Yea, I can tell you from experience the lower tier front has been brutal. No nukes, just straight up conventional and guerilla warfare. As much as I dislike them, the lower-tier GOONS that are still fighting are putting up a pretty good fight.
I say that the lower-tier is key because they're the ones on the frontline. They're the ones who, as far as this war is considered, control the strength of an alliance. The less active and intact lower-tier an alliance has, the more vulnerable the mid and upper tier is.