Team Power Rankings

Major portions of this article may not be up to date. You can help Dead Ahead Wiki by changing all outdated info.

This page provides a ranking of all currently existing team powers. It aims to objectively evaluate each synergy's performance in order to determine which teams are the best to use, and which are the worst.
These rankings are made for regular missions, and largely ignore Skirmish and events. This is because more than two thirds of existing synergies are simply unusable in PvP modes, meanwhile events usually require an unortodox approach to themselves.

The ranking is based on two main factors:

• Team composition − combination of multiple factors related to units themselves:
  • How much chemistry team members have between each other;
  • How well the optimal team rotation performs without the synergies;
• Power efficiency − how strong the synergy is, and how much effect on overall gameplay it has.

Combinations of these factors determine the synergy's overall efficiency:

• If a synergy falls into +/+ quadrant, it means it's a good option, if not one of the best. These team powers can be used for game progression, and are generally safe to invest into, as long as you follow the most optimal unit rotations.
• If a synergy falls into -/+ quadrant, it means it's a mediocre option. You can achieve good results with it, but you would perform just as well by simply using a deck with the exact same units.
• If a synergy falls into -/- quadrant, it means it's a bad option, if not one of the worst. These team powers don't provide any meaningful help, while also failing to compensate for their poor unit rotations.
• If a synergy falls into +/- quadrant, it means it's an option that isn't useful for anything but fooling around. Such team powers are usually very strong, but are held back by poor unit rotations that fail to bring them to maximum potential.

Ranking

Commentary

MechanicsBuildersInternal ForcesEmergencyTMFMilitaryPsychosRednecksCollegeNorthernersMarinesPatriotsJailersPoliceScientistsPrisoners

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Although 5% might not sound like much, it's a surprisingly high number for a synergy that runs a very spammable unit. What makes this power especially appealing is that it allows players to quickly recover after the bus was heavily damaged by anyone. It even opens an opportunity for you to keep waiting for rangers to prepare at a start of a mission, while the first wave of enemies is already attacking the bus. However, its true appeal lies in cheesing out 3 star-completions of virtually all missions. You don't even have to keep the bus at max health all the time: simply repair it after the final horde is dead. This power's only downfall is large waves of enemies. Even though its rotation offers multiple ways of dealing with them, when more than three enemies start chewing on the bus, it's easier to restart the mission.		A formation that abuses healing the most, while also being the cheapest to acquire. It proves itself valid for every mission, as long as the rest of the deck uses adequate ranged units and support items.
			Tied with the spam build for the spot of a highly versatile team, this one allows to use any non-mechanic fighter together with Hillbilly, while barely sacrificing anything. Same rules apply for the remaining slots.
3/3	Considering that majority of mechanics are strong on their own, this formation ends up being a generally good team that can take advantage of 2/2 more often than before. At the same time, the actual 3/3 power proves incredibly helpful as well, almost guaranteeing a completion of a mission, should it be used throughout early-to-mid game. The only problem is that this power is held back by its activation chance. Since it's almost impossible to make units properly spammable during the first half of progression, it becomes difficult to spawn more than one turret in a single level, making the strategy slightly unreliable. At the same time, when it becomes possible to properly abuse it, this power ends up being a winmore, with aggressive mechanics taking care of everything themselves without much need to fall back on turrets. Regardless, this power's usefulness in the right environment shouldn't be understated.	( / )	Generally recommended team. Welder can be brought along as the 4th Mechanic in case you care about Turrets' health or really want to use his free Turret.
			A semi-budget line-up that tries to get use out of Welder's special condition. He must be sent out only after Hillbilly, with Policeman already on field. Bringing Mechanic as the 4th unit is also an option.
5/5	Although Turret being able to fire twice as many times sounds strong in theory, in practice it's a negligible upside; not because it's useless, but because it's so closely tied to Mechanics as a whole. Likely created with 3/3 power in mind, it fails to notice that backline Turrets won't get to fire very often in the first place, and so don't care about extended health as much. Meanwhile, trying to use a freely placeable sentry with the 5/5 team is a worse option than Generator or Red Barrel, which actually aid these units' gameplan well. In the end, you might come out victorious by using the 5/5 build, but its synergy won't be the reason behind its successs. If anything, Abby will be doing more damage than those turrets can dream of, should you decide to use her in the deck.		Generator provides best support for this team, as it helps to get resources for fighters, and ensures that you have enough points for backup calls of Polina and Diaz. At the same time, it's still safe to substitute it for something else, given that your units are properly geared up. Using Welder isn't recommended, as his aid is not impactful enough for the team.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	10% might've been a justified value for this synergy, had it not for one problem: builders can't be spammed. Operator might cost only 15 courage, but he takes 20 seconds to prepare at base, meanwhile Builder and Handyman prepare in 13 s., but cost 25 points. All other units have even higher prices and prep. time, and since missions only last for 3 and a half minutes, 1 in 10 ends up being very low odds. Because of this, the power rarely ever comes into play. Treating it as a "nice bonus" is difficult either, as only so many builders can be considered versatile. It's often not worth bothering.		The most consistent 2/2 setup, which only proves viable for slow-paced missions. It treats the power strictly as a bonus, which might occasionally make your life easier each time you send out Foreman, or speed up the barricade's destruction while keeping the flow of Operators going. Sonya's position can be occupied by any other viable shooter.
