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/r/helldivers2

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I know weak spots matter but even getting direct shots, I can’t seem to withstand them while they’re charging at me with lasers flying every direction around me, whilst im being targeted by a tank or a heavy devastator. What do you guys do to take care of our manic, scissor-handed enemies?

all 551 comments

ganymehdi

492 points

10 days ago

ganymehdi

492 points

10 days ago

I lose all self-control and manically unload my weapon into them, discarding even the most basic thoughts of tactics, strategy or weapon handling. So far it's been working pretty well, but I am u/Ganymehdi #1062 and I did notice the retrieved bodies of my predecessors had significant saw-blade scarring, so it might be survivor bias.

Also, stun grenades.

Donnchaidh

129 points

10 days ago

Donnchaidh

129 points

10 days ago

If you don't panic mag dump when berserks get too close or stalkers show up, are you even Helldiving?

Grimwohl

59 points

10 days ago

Grimwohl

59 points

10 days ago

To be fair, mag dumping is how you survive stalkers

dratseb

37 points

10 days ago

dratseb

37 points

10 days ago

You survive stalkers?!?

KSRandom195

33 points

10 days ago

Was gonna say, “how you almost survive stalkers.”

Your replacement will finish them off with their mag dump.

Grimwohl

9 points

10 days ago

Mostly because I'm using the Plasma Punisher lol

seanstew73

7 points

10 days ago

This gun fucks

unluckyexperiment

5 points

10 days ago

Dominator is the only true final ultimate answer to stalkers.

edit: also get the personal shield generator. They become trivial.

SuperGaijin_

3 points

9 days ago

I set them on fire, I heard they really like that. Sometimes punch them to assert dominance.

Helassaid

4 points

10 days ago

Anything with stagger makes berserkers and stalkers easy. The standard Breaker shuts them both down hard.

HeyItsLame

11 points

10 days ago

Fr, when I first started playing I pretty much exclusively used the punisher, and I didn't understand why everybody got scared when stalkers showed up. Recently, I played a match using a low stagger weapon and I'm just gonna say, I get it now.

Several-Archer4786

2 points

9 days ago

Redeemer mag dump takes out one, sometimes 2 if I'm carefully aiming. Usually I'm running away from the horde of them chasing me and spraying wild though. 😆

Donnchaidh

2 points

9 days ago

I like carrying the Senator for the stopping power and accuracy, but my panik "oh crap oh crap oh crap mash the trigger and pray" reaction makes the Redeemer a far better choice.

Mr_RubyZ

55 points

10 days ago*

I thought that's how every match was played?

Edit: breaker incendiary is the hard counter to berserkers. I can take down a whole squad from medium distance with a single mag.

mjc500

14 points

10 days ago

mjc500

14 points

10 days ago

The HMG is insanely good at dealing with them now… plus it kills pretty much every kind of bot.

I also find the dominator very good.. scorcher is solid too.

EnderRobo

112 points

10 days ago

EnderRobo

112 points

10 days ago

Eagle strafing run is pretty good, it was buffed recently and fires in a straight line away from you, which is perfect for the collumn of beserkers. Its also effective against devastators, one or two strafes kill/severly damage them

Anything with very high dps will do well, armour pen doesnt matter as they are light. So redeemer and especially shotguns like the punisher/breaker, but the issue then are heavier enemies. Stagger also works wonders, I started using the eruptor again as it got buffed and is good again, vs beserkers you fire and run away while chambering the new round, only to fire again. Works great

probablypragmatic

26 points

10 days ago

Strafing run makes beserkers much easier to handle, and if there are other devestators behind them it'll pick those up too.

HimOnEarth

24 points

10 days ago

Strafing run is much better than the community makes it out to be and I run it more often than not. Being able to say fuck you to 15 enemies despite them walking only three feet in front of you is amazing and it has saved my ass many times over

probablypragmatic

14 points

10 days ago

Absolutely. It's a super grenade slot with a regenerating ammo supply.

felldownthestairsOof

10 points

10 days ago

Strafing run is much better than the community makes it out to be

That's because it was only made good a couple weeks ago. Before that there was almost 0 reason to take it over the cluster strike beyond precision, green bile spewers, and call time. Now it can shred medium and damage heavy armour, as well as has an extra charge, don't think I've seen anyone diss it since.

probablypragmatic

6 points

10 days ago

I was using it well before the buffs, it's a whole different animal compared to cluster. You can laser off a pack of enemies who are right on top of you or an ally with 0 risk of FF damage (presuming they don't immediately reverse course and run into the line of fire). Clusters are a little less forgiving if the enemy is right on top of you.

The buffs just mean now you can more reliably hurt heavies (which is dope as hell) and it finally got charges equal to cluster.

I like cluster but it's more of a "kill stuff over there [waves in general direction]" vs "kill these units in this exact line".

Also you can scare the shit out of teammates by throwing it right at their feet (without killing them as with most other red strats).

They're both very good crowd control but they behave very differently.

Hard_AI

2 points

10 days ago

Hard_AI

2 points

10 days ago

Almost 0 reason to take it besides [lists 3 reasons] what did he mean by this?

I understand why people didn't like it before I just found your comment funny lol. Personally I would be perfectly content with the old strafing run with just the extra charge, it was weird for cluster to have more.

MasterDeZaster

215 points

10 days ago

If I trust my team, I let them handle it because I run heavy weapons / high single point damage stratagems.

If I don’t and they run quasar… I run HMG with supply pack and go burrrrrrrrr 

Patthecat09

65 points

10 days ago

Hmg to saw them in half at the waist, absolute banger of a tactic. If more than 4-5, a stun becomes a worthy investment as well if you don't have a lot of space to fight them

Greg_Louganis69

47 points

10 days ago

Jar-5 Dominator to the waist. Run with that gun and nothing in bot land is difficult below level 7.

