 

Observation Posts will now increase manpower income when placed on Strategic Points to bring it in-line with all other resource points.  

• Now grants +20 manpower when built on Strategic Points 

Casualties 

The time a casualty remains alive has been increased to give players more opportunities to interact with casualties and allow medics to reach them on larger maps. 

• Time duration increased from 30/40 to 140/150 

Recovery Medics – Triage and Medical Bunkers 

Medic counts are being reduced to account for the increased time casualties remain on the field. 

• Medic count reduced from 2 to 1 

Garrison Combat Bonus 

It was too easy to kill units inside constructed garrisons – any area of effect weapon was incredibly deadly to the occupants inside, resulting in squads always wanting to be outside the garrison past the early game. 

Combined with the change to constructed garrisons not killing their occupants on death, players will now be able to seek shelter in their defensive structures rather than it being safer to stand outside. 

• Now provides +50% damage reduction to units affected by the garrison 

Constructable Bunkers, Fighting Positions and Fighting Nests 

• No longer has a chance to kill occupants. Units emerge undamaged 

Light Artillery – Pack Howitzer, heavy Mortar, Le. IG 

• Light Artillery auto-fire range increased from 100 to 125 

Smoke Bomb Runs – Airborne and Breakthrough 

• Smoke Bombing Runs bomb count increased from 5 to 7 

• Smoke Bombing Run coverage increased from 25 to 35 

Sandbags 

• Build time increased from 5 to 6 seconds 

Grenades and Flamethrowers 

• Should now detonate mines they hit that are within their splash radius
  

US Forces

The US Forces are receiving significant improvements to the Barracks and Motor Pool which have been underperforming. The changes to the faction reduce the volatility of Riflemen openings, while Motor Pool has better shock value and longevity when combined with the changes to anti-tank guns. 

Grenade Package 

The cost of the Grenade Package is being reduced, giving Barracks play easier access to Frag Grenades, but more importantly, the Sticky Bomb to ward off early vehicles.  

• Fuel cost reduced from 15 to 10 

Scout Squads and Variants 

We are locking Utility Package behind tech to make it harder to negate early machine guns – Scouts are already effective against Heavy Machineguns by spotting them from range, allowing players to avoid or flank them. This change also allows us to push back the camouflaged Heavy Machineguns found in the Terror Battlegroup. 

• Utility Package now requires a Support Center 

Riflemen Squad 

Riflemen damage-per-second is too low at medium and long-range, leading to a binary play pattern of the unit needing to close-in at point-blank or avoid ranged engagements. Their inability to punish units at range or fight defensive battles is also a major weakness in team games where there is less room to maneuver, and armies are consolidated. Furthermore, the squad is weak against ultra-light vehicles when forced to fight at range, making the Barracks vulnerable to early 250s. 

To address these issues, we are increasing the damage-per-second of Riflemen at medium and long-range with a focus on rate of fire. These changes will allow Riflemen to trade with infantry in cover battles and ward off early ultra-light vehicles.  

• Manpower cost increased from 260 to 270 

• Damage-per-second increased at mid-range by around 10-15%, long-range by roughly 50% 

  • Rifle far-accuracy increased from 0.33 to 0.35 

  • Rifle mid and far aim-time multiplier sped up from 1/1.5 to 0.75/1 

  • Rifle mid and far cooldown multiplier sped up from 0.5/0.9 to 0.4/0.6 

  • Squad leader submachinegun accuracy increased from 0.53/0.46/0.29 to 0.56/0.55/0.37 

  • Squad leader submachinegun far aim-time multiplier sped up from 2 to 1 

  • Squad leader submachinegun far cooldown multiplier sped up from 2 to 1.5 

M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle 

The Browning Automatic Rifle is receiving significant improvements to its long-range firepower. The BAR will still be a weapon focused on short-to-medium range firepower but will allow Riflemen to wear down their opponents from range when closing the distance is not possible. 

• Damage per second increased significantly at long-range by 100% 

• Accuracy increased from 0.6/0.4/0.29 to 0.6/0.46/0.42 

• Far aim-time multiplier reduced from 1.5 to 1 

• Far cooldown modifier reduced from 2 to 1.1 

• Mid-range distance reduced from 22.5 to 17 

Captain Retinue 

The Captain’s Mark Vehicle was too powerful for a free ability on a cheap unit, as it already gives accuracy, penetration, and reveals the target. 

