Helldivers 2 Exosuits allow you to level some very powerful weaponry against the enemies of Super Earth while also keeping yourself protected. Now that there are four of them to unlock, each with completely unique weapon loadouts, filling one of your Stratagem slots with an Exosuit can be a great idea, offering both substantial protection and heavy firepower in Helldivers 2 missions - they're also just quite fun to use as well. If that sounds good to you, I've laid out how you unlock the four Exosuits in Helldivers 2 and how they work so you can get the most out of them.
How to unlock Helldivers 2 Exosuits
There are four Helldivers 2 Exosuit Stratagems, each with their own weapon loadouts. Two are available for all players, provided the level requirement is met, and two are locked behind the Helldivers 2 Exo Experts Warbond:
- Patriot (heavy machine gun and rocket launcher): Reach level 25 then buy the Stratagem from the Ship Management terminal for 20,000 Requisition Slips. Make sure you know how to level up fast in Helldivers 2 to unlock the Patriot and Emancipator quickly.
- Emancipator (dual autocannons): Reach level 25 then buy the Stratagem from the Ship Management terminal for 20,000 Requisition Slips.
- Lumberer (anti-tank cannon and flamethrower): Unlock the Exo Experts Warbond, then buy the Lumberer Stratagem for 50 Medals on Page 2.
- Breakthrough (ballistic shield and flak cannon): Unlock the Exo Experts Warbond, then buy the Breakthrough Stratagem for 50 Medals on Page 3.
Obviously, if you farm enough Helldivers 2 Super Credits, you can technically unlock the Exo Experts Warbond for free as well, getting you all four Exosuits at no additional cost, but otherwise you may have to pay real money to meet the 1,000 Super Credit Warbond cost. Exo Experts contains more than just the Exosuits, and you can see how it fares in our Helldivers 2 Warbond tier list.
Helldivers 2 Exosuit tips and tricks
If you've got some Exosuit Stratagems unlocked, there are some important things to know about how they work and how best to use them. Firstly, bear in mind that you can choose only one Exosuit Stratagem to bring with you on a mission. You also get only three uses of this Stratagem over the course of a mission and there's a 10-minute cooldown between uses – though you can shorten this a bit with the Morale Augmentation Helldivers 2 Ship Module.
Exosuit ammo is also limited and there's no way to resupply. If you want to call in other Stratagems too, you can't do so within an Exosuit and must hop out first – sadly the Stratagem Launcher from Helldivers 1 isn't a feature!
Even with these restrictions, Exosuits are still pretty powerful. They might not be for everyone but they're still some of the best Helldivers 2 Stratagems. The Lumberer is especially good against the Helldivers 2 Terminids and the Emancipator's rapid-fire cannons can shred through tougher Helldivers 2 Automatons, but all four Exosuits can devastate any of the enemy factions.
Here are some additional tips to bear in mind when you're stomping around in an Exosuit to get the most out of them:
- The Exosuit dropship also provides some fire support: When you call in your Mech, it gets dropped off by a shuttle instead of plummeting down like a Hellpod. Just like during the extraction sequence, the shuttle fires its guns to help clear the area too.
- Don't call your Exosuits in where there are lots of enemies: Nearby foes will often target your Exosuit, even if it's empty. This can be incredibly frustrating as it means your Exosuits can get destroyed almost immediately after getting dropped off, so you need to be very careful about when and where you call in your Exosuits, or you need to at least ensure you have a clear path to start piloting it as soon as it hits the ground.
- Don't fire explosive weapons at close range: This sounds obvious to avoid self-damage and potentially blowing off one of your weapon arms, but Exosuit changes brought in with the Exo Experts Warbond mean mechs can be staggered too, leaving you briefly vulnerable, so take care when using Patriot missiles, Emancipator autocannons, and the Lumberer cannon.
- If you're out of ammo, you can resort to the Exosuit's stomp attack: Using the regular melee button while in an Exosuit triggers a stomp attack that can crush, or at least damage, all but the largest enemies. Althought, bear in mind that you can squash small Terminids, such as Scavengers, just by walking on them.
- Exosuit movement isn't great: They can't sprint and their full speed is slower than a sprinting foot-slogging Helldiver, so you may have to consider ditching your Exosuit if time is of the essence during your mission. Exosuits also move much slower when strafing due to the awkward side-stepping required, which can make avoiding certain attacks and enemies tricky.
- When an Exosuit takes too much damage, it will automatically eject you: Assuming you and your Exosuit don't get killed in one fell swoop, say from a Bile Titan stepping on you, your Helldiver should automatically bail out when your Exosuit is no more. You'll be pretty low on health as a result, so stim immediately get clear in case it explodes. Try to keep an eye out for black smoke and physical damage to give you an idea of when your Exosuit is reaching its last legs.
- Use abandoned Exosuits as cover: If you want to abandon your mech, try to position it to either provide cover or block a path to make things harder for the enemy before you hop out. Obviously, don't stand close it in case it does blow up in your face.
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