Huge Helldivers 2 Update Buffs a Ton of Stratagems

Helldivers 2 players rejoice, because if there’s a Stratagem or two that you like to use but felt was underwhelming, those Stratagems just might be stronger now thanks to the latest update. The patch notes released for Patch 01.000.400 on Thursday include buffs for over 20 different weapons with many of those buffs going towards various Stratagems like the ever popular Orbital Precision Strike and lesser used tools like the MD-I4 Incendiary Mines, though some of the changes were for primary weapons as well. And beyond these, Arrowhead Game Studios has already suggested that more Stratagems might need buffs in the future to make them viable, too.

That comment from Arrowhead about buffing more Stratagems beyond these listed in the patch notes should be exciting for players for more reasons than one even if one of your favorite Stratagems wasn’t included in this update. Helldivers 2 quickly fell into a meta after release with players gravitating heavily towards certain dominant weapons and Stratagems which led to players frequently asking for more underused options to be buffed up.

When things got nerfed occasionally, it worsened the issue and created at times a sentiment occasionally seen in multiplayer games where the best gear gets nerfed while other options remain unbuffed, thus creating a scenario where there are still dominant weapons, but nothing “feels” super rewarding. That’s never a constant feeling, and it fluctuates with update cycles, but this latest patch should push sentiment in the right direction especially if you’ve got a favorite Stratagem that just got buffed. 

“With these balance changes we wanted to buff up some of the weaker stratagems to make them more viable and add more possibility for variety in the loadouts,” the Helldivers 2 team said in these patch notes. We also changed a few to make them more consistent, but the goal was to keep a similar or higher power level. We are looking into the stratagems more to see if there are any other stratagems that might need some buffs or changes to make them more viable.”

Below are the weapon and Stratagem changes included in the latest update. You can find the full patch notes for Thursday’s Helldivers 2 update here.

Helldivers 2 Patch 01.000.400 Weapon/Stratagem Changes

A/MLS-4X Rocket Sentry

• Decreased spread
• Prioritize larger targets
• Increased target distance from 75 to 100m
• Decreased Rockets per salvo 2 to 1 (to get a better ammo economy)
• Increased explosion radius from 1m to 4m
• Decreased explosion armor penetration (Explosion can no longer damage heavy armored enemies. The projectile still has enough AP to damage heavily armored targets.)
• Increased projectile damage from 200 to 300

A/MG-43 Machine gun sentry

• Reduced cooldown from 180 sec to 120 sec.

A/MG-43 Machine gun Sentry, A/G-16 Gatling Sentry, A/MLS-4X Rocket Sentry, A/AC-8 Autocannon Sentry, A/M-12 Mortar Sentry, A/M-23 EMS Mortar Sentry

• Increased durability from 0% to 80%

E/MG-101 HMG Emplacement

• Increased rotation speed by 100%

MD-6 Anti-Personnel Minefield

• Increased explosion damage from 250 to 350

MD-I4 Incendiary Mines

• Increased explosion damage from 150 to 210

Orbital Gatling

• Increased fire rate by 25%
• Increased rounds per salvo from 30 to 60
• Increased armor penetration (Can damage heavy armored enemies)
• Decreased cooldown from 80 sec to 70 sec

Orbital Precision strike

• Decreased cooldown from 100 sec to 90 sec
• Decreased Spawn/Call-in time from 4 sec to 2 sec

Orbital Airburst Strike

• Decreased cooldown from 120 sec to 100 sec

Eagle 110MM Rocket Pods

• Improved targeting
• Increased projectile armor penetration (now does 100% damage to heavily armored enemies instead of 50%)
• Decreased projectile damage 600 to 250 (to compensate for the improved targeting and the extra damage from the increased armor penetration.)
• Decreased explosion armor penetration (explosion can no longer damage heavily armored enemies)

Eagle Strafing Run

• Increased uses from 3 to 4
• Increased armor penetration, can now damage heavily armored enemies.

GL-21 Grenade Launcher

• Increased explosion damage by from 350 to 400

MG-206 Heavy Machine Gun

• Increased projectile damage from 100 to 150
• Increased projectile damage against durable* body parts from 23% to 33%
• Decreased fire rate from 450/750/900 to 450/600/750
• Decreased reload time from 7 to 5.5 sec
• Increased stagger strength

MG-43 Machine Gun

• Decreased reload time from 4 to 3.5 seconds
• Increased max amount of Magazines from 3 to 4

MG-43 Machine Gun, A/MG-43 Machine gun Sentry, A/G-16 Gatling Sentry and EXO-45 Patriot Exosuits Gatling

• Increased projectile damage from 80 to 90
• Increased projectile damage against durable* body parts from 7.5% to 25%

AR-23 Liberator, M-105 Stalwart and AX/AR-23 “Guard dog“

• Increased projectile damage against durable body parts from 10% to 23%

AR-23C Liberator Concussive

• Increased projectile damage against durable body parts from 23% to 35%

BR-14 Adjudicator

• Increased magazine capacity from 25 to 30
• Increased projectile damage against durable* body parts from 10% to 20%

AR-61 Tenderizer

• Increased projectile damage from 60 to 95
• Increased projectile damage against durable* body parts from 10% to 17%
• Decreased ammo capacity from 35 to 30
• Decreased number of magazines from 10 to 8
• Increased stagger strength

PLAS-101 Purifier

• Increased projectile armor penetration to be the same as the explosion
• Decreased explosion damage falloff

CB-9 Explosive Crossbow

• Increased explosion armor penetration to be the same as the projectile
• Increased demolition strength (Can destroy Bug holes and Bot Fabricator buildings)
• Added medium penetration tag

R-36 Eruptor

• Increased total damage from 420 to 570 damage per shot

R-63 Diligence

• Increased projectile damage against durable body parts from 10% to 25%

Other

• Updated Recoil stance modifiers: We made changes to the recoil stance modifiers to make them more consistent and also reward being prone more. Almost all of them will improve the recoil and only a two have been made worse (and only by 10%).