• Mark Vehicle no longer increases damage by +25%
  

4×4 1/4 ton-Truck  

With the changes to Armored Battlegroup, we have room to give the 4×4 improvements in the early game as a combat unit – durability and anti-ultralight performance have been improved with only a minor cost increase. 

When combined with the improved Riflemen, the 4×4 offers valuable harassment potential and support against other ultra-lights. 

• Manpower cost increased from 200 to 220 

• Health increased from 180 to 200 

• Penetration increased from 1.825/1.65/1.45 to 2.25/2.15/2 

• Self-Repair ability and Advanced Self-Repair immediately ends if the unit enters combat 

• Advanced Self-Repair can no longer be triggered in-combat 

M3 Armored Personnel Carrier 

• 75mm Anti-tank Conversion upgrade time reduced from 40 to 30 

M8 Greyhound  Armored Car 

To improve the Greyhound’s role as an early shock/anti-infantry unit, its cannon’s area of effect damage has been increased.  

• Area of effect damage increased from 0.5/0.3/0.3 to 0.75/0.4/0.4 

• Experience requirements reduced from 1200/3600/7200 to 1100/3300/6600 

M24 Chaffee Light Tank 

For such a costly unit, the Chaffee has underperformed, relying heavily on the Armored Battlegroup to remain efficient. With the changes to Armored, we are now able to improve the performance of the Chaffee in its vehicle-hunter and support role. 

In addition to increased firepower and mobility, we have also introduced a new upgrade/ability, allowing the Chaffee to act as an armored scout, helping it spot for the Motor Pool’s anti-tank guns or reveal gaps in enemy defenses that can be exploited. 

• New ability – Recon Mode – Disables all weapons and Smoke Shot ability but increases vision range by +25. Toggle ability. Toggle recharge of 15 seconds between modes 

  • Requires a 50-munition upgrade before it can be used 

• Reload speed sped up from 3.5/4 to 3.25/3.75 

• Acceleration and deceleration increased from 3.5/5.5 to 5/6 

• Rotation and pivot rate increased from 55/45 to 60/55  

• Experience requirements reduced from 1200/3600/7200 to 1100/3300/6600 

M4A1 76mm Conversion 

The anti-infantry performance of upgraded Shermans allowed the unit to overshadow specialist vehicles. With the upgrade always being available in the Tank Depot, one could build a critical mass that could tackle all threats. 

The upgrade will now only improve anti-armor performance; in exchange the upgrade will see a cost reduction. 

• Cost reduced from 175 manpower and 40 fuel to 150 manpower and 30 fuel 

• 76mm no longer improves anti-infantry performance, retains the same power as the standard 75mm gun 

  • Area of effect damage reduced from 0.83/0.35/0.2 to 0.84/0.25/0.15 

  • Angle scatter increased from 7 to 10 

Battlegroup Changes

Advanced Infantry Battlegroup  

Infantry Assault 

• Munitions cost increased from 125 to 150 munitions 

Heavy Weapons Battlegroup 

M26 Pershing Heavy Tank 

The Pershing was too quick on the battlefield, allowing it to easily avoid anti-tank units and chase after opposing armor. We are reducing the unit’s speed and rotation rate while still retaining the unit’s identity as the fastest heavy tank. 

• Speed reduced from 5.85 to 5.3 

• Rotation and pivot rate reduced from 40/38 to 35/32 

Special Operations Battlegroup 

Assault Operations 

Assault Operation’s bonus was very powerful against infantry but ineffective in the late game where area-of-effect damage is common. We are changing the bonus, allowing Assault Operation to have a greater impact against a variety of foes, while reducing how powerful it is against small-arms fire. 

• 30% received accuracy changed to 15% damage reduction 

M4A1 Sherman Whizbang 

The Whizbang is having its double barrage removed, following a similar system to the Stuka while also having its health lowered, making it easier to destroy when caught out of position. 

• Health reduced from 720 to 600 

• Long-range rocket barrage now sets all barrages on a 30 second cooldown after firing 

• Rockets with now always collide with objects like buildings 

• Long-range Rocket Barrage ability will attempt to arc over tall obstacles 

Armored Battlegroup 

The Armored Battlegroup has received a significant revamp of its layout to make choices between various picks and which side of the tree to start with more impactful. 

