The tentacled Impaler is not the only new Terminid enemy to arrive in Helldivers 2. The dreaded 
Charger has undergone a strange mutation to produce a Spore Charger with the same heavily armored body, but which is covered with spores.
Released as part of the massive Escalation of Freedom patch, Spore Chargers are a new Terminid breed that sneaks up on you while shrouded in a thick cloud of spores. To win the galactic war for Super Earth, you need to know how to beat them in Helldivers 2.
Helldivers 2: How to Beat the Impaler
The Impaler returns from Helldivers 1 as a heavily armored Terminid that burrows tentacles into the ground. Here's how to beat it in Helldivers 2.
How to Beat the Spore Charger in Helldivers 2
Spore Chargers can be found during level 6 or higher missions on Terminid-controlled (yellow-colored) planets in Helldivers 2. They are a new variant of the standard Chargers with the same attacks and weaknesses. The only difference is that Spore Chargers are covered with living spores across their entire armored body.
Similar to the large Spore Spewer mushroom-like stalks in Helldivers 2, Spore Chargers continuously produce a dense fog in a large area to hide themselves and other nearby enemies. Hence, you cannot spot them until they are at close range. Since you must head into the spore cloud to see and beat Spore Chargers, playing missions with visibility-reducing weather effects can make the fight challenging. They are, however, generally easy kills most of the time as long as you have the right weapons and stratagems in Helldivers 2.
Spore Chargers will always be in the middle of the fog. If a spore cloud starts rolling in from one side of an area, retreat before repositioning to point your weapons at its center.
The Spore Charger's weakness is its rear in Helldivers 2. Get behind the hulking bug and shoot either the unarmored back of its legs or the underside of its armored tail. Using anti-tank and explosive weapons like the 
AC-8 Autocannon will do the most damage. The 
MG-43 Machine Gun is also an excellent option here.
The best way to deal with a Spore Charger, though, is to use an 
EAT-17 Expendable Anti-Tank. It takes only one anti-tank rocket to the head to put down a Spore Charger. This is not only efficient in terms of ammunition but also lets you deal with multiple Chargers. The 
GR-8 Recoilless Rifle and 
LAS-99 Quasar Cannon take one shot to the head as well.
The 
FLAM-40 Flamethrower is no longer viable following patch 1.001.002. Fire no longer goes through armor and enemies. It instead "bounces off" them.
The following gameplay footage shows an encounter with a Spore Charger in Helldivers 2. Notice how the forest gets covered with green spore fog and the roar that comes from within. Luckily, we had an 
A/AC-8 Autocannon Sentry already deployed that helped crush the charging Spore Charger. Something else to note is that a Spore Charger explodes upon death. If you are caught in the explosion radius, you will get a temporary corrosive debuff that reduces mobility, armor stats, and a bit of health.
Helldivers 2
- Released
- February 8, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Arrowhead Game Studios, Nixxes
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment, PlayStation Publishing
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- All platforms
- Franchise
- Helldivers
- Number of Players
- 1-4 players (online)
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Extraction Shooter, Action, Science Fiction