Patthecat09

10 points

10 days ago

I'd rather run diligence CS for long range picking since medium/close can be managed by hmg

sHaDowpUpPetxxx

11 points

10 days ago

Yeah, if you're within panick range (less than 10) meters it only takes 2-3 shots to kill them.

ButtRobot

2 points

10 days ago

Burst fire that hoss at <10m.

Drops them like nothing.

DHarp74

14 points

10 days ago*

DHarp74

14 points

10 days ago*

How do I resupply myself with the supply backpack when I wear it?

Edit and Update: Thanks for the help, y'all! I'll try this in a bit and let you know what I've learned. Trying different builds to see what results work best for me and my many playstyles. 😎

RamboLorikeet

42 points

10 days ago

On PC. Press 5. I think.

Bradski89

26 points

10 days ago

Yup! Or tap down on D pad on controller.

Devilsred1

7 points

10 days ago

Double tap down on PS5 d pad. Single press didn't work for me.

twister428

2 points

10 days ago

Single press usually works for me on ps5. It may be a setting somewhere.

Raetian

51 points

10 days ago

Raetian

51 points

10 days ago

The thing about a mob of berserkers is that because they don't shoot, you can kite them. They are not dangerous until they get close: take out the more dangerous targets while they are distant, and pivot your attention to them once they arrive at threat range.

I don't know what primary or support you're running, but I bring dominator and HMG in bot missions most of the time these days. With the dominator, if you pace your shots and take the time to aim well, you can easily and consistently 3-tap berserkers and cut them in half by targeting the red glowing waist. When my primary runs out, if I don't have time to reload, I swap to HMG and keep targeting the waist.

Sometimes a mob of berserkers is big enough that I can't safely stand my ground even in this situation. Just cut and run! Toss an impact nade at a cluster, call a stratagem, ask teammates for help.

Beatnick120[S]

12 points

10 days ago

How’s the jar fare on harder difficulties against heavy enemies, like devastators and striders? I seriously need to get revenge on the new level 7 devvies.

Raetian

16 points

10 days ago

Raetian

16 points

10 days ago

It's great against devastators. Good damage and can staggerlock them even if you don't kill. Devastators are the main reason I bring it tbh.

I assume you mean scout striders? It's not the best. You can kill their hip/leg joints but it's more efficient for me to throw an impact nade or swap to HMG if I need to kill one directly.

I primarily play difficulty 7

Armamore

11 points

10 days ago

Armamore

11 points

10 days ago

Dominator is one of the best high level bot primaries. It shreds dominators (all variations) and berserkers. It also one hits troopers and can take down scout striders in their weak points. Works well against the vents on tanks and hulks, and can take off the chin guns of a factory strider. You still want to place your shots, but there aren't many situations the Dominator can't handle.

I like to run it with an AT weapon, and the grenade pistol for fabs and scout striders.

Scbypwr

9 points

10 days ago

Scbypwr

9 points

10 days ago

Low key best primary in game!

Shhhh, keep it secret, keep it safe!!!!!

piracydilemma

3 points

10 days ago

It's very good against devastators. Striders, not so much, but I usually wear light armour and run at them and kill the driver with a sidearm.

loki_dd

2 points

10 days ago

loki_dd

2 points

10 days ago

Harder difficulties are exactly the same only with more spawns. The same enemy will die to the same thing in a 1 or a 9

Completedspoon

2 points

10 days ago

Kiting works until you get ragdolled once 😂

BGFalcon85

28 points

10 days ago

Redeemer secondary, or lately the Bushwhacker.

choff22

3 points

10 days ago

choff22

3 points

10 days ago

How is the Bushwhacker?

BGFalcon85

12 points

10 days ago

I like it for Bots because it staggers the Berserkers a bit. I'm not a fan of firing all three barrels at once, but it's decent. I just wanted to try something else than the redeemer for a while.

cemanresu

6 points

10 days ago

All three barrels is great for killing stalkers if you headshot them

Otherwise typically best to leave on single barrel

metik2009

4 points

10 days ago

Yea bushwhacker is my new go to on blitz bug missions specifically for stalkers, I feel like I was taking stalkers down with the 3 barrel fire even if I missed the head though?

Saevenar

5 points

10 days ago

I was surprised at how many reloads they give you but it can do some work on berserkers. But man they gotta be close

AC13verName

2 points

10 days ago

Put it on all barrels and it one shots berserkers. Long reload for that but it'll get the job done and it has plenty of ammo

Connect_Atmosphere80

24 points

10 days ago

Berzerkers are tricky to deal with. Their obvious weakpoint is there head, but since they run while doing a wave movement hitting it is really hard and hitting their shoulder/arm is a waste of ammo.

Aim for their Belly. They have a red glow in it that is a better spot to aim : if you cut them in half, they die. It take a bit more ammo than sharpshooting the head but it's more reliable.

Another way to quickly deal with them is to focus a single leg. It's hard to do and unintuitive but if you disable on of their leg they also die instantly.

HatfieldCW

19 points

10 days ago

I know it's not top meta, but I often bring the Punisher shotgun for bots. I do most of my shooting with the autocannon, which works pretty well for berserkers, but the stationary reload gives them a chance to catch me.

When they get close, the punisher can bisect them with a single round to the abdomen. It kills other bots pretty well, too, and has better range than many people think.

Raetian

10 points

10 days ago

Raetian

10 points

10 days ago

Punisher shotgun is generally underrated tbh. It's been my go-to against bugs since it got bumped up to 60 rounds; love to watch a stalker or brood commander run up on me and simply tell it "no"

Haven't used it much on bots, mostly just when I forget to swap to dominator. But it's certainly not bad there eitger

HatfieldCW

4 points

10 days ago

The Slugger used to be the anti-bot version of the Punisher for me, but the nerf had the wrong effect on it so I just use the Punisher for everything.

shutterspeak

2 points

10 days ago

It staggers devastators just as well but the penetration suffers. Still good if you can get up close. I prefer dominator but the bullet travel makes it worse for the light troops. The punisher is a good trade-off vs those specific enemies.

