The Hulk is one of the more powerful Automaton enemies in Helldivers 2. They’re effectively tank-like enemies that have far more health and armor than their weaker counterparts, and they’re easy to spot since they come with that hulky bulk that the name implies. You’ll encounter more Hulks on the higher difficulties in Helldivers 2, but if you’re playing on Challenging or Hard, you may only find one or two on each mission. Killing a Hulk grants the “Nothing is bigger than Freedom” trophy/achievement, but they also may pop up in the daily mission objectives from time to time. On this page, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about where to find Hulks and how to kill them quickly.
The Flamethrower Hulk is one of the most deadly Automatons in Helldivers 2.
Helldivers 2 Hulk Locations¶
As you might expect given that they’re Automaton enemies, you’ll only be able to find Hulks on planets where these biorobots have taken control. Don’t waste your time searching for them on Terminid planets! If you don’t know how to find Automaton planets, just open the Galactic War map on your starship and look to the left side of the map, where you should see “Automatons” in large red letters. Any planets on this side of the map will have Automatons on them. You’ll also see “Automaton Control” noted in the top left whenever you hover over a specific planet here.
(1 of 2) The constellations with Automatons present are highlighted in red.
The constellations with Automatons present are highlighted in red. (left), You can see whether Automatons or Terminids control a planet in the top left by hovering over it. (right)
Once you’re in a mission on a planet that’s controlled by Automatons, it may take a while before you actually find a Hulk, and they’re not guaranteed to spawn on every planet. As mentioned above, you’re more likely to encounter Hulks if you play on higher difficulties. We found a reasonable amount just by playing on the Challenging difficulty, but if you’re in a capable group you should be fine as you try Hard and beyond.
How to Defeat (Flamethrower) Hulk Automatons¶
The Automaton Hulks can be broadly compared with Terminid Chargers since they share the basic features of being incredibly tough and highly dangerous. It’ll take a lot more firepower to kill a Hulk, and they can easily kill you in one hit. To make matters worse, you’ll sometimes encounter a flamethrower variant of a Hulk. These are roughly the same in terms of toughness, but they have the ability to use a flamethrower continuously, and they’ll use it whenever you stand in front of them for too long. The range on the flamethrower is deceptively long, so it’s a good idea to get as far away from these Hulks as possible while you assess it.
If you’re fighting a regular Hulk you’ll still need to put out a lot of firepower to bring it down, but instead of a flamethrower it’ll have a comparatively weak laser gun mounted on one of its arms. You should be able to take a few hits from this without dying, but it’s worth taking cover where possible. You’ll also have to keep in mind that both versions of the Hulk have a spinning blade on their other arm, which they’ll use to attack if you get too close. This can easily kill you in one hit, so it’s really worth keeping your distance.
Shoot the Weak Point Vents on a Hulk’s Back¶
The best way to kill a Hulk in general is to get behind it and shoot the weak points on its back. These are essentially small vents that the Hulk utilizes to stay cool, so if you shoot them for long enough they’ll overheat and explode. A high-power gun such as the Machine Gun will be effective here, or something with a lot of explosive power such as the Expendable Anti-Tank, Autocannon, or Grenade Launcher. Each of these will be useful, but you may not have them in your stratagem arsenal, so the regular grenade can do the job too. It’ll just be more difficult to land the hit on the weak point.
(1 of 2) You can see the weak point vent highlighted on the back of the Hulk here.
You can see the weak point vent highlighted on the back of the Hulk here. (left), Don’t get too close to the spinning blade! (right)
Use Explosive Stratagems¶
Outside of using specific weapons with explosive damage or high firepower, the more common explosive stratagems will work well, too. The only issue here is that the Hulk is likely to move quickly away from any point where you call in an airstrike, so you’ll need to use one with a short call-in time. Some of the best of these are Orbital Airburst Strike as an early game option, or the Orbital Railcannon Strike as an excellent option if you’re level 20.
Another good early-game option is actually Orbital Precision Strike. This is unlocked by default and many players quickly move on from it as a result, but it’s perfect for locking on to a moving target and ensuring that you hit them even if they move away from the original drop point. Whichever way you do it, you’ll either want to focus on explosive damage from these stratagems, or work with your fellow Helldivers to outflank the Hulk and hit its weak points.
If you want to learn more about some of the best support stratagems, be sure to check our Best Support Weapons page. We’ve also got a recommended Best Stratagems page for a general loadout, which you may find useful if you’re still figuring out a balanced setup.
If you want to see just how deadly Flamethrower Hulks can be in Helldivers 2, check the video below for an unfortunate series of events!
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