Chain fast Blitz runs on Super Helldive, pick the right faction and loadouts, and turn every five minutes into fat Weapon XP and account levels.
If you’re here, you don’t want theorycraft—you want your guns leveled and your account climbing now. This guide breaks down how XP actually works, which missions are fastest (with the pros/cons of Blitz vs. Eradicate across the three factions), and plug‑and‑play loadouts that shave minutes off every run. Where it matters, I cite current tests and mainstream guides so you’re not chasing last season’s meta.
1) How Weapon XP and Character XP really work
- Weapon XP = mission XP you earn. It’s not about how many kills you get with the weapon; your weapon gains exactly track the XP you bank from the mission (including the difficulty multiplier and objectives). In other words, anything that boosts your mission XP (faster clears, higher difficulty, more secondaries, clean extraction) also boosts your Weapon XP.
- Difficulty multipliers are huge. The game’s XP multiplier ramps by difficulty and caps at +300% on Super Helldive (10)—that’s a 4× payout versus Trivial when you finish the mission. If you can survive SHD Blitz, you will level guns dramatically faster than on mid-tier difficulties.
- Kills don’t matter for XP; completing the mission does. The fastest leveling loop is about finishing high‑diff missions quickly, not farming spawns. This is why short Blitz: Search & Destroy missions and efficient Eradicates dominate the meta.
2) Fastest mission types (and when to pick each)
A) Blitz: Search & Destroy (Automatons) — the gold standard for XP/min
If your goal is pure Weapon XP and account XP per minute, queue Automaton Blitz at the highest difficulty you can clear consistently (ideally SHD). Here’s the loop:
- Land and beeline to the required fabricators;
- Use long‑range structure deletion (Recoilless/EAT/Quasar, big Orbitals/Eagles) to nuke them from outside the base;
- Extract immediately once the quota is done.
With a drilled squad, Blitz clears routinely clock ~5 minutes and produce 1000+ XP (way more on SHD), which directly becomes Weapon XP. This “smash‑and‑grab” approach is currently the most widely recommended route for fast leveling.
Why Automaton over Bugs or Illuminate for Blitz? Bot fabricators are easy to target with orbitals/eagles (many stratagems actively lock onto them), and when you’re sprinting objective to objective, you can outrun bot packs more easily than bug swarms. That mix of targetability and pathing makes bots the most consistent Blitz farm.
B) Blitz: Search & Destroy (Illuminate) — fast but usually lower ceiling
Illuminate Blitz is also short, but expect less XP on average compared with bots. Community breakdowns point out their base composition and side‑objective density often yield smaller payouts, even when the clear feels quick. Translation: it’s smooth and safe in good hands, but slightly worse XP/min than Automaton Blitz most of the time. If you prefer the flow of Illuminate and your team is dialed, it’s still viable—just know the tradeoff.
C) Eradication (Automatons) — still fast when available
The Automaton Eradicate mission type has long been a turret/mortar playground—drop heavy sentries, keep moving, and let indirect fire chew through the quota. It’s been spotlighted multiple times as a fast way to stack XP and medals when spawn density is favorable. If you see bot Eradicates popping, slot them into your rotation—especially when Blitz isn’t up.
D) Full‑clear vs. “just the quota”
- Bare‑minimum Blitz clears (quota then extract) are the fastest Weapon XP per minute because you’re chaining completions and cashing the +difficulty multiplier quickly.
- Full clears (main + multiple secondaries + outposts + clean 4‑man extract) take longer but push your single‑run XP much higher—great if you’re also chasing requisition, medals, or samples. A number of guides corroborate that Blitz on SHD is the top time‑saver for weapon levels, while full clears are best when your squad wants big one‑mission payouts.
3) Speed‑clear loadouts that shave minutes (by faction)
Below are conservative, update‑current picks built for Blitz (with notes if you queue Eradicate). They emphasize objective deletion, mobility, and safe extraction over raw wave fighting.