New Battlegroup Layout and Command Point Costs 

Field Repairs 

Field Repairs has been revamped to give the player greater flexibility in its use and to give Armored Battlegroup the ability to support allies in team games.  

• Cost reduced from 70 to 35 munitions 

• Is now a targeted ability that can be used on a friendly vehicle, healing that vehicle for 20 health per second for 45 seconds. Combat causes this healing to be paused until the unit leaves combat for 10 seconds. Can be used on allies

M8 Scott SPG 

• Barrage recharge time reduced from 60 to 45 seconds 

M4A3E8 Sherman Easy Eight 

With the Easy 8 becoming an exclusive choice against War Machine, its price is being reduced while its machine guns will no longer be weaker than the standard Sherman to reinforce the unit’s position as one of the strongest medium tanks in the game. 

• Cost reduced from 440 manpower and 110 fuel to 375 manpower and 105 fuel 

• Hull and coaxial machine guns now function similarly to those used by the standard M4A1 Sherman Medium Tank, increasing the vehicle’s anti-infantry damage output

Wehrmacht

Transfer Orders 

Transfer Orders has been adjusted to transfer experience between squads, making it easier for Wehrmacht to transition out of Grenadiers, while still retaining a high premium to make transferring a major choice early game. 

• Now transfers experience of the Grenadier to the newly spawned unit 

• Recharge time increased from 60 to 120 seconds 

• Ability now moved out of the Infanterie Kompanie and now appears on the left-hand command bar  

Kettenkrad Reconnaissance Vehicle 

This is a quality-of-life improvement, allowing the Kettenkrad to use any of its abilities or construction options without opening a menu. 

• Buildable mines no longer appear in the build menu; they appear in the unit ability panel instead, reducing the clicks to access them by 1 

Grenadier Squad 

Grenadiers are having their long-range damage increased to allow them to better trade at distance and make rushing them more dangerous. Furthermore, their grenade will now be available at the start of the game, allowing them to push enemies out of cover for the MG 42 or provide short-range defense. 

• Damage-per-second at long range increased by 7.5% 

  • Far accuracy increased from 0.625 to 0.6475  

  • Far-aim time reduced from 1.25 to 1.1 

• Now have access to the M24 Stick Grenade at the start of the game 

• Grenade Assault cost reduced from 45 to 35 

MG 42 Team 

• Build time reduced from 25 to 20 

• White Phosphorous Round duration increased from 30 to 60 seconds 

Jager Squad 

Changes regarding the removal of camouflage stripped a considerable amount of their power and has made the unit a little lackluster for an advanced infantry unit. To compensate for those prior changes, health is being restored back to its original value. 

• Health increased from 100 to 110 

Battlegroup Changes

Luftwaffe Battlegroup 

Luftwaffe Relay 

• Manpower cost reduced from 175 to 150 

Terror Battlegroup 

Camouflaged Machine Guns 

We are pushing back the timing of this Battlegroup ability as it could be oppressive to fight against and to create greater competition with its alternative, Heavy Gunnery. 

• Command Point cost increased to 1 

No Quarter 

• Trigger range increased from 18 to 25 

Jericho Trumpets 

While the Jericho debuff could be powerful, it competed with Propaganda Leaflet Drop as both abilities are anti-infantry based. To keep the ability’s cost high to prevent spam, we are giving Jericho Trumpets additional utility, providing the Wehrmacht Battlegroup roster with much needed reconnaissance. 

• Provides vision over the target area when the planes arrive and reveals camouflaged units 

• Now can be used in the fog of war 

Breakthrough Battlegroup 

2.5 Tonne Utility Truck 

The truck has been adjusted to now reward the player for using them on larger resource points with even greater rewards if they are used on Victory points. 

• No longer takes up population and has no upkeep 

• Generates manpower on strategic points like caches 

• Resource generation now similar to caches, increasing based on the resource size 

• Manpower cost reduced from 200 to 150 

• Generates all resource types on victory points, those are counted as medium points for fuel and munitions 

Coastal Battlegroup 

Artillery Overwatch Abilities 

The following change is being made to make this artillery ineffective at destroying the bunkers that call it in. Previously, an opponent could use a fast unit to draw attention of the overwatch, so it lands on bunkers and destroys them. 

