Double Edge Sickle Helldivers 2: the LAS-17 self-burning laser rifle — heat-level stats, the Inflammable armor build, and why it shreds in 2026.
Double Edge Sickle Helldivers 2 — Heat Guide, Stats & Best Build
The LAS-17 Double Edge Sickle is a laser rifle that trades every safety limiter for raw damage: as it heats up it scales from light to heavy armor penetration, but past 25% heat it starts burning you, and at 91% heat it sets you on fire. It's the Servants of Freedom Warbond's signature weapon (35 Medals, page 1), and in the right build — Inflammable armor plus the Vitality Enhancement booster — it's an S-tier primary that fires indefinitely with AP4 penetration. Without that build, it's a self-destruct button.
This guide covers the exact heat-level stat table, how the self-damage works, the armor/booster combination that makes it viable, and how it compares to the regular LAS-16 Sickle.
Official resources: Steam store page · Helldivers Wiki (wiki.gg) — LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle · Helldivers Wiki (Fandom) — LAS-17 · GameRant — Vitality + Inflammable analysis · u.gg — Primary Tier List
What Is the Double Edge Sickle?
The Double Edge Sickle (the community calls it the "Dickle") is the LAS-16 Sickle with the overheating protections removed. Where a normal laser weapon stops firing when it overheats, this one keeps firing and vents the excess heat into the user. The result: infinite fire — as long as you have health to spend, the gun never stops shooting.
It's an energy assault rifle that fires in a constant beam-burst stream, has 150 rounds of "heat sink" before it starts hurting you, and gains damage and armor penetration as the heat climbs. The stat table (community-verified values from the balance rework):
| Heat level | Damage | Penetration | Self-damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–25% | 55 | Light (AP2) | None |
| 26–50% | 55 | Medium (AP3) | 10 damage/sec |
| 51–90% | 70 | Medium (AP3) | 20 damage/sec |
| 91%+ | 70 | Heavy (AP4) | 50 damage/sec + sets you on fire |
Official source: Helldivers Wiki (wiki.gg) — LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle — "The LAS-17 Double-Edge Sickle is a LAS-16 Sickle with all overheating protections conveniently removed, expelling excess heat to the user. The DE Sickle is not affected by Intense Heat, but cools down 50% faster on planets with Extreme Cold."
Two honest caveats from the wiki and community testing: armor class does not reduce the self-damage (it ignores your armor rating), and below 26% heat you take no damage at all — which is exactly why the weapon's rhythm is "tap-fire safely, commit when you need the penetration."
When Servants of Freedom shipped, the LAS-17 accidentally launched with no damage/penetration scaling — only the self-damage worked, making it strictly worse than the Sickle. The scaling was fixed in a subsequent patch, and the weapon only became a meta pick after that fix. Any 2026 tier list rating it S-tier is rating the fixed version.
How to Unlock the Double Edge Sickle
- Buy the Servants of Freedom Premium Warbond (1,000 Super Credits — free via the Trivial Run farm method).
- It's on page 1 — spend 35 Medals and it's yours immediately.
Same Warbond gives you the GP-20 Ultimatum (see our Ultimatum guide) and the Integrated Explosives armor.
The Build That Makes It Work: Inflammable + Vitality
The Double Edge Sickle is a build-defining weapon — you don't add it to a loadout, you build around it. The core:
- Inflammable armor (75% fire resistance — Freedom's Flame sets, or the Superstore's Salamander). This is the loadout's backbone; GameRant's testing shows it delays and heavily reduces the self-burn.
- Vitality Enhancement booster (+2 stims' worth of effective HP and higher injury threshold — see the limb health guide for how it works).
- Med-Kit armor or a Supply Pack for the stims you'll be chugging — the "magazine" of this weapon is literally your health bar.
With Inflammable + Vitality, community testing found the safe-fire window stretches dramatically: you can sit at 51–90% heat (AP3, 70 damage) for long stretches, and even the 91%+ AP4 window becomes survivable in bursts. GameRant's verdict: with that investment, "the benefits of this weapon arguably outweigh the risks."
