How to beat the Helldivers 2 Gunships
Apr. 2, 2024Gunships are a new threat in Helldivers 2 and require serious firepower to bring down
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Helldivers 2 Gunships are the Automaton’s answer to aerial combat, with special factories that produce flying Gunships at a horrifying rate. Though slow, these gunships are heavily armored and have serious firepower, enough to make them stand out as a significant threat among the roster of enemies inHelldivers 2.
Still, they’re by no means unbeatable. Heavy artillery and creative thinking will allow players to beat back the gunships as they approach, long enough to work out where to find the factory facility that they’re coming from - and destroy it for good. If you want a hand on dealing with these horrors, here’s how to beat the Automaton Gunships in Helldivers 2.
The Helldivers 2 Gunships explained
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As one of the later enemy types to be added to Helldivers 2, the Automaton Gunships are a brutal aerial unit for the bots. They’re almost the complete opposite of theHelldivers 2 Shriekers, moving slowly at a fixed altitude, raining laser fire and missile salvos at Helldivers on the ground. They’re also heavily armored and can only be shot down without some of thebest Helldivers 2 weapons.Even if you shoot them down, they can keep coming thanks to a nearby Gunship Facility – a new type of Enemy Tactical Objective – that needs to be destroyed too. Overall, it means Gunships are a challenge to deal with, especially at the highestHelldivers 2 difficulties, where several of them can appear at once.
Due to the heavy armor on these Gunships, regular primary weapons aren’t going to cut it, so you need to shoot them with a really big gun to down them in one or two shots. TheSpear, Recoilless Rifle, Expendable Anti-Tank,andRailgunare all solid options, but theQuasar Cannonis by far the best option thanks to its power, infinite ammo, and lack of backpack requirements.
If you’re completing a mission on a planet occupied by theHelldivers 2 Automatons, especially on Suicide Mission and above, at least two Helldivers should be packing one of the above weapons to deal with not only these Gunships, but also things likeHelldivers 2 Annihilator TanksandHulks. If you want to stop Gunships meddling with your mission permanently, however, you’ll need to obliterate the nearby Gunship Facility.
These massive ship-building towers should be easy to spot if you start getting attacked by Gunships, butthey can only be taken down with a Hellbomb. Unlike many other bot structures which can be destroyed using some of thebest Helldivers 2 Stratagems, such as the Orbital Laser and Eagle 500kg Bomb, Gunship Facilities really can only be destroyed by a Hellbomb.
Call one of these bombs in, ideally between the two towers in the facility, butbefore you detonate it, it is imperative that you clear the area of Automatons. Enemies always try to destroy a Hellbomb as soon as it gets armed, and Gunships are especially good at doing so since they can see over pretty much any cover you try and hide the bomb behind. Deal with all enemies first, then arm the Hellbomb when the skies are clear. After that, it’s time to GTFO and carry on with the rest of your mission!© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.
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