3/3	Because this power can only activate once, it proves to be a largely mediocre upside that's not worth the hurdle of having to use three builders in the same deck. However, since units spawned for free can interact with both 2/2 and 3/3 synergies, every now and then they end up activating together and turning the tides of battle into winning direction. As much as it's unreliable, this occasional blessing prevents the team from being strictly a liability.		This deck is essentially a variation of the 2/2 build. Red Barrel and Turret are the best contenders for the 6th slot.
5/5	This power suffers from being needlessly niche, while requiring to fill your deck with multiple units that are unable to sustain themselves. If swift barricade destruction is genuinely important to you, then you'll have higher success unlocking Builder's or Saw's special. Otherwise, you are forced to heavily rely on Abby, Foreman, and Operator to keep the battlefield clear long enough. The only way this team can achieve success in regular missions is if all units in the deck have a significant level of cost reduction, but even that proves to be not enough in some cases.	( / )	Sonya and Turret are the only options for the 6th slot that have enough versatility and offensive power to properly support the team. Red Barrel can also be used successfully, but not as often. Light Soldier doesn't have anything to offer for the deck, and Builder isn't worth spending scarce resources on. In comparison, Operator is able to cause massive impact through burst damage and knockback, and Bulldozer is a sufficient tank.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	This power proves to be a useful bonus in context of end-game stages, as any form of extra protection is invaluable in those missions. Thanks to extended healing, it becomes possible for melee units to fight against sturdy enemies for a much longer time, which is helpful for blocking them. Meanwhile ranged units have easier time recovering from Insectoids attacks, since healing for them is now accessible at all times. Naturally, this power won't be nearly as useful in faster paced missions, since units don't require extended support in them, which is the main reason it can't be considered something that's always worth running.		The most versatile selection currently available. Medkit is specified for an obvious reason. It's also possible to use Grenadier in place of LS, in case you haven't unlocked him yet, but he is strictly a worse option.
3/3	The reason 3/3 IFs aren't put in high regard is because of their team formation – it's barely usable outside of slow missions, and most units need to have their specials unlocked. What's worse is that the synergy itself is yet another defensive option, when what IF units actually need is something that can boost their offensive potential. And even if you try to capitalize on a slow-paced playstyle enforced by it, it's unlikely that the synergy itself will bring you to success, as the cooldown stands in the way of on-demand activation, and the medkits aren't even guaranteed to land on units. It's easier to try to get the most out of 2/2 instead.		A generally efficient setup that tries to make accent on use of the 2/2 power instead of relying on pseudo-blessings.
			A deck that trades Red Barrel for Pepper's utility, while still allowing a way to use the 2/2 power, even if it's largely reliant on luck.
5/5	Even though this power sounds very interesting on paper, in practice it's completely useless due to medkits' inherent limitations: low maximum damage, slow "attack" speed, and long recharge time all end up preventing this power from being a viable tool. It's also worth acknowledging that this synergy is outright counterintuitive on levels with Eggs, as free medkits spawned by IF's tier 2 can end up disrupting them at a bad time. It's best to not bother.	–	Due to a number of issues related to existing bugs, there's currently no way to make this team playable.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Because incomplete damage resistance doesn't allow units to actually walk through fire pools, this power is effectively useless, as it lacks the single application that would make it generally applicable without a need to take the team's members into account. It still prevents Nancy's discharge from being too devastating, and makes Lionheart's gas spills feel like mosquito bites for his teammates, but it no longer allows you to use everything else fire-related recklessly, which was another major appeal of this synergy's previous version.		The most reliable 2/2 deck that tries to take proper advantage of the synergy. Sonya and Redneck can be replaced with any viable alternatives in their respective classes.
