Missions Made Easy: Eliminate Automaton Factory Strider in Helldivers 2 Made Easy
The Factory Striders in Helldivers 2 can seem nearly invincible at first. We're here to tell you they are not if you know precisely where to hit them - and the weapons you need to use to do that.
Helldivers 2 has become the game of choice for fans of third-person shooters, combining a simple premise with a wide variety of weapons and enemy types to create a gameplay loop that is both addictive and nuanced. As the titular Helldivers, you and your squad come up against threats that often seem overwhelming unless you play your cards right.
While the bug-like Terminids are a major challenge to the Helldivers, the Automatons are no less of a threat, often calling in support in order to tilt the odds in their favor with heavily armored machines that can devastate a careless Helldiver caught out in the open.
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The Automaton’s sole mission is to rid Super Earth of all organic life in a manner reminiscent of Hades from the Horizon games. To this end, they come in various shapes and sizes, often supported by stationary Fabricators that can continuously reinforce their ranks until they are taken down.
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But that’s not all. They also have walking factories called Factory Striders that perform the role of Fabricators while also providing support in the field with their mounted miniguns and cannons. They can create Devastators in order to harass you while you try to pierce their heavy armor, making them formidable enemies in the field. However, their size and slow speed can be turned against them with a solid strategy and a well-chosen loadout.
Missions Made Easy: Eliminate Automaton Factory Strider in Helldivers 2 Made Easy
Taking down Factory Striders begins with learning the best places to hit them and the weapons you need to hit them with. With that in mind, it’s time to dive into their weaknesses. The first weak spot you must take out on a Factory Strider is its chin-mounted turrets. They are its primary offensive weapon that can rip you to shreds if you are caught in their line of fire without cover.
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Next is the hatch from which it deploys Devastators to support it in battle. While this hatch is heavily armored, we’re about to show you how you can bypass its defenses for some serious damage. Finally, the Factory Strider has a yellow “eye“ on the left side of its face that is a weak point for you to hit to cause a lot of damage to it, although it can be hard to target if its gun turrets are still in play.
It’s time to begin dismantling the Factory Striders defenses. We highly recommend starting with its chin-mounted turrets to make things easier for you and your squad. You have many options that can one-shot these turrets, like the LAS-99 Quasar Cannon, GR-8 Recoilless Rifle, EAT-17 Expendable Anti-Tank, and the APW-1 Anti-Material Rifle (although this one requires two shots at each turret).
With its turrets out of the way, the Strider becomes largely stationary, choosing to divert its energies toward bringing Devastators out to deal with the threat your squad represents. This is where you can target the underside hatch from which it deploys them. Use an armor-piercing weapon like the Railgun to open a hole, opening up a vulnerability that you can then exploit with a single shot from the R-36 Eruptor to cause a lot of damage and limit the Factory Strider’s ability to reinforce its ranks in the field.
For its eye, the LAS-99 Quasar Cannon, GR-8 Recoilless Rifle, and EAT-17 Expendable Anti-Tank all require two shots each to take it out, making these great choices at this point in the fight. You could also achieve this with 5 seconds of continuous fire from the LAS-98 Laser Cannon too if you are so inclined. The eye is largely unprotected unless the chin-mounted turrets are in place, which make it difficult to aim reliably at it due to their rapid firing rate.
Aside from these three main weak points, there is a heavily armored portion on the Factory Strider’s side that the LAS-99 Quasar Cannon and GR-8 Recoilless Rifle can hit with a couple of shots – one to remove the armor and another to hit the exposed portion for massive damage. In addition, the AC-8 Autocannon is a great choice to hit the batteries on the Factory Strider’s back when it is deploying Devastators. A couple of shots from anti-tank weaponry could destroy the cannon on top of its head as well.
Stratagems like the Orbital Laser work wonders on account of the Factory Strider’s slow speed and massive side, which make it an easy target for these deadly weapons. An Eagle 500 kg Bomb to its face produces similar devastating effects, putting it on its last legs almost immediately, leaving it vulnerable to your weapons for an easy kill.
Other alternatives to the above-mentioned Stratagems include Orbital Precision Strikes, Eagle Airstrikes, and Eagle Rocket Pods. Bear in mind that they may not produce the same devastating results as the others but are fine to use in case you do not have the Orbital Laser or Eagle 500kg Bomb unlocked.
You are now ready to take on Factory Striders with ease and make the Automatons think twice about taking on your team. For more on Helldivers 2, make sure to check out our detailed guides on how to make the most out of your time on Super Earth.
