Helldivers 2 Secondary Weapons Tier List: Best Sidearms vs Illuminate, Bugs, and Bots

Helldivers 2 Secondary Weapons Tier List

Early on, the P-2 Peacemaker was your last resort. You pulled it out when the main gun went dry and everything else had gone wrong. That time is long gone. Secondary weapons now demand serious consideration.

The best ones bring damage, crowd control, and tactical flexibility. This list ranks them by faction matchups, armor handling, burst potential, and overall value on the battlefield.

Illuminate: What Works Against Shields and Range

Illuminate forces rely on energy shields, teleportation, and mobility. The LAS-58 Talon is one of the top picks here. It deals consistent energy damage that eats through barriers and keeps enemies from resetting.

The PLAS-15 Loyalist performs a similar role with its charged plasma shots, though it trades some control for splash.

Melee-based tools like the stun baton and lance are nearly useless in these fights. Engage at close range, and you will not survive long. Instead, use weapons with accuracy and stopping power.

The P-113 Verdict is precise enough to land critical shots at medium range.

The P-4 Senator continues to prove its worth as a reliable finisher for priority targets.

Terminids: Area Damage and Swarm Control

Terminids attack in waves. To deal with them, you need explosive damage and fast clears. The GP-31 Grenade Pistol is built for this. It can close bug holes quickly, sparing your stratagems and conserving grenades for harder encounters.

For pure output, the GP-20 Ultimatum and the LAS-58 Talon do the job. Both excel at wiping out unarmored enemies in tight clusters.

The P-72 Crisper provides a different kind of control. It lays down flame walls that punish Hunters and buy time for repositioning. Short bursts can turn chokepoints into death traps.

The P-19 Redeemer still finds use here as well. Its high fire rate and quick reload make it one of the more dependable options when your main weapon cannot keep up.

Automatons: Precision and Penetration

Automaton units come with thick plating and layered defenses. You need something that punches through, not spreads out. The P-4 Senator is one of the few secondaries that can reliably handle medium armor. With clean hits, it can drop a Devastator before it burns through your ammo supply.

The GP-20 Ultimatum holds value in this matchup too. Its explosive radius allows you to disable weaker bots and snipe hardpoints from behind cover.

The LAS-58 Talon continues to rank high thanks to its versatility and steady damage output.

The GP-31 Grenade Pistol is useful here for one specific reason: taking out Fabricators from a distance. That saves you from closing the gap and risking a wipe while under suppressive fire.

Loadout Balance and Tactical Coverage

Secondary weapons should balance out your build, not duplicate what you already have. Running a long-range or slow-loading primary? Pair it with something fast.

The P-19 Redeemer and P-92 Warrant are both strong choices if you need to react quickly at close range.

The P-11 Stim Pistol is built for support, not damage. It lets you heal allies from a distance and keep the team moving between fights. That makes a difference in longer missions where resources start to wear thin.

Melee options like the saber, hatchet, or machete still show up now and then, mostly for style or personal flavor. They look great, sure, but they are not going to stop a Scout Strider or punch through armor. They are there for moments, not solutions. Use them when the mood fits, not when the odds matter.

Meta Shifts and Practical Loadouts

Weapon balance gets adjusted often. What ranks low today might jump to the top after a patch. Arrowhead has made it clear that weapon variety is part of their design approach. Because of that, chasing tier lists without understanding your build rarely works in the long run.

This ranking reflects current performance across common missions. The Senator, Talon, and both grenade pistols offer strong results in a wide range of situations. That said, if you have a specific playstyle or team setup that works, there is no reason to switch just because something got labeled “S-tier.”