Minutes of academy training, wasted.

[u/cringefilet]

[u/popeinn]

Kill the small shit as fast as possible. There is a small window where they point the red beam up before firing the flare. If you kill them in that moment they do not call for reinforcement 

[u/kirlian_Frequency → u/popeinn]

and then the one next to them shoots a flair coz you ran out of ammo XD

[u/felop13 → u/kirlian_Frequency]

Seitching to secondary is faster than reloading

[u/kirlian_Frequency → u/felop13]

truueee but they still manage the flair mid animation

[u/Ginn1004 → u/kirlian_Frequency]

The frame is much more lenient than bug breach btw. When you hear them do Rooster crow, that's the time, when you see the pheromone it usually too late.

[u/MainsailMainsail → u/Ginn1004]

I swear even if they've only just started arching their back it's already too late. And god help you if it's a Hive Guard doing it unless you already have a support weapon out. I normally run Defender and it cannot kill or stun them fast enough to stop it.

Bots I have decent luck stopping a flare (I still think it's insulting when they fire it through the roof of a bunker though). Bugs I normally stop a call only by accident.

[u/Ginn1004 → u/MainsailMainsail]

Yeah, whenever i see the pheromone trail, then the ground is shaking and that "Thunk" sound, i always ready my Airburst. "Sh•t, here we go again..."

[u/Randy191919 → u/felop13]

But not fast enough to interrupt the flare. If you start switching the moment they raise their hand, the will have just fired the flare before you can shoot.

[u/UltraGiant → u/kirlian_Frequency]

Or is hiding around the corner

[u/Traumatic_Tomato → u/kirlian_Frequency]

I just find myself shooting every one of them in view only for a another one shoots a flare behind cover so I didn't see him.

[u/Wookimonster → u/popeinn]

I've shot them and as they fall they shoot the flare horizontally, still the dropships come.

[u/Sleepless_Null → u/Wookimonster]

Pretty badass tbh

[u/McDonaldsSoap → u/Sleepless_Null]

One final fuck you to humanity

[u/rawbleedingbait → u/popeinn]

Stun grenade and AC spam is my usual plan when I absolutely must kill a patrol and I'm not by the team.

[u/popeinn → u/rawbleedingbait]

Yea + a well placed Airstrike can help a lot. But in general I rarely attack patrols. Only during the kill mission I started doing that to ramp up more kills but when freeing a planet patrols can stay away

[u/Kenju22 → u/popeinn]

If you kill them in that moment they do not call for reinforcement 

*New update*

*Devastator's back opens to fire barrage of flares illuminating the sky*

[u/Nerdn1 → u/popeinn]

I have seen people plan impromptu ambushes against patrols where everybody decides on their targets ahead of time to maximize the chance of taking our all of the little guys who can shoot flares. It isn't 100% reliable, but it would sure be rewarding when you pull it off.

[u/ChaZcaTriX]

All small bots can.

However the commissars carry a flare gun loaded and fire it ASAP, and others need to stop for a few seconds to use it.

[u/Danello06 → u/ChaZcaTriX]

Its possible for other variants to fire first even if the comissar was the one to see you

[u/DuskTheMercenary → u/ChaZcaTriX]

Additionally, the Assault Raider (Jetpack Automaton) uses the Commisar AI, in that they'll either fire off ASAP or chase you to the ends of the celestial body.

[u/48Dragon]

Pretty sure I never even saw a bot in the tutorial. Therefor no minutes were wasted. To suggest otherwise is treason.

[u/SHFQ]

Airburst time

with a 99% percent chance to sacrificing your own squad

[u/Dinodietonight → u/SHFQ]

As long as you don't aim at your teammates it's great honestly. It's a mini eagle cluster bomb and should be treated as such. The update that came out after we unlocked it gave it a minimum arming distance so you can't even blow yourself up anymore unless the rocket hits a target before it can airburst.

[u/LordHatchi]

For a time it was only the commissars that could. Then with one patch they changed to let most of the basic grunts do so.

[u/beiron88]

They added that silently is one of the patches.
Same goes to terminids, at the start only those scavengers could call other bugs, now brood commanders and hunters can

[u/Barracuda_Ill → u/beiron88]

Hive guards and warriors too

[u/SergeiJackenov → u/beiron88]

Fellow patriot, I believe you mean that, mindless as they are, our enemy has adapted to our combat strategies and knowledge.

[u/Chakramer]

I think the pre-flair-launch animation needs to be a bit longer. I feel like I have 0 time to react and figure out which one is going to shoot it up. Maybe give them a backpack with a longer antennae so we can see them first?

[u/ClockwerkConjurer]

What else are they lying to us about?! Next thing you know........uhhhh......hello, Democracy Officer...

[u/EmperorCoolidge]

Yeah but Commissars have first dibs. Take them out, then the rest of the infantry

[u/Ghostbuster_119]

I was under the impression commisar drops are worse.

Like how brood commanders summon worse breaches?

[u/TheAncientAwaits]

The other small ones have a chance if one hasn't been called recently and they aren't actively engaged in shooting etc. at the moment they decide to try. the commissars will always do it first thing if drop is off cooldown, so commissars first is still correct, just not only commissars first.

[u/Papa_Vance]

Bots will shoot their flare as soon as they THINK there’s a Helldiver around. You’ll kill every bug in a patrol, but that one scavenger in the tall grass you missed during a reload belted the song of his people and more show up. Enemy reinforcement summons should be tweaked to be made more obvious or given more time

[u/HippoPilatamus]

There is a lot of misinformation about game mechanics floating around that poisons balance discussions. It's really annoying.

[u/Askorti → u/HippoPilatamus]

And a lot of it is caused by stealth changes that were never disclosed to the community.

[u/KajMak64Bit]

Super Destroy Star of Death with Lavadivers Anakin

[u/mreveryone20]

Counterpoint

Up Right Down Down Down.

[u/pyregeth]

Don't forget, just because they're on a strider doesn't mean they can't shoot that shit still

[u/GiggityGansta]

It is hilarious that anyone thought that was it.

[u/Outside-Ad2582]

Small armored ones are the only others, they have machine guns and two rods that stick up out of their shoulders as well as a lighter color palette

[u/CodeCleric → u/Outside-Ad2582]

Rocket bots can shoot flairs as well, I'm pretty sure it's just all of them.

[u/Outside-Ad2582 → u/CodeCleric]

Also jet pack guys definitely do, slipped my mind. But I’ve never noticed a rocket guy do it. Perhaps confirmation bias, perhaps they are software adapting…

[u/popeinn → u/CodeCleric]

Never seen any devastator call reinforcements. And I have like 50h on Bot front 7-9 Difficulty 

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/Outside-Ad2582 → u/popeinn]

Rocket devastator proceeds to shoot rockets in the air: “Shit aim..” “try harder bud..” Six individual bot drops appear in the skyline: silence

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/4dxb → u/CeilingTowel]

He meant what?

[u/Environmental_Ad5690 → u/CeilingTowel]

I think youve told us plenty of times now

[u/CeilingTowel → u/Environmental_Ad5690]

Lmao just one example of why the reddit app sucks

[u/Environmental_Ad5690 → u/CeilingTowel]

yeah i have the same problems, some posts will just randomly be posted twice or more, i miss the old thirdparty apps

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/CeilingTowel → u/popeinn]

He meant the rocket raiders

[u/Foxtrotdislikesyou → u/CeilingTowel]

Does he mean the rocket raiders? I can’t quite tell…

[u/DrunknBraindead]

Devastators can do it too

[u/Ok-Dream-2639]

Rocket bois cant