## What changed
- **Rewards and community progression** — made more meaningful
- **Major Orders** — evolving into longer, multi-week themed "Campaigns"
- **Galactic War outcomes** — branching paths that create clearer stakes and consequences based on player actions
- **Tech and performance** — improvements across the board
- **Game balance vision** — articulated direction for future balance changes
- **Player progression** — broader improvements to progression systems and overall player experience in the Galactic War
## Overall
Helldivers 2 is receiving systemic improvements to rewards, Major Orders, Galactic War consequences, and player progression alongside technical enhancements.
More meaningful rewards and community progression systems
Evolving Major Orders into longer, multi-week themed “Campaigns”
Branching outcomes that create clearer stakes and consequences based on player actions
Tech and performance improvements
The vision for game balance moving forward
Player progression and the broader player experience within the Galactic War
Defend city events appear Super Earth controlled again
Destroying the Air Base Control Tower with a portable Hellbomb no longer blocks objective progression.
Enthusiastic Mirth emote sound has been fixed, laughter is once again permitted on the battlefield.
Fleshmobs are no longer able to clip through various objects when charging.
We have restocked the fireworks for the celebration when players have completed the tutorial (good job, you have earned them)
Gunships and Shriekers are now spawning during operations with the appropriate effect present.
The Double-Edged Sickle no longer emits a high-pitched drone when firing.
Players will no longer be redirected to the Python Commandos Warbond instead of Redacted Regiment and vice versa when selecting 'Acquisitions' in the Ship Management menu.
Sparks and bug spawner smoke now have higher material resolution.
Increased main health pool from 850 to 1600
The Exo suit will only die if the main healthpool is depleted. Before it could die if specific healthzones were depleted.
Increased vulnerability to acid attacks by 50%
Fixed so parts of the cockpit healthzones are not blocked by the ragdoll actor. Now the cockpit zones will be damageable in the right way.
Increased Exo suit arms health from 350 to 600
Exo suit arms now also have a 50% explosion resistance (just like the main body)
Removed constitution and bleedout on the Exo suit arms.
Exo suits no longer lose all mobility when both legs are broken.
Can now be staggered, have stagger strength 45. Stagger does not affect the ability to shoot.
Removed most health zones that do not affect the main health and are mainly visual effects. The reason is to improve performance. For example tow cables and similar items can not be damaged or destroyed anymore.
We think automatons and illuminates do damage reasonably well against the vehicles especially now with the changes to the Exo suits, the Terminids however have fallen behind a bit in their ability to deal with vehicles so we have made some buffs to their damage against durable targets.
Now it also slows the enemies with 25% when they are confused by the gas, the slow of course also affects you. Larger enemies like the Bile Titan and factory strider that do not become confused also are therefore not slowed.
Decreased stamina cost from 5% to 3%
Increased damage from 75 to 120
Increased durable damage from 38 to 60
Decreased stamina cost from 5% to 3%
Decreased stamina cost from 5% to 3%
Decreased stamina cost from 5% to 4%
Decreased stamina cost from 5% to 3%
Increased and moved damage hit box to make it easier to hit the enemy
Longer window for when damage hit box is active
Armor penetration increases twice as fast
Moves slower when it does damage to an enemy
Decreased stamina cost from 10% to 5%
Decreased stamina cost from 5% to 3%
Increased health from 600 to 1000
Increased amount of missiles in the backpack from 3 to 4
Increased range from 20m to 34m
Increased damage by 50%
Increased how fast it panics enemies
Increased heat capacity from 200 to 250
Updated gas spray VFX
The Gas lingers for longer and has longer range
Spew explosions are smaller to match the visuals better
Decreased Explosion inner radius from 2.25 to 1
Decreased Explosion outer radius from 3.5 to 2.2
Increased armor on head and front legs from Medium to Heavy (3 to 4)
Decreased armor on body and claws from Light to Unarmored (2 to 1)
Decreased health on body from 500 to 375
Increased durable damage on melee attack
Increased durable damage
Increased durable damage
Increased durable damage
Increased durable damage
Increased durable damage
Slight increase in durable damage of its melee and charge attack
Increased durable damage on many of its physical attacks
Increased durable damage on its flame attack
Increased stagger force needed from 45 to 50
Slight increase in durable damage on its melee attack
increased durable damage of the melee attacks
Small arms fire from raiders, turrets, devastators, slight increase in durable damage
increased durable damage
increased durable damage on melee attack
Shield is destructible and dropped when destroyed