• Now have a 75% damage penalty against all bunkers 

Artillery Officer 

We are making changes to the Artillery Officer’s overwatch ability to make subsequent barrages faster. The long delay between barrages made the ability ineffective at punishing enemies that remained in the zone for a prolonged period. 

• Barrage initial delay increased from 2 to 3 

• Shell height spawn reduced from 400 to 300

British Forces

Infantry Section  

The Boys anti-tank rifle is having its anti-infantry performance increased to make the weapon less detrimental to the squad at later stages of the game. Do note, that the Boys Anti-Tank Rifle is still weaker than the standard rifles used by the Infantry Section.  

• Boys Anti-Tank Rifle no longer has a 23% accuracy penalty against infantry 

M3 Stuart Light Tank 

To reduce how quickly Stuarts can be massed, fuel costs have been adjusted, making each individual vehicle more expensive, but the initial unlock cheaper. 

• Unlock fuel cost reduced from 25 to 15 

• Unit fuel cost increased from 40 to 50 

Churchill IV Heavy Tank and Matilda Heavy Tank 

The role of the Churchill and Matilda is to absorb enemy-fire, however, this results in them giving considerable amounts of experience to anti-tank units, diminishing their breakthrough role as they indirectly make the enemy stronger. 

The amount of experience they give will be lowered to reinforce their role as a durable frontline unit with only modest firepower. 

• When damaged/killed by the enemy, these units give enemies 33% less experience than usual 

Humber Armored Car 

The Humber is seeing a slight nerf to its cost and build-time to delay its arrival onto the battlefield. 

• Build time from 30 to 45 seconds 

• Manpower cost increased from 240 to 260 

Battlegroup Changes

Air and Sea Battlegroup 

Commando Support Section 

• Manpower cost reduced from 320 to 280 

• Hawker Strafing Run delay reduced from 2 to 0 

  Naval Blockade 

Naval Blockade has been revamped to allow a player to temporarily lock enemies out of a single territory point, allowing more time to stall out a capture and bring reinforcements to intercept. 

• Now a targeted ability that prevents a friendly territory point from being captured for 30-seconds. 45 munitions, 120-second recharge time 

British Armoured Battlegroup 

Crusader AA Medium Tank 

• Rapid-fire ability rate of fire bonus reduced from 75% to 33% 

Indian Artillery Battlegroup 

War Cry 

War Cry has been adjusted to be a short, but powerful combat boost that is cheap to use to better reflect its position as an early ability choice in the Battlegroup. Recharge time has been increased to make it critical for players to use this ability at the correct moment. 

• Munitions cost reduced from 100 to 50 

• Duration reduced from 30 to 15 

• Recharge time increased from 90 to 180 seconds 

Gurkha Rifles Section 

Gurkhas anti-infantry firepower is being increased to better reflect their role as a dedicated specialist unit. Because they compete with the versatile Infantry Section and the timing of friendly and hostile light vehicles, they struggle to compete with such options that would justify their cost-to-effectiveness. 

• Rifle accuracy increased from 0.704/0.62/0.48 to 0.81/0.713/0.552 (+15%) 

• Thompson damage increased from 5 to 5.25 (+5%) 

• Grenade Assault wind-up decreased from 1.5 to 0.5 

ML 4.2 Inch Heavy Mortar Team 

• Manpower cost reduced from 440 to 400 

Australian Defense Battlegroup 

Australian Light Infantry Section 

• Veterancy 2 Sharpshooter no longer instantly kills infantry, instead increases the damage of the ability from 60 to 110

Hold the Line 

• Command Point cost increased from 2 to 4

Over Repair 

Over Repair is having its set-up time increased significantly, requiring players to have more down-time before the benefits are applied.  

• Health bonus reduced from 120 to 100 

• Time to set-up increased from 5 to 20 seconds 

• Added a status decorator timer that counts down to completion when a unit is being Over Repaired  

Canadian Shock Battlegroup 

Canadian Shock Section 

Canadians are having their medium and short-range damage increased. For an expensive infantry unit that lacks anti-infantry upgrades, the unit relied too much on their grenade to deal damage. 

