Helldivers 2 delivers a smooth, polished combat experience, pitting brave defenders of Democracy against the evil Automatons and Terminid hordes as they spread their anti-Democracy ways across the galaxy. Your mightiest weapon against every enemy in the game will be the powerful Stratagems delivered from your ship in orbit.
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Stratagems are broken down into several rough categories: Eagle Stratagems, Orbital Stratagems, Backpack Stratagems, Support Weapons, and Defensive Stratagems. Each Stratagem comes with a unique Stratagem Code, a sequence of directional inputs that you’ll need to fire off in the heat of battle in order to bring hell down upon your enemies. This guide details the Stratagem Codes for each type of Stratagem in the game, for both PC and PS5 inputs, for greater ease of use.
Updated by Jeff Brooks on March 28, 2024: This guide has been updated to include the new Support Weapon Stratagems for Helldivers: the LAS-99 Quasar Cannon and the MG-101 Heavy Machine Gun. These powerful new tools of democracy are now listed below, complete with their unlock cost, level requirement, and additional details to help you make informed decisions for spending your hard-earned currency. The LAS-99 Quasar Cannon can be found in the Engineering Bay category, and the MG-101 Heavy Machine Gun can be found in the Patriotic Administration Center category in Ship Management under the Stratagems tab.
Helldivers 2
- Released
- February 8, 2024
- Developer(s)
- Arrowhead Game Studios AB
How To Use Stratagems
To use Stratagems, you first need to equip your Stratagems at the start of every mission. After selecting your mission at the War Table, the Hellpods will become active. Once climbing into your Hellpod, you’ll be shown a map of the drop site. After all squad members have entered their Hellpods — and the host has confirmed the drop site — you’ll then be ready to choose your Stratagems and your Booster.
After making your selections, you’ll drop to the mission site. Once planetside, you’ll be able to use your Stratagems whenever their cooldown is available.
Many Stratagems are locked behind a level requirement. Once you reach the requisite level, you’ll then need to spend your hard-earned Requisition Slips to permanently acquire a Stratagem.
How To Use Stratagems On PS5
To use your Stratagems on the PlayStation 5, you’ll first need to hold down L1, then you can input the directional inputs (↓ ← ↑ → on the DualSense D-Pad) as they appear in the top left of your UI.
How To Use Stratagems On PC
To use your Stratagems on the PC, you’ll first need to hold down the left CTRL key, then you can input the directional inputs (W, A, S, D on the keyboard) as they appear in the top left of your UI.
Stratagem Hero
If you purchased the Super Citizen Edition of the game, you will have access to this fun arcade game in your ship’s hangar. Stratagem Hero is a short mini-game that basically runs you through the different Stratagem codes in the game. While it won’t quite help you memorize them all, it can be a great tool for getting good at punching in Stratagem codes as quickly as possible.
The more you practice, the less likely you are to make a mistake in the heat of battle.
Types Of Stratagems
Helldivers 2 Stratagems are divided up into 6 major categories:
- Patriotic Administration Center
- Orbital Cannons
- Hangar
- Bridge
- Engineering Bay
- Robotics Workshop
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Patriotic Administration Center Stratagem Codes
The table below details the Stratagems for the Patriotic Administration Center, covering their stats, traits, and their codes on both PS5 and PC.
|
Stratagem Name |
Stratagem Stats |
Stratagem Traits |
PS5 Code |
PC Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Machine Gun |
|
↓←↓↑→ |
S, A, S, W, D |
|
|
Anti-Material Rifle |
|
↓←→↑↓ |
S, A, D, W, S |
|
|
Stalwart |
|
↓←↓↑↑← |
S, A, S, W, W, A |
|
|
Expendable Anti-Tank |
|
|
↓↓←↑→ |
S, S, A, W, D |
|
Recoilless Rifle |
|
|
↓←→→← |
S, A, D, D, A |
|
Flamethrower |
|
|
↓←↑↓↑ |
S, A, W, S, W |
|
Autocannon |
|
↓←↓↑↑→ |
S, A, S, W, W, D |
|
|
Heavy Machine Gun |
|
↓←↑↓↓ |
S, A, W, S, S |
|
|
Railgun |
|
↓→↓↑←→ |
S, D, S, W, A, D |
|
|
Spear |
|
↓↓↑↓↓ |
S, S, W, S, S |
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Orbital Cannons Stratagem Codes
The table below details the Stratagems for the Orbital Cannons, covering their stats, traits, and their codes on both PS5 and PC.
