After slowing the Automaton invasion, Helldivers 2's next Major Order asks players to squash 2 billion Terminids - and 100 million of them died in the first hour

The latest Helldivers 2 Major Order is live, and it simply tasks Super Earth's soldiers with squishing two billion Terminids in right around six days.

Today, April 18, Arrowhead initiated a new phase of Helldivers 2's ongoing Galactic War - tasking players with eliminating two billion Terminids throughout the whole world. That might sound like a staggering number, but Super Earth's finest have been given a whopping six days in which to accomplish the task.

"The Automaton invasion has slowed, thanks to valiant defense efforts. We must take this chance to refill our E-710 reserves in order to stage a counteroffensive," the in-game Major Order description reads. Helldivers 2 players have been fighting desperately against the return of the Automaton forces since earlier this month, and this new Major Order follows after they were successfully pushed away from several planets.

Not even one hour after the Major Order had been issued, Helldivers 2 players have managed to obliterate one 100 million Terminids. We've calculated that players would have to destroy roughly 400 million Terminids every day in order to complete the Major Order, so considering this pace, we'd say players are currently rocketing past the benchmark.

Right now, three Terminid planets are open for the taking: Estanu, Hellmire, and Oshaune. I don't quite know how many Terminids a planet can hold in total, considering the liberation meter can fluctuate depending on the number of Super Earth soldiers on a planet, but players had better hope they don't run out of Terminid planets to fight on before they've slain two billion bugs.

Then again, it wouldn't be unnatural for developer Arrowhead to throw a spanner in the works partway through the Major Order. We've already seen Game Master Joel mess with Super Earth's soldiers before - like the time they halted the mech rollout as the factory planet was overrun by Automaton forces -  so I'd be surprised if it was smooth sailing from here on out.

In other news, Helldivers 2 dev doesn't want the shooter to become "Kingdom Hearts or Fortnite," but is open to crossovers if they "make sense."