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In Helldivers 2, armor is categorized into light, medium, and heavy types, each influencing your mobility and defensive capabilities. However, the real game-changer lies in the armor's passive abilities. These aren't just perks; they're crucial elements that can transform your gameplay experience.
Understanding which armor passives to prioritize can mean the difference between success and failure on the battlefield. Before you drop into your next mission, consult our comprehensive tier list to ensure you're equipped with the best armor passives for any situation.
All Armor Passives & What They Do in Helldivers 2
Helldivers 2 offers 14 unique armor passives, each designed to enhance your playstyle, strategy, and overall combat effectiveness. Whether you're looking to absorb more damage or improve your stealth capabilities, selecting the right passive can significantly impact your mission outcomes.
In Helldivers 2, armor passives are integrated into the body armor, while helmets and capes remain standard-issue without additional bonuses. Here’s a detailed breakdown of all the armor passives and their effects:
| Armor Passive | Description |
|---|---|
| Acclimated | 50 percent resistance to acid, electrical, fire, and gas damage. |
| Advanced Filtration | 80 percent resistance to gas damage. |
| Democracy Protects | 50 percent chance of surviving lethal attacks, such as headshots. Prevents chest injuries like internal bleeding. |
| Electrical Conduit | 95 percent resistance to lightning arc damage. |
| Engineering Kit | +2 grenade capacity. 30 percent recoil reduction when crouching or prone. |
| Extra Padding | +50 armor rating for improved defense. |
| Fortified | 50 percent resistance to explosive damage. 30 percent recoil reduction when crouching or prone. |
| Inflammable | 75 percent resistance to fire damage. |
| Med-Kit | +2 stim capacity. +2 seconds additional stim duration. |
| Peak Physique | 100 percent increased melee damage. Improves weapon handling by reducing weapon movement drag. |
| Scout | 30 percent reduced range at which enemies can detect players. Map markers generate radar scans to reveal nearby enemies. |
| Servo-Assisted | 30 percent increased throwing range. 50 percent additional limb health. |
| Siege-Ready | 30 percent increased reload speed of primary weapons. 30 percent increased ammo capacity of primary weapons. |
| Unflinching | 95 percent reduced recoil flinching. |
Armor Passive Tier List in Helldivers 2
Our tier list for Helldivers 2 armor passives, based on the 1.002.003 game version, evaluates their utility, effectiveness, and versatility across various missions and enemy types.
| Tier | Armor Passive | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| S Tier | Engineering Kit | Extra grenades significantly enhance your ability to handle multiple objectives, from closing bug holes to destroying enemy structures. The recoil reduction further improves your combat efficiency. |
| Med-Kit | Increased stim capacity and duration can be a lifesaver, especially when paired with the Experimental Infusion booster. It essentially allows you to cheat death, making it invaluable for survival. | |
| Siege-Ready | Recently introduced, Siege-Ready boosts your primary weapon's ammo capacity and reload speed, making it perfect for handling large enemy groups with high-ammo weapons. | |
| A Tier | Democracy Protects | Provides a robust defensive boost, particularly useful early in the game, helping you survive lethal hits from various sources. |
| Extra Padding | Boosts your armor rating, offering flat damage resistance against all types of attacks, making it a reliable choice for any mission. | |
| Fortified | Essential against Automatons, reducing damage from explosives and enhancing weapons like the Machine Gun. It’s a must-have for dealing with bots effectively. | |
| Servo-Assisted | Highly effective against Terminids, allowing for safer stratagem deployment and grenade throws from a distance, while also increasing limb health to withstand claw attacks. | |
| B Tier | Peak Physique | While the increased melee damage and reduced drag are beneficial, melee combat is generally risky, limiting its overall utility. |
| Inflammable | A solid choice for fire-based strategies, particularly effective on planets with fire hazards. It enhances the effectiveness of Flamethrowers and Incendiaries against certain enemy types. | |
| Scout | Useful for revealing enemy positions, but its value is somewhat limited without the ability to highlight additional points of interest or side objectives. | |
| C Tier | Acclimated | Since you won't encounter all four elemental damage types in a single mission, its utility is situational and less impactful overall. |
| Advanced Filtration | Only beneficial in gas-centric builds, and even then, the overall impact is minimal. | |
| Electrical Conduit | Limited to effectiveness against the Illuminate and less impactful than other passives, unless friendly fire is a significant concern. | |
| Unflinching | While reducing camera shake and recoil flinching, it offers minimal improvement to combat effectiveness, making it one of the least impactful passives. |
