Helldivers 2 gives you four stratagem slots per mission, and you cannot take the same stratagem twice. That limit is the whole design problem: there are far more good stratagems than slots, and the right four change with every faction.
The short answer is a formula. One anti-tank weapon, one stratagem that deletes heavies, one crowd tool, one backpack or sentry. The rest of this guide tells you which stratagem fills each slot on the current patch, against each faction. Rankings reflect the current balance — Arrowhead adjusts stratagems often, so treat them as a snapshot rather than a law.
Best stratagems ranked
The ranking axis is how often a stratagem earns its slot across all three factions at higher difficulties. Faction specialists that are excellent against one enemy and weak against the others sit lower here and higher in the faction tables below.
The Orbital Laser (3 uses per mission), Orbital Napalm Barrage and the Exosuits are also strong; they fall just short because the Railcannon and the Eagles cover the same jobs on shorter cooldowns.
How the four slots should be split
Fill the slots in this order:
-
1
Slot 1 — an anti-tank weapon you can always fire
Quasar Cannon, Recoilless Rifle or EAT-17. Each one-shots a Charger's head or a Hulk. Never drop without an answer to heavy armor.
-
2
Slot 2 — a stratagem that deletes the biggest enemy
Eagle 500kg Bomb or Orbital Railcannon Strike. This is for the Bile Titan, Factory Strider or Harvester that your rocket alone will not solve quickly.
-
3
Slot 3 — a crowd tool
Eagle Cluster Bomb, Eagle Napalm Airstrike, Orbital Gas Strike or a machine gun support weapon. This is what stops a breach or a bot drop from overrunning you.
-
4
Slot 4 — a backpack or a sentry
Shield Generator Pack or Supply Pack if your support weapon is backpack-free; a sentry (Machine Gun, Gatling or Rocket) if your support weapon already wears a backpack.
The backpack rule. You can wear one backpack. The Recoilless Rifle, Autocannon and Spear each come with their own ammo backpack, so taking one of them plus a Supply Pack or Shield Generator Pack wastes a slot. Backpack-free anti-tank options — the Quasar Cannon, EAT-17 and MLS-4X Commando — are what let you run a utility backpack.
Best stratagems against each faction
Terminids
Terminids attack in numbers and their heavies — Chargers, Bile Titans, Impalers — close the distance fast. You want crowd clearing that comes back quickly and anti-tank that does not require standing still.
| Rank | Stratagem | Why it works on bugs |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eagle 500kg Bomb | Kills Bile Titans and wipes everything around them |
| 2 | Quasar Cannon / EAT-17 | One-shots a Charger's head with no stationary reload while you are being chased |
| 3 | Eagle Cluster Bomb | 4 uses per rearm against swarms of small and medium bugs |
| 4 | Orbital Gas Strike | Confuses and slows a whole Bug Breach for a 75-second cooldown |
| 5 | Eagle Airstrike | Closes Bug Holes from a distance; 2 uses per rearm |
| 6 | Supply Pack | Bug missions burn stims and ammo; 4 charges keep you running |
Solo, avoid the Recoilless Rifle against bugs: its 6-second stationary reload is long when a pack is chasing you.
Automatons
Automatons punish you at range. Their heavies — Hulks, Tanks, Factory Striders — are armored, and Gunships appear on higher difficulties. You want shields, precise anti-tank, and a way to flatten outposts.
| Rank | Stratagem | Why it works on bots |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shield Generator Pack | Blocks bot projectiles and rockets from every direction |
| 2 | Recoilless Rifle / Quasar Cannon | One-shots a Hulk and breaks a Factory Strider's head armor |
| 3 | Orbital Railcannon Strike | Instantly kills a Hulk or Tank; auto-targets the largest enemy |
| 4 | Eagle Airstrike | Destroys Fabricators from outside their line of fire |
| 5 | Autocannon | Heavy penetration for Factory Strider gatling guns; flak mode for Gunships |
| 6 | Rocket Sentry | Prioritises heavies, so its rockets go where you need them |
The Hulk Bruiser's head has only 250 health: the Railgun, Anti-Materiel Rifle and S-11 Speargun destroy it in one shot. The Factory Strider is easier if you destroy its gatling guns first with a Medium- or Heavy-penetration weapon, then crack the head with an anti-tank rocket.
