How to kill Leviathans in Helldivers 2

Killing Helldivers 2 Leviathans is almost impossible without an understanding of its weaknesses and the right kind of weaponry to boot. These huge, armored dropships covered in turrets have come into play along with the Heart of Democracy update, as part of the invasion of Super Earth, and we expect to see them being a mainstay of the Illuminate forces going ahead in Helldivers 2.

With that in mind, you'll need to know their weaknesses, their tactics, the best weapons to kill them, and ultimately what you should do when several hundred tons of floating armor-plated alien tech decides it wants to launch a bombardment at you. Here's how to kill the Leviathans in Helldivers 2.

Helldivers 2 Leviathan weakness and strategy

To kill the Leviathans in Helldivers 2, you need to target the glowing circles on their underbelly with high-powered anti-tank weapons, as these circles are their weaknesses. Any of the following weapons will work by my experimentation, though they're by no means your only options:

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Recoilless Rifle
Commando
Expendable Anti-Tank
Spear
Quasar Cannon

Once all three glowing circles are blown up, the Leviathan will be killed, dropping out of the sky (crushing anybody beneath it) and exploding. For a more nuanced idea of what this involves, here are some basic strategy tips on dealing with them:

You can't use any of the orbital Helldivers 2 best Stratagems to bring them down, as they appear to be shielded on their top side. You need to fire at them from beneath.
The Leviathans' turrets tend to miss their targets in the first couple of blasts, then get much more accurate as they home in. Use cover to protect yourself, as these shots are lethal.
It's hard to aim up at them while fighting enemies around you. Make sure there areno foes nearby, or ensure allies are protecting you.
Leviathans don't follow anybody, they float around randomly and just fire at nearby targets in their path. It's arguably smarter just to take cover and wait for them to move on rather than struggle to bring them down.
Leviathans drop more Helldivers 2 Illuminate forces beneath them periodically, so watch out for more enemies spawning in.

Leviathans are effectively the Illuminate's toughest vehicle, at the highest tier of enemy. To handle similar perils from the other factions, find out how to beat the Helldivers 2 Factory Striders and the Helldivers 2 Impalers at our dedicated pages!

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Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and Very Tired Man with a BA from Brunel University, a Masters from Sussex University and a decade working in games journalism, often focused on guides coverage but also in reviews, features and news. His love of games is strongest when it comes to groundbreaking narratives like Disco Elysium, UnderTale and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as innovative or refined gameplay experiences like XCOM, Sifu, Arkham Asylum or Slay the Spire. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at Eurogamer, Gfinity, USgamer, SFX Magazine, RPS, Dicebreaker, VG247, and more.