The latest major order issued to Helldivers 2 players could suggest a scary future for Super Earth. A new Automaton fleet is already en route and poses a greater threat than ever before.
A new LIBCON 1 order follows what many believed to be a major victory in which players thought they’d eradicated the Automatons entirely. Operation Swift Disassembly – which saw the Helldivers tasked with the liberation of Troost, a planet that held key data on Automaton plans with an overarching goal to “wipe out the Automatons” – ended a mere day before the new order with players receiving a celebratory “Mission Accomplished!” statement, offering some indication of peace. Of course, somewhat unsurprisingly, this respite was extremely short-lived, and players soon had to jump back into action.
As shared by the Helldivers 2 X account, a massive Automaton Invasion Fleet, comprising tens of thousands of warships arrived from GTL jump to the Valdis Sector and overran nearly every planet in just hours. The Automatons have already begun their invasion of Cyberstan – the homeworld of the Cyborgs who have been living under Super Earth occupation – and its surrounding planets, taking over the former instantly. The previous bot force was merely described as a “Vanguard“, suggesting that the overall Automaton threat is greater than players could have imagined.
Players are now tasked with defending five different planets in adjacent sectors as the Automaton force appears to be heading straight for Super Earth itself, stating “The Reclamation has begun“. Considering the live-service nature of the game, it should come as no surprise that one of the title’s major enemy factions wasn’t completely eradicated. However, their return in such a capacity doesn’t bode well for Super Earth and suggests some far greater challenges lie ahead for the Helldivers.
Although the major order calls the invasion of Cyberstan “unprovoked“, it’s clearly a retaliation for Super Earth wiping out the Automaton Vanguard. With a much larger army now approaching, it’s highly likely that players will see even more new types of Automaton enemies that are even harder to destroy, much like the four-legged Factory Strider, which could withstand the explosion of a 500kg bomb, and flying gunships that appeared in the closing days of Operation Swift Disassembly, deploying many more enemies onto the field. There’s even some speculation that enemy types from the previous Helldivers game, such as Cyberhounds could return as part of this new chapter.
This suggests that the Galactic War will only escalate with each future victory. In fact, Cyberstan was dominated so quickly because Super Earth barely had any time to mount an appropriate defense, despite some warnings of “The Reclamation” circulating as players still fought some robot survivors following the supposed eradication of the Automatons. The likelihood of defending five planets simultaneously seems like an incredibly difficult task, and with communications reportedly “delayed” until now, the Automatons have a major head start.
The Reclamation undoubtedly begins Helldivers 2‘s largest campaign yet. As the Automaton fleets continue to show their full power, players will likely have to work harder than ever before if they intend to succeed.
Source: Helldivers 2/X