|
Stratagem Name |
Stratagem Stats |
Stratagem Traits |
PS5 Code |
PC Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orbital Gatling Barrage |
|
→↓←↑↑ |
D, S, A, W, W |
|
|
Orbital Airburst Strike |
|
→→→ |
D, D, D |
|
|
Orbital 120MM HE Barrage |
|
→→↓←→↓ |
D, D, S, A, D, S |
|
|
Orbital 380MM HE Barrage |
|
→↓↑↑←↓↓ |
D, S, W, W, A, D, D |
|
|
Orbital Walking Barrage |
|
→↓→↓→↓ |
D, S, D, S, D, S |
|
|
Orbital Laser |
|
→↓↑→↓ |
D, S, W, D, S |
|
|
Orbital Railcannon Strike |
|
→↑↓↓→ |
D, W, S, S, D |
Hangar Stratagem Codes
The table below details the Stratagems for the Hangar, covering their stats, traits, and their codes on both PS5 and PC.
|
Stratagem Name |
Stratagem Stats |
Stratagem Traits |
PS5 Code |
PC Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Eagle Strafing Run |
|
↑→→ |
W, D, D |
|
|
Eagle Airstrike |
|
↑→↓→ |
W, D, S, D |
|
|
Eagle Cluster Bomb |
|
↑→↓↓→ |
W, D, S, S, D |
|
|
Eagle Napalm Airstrike |
|
↑→↓↑ |
W, D, S, W |
|
|
Jump Pack |
|
↓↑↑↓↑ |
S, W, W, S, W |
|
|
Eagle Smoke Strike |
|
↑→↑↓ |
W, D, W, S |
|
|
Eagle 110MM Rocket Pods |
|
↑→↑← |
W, D, W, A |
|
|
Eagle 500KG Bomb |
|
↑→↓↓↓ |
W, D, S, S, S |
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Bridge Stratagem Codes
The table below details the Stratagems for the Bridge, covering their stats, traits, and their codes on both PS5 and PC.
|
Stratagem Name |
Stratagem Stats |
Stratagem Traits |
PS5 Code |
PC Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orbital Precision Strike |
|
→→↑ |
D, D, W |
|
|
Orbital Gas Strike |
|
→→↓→ |
D, D, S, D |
|
|
Orbital EMS Strike |
|
→→←↓ |
D, D, A, S |
|
|
Orbital Smoke Strike |
|
→→↓↑ |
D, D, S, W |
|
|
HMG Emplacement |
|
↓↑←→→← |
S, W, A, D, D, A |
|
|
Shield Generator Relay |
|
↓↓←→←→ |
S, S, A, D, A, D |
|
|
Tesla Tower |
|
↓↑→↑←→ |
S, W, D, W, A, D |
Engineering Bay Stratagem Codes
The table below details the Stratagems for the Engineering Bay, covering their stats, traits, and their codes on both PS5 and PC.
|
Stratagem Name |
Stratagem Stats |
Stratagem Traits |
PS5 Code |
PC Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Anti-Personnel Minefield |
|
↓←↑→ |
S, A, W, D |
|
|
Supply Pack |
|
↓←↓↑↑↓ |
S, A, S, W, W, S |
|
|
Grenade Launcher |
|
|
↓←↑←↓ |
S, A, W, A, S |
|
Laser Cannon |
|
↓←↓↑← |
S, A, S, W, A |
|
|
Incendiary Mines |
|
↓←←↓ |
S, A, A, S |
|
|
“Guard Dog” Rover |
|
↓↑←↑→→ |
S, W, A, W, D, D |
|
|
Ballistic Shield Backpack |
|
↓←↓↓↑← |
S, A, S, S, W, A |
|
|
Arc Thrower |
|
↓→↓↑←← |
S, D, S, W, A, A |
|
|
Quasar Cannon |
|
↓↓↑←→ |
S, S, W, A, D |
|
|
Shield Generator Pack |
|
↓↑←→←→ |
S, W, A, D, A, D |
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Robotics Workshop Stratagem Codes
The table below details the Stratagems for the Robotics Workshop, covering their stats, traits, and their codes on both PS5 and PC.
|
Stratagem Name |
Stratagem Stats |
Stratagem Traits |
PS5 Code |
PC Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Machine Gun Sentry |
|
↓↑→→↑ |
S, W, D, D, W |
|
|
Gatling Sentry |
|
↓↑→← |
S, W, D, A |
|
|
Mortar Sentry |
|
↓↑→→↓ |
S, W, D, D, S |
|
|
“Guard Dog” |
|
↓↑←↑→↓ |
S, W, A, W, D, S |
|
|
Autocannon Sentry |
|
↓↑→←↑ |
S, W, D, A, W |
|
|
Rocket Sentry |
|
↓↑→→← |
S, W, D, D, A |
|
|
EMS Mortar Sentry |
|
↓↑→↓→ |
S, W, D, S, D |
|
|
Patriot Exosuit |
|
←↓→↑←↓ |
A, S, D, W, A, S, S |
For a comprehensive breakdown of how to take on all of the enemies in Helldivers 2, check out our guides on how to beat each Terminid enemy type and how to beat each Automaton enemy type.
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