Relic and Sega moved the series to the Mediterranean on 23 February 2023 with four armies: US Forces, British Forces, Wehrmacht and the Deutsches Afrikakorps. Single player splits two ways, a turn based Italian dynamic campaign map running from Palermo to Rome and an eight mission North African operation briefed by Rommel. Full Tactical Pause freezes any campaign mission or skirmish against the AI so you can issue orders with the clock stopped.
This walkthrough takes you from your first session to endgame content. Each phase has specific goals, priorities, and milestones. New to the game? Start with our beginner's guide first.
Quick Progression Summary
| Phase | Area | Focus | Build | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Start | Sicily | Italian dynamic campaign map basics | British Forces | 1-2 hours |
| 2. Early | Salerno | Full Tactical Pause mastery | British Forces | 3-5 hours |
| 3. Mid | Monte Cassino | Breach on garrisoned buildings + gear | US Forces or British Forces | 5-10 hours |
| 4. Late | Rome | Build optimization | US Forces | 5-10 hours |
| 5. Endgame | North Africa | Min-max | US Forces or Battlegroups | Ongoing |
See our maps guide for detailed area breakdowns.
Phase 1: Getting Started (Sicily)
The Italian campaign opens on Sicily around Palermo, where the map is wide, the garrisons are thin and you are learning the company and supply systems. Early ports here decide how fast your fleet can support the mainland landings.
Level/Difficulty: Campaign turns 1 to 20 Key Rewards: First ports, early airfields, company experience
What to Do in Sicily
- Learn Italian dynamic campaign map. The Italy campaign is a turn based layer running from Palermo to Rome where you move companies, capture ports and airfields to extend supply, and drop into real time battles when a stack meets resistance. Spend your first session getting comfortable with this.
- Pick British Forces as your starting build. See our builds guide for why.
- Play the North African operation before touching Italy. It is eight linear missions that teach Breach, flanking, vehicle armour facing and Battlegroup spending one at a time, whereas the Italian campaign drops a strategic layer and a real time layer on you at once.
- Acquire your first equipment upgrade: MG 42 Machine Gun Team or whatever's available.
- Clear all main content before moving on.
Phase 1 Checklist
- Understand Italian dynamic campaign map fundamentals
- British Forces selected and functional
- Sicily main content cleared
- Ready for Salerno
Phase 2: Early Game (Salerno)
The mainland landings put you on a narrow coastal strip with German armour above you. Naval bombardment reaches most of this area, which makes it the best place to learn how much a ship strike changes a defended position.
Level/Difficulty: Campaign turns 20 to 45 Key Rewards: Naval support range, Naples approach, partisan contacts
What to Do in Salerno
- Work on Full Tactical Pause. Tactical Pause stops the clock in campaign missions and single player skirmishes so you can queue orders and unpause with every squad already moving. This system becomes critical from here on.
- Farm for MG 42 Machine Gun Team if you haven't already. It's the key upgrade for this phase.
- Reverse damaged vehicles out of contact rather than turning them around. A three point turn shows the thin side and rear plate for two or three seconds, and a Pak 40 or 6-pounder only needs one of those seconds to land a penetrating shot.
- Complete all objectives before pushing to Monte Cassino.
- Consider whether US Forces might suit your playstyle better than British Forces.
Phase 2 Checklist
- Full Tactical Pause integrated into gameplay
- MG 42 Machine Gun Team acquired
- Salerno fully cleared
- Ready for Monte Cassino
Phase 3: Mid Game (Monte Cassino)
The mountain line is where the campaign stops being a march. Elevation, fortified positions and narrow approaches mean frontal attacks fail, and the answer is usually air support plus a flanking company rather than more tanks.
Level/Difficulty: Campaign turns 45 to 75 Key Rewards: Airfield chains, heavy artillery access, veteran companies
What to Do in Monte Cassino
- Master Breach on garrisoned buildings. Squads with the Breach ability walk up to an occupied building and clear it from inside instead of grinding the walls down with rifle fire. This unlocks a new layer of gameplay.
- Start working toward Riflemen Squad. It's the best equipment and becomes accessible around now.
- Garrisoned buildings are the strongest cover on any map, so never trade rifle fire with one. Either Breach it with a squad that has the ability, burn the occupants out with a flame unit, or drop mortar fire on the roof and take the building afterwards.
- This area is the main skill check. If you can clear it, you're ready for late game.
- Start investing in Battlegroup call-in trees for the tactical depth you'll need going forward.
