Tips for Beginners: A HELLDIVERS 2 Recruit Guide

Despite the controversies and the 180 countries that are still unable to purchase the game, HELLDIVERS 2 is still going strong, and there are plenty of new players coming in every day to help fight in the Second Galactic War (which apparently started 90 days into its lifespan). While the rigorous Helldivers training course is impeccable (please ignore the 23% survival rate for the training alone and the fact that it takes 10 minutes at most), you won’t be prepared for everything the Terminids and Automatons will throw at you, so here are a few tips on how to liberate the galaxy a little more effectively.

Don't panic

The only thing worse than death is cowardice!

It’s quite literally a loading screen tip, but it’s actually one of the most important tips you will learn. Missions will go badly, and you and your team might find yourselves low on reinforcements with no objectives completed. Do not quit or give up. As long as there is enough time, any mission can be beaten. Just know when to fight and when to run, and please use stealth (stay out of sight, go prone and crawl) if necessary. Every completed mission contributes to the overall war effort, so never give up in the face of adversity.

That Bile Titan isn't falling. Frozen BTs are dead, but you should steer clear of their corpses.

Actually, here’s a quick “don’t panic” moment you may encounter. If a stratagem beacon gets stuck on your shield backpack, stop what you are doing, drop the pack, and move away.

Know your Warbonds

My wife said it's this or her. She will be missed.

Weapons, armour, and boosters are obtained through a battle pass-like system called “Warbonds”, and currently, the only free one is “Helldivers Mobilise” which gives you access to base weapons and basic armours. They are nothing really fancy, but they are reliable and can dish out and defend Democracy with lethal efficiency. I still use Bonesnapper armour and impact grenades in my usual set, even after 280 hours of playtime. The cooler toys, however, are locked behind the premium Warbonds. Some guns are better than others in various situations, so you better do your research into finding the Warbond you want.

Spend your medals! You have a cap of 250 and won't get any more, even after the completion of Major Orders.

I personally recommend “Cutting Edge” and “Steeled Veterans” (you get this for free if you bought the Super Citizen Edition) as they have some really good weapons any Helldiver should have, such as the Breaker Incendiary and the Sickle. And don’t worry about needing to spend real money. Super Credits can be earned in missions by finding minor points of interest. You’ll need to do a ton of missions, but you’ll get what you want eventually. Also, there are already 700 Super Credits ready to be earned in “Helldivers Mobilise” so you only need to collect another 300.

And uh… if you wanna try out those new toys without buying the Warbond? Take it off a teammate’s corpse. Don’t kill them yourself, for Liberty’s sake, but don't be afraid to pick up their primary. They won’t mind.

Know your enemies

There is no negotiating with communists and bugs.

Dealing out Democracy isn’t as simple as shooting until something dies. It’s knowing when and where to shoot until something dies that makes spreading Democracy possible. Various bugs and bots are armoured, which will cause your bullets to deal reduced damage… or ricochet and come right back at you. Some weapons can penetrate that armour or ignore it altogether, but every enemy has its weakness. Most Automatons don’t like being shot in the head, for example. Make sure you study your enemies and find the most effective way of dealing with them in a quick and efficient manner… because more than likely, you’re gonna be dealing with several of them at once. If you want to know if you're doing the maximum amount of damage, see the hit marker that appears when you hit the enemy: red is 100%, white is 50%, but if you see a bullet bouncing off a shield icon, you aren’t doing anything and your bullets are bouncing off.

Scout Striders can be flanked or blown up, or you can take out its legs.

I recommend starting your campaign on the Terminids. While numerous, they aren’t as armoured as the Automatons and they don’t shoot back. Your starting stratagems and equipment are more than enough to take care of them by yourself until you unlock more stuff. I also recommend getting the Eagle Airstrike as soon as possible. A quick carpet bomb can take out a lot of things at once.

Know your guns

If the natives on this planet try installing democracy, shoot them. It's up to us to do that.

All guns (that includes the support weapons you get from stratagems) can be checked by holding down your reload button. This will always show you how much ammo you have in the mag/tank/heatsink, but not every gun has the same functions. Some guns allow you to change the range of your scope when using first-person view, change the rate of fire, change its fire settings, or just set your flashlight to be on or off.

Guns have much more range than you think. Yes, that includes shotguns.

When playing with a new weapon, check what it does and set it up to your liking or what your mission requires. And always check their armour penetration. You can see it when selecting your weapons before a mission in the Customisation menu (accessed in the Super Destroyer or in your Hellpod), but for support weapons, you will either need to test it or go online and find the stats yourself.

Check your fire

Friendly fire isn't.

Friendly fire is a common yet preventable occurrence, with the heat of battle and easy access to various explosives and orbital strikes. While we do commend healthy use of stratagems, we also like for you to show at least some restraint.

Backstabbing is only reccommended for the enemy.

Your teammates, however many die, are precious and should be protected at all costs… especially from you. You only have so many reinforcements after all. If a teammate is in front of you, do not fire or throw anything unless you are sure that you will hit the enemy only. If you do, make sure to warn them, as well as anything else that may blow up if they are in the vicinity. Also, when diving in the middle of a fight, make sure there isn’t a teammate below it.

Don't be a traitor

Please report to your nearest Democracy Officer.

Helldivers should work together and malicious actions should not be tolerated. Everything is shared, and that includes the samples collected throughout the mission. It is not split in any way, you will receive your due rewards as long as someone gets onto the Pelican with the samples in hand. I cannot tell you how many people don’t get this even at levels where they should know better.

You're a team. Act like it.

There is literally no point in killing your teammates, you actually lose rewards if you do. Being selfish will hurt you. To ensure the weeding out of such Helldivers, you should host your missions instead of quickplay if you’re playing without friends. This gives you the ability to kick anyone from the game and make sure to block them on your recent players list. Make friends, not enemies with your fellow Helldivers (but not the bots and the bugs, you will be sent to your Democracy Officer).

Communicate

If at first you don't succeed, dive, dive again. And again. And again... etc.

Ultimately, the best tip is to talk to your teammates. Even if you don’t have a mic, there is a text chat and you can tag anything of interest. Heck, tag anything that stands out in the distance like giant monsters and the Eye of Sauron. Don’t be afraid to take charge and mark on your map where you want your team to go. Coordination can turn even a Difficulty 9 - Helldive into a cakewalk. Don’t be afraid of asking for help either, in and out of the game. There are plenty of other more experienced Helldivers out there who will gladly help and guide you more effectively than reading this guide. The best learning experience is on the battlefield after all.

Democracy has prevailed.

I’ve been playing HELLDIVERS 2 since I got the game for review, and I’ve made many mistakes throughout my time. But that’s also part of the experience. You will become a great Helldiver, it’s just a matter of how much time it takes. So get out there and dive into whatever hellish landscape our superiors want us to fight for. FOR SUPER EARTH!