Helldivers 2 Weapon Tier | Primaries, Secondaries, Grenades by Faction

Author: Verdict Games Editorial Team Last Updated: October 3, 2026

The Bottom Line

Carry at least Medium armor penetration in one slot, and make sure one slot can close Bug Holes and Fabricators. The JAR-5 Dominator, PLAS-101 Purifier and R-36 Eruptor are the strongest all-round primaries; the SG-8S Slugger and AR-23P Liberator Penetrator are the best free ones. The P-4 Senator and GP-31 Grenade Pistol lead the secondaries, and the G-123 Thermite is the best throwable against heavies.

Summary

In Helldivers 2 your primary, secondary and throwable decide whether you can deal with everything your stratagems are not aimed at: medium-armored enemies, swarms, nests and Fabricators. This guide ranks the weapons that matter on the current patch, explains armor penetration and damage types in plain words, gives the best picks per faction, separates the free Helldivers Mobilize options from Warbond weapons, and covers customization and common mistakes.

Who This Is For: Players choosing a primary, secondary and throwable for Terminid, Automaton or Illuminate missions Intermediate

Key Points

Armor penetration decides whether a shot does anything: higher than the armor deals 100%, equal deals 65%, lower ricochets for nothing. Medium penetration on a primary covers most of what your stratagems do not.

Explosions and fire play by different rules: explosive damage always counts fully against durable parts, and most incendiary weapons' fire damage penetrates Heavy armor.

The free Helldivers Mobilize Warbond includes strong primaries: SG-8S Slugger (page 8), AR-23P Liberator Penetrator (page 6), R-63CS Diligence Counter Sniper (page 7) and PLAS-1 Scorcher (page 10).

Pick by faction: fire and stagger against Terminids, Medium penetration and precision against Automatons, sustained damage and fire against the Illuminate.

Balance changes often. Patch 1.007.000 alone raised spare ammunition on several weapons, so treat exact rankings as the current state and the principles as the lasting part.

Your four stratagems handle the biggest enemies. Your primary, secondary and throwable handle everything else: the swarm, the medium-armored elites, the Bug Holes and Fabricators, and the moments when every stratagem is on cooldown. A good weapon loadout is the one that covers the jobs your stratagems leave open.

Stats and Warbond sources below come from the Helldivers wiki on wiki.gg. The rankings are our judgment of the current patch. Arrowhead changes weapon balance often, so a specific placement can move after an update; the principles in the second half of this guide are the part that lasts. Support weapons such as the Quasar Cannon and Machine Gun are stratagems and are ranked in the stratagem guide, not here.

Primary weapon tier list

The ranking axis is how well a primary covers all three factions on higher difficulties. AP is the armor penetration class; a weapon listed as "Light / Heavy fire" has Light-penetrating pellets and fire damage that penetrates Heavy armor.

JAR-5 Dominator — Medium AP, Steeled Veterans 275 damage per round and a stagger force of 35, enough to interrupt even heavy enemies. Best against Automatons and the Illuminate; works on bugs too. Only 15 rounds per magazine. PLAS-101 Purifier — Medium AP, Polar Patriots Charged shots deal 200 impact plus a 300 explosion. Explosions count fully against durable parts, so it punches above its class. Good on all three factions. R-36 Eruptor — Heavy AP, Democratic Detonation Heavy-penetrating shell plus explosion and shrapnel. Closes Bug Holes, Fabricators and grounded Warp Ships in one shot, which frees your throwable slot. Very slow bolt action. SG-225IE Breaker Incendiary — Light / Heavy fire, Steeled Veterans A semi- and burst-fire shotgun that sets crowds on fire. The best primary against Terminid swarms and Voteless; weak against Automaton armor.

