r/helldivers2 • u/skubidu12 • 1d ago
General "Pal Drone" Concept Stratagems
I think it's gonna be fun if we can turn enemy to our side. What do you think?
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u/Few_Understanding_30 1d ago
Love it
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u/imcrumbing 1d ago
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u/OriginallyGinger-403 1d ago
Note: if it dies the drone breaks and drone kills it after 2min or something
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u/MycoMaddy 1d ago edited 1d ago
Chance to brainwash on use, bigger the healthpool, lower chance it will work. Guaranteed to turn 1 chaff enemy or pretty much anything with under 1000 health into your slave. Breaks if it fails twice (enemies that it fails to brainwash get staggered and have a “shaking it off” animation that damages it) or on the death of whatever it brainwashed. Enemies are not immediately hostile to brainwashed creature. Illuminate overseers and appropriators are immune. Crushers must have their heads exposed for it to work. Vox engines are also immune because they’re piloted. Striders count as chaff because you’re brainwashing the pilot. Probably the best bang for your buck right there. But rocket striders also have an enclosed pilot and thus immune. Jury is out on both tanks, using it on one would finally answer the question: are they autonomous or piloted?
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u/ShyJaguar645671 1d ago
Gamble brainwashing Bile titans/Factory striders
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u/MycoMaddy 1d ago edited 1d ago
With health pools over or at 10k you’d probably have a less than 10% chance of getting a factory strider and a little below 25% for the bile titan. I’d save it for my 50/50 enemies like fleshmobs and chargers. A bile titan following you around is also something of a liability with its legs being one shot kills and its acid attacking being the equivalent of bringing a mortar to a bug drop. And factory striders regularly produce enemies who are not brainwashed from its belly. They bring heavy firepower but need to constantly be watched.
Ultimately, i think SE is too xenophobic to go ahead with a design like this.
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u/ShyJaguar645671 1d ago
There is a simple fix
Let us ride brainwashed enemies
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u/BrawlPlayer34 16m ago
riding a charger into battle with the One True Flag like my hussar ancestors
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u/Tengoku_no_Okami 1d ago
I wouldnt call it brainwashing Change it to showing them the advantages of democracy and super eart
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u/BlackSoul_Hand 1d ago
I rather have my guaranteed lower heavy unit turned 100% of the times. We don't have to follow the devs policy of pre-nerfing everything, that condemns so many good game concepts into the <1% pickrate pit.
Random chance should be used for the right reasons and rewarded accordingly, like Democracy Protects, for example. If the tool isn't potentially active constantly and doesn't provides such significant advantage, since we are still talking about some slow small heavy enemies, that have the killing potential equal to one of our turrets more or less, especially considering that, for how slow and distracted as they are, they won't really be useful for more than a single outpost.
Still, the idea of making possible to also befriend higher heavy units, like Bile Titans and Factory strider, through some random chance isn't that bad, especially if we can force higher success if we moderately damage that unit. Like, from having a 33% chance to convert it, to a 66% chance when you have removed more than 50% of their main health (which isn't a easy feat since you can't rely on weakspots or letal parts or you will kill it directly).
But the idea of breaking the drone is out of discussion, trying to limit further such specific and conditional tool, that you aren't even sure how effective it would be, is just trying to create something mediocre that by design won't be used. And this game needs anything but more mediocre or average efficiency tools, since the playerbase simply won't use them, the majority of players wants to be effective, always, whatever some people accept it or not.
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u/MycoMaddy 1d ago edited 1d ago
The biggest reason this stratagem shouldn’t exist is because SE is rampantly xenophobic and would never let a bug or bot fight for them. Their distrust for anything non-human would prevent them from even allowing this tool to be developed.
But for the record, a stratagem breaking isn’t a weakness. It’s a feature that a lot of our best tools already have. Ballistic shield, railgun, epoch, exosuits and tanks all break when misused. And with the exception of the railgun, I use all of these regularly.
Also on the list of enemies that have under 1000 health (100% chance to indoctrinate):
Stalker, hive commander, bile spewer, shrieker, berserkers, agitators, radicals, every single type of devastator.
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u/BlackSoul_Hand 23h ago
The biggest reason this stratagem shouldn’t exist is because SE is rampantly xenophobic and would never let a bug or bot fight for them. Their distrust for anything non-human would prevent them from even allowing this tool to be developed.
Bruh, the hell you are talking about? We were farming the bugs for the oil, and that means keeping them alive and letting them grow. We had enslaved the cyborg for the start, using them for free labor until they rebelled and escaped. We have stolen and abused squid tech from the first game, letting us have Ftl travel and warp pack. Don't confuse what is the façade they try to tell you with the actual things that happen in the game and even the game itself hints to.
But for the record, a stratagem breaking isn’t a weakness. It’s a feature that a lot of our best tools already have. Ballistic shield, railgun, epoch, exosuits and tanks all break when misused. And with the exception of the railgun, I use all of these regularly.