Phase 3 Checklist
- Breach on garrisoned buildings mastered
- Riflemen Squad acquired or in progress
- Monte Cassino fully cleared
- Ready for Rome
Phase 4: Late Game (Rome)
The end of the Italian dynamic campaign map. By this point your companies are levelled and the enemy is throwing its best armour at you, so the fights are shorter and far less forgiving of an understrength stack.
Level/Difficulty: Campaign turns 75 and later Key Rewards: Campaign completion, final company upgrades
What to Do in Rome
- Finalize your build. You should be running US Forces or British Forces with optimized gear.
- Riflemen Squad should be your primary. If you don't have it yet, prioritize getting it.
- Choose your Battlegroup in the first three minutes and commit. Points accumulate slowly and a split tree gives you two weak branches instead of one working one, which is how Wehrmacht players end up with neither the Luftwaffe supply drop nor the Breakthrough armour.
- Directional vehicle armour optimization starts here. Small improvements compound into massive advantages.
- Farm this area for the resources needed to push into North Africa.
Phase 4 Checklist
- Build fully optimized
- Riflemen Squad upgraded to max
- Rome fully cleared
- Ready for North Africa
Phase 5: Endgame (North Africa)
A separate eight mission linear operation played as the Deutsches Afrikakorps, briefed by Rommel and running up to the first battle of El Alamein. It is the better teaching campaign because each mission introduces one idea and then tests it.
Level/Difficulty: Missions 1 to 8 Key Rewards: Afrikakorps mastery, desert tactics, faction unlocks
What to Do in North Africa
- North Africa tests everything. Come prepared with your best build and gear.
- Retreat squads at roughly half models rather than fighting to the last man. A retreated four man squad reinforces back to full for a fraction of the manpower a fresh squad costs, and squad veterancy is lost permanently when the last model dies.
- The endgame loop: run North Africa, optimize gear, push harder content.
- Experiment with Battlegroups for a fresh take once you've mastered the standard builds.
- This is where Directional vehicle armour mastery separates good players from great ones. See our tips guide for advanced strategies.
Phase 5 Checklist
- Endgame content on farm
- Best-in-slot gear acquired
- North Africa fully cleared
- Ready for challenge content
Common Progression Mistakes
- Turning a tank around to retreat instead of reversing, which hands the enemy gun a free shot at the rear plate.
- Fighting a garrisoned building with rifle fire for a full minute rather than breaching, burning or shelling it.
- Spreading Battlegroup points across two branches and unlocking nothing that changes a fight.
- Relying on Tactical Pause in single player and then being unable to keep up in a real time multiplayer match where it does not exist.
- Letting squads fight to the last model instead of retreating and reinforcing, which throws away veterancy and costs more manpower overall.
Key Tips for Smooth Progression
- Play the North African operation before touching Italy. It is eight linear missions that teach Breach, flanking, vehicle armour facing and Battlegroup spending one at a time, whereas the Italian campaign drops a strategic layer and a real time layer on you at once.
- Reverse damaged vehicles out of contact rather than turning them around. A three point turn shows the thin side and rear plate for two or three seconds, and a Pak 40 or 6-pounder only needs one of those seconds to land a penetrating shot.
- Garrisoned buildings are the strongest cover on any map, so never trade rifle fire with one. Either Breach it with a squad that has the ability, burn the occupants out with a flame unit, or drop mortar fire on the roof and take the building afterwards.
- Choose your Battlegroup in the first three minutes and commit. Points accumulate slowly and a split tree gives you two weak branches instead of one working one, which is how Wehrmacht players end up with neither the Luftwaffe supply drop nor the Breakthrough armour.
- Retreat squads at roughly half models rather than fighting to the last man. A retreated four man squad reinforces back to full for a fraction of the manpower a fresh squad costs, and squad veterancy is lost permanently when the last model dies.
For more advanced strategies, see our tips & tricks guide.
More Company of Heroes 3 Guides
- Company of Heroes 3 Company of Heroes 3 Overview
- Company of Heroes 3 Best Builds
- Company of Heroes 3 Tier List
- Company of Heroes 3 Beginner's Guide
- Company of Heroes 3 Tips & Tricks
- Company of Heroes 3 Weapons Guide
- Company of Heroes 3 Combat Guide
- Company of Heroes 3 Boss Guide
- Company of Heroes 3 Maps & Locations
- Company of Heroes 3 Crafting Guide
- Company of Heroes 3 Classes & Characters
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