3/3	By turning an already useful support item into a massive damage booster, this power greatly improves not just Emergency's performance but also the medkit's utility by making it do exceptionally well at its usual applications. With this power active, it allows injured units to respond to zombies' advances with more ease, and provides better support for pushes by offering not just defensive but also an offensive boost for frontliners (or ranged units covering them from the back). However, it's difficult to consider 3/3 busted in any way, as it's held back by the sole fact that the synergy's key item can't be spammed. Medkit's preparation time requires to be smart about the item's usage, meanwhile Medic's core issues make her a somewhat unreliable supplier of the buff. Not to mention that Emergency have only one versatile ranged unit in their roster, making it tricky to keep the 3/3 condition active. Overall, it's a power that can provide amazing results, but overrelying on its effect won't lead to anything good.		The most optimal rotation that makes a proper accent on the synergy. Mainly suited for end-game missions. Redneck's slot can be occupied by any other fighter. Generator is the best pick for the 6th slot, but it can be safely swapped for a mission-specific counter as well.
		( / )	A deck focused on a rushdown approach. The choice between Generator and Red Barrel depends on how well this tactic applies to each individual mission, with the former allowing to fully commit to it, and the latter making it more focused on last-minute pushes.
5/5	Sometimes, a simple increase of HP is all it takes to greatly increase the strength of a team, given that it's actually able to make any use out of it. And considering that 4 out of 7 Emergency units are melees, and all of its supports actively participate in frontline combat, it's safe to say that they do, in fact, benefit from their 5/5 power. The only thing that holds this synergy back is the fact that some of the team members have serious individual issues that can end up neutering the whole roster's effectiveness. Accounting for those is essential if you want to get consistently great results with this power.		The best 5/5 deck currently available. Both heavyweights are not worth considering, since Climber and Firefighter are able to fulfill the niche of tanks well enough.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Explosion immunity might sound like another overly-specific upside, and that's not far from truth. However, unlike plain fire protection, it allows TMFs to safely fight Rebels and Putrids – quite significant threats for stages they appear in. This especially shows with Rogue who becomes outright unstoppable when it comes to fighting them. But it's still important to highlight that this synergy is nothing more than a silver bullet, and an unreliable one at that. Playing with it outside of missions with explosive enemies is not the best idea, even considering that TMFs are alright when used in small numbers.	( / )	Rogue is essential as he is the only easy-to-play TMF member, not to mention his gargantuan damage. The choice between Swat and Ranger for the second slot depends on whether you want to fill the third one with another shooter or another shotgunner.
3/3	Because this power only activates once, you just end up with a more crippled deck than in 2/2 tier. There's no meaningful application for this.		Since this power is relatively pointless, simply using the best units TMF have ends up being the most reliable option. It's worth mentioning that Flamethrower can be brought along as the fourth member, but it's a strategy that only matters in a few gimmicky missions.
5/5	TMF units are infamous for being a chore to play: they require a lot of resources and support but barely compensate for that, being all fragile and unreliable. The former issue is one of the reasons this synergy has low practical use – with how rarely most of TMF can be sent out, the 50% chance of price reduction seldom comes into play. Rogue can't help the case either, as he has medium preparation time, meaning you have to either sacrifice his agility, or spend a lot of time on acquiring perfect items for him. The only way this team is able to show a good performance is if the entirety of its roster is maxed out, with some of its members having as much courage reduction from items as possible. And even then you still need to get lucky with good discounts from the synergy itself. It's not an unplayable team, but its requirements are too harsh for it to leave the gimmick territory.		This formation proves to be the most effective, as long as Cap is fully discounted, and Swat and Flamethrower are slightly cheaper as well.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	The inefficiency of this synergy is quite blatant, but to put it into perspective – 10% of health is a rather unrealistic requirement. It implies that each militia has to fight enemies that deal just the right amount of damage in order to activate the condition. But in practice, most of the zombies simply overshoot the 10% mark and kill the unit without giving them a chance to trigger the synergy. And then there's a 30% chance of the power actually activating, which only adds salt to the wound. At best, this power is a pleasant, but not an exciting blessing, since the surviving unit is gonna stay at death's door without any healing. The only game mode where it can have a massive impact is skirmish, but all the fundamental setbacks are still present there. It's worth acknowledging Lucky Guy, since it allows militia to properly capitalize on this power, but it isn't a widely applicable set, so the synergy can only really have proper support in the aforementioned PvP mode. Glenn is the only one who can easily take advantage of it in PvE as well, but at this point it's just easier to ignore it.	( / ) ( / )	The safest line up, that makes accent on use of high-rate-of-fire units instead of the synergy itself. Play it as you would normally play a ranged damage-oriented deck. SpecOps is the only essential militia, and Carol and Glenn are mostly interchangable, depending on whether you value damage or meat-shielding more.