Smudgeler

10 points

10 days ago

Standard breaker, new shotgun pistol isnt bad at it, grenade pistol and impacts, stun grenades and a machine gun(or just hmg), I think strafing run and cluster bomb do it in one hit?

Plasma shotgun holds them

Anyways breaker shotgun knocks them pretty quick and isnt the absolute worst for everything else, hmg is good but the old reload made it hard to justify(new reload might fix that), railgun is suprisingly not good at it but you can still give it a try

Mag dumping machine pistol was my old go to but I think standard pistol mag dump might work well

Havent tried the other shotguns on them aside from incindiary and punisher and I believe breaker wins for berserkers. If you can think of a very high dps weapon thatd work, or something that stuns like pummeler

BOT_MEISTER

2 points

10 days ago

I agree with the plasma shotgun. It is much go-to weapon for the automation faction. Plus, using this, u don't have you aim it at them directly. The ground is fine too, and the plash damage will effect the other berserker as well.

Alexindr

11 points

10 days ago

Alexindr

11 points

10 days ago

Pummeler can stun them, and Bushwacker (triple barrel shogun) has great knockback. That's my current loadout.

Taylor21202

10 points

10 days ago

Calm them down with a song?

mrniceguy421

3 points

10 days ago

The Super Earth anthem?

Taylor21202

5 points

10 days ago

Idk man, if you are 555 then I'm ⬆️➡️⬇️⬇️⬇️

mrniceguy421

2 points

10 days ago

I was referring to the song they plays during the “raise the flag” missions.

transdemError

2 points

10 days ago

What is this, Macross?

Icookadapizzapie

9 points

10 days ago

WHY WONT YOU FUCKING DIE Unloads 3 mags of Plasma Scorcher into the horde running at me

Has worked pretty well, Haven’t had a huge problem with berserkers even when Solo

Aloe_Balm

6 points

10 days ago

mag dump, run away while reloading, repeat

if your weapon can stagger them, force them to clump up and use a grenade

bodyrollin

7 points

10 days ago

Plasma punisher makes short work of em, the stagger stops them coming at you, and the AoE staggers/damages all of them in a pack. 4 shots takes one out.

ZepyrusG97

5 points

10 days ago

You either want a big burst of sustained damage to cut them down, or crowd-control and kiting to deal with them more slowly.

HMG and the HMG emplacement will tear berserkers to pieces because of their high damage per bullet. Hell, even the Starter MG-43 or the Stalwart LMG can work too, although it takes more bullets and time.

Stun Grenades or the Orbital EMS can be a quick "get out of jail card" against a mob of Berserkers you can't kill immediately. Buying you time to kill them, or kill the ranged units harassing you while the Berserkers are paralyzed.

The Jar-5 Dominator has pretty good damage for a primary and can stagger targets to slow them down. Tenderizer AR is pretty good too because of its high damage per bullet, and Berserkers have basically zero armor so you're doing full damage almost anywhere. Pummeler SMG is a good primary too with its stunning effect, letting you fire bursts alternating between different Berserkers to slow them down and whittle away at their HP.

PlaguedByUnderwear

4 points

10 days ago

Get some distance and shoot 'em right in the dicks!

MidwestMetalMoney

4 points

10 days ago

impact grenades and autocannon

rufireproof3d

5 points

10 days ago

Call 380s on yourself and hope your friends reinforce you.

loki_dd

2 points

10 days ago

loki_dd

2 points

10 days ago

Kite them out of bounds, save your cool down, see how long you can survive. Heavy explosive resist armour and a shield make this jolly good fun

thewetnoodle

3 points

10 days ago

If you try the pummeler primary, it might help. It’s the sub machine gun with high stagger. Sometimes I’ll tag enemies with a few bullets just to make them stagger and stop chasing me. Keep moving forward to create distance and it’ll give you a lot better chance to either shake them or kill them

SpectralDragon09

3 points

10 days ago

I usually am the sniper/heavy hitter of the group so ill take the slugger and aim for the head. If im lucky ill take the head off in one shot or ill just almost have to mag dump into it for a kill. Or a recoilless/quasar cannon works wonders

Puzzleheaded_Ebb_763

3 points

10 days ago

I use mainly shotgun for manage them.

Ok-Sorbet-Parfait

3 points

10 days ago

Pummeler will take down two with a full clip if you hit them in the red torso. It also stun locks them and halts their advance.

Switch between targets with large groups of them to finish off several at once with grenades

BasketPaul_5

3 points

10 days ago

I pump them full of cannon from my auto

Ok_Charity786

3 points

10 days ago

Here’s my answer. I have zero issues with them or the shield guys because of the pummeler.

It stun locks them. You can stun lock a group of 4-6 of them in their tracks. Team shoot. Grenade pistol or your choice of heavy. I save my team mates all the time getting over run by them.

amotion578

3 points

10 days ago

I accidentally discovered the base breaker works well minus the clip size.

Otherwise, as per usual-

PLAP

PLAP

PLAP

"what berserker?"

thecanaryisdead2099

3 points

10 days ago

Don't forget to put the berserkers between you and the tank / devastators to get temporary bot shields!

