Tanks

Annihilator-Class Battle Tank

Being the mere imitators they are, the Automatons have attempted to replicate the tried and tested Tank designs once fielded by Super Earth. The Annihilator-class of these tanks (or "Tritare" as i have come to call them) is 77 tons of rolled steel, grinding tracks and appetite for the blood of its foes (i'm guessing the last part, since its often covered in it). Armed with the massive Heavy Fusion Cannon, it is more than capable of reducing any building, vehicle or terrain feature into dust before cutting down any hapless foe left standing with its co-axial Fusion Repeater. This combined with the fact it has enough armour on its own right to build a small hab-block with, makes them no pushover. Fortunately for us however, they are far from invincible, the Ministry of Defense has since identified both the engine compartment or the massive cooling vents dotted across the rear of its Turret to be prime weakpoints, with the destruction of either spelling the immediate doom of the goliath, given its own sluggish speed, this should not be too hard of an ask either...

• On top of their poor agility, they are seemingly near blind, which makes flanking maneuvers against them all the more effective. Though caution is advised to look out for any accompanying infantry who are ever eager to cut down the foe.

• I myself have further noted its tracks being equally vulnerable to damage, with the destruction of one of them being more than enough to entirely immobilise it

• Following its destruction, Helldivers are advised to back away from the burning vehicle in the event where any unfired ammunition or its reactor begins to "cook off", resulting in a secondary, more powerful chain reaction.

Shredder-Class Assault Tank

Seemingly already accounting for the Annihilator-class's vulnerability to flanking infantry, the baleful of the Automatons have since created the Shredder-class of Tank as a response. Using the same chassis as its brethren, the Shredder-class or "Tempesto" stands out with replacing out its Heavy Fusion Cannon with surplus AA-Emplacement Turrets commonly found within AA Batteries. Once used to rapidly down enemy aircraft, the fearsome quad-linked Fusion Autocannons find themselves more than well-suited for ripping apart large swathes of infantry and light vehicles alike with their high firerate and accuracy which they have put to great use in eliminating more than 1 Helldiver Squad in one mere salvo. Much like their heavier cousins, they are fortunately not invincible for the Turret is also generally far lighter in construction, with only the 2 prominent "cheek" plates being generally sturdy enough to shrug off anything heavier than Autocannon rounds, with its rear cooling vents being especially susceptible to grenade attacks and repeated fire from heavy weapons.

• Compared to the Annihiliator-class Tanks, the slewing rate of the former AA Turret is unsurprisingly far faster, being more than capable of locking and tracking Helldivers up close. While it is not completely off the table, attempting to flank the Shredder-class should be taken with a great deal more consideration than before

• As a result of its more aggressive programming, it will often attempt to close the gap between itself and its target as quickly as possible, break those tracks to keep it in place and priortise the destruction of its turret before it gets a chance to open fire.

• As before, one is advised to stand back upon its destruction in case its ammunition load or reactor chain-reacts.

Barrager-Class Artillery Tank

A relative newcomer and a worrying sign that the Automaton Collective indeed has the capacity to learn and adapt to the threat at hand, the Barrager-class Artillery Tank or "Terremoto" is the rarest (and argubly the most dangerous) of the 3 identified classes of Automaton battle tanks. Now armed with a massive, 33-barrel Rocket Launcher array capable of both direct and indirect fire, the Barrager-class Tank is more than capable of both flattening any vehicle or fortification in front of it or simply bypassing any semblance of cover by simply firing over it. It is unsurprising then that the Ministry of Defense has since ranked this metal monster as amongst the highest priority targets marked for destruction. Thankfully they are equally vulnerable to return fire, their Rocket Hosuing's Launch Tubes being able to be damaged by even small-arms fire, with enough damage potentially setting off its explosive payload.

• More often than not, most veteran Helldivers have noted that one often hears the Barrager-class firing before actually seeing it. Hearing out that dreaded "wooshing" sound of its rockets launching can afford you a few seconds to seek cover as it flies across the horizon and can more or less mean the difference between survival or death.

• As a result of its poorly protected Rocket Housing, firing upon it with long-range weapons such as the vaunted APW-1 AntI-Materiel Rifle or AC-8 Autocannon are extremely effective at destroying it

• It may occasionaly switch firemodes during combat, ceasing fire as it either lifts or depresses the launcher, allowing a brief albeit valuable period of vulnerability to open fire and hopefully knock out the vehicle once and for all