SG-8S Slugger — Medium AP, free (Mobilize page 8) A 330-damage slug with stagger that pierces Hive Guard heads and Devastator torsos. The best free primary for every faction. AR-23P Liberator Penetrator — Medium AP, free (Mobilize page 6) The starter rifle with Medium penetration and a better scope. A dependable anti-Automaton rifle with 45-round magazines. R-63CS Diligence Counter Sniper — Medium AP, free (Mobilize page 7) 200 damage per shot at long range. Excellent for Automaton headshots; too slow for Terminid swarms. PLAS-1 Scorcher — Light / Medium explosion, free (Mobilize page 10) Every bolt explodes for 100 plus 100 damage. Strong against Devastators and groups; dangerous to teammates at close range. ARC-12 Blitzer — Medium AP arc, Cutting Edge Unlimited ammunition and arcs that chain between enemies within 25 m and build up stun. Strong against bugs and Voteless. SG-451 Cookout — Light / Heavy fire, Freedom's Flame Incendiary pellets with a stagger force of 35 and a rounds reload. Holds Terminids and Voteless back while burning them. BR-14 Adjudicator — Medium AP, Democratic Detonation 95 damage per round at 550 rpm. A strong Automaton rifle; recoil and a 30-round magazine are the trade-off.

SG-8 Punisher — Light AP, free (Mobilize page 1) Stagger force of 35 and a rounds reload. Good against medium bugs; Light penetration limits it against bots. SG-225 Breaker — Light AP, free (Mobilize page 4) Full-auto shotgun that shreds lightly armored crowds. Burns through ammunition. CB-9 Exploding Crossbow — Medium AP, Democratic Detonation One-handed explosive bolts that destroy spawners. Slow, arcing bolts make it awkward in close fights. AR-2 Coyote — Medium AP + fire, Dust Devils Medium-penetrating rounds that also ignite most enemies in two or three shots. Higher recoil than other assault rifles. LAS-16 Sickle — Light AP, Cutting Edge A laser rifle with heat sinks instead of magazines. Steady damage against light enemies; weak against durable parts. R-63 Diligence — Light AP, free (Mobilize page 2) Accurate 165-damage shots. Fine for headshots on light bots; outclassed by the Counter Sniper later. SMG-37 Defender — Light AP, free (Mobilize page 3) One-handed, so it works with the Ballistic Shield backpack and while carrying objectives.

AR-23 Liberator — Light AP, starter Low recoil and a reasonable damage output, but Light penetration. Replace it once you have Medals. SG-225SP Breaker Spray&Pray — Light AP, free (Mobilize page 9) Wide birdshot spread for small targets only. 15 damage per pellet leaves it with no answer to anything armored.

Why there is no "best gun". A primary is never your answer to Chargers, Hulks or Harvesters; your anti-tank stratagem is. What separates the S tier is that those weapons also handle the medium layer (Hive Guards, Devastators, Overseers) or close nests by themselves, so your stratagems are free for the heavies.

Secondary weapon tier list

P-4 Senator — Heavy AP, Steeled Veterans 225 damage per shot, one-handed, and the only conventional sidearm that one-shots every Overseer variant to the head. A Hulk's eye takes three shots. Six rounds per cylinder. GP-31 Grenade Pistol — Medium AP, Democratic Detonation A single-shot grenade launcher that destroys Bug Holes and Fabricators without alerting enemies. Frees your throwables for combat. 1 round loaded and 6 spare. GP-20 Ultimatum — Anti-Tank II, Servants of Freedom 1,000 impact plus 2,000 explosion. Destroys Bug Holes, Fabricators and grounded Warp Ships from outside. Only two rounds in total.

P-72 Crisper — Heavy AP fire, Freedom's Flame A one-handed flamethrower. Fire penetrates Heavy armor, so it hurts Chargers, and it melts Terminid and Voteless swarms. P-113 Verdict — Medium AP, Polar Patriots 140 damage per round, one-handed. A sidearm that still works on Devastators and Hive Guards. PLAS-15 Loyalist — Light to Medium AP, Truth Enforcers Charged explosive plasma shots with Medium penetration. Useful at mid range; 8-round magazine. P-11 Stim Pistol — no damage, Chemical Agents Heals a teammate by firing a stim dart. Squad support rather than a weapon; strongest in coordinated groups.

P-19 Redeemer — Light AP, free (Mobilize page 2) 1,100 rpm full-auto pistol. Clears small bugs and Voteless at close range; nothing for armor. SG-22 Bushwhacker — Light AP, Viper Commandos A one-handed triple-barrel shotgun, 405 damage per barrel. Strong burst at point-blank range, 3 shells before reloading.

P-2 Peacemaker — Light AP, starter Reliable and one-handed, but outclassed by every option above.