The entire point of the build is reaching AP4 (heavy penetration) — the only primary in the game that does so without gimmicks. At 91%+ heat you shred Hulk eyes, Harvester hip joints and medium armor like paper. The rhythm: tap-fire to ~85%, then commit through the burn to AP4, drop it, stim, repeat. Going prone also puts out the fire and reduces burn damage while you recover.
Double Edge Sickle vs LAS-16 Sickle
| LAS-16 Sickle | LAS-17 Double Edge Sickle | |
|---|---|---|
| Damage | 60, light pen | 55–70 scaling, up to AP4 |
| Overheat behavior | Stops firing | Keeps firing, damages user |
| Fire rate | 750 RPM | Slightly slower |
| Self-damage | None | Yes, past 25% heat |
| Armor requirement | None | Inflammable strongly recommended |
| Best for | Set-and-forget laser mains | Players who build around it |
The community's blunt summary: the Double Edge Sickle is a sidegrade that becomes a strict upgrade if you're willing to lock the Inflammable armor into your build, and a trap if you aren't. The regular Sickle remains the better pick for any loadout that can't spare the armor slot.
Best Loadouts for the Double Edge Sickle
The 2026 meta build (works on all three fronts):
- LAS-17 Double Edge Sickle (primary)
- Inflammable armor (Salamander or Freedom's Flame sets)
- Vitality Enhancement booster
- GP-20 Ultimatum secondary — covers the Sickle's weakness against single massive targets (dropships, tanks); see the Ultimatum guide
- Supply Pack — keeps your stims flowing
- A defensive or burst stratagem — the 500kg or Orbital Railcannon for heavies
Faction notes: the Sickle melts Voteless and Overseers on the Illuminate front (AP4 hits Harvester joints hard), clears bug swarms efficiently, and on the bot front its AP4 window is devastating against Devastators and Hulk eyes. The weakness is sustained single-target damage on heavy armor — that's the Ultimatum's job.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Double Edge Sickle in Helldivers 2?
The LAS-17 Double Edge Sickle is an energy primary from the Servants of Freedom Warbond: an LAS-16 Sickle with the safety limiters removed. It fires indefinitely but burns the user past 25% heat, scaling from light to heavy armor penetration as it heats up.
How do you get the Double Edge Sickle?
Buy the Servants of Freedom Premium Warbond (1,000 Super Credits) and spend 35 Medals on page 1. It's a permanent unlock.
Does the Double Edge Sickle damage you?
Yes — past 25% heat it deals 10–50 damage per second to the user (ignoring armor), and at 91%+ heat it sets you on fire. Below 26% heat there's no self-damage, and Inflammable armor (75% fire resist) plus the Vitality booster heavily mitigates the burn.
What armor should you use with the Double Edge Sickle?
Inflammable armor is strongly recommended — it's the difference between a meta weapon and a suicide pact. The Salamander (Superstore) or Freedom's Flame sets are the standard picks, paired with the Vitality Enhancement booster.
Is the Double Edge Sickle better than the LAS-16 Sickle?
It's a sidegrade that becomes strictly better in the Inflammable build: at 91%+ heat it reaches AP4 heavy penetration that the Sickle can't, at the cost of burning yourself. Without the armor build, the regular Sickle is the safer, better pick.
Related Guides
- Helldivers 2 Best Weapons — 2026 Tier List and Meta Guide
- Helldivers 2 Armor Guide — Stats, Passives & Best Armor
- Purifier Helldivers 2 — Stats, Charge Guide & Best Loadout
- Helldivers 2 Limb Health — Injury Chart, Effects & Healing
- Helldivers 2 Stratagems — Full List, Unlocks and Best Picks
- Super Credit Farm Helldivers 2 — The Trivial Run Method
Last updated: August 13, 2026.
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