Universal tips
• Armor: light or medium to keep sprint speed high;
• Backpack: Jump Pack or Personal Shield if you’re new to SHD;
• Grenades: Gas (bugs, Illuminate crowds) or Thermite/Stun (bots);
• Eagles/Orbitals: bring at least one map‑deleter (500kg / Orbital Laser / 380mm).
• Secondary: GP‑31 Grenade Pistol is S‑tier utility—great for holes, fabricators, and Illuminate warp ships.
Automaton Blitz — “delete bases from outside”
- Primary: Sickle / Scorcher / Eruptor (mix for team coverage)
- Secondary: Senator or Grenade Pistol
- Support (choose 1): Recoilless Rifle (long‑range fabricator delete), Quasar Cannon, Railgun, Commando
- Stratagems: Orbital Laser or 380mm, Eagle 500kg, Autocannon Sentry or Rocket Sentry, optional Precision Strikes for safe picks
- Backpack: Personal Shield (safer) or Jump Pack (faster routes)
Why it’s fast: You never need to “win” the base fight—tag the fabricator from outside and move. If gunships harass you, slot Spear/WASP on one player. These picks are directly in line with modern Automaton loadout advice.
Illuminate Blitz — “strip shields, explode everything”
- Primary: Scorcher / Purifier (AOE), Sickle (Shield shred + infinite ammo), Adjudicator
- Secondary: Grenade Pistol (warp ships, harvesters), Crisper/Loyalist if you prefer
- Support: Machine Gun / Autocannon / Anti‑Materiel Rifle
- Stratagems: Orbital Laser, Orbital 120/380mm, Eagle 500kg/Strafe
- Backpack: Jump/Warp Pack to get out when the Squids start juggling you
Why it’s fast: Illuminate bring fewer heavy armor bricks; shields + soft bodies means bullets and energy AOE rule. The Grenade Pistol is an MVP here for deleting warp ships quickly.
Terminid Blitz (or short Eradicates) — “burn the swarm, control space”
- Primary: Breaker Incendiary, Cookout, Sickle (or Double‑Edge Sickle)
- Secondary: Grenade Pistol
- Support: Flamethrower (cave/hive caution), Autocannon or Railgun for Chargers
- Stratagems: Orbital Napalm, Orbital Laser, Eagle 500kg/Strafing, Gas Strike
- Backpack: Personal Shield or Jump Pack
Why it’s fast: Fire + gas cut through hordes and let you avoid time‑sucking brawls on the way to objectives. These picks mirror current high‑diff recommendations against bugs.
4) Squads, roles, and a 5‑minute Blitz template
Ideal 4‑player Blitz comp (Automatons):
- Runner/Marker: Light armor + Jump Pack, GP‑31. Sprints the line, pings fabricators, calls extract the second quota is done.
- Structure Deleter: Recoilless/Quasar; prioritizes long‑range hits on the target structure.
- Ordnance Lead: Carries Eagle 500kg and Orbital Laser; staggers them across different bases (don’t stack on one target).
- Crowd/Backline: Autocannon/EMS Sentry to pull aggro and keep the exit lane clean.
5‑minute flow:
- Drop → deploy sentry(s) facing first base to pull vision;
- Lob a 500kg at the fabricator while Recoilless lines up a follow‑up—don’t enter the camp;
- Sprint to base #2 (avoid fights, smoke/stun if needed), repeat;
- Queue extract as soon as the counter ticks; drop EMS/Mortar at LZ;
- Laser the last chase pack during extraction and leave.
Rinse and repeat.
This is a “smash‑and‑grab” method—automated, objective‑first Blitz clears that bank high‑diff multipliers many times per hour.
5) Boosters that actually speed the farm
You only get one Booster per diver, but they stack squad‑wide—coordinate.
- Stamina Enhancement – More sprint, faster regen; priceless for Blitz routing.
