Squad Builder — who goes in the five slots?

"Is this five any good?" is the question I get most in alliance chat. Whenever someone sends a lineup screenshot I run the same checklist: how many troop types are mixed in, who's holding the front, who's the carry, and whether that carry actually pulls weight at the investment stage they're at. After typing that out for the hundredth time, I figured a button would be faster.

Nothing here is a new rule. The counter logic is the "20% less damage taken" from our counters guide, the mono bonus and 2-front/3-back layout come from squads, and tiers come from the stage-based tier list. The builder just does in real time what you'd otherwise do in your head after reading those.

Reading the diagnosis

Type mix. Five of one type shows up as "mono". Mono matters for two reasons: the same-type buff from Lv20 exclusive weapons lands on all five, and you get the mono squad bonus once your alliance holds the capital. A 4:1 lineup looks nearly mono but loses both at once — which is why the builder flags 4:1 and suggests a same-type swap.

Counter table. For an enemy tank, aircraft or missile mono, it counts how many of your five are favoured and how many are exposed. Get the direction right: the favoured side takes 20% less damage; it doesn't deal more. I had that backwards for a while, right up until an aircraft mono deleted my whole tank squad. A row full of red means scout first and let a different squad take that fight.

Front line. If neither front slot holds a defensive hero (Williams, Murphy, Lucius, Carlie…), or your carry is standing up front, you get a warning. All-damage lineups lose their carry in the first exchange. Hit the missile preset and you'll see the warning immediately — that's exactly why missile players borrow tanks or lean on shields and rallies.

Stage grade. Switch the stage at the top and the grade moves. The same five at 5★ base and at exclusive weapon Lv20 are different squads. Heroes with a big awakening jump, like Tesla, swing the most. Only Kimberly, DVA and Tesla can awaken; everyone else is scored at their EW Lv30 grade on the awakened stage.

What I actually run

The "Tank mono" preset is my live squad: Kimberly carrying from the back, Williams and Murphy up front, Marshall and Stetmann behind. Before Williams arrived (Season 4, week 6) I held the front with Murphy and Mason — drop "Other tank" into one front slot and you'll see that older version grade a notch lower. That matches what I felt in SvS: after the swap, my hospital filled noticeably slower.

The aircraft and missile presets aren't mine; they're where the aircraft and missile players in my alliance ended up converging. Aircraft: DVA carry, Lucius and Carlie protecting, Schuyler controlling. Missile: Fiona (PvP) or Tesla (PvE) as carry with damage everywhere else — and the empty front line shows up as a warning straight away.

What it doesn't know

Skill levels, gear, drones, research and troop tier are all out of scope. Two identical names can play very differently depending on skill medals, and the right answer changes with the enemy. So the grade answers one question only: "are these five, at this stage, structurally sound?" Actual fights are still decided by scouting.

The tier table moves with patches. It was last reviewed for Season 6; when new heroes or weapons land, the tier list and this builder get updated together.