Armor heavy (4)
Durable 0.7
Decreased stagger strength on rockets projectile from 50 to 35
Increased durable damage on flamer attack
Leg hip joints decreased armor from Heavy to Medium (4 to 3)
Increased health on Main health pool from 3000 to 4000
Increased health on back vents from 750 to 1500
Increased armor on back vents from Medium to Heavy (3 to 4)
Remove tracks damage zone when the zone is dead
Removed damage cap to carry through from tracks to main health (so if you overkill it more damage goes to main health)
Reduced durable resistance on tracks (1.0 to 0.8)
Reduce overlap damage zones when its driving to match visuals better and do less damage
Reduced turn speed
Increased health on weak spot on front and back from 750 to 1500
Increased durable damage
Lower destruction strength needed to destroy it from 30 to 20
Added health function with 200 health and armor 2
Fixed a rare AI crash
Fixed a crash which could occur when using under barrel firing modes
Fixed a rare crash that was happening whilst fighting enemies, predominantly against the Illuminates
Added missing haptics feedback when firing the Automaton MG Emplacement
SEAF Artillery will no longer let you insert a shell and then immediately remove it, thus softlocking the gun
Destroying the Air Base Control Tower with a portable Hellbomb in a multiplayer session, no longer blocks objective progression
Fleshmobs now can deal damage to vehicles
Destroying a Terminid egg while standing against it, can no longer send the Helldiver flying
Shooting marks on the Exomech will now appear on the correct body part that was being shot at
Fixed bug where certain enemy kills would not count towards order progression
Factory Striders will no longer count as Fabricators in the Destroy Automaton Fabricators mission
Stratagem hellpods can no longer land on the Air Control Tower during the Evacuate Priority Citizens missions
Fixed a bug where the Helldiver could get soft-locked in the loadout menu, if they had less than 4 total stratagems, where one or more was temporarily disabled
Fixed squares sometimes appearing in the minimap if Terrain Quality was set to low
Extraction shuttle now flies straight upon extracting from cities
Fixed an instance where the Helldiver head twitched when leaving the Hellpod
Fire should now more consistently scorch the terrain under it. Note: This has no changes to gameplay
Fixed several floating items on a magma planet
Fixed a gap in the terrain in the tutorial area
Optimized performance of Strafing Run particles for DSS Eagle Storm and Air Support stratagems
A message will be displayed in the stratagem HUD when stratagems fail to be called in
Tutorial: Flag celebration now has been fixed with proper fireworks timing and lighting
Players can no longer fall through the ship roof in Illuminate invasion missions
Fixed a bug where the Helldivers head twitched in the end screen, before and after using Victory Poses
Tremor ambient sound now fades out properly
The Burier of Heads title has been thoroughly investigated, and since no signs of alleged dissident connections could be discovered, the title has been reintroduced. Helldivers who have unlocked this title through the Dust Devils Warbond should now find it among the other titles in the customization menu
Fixed issue where the player could interact with the Hive Core Drill terminal from behind
Enemy visibility and hearing should now be affected more by different weathers. This means enemies should generally have a harder time spotting and hearing helldivers in more intense weather scenarios
## What changed
- **SMG-72 Pummeller** — fixed reload functionality to work properly when the magazine contains bullets
- **Fog rendering** — increased distance fog density for better visual cohesion and ambient lighting, especially noticeable on sandy moons
- **Exostorm brightness** — increased visibility during Exostorms to prevent excessive darkness in Exospire missions
- **One True Flag weapon swap crash** — fixed crash that occurred when swapping weapons while planting the One True Flag in multiplayer
- **Burier of Heads title** — reintroduced and restored to customization menu for Helldivers who unlocked it via the Dust Devils Warbond
## Overall
The **SMG-72 Pummeller** reload bug is fixed, environmental lighting improved on multiple mission types, and the **Burier of Heads** cosmetic title restored after investigation cleared it of policy violations.
The SMG-72 Pummeller is now able to reload if the Weapons magazine has bullets in it.
Increased amount of fog in the distance to look more cohesive and provide more ambient light (this is especially noticeable on a sandy moon).
Increased brightness during Exostorms, to combat cases where it could get really dark within the Exospire mission.
Fixed a crash happening when swapping between weapons while planting the One True Flag in multiplayer.
The Burier of Heads title has been thoroughly investigated, and–since no signs of alleged dissident connections could be discovered–the title has been reintroduced. Helldivers who have unlocked this title through the Dust Devils Warbond should now find it among other titles in the customization menu.