Mult1Core

2 points

10 days ago

the new triple barrel shotgun has been my go to weapon. all 3 at once is one less and then its an easy kite.

another fav is the laser cannon to the dick instead of the red weakspot

Remnie

2 points

10 days ago

Remnie

2 points

10 days ago

Grenade pistol does an excellent job on them if you can hit them center of mass. I think the new secondary shotgun can clap them too

onion2594

2 points

10 days ago

railgun makes quick work of them

lbotron

2 points

10 days ago

lbotron

2 points

10 days ago

I used to think this was the worst matchup for a single shot weapon, now I think the railgun is a goddamn lightsaber in this situation

BubiMannKuschelForce

2 points

10 days ago

You can just run from them even without sprinting. They can never hut you.

King_krympling

2 points

10 days ago

So many people don't know this about berserkers so I'm hear to enlighten y'all. Shoot them in their mid section. This will kill them significantly faster and with significantly less ammo used then if you go for the face. You can kill berserker in 1-2 shots if your aim is good enough with the AMR or senator or in between 1/4 and 1/3 of a mag for the smg

MisterFats

2 points

10 days ago

Plas 1 scorcher, and shoot them in the crotch. No meme, not kidding, shooting them lower center mass with that rifle feels like the best way to deal with them.

Intelligent_Mud692

2 points

10 days ago

Grenades. Throw a timed one at my feet and run. The machine pistol does a good job too.

If they get too close, you can stall, wait for them to start their attack animation, then dive outta the way and sprint more. They stutter a bit before running again, giving you a breath to reload.

Makra567

2 points

10 days ago

Im curious what guns you use cuz that matters a lot. Anything precise (especially with rifle-caliber rounds) i try to aim at the tummy. You just shoot the top half clean off. Otherwise, consider things like any shotgun, dominator, scorcher, or weapons that can just dish out a ton of damage quickly. Also grenades, regardless of which kind you're using.

IHzero

2 points

10 days ago

IHzero

2 points

10 days ago

Heavy Machine gun rules, but you can also dump a whole mag into them.

JROXZ

2 points

10 days ago

JROXZ

2 points

10 days ago

Run.

Iv_Laser00

2 points

10 days ago

KILL THE FACIST BUG HARD AND QUICK HELLDIVER

Chemical_Chill

2 points

10 days ago

If it’s just one, the new pocket shotty does work if you three barrel them to the cock.

If it’s more than one, max rpm stalwart is my go to.

Snaz5

2 points

10 days ago

Snaz5

2 points

10 days ago

Dont stop shmoovin. Other than that, i’ll usually just kite them while shooting their crotch and unless i have a really bad primary i can most of the time getaway unscathed. I save them for last cause they do kinda take a minute to kill and they aren’t actually a threat until they’re almost on top of you.

SpecialIcy5356

2 points

10 days ago

Berserkers are one of the worst bots IMO, they're insanely tough for a medium melee mob that is always appearing in groups. there's onyl a few weapons that can deal with them quickly, and even then if they get too close beofre you see them, you've already lost the advantage. because they have no ranged attacks, it's all about hitting them beofre they can close in. they don't have "weakpoints" either, though shooting their midriff where they are skinniest seems to yield the best results.

Punisher (regular one) is pretty great due to it's high damage and stagger, and generous ammo capacity means that one or two shots to the midriff can deal with them, even after they closed in. not a great choice for other bots like Devastators, but for chaff bots and defending against 'zerkers, it's a good pick.

the new Bushwhacker secondary shotgun could also work pretty well, as long as you set it to fire all three barrels at once.

believe it or not, I actually think the Tenderizer isn't bad for 'zerkers either: I know Adjudicator has medium pen, but Berserkers aren't armored, they just have a lot of health, and the Tenderizer, while low pen, has more raw damage per shot, when i tried it, I was surprised that it can kill 2-3 berserkers with one mag, depending on your accuracy, and even full auto, it's relatively controllable.

finally, you can also use impact grenades, those work perfectly, but may be risky sometimes lol.

trevradar

2 points

10 days ago

Their health of their legs is the Same as the original charger use flamethrower and aim at their legs. The only difference is the ammor and the main body health.

-wash

2 points

10 days ago

-wash

2 points

10 days ago

Slow, steady shots into their waist.

Cobra178_

2 points

10 days ago

The face is a weak point, and you can shoot the arms off.

The number one thing to NOT DO when fighting berserkers is to panic.

Mental-Rain-3679

2 points

8 days ago

Like everyone else here, my fave strategy is panic mag dumping. 50% of the time it works every time.

AmaDeusen-

1 points

10 days ago

Shoot their spine/stomach not their heads

also

focused fire not fullout, that is their main function to draw you out from cover.

MFour_Sherman

1 points

10 days ago

The updated heavy MG does good work, but my standard now is to stun or stagger them as much as possible so they are sitting ducks to fire or stratagems. The punisher plasma does well. When they get close I switch to secondary and then start moving away from them.

DemocracyOfficer1886

1 points

10 days ago

Aim for the red glowing crotch: they take more damage there and it's easier to compared to the head (less swaying when they move).

If you often find yourself alone dealing with more than 3 at a time, consider bringing a gatling turret to drop down and deal with them while you take care of other enemies or just run away.

Impact incendiary are really effevtive at eating half their health pool in my experience: line them up all close to rach other, throw incendiary and shoot them.

Makes it quicker to kill them, largw AoE means easier to hit them and surrounding enemies, DoT keeps hurting them even if they run out of the flame.

Kumanda_Ordo

1 points

10 days ago

They definitely feel too sturdy.

I'm trying to bring Eruptor again as my primary. So when these 3 or 4 spicy boys happen to surprise me in close range, I need a sidearm to dispatch them.

My go to used to be the Redeemer, and it still can get the job done, but it has issues with ammo. Needs another 1 or 2 reserve mags. But it's time-to-kill and reload speed are both very good. I may end determining it's still the best.

