Image: Arrowhead Game Studios
You know what? Screw the Illuminate. I played round after round trying to get the Stingrays, also known as an Interloper, to spawn at least once, and those damn Overseers and Harvesters kept walking up and rocking me. In the end, I was victorious. A Stingray approached the airspace with reckless abandon, swooping in with practiced ease as it unloaded a barrage of molten death beams upon my head, and you know what happened? I died. A few times. But eventually, I managed to pop a shot off and I quickly discovered how to defeat Illuminate Stingrays in Helldivers 2.
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How to take down Illuminate Stingrays (Interlopers)
Screenshot: Arrowhead Game Studios / Brandon Morgan / Kotaku
Take a moment to think about which enemy in Helldivers 2 you’d consider the most annoying? Got it? Now replace it with the Illuminate Stingray. When these pesky flying headaches spawn, they zoom in from the edge of the map, slowing down momentarily to launch a barrage of lasers in your direction, then speed off into the sunset. If you’re quick enough, when they slow down, you can hit them with a high-powered weapon, likely a support weapon, to take one down.
While they’re speedy, Stingrays don’t have much in the way of armor. The moment they stop, swap to your heavy weapon and unleash hell. Even if all you have is your primary, you can still take one down, but it’ll take longer and likely a more concerted effort from the team.
Best weapons to use against Interlopers
Screenshot: Arrowhead Game Studios / Brandon Morgan / Kotaku
As previously mentioned, your primary weapon would suffice in a pinch, but you’ll want to rely on your heavy support weapon more often than not. Something like:
- GR-8 Recoilless Rifle: I love the Recoilless Rifle; it’s the ideal multi-purpose support weapon for tackling heavy armor of all types, including Illuminate. As it turns out, it’s also a single-shot weapon, so long as you don’t miss.
- FAF-14 Spear: Of the many support weapons available to you, when it comes to tackling flying menaces, the Spear locks on and doesn’t let go. Once fired, the rocket continues chasing its target until it either hits or the enemy disappears off the map.
- EAT-17 Expendable Anti-Tank: Like the GR-8 Recoilless Rifle, a single shot will bring down a Stingray, so long as you can land said shot. As this isn’t a lock-on weapon, you must manually aim and fire, which causes all manner of headaches mid-combat.
Now’s the time to stop the Illuminate, soldier! Helldivers 2 is available now on PS5 and Windows PCs.
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