Illuminate
The Illuminate reward sustained damage over single big hits. Harvester shields absorb any single instance of damage and regenerate, and many Illuminate units use explosive and arc damage. Swarms of Voteless and Fleshmobs fill the gaps.
| Rank | Stratagem | Why it works on the Illuminate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MG-43 Machine Gun / Heavy Machine Gun | High DPS destroys Harvester leg joints quickly and mows down Voteless |
| 2 | Shield Generator Pack | Blocks explosive and arc damage, both common on the Illuminate |
| 3 | Autocannon (flak) | Shrapnel strips Harvester shields cheaply |
| 4 | Eagle Cluster Bomb / Napalm Airstrike | Clears Voteless and Fleshmob packs |
| 5 | Orbital Gas Strike | Confusion and slow help when Warp Ships drop reinforcements |
| 6 | EAT-17 / Recoilless Rifle | One rocket destroys a Harvester joint once the shield is down |
Removing just one of the Harvester's two shield generators (above and below its eye) disables its shield permanently. Destroying any one leg joint kills it.
Unlock levels and costs
Costs are in Requisition Slips and unlocked on your Super Destroyer once you reach the level. Stratagems from Warbonds cost Medals instead and are not listed.
| Stratagem | Category | Level | Cost | Base cooldown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orbital Precision Strike | Orbital | 1 | Free | 80 s |
| MG-43 Machine Gun | Support weapon | 1 | Free | 480 s |
| Eagle Strafing Run | Eagle | 1 | 1,500 | 15 s between uses |
| Eagle Airstrike | Eagle | 1 | 4,000 | 15 s between uses |
| Orbital Gas Strike | Orbital | 1 | 4,000 | 75 s |
| A/MG-43 Machine Gun Sentry | Sentry | 1 | 1,500 | 90 s |
| B-1 Supply Pack | Backpack | 1 | 4,000 | 480 s |
| EAT-17 Expendable Anti-Tank | Support weapon | 3 | 3,000 | 70 s |
| Eagle Cluster Bomb | Eagle | 3 | 4,000 | 15 s between uses |
| GR-8 Recoilless Rifle | Support weapon | 5 | 6,000 | 480 s |
| Eagle Napalm Airstrike | Eagle | 5 | 5,000 | 15 s between uses |
| A/G-16 Gatling Sentry | Sentry | 5 | 4,000 | 150 s |
| AC-8 Autocannon | Support weapon | 10 | 7,000 | 480 s |
| E/MG-101 HMG Emplacement | Emplacement | 10 | 10,000 | 180 s |
| Eagle 500kg Bomb | Eagle | 15 | 10,000 | 15 s between uses |
| Orbital Laser | Orbital | 15 | 10,000 | 300 s, 3 uses |
| A/MLS-4X Rocket Sentry | Sentry | 15 | 7,500 | 150 s |
| LAS-99 Quasar Cannon | Support weapon | 18 | 7,500 | 480 s |
| Orbital Napalm Barrage | Orbital | 18 | 10,000 | 240 s |
| Orbital Railcannon Strike | Orbital | 20 | 10,000 | 180 s |
| SH-32 Shield Generator Pack | Backpack | 20 | 10,000 | 480 s |
| EXO-49 Emancipator Exosuit | Vehicle | 25 | 20,000 | 420 s, 3 uses |
How cooldowns, uses and categories work
Support weapons drop in a Hellpod. Most have a 480-second cooldown; the EAT-17 (70 s) and MLS-4X Commando (120 s) are built to be called often. If you die, go back and pick your weapon up rather than waiting 8 minutes.
Backpacks also have a 480-second cooldown (the Ballistic Shield Backpack is shorter). One backpack at a time, and support weapons that need ammo packs count as your backpack.
Eagles share one aircraft. Each Eagle stratagem has a fixed number of uses per rearm — Strafing Run 4, Cluster Bomb 4, Airstrike 2, Napalm 2, 500kg Bomb 1 — with 15 seconds between uses. When any one runs out, the Eagle rearms for 150 seconds and none can be called. Use the Eagle Rearm stratagem to send it back early when one Eagle is empty and the others are not worth waiting for.
Orbitals are one shot per call with their own cooldown, independent of each other. A few are limited per mission: the Orbital Laser has 3 uses.
Sentries and emplacements have short cooldowns (90–180 s). Sentries fire automatically and do not check whether a Helldiver is in the line of fire; emplacements such as the HMG need someone to man them.
Vehicles — the Patriot and Emancipator Exosuits — are Level 25, 20,000 Requisition each, limited to 3 uses per mission on a 420-second cooldown.