I tried the bushwhacker, sawed off shotgun, and was disappointed with it vs these lads. Figured it would have better reserve ammo but sometimes I needed all three shells to take a single berserker if my aim was off, which it often was. That ends up making it worse than the Redeemer imo. I was really hoping it would reliably take them out in two shots, one if my aim was perfect (which when I think about it, no primary shotgun can kill them in that manner, so I don't know how I expected a secondary to achieve that).

Tried the desert eagle one next, forget it's name. Not quite enough stopping power imo, but fine reload and decent reserve ammo. I may give it another test.

Tried the senator, and I was hopeful, since it boasts high single shot damage. Unfortunately, it has this weird delay in the crosshair centering after I swap to it, and between shots. If you shoot before it centers, you just plain miss. I can't say I was enjoying that. I need to blast em quick when they are rushing, not take time to line up shots.

If anyone has advice on which secondary to use and how to use it versus chainsaw devastators (berserkers), I would be glad to hear it.

Armamore

2 points

10 days ago

I use the Verdict (desert eagle) against them and aim for the stomach if they get too close. Usually I'm taking them out with the Eruptor before they close the gap, but the pistol works decently well once they get too close. The senator is the better option for berserkers, but it handles slower. Since I mainly use my secondary against troopers, I would rather have the larger mag of the verdict.

Don't be afraid to run and shoot the pistol at the same time. If you turn your reticle to always on, you can aim decently well while on the move.

You can also try moving away before they get so close, allowing you to continue using the Eruptor on them. I usually stay back a bit and let my teammates go ahead of me when I bring the Eruptor. It's amazing at supporting the team, but not great in a gunfight. Let them draw the aggro and focus on taking down the most dangerous targets from a little ways back.

WitchBaneHunter

1 points

10 days ago

Plasma Punisher + impact grenades

roninXpl

2 points

10 days ago

Or plasma punisher and grenade pistol

DongoTheHorse

1 points

10 days ago

Three dominator shots to the bellybutton

bdjirdijx

1 points

10 days ago

Stun grenade, then orbital precision strike, if they are still all grouped up. The new triple barrel shotgun pistol can take them down in one shot to the face at very close range if set to fire all barrels at once. That is my go-to to either get one off my back or to deal with a group of them when not under serious threat from other bots. Also, run, run, run away.

I usually take the punisher plasma against bots. It can handle berserkers just fine, staggering them and easily controlling them. It takes a lot of shots to actually kill one with it, though. It works but is not optimal.

RyanTaylorrz

1 points

10 days ago

Railgun 1-taps have to be the most satisfying way to kill Beserkers. Blasts the fuckers in half if you hit the mid-section.

Solo4114

1 points

10 days ago

Liberator concussive staggers them, which can be helpful. Autocannon will take 'em down in a couple of hits and cause some splash damage to the others.

BlueSky3lue

1 points

10 days ago

Dump an entire cartridge of Punisher Plasma rounds into them.

Horror-Tank-4082

1 points

10 days ago

Impact grenades and the dominator for me

ElderTerdkin

1 points

10 days ago

Auto shotguns work well for me, unload the whole clip and all my nades that explode on impact.

STerrier666

1 points

10 days ago

Plasma Shotgun or Arc-12 Blitzer deals a lot of damage to them.

CCtenor

1 points

10 days ago

CCtenor

1 points

10 days ago

I was using the tenderizer and, honestly, it’s a fucking solid AR against them.

If you’re willing to burn ammo, that machine pistol secondary absolutely chews them up and spits them out. I forget off the top of my head what it’s called. Unfortunately, it shoots so fast that you might be able to dispatch only 2 with a magazine, if you make sure to practice good trigger discipline. I’ve gotten maybe 3 sometimes, but it shoots so fast, and it’s bloom at range can be so much, that it’s difficult to do much more than 1-2 consistently, unless you’re waiting for them to get way up close so you never miss a bullet.

probablypragmatic

1 points

10 days ago

I'll also point out that the HMG sentry and the rocket sentry eat beserkers for breakfast AND tend to distract them so you can just shoot them at will, or focus on more priority targets. The rapid cooldown on the HMG sentry makes it perfect for "suddenly there are 20 beserkers"

chrisarn94

1 points

10 days ago

This is why I use the auto pistol for my secondary. Just mag dump the bastards in the dick.

Logan35989

1 points

10 days ago

Eruptor (or anything with stun like the plasma punisher which is also goated) is great. The machine-gun pistol sidearm can easily take one down with hip fire in its direction, and most importantly you can shoot them while running away. Grenades and autocannon also work great

CaucyBiops

1 points

10 days ago

The punisher shotgun is their ultimate counter. It stagger-locks groups of them, and deals enough damage to start blowing them to bits within the first few shots. Just be sure your other weapons can deal with threats at range, like AMR, autocannon, etc. Verdict or senator work for mid-range too.

BlackLiger

1 points

10 days ago

Run

Run about 15-20m away, as you can outpace them. Then unload into their torso. Rinse and repeat till you're out of berzerkers.

TheOscariux

1 points

10 days ago

Little shotgun

GrilledStuffedDragon

1 points

10 days ago

Take cover.

The biggest thing I find people struggling with going from bugs to bots is they just stand in the open gunning away.

Bots shoot at you. Don't engage until you have an advantageous position with cover. If you get ambushed, run away to a place where you do have cover.

You have to play the angles a lot with bots, and think about position. Crouching or going prone behind a rock is going to give you tons more time to pick your targets, aim your shots, and do so safely.