• Damage increased from 12 to 14 

• Far aim-time and cooldown modifier increased from 1.5/1 to 2/1.5

Deutsches Afrikakorps 

Major adjustments have been made to core systems of the Afrikakorps to address major issues the faction has including: 

• Armory Upgrades provide too much accumulation of power in prolonged games 

• Armory having a default upgrade path for majority of strategies 

• Reliance on infantry being near combat vehicles to be effective 

Reworked Afrikakorps Armory Upgrades 

The previous Armory system allowed too much power in prolonged team games and lacked internal competition between choices. To resolve this issue, we have reworked how the Armory functions. 

Now players will have exclusive choices between each tier of Armory Upgrade, requiring them to decide what aspects of their army will be improved. This allows us to keep upgrades powerful but also limits how many bonuses can be stacked and creates greater opportunity cost in both choice and resources. 

General Change to Armory 

• Upgrades per Armory Level – (row they are in) – are now exclusive and cannot be purchased together. Leads to only 3 Armory Upgrades allowed total per match 

• All Armory Upgrades take 60 seconds to complete 

Armory Upgrades Cost  

• Level 1: 125 manpower 

• Level 2: 125 manpower and 20 fuel 

• Level 3: 175 manpower and 50 fuel 

Level 1 Upgrades 

• Panzergrenadier Bolster 

  • Increases Panzergrenadier squad size by 1 

• Combat Halftracks 

  • Armor bonus increased from 5 to 5.5. Still grants access to Mortar and 250/9 Halftracks 

• Advanced Repair 

  • Repair speed bonus increased from 2.5 to 4

Level 2 Upgrades 

• Smoke Package 

  • Gives +20% speed, +15% rotation rate. Allows use of smoke launcher ability. Applies to all vehicles 

• Emergency Repair Kits 

  • +40 health, auto-repairs 6 health per second when out of combat and stationary. Applies to all vehicles 

• Veteran Squad Leaders 

  • +25% experience rate, +10% damage reduction. Applies to all infantry 

Level 3 Upgrades 

• Survival Package 

  • +80 health, enables capture/decapture of territory by vehicles.  Applies to all vehicles 

• Tungsten Rounds 

  • +25% weapon penetration, +25% anti-vehicle damage on main guns. Applies to all vehicles 

• Advanced Optics 

  • +7 vision range, +20% weapon accuracy and weapon scatter accuracy. Applies to all vehicles 

Combined Arms 

The Afrikakorps’ infantry was too powerful when working alongside vehicles, but were cost ineffective when operating outside Combined Arms range, forcing the faction to remain grouped up for maximum combat effectiveness. 

We have reworked Combined Arms for infantry, moving their offensive bonuses directly into their base stats, allowing them to fight small skirmishes more effectively. The defensive bonuses for both variants of the ability have been removed to increase the importance of cover over having a vehicle nearby. 

Combined Arms now changed to the following effects: 

• Infantry 

  • +15% speed, +33% ability recharge speed 

• Team Weapons 

  • +15% speed, +10% rate of fire 

Afrikakorps Infantry have received offensive buffs in compensation 

Panzergrenadier Squads 

The Panzergrenadiers are receiving a boost to their Veterancy 3 to improve their late-game performance.  

• Rifle accuracy increased from 0.673/0.66/0.465 to 0.73/0.726/0.5115 

• Rifle near aim-time increased from 0.5 to 0.65 

• MG 34 accuracy increased from 0.396/0.312/0.2544 to 0.4356/0.3432/0.27984 

• Veterancy 3 accuracy bonus increased from 15% to 20% 

Panzerpioneer Squad 

Panzerpioneers are having their capture speed reduced to place more emphasis on Panzergrenadiers and the Kradschutzen to capture the map. Panzerpioneers having the increased capture speed allowed the Afrikakorps to snowball too quickly and search for engagements with the 250 before the opposition was ready. 

• Rifle accuracy increased from 0.75/0.688/0.625 to 0.825/0.7568/0.6785 

• Capture speed reduced from 1.15 to 1 

Kradschutzen Motorcycle Team 

We are reducing the power of Tracer Marking which allowed a supported Kradschutzen to deal incredible amounts of damage with supporting infantry in the early game. 

• Tracer Marking received accuracy debuff reduced from 15% to 10% 

• Self-repair ability immediately ends if the unit enters combat/is damaged  

250 Light Carrier 

Adjustments to the 250 have been made to make it easier to push back in the early-gameand more vulnerable to flank attacks, in exchange for a cheaper cost. Its veterancy healing ability has also been made less efficient and moved in-line with other healing abilities as it could allow the Afrikakorps to maintain the pressure with full health infantry squads with minimal downtime. 