# Helldivers 2 Patch Notes Summary
## What Changed
- **Illuminate faction** — Added three new enemy types: **VERACITOR** (close-quarters piloted construct), **GATEKEEPER** (ranged piloted construct), and **OBTRUDER** (Watcher variant)
- **Illuminate Appropriators** — New sub-faction fielding only Illuminate units and constructs
- **Mindless Masses** — Reduced Illuminate unit deployment in favor of larger hordes of voteless and fleshmobs
- **Exostorms** — Now visible on Galactic Map with variable intensity; higher class storms present greater risk
- **Exospire objective** — New mechanic requiring squads to locate and overload shield generator access nodes before destroying Dark Fluid cells in the core
## Balance Changes
### Flamethrower Mechanics
- **Small to medium enemies** — Now slower while burning and confused/panicked when flamed in the face, causing random attacks
- **All affected enemies** — Small to medium automatons, small to large terminids, and small to medium Illuminates panic when hit by flames
### Weapon Buffs
- **Launcher** — Reverted to medium armor penetration
- **Laser weapon** — Increased beam length from 200m to 1000m, ammo capacity from 750 to 1000
- **EXO-45 Patriot Exosuit melee** — Increased damage from 2100 to 2200, magazine capacity from 7 to 8, charge-up time reduced from 1 sec to 0.75 sec, muzzle velocity increased from 200 to 300
- **EXO-49 Emancipator Exo
Illuminate Piloted Constructs VERACITOR: capable of fighting at close quarters.
GATEKEEPER: engages targets at ranged distance.
A new variant of the Watcher: OBTRUDER: inserts itself where it is not wanted.
New Sub-Faction: Illuminate Appropriators
The Mindless Masses are set on taking over swaths of territory, with fewer Illuminates units deploying vast hordes of voteless and fleshmobs.
The Appropriators field only Illuminate units, supported by a variety of constructs---piloted and otherwise.
Planets experiencing Exostorms will be visible on the Galactic Map, but the danger will ramp up when you dive to the planet’s surface.
The strength of the storms can vary, with higher class storms presenting greater risk.
Sub-objective: The Exospire is protected by a force shield. The squad will first have to locate the access nodes that connect to the subterranean shield generators, and overload them with an electrical surge of liberating force.
Primary Objective: Once the force shield has been deactivated, the squad will enter the Exospire’s chamber and destroy its core by eliminating the Dark Fluid cells that maintain it.
Some enemies now thinks its very inconvenient to be flamed in the face smaller to medium sized enemies will in general be slower while getting flamed with a flamethrower
small to medium automatons, small to large terminids and small to medium illuminates will be confused and panic when getting flamed in the face. which leads to them attacking randomly
Moved the underbarrel weapon function from down to left
Increased magazine capacity from 7 to 8
Shorter charger-up time on full charge up from 1 sec to 0.75 sec
Increase Heal effect with 100%
Increase Muzzle velocity from 200 to 300
Fixed a bug that would cause Bastion Tanks to be launched into the upper atmosphere when running over cars on colonies.
Fixed an issue where scout walkers with rockets would not die when those rockets were shot, stealth divers rejoice
Fixed a bug where Levers on Cyborg Assembly unit would not work if you were killed/ragdolled while interacting with them
Sending an invite via the social menu on PS5 will now also send a system invite
Fixed an issue where login error messages would go out of bounds, making them difficult to read
Fixed red lighting occurring on the super destroyer after leaving a Magma planet/Cyberstan
Fixed a minor issue where UI would go out of bounds when dying with 3 types of Samples
Removed the redundant "Compare" option when equipping stratagems
Fixed an issue where foliage that slowed a Helldiver would also slow projectiles passing through them
Added the correct “Stun” and “Arc” tags to items that were missing the tags from their descriptions
Purge Illuminate mission has been renamed to Eliminate Overseers to be more accurate
Helldivers can now melee while falling or using the LIFT-850 Jump Pack
Fixed weapons with stationary reload being reloadable while using LIFT-850 Jump Pack
Illuminate Overships can now only be destroyed by the Planetary Defense Cannon
Reverted the change made in the previous patch - the launcher has medium armor penetration again
Moved and increased the size of the melee ability
The One True Flag is DESPISED by the enemies of Democracy. They will attempt to target anyone waving it
Increased damage from 2100 to 2200
Increased ammo capacity from 750 to 1000
Increased beam length from 200m to 1000m
Increased ammo from 100 to 120.
Faster reload
Full reload around 2 second faster from around 7.5 to 5.5 sec
One reload around 1 sec faster from around 3.5 to 2.5 sec
Faster reload
Full reload around 1 second faster from around 5.5 sec to 4.5 sec
Half reload around 0.5 sec faster from around 2.3 sec → 1.8 sec
Moved the switch from weapon function from right to left
Made the damage zone closer to the size of the legs.