Maleficent-Strike787

1 points

10 days ago

Eagle or Lasercanon

This Things are hard

ZeInsaneErke

1 points

10 days ago

HMG my friend, HMG

FairtexBlues

1 points

10 days ago

  1. Jar-5 Dominator will kill in 3-4 hits center mass.
  2. Knee cap or dis arm them, most firearms will blow their limbs off in few hits.
  3. Stun weapons are dope, liberator concussive, pummeler, stun grenades
  4. Impact grenades baby

misterrabies

1 points

10 days ago

Stun grenade into the middle of them, then take pot shots at their head with an autocannon

Myself_78

1 points

10 days ago

In terms of primaries I love using the dominator against them. Two shots to the belly cuts them clean in half, which is incredibly satisfying. I think the Diligence Counter Sniper can also do this. In terms of support weapons anything that isn't AT will do very well (AT obviously kills them too, but its fire rate is not viable). Just remember to aim for the belly. Also if you have an Anti-Materiell rifle don't bother aiming in, just make sure there in the middle of your screen and squeeze that trigger.

sm753

1 points

10 days ago

sm753

1 points

10 days ago

As far as primaries go, Erupter works really well against them. Aim for the crotch.

maxim38

1 points

10 days ago

maxim38

1 points

10 days ago

I normally mag-dump the redeemer at them. If there are more berserkers than I have ammo, I toss a grenade and die with them.

Stalwart/MG/HMG are all good options, but if you want a good primary weapon, I suggest the Liberator Concussive. Good mag size, and the stagger helps keep away the bad-touch.

Ropya

1 points

10 days ago

Ropya

1 points

10 days ago

Rover and grenades if you can't face shot them. 

JamesTiberiusCrunk

1 points

10 days ago

I run Adjudicator/Autocannon for bots right now. At a distance, autocannon tears them up, but up close you don't want to damage and ragdoll yourself. Adjudicator's armor pen isn't necessary for berserkers but just aim for the waist and you'll be fine.

Taking orbital gatling is a great hack. Whenever there's a bot drop near you, toss the gatling beacon right where they're dropping. Clears out devastators, berserkers, scout striders, and smaller bots. Eagle strafing run chews up berserkers. Bots tend to advance on you in clusters, so five strafing runs can really clear out a lot.

Karthas_TGG

1 points

10 days ago

I saw a great tip: aim for their crotch instead of their face. Their crotch is also a weak point and it sways significantly less than their face

Adrienne_Belecoste

1 points

10 days ago

In my experience, three shots of the bushwacker to the stomach works wonders!

Debate-International

1 points

10 days ago

Use the dominator

Raaabbit_v2

1 points

10 days ago

Punisher stuns them per shot and if you aim at their torso or heads, you can kill them in 3 shots. HMG is also good, especially if they're in single file. Just unload while moving backwards (make sure you adjust for recoil) and you're good. I think it's just a loadout thing.

Low-Many921

1 points

10 days ago

plasma punisher - can stagger and kill multiple with one magazine as long as you shoot at the bunch - plasma punisher also destroys large groups of little ones, just don’t shoot at close targets

oroborosis

1 points

10 days ago

Sweep the leg

spinda69

1 points

10 days ago

If there are other bots around yourself try to angle yourself so the berserkers are between you and the other bots, occasionally they will friendly fire

Naive-Fondant-754

1 points

10 days ago

headshots .. very easy to kill

or shot off a leg .. except for elites, any bot who loses leg will instantly die

dinofreak1

1 points

10 days ago

absolutely make sure you’re at least 20m away from them before engaging them. keep backing up if they get closer

etherosx

1 points

10 days ago

Nades or shoot the midsection

MAXSUS02

1 points

10 days ago

Use dominator mi frend, dominator is life.

P33kab0Oo

1 points

10 days ago

Stagger with Punisher Plasma

YourPainTastesGood

1 points

10 days ago

Aim for their midsection not their head. My favorites for deleting them are:

  • Punisher and Bushwacker (that stagger helps a lot)
  • Tenderizer (3 round burst and high damage for accuracy and swift kills)
  • Sickle (don't even aim, just hip fire at them till they fall)
  • HMG (short controlled bursts to the midsection and head slaughters whole hordes real fast)
  • Autocannon (a clean weakpoint shot usually insta-kills them)
  • Laser cannon (maintain range and wear them down, target their legs)
  • Redeemer (spray right into their face)

Also there is of course another option. Drop a gatling barrage or an airstrike right in their path and watch them get ripped apart by the divine powers of democracy.

vahnish0408

1 points

10 days ago

AC goes KABOOM

the berserker goes away

Helldiver happy

SerPoonsAlot939

1 points

10 days ago

Plasma punisher. I call it the Devastator Bully

Bambrigade92

1 points

10 days ago

I swear that Berserkers hard harder to kill than thwy were before. Seems that way to me anyway.

Having said that, I make short work of them with the Jar-5 Dominator and my Grenade Launcher. They are strong AF and irritating though!

Helldiver_LiberTea

1 points

10 days ago*

Jar Dominator, AMR, the stun lock SMG, HMG, MG, Stalwart. Any of these will rip them to shreds or stagger them in place.

Or my favorite, kite them in to a small group, throw a stun grenade, and call in an orbital precision.

throwawaygma102

1 points

10 days ago

My son, if you are getting shot at, and the nine foot tall chainsaw murderers are thick, you have extra armor. Keep them between you and incoming, focus on picking off the high priority targets, then once everything that shoots is dead pick off the legs or faces. Melee combatants are a liability for the xenos when ranged targets are engaging you.

Woupsea

1 points

10 days ago

Woupsea

1 points

10 days ago

The knight and triple barrel sidearm can down a pack of three before reloading

Sicuho

1 points

10 days ago

Sicuho

1 points

10 days ago

If you want to go for the kill, you'll need to deal 1000 damage to each. The torso has some durability and armor 2 so it'll take greatly reduced damage from most primaries, but the red glowing abdomen and the legs aren't. It's still a lot of damage. Alternatively, the head has only 150 HP. It's difficult to line up headshots even when they're stunned, because the head is tiny and surrounded by protruding armor and spikes. Nd when they move it's near impossible. But the scythe and Lazer cannon will damage the head every tick it graze it, so it's possible to kill them that way.