Ship modules shorten everything. Expanded Weapons Bay adds one use per rearm to every Eagle. Pit Crew Hazard Pay cuts Eagle rearm from 150 to 120 seconds. Zero-G Breech Loading cuts orbital cooldowns by 10%, Streamlined Request Process does the same for support weapons, Hand Carts for backpacks, and Morale Augmentation cuts all stratagem cooldowns by 5%.
Loadout templates
Solo
Solo, nobody reloads for you, nobody covers you, and every stratagem has to work without a partner.
| Faction | Four stratagems | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Terminids | Quasar Cannon + Supply Pack + Eagle 500kg Bomb + Eagle Cluster Bomb | Anti-tank without a reload stop, ammo for kiting, and two Eagles that cover both heavies and swarms |
| Automatons | Quasar Cannon + Shield Generator Pack + Orbital Railcannon Strike + Eagle Airstrike | The shield lets you trade at range; Railcannon handles the Hulk or Tank you cannot reach; Airstrike closes Fabricators |
| Illuminate | MG-43 Machine Gun + Shield Generator Pack + Eagle Cluster Bomb + Orbital Railcannon Strike | Sustained DPS for Harvester joints and Voteless; the Railcannon covers the occasional target the MG cannot handle |
| Before Level 15 | EAT-17 + Supply Pack + Eagle Airstrike + Machine Gun Sentry | All unlocked by Level 3 for 12,500 Requisition in total |
Squad of four
In a squad, cover the four jobs across people instead of inside each loadout. Heavies tend to split the team up, so at least three of the four players should carry a direct anti-tank weapon; the specialties are what you divide.
| Role | Four stratagems | Job in the squad |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy hitter | Recoilless Rifle + Eagle 500kg Bomb + Orbital Railcannon Strike + Orbital Precision Strike | Kills every Bile Titan, Hulk and Tank; a teammate reloads the Recoilless |
| Crowd control | Machine Gun or Stalwart + Supply Pack + Eagle Cluster Bomb + Orbital Gas Strike | Holds breaches and drops; refills teammates from the Supply Pack |
| Defence | Quasar Cannon + Shield Generator Pack + Gatling Sentry + Rocket Sentry | Locks down objectives and extraction with sentries while the shield keeps them alive |
| Objectives | EAT-17 + Jump Pack + Eagle Airstrike + Orbital Napalm Barrage | Moves fast between nests, Fabricators and side objectives |
Do not stack four 480-second support weapons that need backpacks. If the whole squad brings the Recoilless, Autocannon and Spear, nobody has a Supply Pack or shield, and every death costs an 8-minute cooldown. At least one player should run a backpack-free weapon and a utility pack.
Common mistakes
- Throwing a Hellpod onto a teammate. Support weapons, sentries and reinforcements arrive in Hellpods that crush whatever they land on, including Helldivers. Beacons can even stick to another player's Shield Generator Pack.
- Calling the Orbital Airburst Strike near the squad. Anyone caught in the blast dies regardless of armor or shield; the safe distance is about 30 m.
- Sentries behind your own team. Sentries keep firing through Helldivers in their line of fire. Place them to the side of your fighting line, not behind it. The Guard Dog Rover and the Arc Thrower can also hit teammates.
- Wasting Eagle uses. Using the last Strafing Run on two small bugs locks the 500kg Bomb out for 150 seconds. Rearm deliberately.
- Ignoring the backpack rule. A Recoilless Rifle plus a Shield Generator Pack means one of them stays on the ground.
- Throwing stratagems into a jammer. Stratagem Jammer towers block beacons in their radius until you destroy them.
Related guides
Learn each faction's heavies and weak points in the faction guide, then match your primary and grenades to your stratagems with the weapons tier list. If you are still learning stratagem inputs and early missions, start with the beginner guide. Whether the game is worth your time is covered in the honest review.
★Honest Take: four slots is where the game is decided
The best thing about Helldivers 2's stratagem system is that it refuses to let one loadout win everywhere. A 500kg Bomb that ends every bug mission is clumsy against bot outposts; a Shield Generator Pack that saves you from rockets does nothing against fire. The cost is that the game rarely explains this — new players carry a crowd tool into a Bile Titan fight and blame their aim. The other honest caveat is churn: Arrowhead buffs and nerfs stratagems regularly, so a tier list ages faster than in most games. The formula — anti-tank, heavy-killer, crowd tool, backpack or sentry — has survived every patch so far, and it is the thing worth remembering.