• Manpower cost reduced from 250 to 230 

• Frontal armor reduced from 6.5 to 6 

• Rear armor reduced from 3 to 2 

• Onboard Medics ability no longer heals units during combat 

Panzerjager Squad 

The camouflage of the Panzerjager is being delayed, allowing opposing light vehicles to have more freedom in choosing their engagements, without always having to worry about hidden anti-tank units. In return, the Tear Gas Round duration has increased, giving the player more time to punish units that have been hit. 

• Camouflage now requires Veterancy 1 

• Anti-tank Tear Gas Round Veterancy requirement removed 

• Tear Gas aim-time reduced from 1 to 0.5 seconds 

• Tear Gas debuff duration increased from 3 to 5 seconds 

• Tear Gas recharge time increased from 30 to 45 when outside of Combined Arms 

Assault Grenadier Squad 

Assault Grenadiers could be oppressive in the early game with their Assault Disembark ability, allowing them to defeat multiple squads and give the faction strong momentum. However, the unit scaled poorly and took a long time to gain Veterancy for a dedicated close-quarters-combat unit. 

In addition to the Combined Arms change, Assault Disembark is being locked behind Veterancy, but the unit will now scale faster and deal significantly more damage once it has reached Veterancy 3. 

• Submachinegun accuracy increased from 0.513/0.37/0.23 to 0.5643/0.407/0.253 

• Thompson accuracy increased from 0.6/0.3135/0.171 to 0.66/0.34485/0.1881 

• StG 44 accuracy increased from 0.65/0.45/0.35 to 0.715/0.495/0.385 

• Veterancy requirements reduced from 900/2700/5400 to 800/2400/4800 

• Veterancy 3 ability recharge bonus replaced with +25% damage 

• Veterancy 3 accuracy bonus reduced from 30% to 15% 

• Assault Disembark now requires Veterancy 1 

• Assault Disembark always triggers when disembarking from vehicles, regardless of state 

Panzer III Medium Tank 

With Armory upgrades becoming exclusive choices, the Panzer III is receiving a small health increase to give it increased staying power as players may not opt-in for any health upgrades. This also reduces the unit’s reliance on Armory upgrades to be effective. 

• Health increased from 600 to 640

Battlegroup Changes

Armored Support 

Flammpanzer III Medium Tank 

• Fuel cost increased from 55 to 65 

Italian Combined Arms 

Bersagileri Squad 

This change reduces some of the impact of the call-in changes for subsequent squads as the Bersagileri, while effective at gaining map control and swarming the enemy before they have enough units to respond, have weak combat stats for their cost. 

• Call-in ability recharge time reduced from 75 to 60 

Italian Infantry 

New Battlegroup Layout

Sound the Alarm 

• Rate of fire bonuses reduced from 50% to 25%; affects overall attack speed now 

• Now affects allies in the territory zone, not just the owning player’s units 

L6/40 Light Tank 

The following change reduces the impact an early L6 has where it can run down and destroy early game infantry squads while the Afrikakorps player did not need to invest into tech for such a powerful anti-infantry unit. 

• Is now a single vehicle call-in

  • Costs changed from 425 Manpower and 75 Fuel (for 2 vehicles) to 220 Manpower and 40 Fuel (for one vehicle) 

• Flamethrower upgrade now requires Fire Support Elements or Mechanized Kompanie 

Panzerjaeger Kommand 

Defensive Positions 

With the change to Combined Arms, Defensive Positions has been adjusted to allow the Afrikakorps to play a heavier infantry composition that can quickly move around their territory without the support of vehicles. 

• Changed to allow infantry squads and team weapons in friendly territory to gain the Combined Arms bonus without requiring a vehicle nearby 

Early Warning 

The change to recharge time allows a Panzerjager player to establish more zones that they have vision over. 

• Recharge time reduced from 120 to 60 seconds 

Butterfly Bomb Drop 

To reduce the frustration players have with this ability which could be dropped on retreat paths, Butterfly Bombs will now require vision like traditional off-map abilities. In return, we are reducing its cost to make it affordable to set up conventional minefields. 

