There’s a plethora of weapons and Stratagems for you to pick up and master in Helldivers 2. While many of them are easy to play around with, most are hard to master, especially if you have a Personal Order you must fulfill with your Democracy Officer.
It’s easy to get yourself into a groove with one particular weapon, Stratagem, or loadout in Helldivers 2. For example, the Flamethrower is so powerful against Terminids that there’s almost no reason to deviate from it. that is, unless you get a Personal Order to use something else, like the Autocannon, or you get a comment from a fellow Helldiver and want to broaden your horizons before your dependency causes your dependents to have to pay to have your helmet shipped home.
How to use the Autocannon to maximize kills in Helldivers 2
The Autocannon is a powerful weapon in Helldivers 2 that can wipe out quite a few enemies in a single hit. Anything with medium armor and below will be decimated in one or two hits, while even colossal Bile Titans will succumb to your fire if you empty an entire magazine into them.
However, you’ve got to pay attention to your surroundings while using the Autocannon. You can’t move while reloading it, and you must sacrifice your backpack slot to an ammo holder if you want more than one magazine for the weapon. While it sometimes pays to only use one and equip a Jump Pack, I’d recommend having more ammo most of the time.
To truly maximize your kills with the Autocannon, you must ensure you’re always at mid or long-range from most of the enemies on the planet. This weapon is great at taking down bots and bugs from these ranges, but close-range will knock you and fellow Helldivers off your feet.
When the other players in the mission start to work on an objective, this weapon is great for clearing out approaching enemies. If those enemies get too close, running off and taking them out with a little distance between us always helps move things along.
The key with the Autocannon is to know when to drop the ammo pack and get a shield or Jump Pack. Don’t sacrifice your Helldiver for the sake of a few kills when you could fly off, live, and get three times as many. You’ll learn this with time and practice, but always try to keep your character alive rather than get that last shot off. Most of the time, that last shot will knock you down and result in your death anyway.
How to get the Autocannon in Helldivers 2
To get the Autocannon in Helldivers 2, you must purchase it from the Stratagem tab in the Ship Management menu. It’ll cost you 7,000 Requisition Slips, but it takes no time at all to earn that from one or two missions, provided you hit every objective possible. This is a heavy weapon, so you’ve got to equip it as a Stratagem and call it down in a mission to equip it alongside your standard loadout.
Best loadout for the Autocannon in Helldivers 2
The best loadout for the Autonannon in Helldivers 2 is whatever you’re most comfortable with. However, if you’re looking for a good starting point, I’ve outlined below what I like to run with. Note that I recommend using your favorites when it comes to weapons because that’ll make you a much better killing machine. If you’ve got the cash, go for something from the Viper Comamandos Warbond.
- Autocannon
- Eagle Strafing Run
- Orbital Strike
- Jump Pack
The idea with this loadout is to rely quite heavily on standing still and killing everything before it gets too close. Call down your Autocannon as soon as you drop, and equip both it and its backpack. Now, wait for an objective, then call down your Jump Pack.
While you kill enemies and reload between magazines to support your allies, keep an eye out for enemies getting too close. If they start to drift nearer to you that you’re comfortable with, pick up the Jump Pack and launch yourself to a vantage point before continuing to shoot.
The Orbital Strike and Eagle Strafing Run are fantastic last resorts for clearing out groups of enemies. With this loadout, you’re likely to end up in the middle of a few. But try to maintain distance with this method and maximize your Autocannon kills.
