Underboss & Formations

Two rules govern every lineup in the game. Get these wrong and you waste skill slots and weapon bonuses no matter how good your enforcers are.

Rule 1: The Underboss must be a different crew type

A formation is 5 enforcers: your Underboss plus four others. Here’s the catch — only the first four enforcers of any given crew type contribute combat skills.

So if you run a Hitman squad (four Hitman enforcers) and also pick a Hitman Underboss, the UB becomes the “fifth Hitman” and its combat skill is wasted. Instead, pick an Underboss from a different crew type (or a flexible multi-purpose pick) so all five skill contributions count.

Run a mono-Hitman squad → use a Biker or Bruiser Underboss (or El Santo / Red Thorn / Tengu).

Rule 2: Only one crew weapon bonus per formation

Crew weapons grant a formation-wide bonus, but they do not stack — only one applies. The correct setup:

Underboss carries the single crew weapon.
The other four carry squad weapons (which buff their own squad), so nothing is wasted.

Doubling up crew weapons just throws away the duplicate.

Mono crew vs 3-3-3

	Mono crew	3-3-3
Composition	One troop type at max tier	~⅓ Bruiser / ⅓ Hitman / ⅓ Biker
Enforcer buffs	Squad-specific (bigger %)	Crew-wide (applies to all)
Use when	You scouted and know the enemy	Blind attack or wall defense
Trade-off	Highest damage, but counterable	Safe average, never dominant

The rock-paper-scissors of troops (Bruiser > Hitmen/Mortar, Hitmen > Bikers, Bikers > Bruisers — see Troops & Counters) is why mono crews are a gamble without intel and 3-3-3 is the safe blind default.

Practical workflow

Scout the target (costs diamonds; breaks your peace shield).
Known comp → send the mono crew that counters it, UB off-type, crew weapon on UB.
Unknown comp or defending → send 3-3-3 with crew-wide buff enforcers.
Keep a defensive lineup stationed at all times so you’re never farmed offline — see Wall Defense.