Command an Army Beginner Guide: Units, Counters & Tips

Command an Army exploded from around 6,000 concurrent players to over 40,000 in a single week, according to community reports, and that surge has dumped thousands of brand-new commanders onto battlefields where nobody explains the rules. If you have been losing match after match without understanding why, this Command an Army beginner guide will fix that. Below, you will learn the troop counter system, the best starter units worth investing in, how ascension and evolution work, and the attack and defense habits that separate winners from players who feed kills all match.

Start With the Tutorial and Lock In Your Controls

Helpful resources: complete codes list, beginner guide, and tier list.

The tutorial is short, but it teaches every control you will use for the rest of your time in the game. Do not skip it. You will learn how to command troops, attack enemies, hold positions, rush retreating players, destroy gates, and capture objectives — all of which come up in every single match.

The most valuable takeaway is the Follow command. Pressing C makes your entire army follow you, which is how you reposition your whole force instead of leaving units scattered across the map to die one by one.

Troop Control Keybinds

Class Control Keybinds

After the tutorial, you receive starter troops. Don't stress about which ones you get — you will unlock far better units soon, and the starter set is only meant to get you comfortable with the flow of battle.

How to Get Gems Fast

Gems are the main currency you will spend on units, upgrades, and rerolls, so building a steady income early matters more than chasing one big purchase. The fastest sources are daily rewards, match completion bonuses, and objective captures. Winning obviously pays more than losing, but even a loss with several captures beats a passive match where you never push.

Play the objective instead of farming kills. Kills give small payouts, while capturing and holding points stacks rewards over the full match. If you are short on time, log in for your daily reward even on days you cannot play — the streak bonuses add up quickly.

The Troop Counter System Explained

Every unit in Command an Army belongs to a class, and each class is strong against one and weak against another. Ignoring this triangle is the single biggest reason new players lose fights they should win.

The core loop works like this: melee troops beat ranged troops in close quarters, ranged troops shred cavalry before it closes the gap, and cavalry runs down melee units that cannot catch them. Bring the wrong class into a fight and even a bigger army will melt.

Counter Triangle at a Glance

The practical takeaway: never build a single-class army. A pure melee blob gets kited by ranged units forever. A pure ranged line gets deleted the moment cavalry flanks it. Mix your composition and adjust based on what the enemy is fielding.

Best Starter Units Worth Investing In

You do not need rare units to win early matches. You need units that scale well and fit the counter system. These are the ones most beginners should prioritize.

Standard Melee Infantry — cheap, tanky enough to hold a line, and the backbone of any early army. They absorb damage while your damage dealers work.

Basic Archers — your answer to cavalry and the core of any ranged line. Keep them behind melee and they will win you fights.

Light Cavalry — fast, great for flanking ranged units and chasing retreating enemies. Even a small cavalry squad can swing a fight.

Avoid dumping resources into units you will replace within a day. Upgrade what you have, learn the counters, and save big investments for units you plan to keep long-term.

Ascension and Evolution Explained

Ascension and evolution are the two progression systems that turn weak starter troops into match-winning units. Understanding the difference saves you from wasting rare materials.

Evolution upgrades a unit's tier, raising its base stats and unlocking stronger versions of the same unit. This is the more common path and the one you should focus on first.

Ascension is a bigger leap. It transforms a unit into a superior form with new stats and sometimes new abilities. Ascension materials are rarer, so only ascend units that are already core to your army.

The rule of thumb: evolve broadly, ascend selectively. Evolving a wide roster keeps you flexible against different enemy compositions. Ascending everything spreads your rare materials too thin.

Attack and Defense Habits That Win Matches

Most beginners lose because of habits, not stats. Fix these and your win rate climbs immediately.

Always keep your army grouped. Use the Follow command to move as one force. A split army is a dead army.

Scout before you commit. Send a small group or use cavalry to check enemy positions before throwing your whole force into a fight.

Fight on your terms. Pull enemies into your ranged line instead of charging into theirs. Let them make the mistake.

Retreat when you are losing. Pulling back to regroup and heal is not cowardice — it is how you avoid feeding kills and losing the match.

Push objectives, not kills. Captures win matches. Chasing a single fleeing enemy across the map loses them.

Common Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

• Skipping the tutorial and fumbling controls mid-fight
• Building a single-class army and getting hard-countered
• Spreading upgrades across too many units instead of focusing
• Ascending weak units with rare materials you cannot replace
• Ignoring objectives to farm kills that do not matter
• Running into fights without scouting first

Final Tips for New Commanders

Command an Army rewards players who understand the counter system and play the objective, not players who grind kills. Master the Follow command, build a mixed army, evolve your core units, and ascend only the ones you rely on. Do that, and you will climb out of beginner lobbies fast.

Play a few matches focusing purely on positioning and counters before worrying about rare units. The fundamentals carry you further than any single powerful troop.