Summary
Before dropping onto a planet for a mission,Helldivers 2players equip up to four Stratagems as part of their loadout. These are their special abilities and heavy weapons that they will have access to for the upcoming mission, and it is critical that players havea balanced loadout. Having weapons and abilities that can take on armored enemies in addition to clearing the field of swarms is a key part of that.
Another key part of a goodHelldivers 2loadout is choosing a single Stratagem to take up the player’s sole backpack slot. Players have to choose which one of the eight backpack Stratagems they will use for the mission, which can set them up for either victory or failure.
11Ballistic Shield Backpack
Protects The Player’s Front But Makes Them Use One-Handed Weapons
When players pick up theBallistic Shield, they wear it on their back until they equip it. Once equipped, the player holds the shield in one hand and their one-handed sidearm in the other. They can then move forward towards enemies while mitigating damage from small arms fire.
The shield does not protect from explosions or other heavily damaging attacks, so players should not feel invincible or charge into the thickest parts of a battle. The fact that players can onlywield a side armwith the shield also makes it less useful than other backpack Stratagems. There are better ways to protect helldivers without limiting the squad’s firepower.
10Spear Ammo Support Backpack
The Spear is apowerful Support Weaponthat locks onto large targets. It can be used to take down Chargers, Bile Titans, Hulks, and Tanks although it may take more than one shot to do so. Unfortunately, it cannot shoot at anything smaller than these large targets.
The Spear backpack contains Spear ammo. Using it is the only way to reload and fire it beyond the first use. Fortunately, any player in the squad can wear the backpack and reload the heavy weapon, and it is actually faster if a different player equips this backpack than the one who equipped the Spear itself. The Spear and its backpack highlight the game’s emphasis on cooperation, but some players may find it too cumbersome and niche to truly be effective in the field.
9B-1 Supply Pack
Carry Extra Ammo, Stims, And Grenades
While ammo, grenades, and stims can occasionally be found strewn across the map, scavenging is not as reliable as calling in aResupplyStratagem which provides enough to restock the whole squad. The main downsides to theResupplyStratagem are its cooldown timer and the fact thatan Ion Stormcan prevent players from calling one down.
TheB-1 Supply Packcircumvents these downsides by allowing players to carry them on their backs. The player wearing it can give supplies to their squad mates or take some for themselves, granting flexibility that typically isn’t offered for players low on ammo.
Backpack To Support An Anti-Vehicle Weapon
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TheRecoilless Rifleis a powerful Support Weapon designed to handle heavily armoredenemies like Chargersand Tanks. Like the Spear, it requires a backpack to load its specialized ammo between two shots. If worn by the player wielding the Recoilless Rifle, it takes a considerable amount of time to reload.
The reload process goes by faster if a player who isn’t using the Recoilless Rifle takes the backpack, though it is still slower than reloading a primary or secondary weapon. Taking the backpack to help the teammate specializing in dealing with large, armored enemies is a great way to support the squad.
6Autocannon Ammo Support Backpack
Support The Player With The Autocannon
TheAutocannonis another Support Weapon that requires a specialized ammo backpack. Like the Spear and Recoilless Rifle, reloading is faster when done by a second player instead of the one using the Autocannon. What makes the Autocannon better is that it uses a clip of ammo instead of a single shot.
The Autocannon can hold ten bullets at a time and each clip of ammo used from the backpack reloads half of this capacity. By reloading multiple bullets at a time, the player with the backpack does not need to always stay by the player shooting the Autocannon so there is more freedom and flexibility with this gun and backpack combo than with others.
5AX/AR-23 “Guard Dog”
Rover That Fires A Liberator Assault Rifle
TheAX/AR-23 Guard DogRover carries a Liberator Assault Rifle, which is thestandard-issue primary weapongiven to players at the beginning of the game. It can easily watch the player’s back while he or she is at a terminal, or prevent them from getting surrounded and overwhelmed by enemies. Having a second gun passively firing at any nearby threats is a great strategy for surviving a mission.
Since the Liberator does not penetrate armor, this Rover’s bullets will ricochet off of armored enemies if it starts to target them. Since there is no way to choose which targets the Rover will hit, this can be problematic on higher-level missions. The other downside to this Stratagem is that the Rover has to dock with the backpack to reload fairly frequently, reducing the time that players have a second weapon firing with them.
Passively Shoots Lasers At Nearby Enemies
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When a player puts on aAX/LAS-5Guard Dog backpack, the rover launches and then hovers around them. It passively fires at nearby enemies and is capable of killing many enemies with its laser beam before needing to land back on the player’s back to cool down.
Since lasers do not ricochet off armor, this Guard Dog is not at risk for inadvertently hurting allies by shooting at Chargers or other heavy foes. However, the laser does often hit players, especially the one with its backpack, because the rover does not take friendly fire into consideration. The benefits of having a second gun firing at nearby threats offset the risk of friendly fire for most players.
2LIFT-850 Jump Pack
Boost Movement Speed And Dodge Enemies
When activated,the Jump Packlaunches the player into the air in the direction they were just moving in. It is a sudden burst rather than a controlled, slow burn. Players who want to use the Jump Pack have to learn to judge the height and distance so that they can use it effectively to climb up rock faces, jump over fences and obstacles, or infiltrate places like Heavy Fabricators.
The Jump Pack can also be used as an effective dodge. Jumping over Chargers makes it easier to hit their weak spot on the back, and using a Jump Pack to get away from a pack of Hunters is a good way to avoid being slowed down and killed. Because the Jump Pack is faster than sprinting, it can also offset the slow speed of Heavy Armor or augment the agility of players using Light Armor. Players who want mobility should strongly consider bringing a Jump Pack planet-side.
