Fleet Command upgrades are some of the flashiest in the game: big, fleet-wide buffs that can swing entire battles if timed right. They all cost real points and require fleet design to support them — which is exactly as it should be.
The problem? This category is dominated by a single card: Intensify Firepower!. The others are all decent, even good in the right circumstances, but IF! is so much better that it warps the entire category.
So instead of alphabetical order, let’s start with the big offender.
Intensify Firepower!
A fantastic card. Fleet-wide effect for an entire round, every shot gets a die fixer — not just a reroll, but a set-to-hit. Unless you roll really well, that's +1 damage per attack, which adds up fast: often +2 damage per round per ship. And if you’ve got Salvo? Yep, it works there too.
This is an insane level of value. Compared to Shields to Maximum!, it’s almost insulting.
Verdict: ARC should nerf this card. Not somewhere down the line — immediately. Change it to “once during each friendly ship’s activation”. Still good, still worth building around, but on par with Shields to Maximum instead of blowing it out of the water. If you really want it to apply to Salvo, then phrase it as “once during each ship’s activation.” Fixed.
And don't tell me some builds rely on IF! to work. If they do, there is something more fundamentally wrong that needs addressing.
Shields to Maximum!
A decent card. The timing is a little awkward (you can die before it kicks in), but that’s fine — we don’t want defense to get too much stronger anyway.
Verdict: Perfectly fine… if Intensify Firepower! is nerfed.
All Fighters, Follow Me!
Niche, but potent if your squadrons are slow. Rebels can get it cheaply thanks to affordable Fleet Command platforms, while GAR ends up with IF! and FCT Peltas to push ARCs. CIS and Empire have even less use for it.
Back in the day, it saw a decent amount of play, but with Rogue squadrons being both stronger (and faster lol) and easier to use, AFFM! has slid down the ranks. That’s sad, but not really the card’s fault.
Verdict: Leave as is, or possibly reduce to 4 points.
Entrapment Formation!
A great card, especially for fleet maneuvers. It costs 1 point less than Take Evasive Action! but is arguably just as good.
Verdict: Leave as is — and expect to see more of it if IF! gets nerfed.
Take Evasive Action!
The yaw equivalent of Entrapment Formation!. A solid card that does exactly what it says on the tin.
Verdict: Leave as is, provided Intensify Firepower! is reined in.
Hot Landing (GAR/CIS only)
This one is weird. First off, very few Adept squadrons exist — and they’re all GAR. Presumably CIS would’ve gotten some in a wave that never arrived thanks to the FFG–AMG handover.
Second, grit in the Squadron Phase isn’t worthless, but it would only really shine on Rogue squadrons. Neither faction has rogue adepts (outside of Jango and he ain't an adept), so… not exactly a natural fit.
Third, sacrificing an Adept squadron to toss out a Raid token is a very expensive way of doing so, but I suppose this was just going to be the icing on the (nonexistent) cake.
That said, the new Legacy wave 0 squadron does make Hot Landing slightly more interesting — but interesting enough to justify spending a scarce Fleet Command slot in GAR/CIS fleets? Doubtful.
Verdict: Too narrow, too awkward. Needs a rethink.
Mercy Mission (GAR only)
A bad card. Plain and simple. It encourages fleets that don’t engage, instead trying to score via avoidance and gamey play. Originally it was 0 points (truly awful), now it’s 5, which is better… but the design is still bad.
Thematically, it’s spot on — name and effect line up nicely. Mechanically, it’s unacceptable. Armada doesn’t need objectives masquerading as upgrades.
Verdict: Thematically cute, competitively toxic. Trash compactor it, or make it campaign only or something.
Jedi Hostage (CIS only)
A surprisingly good use of Flag Bridge — arguably the best use. The Flag Bridge modification requirement is a limiter, but the effect itself is solid for 3 points. It can be flipped, which keeps it in check.
In practice, you mostly see this in TF-1726 fleets, where it goes from decent to strong. And as a fun side note: I’d love to see someone exhaust this card with MS-1 Ion Cannons.
Verdict: A neat little CIS-only tool that’s balanced, thematic, and occasionally spicy. One of the better-designed oddball Fleet Commands.
Category Verdict:
Fleet Commands as a category are fun, thematic, and potentially game-defining — but also unbalanced. Intensify Firepower! warps the field, Mercy Mission actively undermines good play, and Hot Landing is just awkward. The rest range from fine to excellent.
The existence of Rebel Peltas — small ships in the 50 to 60 point range — with Fleet Command slots is potentially a structural issue. You can kind of see how they were trying to address some perceived weaknesses in Rebel fleets by creating these ships, but it also has implications for future design space.
Next Up:
Experimental Retrofits — the exotic playground of Interdictors. Gravity wells, targeting scramblers, and speed manipulators… some of the wildest toys in Armada live here.
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