The 
SG-8P Punisher Plasma is the third variant of the Punisher shotgun in Helldivers 2, and it is radically different from its more conventional counterparts. It functions more like a pump-action grenade launcher than a shotgun, offering an explosive punch that easily sets it apart from its brothers.
Helldivers 2: How to Fix Friend Request Not Working
Helldivers 2 players encountering the friend request not working bug can try these workarounds to fix the problem.
With that being said, calling the Punisher Plasma a shotgun can be quite misleading. Players who expect a mix of the Scorcher and the Slugger will be disappointed, but that's not to say that this weapon is bad. Here's what you can expect from this plasma shotgun from the Cutting Edge Warbond in Helldivers 2.
Is The Punisher Plasma Any Good?
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
|
Simply put, this weapon is great if you treat it like a grenade launcher with a small AOE. You won't exactly be clearing groups of enemies with it, but its explosive projectiles mean you'll still be able to damage targets even if you hit the ground near them. The Punisher Plasma also comes with the benefit of being effective versus medium armor even though it's listed as having only light armor penetration.
What makes the Punisher Plasma unique is its ability to damage Chargers by shooting at the ground below them. The AOE splash damage of the shotgun's projectiles can hit the Charger's belly, hurting it and eventually causing its backside to burst. However, this method is somewhat unreliable as the Charger's belly is sometimes too far off the ground for the explosions to hit. Still, the weapon is very good at killing these bugs since it ignores Charger rearside armor.
On the other hand, the Punisher Plasma has a bit of a learning curve. While the gun's damage profile is comparable to Helldivers 2's Scorcher rifle, the Punisher Plasma lobs its shots. This means players will need to aim higher than usual to compensate for projectile drop. Lobbed explosives are good for hitting things behind cover, but it makes hitting moving targets much harder. Unfortunately, despite launching explosive plasma globs, the Punisher Plasma cannot destroy bug holes or bot fabricators.
Should You Get The Punisher Plasma?
- Damage: 100
- Capacity: 8 (12 mags reserved)
- Fire Rate: 80 RPM
- Recoil: 110
- Notes: Reloads on a per-magazine basis unlike other Punishers
The Punisher Plasma is an effective weapon that shines best against armored targets. It somewhat suffers against hordes due to its low capacity and slow rate of fire, and it works best when enemies are within a certain sweet spot — targets that are too far become too hard to hit, and those that are too close increase the user's odds of dying to the weapon's explosive plasma balls. With that said, the Punisher Plasma is completely serviceable against both bots and bugs.
This weapon isn't quite as versatile as the LAS-16 Sickle, but it isn't as complicated to use as the 
ARC-12 Blitzer . It is a simple gun with a clear use case, and players who want to shake things up can easily pick the Punisher Plasma up and still be effective at all difficulty levels, provided they keep the weapon's caveats in mind.