Throwable tier list

G-123 Thermite — Anti-Tank III, Democratic Detonation Sticks to its target, deals 2,000 explosive damage, then burns for 150 per second over 6.5 s. The best throwable against heavies on every faction. Only 3 carried, and it cannot close Fabricators or Bile Titan holes. G-12 High Explosive — Heavy AP, starter 800 explosion damage and closes Bug Holes, Fabricators, Bulk Fabricators and grounded Warp Ships. 5 carried, 3.5 s fuse. TED-63 Dynamite — Heavy AP, Borderline Justice 1,000 explosion damage with a 5, 15 or 60 s timer. Destroys Bug Holes, Bile Titan holes and Fabricators without having to land inside.

G-6 Frag — Medium AP, free (Mobilize page 1) 500 explosion plus 35 shrapnel fragments, 6 carried, closes nests and Fabricators. The cheapest dependable grenade. G-16 Impact — Heavy AP, free (Mobilize page 5) 400 explosion on first impact, no fuse. Excellent against Automatons in cover, but it cannot drop into Bug Holes or Fabricator vents. G-10 Incendiary — Medium AP + fire, Steeled Veterans Explodes, then leaves fire for 20 seconds. Very strong at Bug Breaches and against Voteless; closes nests too. G-23 Stun — Anti-Tank II, Cutting Edge Stuns everything within 10 m for 5 seconds except Tanks, Factory Striders, Impalers and Bile Titans. Buys time against Chargers and bot drops. G-4 Gas — Anti-Tank II, Chemical Agents Damages and confuses organic and robotic enemies; confused enemies are slowed by 25%. Strong crowd control on every faction.

G-50 Seeker — Heavy AP, Servants of Freedom Flies to a nearby or pinged enemy within about 50 m and explodes for 500. Good for picking off targets behind cover. G-13 Incendiary Impact — Medium AP + fire, Polar Patriots Fire on impact without a fuse. Closes nests when thrown into them.

G-3 Smoke — no damage, free (Mobilize page 8) 30 seconds of smoke that blocks vision for both sides. Situational; it cannot close nests.

How armor penetration and damage types work

Every weapon has an armor penetration (AP) level and every enemy body part has an armor value (AV). The levels run Unarmored, Very Light, Light, Medium, Heavy, then Anti-Tank I and higher.

AP higher than AV: 100% damage.
AP equal to AV: 65% damage.
AP lower than AV: no damage; the shot ricochets.

Angle matters too. Each weapon has separate penetration values for direct hits, slight angles, large angles and extreme angles (81 to 90 degrees), and at extreme angles most weapons drop to Unarmored. Shooting a plate straight on penetrates better than glancing off it.

The damage types follow different rules:

Damage type	How it behaves	Weapons that use it
Ballistic	Standard bullets, slugs and laser bolts. Penetration and angle decide everything.	Liberator family, Slugger, Diligence, Senator
Explosion	Area damage that counts 100% against durable parts. Penetration drops by one level in the outer radius.	Eruptor, Purifier, Scorcher, Crossbow, Grenade Pistol, most grenades
Fire	Burning damage over time. On incendiary weapons it penetrates Heavy armor. Chargers take 1.5x and Bile Titans 1.7x fire damage. Fire now also slows and confuses small and medium enemies.	Breaker Incendiary, Cookout, Coyote, Crisper, Torcher, Incendiary
Arc	Electricity that chains between enemies and builds stun. Fleshmobs take 1.8x arc and fire damage.	ARC-12 Blitzer
Gas	Damage over time plus confusion; works on organic and robotic enemies.	G-4 Gas

Durable damage is the second number every weapon has. Large body parts and big enemies are partly "durable", and against them a weapon deals a blend of its standard and durable damage. Many fast-firing weapons have low durable damage, which is why the Sickle feels weak against large targets. Explosions always deal full durable damage.

The practical rule that has survived every patch: carry Medium penetration in at least one slot, and let the explosion or fire in another slot cover what your bullets cannot.

