Imagine a drone operator, eyes glued to a screen, tracking two Russian soldiers on a motorcycle. On July 19, just after 9 a.m., a Ukrainian drone locked onto its target, closing in relentlessly until it struck, and the live feed abruptly ceased. This wasn’t just a military operation; it was a high-stakes play in a real-world game.
For the drone operator’s regiment, this successful strike carried immense value – precisely 24 points. It’s part of an unprecedented system implemented by the Ukrainian government, where military units earn points for effective combat actions.
The scoring is stark: wounding a Russian soldier earns eight points, while a kill is worth twelve. Russian drone pilots, considered higher-value targets, command 15 points for a wound and 25 for a kill. The ultimate prize, however, is capturing a Russian soldier alive with drone assistance, a staggering 120 points.
Stun, a 33-year-old drone commander from Ukraine’s Achilles unmanned systems regiment (who, like many soldiers, uses only his call sign), described the system with a chilling honesty: ‘It’s a brutal game — human lives turned into points.’ The image shows Stun, a drone commander for the Achilles regiment, in the Kharkiv region last month.
This unique competition, first ‘soft-launched’ in August 2024, allows drone teams to accumulate points and then ‘spend’ them at an internal, Amazon-style online store: Brave1 Market. Here, units can acquire essential Ukrainian-made gear, from basic surveillance drones to more formidable models loaded with powerful explosives. The marketplace, which initially opened in April, saw a significant expansion in August.
The underlying philosophy is simple: higher scores grant access to superior equipment, channeling critical resources to the most effective units. This innovative system offers a digital-age, instant-gratification twist on traditional military incentives like medals and promotions, with all ‘winnings’ directly reinvested into the ongoing war effort.
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation and a key architect of the program, explained the verification process: drone teams submit videos of their successful strikes to a central office in Kyiv. There, experts meticulously review timestamps and confirm destruction to award points.
Officials contend that this competitive framework helps maintain troop morale and energy, a critical factor for drone operators who endure immense psychological strain from constantly witnessing battlefield violence through live video feeds, especially after over three years of relentless conflict.
“This helps us stop the enemy,” Minister Fedorov stated. “If this provides additional motivation to our military, we are happy to support it.”
The rise of weaponized drones has always sparked debates about the dehumanization of war, enabling soldiers to inflict death remotely. When confronted with the suggestion that Ukraine’s drone ‘game’ might be dehumanizing, Mr. Fedorov simply shrugged. “What is inhumane is starting a full-scale war in the 21st century,” he retorted.
Since the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022, both combatants have relentlessly sought a technological advantage. The battlefield has become a proving ground for an array of advanced drones: self-destructing, long-range, jet-powered, fiber-optic, and even interceptor drones, with AI-guided swarms anticipated in the near future.
Interestingly, Russia employs its own form of battlefield incentives, offering financial bonuses such as $2,400 for destroying a helicopter or a substantial $12,000 for capturing a Leopard tank. A member of the Achilles team training last month, honing the skills crucial for success in this high-tech conflict.
Ukraine’s online weapons marketplace is a natural evolution of the ‘do-it-yourself’ spirit that has characterized its drone procurement since the war began, evolving from crowd-funded consumer drones repurposed for combat into a sophisticated, point-based supply chain.
Over 400 drone teams are currently active in this competition. Soldiers report that even infantry units without dedicated drone teams have formed them specifically to leverage the point system and acquire much-needed equipment.
The scoring system covers both personnel and hardware. Destroying a Russian multiple-launch rocket system can net a team 70 points, while a tank’s destruction is worth 40 points, and damage to one yields 20.
However, as drones have made tanks increasingly vulnerable, thereby reducing their battlefield effectiveness, accruing points for tank kills has become significantly more challenging.
Red, a drone pilot alongside Stun, who claims 45 confirmed kills and uses only his call sign, elaborated: ‘These days, spotting enemy vehicles is extremely rare. And if one does emerge, say from a forest, there’s essentially a queue of drones eager to strike it.’
The Ukrainian government continuously refines the point values to adapt to Russia’s evolving battlefield tactics.
For example, as drones extend their reach and blur traditional front lines, Russian forces increasingly advance in small groups of one to three infantrymen. These soldiers employ stealth, using anti-thermal coats or natural camouflage to evade Ukrainian drone surveillance, with the goal of regrouping with others who successfully push forward.
