Unlike traditional memory-reading cheats (which are often caught by Easy Anti-Cheat), the CoH3 maphack is reportedly a shader or rendering exploit. Because CoH3 uses the Essence Engine (the same engine as Age of Empires IV), hackers have found ways to disable the "fog" layer client-side.
Crucially: The server still knows the hacker cannot see the units, but the hacker’s screen renders them anyway. This makes the cheat very difficult for automated anti-cheat to detect, as it looks like a graphical glitch rather than a memory manipulation. coh3 maphack
Unlike aimbots in shooters (which are obvious) or speed hacks in RPGs (which are visible to the naked eye), maphacks in CoH3 are insidious. They operate in the background. To the casual observer, the hacker just seems really good. As of the Hammer & Shield and Nightfighters
Here is a breakdown of the typical features found in current CoH3 cheat clients (sourced from underground forums and cheat repositories, studied for defense purposes): You cannot rely on Relic alone
The problem is that COH3 maphacks are predominantly "External." Because Relic opted for a deterministic lockstep model (to reduce server costs), the client holds too much authority. Hackers operate on a "Loop" model:
As of the Hammer & Shield and Nightfighters patches, Relic has shifted to Server-Sided Validation for ranked matches. This means the server double-checks if a player should have line-of-sight to a unit before confirming a hit. However, this increases server lag and doesn't fully prevent movement-based cheating.
You cannot rely on Relic alone. The community needs to police itself.
