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The Helldivers 2 Vox Engine is a massive war machine brimming with weapons, but its got a few key weaknesses that you can exploit to take it down quickly. Found exclusively on Cyberstan and on Suicide Mission difficulty and above, Vox Engines blurts out foul Cyborg propaganda and feature heavy armor and arguably the most devastating firepower in the entire game. Destroying one Vox Engine - let alone the three or more you might face on the highest difficulties - is therefore quite difficult. But they're not invincible, so here's everything you need to know about how to kill Vox Engines in Helldivers 2.
Best way to kill Vox Engines in Helldivers 2
The easiest method for killing a Vox Engine in Helldivers 2 starts with destroying all three of the glowing heat sink vents on its tank track lower half – two at the rear and one on the underside. These can be shot and destroyed with any gun, exactly like those found on the backs of Helldivers 2 Hulks.
Once all three vents have been destroyed, a small hatch will pop open at the Vox Engine's rear between its torso and tank treads and above where two of the vents were. You then just need to lob a grenade inside this hatch to blow the Vox Engine up, but it's not an easy throw and the grenade can bounce out – stand back and toss the grenade such that it drops into the hatch weak point as it starts falling to the ground. The Vox Engine will then explode shortly after but watch out for the gatling guns as these can still fire while the Vox Engine is exploding.
This method for destroying Helldivers 2 Vox Engines is especially good as it requires no special weapons, isn't resource-intensive, and can be completed solo. Like other structural weak points in Helldivers 2, you just need to make sure you have a grenade that deals damage, so Stun and Smoke grenades won't work, and impact and sticky grenades might not work if they don’t quite land in the hatch.
Finally, debris from an exploding Vox Engine, mainly the bulky Cyborg pilot pods, can crush and kill Helldivers, so watch out! It's a good idea to know how to kill the other Helldivers 2 Cyborgs too.
All Helldivers 2 Vox Engine weaknesses and best weapons to use
From my time battling Helldivers 2 Vox Engines on the frontlines of Cyberstan, I've found that these war machines have a few other weaknesses that can be used against them. Bear these in mind, as well as the above method, for high-difficulty Helldivers 2 Cyberstan missions where Vox Engines are common and you should have an easier time:
- Shoot all six vents: As well as the three orange heat sink vents on their lower halves, Vox Engines also have three more vents on their backs of their upper torsos. Shooting all three of these will cause a hatch to open too, but if you destroy all six vents on a Vox Engine, it’ll go up in flames. Just be aware that it's much harder to destroy all three of the top vents on your own as the Vox Engine's torso will constantly turn to face you, so you will almost certainly need help from another player.
- Knock out the gatling guns: The two gatling guns mounted on Vox Engine's lower half can be destroyed with any medium armor penetration weapon – one Railgun shot is enough to destroy one, and I found the Eruptor to be a good option too. While it's not essential to destroy these guns, doing so makes approaching a Vox Engine, particularly from the front or sides, much easier.
- Destroy the main cannons: The extremely powerful laser cannons mounted either side of a Vox Engine's head can be destroyed if you batter them with enough anti-tank weaponry – the Recoilless Rifle and Railgun are good for this. While it's not necessarily advisable wasting ammo on these cannons when you could just blow the whole thing up, it can be a good idea to get rid of some of the guns if you're stuck facing multiple Vox Engines at once. These cannons can also look directly down to shoot you, even if you're directly underneath the Vox Engine.
- Bombard it with stratagems: If all else fails, there's nothing an Orbital Laser can't sort out. Other destructive anti-tank Stratagems and support weapons, such as Orbital Barrages, Eagle 500kg Bombs, the Recoilless Rifle and even C4 can be highly effective against a Vox Engine.
Regardless of how you destroy a Vox Engine, just remember to never lose focus on any that happen to be nearby as they'll very easily kill you when you aren't suspecting it. Their laser cannons can obliterate you without any sort of warning, and you need to pay close attention to the bright patches that appear on the ground when a lethal missile swarm is incoming. Vox Engine missiles have a deceptively large explosion radius and can easily chip away at your health, even if you aren't that close to the explosion's center.
Despite their size, Vox Engines can also move quickly in a straight line and have a habit of driving over small structures and awkward terrain that provides them with unusual vantage points to rain death down up you and your squad. Thankfully it can also backfire, giving you a great opportunity to wear them down and blow them up. And if the situation is especially dire, remember that running away is also an option – just make sure you come back to complete your objectives, such as the Helldivers 2 raze strategic infrastructure side objective, if necessary.
While on Cyberstan, you'll face all manner of Automaton constructs, so make sure you also know how to deal with Helldivers 2 Gunships. Thankfully, you won't have to face Helldivers 2 Factory Striders too as Vox Engines replace them!
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