Two jobs on one battlefield
Empires Mod splits each team between the ground and the map view. One player on each side takes the commander role and plays from above: placing buildings, building defensive turrets, constructing vehicles, and running research to steer the team toward a win. Everyone else fights on the ground as infantry or drives vehicles. Both factions, the Northern Faction and the Brenodi Empire, work through the same structure, so the difference comes down to which side you sign up for and how your team spends its resources.
Playing together as a squad
Ground players pick from four infantry classes: scout for a surprise attack, rifleman for a direct firefight, grenadier for pushing back enemy tanks, and engineer for supporting the team. Each class has customizable skills, so two people can run the same class and still build it differently. Players can organize into squads, and a squad leader directs the members while using squad powers such as reviving fallen squad members or calling an artillery strike on the enemy. Vehicles add another shared job: six vehicle types, including three levels of tanks, can be customized with weapons, armor, and engines, and an Armored Personnel Carrier can ferry troops around the map. Someone has to crew and drive, so a group naturally splits into commander, infantry, and vehicle roles.
What to know before starting
The commander slot is a real responsibility, not a spectator seat. Whoever takes it decides research, building placement, and vehicle production for the whole team, so a group should agree in advance who wants that job. Ground players should expect to coordinate with the commander's plan rather than freelance, since buildings, turrets, and vehicle support come from above. Matches run on 15 official maps plus community-created ones, so layouts and resource spots change between games. The game mixes first-person shooting with real-time strategy and base building, so a session asks for both aim and planning, and squads that talk to each other tend to get more out of their vehicles and squad powers.