Best picks per faction

Faction	Primary	Secondary	Throwable	Why
Terminids	SG-225IE Breaker Incendiary / SG-8S Slugger / R-36 Eruptor	P-72 Crisper or GP-31 Grenade Pistol	G-10 Incendiary or G-6 Frag	Fire and stagger hold the swarm; one slot must close Bug Holes
Automatons	JAR-5 Dominator / AR-23P Liberator Penetrator / R-63CS Diligence Counter Sniper	P-4 Senator	G-16 Impact or G-12 High Explosive	Medium penetration for Devastator torsos and Scout Strider waists; precision for heads
Illuminate	PLAS-101 Purifier / SG-451 Cookout / ARC-12 Blitzer	P-4 Senator	G-123 Thermite or G-4 Gas	Sustained fire and burning for Voteless and Fleshmobs; Senator one-shots Overseer heads

Terminids

Most bugs die to any primary, so the job is volume, stagger and closing holes. Incendiary shotguns are the strongest answer to a Bug Breach. The Hive Guard's head is Medium armor, so a Light-penetration gun bounces off it; the Slugger or Eruptor fixes that. The G-12 High Explosive, G-6 Frag, G-10 Incendiary and TED-63 Dynamite close Bug Holes, and the Eruptor or Grenade Pistol do it from range.

Automatons

Bots punish Light-penetration weapons. A Devastator's torso and a Scout Strider's waist are Medium armor, and the Devastator's head is only Very Light, so precise Medium-penetration weapons win: the Dominator staggers them, the Counter Sniper and Liberator Penetrator kill them from cover. The Impact grenade explodes against cover instead of rolling away, and the Senator handles the Hulk's eye in three shots when your anti-tank weapon is reloading.

Illuminate

The Illuminate have little armor but high health and shields. Sustained damage, fire and explosions beat single precise shots. Fleshmobs take 1.8x fire and arc damage, and setting a Voteless on fire kills it, which is why the Cookout and Blitzer do well. The Senator is the only conventional sidearm that one-shots every Overseer variant to the head. For Harvesters and Warp Ships, rely on the stratagems in the faction guide.

Free weapons versus Warbond weapons

Weapons are not bought with Requisition; almost all of them come from Warbonds and are paid for with Medals. The starting kit is the AR-23 Liberator, P-2 Peacemaker and G-12 High Explosive. The free Helldivers Mobilize Warbond adds the rest of the free options:

Free item	Mobilize page	Medals	Verdict
SG-8 Punisher	1	4	Good early stagger shotgun
G-6 Frag	1	2	Buy immediately: 6 grenades that close nests
R-63 Diligence	2	8	Fine early marksman rifle for bots
P-19 Redeemer	2	5	Fast-firing sidearm for bugs
SMG-37 Defender	3	15	Take it if you use the Ballistic Shield
SG-225 Breaker	4	20	Crowd clearing against bugs
G-16 Impact	5	20	Best free grenade against bots
AR-23P Liberator Penetrator	6	40	First free Medium-penetration rifle
R-63CS Diligence Counter Sniper	7	40	Long-range bot killer
SG-8S Slugger	8	60	Best free primary overall
PLAS-1 Scorcher	10	75	Explosive all-rounder; mind friendly fire

The Premium Warbonds with the most weapon value for this guide's picks:

Steeled Veterans — JAR-5 Dominator, SG-225IE Breaker Incendiary, P-4 Senator, G-10 Incendiary.
Democratic Detonation — R-36 Eruptor, BR-14 Adjudicator, CB-9 Exploding Crossbow, GP-31 Grenade Pistol, G-123 Thermite.
Polar Patriots — PLAS-101 Purifier, P-113 Verdict, G-13 Incendiary Impact.
Cutting Edge — ARC-12 Blitzer, LAS-16 Sickle, G-23 Stun.
Freedom's Flame — SG-451 Cookout, FLAM-66 Torcher, P-72 Crisper.

Each Premium Warbond costs 1,000 Super Credits, and Super Credits can be found in missions, so none of this requires real money. The beginner guide explains how to earn them. If you buy only one Premium Warbond for weapons, Steeled Veterans or Democratic Detonation gives you an S-tier primary, an S-tier secondary and a strong throwable in one purchase.

Weapon customization

Weapon customization arrived in patch 1.003.000. Primary weapons gain weapon levels from the normal experience you earn while the weapon is equipped, up to level 25 (47,600 XP in total). Levels unlock attachments, which are then bought with Requisition Slips. There are four categories:

1

Optics

Red dots and scopes. Change them to match the range you actually fight at.
2

Muzzle

Compensators, muzzle brakes and similar parts that change how the weapon handles while firing.
3

Underbarrel

Attachments under the barrel; what is available depends on the weapon.
4

Magazine

Extended and drum magazines on weapons that support them.

