Much like the game’s titular soldiers,players inHelldivers 2quickly learn that the battlefields of the Galactic War are deadlier than basic training would have them believe. Charging into a swarm of bugs or bots without a plan is about as effective as it sounds. If Super-Earth is going to liberate the galaxy, then its troops will need to fight strategically.
Learning to manage your resources and stay alive is the first step to completing complex missions in Helldivers 2. Use these tips to get started, and you’ll spend less time spectating and more time shooting.
Explore The Map
The fact that missions have a time limit means that new players will usually make a beeline straight for the main objectives, then extract as soon as possible. Doing so causes you to missAreas of Interest, hidden locations that contain weapons, currency, and supplies. Areas of Interest are usually off the beaten path, so if you’re part of a team it can help tospread out while traveling between objectivesto maximize your chances of finding one.
Most maps also have at least onehidden Secondary Objective. Finding and completing it will earn more XP and Requisition Slips. The same goes for enemy outposts, shown in red on the minimap, but those are always visible so you can plan your routes to destroy or avoid them as the situation dictates.
You get bonus XP and RP based on how much time you have remaining when the team extracts, but this is secondary. You’ll get more if you take the time to finish side quests than you would from the time bonus.
Use Every Bullet
Unlike most shooters, where reloading simply moves ammo from your reserve to your clip, Helldivers 2 uses a more realistic magazine system. Any ammo still in the old magazine when you reload isdiscarded along with it.Since you may only carry a handful of magazines for each weapon, it pays toempty every clipif possible.
Weapons with theRounds Reloadtrait - usually shotguns - don’t use magazines, so you don’t have to worry about waste when using these firearms.
If your magazine is still half-full,resist the urge to reloadunless there’s an ammo crate nearby. Reloading too frequently can cause you to run out of ammo in the middle of a fight. Ideally, you want to fire every single bullet you have,reloading only when your ammo indicator turns red.
Fight Defensively
Your squad will be outnumbered in every fight. The best way to even the odds is touse chokepoints and stratagemsto make the enemy come to you. Instead of rushing into a nest,place turrets and minefields,then use an orbital strike to flush out the enemies inside.
Fighting defensively is a good way toclear out smaller enemies, letting your squad focus fire on larger, more dangerous ones who will shrug off the damage from your defenses. Once the current Breach ends and the area is clear, you can move in to shut down outposts or complete objectives.
Fight From Prone To Avoid Friendly Fire
Between crossfire, explosions, and turrets that can’t tell friend from foe, it’s easy to get taken out by your own teammates - or yourself, if you’re especially unlucky. If you find yourself forward of the rest of your team, it’s a good idea todive proneand fight from the ground.
In this position, you’ll betoo low for turrets to hitand present a much smaller accidental target for your teammates. Just be sure that your flanks are secure - it’s impossible to move quickly while you’re prone.
Use Stratagems Often
While some of the more powerful Stratagems have a limited number of uses per mission, in most cases your only consideration will be cooldown time. This meansyou don’t need to be stingy with stratagems- if one is ready and fits the situation,let it rip.
If there’s a group of enemies approaching,call down a turret or an orbital strike.If a Resupply is available,set it up just outside your current objective zone.Even if you already have a support weapon in hand,summon another one.Your teammates can use it, or rearm themselves after respawning.
Memorize Key Stratagem Codes
Easily the most impactful thing that a new player can do while learning the game ismemorize the code for Resupply, along with their preferred orbital strike or deployables. If you can input the codequickly and accurately without looking,you can save several seconds - often the difference between life and death.
There are two codes that every player should know by heart:
They’re always available regardless of your loadout and are essential to victory no matter the mission.
Save Your Stims
Stims allow you to shrug off the grievous injuries your Helldiver will face in the line of duty.Using a Stim fully heals your Helldiverand removes all injury effects. They’re extremely important, but you canonly carry four at a time.Moreover, a Supply Pack only holds two Stims, so if a full team is sharing a Resupply equally everyone will only get two.
Try to use your Stims onlywhen you’re on the brink of deathor when you are debilitated by one or more injuries. You’ll get more value out of them in the long run, and be less likely to run out when you need them most.
If you take damage while your health bar is filling as a result of using a Stim, you’llcontinue to heal until the bar is full.This means that you’re able to sometimes afford to take a few hits in the instant after the Stim takes effect.
