Helldivers 2 Tanks are some of the most threatening machines that the Automatons can deploy, featuring in higher-difficulty missions to bring the pain. There are several versions you'll face too, including the Rocket Tank. While every version has near-impenetrable armor and a terrifying weapon to contend with, they have some notable weaknesses and can be damaged by plenty of punchy weapons and Stratagems. Whether you need to blast some enemy armor for a Personal Order or are struggling to bring down these beasts in tough Helldivers 2 missions, here's everything you need to know about destroying Automaton Tanks.
Helldivers 2 Tank types
The Automaton Tanks are some the biggest enemies you'll face when battling the bots, beaten by only the Helldivers 2 Factory Striders. These massive, heavily armored mobile weapon platforms can be really difficult to take down depending on where they are and what other Helldivers 2 Automatons are about to distract you, and there are three different variants to be aware of:
- Annihilators: Helldivers 2 Annihilator Tanks are the most conventional tank of the lot, packing a massive laser cannon and front-mounted laser machine gun for anything that gets too close.
- Shredders: These Automaton Tanks have four laser machine guns as their main turret, meaning they can spew out red shots at a staggering rate to cut down Helldivers.
- Barragers: Rocket Tanks, known as Barrager Tanks, act like mobile mortars, firing missiles in tall arcs to hit targets even if obstacles, terrain, and cover are in the way.
Helldivers 2 Tank weaknesses and best weapons
These Tanks are robust war machines but are far from invincible. Here are some surefire weapons and Stratagems to use and tactics to employ to bring them down:
- Use anti-armor and explosives only: Make sure you pick some dedicated Helldivers 2 armor-piercing support weapon Stratagems, such as the Railgun, Spear, Autocannon, Recoilless Rifle, Commando, Quasar Cannon, and Helldivers 2 Anti-Materiel Rifle.
- Focus on the weak point on the back of the turret: All Tank variants can be destroyed quickly with focused fire on the orange heat sink weak points on the back of the main turret. You still need to use weapons with decent armor penetration to damage these weak points, but it'll result in a rapid kill.
- If support weapons aren't an option, there's nothing a good Orbital or Eagle Stratagem won't solve. The Orbital Railcannon, Orbital Laser, and Eagle 500kg Bomb are the best choices for heavily armored targets.
- Tanks are very slow: The Automaton Tanks are easy to outmanoeuvre due to their low mobility. Getting right up to a Tank, running around it, and even climbing on top of it is a great way of staying out of its line of fire and getting a clearer shot on the heat sink weak point as the turret slowly rotates, though do watch out for the front-mounted machine guns that can mow you down. The Barrager Tanks are also not afraid to fire rockets at the floor as you approach.
- Find cover and go prone: If you're not close to a Tank, make sure you've got sturdy cover in front of you and stay prone as much as possible to resist the explosive effects from the Annihilator's turret and cower from the Shredders rapid shots. Obviously, you'll want some more substantial cover from the mortar-style rockets of the Barrager.
- Communicate well with your teammates on what the Tanks are doing and where they are. If you find one or even several in an objective area, bring them down as quickly as you can with a firestorm of Stratagems. Otherwise, making the most of their slow speed and running away might be your best course of action.
All this advice isn't easy to put into action when on a mission, as you'll probably also be dealing with lots of other bots aggressively attacking, making for an incredibly chaotic situation. When you're playing on Helldivers 2 difficulties high enough to come up against Tanks, you'll likely also face Helldivers 2 Gunships and some of those previously mentioned Factory Striders.
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