◈ Navigation Index ▼
- 01 Introduction to Helldivers 2
- 02 Essential Gameplay Mechanics & Tips
- 03 Understanding Missions & Objectives
- 04 Enemy Factions: Weaknesses and Strategies
- 05 Weapons: Primary, Secondary & Support
- 06 Stratagems: Offensive, Defensive & Utility
- 07 Recommended Loadouts & Builds
- 08 Progression and Currencies
Introduction to Helldivers 2
Helldivers 2 is a fast-paced, cooperative third-person shooter developed by Arrowhead Game Studios, where players embody elite soldiers known as Helldivers, tasked with spreading 'managed democracy' across the galaxy. The game features intense battles against three deadly alien factions: the insectoid Terminids, the robotic Automatons, and the technologically advanced Illuminate. Missions are grouped into Operations on a dynamic Galactic War map, where collective player actions influence the ongoing conflict. The game offers nine difficulty levels, from Trivial to Helldive, with higher difficulties providing greater rewards.
Essential Gameplay Mechanics & Tips
Effective gameplay in Helldivers 2 relies on mastering several core mechanics and adhering to strategic principles:
Friendly Fire: Friendly fire is always active, meaning players can damage or kill teammates with their weapons and Stratagems. Awareness of your team's positioning is paramount.
Movement and Diving: The dive mechanic allows Helldivers to go prone, which kills momentum and can be used to escape airstrikes, get behind cover quickly, or improve weapon accuracy for heavy machine gun fire. Tapping the dive button for a knee slide and then double-tapping for an extra jump can create space. Conserving stamina is important, though Boosters like the Stamina Enhancement can benefit the entire team. 'Wiggle technology' or performing a spin move can make enemies shoot around you due to their AI.
Aiming and Stance: Crouching or going prone significantly improves weapon accuracy, which is crucial for precision shots. Players can adjust their weapon's rate-of-fire at any time and save Aim Down Sights (ADS) for easier use.
Environmental Interaction: The environment offers tactical advantages. Players can utilize terrain for cover, find higher ground to slow down enemies, or use explosive tanks against hordes. SEAF Artillery can be activated as a side objective to provide additional Stratagem support.
Teamwork and Communication: Helldivers 2 is a cooperative game where sticking together and covering teammates is key to success. Effective communication through quick comms, pings, chat, or voice chat is essential for coordinated efforts, especially when navigating hostile areas, calling in Stratagems, or managing objectives. Pinging resources and enemies keeps the squad informed.
Loadout Considerations: Armor and Boosters provide stat boosts such as reduced recoil, increased starting grenades, explosive damage resistance, or a lower chance of dying from lethal damage. Scout armor can continuously ping enemies on the map. Light armor combined with a shield pack is often considered optimal, as heavy armor can reduce movement speed. Loadouts should be adapted for higher difficulties.
Resource Management: Stims restore health, treat limb damage, and replenish stamina. Grenades are used for explosive damage and to close bug holes and Automaton foundries. It's advisable to fire weapons until almost empty before reloading to avoid wasting ammunition. Share resupply drops equally among teammates. If a Helldiver dies, their dropped gear and collected samples can be retrieved from their corpse.
Strategic Engagement: Before rushing into an area, assess the situation to determine if weapons or Stratagems are best suited for the enemy presence. Avoid unnecessary fights and disengage if overwhelmed, as long engagements can lead to being surrounded. Don't drop into 'red zones' at the start of a mission; allow teammates to call in their gear first.
Understanding Missions & Objectives
Helldivers 2 missions are critical to the ongoing Galactic War. Operations consist of multiple missions on a single planet, and their completion contributes to controlling that planet.
Primary Objectives: These are mandatory tasks that must be completed for a mission to be successful. Completing primary objectives rewards Requisition Slips and XP. Examples include 'Retrieve Essential Personnel,' 'Launch ICBM,' 'Sabotage Supply Bases,' or 'Purge Hatcheries'. Some objectives, such as ICBM launch sites or Geological Surveys, require preparing defenses against incoming enemies.
Optional Objectives: While not required for mission success, completing secondary objectives and destroying enemy outposts provides additional XP and Requisition Slips. Enemy outposts come in light, medium, and heavy variants, with larger ones offering more rewards but being more heavily guarded.
Mission Types: Objectives vary based on the enemy faction and can be faction-neutral or specific to Terminids, Automatons, or Illuminate. For instance, Terminid missions often involve infestation control, while Automaton missions focus on sabotage and destruction of infrastructure. Commando mission variants against Automatons may have severely limited stratagem availability.
Locating Objectives: Objectives appear as blinking question marks on the map when in proximity. The UAV Recon Booster extends this range, and large clumps of stationary red dots on the map can indicate a nearby objective.
Extraction: At the end of a mission, Helldivers must extract. It's crucial to wait for all teammates before boarding the extraction ship to preserve collected resources. Deploying sentries near extraction points can help manage incoming enemy waves.
Enemy Factions: Weaknesses and Strategies
Helldivers 2 features three distinct enemy factions, each requiring different tactical approaches. Knowing their weaknesses is fundamental for success, especially on higher difficulties.
Terminids (Bugs)
Terminids primarily rely on melee attacks and swarm tactics, and are generally less armored than Automatons. They are often weak to fire. Aiming for the legs of medium-sized enemies can slow them down.
Scavenger: Lightly armored. Weak spots: Head, Legs. Use Eagle or Grenades for swarms.
Pouncer: Lightly armored, fast, leaps. Weak spots: Head, Legs. The Guard Dog Rover is effective against them.
Warrior: Lightly armored, slow. Weak spots: Head, Legs. Can go berserk if decapitated.
Shrieker: Low health, susceptible to fire. Wings are durable, so focus fire elsewhere.
Bile Spewer / Nursing Spewer: Medium armored. Weak spots: Mouth (precision weapons) or abdomen (explosives). Destroying the abdomen causes a bile explosion. On higher difficulties, they can fire bile like a long-range mortar.
Charger: Heavily armored. Weak spot: Head (anti-tank weapons). Stun grenades are highly effective, and having them run into a wall will stun them. Anti-tank weapons can expose unarmored flesh by blowing off armor.
Bile Titan: One of the most formidable Terminids. Weak spot: Face. A well-placed Eagle 500kg Bomb or a headshot with a Quasar Cannon, Recoilless Rifle, or EAT-17 can eliminate them. Destroying its bile sac removes its bile attack but makes it more aggressive. Rocket or Autocannon Sentries can quickly dispatch them.
Automatons (Robots)
Automatons are more aggressive and resilient, relying heavily on ranged attacks. They are often weak to laser and energy weapons.
Trooper, Marauder, Raider, Commissar: Common weak spot: Metal heads. SMGs or shotguns are effective. Commissars are more aggressive.
Scout Strider: Weak spot: Pilot. Weapons can be disabled by shooting their arms or rocket pods.
Berserker: Equipped with dual chainsaws, charges on sight. Weak spots: Head or torso (SMG/explosive). Legs can also be destroyed.
Devastator: Engages from a distance with rockets. Weak spots: Head (armored plates make it harder to hit), missile pack on its back (explosive with powerful weapons), or glowing red chest piece (instantly killed by a charged Railgun shot). Stun grenades are effective.
Hulk: Weak spots: Head and heat vents. Aim for headshots.
Dropships: Weak spots: Engines (each has individual health pools). Two Autocannon shots or one Quasar Cannon shot to an engine can destroy them. Rocket Sentries are effective for clearing skies.