Commander mode's been missing from Rush mode and there hasn't been a server these days that actually utilizes Commander on Rush. It's a seriously missed opportunity as an extreme amount of teamplay can come from the right commander - however, this does not make commander "OP", as just as the gadgets the commander's abilities can emulate, they have their counters and weaknesses. The experience most players have with commanders on Conquest is mostly the same - a new player spamming orders, not relaying information as they should, or not using any of their abilities properly (or at all). However, the Commander slot, while limited in its function, can leave room for much better coordinated pushes in Rush with information allowed to be relayed real-time by a player sacrificing the ability to play in the combat themselves to help their entire team do it.
A commander cannot do anything without a team that listens. Without a good team, a commander is nothing. Yet even without a commander, a team can still perform fairly well, but performance doesn't come from thin air, it comes from coordination and good teamplay. You aren't going to last long by charging your only tank into a ditch surrounded by 5 Engineers all with MBT LAWs equipped. Most if not everyone who's played commander for a considerable period of time realizes that while a commander can't turn the tide of a game alone, he can certainly make an impact if he (and the team) choose to cooperate as one. Commander mode is severely underutilized even in Conquest games where it can be useful, and there are games where players work with the commander by listening to his comms, watching the radar, and utilizing his drops - these players are guaranteed to succeed more than if they just ignored the commander like the rest of the server population and got back to playing as a lone soldier trying to solo cap a point.
The point I'm trying to convey is that while the Commander can be useful, it's not guaranteed - but the ability to drop supplies to a squad or two, scan the area, hide their team's tracks, and even drop an ATV to assist a player or two get into the enemy backlines and cause trouble is extremely underrated and is once again a missed opportunity for more fun gameplay on a mode that is objectively more teamwork oriented.
To make something exceedingly clear here, COMMANDERS DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO GUNSHIP DEPLOYMENTS, CRUISE MISSILES, OR INFANTRY/VEHICLE SCANS IN RUSH. The complaints I read 2 years ago about how it was disabled on a Hardcore Rush server mentioned the abilities (particularly the gunship and cruise missiles), but as far as the research I've done has concluded, you literally have no access to any of those abilities on either side as a Commander, neither Attackers nor Defenders. With that out of the way, I will now proceed to cover how everything in the Commander's offensive Rush arsenal can be countered:
SCAN/EMP UAV: A stinger. Literally one stinger or IGLA missile is all it takes to do it in, exactly the same way you would deal with an enemy MAV user on the team. A rival commander can also counter these by using his own UAVs and proxy attacks if necessary. Do note that there is a significant change from Conquest particularly for the scan UAV; instead of a whopping 30 seconds of length as it is in conquest, in Rush it only lasts for 10 seconds presumably to balance it out accordingly for Rush. Also remember that the recharge for the EMP, the (arguably) more powerful scan is 20 seconds; a single stinger is all it takes to take the enemy's counter to your scan out of action, which highlights the importance of teamplay and communication even more. Just as a player annoyed to shit by a MAV will pull out a stinger and eye the skies for it repeatedly.
SUPPLY DROP: A stray Engineer launcher rocket, MBT, IFV, RCB, Attack Helicopter... The list goes on, but let's just say anything that packs an explosive warhead can and will destroy the supply drop. Surprisingly not many people are aware that it's destructible, but it is. While not exactly countering it, you can also steal the healing and ammo for yourself if you come upon it. Bonus points if you win an engagement because of it.
VEHICLE DROP: The same way you deal with a Supply Drop, only it's even more susceptible. The vehicle drop is literally an ATV, or a PWC if you try to drop one on water. You can just chuck an MBT LAW its way and wipe it and its occupant(s) out (or just shoot them normally). Or if you want, steal it for yourself and use it properly, perhaps cause havoc by charging their backlines with your passenger gunning everyone down as you charge 80mph around a beach. I speak from experience.
PROXY ATTACK: There.... really is no way to "counter" this ability. I guess you could do it right before the enemy Commander tries to do it, but it lasts for only 15 seconds and all it does is destroy your UAVs. With a whopping 5 minute cooldown. This is basically completely negligible in Rush, to be honest its existence is questionable since there are no gunships or cruise missiles to strategically destroy with this ability.
To restate the point, all of this combined makes the Commander useful, but nowhere near overpowered as people claim it is. Almost every complaint lodged against this feature being enabled can be solved either by taking up command yourself and fighting the enemy commander, or in the various respective ways I listed above. It's not just me who would like to see it re-enabled, there is still a community of dedicated commander players out there who love playing this teamwork oriented role and I'm sure there are plenty who are eager to try it out on Rush for once instead of Conquest. Commander can be countered with ease even just like any normal player, but a skilled commander is about as rare is playing a match of Golmud Railway and trying to not find someone laser designating. All commanders can be countered, just as with several gadgets that perform the functions as some of the commander abilities can be countered by being destroyed or used against the enemy team.
