Automatons

The are robots that were created by the Cyborgs from the First Galactic War. Currently one of two factions that Super Earth is at war with, they are known to spread havoc and destruction in their wake, purging freedom wherever they go.
==List of Automaton Units==
 	 	 	
Trooper 	Commissar 	Scout Strider	Berserker
 	 	 	
Devastator	Hulk 	Tank 	Dropship
 	 	 	
Gunship 	Factory Strider	 	
==List of Automaton Structures==
 	 	 	
Automaton Fabricator	Cannon Tower 	Detector Tower 	Command Bunker
 	 	 	
Stratagem Jammer 	Mortar Emplacement	Gunship Facility	Anti-Air Emplacement
== Tactics==
Battling Automatons requires Helldivers to adopt a drastically different approach compared to battling the Terminids. Rather than relying on melee tactics like their bug-like counterparts, they are instead equipped with a vast array of projectile weaponry. Thus, Helldivers need to find a good balance between offense and defense, seeking cover whenever possible and focus on rapidly disassembling the Automaton's heavy hitters before they can unleash their devastating attacks.
While many Automaton models are well armored, their general humanoid structures possess a very notable weakness in their heads. Precise shots to the head even on heavier enemies like Devastators can stagger and destroy them with ease. Larger enemies have vents, generally located on their back. They can be preferable to other weak points due to their larger area and bright orange glow, making them easier to hit when your foe is facing away from you. 
Automatons can be rapidly deployed in large numbers via Dropships, which are called in with signal flares by the general infantry units when alerted of a Helldivers presence. If reinforcements are called, Helldivers can disrupt their deployment by shooting the dropship's thruster with heavy anti-armor weapon such as the Recoilless Rifle, Expendable Anti-Tank, Quasar Cannon or Anti-Materiel Rifle. It should be noted that this may not kill or even damage all of the bots on board the dropship. All Helldivers are therefore recommended to exercise caution near recently liberated Automaton dropships.
Automatons can also be produced at outposts and objective areas via Fabricators set up in said locations. Destroying the Fabricators can be done in a similar fashion to demolishing bug hives, by serving a fresh hot cup of liber-tea down their exhaust vents or simply leveling the entire area using Eagle strikes or orbital bombardments. Be warned that a Fabricator will explode rather violently when destroyed, so Helldivers are to keep their distances or stay close to the ground when making their deliveries.
Automaton Outposts are defended by a majority of Troopers patrolling and manning machine gun emplacements, along with a wide variety of larger units such as Scout Striders and Devastators, while large outposts can even include Hulks, Annihilator Tanks and Factory Striders. Therefore, it's advised to approach heavy outposts utilizing stealth as much as possible before delivering as much simultaneous and overwhelming democratic force as possible. On higher difficulties, outposts may be guarded by Cannon Towers which are only vulnerable from behind, and largely brush off small-arms fire.
==Stealth Tactics==
* Any Trooper variant can be stealthily eliminated with two melee strikes, taking Troopers out with melee does not make noise and will not alert nearby Automaton, granted you are out of their line of sight. 
** The Elite Trooper variants can be taken out the same way, just with three melee strikes instead.
*When spotted by any Automaton the player has a chance to dive, crouch or move behind any cover for a couple seconds. This will not alert Automatons into calling for Dropships, but they will usually investigate the area the player was spotted so the player must move to stay hidden.
*If Automaton are taken out from a distance any remaining Automaton will investigate the area the Automaton was killed before searching in the direction the gunfire came from. This can be used to bait Automaton out of cover, but they will spot the player eventually by tracking the gunfire.
*For some reason, Impact grenades do not alarm Automaton if the explosion is out of their line of sight.
==Automaton Origins==
According to the information provided by a decrypted message from the official Helldivers Twitter accountDecrypted Cyborgs' message: https://twitter.com/HelldiversGame/status/1453120725917831169, the Automatons are descendants of the Cyborgs fought in the first game, created to continue fighting against Super Earth and one day liberate the Cyborgs from their unwarranted enslavement on Cyberstan.
"We, the collective from Cyberstan, unanimously assert our independence from Super Earth. We have the right to defend our home from the brainwashed Helldivers. Our children, the automaton will not suffer as we have under the oppression of Super Earth!"
The Automatons are the next step in the evolution of the Cyborgs. As entirely mechanical beings, they no longer require traitors from Super Earth or corpses of fallen Helldivers to create new troops. Automaton all have similar characteristics like dark metallic bodies, digitigrade legs, skull-like heads, armor plates and a pair of red glowing eyes.
==Apparent Defeat and Return==
After a long series of battles in the Severin Sector, the Automatons finally seemed to have been wiped out from the Galaxy on April 7th, with a success of Operation "Swift Dissassembly". Victory parades were held in every corner of the Super Earth Dominion, but unfortunately the celebrations were premature: hidden in the shadows, the bloodthirsty machines were plotting revenge. 
On April 9th, while the Helldivers were focused on containing the Terminids, the Automatons launched a cowardly surprise attack on numerous worlds under Humanity's control, including the planet that once was the Cyborgs main stronghold: Cyberstan.
==Notes== 
*The Automatons are reminiscent of Terminators from the Terminator movie series, relying on heavy armor, heavy firepower, powerful air support, mechanized vehicles, and overwhelming numbers. Operating as a slow-moving, largely mechanized force, they are also similar to the CIS from the Star Wars universe (the Devastators reminding Helldivers of Super Battle Droids; the different Striders behaving much like the walkers used by the Empire).
*Automatons are shown to engage in a limited degree of psychological warfare, such as decorating certain makes and models of themselves with human skulls, as well as using body armor of fallen Helldivers to make decoy dummies to defend their outposts from snipers.
**Cages with dead civilians can be seen on some bases, indicating the Automatons can take human subjects alive.
**Many dead civilians can be seen in piles on some Automaton bases, along with open-air dissection tables with robotic laser cutter arms. Large numbers of dismembered human bodies, who all appear to be missing their heads, or mostly-intact bodies with stitches on top of their heads have also been seen, implying an Automaton has surgically removed the head and brain from the body. 
*There are many instances of many Automaton variants exhibiting complex speech, with sentences, war cries, and even what some Helldivers report to be laughter.
**Automatons are known to have some sort of marching cadenceAutomaton marching cadence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5KOgaE3FG4, which is sometimes chanted by patrolling Automaton squads.
***While the exact lyrics of the marching cadence is up for debate, most agree that it mentions Cyberstan, the home planet of the Cyborgs, and that the planet is referred to as a "her."
***In each instance of the marching cadence, the main lines are spoken by a single Automaton, often a Commissar leading the patrol, while backing vocals are spoken by other Automatons in the group. This further strengthens the theory of human consciousness being present in Automatons, since it's unlikely the Automatons would be capable of such a structure if they were simply robots.
*The Automatons were seemingly eliminated on April 7th, 2184 but came back in a surprise attack on April 9th, which resulted in the loss of Cyberstan.
==Gallery==
 		 		
Operation Swift Disassembly - Mission Accomplished		The Automaton main fleet returning during the Reclamation.		Celebrations are cancelled, all helldivers report to your stations!
== Early Concept Art ==
File:Automatons-early-concepts-v0.webp
File:Automatons-early-concepts-v1.webp
File:Automatons-early-concepts-v2.webp
File:Automatons-early-concepts-v4.webp
==References==
Category:Automatons
Category:Enemies (Helldivers 2)
Category:Enemies
Category:Gameplay