3/3	This synergy allows militia to compensate for their lack of versatile ranged units by simply spawning more copies of the only one they already have in the roster. While SpecOps is far from the best shooter, he does his job well enough when you manage to get many copies of him, so it's nothing to complain about. The activation condition is also fairly generous, being held back strictly by the fact that only one unit among militias has a cost below 25. This leads to the problem of not having enough units to use as cannon fodder, which means that you either have to bring the power down to a secondary bonus, or use more than three militia in your deck, neither of which are great cases. It's a great power, but properly taking advantage of it can be difficult with the current roster.	( / )	The best 3/3 line up that makes proper accent on the synergy, using Glenn and Carol as main powerhouses of SpecOps summoning. Peppertine tends to be the better unit on average, but Polina is invaluable in missions where her bullet penetration comes in a clutch.
			One of the better line ups that treats the synergy strictly as a bonus, focusing on ranged unit stacking instead. Sonya's spot can be occupied by any other shooter you deem viable.
5/5	The synergy's effect can only be used to "counter" Charged Zombies, allowing someone like Glenn to close the gap between them. That is, if there's no other zombies in the way, which is only valid for ~6 missions in the game. It also has a usage in form of preventing Insectoids from instantly jumping onto your ranged units, but in most missions this strategy is easily disrupted by pre-existing enemies. Overall, this power is a non-upside that forces you to run a team of units who don't synergize too well, so it's best not to bother. The only genuine advantage it provides is that you now have more units to use for activation of the 3/3 power.		This team is a blatant extension of the best 3/3-focused build, taking advantage of this many militia as best as possible. The 6th slot can be occupied by any shooter, or a support item that works best for a specific mission.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Rage is a pretty powerful resource, and when you obtain easy access to it things surely get nutty. This is the main reason why this power is praised so much - giving players much more freedom with their rage usage, whilst enabling spam of Psychos themselves, it allows you to beat most missions with barely any effort. 25% spawn chance is also surprisingly high, since Psychos tend to have natural crit chance values, with Saw shining the most in that department. You can even do some smart plays with Bill's LMG, since rage packs stay on the ground for quite a while. The only thing holding this power back is the fact that Saw and Berserker, the main crit powerhouses, cost 13 rage to begin with. You are forced to run at least one courage-evaluated fighter alongside them if you want to set off the circus in the first place, or completely overbuff your ranged unit of choice so they will handle all the preparations themselves.		The usual go-to option, which also enables the most spam. Policeman and Ranger are recommended for use alongside this trio, since they have high default valor. Fighters like Marine are important to bring along if the circus duo lacks any cost reduction items. Turret and Medkit are also very powerful supports, and are easy to abuse. Generator is usually not recommended, as you won't need as many courage.
			A full budget option. While it doesn't offer much ways to abuse the synergy, it can be used to charge up the LMG much quicker. Generator also offers a nice synergy with Redneck here, whose spot can be occupied by just about any 15-cost fighter. Court Jester's explosions offer a higher impact in contrast to most other free options. The remaining slots can be occupied by any support items you deem fit for the mission.
			A semi-budget alternative that's instead focused on improving Austin's performance. Chopper is mainly used to kickstart the rage creation, which should then be handled by Austin, as long as he has a crit. build on him.
3/3	This power doesn't go too far from its 2/2 predecessor in terms of performance. The only difference is that you trade the more consistent support of a second non-psycho unit for the double increase in fire power. Even then, it still forces you, on average, to send out all three psychos at once, or be very smart about how you use your heavyweights. If you do things right, though, this team is capable of steamrolling end-game missions just as easily as its cheaper alternative.		The most reliable 3/3 line-up. It's valid to bring Austin along as the 4th psycho, but it's often a better idea to instead use a courage-evaluated shooter, as well as a fighter.
5/5	With 2/2 already providing a big supply of rage, 5/5 ends up being redundant in most cases. It's only application is in a few specific missions, where early waves of enemies might provide good chances of droping a 20-pack, allowing to enable Saw / Berserker spam faster. But all in all, despite having the upsides of its previous tiers, this team fails to be just as efficient due to its lack of access to support items.	( / )	Compared to other heavies, Court Jester offers the best synergy with all of Psychos' tiers, thanks to his explosive slam being able to hit multiple targets. Similar to all previous tiers, shooters and cheap fighters once again prove vital. However, since there's no room for both of them, you have to switch between either of the classes from mission to mission.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	This is yet another power that is best treated as a nice bonus, mostly thanks to having a good rotation of units in its team. While it is possible to enable highrolls with its potential for spam, the 5% chance of that happening is simply not reliable enough. Although, it is realistic to achieve great results by using a build-around deck. You just need to take into account that it won't be flawless.	( / )	Using Redneck along with a ranged unit is a go-to option that works in just about every mission, as long as the rest of the deck is built appropriately.