- Experimental Infusion – Stims grant move speed + DR for a short time; use before crossing open ground or pulling extraction.
- Hellpod Space Optimization – After wipes or mid‑op reinforcements, everyone drops fully stocked; it keeps tempo high without hunting resupplies.
- Vitality Enhancement – A safe fallback on SHD if your squad is still stabilizing.
These are top‑tier “make the run faster” picks right now.
6) When to rotate away from Blitz
- Eradicate up on bots? Slot them in—still a fast XP/medal loop if spawn density cooperates and your team has mortar/autocannon discipline.
- Need samples/medals/requisition? Do one or two “full‑value” runs (main + most secondaries + outposts + clean extract) between Blitz loops. The single‑mission XP will spike (and so does Weapon XP), but your XP/minute will be lower than chained Blitz.
- Struggling on SHD? Drop to Helldive (9); it’s still +250% XP and sometimes doubles your success‑per‑hour compared with wiping out on SHD.
7) Common mistakes that slow your farm
- Fighting the base instead of the objective. You’re not here to clear camps; you’re here to erase the fabricator/warp ship, then leave. Orbitals/Eagles first, then one precise support shot; sprint.
- Over‑investing in support weapons you keep dropping. Recoilless/EAT/Quasar are great—but don’t lose minutes backtracking to dead bodies for gear. Treat the Recoilless like a one‑and‑done per base: fire, holster, run.
- No extraction discipline. Begin the extraction call the instant the quota completes. Dropping an EMS Mortar at the pad makes most exits trivial, especially on bots.
- Assuming kills = XP. They don’t; mission XP is what levels your gun and account. Don’t waste time on “one more wave.”
8) Quick reference: faction‑specific Blitz kits (copy/paste)
Automatons (SHD/Helldive Blitz)
- Primary: Sickle or Scorcher
- Secondary: GP‑31 Grenade Pistol
- Support: Recoilless (or Quasar/Railgun)
- Stratagems: Orbital Laser, Eagle 500kg, Autocannon Sentry, Precision Strike
- Backpack: Shield or Jump Pack
Reasoning: Long‑range structure delete + crowd control; do not enter camps.
Illuminate (SHD/Helldive Blitz)
- Primary: Scorcher/Purifier or Sickle
- Secondary: Grenade Pistol (warp ships!)
- Support: Machine Gun / Autocannon / AMR
- Stratagems: Orbital Laser, 120/380mm, Eagle 500kg/Strafe
- Backpack: Jump/Warp Pack
Reasoning: Strip shields, explode clumps, keep moving; slightly lower XP than bots.
Terminids (SHD/Helldive Blitz)
- Primary: Breaker Incendiary/Cookout, Sickle
- Secondary: Grenade Pistol
- Support: Flamethrower (caution in caves), Autocannon or Railgun
- Stratagems: Napalm, Laser, 500kg, Gas
- Backpack: Shield or Jump Pack
Reasoning: Area denial (fire/gas) to avoid time‑sink fights, then sprint.
9) A sample 30‑minute power session (solo or duo)
- Queue Automaton Blitz on the highest difficulty you can clear without wipes.
- Run four loops using the template above.
- If Blitz isn’t up, slot one Automaton Eradicate (turret/mortar) before you re‑queue Blitz.
- Rotate Boosters (Stamina / Experimental Infusion / Hellpod Space Optimization) depending on whether you’re struggling with speed, survivability, or refills.
This cadence mixes reliable SHD Blitz (best XP/min) with fallback Eradicates to keep downtime low and Weapon XP flowing.
Final word
- Weapon XP is just mission XP. Maximize your difficulty multiplier, pick mission types that finish fast, and carry structure‑deleting tools. That’s the recipe.
- Automaton Blitz is king for XP/min; Illuminate Blitz is smooth but usually pays a little less; Automaton Eradicates are an excellent filler when they pop. Build squads that run objectives, not fights, and you’ll see guns and levels climb fast.