Helldivers and enemies were killed when not in close proximity
This effects EXO-45 Patriot Exosuit and EXO-49 Emancipator Exosuit
Fixed a crash that would occur during the Hellpod drop
Fixed a rare crash that occurred when a grenade entered a Vox Engines weakpoint
Fixed a rare crash caused by Cyborgs taking cover
Fixed an issue where the Cyborg Agitator and Radicals armor did not break properly when attacked by laser weaponry
Fixed B-1 Supply Pack being usable by Helldivers that are already full on ammo on Xbox
Orbital lasers will no longer target enemies in caves
Fixed stratagems bouncing on fuel depots in factory cities
Guard dog drones will no longer obscure your view while interacting with terminals or other mission items
Helldivers will now start with 4 Arc Grenades instead of 3
Fixed an issue where the G-50 seeker grenade would not deal damage
Fixed "low ammo" and other notifications showing on weapons with infinite ammo
Stats for melee weapons are now more accurate. Showing damage, weapon attack speed and stamina drain per attack
Fixed a glitch that would let a player take multiples of the same stratagem
Fixed an issue where Brood Commanders would not summon reinforcements when detecting a client player
Overseers will now stagger when their armour and shields are destroyed
Enemies will now be alerted to the sound of the CQC-20 Breaching Hammer exploding
The unarmored limbs attached to the Hiveguard's protective front legs now have lower armor
Fixed an issue where surge modifiers spawned more enemies than intended
Vox engine changes: Reduced spawn rate
Reduced upper body turn rate
Increased the spread of main cannon shots
MG turrets on the side will now die instantly when the Vox Engine dies
Vox Engine now tries to avoid shooting targets with its main cannons on targets that are too close
Fixed an issue where enemies could walk through the Vox Engines tracks to attack the player
You can now climb it again! But the autoclimb will not climb it. It's literally the best of both worlds!
Small to medium automatons, small to large terminids, and small to medium illuminates will be confused and panic when getting flamed in the face, which leads them to randomly attack anyone in their vicinity
## What changed
- **Missiles** — improved hit registration against targets
- **C4** — Demolition Force increased from 30 to 40
- **Hellbomb** — now properly destroys Gunship Facilities
- **Commando Operations** — reduced likelihood of not awarding Medals
- **C4 pack** — increased value for credits spent
## Balance
- **Missiles** — enhanced tracking and target acquisition
- **C4 Demolition Force** — buffed from 30 to 40 for greater explosive impact
- **Hellbomb vs. Gunship Facilities** — now registers proper destruction
- **Commando Operations reward rate** — Medals now awarded more consistently
## Bug Fixes
- **Missile crashes** — fixed rare crash related to missile systems
- **Mission crashes** — fixed crashes on "Rapid Acquisition" and "Confiscate Assets" missions
- **Startup/shutdown crash** — resolved crash occurring during client launch or exit
- **Ship entry crash** — fixed rare crash when entering the dropship
- **SH-51 Directional Shield** — restored missing audio feedback
- **R-72 Censor reload** — fixed camera clipping inside weapon barrel during reload
- **LAS-16 Trident** — now displays hit effects on environmental objects
- **Super Destroyer audio** — restored missing audio in Simplified Chinese for two videos
- **Convoy objective crash** — fixed crash when completing missions with Convoy objectives
- **Bastion Tank hatch** — removed problematic hatch that could jam mission-critical materials into ammunition compartment
## Overall
Missiles are more reliable, C4 is more powerful, and multiple crashes affecting core gameplay and the Bastion Tank have been eliminated.
Missiles hit their target even more!
Increase Demolition Force of C4 from 30 to 40
Fixed a rare missile related crash
Fixed a crash on "Rapid Acquisition" and "Confiscate Assets" Missions
Fixed a crash would could occur on startup or shutdown
Fixed a rare crash which could occur when entering the ship
Fixed SH-51 Directional Shield sometimes not making any noise
Fixed a bug where reloading the R-72 Censor caused the camera to attach inside of the barrel of the weapon
Fixed LAS-16 Trident not displaying hit effects on environment objects
Gunship Facilities are now properly destroyed by the democratic might of the Hellbomb
Fixed two Super Destroyer videos missing audio in Simplified Chinese
Reduced the likelihood of Commando Operations not awarding Medals
The C4 pack gets more boom for your credits
Fixed a crash that could occur when finishing mission with a Convoy objective
Removed a hatch close to the Bastion Tank gunner door that could mistakenly feed mission-critical material into the ammunition compartment of the tank