			A foundation of the spam-oritented build. Medkits are most commonly used to aid Rednecks under attack, so they have better chances of spawning packs.
3/3	This power is essentially an extension of the 2/2, except it's even more unreliable with the help it offers. It's almost entirely oriented towards zerg rush gameplay, as a good chunk of rednecks are melee units. But the real problem is that the promised healing can land on units with full health too. As a result, this power often ends up an empty promise. It sees better use as a part of 5/5 line-up – see commentary below for more.		A plain powerful deck that just so happens to have three rednecks in it.
5/5	As it turns out, having more units from the same team raises your chances of winning a dice roll. Rednecks synergize surprisingly well together, and thanks to this the 5/5 line-up is capable of doing the spam strat even more efficiently than the 2/2 build. However, it mostly happens thanks to Nancy's invaluable support, since she maximizes resource efficiency, keeps the flow of Rednecks going, and compensates for most of the team's high preparation times. Without her this line-up's viability would've been questionable.	( / )	The choice between Chopper and Dusty depends on whether you want to abuse 2/2 synergy as much as possible, or capitalize on full-on aggressive gameplay. The 6th slot can be occupied by any support item you deem best for a specific mission. That being said, Medkits become negligible in 5/5, since Nancy covers half of their work, meanwhile Redneck himself is supposed to be treated as cannon fodder.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Most of this power's utility comes down to ensuring that units with dangerous on-death transformations become non-threats. This is indeed useful for the likes of Policeman, and Saw, and fortunately for these units, the most flexible College members are strong enough to synergize with them well. The problem is that this is all there is to this power, and it doesn't help College members themselves much, most of whom lack flashy attributes, and are concerningly frail, with Sonya being the only overall exception. At the end of the day, this power's usefulness greatly depends on what units you are actually planning to make accent on.		The most effective choice of units for the 2/2 power. It's highly advised to run at least one more ranged unit alongside them.
3/3	The 3/3 College rotation is one of the many cases when a team is relatively solid, but the power is just not worth the hassle of pursuing. Charisma is just too useless of a stat on average, with College in particular failing to apply it to anything other than interaction with Sonya's special. That being said, the aforementioned combo can be greatly increase the cheerleader's damage output. But that's as far as this power's application goes.		A simply usable deck with three college members. Despite having very high Charisma, Coach isn't mentioned due to his bad cost-to-health ratio. Compared to him, Dale is simply quicker and cheaper to send out. Diaz' spot can be occupied by any other ranged unit with 300+ charisma; he just happens to be the best option out of all.
			In case you manage to fully discount Cap's cost, he becomes the best tag-along for maxed out Sonya. Using a fourth ranged unit is still recommended, but it's not necessary if Waterboy's cost is sufficiently lowered as well.
5/5	Creating a whole factory out of College members would prove to be extremely powerful, had it not for a weird issue this team currently suffers from. As it turns out, Cheerleader and Waterboy are a bit too good at their job, with Bully and Dale also being great damage supports to them, and they all make a quick work out of any mission if you play your cards right. This comes at a cost of the 5/5 power rarely ever activating, and as a result not making any difference. And when you do try to deliberately activate the power, and play missions very slowly, it ends up being either an overkill, or disruptive in some way. All in all, it's another case of a power being strictly a nice bonus due to its selection of units already being good at their job.		The most reliable selection of units for the 5/5 team. The 6th slot can be filled with whatever rage item you deem necessary for a mission, with Medkit, Red Barrel, and Generator being the safest options as usual. While Turbo might feel less versatile than 1998, her extreme movement speed proves useful for keeping certain zombies at check.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	This synergy proves to be helpful for dealing extra burst damage if you choose the correct units for the job. Lester can provide insane bulks of damage should his special be unlocked, meanwhile it becomes trivial for Glenn and Worthy to mow through hordes of enemies. Sonya can also benefit from it, as there's a chance this power will improve her likelihood of using the roundhouse kick. In general, there are no downsides to using this power, as long as you properly gear up your units of choice.		This rotation proves to be the most versatile, working in just about any kind of mission while also leaving room open for a wide variety of other units to tag along. Using Generator is recommended.
			This team partially ignores the synergy, and instead aims to achieve very high ranged damage output. Given, it'll be a waste of time if neither Sonya, nor Lester have any critical damage boosts.