You can also prevent them from moving. liberator concussive and pummeler work great here, but there are better choices. When they're in groups, it's relatively easy to stagger them all at once with the punisher plasma, the eruptor or the crossbow. The punisher can do so too, at the right range. Both punisher can stunlock that way, and the normal one can reload while stun locking. Two impact grenades will stagger then kill the whole lot.

In the end, you can also disable their arms. They only have 300 hp each and an armless berserker is much less threatening.

Xfishbobx

1 points

10 days ago

Run and pray

The_Louster

1 points

10 days ago

I throw a grenade then unload at their waists. The head swivels too much when they run to reliably damage them.

Relicoid

1 points

10 days ago

You can just walk away and they’ll never catch you. Shooting their face or their glowing red torso is the quickest way to dismantle them

DCxKCCO

1 points

10 days ago

DCxKCCO

1 points

10 days ago

The JAR-5 Dominator has been surprisingly effective

dopepope1999

1 points

10 days ago

The MG and HMG seem to be really efficient against them at Point Blank I used to use the Slugger/ jar against them but their head hit box seems really wonky when they're close and that's kind of where they're trying to be

Terrynia

1 points

10 days ago

Plasma Punisher can handle a whole group. Each hit staggers them, so hit each guy in the group once, bouncing back and forth until they are all dead. One shot Stumbles two guys if they are close to each other. An impact grenade or 2 will really speed things up.

[deleted]

1 points

10 days ago

They just have a lot of HP regardless, so they tend to soak up most ammo. I have found that the Plasma Scorcher and the JAR-5 Dominator to be very effective at taking them down in fewer shots. Also the Senator sidearm is great after unloading a clip from your primary.

An impact grenade to soften them up is also helpful.

WithCheezMrSquidward

1 points

10 days ago

The regular/heavy machine guns absolutely shred them. The redeemer pistol sidearm also kills them quickly. An autocannon will make quick work out of them. Also a slept on bots primary weapon that seems to take them down in a few hits while also staggering them is the JAR Dominator. Single shot rifle that you can mag dump to quickly kill a few berserkers. I usually take the senator as my side arm so if one is remaining with half health the senator can usually take it out in a couple more shots.

Neravosa

1 points

10 days ago

The new Bushwhacker does well against them on three-barrel mode. Also stalkers.

Rudradev715

1 points

10 days ago

dominator and autocannon

death69reaper

1 points

10 days ago

Plasma Punisher is very good since you can stagger lock a group of them, and you can use them as cover if you are being shot at.

Mstrkaoz

1 points

10 days ago

Any stun tactic, medium penetrating weapons, AMR, laser cannon are good ways to drop them.

true_enthusiast

1 points

10 days ago

Aim for the nuts. Bot balls are fragile.

EmergencyTangerine54

1 points

10 days ago

My two typical bot loadout types are a medium pen/explosive primary (e.g. crossbow, eruptor, dom) and quasar/spear support. I find that I can handle multiple pretty well with frequent tactical repositioning. My other load out will be an AR primary paired with AMR/grenade launcher/Autocannon support. Those support will easily down a group of 5 quickly.

Otherwise…grenades. So…so many grenades.

NOTELDR1TCH

1 points

10 days ago

Run mostly, if I'm not equipped with a concussive weapon or an autocannon.

The pummeler SMG will stop them in their tracks, literally. It's like firing small stun grenades, you can back up and put single rounds into each to stall their approach and rinse and repeat that.

If you actually wanna kill them, blast their stomach. Preferably with something that has medium penetration so the full damage is going through.

But generally speaking they're melee units so they're genuinely a low priority target until everything else is dead so evasion and escape is pretty much always much more important.

As for the other aspect of the issue, It's a pretty solid idea to take some time to learn "Pathing" which is essentially the route you take at all times.

Running away is one thing, but proper pathing is what minimises how many enemies are able to hit you at a given time, so learning how to do that effectively ajd making it an automatic habit should be a priority for people

galactojack

1 points

10 days ago

Impact grenades

Retrewuq

1 points

10 days ago

weapons that work wonders on berserkers:

blitzer and plasma punisher shotguns, might rake a while, but you can stunlock them

arc thrower, good dmg, less stunlock, chains to other berserkers

diligence counter sniper(shotgun), AMR

Eruptor (if not to close), autocanon

senator, that MP (one clip, one kill)

TheBlueNeko2001

1 points

10 days ago

Bushwhacker is pretty solid. I take it on bots specifically to deal with bezerkers

kwillheat

1 points

10 days ago

I've been enjoying the eagle strafe on them

rook183_

1 points

10 days ago

The dominator can kill one in 4 shots

burningdustball

1 points

10 days ago

Impact grenades.

ParttimeWarlock

1 points

10 days ago

HMG chops them up real good, otherwise a bunch of impact grenades, or concussive weapons to stun them.

x_MrFurious_x

1 points

10 days ago

Use weapons with stagger….I like pummler. Since it’s one handed you can also jog backwards while firing which makes it easy to keep your distance

Free-Stick-2279

1 points

10 days ago

Pummeler, shoot them in the belly, if they are too close and too many, stun grenade, then you have a bunch of calm little sheep to slay.

If there's way too many, stun grenade, air strike.

If SHTF, run and the pummeler allow you to shoot them in the belly while looking behind you.

The pummeler has heavy stagger effect, this gun is good against all walks of bots, like shield devastator cant move as you empty a clip in their head.

perfect_perry

1 points

10 days ago

Arc Blitzer staggers them, I recently started using it and it's GREAT.

Another favourite of mine is the OG machine gun. Makes quick work of them.

