Key points
- A guerrilla needs enough strength and a weak enough government before it can take power.
- Historical guerrillas arrive through events; player-created groups begin aligned with the creating bloc.
- Infiltration lets you suggest strategies and can be repeated to weaken the group from within.
- Search and Destroy targets one group without the prestige penalty attached to Napalm.
SECTION 01
What guerrillas actually do
The official rulebook describes guerrillas as independent actors with relations and traits. They can fight the government, fight rival groups, negotiate, or settle into criminal activity. Funding can keep a group alive for years, but longevity does not guarantee a takeover.
Creating a guerrilla is therefore an investment in pressure. It forces attention into counterinsurgency and can destabilize a country while you pursue prestige elsewhere. The rulebook notes an approximate limit of three player-created groups in one country; because it says around three, this guide does not convert that into a universal hard cap.
SECTION 02
Build or dismantle influence inside a group
After infiltrating a guerrilla, you can steer its behavior. In a developer answer, repeated Internal Dissident actions were confirmed as useful until the group becomes an empty shell. A separate reply says repeating Maoist influence can add harder-line traits, which shows why repeated actions can change a group rather than merely refresh a binary state.
Terrain and traits matter. Jungle can make groups harder to uproot, and the August 2026 update added training outcomes such as radios, trained commanders, counterintelligence, and standing forces. Do not assume every group can receive every buff: the developer explicitly says poor professionalism, isolation, or corruption may prevent effective training.
SECTION 03
Counterinsurgency choices
Military advisors improve a country's performance against guerrillas, while Military Aid strengthens the army. Napalm is designed for entrenched groups in jungles or inaccessible terrain, but it can cost prestige when domestic audiences react. The newer Search and Destroy action reduces a selected group's strength on success and avoids that prestige penalty.
Search and Destroy requires the COIN intelligence focus and boots on the ground; military advisors or a base satisfy that requirement. The official announcement warns that the last strength point can be exceptionally difficult to remove from groups with Extra-Territorial Base, Small Guerrilla, or Sanctuary traits.
SOURCE REGISTER
Evidence used
- Official Maestro's Cold War 2 rulebook ↗
Guerrilla purpose, traits, infiltration, terrain, creation, and countermeasures.
official · accessed 2026-09-04 - August 2026 content update ↗
Search and Destroy, Guerrilla Training, and full-release guerrilla buffs.
official · accessed 2026-09-04 - New Player — developer guerrilla answers ↗
Internal Dissident repetition and negotiation-rupture behavior.
official · accessed 2026-09-04
CONTINUE THE BRIEFING