3/3	While Northerners' synergies are overall pretty useful, it's hard to ignore that their selection of units isn't exactly able to take full advantage of them. There's only a few units in the roster who can properly focus on critical attacks, meanwhile the rest either have no benefit to gain from such builds, or even outright suffer from them, mostly due to slow attack speed or lack of health. Because of this, the best approach to 3/3 Northerners is to treat them as an extension of the 2/2 builds. In some cases, this will prove very useful. In others it just won't be making any difference.		The strongest possible 3/3 rotation, which accentuates ranged damage even more by making it so Lester and Sonya are guaranteed to provide a huge burst for their first attack. Worthy is also great for activating the synergy on demand.
		( / )	A fully budget alternative to the above build that's riskier to use, but can still show an acceptable performance. The choice between Chopper and Nurse Hirsch depends on whether offense or defense matters more in a mission.
5/5	5/5 Northerners is yet another team which only proves to be playable because of its previous tiers doing all the job of carrying the roster. The power itself is mostly negiligble, since whatever effect it might have isn't even noticeable. In most cases, Lester and Sonya are the only consistently effective members, with usefulness of each melee depending on whether they are maxed out or not, and also differing from mission to mission. It's actually common for only one of them to even be playable, meanwhile the other two don't act as anything more than courage sinks. It's definitely not the best team there is, but it's also far from being useless thanks to a few very powerful members.		The most reliable selection of units currently available. Worthy's general utility proves crucial, despite him having no way to interact with the synergy. In case the power still matters to you, Turbo can work as a less effective substitute. It's also possible to use her as a replacement of Glenn instead, creating a semi-budget version of the deck.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	A very straightforward synergy, it can be treated as a way to bring Rodriguez to a much greater power level while sacrificing basically nothing. And while the power itself doesn't do anything to help your team directly, the sheer strength of unpausing Privates fully compensates for that.		A fully budget version which is efficient enough thanks to Sonya being a good unit on average. It's recommended to pair her with Carlos for massive damage output.
3/3	Unfortunately for this team, raising agility to a hundred doesn't do much to improve performance of ranged units, who make up a majority of Marines. It's a very negligible upside, and if you'll be performing well with this deck it won't be the synergy to thank for that.	( / )	Simply efficient rotation that consists of units who have the most chemistry between each other. The remaining slots can be occupied with just about anyone and anything that isn't useless and won't interfere with the team's playstyle, including Nancy tagging along as the 4th Marine. Pilot is a little worse than Ranger overall, but he benefits from the synergy enough to be worth considering, especially since shooters stacking is always a strong option.
5/5	Similar to how tier 1 only affects Rodriguez, this synergy can be interpreted as a bonus for only some members of the team. Specifically, Nancy and Guard, who will now attack non-stop when engaging in combat, and Sonya and Pilot, both of whom become able to handle close-quarter encounters slightly better than before. Otherwise, this synergy doesn't do much else, since Tactical Ranger has naturally maxed out aggression, and Polina doesn't care for it in the first place. It's not a useless power, but it's also somewhat unnecessary.	( / )	Despite highly benefiting from all of the synergies, Pilot loses out to Tactical Ranger simply because TR can come out of the bus instantly. Red Barrel provides good support for the team, thanks to its offensive and defensive versatility. Generator acts as an alternative that accentuates unit spammability. Although, it must be said that this team works best for ranged damage stacking, not Rodriguez zerg-rushing. Scout is too flawed to be considered.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Despite their lackluster upside, 2/2 Patriots manage to be an okayish team thanks to having access to units who are very strong on their own. Even then, double damage output from Molotov isn't something that should be ignored – in some cases it can prove to be a powerful burst of damage, going as far as being useful against the biggest threats of stage 8.		The most reliable 2/2 rotation. In a way, Rodriguez is an essential unit, since he is the only one who can allow Patriots to have knockback without special abilities. Molotov is specified for obvious reasons.
			Semi-budget alternative to the above team.
3/3	Unfortunately for them, Patriots are yet another team that is too fragile to ever put their 3/3 power to full use. As it stands right now, it only works as an occasional boost to already applied fire debuffs, and maybe for quadrupling Molotov's output. Had it not been for that issue, this synergy would be able to provide insane damage more consistently. It's still a great power, but it requires a little too much effort to be comfortably used.		The best selection that makes accent on fire-related support items. Depending on a mission, Sonya, Generator, and Medkit are all great options for the 6th slot.
			A variation of the previous build, focusing on Montag instead. The best options for the 6th slot remain the same.
