The Automaton in Helldivers 2 are wreaking havoc, with their eyes set on our Super Earth researchers. If you want to get involved in the new Major Order, here is everything you need to know about Defend Campaigns in Helldivers 2.
What is the Major Order in Helldivers 2?
The Major Order is the primary objective in Helldiver 2‘s Liberation Campaign. It follows the progress of the Helldivers, with a new order delivered once enough progress has been made in the Galactic War. While you aren’t limited to a specific sector or faction, those wanting to quickly progress in the story rather than grinding for Medals, XP, and Requisitions should stick to the Major Order’s objectives.
The first fulfilled Major Order looked at the liberation of the Orion Sector. Once Heeth and Angel’s Venture were liberated and this was achieved, the Umlaut Sector opened, and the story swiftly moved on to regaining control against the Automaton. You get a large sum of Requisitions (cash) for Stratagem unlocks by completing Major Orders.
How to win Defend Campaign Missions against the Automaton in Helldivers 2
Defend Campaigns are specific Automaton Operations. They are new to Helldivers 2 and are important to the Galactic War development. The Helldiver Command has moved from the Terminid faction and onto the Automaton as a surprise attack has begun on multiple Super Earth planets: Troost and Ingmar.
The Defend Campaign follows a recurring mission: “Escort and protect the researchers as they travel to the extraction zone.” This is the only mission available for every Defend Planet Operation in trivial and easy difficulty levels. Each Operation increases in size as you unlock harder difficulties (from medium difficulty onwards), where you must complete the escort and other missions to finish the entire Defend Operation.
These Defend Operations can include missions like Launch ICBM and Eradicate Automaton Forces, which must be completed alongside the core Retrieve Essential Personnel mission.
Helldivers 2: Defend Campaigns not counting, explained
Major Orders are tracking all players and the Defend Campaign progress. These orders are completed by everyone. You cannot progress through the Liberation Campaign on your own. The Major Order is not bugged, but the Defend Campaigns must be completed within a timely manner. Failure to unite and complete the Campaign only prolongs the Major Order.
Each planet relevant to Defend Campaigns has a defend timer. You have a maximum of 40 hours to defend a planet. If the blue bar is higher than the red, showing that the Helldivers have greater control than the Automaton, this will count as a win towards the Major Order.
Once a Defend Campaign is complete (the blue bar is higher than the red), the successfully defended planet will count towards the Major Order percentage. A Defend Campaign ends once an invaded Super Earth planet has been liberated. This means that everyone has to work together and defend eight planets within Trigon, Xzar, and Severin Sectors.
The Defend bar shows you and your fellow Helldivers progress against the Automaton. You can also see the Automaton’s influence on Troost and Ingmar via the red Defend bar. When time runs out on a planet, everyone must defend another planet from invasion. When the Major Order timer ends, the next order will arrive, giving Helldivers a new problem to face.
If all Helldivers complete eight Defend Campaign Operations (defend eight planets), everyone receives 12,500 Requisition.
Helldivers 2 Major Orders not progressing fixes
As mentioned, the issue with Major Orders happens because Helldivers 2 can only move on once the community either defends eight planets or the order timer runs out. Everyone will progress at the same time once the timer runs out (regardless of whether the order overview is successful). To reiterate above, the Major Order is not bugged. There are no fixes because the order isn’t broken. No updates or relaunching the game will fix this, and any sources telling you otherwise are incorrect.
You need to complete Defend Campaigns on planets with the defend timer. If the bar is higher on our side than the Automaton when the timer ends, it will count towards the Major Order. At the time of updating this article everyone has successfully defended four out of eight articles, with five days left on the timer to protect four more planets.
To repeat, you cannot successfully defend a planet on your own. Every completed Retrieve Essential Personnel mission pushes the Defend bar in our favor, increasing the likelihood that the planet is liberated once the Defend Campaign timer runs out. If you have four defended planets in the order overview, so does everyone else. So, if you want to fix the Major Order not updating issue, you need to join the fight, escort those researchers, and defend those planets in Xzar, Severn, and Trigon Sectors.
