The Best Eagle Strikes in Helldivers 2

Highlights

Timing is crucial with Eagle Strikes in Helldivers 2; upgrade your ship to rearm faster for better effectiveness.
Eagle Smoke Strike is great for sneaking past patrols or reducing Automaton accuracy; no damage dealt.
Use Eagle 500KG Bomb to deal massive damage in a small area, killing even a Bile Titan with a single hit.

Eagle Strikes are a type of Strategem in Helldivers 2 where players call on a small fighter to attack targets on the ground. These Strategems differ from others because additional uses of Eagle Strikes can be gained in the middle of a mission by calling in an Eagle Rearm.

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By default, it takes an Eagle two minutes and thirty seconds to rearm and then be available to be called in again, and timing this well is an important aspect of using these Strategems effectively. Upgrading the player's ship as soon as possible shortens the time it takes to rearm and makes Eagle Strikes even better. These are the best uses for Eagle Strikes in Helldivers 2.

7 Eagle Strafing Run

A Line Of Bullets Rains Down On Enemies

The Eagle flies in from behind the player and shoots in the direction the player is facing.
Cannot pierce armor.

The Eagle Strafing Run is a decent early-game Strategem that can help clear the field if players are swarmed by unarmored enemies. For this Strategem, the Eagle flies in behind the player and flies straight in the direction that the player is facing. Bullets hit the ground along this same path, starting close to the player and ending further away along his or her line of sight.

Since Eagle Strafing Run does not pierce armor, this Strategem is typically best used on lower difficulty levels where Chargers, Hulks, and other armored enemies do not spawn.

6 Eagle Smoke Strike

Smoke Hides Players And Decreases Automaton Accuracy

Smoke reduces Automaton accuracy and helps players sneak past patrols.
It does not do any damage

Eagle Smoke Strike covers an area with smoke, obscuring the view of enemies and players alike. This can be helpful for sneaking past patrols or reducing the accuracy of Automatons that are still fairly far away from players.

Solo players may find this Strategem particularly useful when doing missions with long terminal inputs like Launch ICBM. It does not deal any damage to enemies, but the protection from the bots' accuracy and being able to go unnoticed make it a helpful Strategem to keep in a squad's loadout.

5 Eagle 110MM Rocket Pods

Deal Massive Damage To The Largest Threat

Menu Description For Eagle 110MM Rocket Pods

This strike hits the largest target in the beacon's vicinity.
There is a slight area of effect, but this is mostly to target one enemy.

When this Strategem is called in, an Eagle flies over and drops a payload of rocket pods on the largest enemy near the beacon. These rocket pods can kill Chargers and other medium armor targets with a single blow, which makes it a great part of a loadout during middle-tier difficulty missions.

While it is not strong enough to fell a Bile Titan or Hulk in a single hit, it does break armor in addition to dealing massive damage to these high-priority targets. If players cannot immediately call in a second Eagle, they can at least finish the target off more easily.

4 Eagle Napalm Strike

Call Down Fire In A Large Area

Menu Description for Eagle Napalm Airstrike

Napalm is very effective against Terminids.
Napalm sets the ground on fire, burning anything that walks in the area.

Eagle Napalm Strike sets fire to a large area around its beacon, killing many Terminids in the initial blast. It also sets the ground on fire wherever it hits, so that anything walking there catches fire and starts to take damage. Players should always be careful when using this in close quarters, since Helldivers aren't immune to the flames.

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Because of the lasting fire, this is a great Strategem to use against Bug Breaches or Large Bug Holes where Terminids are likely to spawn. All but the most hardy bugs will be killed, leaving the rest to be picked off by the players. Napalm does still do damage to Automatons as well, but it truly shines against the bugs.

3 Eagle Cluster Bomb

Target Large Groups Of Enemies

This strike does not damage structures.
It is very good for crowd control.

When this Strategem is called in, an Eagle drops a Cluster Bomb which has a very large explosion radius. This is a great Strategem to target enemies inside a fortified location or to thin out a crowd when Helldivers are surrounded.

It does not deal damage to buildings, however, so it cannot be used to close Bug Holes, take out Bot Fabricators, or complete any objective that involves destroying structures. Since it is so good for helping players against large numbers of enemies, this downside does not hurt its usefulness in battle at any difficulty level.

2 Eagle 500KG Bomb

Deal Massive Damage In A Small Area

The blast can kill a Bile Titan.
Damage drops off very quickly away from the center of the blast.

The Eagle 500KG Bomb is one of the most powerful Strategems in the game. It can kill even a Bile Titan in a single hit, making it a great Strategem to have on higher difficulty missions. Unfortunately, this Strategem's high damage does come at the cost of both range and uses.

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The damage dealt to enemies is significantly lower at the edge of the explosion than in its center, which can be confusing when enemies are still standing after the dust settles. It can also be used fewer times than other Eagle Strikes before players need to rearm, which may push some players to choose other abilities in their loadouts. Players who like a high-risk, high-reward playstyle will love having this in their loadout.

1 Eagle Airstrike

Destroy Buildings And Kill Many Enemies

Smaller explosion to the Cluster Bomb.
Does destroy structures.

Eagle Airstrike is a versatile Strategem. While it does not hit as many enemies as the Cluster Bomb, it can damage structures. This makes it the ideal Strategem to take out small Fabricators and Bug Holes, since a single use can clear the area of enemies and the structure they spawned from.

Eagle Airstrike is an invaluable part of loadouts for mission types like Blitz: Search and Destroy and others that rely on destroying structures. Outside these missions, it can still help prevent players from being overwhelmed. With such a wide range of applications, it can always be argued that Eagle Airstrike will help players succeed.