Consequently, neutralizing Russian soldiers individually has emerged as a top priority. This tactic underscores the urgent need for drone operators, with the Achilles regiment’s commander emphasizing that Ukrainian forces must kill or severely wound as many as 25,000 Russian soldiers monthly to counter their mobilization efforts.
Initially, a Russian soldier’s death garnered only two points. This was raised to six in October 2024, and then doubled again in May, reflecting the shift in strategic focus.
Yuriy Fedorenko, the commander of the Achilles regiment, highlighted the grim arithmetic of the conflict: Ukrainian soldiers must eliminate or severely wound an estimated 25,000 Russian soldiers each month, roughly matching Russia’s monthly recruitment numbers.
To meet this target, Mr. Fedorenko estimates Ukraine requires at least two attack drones for every Russian infantryman, translating to a staggering 50,000 drones per month.
“Without exaggeration — we are cornered by Russia. Russia wants to annihilate us,” Mr. Fedorenko asserted, quickly clarifying that he views the war not as a game, but as a fight for survival. ‘The realization that successful combat operations also bring additional equipment — that inspires confidence that we will have the means to keep fighting,’ he explained.
Fedorenko credits drone mastery with transforming his original company of 100 into a 500-strong battalion, and now a regiment of roughly 3,000, establishing Achilles as a premier drone unit in Ukraine. This expansion, alongside other new drone regiments, aims to establish a unified drone defense along the front, bolstering reconnaissance, supporting assault brigades, and neutralizing Russian surveillance.
A June video from Robert Brovdi, the overall commander of Ukraine’s unmanned systems units (a new, distinct military branch overseeing drones and robotic warfare), offered further insights into this point system and the online marketplace.
In the video, Mr. Brovdi detailed the cost-benefit: a basic kamikaze drone requires 1.3 points, a thermal camera-equipped drone costs 4.5 points, while a powerful ‘vampire’ drone – capable of carrying up to 33 pounds of explosives and striking targets up to 19 miles away – demands a hefty 43 points.
Brovdi proudly recounted that his former brigade, the ‘Birds of the Magyar,’ achieved approximately 6,500 hits in May, including 2,221 Russian soldiers, accumulating over 25,000 points. These points were then exchanged for 600 ‘vampire’ drones, demonstrating the tangible impact of the system. This constant innovation highlights how both sides have vied for a technological edge since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
To date, Ukrainian military units have procured over 80,000 drones and electronic-warfare systems through the Brave1 Market, representing equipment valued at more than $96 million, according to digital minister Mr. Fedorov.
An online leaderboard publicly recognizes the top 10 drone teams each month, although specific point totals remain confidential.
September’s top spot went to the ‘Birds of the Magyar,’ with Ukraine’s elite Alpha Group taking second. The Achilles regiment, led by Stun, secured an impressive sixth place.
While acknowledging the game, both commanders and soldiers maintain that their primary drive is to eliminate Russian forces and equipment. ‘We’re focused on destroying the enemy, on real objectives, on the mission,’ Stun insisted. ‘We go where we’re needed — not chasing after points.’
Nonetheless, they concede that the competition provides an undeniable motivational boost, fostering a competitive spirit among drone operators to be the first to successfully engage a target.
Stun, whose call sign originates from his favorite video game move that freezes enemies, recalled, ‘Of course, there were times when we’d argue in chats over points.’
‘For example, when a vehicle was hit and several units engaged it, we’d argue over who got the actual hit,’ he continued. ‘We’d say: ‘That was our target! Don’t touch it!’ ‘We were the first to hit it!’ ‘We did it! That was us!’’”
Minister Fedorov noted that the game continuously evolves to integrate new wartime technologies. Units can now earn points for deploying robotic ground vehicles on logistics missions, like evacuating wounded soldiers, for identifying Russian equipment with reconnaissance drones, and for destroying targets using AI-guided systems.
Naturally, as a new system, it has its imperfections. Some commanders have expressed concerns about slow drone deliveries, while frustrated soldiers recount destroying valuable Russian assets that, unfortunately, yielded no points.
Red shared an anecdote: his team recently aimed to strike a Russian armored vehicle, but another unit got there first, costing them the points. Undeterred, Red’s team redirected their efforts to a log raft the vehicle was towing, often used for river crossings.
“We burned it,” he stated. “Mission accomplished. But unfortunately, no points for rafts.”