A commander cannot do anything without a team that listens. Without a good team, a commander is nothing. Yet even without a commander, a team can still perform fairly well, but performance doesn't come from thin air, it comes from coordination and good teamplay. You aren't going to last long by charging your only tank into a ditch surrounded by 5 Engineers all with MBT LAWs equipped. Most if not everyone who's played commander for a considerable period of time realizes that while a commander can't turn the tide of a game alone, he can certainly make an impact if he (and the team) choose to cooperate as one. Commander mode is severely underutilized even in Conquest games where it can be useful, and there are games where players work with the commander by listening to his comms, watching the radar, and utilizing his drops - these players are guaranteed to succeed more than if they just ignored the commander like the rest of the server population and got back to playing as a lone soldier trying to solo cap a point.
The point I'm trying to convey is that while the Commander can be useful, it's not guaranteed - but the ability to drop supplies to a squad or two, scan the area, hide their team's tracks, and even drop an ATV to assist a player or two get into the enemy backlines and cause trouble is extremely underrated and is once again a missed opportunity for more fun gameplay on a mode that is objectively more teamwork oriented.
To make something exceedingly clear here, COMMANDERS DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO GUNSHIP DEPLOYMENTS, CRUISE MISSILES, OR INFANTRY/VEHICLE SCANS IN RUSH. The complaints I read 2 years ago about how it was disabled on a Hardcore Rush server mentioned the abilities (particularly the gunship and cruise missiles), but as far as the research I've done has concluded, you literally have no access to any of those abilities on either side as a Commander, neither Attackers nor Defenders. With that out of the way, I will now proceed to cover how everything in the Commander's offensive Rush arsenal can be countered:
SCAN/EMP UAV: A stinger. Literally one stinger or IGLA missile is all it takes to do it in, exactly the same way you would deal with an enemy MAV user on the team. A rival commander can also counter these by using his own UAVs and proxy attacks if necessary. Do note that there is a significant change from Conquest particularly for the scan UAV; instead of a whopping 30 seconds of length as it is in conquest, in Rush it only lasts for 10 seconds presumably to balance it out accordingly for Rush. Also remember that the recharge for the EMP, the (arguably) more powerful scan is 20 seconds; a single stinger is all it takes to take the enemy's counter to your scan out of action, which highlights the importance of teamplay and communication even more. Just as a player annoyed to shit by a MAV will pull out a stinger and eye the skies for it repeatedly.
SUPPLY DROP: A stray Engineer launcher rocket, MBT, IFV, RCB, Attack Helicopter... The list goes on, but let's just say anything that packs an explosive warhead can and will destroy the supply drop. Surprisingly not many people are aware that it's destructible, but it is. While not exactly countering it, you can also steal the healing and ammo for yourself if you come upon it. Bonus points if you win an engagement because of it.
VEHICLE DROP: The same way you deal with a Supply Drop, only it's even more susceptible. The vehicle drop is literally an ATV, or a PWC if you try to drop one on water. You can just chuck an MBT LAW its way and wipe it and its occupant(s) out (or just shoot them normally). Or if you want, steal it for yourself and use it properly, perhaps cause havoc by charging their backlines with your passenger gunning everyone down as you charge 80mph around a beach. I speak from experience.
PROXY ATTACK: There.... really is no way to "counter" this ability. I guess you could do it right before the enemy Commander tries to do it, but it lasts for only 15 seconds and all it does is destroy your UAVs. With a whopping 5 minute cooldown. This is basically completely negligible in Rush, to be honest its existence is questionable since there are no gunships or cruise missiles to strategically destroy with this ability.
To restate the point, all of this combined makes the Commander useful, but nowhere near overpowered as people claim it is. Almost every complaint lodged against this feature being enabled can be solved either by taking up command yourself and fighting the enemy commander, or in the various respective ways I listed above. It's not just me who would like to see it re-enabled, there is still a community of dedicated commander players out there who love playing this teamwork oriented role and I'm sure there are plenty who are eager to try it out on Rush for once instead of Conquest. Commander can be countered with ease even just like any normal player, but a skilled commander is about as rare is playing a match of Golmud Railway and trying to not find someone laser designating. All commanders can be countered, just as with several gadgets that perform the functions as some of the commander abilities can be countered by being destroyed or used against the enemy team.