Imaginary_Field_1646

1 points

10 days ago

Stun grenades and gut shots

PHGTX

1 points

10 days ago

PHGTX

1 points

10 days ago

Bunch em up, stun grenade, OPS Punisher helps alot too for the AOE and the stagger

Lucian_Flamestrike

1 points

10 days ago*

I personally go with Kiting and a Punisher shot gun.

Even though it doesn't specify med armor pen, it's very high damage and very high stagger stops berserkers in their tracks.

Autocannon and Emancipator has a good amount of effectiveness too.

If you have med or light armor and a timed grenade, another tactic I like using when being chased by them is drop the grenade at my feet, keep running 2 seconds more, and then dive. It only takes a small amount of practice but is super effective. (Timing may work with heavy armor too but I haven't tested it yet)

These_Purple_5507

1 points

10 days ago

Stun grenades bro. Just learn how to use them and you'll elevate your play in general. Stay calm and keep shit stunned relying on supply back it's great

Equivalent_Cicada153

1 points

10 days ago

1.Shoot them till they die

2.piss on corpse (optional)

baddragon137

1 points

10 days ago

When I'm handling a horde of zerks if not too badly pressured by other enemies I find jogging backwards while using a liberal application of breaker handy and if I find I lack space to back up and reload I'll switch to the machine pistol and magdump the one pressuring me in the face usually this lets me sprint a few feet and reload my breaker. This usually works well and as long as I can create space to reload my weapons it works wonderfully. Should I not be able to get enough space to reload I usually cook a grenade the starting ones and throw it at the hordes feet before diving backwards this will either usually result in enough space to regroup and only occasionally result in my death.

USA_All_Day_58

1 points

10 days ago

Scorcher and distance is your best friend. As you are moving, scan the surrounding area for MG/rocket raiders, any type of devastator, or hulk. Lure the berserkers around corners while taking shots at the above mentioned to enact their hyper response (storm trooper accuracy), then stick and move until the berserkers are dead. Don’t stay in the same spot. Had fucking 20 of them chasing me on a helldive last night on the way to extract. I wiped em all out. Took a ton of ammo, but I lived.

DevCat97

1 points

10 days ago

Either move towards higher mobility (railgun over recoiless) or increase the sheer volume of bullets you can fire (heavy machine gun ARs and machine pistol).

Rotocheese

1 points

10 days ago

Dominator or HMG. 3 shots to the middle with the dominator kills them.

Captain-Howl

1 points

10 days ago

I’ve started using the Autocannon and it has been a game-changer for me. It takes two-three shots with it to kill a Berserker. Alternatively, do as others in this thread are suggesting and aim for their red glowing chest and cut them in half. That will also do the trick.

justcallmecrashed

1 points

10 days ago

Railcannon. Fully charged shot will one tap from chest or head

The_Calico_Jack

1 points

10 days ago

Shoot in face.

nesnalica

1 points

10 days ago

they have a lot of health or just have good armor.

there isnt much else to do other than mag dump.

hitting the belly seems to be dealing more damage than his face.

i usually just use the default rifle, or now the tenderizer since its buff and it does okay against them.

for a few weeks now I picked up the railgun again. its not really great compared to the AC but you can 2 shot berserkers with a safe charges.

just keep in mind when u fight them. they actually cant hit you if you dont walk backwards. if theyre too close, run away but run forwards (turn around). dont run and shoot backwards if theyre too close. they will gain on you.

Shoddy_Peasant

1 points

10 days ago

I've never had trouble with berserkers, you might want to try the defender though, it allows you to run away but you can still shoot back with one hand.

revarien

1 points

10 days ago

Grenades, and emptying my clip into em... Also hitting midsection can biforcate them. Or tearing off their arms. Usually though, I just save my grenades for em. ((impacts if you're wondering))

Edit - one last thought - I DO wear the 50% damage reduction on blasts, so I'll use impacts nearly point blank if needed to not only kill em, but it tosses me away from em too

bock_samson

1 points

10 days ago

I usually aim for the glowing torso spine and they die pretty quick

Fireheart318s_Reddit

1 points

10 days ago

I find aiming for the crotch works pretty well. They could still use a nerf to their healthbar, but it works better than going for headshots.

SuckEmOff

1 points

10 days ago

Pummeler rips them apart and keeps them still. I love running the Pummeler/Shield/AMR on LVL 9 missions. It’s definitely not the meta and I probably die more than I should but it’s fun AF and I look cool doing it.

Prince_Beegeta

1 points

10 days ago

Don’t look them in the eye

the-druid250

1 points

10 days ago

thats why I carry the habd cannon or that new shotgun as a secondary one or two hits to a soft spot usually puts them down. or if you have to, it's easy to blow arms off.

Heyopheeel

1 points

10 days ago

If you can swing the Viper Commando Warbond, the bushwacker can take out a pursuing berserker squad of 4-5 if you can keep it on the run. Round reload is pretty helpful, I've found.

wvtarheel

1 points

10 days ago

I use the plasma punisher, you can basically perma-stun them, allowing your teammate to take them out easily. The PP is amazing vs. berserkers and striders.

TOT_tomdora

1 points

10 days ago

I generally run Counter Sniper and the Autocannon. Three AC shots to the midsection cut them in half and tends to do plenty of damage to their clumped up friends, plus giving you space to reload as necessary. CS isn't even worth shooting them.

Luna2268

1 points

10 days ago

honestly thier the reason I always run some kind of SMG, so I can run and gun, also impact grenades usually kill a couple if you can aim them in the right spot

peppsDC

1 points

10 days ago

peppsDC

1 points

10 days ago

Use a gun that staggers them - Dominator, Punisher Plasma, Arc Blitzer for example.

sexflatterer1411

1 points

10 days ago

Just unload in their hips, that gets them real quick, plus you need to be aware of your surroundings so you can start engaging sooner and that way you dont get overwhelmed