Task Force Talon and the United States Army deploy cruise missiles to destroy Zakharov's base. Zakharov is discovered dead after Major Richter, standing atop of a massive smoldering crater, orders a DNA analysis of the remnants of the bodies. Factions United States military The United States military is the conventional war machine of Act of War with familiar (as of the game's release date) military units like the marines, AH-64 Apache and M1 Abrams main battle tank. The only exception is the F-22 Raptor, which is not featured in the game. United States military in possession of the greatest number of units and upgrades, each of which are specialized for a certain role. For example, the F-15 can only attack other air units, although it is the best fighter aircraft unit in the game. Meanwhile, the sniper is very effective against infantry but ineffective against anything else. While not necessarily a true weakness, the US Military has an obligation to follow DEFCON procedures. To access its full strength, it must upgrade to DEFCON 2 and then to DEFCON 1, each of which are expensive. Task Force Talon Task Force Talon is a top-secret U.S. military branch, equipped with cutting-edge hardware. It includes units that, at the time of the game's release, were either cutting-edge, experimental or fictional. These units include Global Hawk (an unmanned stealthy aircraft) S.H.I.E.L.D. Unit (an infantryman wearing an exoskeleton suit equipped with both machine guns and rockets) and Spinner Tank (a tank with customizable weapons). Task Force Talon focuses on versatility. For example, the Global Hawk can be upgraded with anti-tank missiles and change role. This versatility however, comes at high cost: Task Force Talon units and upgrades are very expensive for good reasons and the AI is unable to use most Task Force Talon units properly because all late game units requires some basic micromanagement and strategic planning. Therefore, losing too many units early in a game due to misuse and poor strategic choices quickly decide the outcome of the battle. Consortium The Consortium is a shadowy organization with unknown origins and objectives. The branch of the Consortium featured in this game consists of terrorist groups and a renegade Russian army offshoot, supported by oil companies bent on creating an oil monopoly as well as manipulating political events for personal gain. This branch is led by Yegor Zakharov, the game's primary antagonist. However, it is