• Can no longer be dropped in the Fog of War 

• Munition cost reduced from 120 to 100 

Crew Shock Tactics 

• Duration decreased from 25 to 20 seconds 

Anti-Tank Overwatch 

• Delay before a new target can be acquired increased from 0.4 to 0.9,  

• Reduces the ability’s rate of fire from 14 rounds per 30 seconds to 10 rounds per 30 seconds

Audio

• Fixed missing or incorrect audio cues for abilities and missions 

• Reduced the chance that audio warnings (for units taking losses or being attacked) would be reduced in volume if they did not occur on screen 

• Fixed missing Height Advantage warnings 

• Fixed warnings for Heavy Tanks introduced in Fire and Steel. Some were not being called out as Heavy Tanks when attacking the player 

• Change to global SFX for rally point drop via the minimap / off camera 

• Fixed continuous tank sound bugs in Rescue Private Norton mission 

• Improved artillery and mortar sound variations 

• Improved Mortar/75mm sounds – M8 Scott, HalfTrack Stummel, and Stug G and D Assault Gun.   

• New weapon firing effect for the M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle 

• New cannon sound effects based on weapon class for certain units:  

  • Low Variant would be the low velocity version, a slower projectile. – M4A1 Sherman, Chaffee, Semovente 

  • Medium Variant is a high velocity 75, an armor piercing projectile – Panzer IV, M4A1 Sherman 76mm, Pak 40 ATG, Sherman Easy 8 

  • High Variant is the most powerful of the three adding some propelling elements to simulate a faster/heavier projectile – Hellcat, Marders, Panther

Art & VFX

• Fixed missing destruction effects on certain props 

• Corrected animations for emplacements and infantry transitions 

• Adjusted VFX for artillery abilities and flare visibility 

• Fixed water VFX for the Pershing tank 

• Fixed production building orientation and scale 

UI/UX

• Improved hotkey allocation for Battlegroup abilities 

• Fixed tooltip inconsistencies across multiple factions 

• Added numerical values for Campaign Company stats 

• Improved the unlock display number values for Abilities when in-mission in the Campaign

• Updated sorting rules for cosmetics and loadouts 

• Fixed cooldown warnings when quitting 1v1 quickmatch 

• Improved decorator clarity for garrisoned units 

• Fixed passive abilities taking hotkey slots 

• Fixed Buttoned debuff decorator duplication 

Localization

• Updated translations for cosmetics in several languages

Stability

• Fixed a crash when loading save games with certain cosmetics equipped 

• Fixed a crash when closing the game during match loading 

Bug Fixes

• Fixed invincibility bug when vehicle upgrades completed during death critical 

• Fixed reinforcement times and costs for certain team weapons 

• Reinforcement penalty now applies only outside HQ sector 

• Pyrotechnics effect no longer stacks 

• Fixed Hulldown vehicles rotating incorrectly 

• Fixed multiple conversion upgrade issues on M3 Halftrack variants 

• Fixed Goliath detection range and flare cover bug 

• Fixed Stuka Dive Bomb to guarantee penetration against vehicles 

• Fixed grenade abilities not applying friendly fire 

• Fixed Whizbang rockets overshooting on long-range barrage 

• Fixed Crusader Heroic Charge recharge logic 

• Fixed multiple towing failure cases for Anti-Tank guns 

• Fixed an issue that would cause Terror Battlegroup’s “Interrogate” ability to fail to complete. 

• Fixed some misaligned FX with coax guns 

• Battlefield Espionage’s Plunder ability now grants a weapon from Churchill Crocodile wrecks 

• Fixed an issue where the Afrikakorps’ production buildings took additional damage if projectiles/explosions hit the truck portion of the building 

• M3 75mm AT Halftrack no longer continues its barrage ability if it gets interrupted by a conversion to a different halftrack type like the M16 Motor Carriage 

• Fixed an issue where certain units had higher than normal reinforcement times 

• Salvaging a wrecked vehicle now visually pops up the manpower & fuel resources gained 

• Added generic casualty icon for abilities like Interrogate and No Man Left Behind 

• Fixed toggle abilities getting stuck in an active state when spammed 

• Offensive Resupply now only affects grenade and breach abilities 

• Attacking Spirit and Offensive Resupply fixed to require a Canadian Battlegroup player with the respective tech unlock to be near or performing the decapture, so allies can’t trigger it on their own. All allied members nearby the triggered effect will still receive the buffs 

