Helldivers 2 Best Sentry vs Illuminates - Complete Guide & Tier List

In Helldivers 2, Sentries can be incredibly helpful, not only by reducing enemy numbers from a distance but also by drawing their attention to allow you to escape.

Illuminate is one of the major adversaries in the new version of Helldivers 2. They are cunning, employing precision attacks, teleportation, and psychic powers. Their energy shields, cloaking, and high mobility mean you'll need to penetrate defenses, track targets, and control groups.

Let's take a look at Sentry's strength and effectiveness against Illuminate.

Tier C

Flame Sentry

Even after optimization, Flame Sentry still has several major weaknesses: survivability and range. It has been buffed once, improving survivability with increased fire resistance, but this is still insufficient because it cannot apply Fire Panic effect. This means it cannot control enemies and doesn't have enough duration to eliminate large numbers of them.

Even though it can kill Meatballs, Meatballs have now been buffed, becoming more durable, and they also have additional fire resistance, making them difficult for Flame Sentry to kill. With the addition of new units, its range advantage has been greatly reduced. Harvesters can easily defeat it. Elevated Overseers, Stingrays, and Gatekeepers can all easily take it down.

Flame Sentry is easily flanked. You can position it on high ground for some protection, but this isn't always effective, especially since Illuminates will use terrain to their advantage and attack directly through walls. Therefore, Flame Sentry only deserves a C Tier.

Laser Sentry

Laser Sentry has been disappointing since its release. Its range is decent, but far from the ultra-long range expected of a laser weapon. Furthermore, it overheats easily, and I don't recommend using it on hot planets because it overheats faster and has a longer cooldown. When it overheats to a certain point, it will spark and then self-destruct. It's also easily destroyed when surrounded. Therefore, it struggles against the highly active Illuminates.

The biggest problem with Laser Sentry is its slow kill rate as a laser weapon, making it difficult to kill Sentry, Gatekeeper, and Veracitor. It struggles to even kill enemies or keep up with their high spawn rate because it can only attack one unit at a time. Therefore, Laser Sentry only deserves a Tier C.

Tier B

Tesla Tower

Tesla Tower can only fire one shock per second, which is problematic against newer units. The higher the enemy spawn rate, the more difficult it becomes, as enemies can approach and destroy it within its shock range or duration. Furthermore,  Tesla Tower's range is insufficient; newer units like Gatekeeper, Harvesters, and Stingrays can easily destroy it. While its overall performance is decent, it only reaches a Tier B against Illuminate.

Mortar Sentry

Mortar Sentry possesses moderate armor penetration, a long duration, and a range of 125 meters. However, its disarming distance is only about 15 meters, so it stops firing once a target gets close.

It struggles to defend itself not only because of the disarming distance but also because mortar shells require a certain distance to travel before firing. If a target approaches, the mortar shell will be destroyed, or if the target is fast enough, it will have to travel a distance before firing, making the shell likely to miss.

Therefore, you need to use it in conjunction with other mortars, preferably those with crowd control capabilities, so they can sustain combat more easily. Improving crowd control allows you to continuously control enemies, preventing your Sentry from being destroyed.

Because of the extremely high spawn rate of Illuminates and their inherent bugs (such as ignoring physics and terrain, spawning anything at will), mortars are easily destroyed, especially against shielded Harvesters, as mortars struggle to break through shields quickly. Therefore, its rating is only Tier B.

Tier A

Rocket Sentry

Rocket Sentry is very strong, but you need a support Sentry to protect it or to place it in a higher position. Because Rocket Sentry has a disarming distance, it will stop firing if enemies get too close. A barrage of attacks from Voteless or Watchers can easily disable it.

This is why sometimes you need a good placement location and some high ground, or make sure you have a buffer Sentry to clear out other grunts, giving Rocket Sentry enough time to prioritize heavy armor units.

But overall, it's very effective against Harvesters, Stingrays, Gatekeepers, Veracitors. As long as you give it enough range, it can be incredibly effective. It's a great anti-tank option, and although Illuminate doesn't have many heavily armored units, it's still very powerful and fits well with many configurations. Therefore, I consider it Tier A.

EMS Mortar Sentry

EMS mortar provides powerful fire support, covering all areas. This device can effectively control most enemies and prevent them from getting close to the mortar. Therefore, it can be used in conjunction with regular mortars, and it also performs well in defensive missions or objective-capturing battles. Therefore, it's rated Tier A.

Autocannon Sentry

Autocannon Sentry has high damage, a fast rate of fire, and strong defense, but a very slow turning speed. It's very effective against Harvesters and newer units. However, its slow turning speed might be a weakness. You can pair it with another Sentry.

Autocannon Sentry can be placed on higher ground. You can stand on it for better visibility. It will automatically perform its mission, prioritizing heavily armored units and quickly eliminating them. Its rating is also Tier A.

Tier S

Gatling Sentry

Gatling Sentry's moderate armor penetration is crucial against Illuminate. It has a high rate of fire, long duration, and very short cooldown, allowing it to instantly eliminate enemies like Voteless, Watcher, Meatball, Overseers, and Warship.

Gatling Sentry easily handles Harvesters in Helldivers 2 because it targets the pilot rather than their location, and Harvesters' shields are weak, allowing it to destroy them directly. Harvesters will be drawn to it, and it can even eliminate them alone.

This is definitely an excellent strategy against Illuminate. Its power is astounding, allowing you to easily rack up hundreds or even thousands of kills in each mission, earning you a generous amount of Helldivers 2 Items. Therefore, its Tier is S.

Machine Gun Sentry

Machine Gun Sentry functions similarly to Gatling Sentry, but with a shorter cooldown and is easier to use continuously. Gatling Sentry has a faster rate of fire, making it better suited for chaotic situations. Machine Gun Sentry offers a suitable compromise, allowing for more frequent use; it can be used in almost every battle or at every objective.

Machine Gun Sentry is also an excellent consumable Sentry. If you're overwhelmed by a barrage of enemy fire, you can sacrifice Machine Gun Sentry to attack in a specific direction, causing the enemy to concentrate fire on it. This buys you time to redeploy, reinforce, cool down your strategy, replenish supplies, or simply retreat.

Machine Gun Sentry integrates into almost any Helldivers 2 tactical combination. Distracting the enemy is just one underrated use. Other uses can be explored based on your own setup. Therefore, I rate it Tier S.

Gas Mortar Sentry

Gas Mortar Sentry has a range of 125 meters and can release poison gas. While it effectively controls enemies, a bug with Illuminate allows them to pass through terrain, completely ignoring it and any surrounding buildings. Therefore, you need to be careful, as the poison gas can accidentally injure teammates when enemies get close.

Gas Mortar Sentry suffers from the same problem as other mortars. Because of its 15-meter discharge distance and increased spawn rate, something will always be able to pass through buildings and get close to it. Also, it can only fire one gas mortar at a time.

However, Gas Mortar Sentry is one of the few mortars that can be used alone in other configurations. It not only controls enemies but also deals high damage. The other two mortars need to be used in combination to unleash their full power. Therefore, Tier S is well-deserved.

In Helldivers 2, we need to choose the right Sentry based on tactical needs and enemy characteristics. Deploy Sentry on high ground to give them advantageous positions to attack more enemies and protect them from enemy encirclement. Communicate with your teammates and encourage them to maintain distance as much as possible. Finally, coordinate your Sentry and maximize your Sentry tactics.