5/5	This team is a glass cannon without the cannon part. It might've been able to prove itself useful in some scenarios had it not for the miserable damage of the 5/5 debuff – even with 3/3 synergy active, it does 12 dmg per tick max. Both Red Barrel and Molotov can achieve that for much cheaper, while also having 4 or 6 times greater damage output thanks to previous tiers. It's better to not bother.	( / )	Charlotte proves to be a better pick than Redstreak for this team, but mainly when she's maxed out. Otherwise, they offer roughly equal aid. The 6th slot can be occupied by any support item that you deem best for some mission.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Jailers are one of the few teams who have strong synergies which are held back purely by poor unit rotations. This creates a situation where they work better as tag-alongs for a different 2/2 gang which might benefit from faster item preparation no less than Jailers themselves. Still, it's entirely possible for them to be self sufficient at this tier, since being able to use the likes of Turret more often is that good. Although, such approach can limit the number of missions where this team performs nicely.	( / )	The most reliable rotations, which also have the best synergy with other 2/2 teams. Basically any support item can be used with either of those pairs, with the exception of Empty Barrel since it offers too little. Bringing someone like Policeman along is a good idea, in case you try to use Jailers as a self-sufficient team.
3/3	This power can be shrugged off as irrelevant because of the fact that Jailers have only one close combat fighter without access to stuns, meanwhile ranged units on the team have no natural access to criticals, meaning that the power will trigger on them with an 8% chance at best. Not to mention that among those units only one of them properly benefits from crit. builds. The situation might've been radically different if the team had more shooters or even shotgunners in its roster, but in its current form it's barely worth the risk.	( / )	The best possible team for the synergy. Jailer's cheap price allows to activate it on demand, meanwhile Polina is likely to stay behind her team while it advances. Gunslinger is effectively the main source of ranged stuns. Guard is brought up as a budget alternative to Jailer, although his much higher courage cost makes him a strictly worse option.
5/5	This team accentuates the issues brought up in the discussion of 2/2 tier by restricting your access to proper supportive options. It has potential for greatness, but with current Jailers rotation it's difficult to bring it to such level.	( / )	Turret is the only item that is able to consistently support this team, as it provides them with a much needed extra layer of defence. Generator is also a viable option, and is even theoretically best since most Jailers are rather costly, but in practice it's far from perfect. Inspector Abby is crucial for the formation, as she is overall more useful than Willy.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Because of how units' reloading logic works, this power ends up being either a massive boon, or completely irrelevant depending on the mission you are playing. It's possible to achieve great results with it in levels full of tanky threats or constant streams of enemies. But outside of those, primarily in missions with long periods between waves, this synergy won't help you much. The only units who can consistently benefit from it are shotgunners, since it means that most of the time they won't have to reload as often. All in all, this synergy doesn't has any real downsides to it, but you will be better off running something else at times.		If their special ability is unlocked, Agents will grant players access to Police 2/2 at the cost of just one slot. For an obvious reason, this provides the most freedom of deck formation, and as a result allows to properly take advantage of the synergy without making any cutbacks.
			The classic budget option, which can prove to be very effective in certain missions if Charlotte is properly leveled up.
			The most optimal rotation that doesn't rely on Agents' special. Ranger is one of the best tag-alongs for Policeman, but his slot can be occupied by practically any other viable ranged unit.
3/3	Depending on how you approach this synergy, it either suffers from the same problems as the 2/2 tier, or proves to be a powerful bonus that you get your hands on way too late. If you make accent on ranged damage then this power doesn't go any further than occasionally providing protection from Insectoids. If you instead focus on melee units, then it offers a solid way of supporting rushes of Riots and Glenns, even though this approach to spam is slightly unorthodox and potentially unnecessary, seeing meaningful application only in very extreme conditions. All in all, this power has its uses but it's hard to say for sure whether it's a truly valuable bonus or just an overkill that might not even come into play.		Agents' SA comes into clutch yet again, not only granting access to more options, but also allowing to send out a shielded cop immediately after spawning them. Diaz is a better choice when you want to use a fighter other than Riot. It's also acceptable to use those three units together.
			The eponymous melee oriented build that tries to abuse tanky Glenns and Riots as often as possible.