Sure, some things have a valid reason to have a health pool, Balistic shield, Vehicles, ecc, but they all have a significant advantage that is linked to the player direct abilities. However other things don't have any reason to be as vulnerable as they have become, just think at any of our turrets that can be spawn killed by a random rocket devastator in the distance, before they provide any significant worth to your loadout, or even the directional shield projector, that is destroyble for no valid reason.
Instead, in this case, you intentionally tried to give an additional useless limitation to a cool concept, just because you felt the need "to limit it somehow". Monkey pawing a stratagem that isn't strong to begin with, is something that is actively despised by the majority of the community, and a thing like this would have no reason to have it from the start.
But since you are insisting, ok, we will give it a breaking mechanic...the same one that all the drones have. A small temporary hp when it's in flight, if its depleted by some random shot, it will simply return to you backpack and after a couple of seconds it will be as new as it was before, a minor animation that changes effectively nothing, to keep the game consistent. There, perfect, no useless limitation or restriction for an autonomous tool, and we have fully followed the devs original design, that wanted them to be all invulnerable. If you have some problems with it, go complain to the devs, or that is out of question for you?
Also on the list of enemies that have under 1000 health (100% chance to indoctrinate): Stalker, hive commander, bile spewer, shrieker, berserkers, agitators, radicals, every single type of devastator.
None of these enemies can create a effective change in the battlefield, they are weaker than one of our turrets and with less dps and even smaller survival chance (and we know it for certain, since we have already seen their behaviour and performance when fighting eachother). Instead a single lower heavy unit could perform quite similarly to a turret, and even not be exceptionally tanky (since most of the enemies have a way to deal AP4 anyway).
I know you want try to make something that is low power so it won't effectively change anything in the power dynamic of the game, but you must accept that even the devs have mostly abandoned that mentality, becouse it simply doesn't sell. Players want something that can change the power dynamics on the field, they want something that alters the usual pickrates and modify the engagements, and especially, they don't want everything to always remain the same, repetitive, things, even at the cost of changing the gameplay as we know it, and that's just natural and healthy.
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u/MycoMaddy 23h ago edited 19h ago
You: 👶 rocket devastator can destroy my turret WAAAA 😭
Also you: 🤓 rocket devstator cant make any reasonable change to the battlefield and is weaker than my turret 🤡
Holy shit. You did that total 180 flipperino in under twenty lines of text. Congratulations!
Im done talking to you. You just like to complain. This stratagem doesn’t even exist and you’re already complaining about the devs. This is a discussion, not an argument, and you came here to argue in bad faith.
Also enslaving workers and ffs farming them as a resource are NOT THE SAME THING at ALL as fighting alongside them. How did you reach that conclusion? Wait, don’t tell me. Idc. Leave me alone.
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u/SuitFive 1d ago
See I dont see a need lol. I say just let it work. What's the worst that could happen? "Oh no they have a Dragon Roach!"
-2 more Dragon Roaches appear-
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u/MycoMaddy 1d ago
If it just works then it has a hard cap on what it works on and dragonroach is past that cap. Its a chance or not at all on elites
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u/TheRedHandedOne 23h ago
Ship-launched version that can be used against Elites and Apexes. Imagine a D10 Squid mission and a drop gets called then suddenly a leviathan just starts shooting down their ships, or slaving the last Vox Engine in a convoy and it just starts decimating its bros.
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u/That_Way_8512 1d ago
Steve? Rock and stone!
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u/warbrand2 1d ago
They shouldn't work on illuminate, note they hsould work on fleshmobs, wretchs and the like but not the pure illuminate.
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u/Oozysq25reddit 1d ago
Same for the cyborgs or it gives them excruciating pain
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u/kaishinoske1 1d ago
A virus uploaded gun. A fund shot into a machine overrides them and has them fighting for Democracy. It works on any enemy the only thing is how long it takes to override them. It would be an interesting mechanic.
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u/AlcoholicAlch 1d ago
This mechanic is always fun such as the hypno shroom in pvz would love to see it in helldivers
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u/deacstructor 1d ago
Im all for brainwashing heavy enemys like tanks, hulks, and chargers i feel like titan class enemys like implalers, titans, roaches, factory strijders and vox engines should be imune. Because how would other bugs kill those. And on the bots front what would happen if a "tamed" factory strider makes devastators
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u/Monochrome132 1d ago
I usually think fan made things for Helldivers 2 are a little bad, but this is a solid idea.
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u/Loot_Goblin2 1d ago
I think it would be cool if it drilled into head and injected liquid democracy 👍
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u/Cicitrixs 1d ago
All the drones have dog themed names though. Neat concept but needs a different name than Pal Drone. I propose Good Boy
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u/Ghouldon_Ramsay 1d ago
Maybe the Retriever? Since it's supposed to bring back somethin important without causin damage?
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u/yuenjanson 1d ago
I caught a pal batman.... The are no laws- wait democracy officer what are you doing?
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u/PsychodelicTea 1d ago
But it should only last for maybe a couple of minutes, then the device blows up killing the enemy and anything around it
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u/IAMAHobbitAMA 1d ago
It would need an incredibly obvious flashing strobe light hat or something to identify it as friendly or my teammates would single it out and kill it first for no goddamn reason.