Not every weapon accepts every attachment. Some options are blocked for balance reasons (the BR-14 Adjudicator is the example the wiki gives), and some depend on the weapon itself, such as heat sinks being available only on laser weapons. Customization is worth doing on the one or two primaries you actually use.

Common mistakes

Bringing only Light penetration to Automatons. Devastator torsos are Medium armor. If your shots spark and ricochet, they deal nothing.
Expecting a primary to kill heavies. Chargers, Hulks and Harvesters are your anti-tank stratagem's job. Pick a primary for the medium layer.
No way to close nests. If your throwable is a Thermite, Stun or Smoke, carry the Eruptor, Grenade Pistol or another tool for Bug Holes and Fabricators.
Throwing an Impact grenade at a Bug Hole. It explodes on the rim instead of dropping in.
Firing explosive primaries at close range. The Scorcher and SG-8P Punisher Plasma explode close enough to hurt you and your teammates.
Keeping the same loadout for every faction. An incendiary shotgun that wins bug missions struggles against bots. Change at least the primary before each drop.

Match your weapons to your four stratagems with the stratagem guide, learn each enemy's weak points in the faction guide, and if you are still learning currencies and Warbonds, start with the beginner guide. Whether the game is worth your time is in the honest review.

★Honest Take: penetration first, favourites second

Helldivers 2 has a lot of weapons that look similar on paper and feel very different in a fight, and the game tells you almost nothing about why. Once you understand armor penetration, most of the mystery disappears: the guns that "do nothing" are Light-penetration weapons pointed at Medium armor. The good news is that the free Warbond alone gets you a Medium-penetration rifle, the Slugger and a nest-closing grenade, which is enough for any difficulty. The honest caveat is churn. Arrowhead buffs and nerfs weapons regularly, and a tier list ages quickly; the 1.007.000 patch alone changed ammunition on a whole group of guns. What has not changed is the structure: one slot with Medium penetration, one slot that closes nests, one answer to crowds, and stratagems for the heavies.

FAQ

On the current patch, the most reliable all-rounders are the JAR-5 Dominator (Medium penetration, heavy stagger), the PLAS-101 Purifier (Medium penetration, explosive charged shots) and the R-36 Eruptor (Heavy-penetrating explosive shell that closes Bug Holes and Fabricators). All three come from Premium Warbonds. The best free choice is the SG-8S Slugger.

The SG-8S Slugger from page 8 of the free Helldivers Mobilize Warbond (60 Medals): a 330-damage slug with Medium armor penetration and stagger. The AR-23P Liberator Penetrator (page 6) is the free Medium-penetration rifle, and the G-6 Frag (page 1, 2 Medals) closes Bug Holes and Fabricators.

The P-4 Senator for damage: Heavy armor penetration, 225 damage per shot and one-handed use. The GP-31 Grenade Pistol if you want a way to close Bug Holes and Fabricators without spending a grenade. The GP-20 Ultimatum does both jobs harder but carries only two rounds.

The G-123 Thermite against heavies: it sticks, deals 2,000 explosive damage with Anti-Tank III penetration and then burns. For closing Bug Holes and Fabricators, the G-12 High Explosive you start with, the free G-6 Frag or the TED-63 Dynamite are better, because the Thermite cannot close Fabricators or Bile Titan holes.

Every weapon has a penetration level and every enemy body part an armor level: Light, Medium, Heavy, then Anti-Tank tiers. If your penetration is higher, you deal full damage; if equal, 65%; if lower, the shot ricochets and deals nothing. That is why a Light-penetration rifle cannot hurt a Hulk's front but can kill it through the heat sink on its back.

Yes. Against Terminids, fire, stagger and fast-firing shotguns handle swarms. Against Automatons, Medium penetration and precise weapons hit Devastator torsos and Scout Strider waists. Against the Illuminate, sustained fire and fire damage beat Voteless and Fleshmobs. At minimum, change your primary before each drop.

Our editorial policy is honest, no-spin reviews. We separate facts from opinion and back every rating with reasoning. View Editorial Policy

Helldivers 2 Weapons Tier List | Best Primaries and Faction Loadouts

Key Points

Primary weapon tier list

Secondary weapon tier list

Throwable tier list

How armor penetration and damage types work