5/5	Although this team's unit rotation is really not that great, the way the 5/5 power interacts with Police's previous tiers ends up creating devastating results in a proper environment. Ranged units being buffed by Fury is busted on its own, and when this effect can be reliably triggered mutltiple times for the cost of one unit, things quickly get massive. The only issue that holds this power back is that it realistically affects noone but rangers, with Riot and Glenn never getting any opportunities to get buffed themselves. It's a team that completely destroys slow end-game missions, but that's as far as its "proper" application goes.		Use of maxed-out Agents together with the melee-oriented 3/3 team proves to give the best results, as it provides whole two free slots, which can be filled with any support items you deem best for a specific mission.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	This synergy acts as a more or less solid way of boosting Drone's damage output, which can prove to be very useful at dealing with large hordes of enemies, or at least severely damaging them. The problem is that this is as far as this synergy's appplication goes, with even maxed out Drone's offensive capabilities largely falling off during end-game, all because of most enemies being way too sturdy, or levels being riddled with Eggs. Fortunately, it at least stays a strong option against the final horde, so it's not entirely irrelevant. Ultimately, this synergy's usefulness depends on how much you want to use Drone, and whether you are willing to tolerate the awkward unit selection that's required to enhance its strength.		The most versatile team currently available. Mainly viable throughout end-game stages.
		( / )	Optimal ranged damage-oriented team. The choice between LS and Saw depends on whether you want to use Generator or not.
3/3	It's not uncommon for synergies to require some sort of working around in order to be viable. However, the case of Scientists' 3/3 is one of the more extreme examples of that, as if you put no effort into playing this deck then it becomes outright counterintuitive. Play your cards right, though, and it's suddenly able to steamroll most of end-game missions with little issue. The aforementioned disadvantages of the synergy stem from the fact that Drones are able to harm humans too, with whatever explosion resistance they might have being cancelled out by Drone's double damage from the 2/2 power. This requires using most of the scientists as some sort of kamikazes, while resorting as few of them as possible to the backlines. This is an approach that can prove fruitful in some scenarios, especially if you choose the right non-scientist unit to bring along with the yellows. The main problem is that most of those scenarios are resorted to the end-game, with the synergy being largely an overkill everywhere else. It can prove to be a great option, but the sheer effort it requires putting into it might not be worth the returns.	( / )	The most effective deck currently available. The choice between Norman and Pepper depends on whether you prefer active or passive play, and how often do you want to see the power trigger. Using Liquidator in place of Sanchez is not an option, as he can be resource intensive hog, meanwhile Saw can be easily spammed and therefore trigger the power more often, all while preserving courage for ranged units of the deck. Freely usable Drone synergizes with this power surprisingly well, as it allows to draw enemies further away from ranged units, allowing to minimize losses once the power activates.
5/5	As history shows time and time again, the more damage – the better. This team capitalizes on this simple wisdom in an extreme way, allowing its members to easily rack up damage increase as high as x2.5 against enemies in the same level, given that it's full of spam. But even if a level isn't rich with it, applying extra vulnerability on enemies is still appreciated. The only thing holding this power at check is the fact that current Scientist rotation suffers from an identity crisis, having three supports, two gimmicky damagers, and two short-range stunners. Given, if you play them optimally, Sanchez, Liquidator, and Dr. Norman will have no problem getting the most out of the synergy's generous bonus, meanwhile Dr. Kane will help to increase the team's total damage output even further. But even then, it's hard to ignore that this team still requires an "outsider" to put the power to full use. The fact that none of support items actually manage to do their job for the 5/5 rotation doesn't helps its case.		Sonya is the only one capable of providing the team with a much needed crutch. Due to her overall inadequancy, Dr. Lilly is not worth using in this team, meanwhile Dr. Miller's mine is too risky to consider.

Team level	Commentary	Recommended line-ups
2/2	Thanks to melee being the primary form of enemy damage, this power ends up being an extreme boon, effectively providing all prisoners with a double increase to health. While there are situations where melee resistance is unnecessary, they are very far and few between. It also helps that the strongest prisoners are highly versatile units, which means that this power doesn't require any effort to be utilized efficiently, making it easy to abuse. As long as you don't use your prisoners outright carelessly, it's impossible to go wrong with this synergy.		In comparison to Sonya, Maria is effectively her straight downgrade, which is why she can't be highlighted here. Aside from that, the duo of Prisoner and Parker is entirely self-sufficient, which also makes it unnecessary to use other units, which means that the rest of the deck can be filled with support items. Generator is highlighted as the best one, but it's not necessary to use it all the time.
3/3	As if 2/2 wasn't an overkill in itself, this power makes prisoners border on being unstoppable by providing reusable, intuitive immunity to damage. The only thing that keeps this power in check is the fact that it's tied to a 3/3 condition. But even that isn't a big obstacle, thanks to Maria and Sonya being able to protect themselves at close quarters, making it easy to keep the condition active.		While Maria might seem like a good tag-along for Sonya because of the way 3/3 powers work, her issues end up lowering the deck's potential for destruction. Carolina manages to be a better fit thanks to her nature as a melee unit allowing to abuse both anti-CQC synergies at the same time, even if the coveted damage immunity won't be available all the time.