The best ways to kill Chargers in Helldivers 2

Helldivers 2 kill Chargers — (Image credit: Arrowhead Game Studios)

Trying to kill Chargers is one of Helldivers 2's more significant challenges on higher levels. You need the right gear or Stratagems if you want to crack open these large armoured bugs, and if you don't have them equipped, well, you've got to do things the hard way. It wouldn't be so bad if your squad was only dealing with a Charger, but they often spawn with lots of smaller enemies, and it's a challenge to cope with both at once.

Luckily, there are some surefire methods if you prepare yourself and your Stratagems beforehand. You're likely here because of the daily mission requiring you to kill three Chargers—with this list of strategies you should easily be able to defeat a few so you can get those medals.

How to kill Chargers in Helldivers 2

There are multiple ways to deal with Chargers in Helldivers 2, but your method will likely depend on your level and the situation you find yourself in:

Drop an Orbital Precision Strike on them before they notice you're there—this option isn't always possible if a Charger is coming out of a bug breach, for example, but it's definitely viable when you find one patrolling the map, or just sitting in a bug nest. A well-placed Orbital Precision Strike will kill a Charger in one hit.
The slower and more annoying method is to have one team member bait the Charger while others shoot its glowing green tail. You'll want to dodge prone to the side as the Charger rushes towards you, though since they have a slightly busted turning circle, make sure to time your dive late. This takes a little while, but it'll serve if you don't have any armour-piercing weapons.
Use a Recoilless Rifle or an Expendable Anti-Tank launcher to strip its leg armour off to give you a frontal target, then focus-fire that area as a squad. This is the best method depending on your level so be sure to bring either of these as a Stratagem.
If you're a high level, you can use the Spear, Orbital Railcannon Strike, or Orbital Laser. All three of these are homing and will make short work of a Charger. The Orbital Railcannon Strike in particular has unlimited uses and auto-targets the largest enemy in the area, so is tailor-made for killing big armoured bugs. You will have to reach level 20 to unlock it, however.

It's also worth noting that there are some regular weapons that will pierce medium armour—like the Chargers leg plates—as standard. The AR-23R Liberator Penetrator, for example, which you can unlock on page six of the regular Warbond store. I always use this assault rifle, since you can shoot straight through those armoured bugs that shield up when you fire at them.

Sean's first PC games were Full Throttle and Total Annihilation and his taste has stayed much the same since. When not scouring games for secrets or bashing his head against puzzles, you'll find him revisiting old Total War campaigns, agonizing over his Destiny 2 fit, or still trying to finish the Horus Heresy. Sean has also written for EDGE, Eurogamer, PCGamesN, Wireframe, EGMNOW, and Inverse.