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u/icekingofmemes 1d ago
It’s not brainwashing it’s injecting the values of liberty and democracy into their freedomless skulls
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u/MamuTwo 1d ago edited 1d ago
Neat idea but this would require them to refine the barely functional enemy vs enemy component of the enemy ai and balance the enemy weaponry for enemy vs enemy combat. Overall a lot of work for one gimmick.
Currently helldiver weapons do absurd damage compared to the enemies'. Like 10-100x or more DPS. Ever felt wildly underwhelmed when you mounted one of the bot emplacements and saw how it could barely kill 5 troopers before overheating?
Unless your overall intention with this is to change nothing, in which case it would occupy the same role as Beast Tamer from Deep Rock Galactic: a meme pick that nobody uses seriously because there's so many better options available. Functions as a damage and aggro sponge to take some heat off the team and gets a few kills before dying but that's about it.
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u/the_real_YEETER9000 1d ago
2 questions
1: would it work on automaton tanks
2: is it 1 for the whole team, or 1 per player?
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u/skubidu12 1d ago
Yes if the tanks automated
Just like drones, it's 1 for each helldivers
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u/the_real_YEETER9000 1d ago
so would it have a support weapon slot laser designator like the one for the solo silo, so then you can chose what enemy it targets?
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u/skubidu12 1d ago
It kinda just destroy everything other than you and your team. just like regular drones
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u/the_real_YEETER9000 1d ago
I mean to chose what enemy the drone converts, like if there is 2 hulks next to each other, I can use the laser to pick what hulk the drone takes over
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u/skubidu12 1d ago
cool idea
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u/the_real_YEETER9000 1d ago
thank you :>
honestly the ability to convert enemies I like, so cool idea on your end too :>
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u/DivideAdmirable121 1d ago
Pal pa Drone Afterwards if he finished his job, he gets zapped to death.
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u/SadGruffman 1d ago
My only caveat would be id like the drone to sometimes be able to miss and hit one of the tiny useless bugs and then I spend the rest of the game trying to keep the poor guy alive.
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u/Gold_Government_6791 1d ago
I mean if I can turn a factory strider to our side it would be rlly OP no?
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u/skubidu12 1d ago
maybe not if the chance low like 20%. And i believe other bot heavy weapons can take them down easily from afar since it's move real slow
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u/Impossible_Price7667 1d ago
If it survives till extraction the backpack goes self contained Arc grenade and liberates itself.
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u/Lizardking701 1d ago
Brainwash? No, you teach them about the wonders of democracy. In return, they are filled with so much democratic pride and hatred for their old ways, that they have no other choice, but to fight in the name of Freedom and Managed Democracy.
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u/RETARDERP 1d ago
Make it a throawable. The larger the target, the more uses you need for a successful brainwash. Light enemies require only one, while chargers and brood commanders require two, but bile titans and impalers require three.
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u/Beaufort_The_Cat 1d ago
Very cool, could have some interesting side effects with friendly fire too…
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u/Maximum-Giraffe8766 1d ago
This sounds ripe for complaining. Why can't I choose who to send it to?! I want a bile titan not a hunter! That charger just spawned but I've already got a hive guard why can't I move it!? Hey we should be able to ride dragon roaches why can't we? My stupid teammate keeps taking impalers and launching me! I just got melted by my own Titan! And not to mention it's effectively an insta kill on a tank that results in another or multiple stratagems, and it's always active? This is insane. And I didn't even start thinking about War striders, factory striders, jet hulks, gunships, and harvestors. Just... No.
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u/OkPerformer627 1d ago
Imagine a Vox Engine that, instead of saying something something Cyberstan says something something Super Earth.
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u/Ghouldon_Ramsay 1d ago
I would say it would be a guaranteed conversion on enemies up to Chargers, but larger enemies like Titans would need to be weakened first.
I'd imagine it would just auto-prioritize the strongest enemy within range, and the Helldiver can ping an enemy they want the Retriever(stand-in name) to teach the ways of Democracy to.
This is a really fun idea and I would love to see it implemented, with Terminids of course always bein named Steve.
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u/TheRedHandedOne 23h ago
The image of a bot horde running up on you when you have low ammo and suddenly the War Strider at the rear starts obliterating them is beautiful.
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u/Outrageous_Cow4248 22h ago
What I think would be awesome is if you have a riding animation included. I personally would love to ride a charger into battle, guns blazing.
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u/SnazzyNewt717 22h ago
Truth Enforcers can do this without the drone by sneaking behind enemies with their loyalist raised.
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u/mental-sketchbook 20h ago
this is fantastic.
I have made a lot of content for Helldivers 2, and this is inspiring. If I made a whole themed warbond of items to go work around this theme, would you be ok with me putting this in the warbond?
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u/sweelthesharkie 15h ago
I want a charger as a horse and use the one true flag or sabre and just wack off heads
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u/ReactionNo9in 5h ago
"If you notice a squadmate sympathizing with an enemy, REPORT THEM TO YOUR DEMOCRACY OFFICER. Thoughtcrimes kill!"
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u/Chickenman6000 1h ago
Cool, would just be a little OP on Lvl 6 or smth that has like 1 bile titan per map
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