• Converting an M3 Armored Personal Carrier to a 75mm anti-tank will no longer retain its ‘Fortify Position’ cooldown onto Barrage if the cooldown was active when converted 

• Fixed the tool-tip of the 8rad Commander Mode status decorator to be correct and in-line with the ability description 

• Fixed an issue with the Point Assault tool-tip when hovering over the status decorator displayed on the territory point 

• 251 conversion should now preserve the Permanent Hulldown upgrade state and remain immobilized 

• 251 Medical’s Handbrake is now disabled and hidden when it’s affected by Permanent Hulldown (either while it’s in progress being applied or after application is succeeded) 

• Updated an Afrikakorps Accolade Challenge to reflect the changes to the Armory 

• Goliaths can now be spotted by detector units 

• Fixed L6/40 Spotting Scope upgrade not being applied when unit is moving 

• Fixed an issue where US Paratrooper Grenades were not included in infantry ability-related challenges 

• Fixed some abilities such as the Chaffee’s smoke shell sometimes not being cancellable 

• Fixed an issue where Ambush Camouflage would appear in singleplayer campaign for machine guns 

• Fixed an issue where infantry at squad sizes above 6 could not Tank Ride 

• Fixed an issue where certain indirect-fire teams had the incorrect reinforce cost 

• Fixed a case where territory capturing was able to progress while constructing 

• Fixed an issue where the Kettenkrad gained much further detection range than intended at Veterancy 2 

• Fixed an issue where No Quarter did not show the correct icon on the unit command card 

• Fixed an issue where the Crusader Heroic Charge could recharge in-combat when the unit was not being attacked by the enemy 

• Fixed a case where Leaflet Drop did not properly force moving enemies to retreat 

• Fixed an issue with the Scout Squad’s Smoke Drop falling through terrain 

• Fixed an issue where some targeted vehicle abilities would remain active after the target had moved into the fog of war 

• Fixed an issue that prevented Artillery Officers from targeting buildings with Artillery Overwatch 

• Fixed an issue where certain team weapons would have a crew member in front of the weapon team 

• Snare/Crew shock on an M3 right before it upgrades or converts to a different type no longer causes the snare/crew shock to become instantly removed 

• Neutral buildings that have garrisons disabled are no longer selectable and do not show icons for garrisonable structures 

• Fixed scatter penalty while moving not being applied to some weapons such as US Ranger bazookas 

• Prepared Positions in the Afrikakorps Italian Infantry Battlegroup now shows as a passive on team weapons and the Italian Infantry Heavy Machinegun emplacement 

• Removed the Crew Shock kicker from blind effects 

• Buttoned debuff now only visually shows one of the deflected or penetrated versions at a time and fixed a case where the wrong version was actually being applied 

• Added exact numbers to Campaign Company health, veterancy, and movement point tooltips 

• Demolition Charges on Royal Engineer Squads in multiplayer now only appear on the build menu when Demolition Engineering is unlocked

Company of Heroes 3

Developed by Relic Entertainment

The legendary strategy franchise is back! Company of Heroes 3 is the ultimate package of action, tactics and strategy. Take charge in the heat of real-time battle, then command as a General guiding the overall campaign where every decision matters. ​

Overwhelm your opponents with new and familiar factions, units, and international Battlegroups. Command ground, air and naval forces and build supply lines to crush enemy advances on the new Dynamic Campaign Map - no two playthroughs are ever alike! Play at your own pace across campaign and skirmish modes before diving into blistering multiplayer action. Discover the untold stories of a stunning Mediterranean theatre, featuring next generation destructible environments, all powered by Relic's proprietary Essence Engine.

• Genre: Real Time Strategy (RTS), Strategy, Turn-based strategy (TBS), Tactical
• Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 5
• Modes: Single player, Multiplayer
• Release: 2023-02-23
• Publisher: Sega
• Age Rating: ESRB M PEGI 18 USK 18 CERO D GRAC 19+ CLASS_IND 16 ACB-MA 15+ CLASS_IND 16 / USK 18 / PEGI 18 / GRAC 19+ / CERO D / ACB MA 15+ / ESRB M
• IGDB Rating: 60.2/100

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