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How to unlock the Helldivers 2 Bastion Tank and how it works

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The Bastion Tank is a new Stratagem vehicle that all Helldivers have access to, but it's not the easiest to use

Helldivers 2 Bastion tank near an automaton base with automatons directly ahead of it
(Image credit: Sony)
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The Helldivers 2 Bastion Tank is a new Stratagem that you all players can unlock by paying a lot of Requisition Slips at your Ship Management console. To temper your expectations, the Bastion isn't as heavily armored as you might expect, but with a massive cannon and machine gun it lives up to its "tank destroyer" description, and it even has seats for the whole team like the FRV. If you're diving into the Automaton front, you'll want to bring the biggest guns possible, so I've detailed everything you need to know about unlocking the Bastion Tank in Helldivers 2 below, as well as how it works.

How to get the Bastion Tank in Helldivers 2

Helldivers 2 Bastion Tank Stratagem in Ship Management menu

(Image credit: Sony)

To unlock the Bastion Tank Stratagem, you just need to find the "TD-220 Bastion Mk XVI" Stratagem in the Hangar section of your Super Destroyer's Ship Management console, then pay the 35,000 Requisition Slip fee. Unfortunately, I can't tell if there's a level requirement to meet too but I imagine it’s like the Helldivers 2 mechs which can only be unlocked when you're at least level 25.

Otherwise, it's a universal Stratagem so any Helldivers 2 player can unlock it, provided they can afford it. Once you have the Tank unlocked, you can choose it as one of your Stratagems when assembling your best Helldivers 2 loadout to take into a mission.

Tips for using the Helldivers 2 Bastion Tank

Helldivers 2 firing Bastion tank cannon at automaton fabricator and blowing it up

(Image credit: Sony)

The Bastion might pack a lot of firepower, but using it effectively is much, much harder than you might think, so it pays to know the basics of how the tank actually works and how best to use it:

  • The Stratagem has an extremely long cooldown: After calling in your Bastion Tank, you'll have to wait just over 12 minutes until you can call in the next one, so don't expect to use more than three during a single mission.
  • You need at least two players to effectively pilot the tank: One player serves as the driver and the other serves as the gunner. The driver operates the tank exactly like the FRV, using the throttle, steering, and clutch to manoeuvre and accelerate. The gunner has control over the Bastion Tank's 120mm main cannon (L2/LT) and coaxial heavy machine gun (R2/RT) – this firepower means the tank is especially good against the heavily armored Helldivers 2 Automatons!
  • The tank can hold up to four players: The driver's hatch is on top of the front of the Bastion and the gunner's seat is at the rear, but there are also two hatches for passengers on top of the back of the tank. Passengers can peak out the hatch using their aim input and fire their guns and even use Stratagems – note that the gunner can switch to the passenger seats by pressing Circle/B.
  • Teamwork is key: With a minimum of two players needed even just one passenger helping considerably, teamwork is essential when operating the Bastion Tank. Since the gunner can move the cannon only a little, it's best if they direct the driver on where to go get the best firing angles while the passengers look everywhere else, especially the rear and flanks,  gunning down weak infantry that approach, calling out danger, and shooting things like mines to clear a path.
  • The main cannon must be manually reloaded: After firing a shot, press the reload button to start loading in a new shell but be aware that this takes a few seconds, which is a good time to use the heavy machine gun. Both guns also have limited ammo with the cannon having 30 shots and the machine gun having 2,000.
  • The Bastion's handling is poor: The driver will unfortunately have a bit of a hard time in the tank as its turning circle isn't great and it's not very fast or responsive. It's all-terrain capabilities also aren't great as it can slip and bounce a lot on hills and get stuck on rocks. But if you want it to stay intact for as long as possible, driving slowly and carefully and not charging into battle will help a lot.
  • It can run over enemies: While I just advised not charging at the enemy, sometimes that might be all you can do, and the tank's bulkiness means it can run over a surprising number of different enemies. Anything especially large in each faction won't be squashed flat, but you can crash through infantry very easily.
  • Don't worry about bailing out: Thankfully, when the tank is doomed, all crew members are kicked out, giving you a chance to escape.

The Bastion Tank's arrival coincided with the release of the Helldivers 2 Siege Breakers Warbond.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

Will Sawyer
Will Sawyer
Guides Editor, GamesRadar+

Will Sawyer is a Guides Editor at GamesRadar+ with over five years of experience in writing online guides, news, and features, and has a BA (Hons) in Journalism. Starting as a freelancer, Will contributed to startmenu and Game Rant before joining the GamesRadar+ team in August 2021. Since then, he has written hundreds of guides about a huge range of games, with shooters and action games being his areas of expertise. Outside of writing about games, Will hops between multiplayer shooters with friends, such as Darktide and Helldivers 2, and delves into whatever has been on his backlog for far too long. He also tries to get through his never-ending Warhammer pile of shame of grey Tyranids, Aeldari, and Chaos Space Marines.

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