Utility Support Slot 0.7.1

Currently Broken
The recent update has closed our old path to modding via Lua. Even if the loader is operational again, there is no guarantee that the things that this mod needs to function will be available anymore. Personally I'd rather play this game offline with mods even on an older build than follow Arrowhead into the future if this is how they want to handle mods. With that said I'll be moving on to other projects that allow that kind of environment. I'll return to this version of the mod if it can exist on the live version of the game in the future.

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This mod allows you to carry one utility (Solo Silo designator or C4 detonator) alongside another support weapon. Two weapons of the same class do not form a pair so you won't be able to pick up two EATs for example. This mod is intended for single player and private lobbies only. Although my mod isn't disruptive, I ask that you respect other players.

Installation and requirements​

Requires Bingus Shared Loader; tested with v19. Import this ZIP into your mod manager, enable Core and choose exactly one mode under Bindings, then deploy and restart the game.

Mod Options Menu and Mod Bindings Menu v2+ are optional (but recommended) and installed separately.

Controls​

Default Bindings: press your support binding while your support weapon is already drawn to swap the pair. On controller, hold the weapon-switch button while support is drawn.

Dedicated Key: press 6 by default, or assign Utility Weapon through Mod Bindings Menu, to draw the utility directly. Pressing it again leaves the utility drawn, like vanilla. The other weapon keys behave as normal. If you only have a utility weapon, it stays in the support slot and can be drawn with either the support weapon binding or the utility weapon binding.

With Mod Options Menu, open Options > MODS > Utility Support Slot, choose Binding Mode and press APPLY. The options here takes priority over mod manager ones while the menu is available. Without it the mod will choose whatever you selected in the mod manager. You can change them while in game unlike using the mod manager.

With Mod Bindings Menu, open the MODS tab in the keyboard/controller options and bind Utility Weapon under Utility Support Slot. It starts unbound. Once you assign and use it, that binding replaces the INI shortcut for the session. If the menu isn't installed or becomes unavailable, the INI shortcut is used. The binding is used only in Dedicated Key mode.

Pickup and recovery​

Pickups follow the game's Switch Weapon On Pickup setting. With No, your previously selected weapon is restored; replacing an already drawn utility keeps the new utility drawn. Replacing either weapon keeps the other one and drops the old weapon like vanilla. Dropping or expending one weapon restores the remaining weapon. Dying drops both weapons like vanilla.

Known limitations and multiplayer support​

The game still has one support slot. The mod tracks the other weapon separately and keeps it attached to your character. I tried my best to make it feel like a vanilla feature, but there will be cases where the gaps show.

Multiplayer was tested while hosting, joining, with both modded and vanilla combinations. Larger groups and extended multiplayer sessions haven't been tested.

• Resupplying from another player's supply backpack will not refill the weapon being stored by the mod.
• Players joining mid-mission may not see your stored weapon until you swap weapons.
• Leaving a mission while carrying a pair may cause the stored weapon to be lost. Keep this in mind before leaving; this behavior hasn't been fully tested.
• Your primary weapon may briefly appear during a swap or replacement especially in default mode.
• The mod hides extra pickup messages caused by its weapon handling. An incorrect utility pickup message can occasionally appear after replacing an ordinary support weapon while primary or secondary remains held with Switch Weapon On Pickup set to No. Weapon handling worked correctly in the tested cases; a fix for missed messages is planned for a future update.
• Replacing support weapons or utilities can cause a noticeable hitch. Normal swaps were stable in my testing; performance work will continue.
• If something interrupts a weapon swap or pickup, the mod may stop handling weapons to avoid making things worse. Changes already made will remain. Recovery from these interruptions hasn't been tested in-game yet, so you may need to start a new mission if the mod stops responding.

Compatibility​

Mods that change support-weapon pickups or let you carry support weapons in other inventory slots may conflict with this mod. This mod only pairs weapons picked up through the normal support slot; weapons in primary or secondary aren't included in its pair. Other mods may redirect pickups away from that slot or interfere with how carried weapons are handled.

Second Amendment to Liberty is currently incompatible with this mod's paired weapon handling. Testing both mods together caused pickup prompts to appear on weapons managed by this mod. Use the mods separately for now.

Other mods that change support-weapon pickups or slots haven't been fully tested. If you encounter similar issues, try disabling those mods.

Future plans​

• Smoother swaps without briefly switching to your primary weapon. Usually its fast enough that you can't tell, but I would like to skip that step entirely.
• Support for melee support weapons, with an option to treat them as a utility or an ordinary support weapon. This would let you pair one with a gun or with Solo Silo/C4, depending on your preference. The setting would be available through Mod Options Menu, with a mod manager option as the fallback.
• Support for melee secondaries as utilities. They would always replace your current utility and keep your ordinary support weapon. This depends on finding a reliable way to drop, pick up and recover them.
• Further performance improvements and fixes for the remaining pickup messages.

Melee support still needs testing before I can confirm which weapons will work.

INI and logging​

An INI file is created on startup where you can change the shortcut key and logging level:

%APPDATA%\Arrowhead\Helldivers2\utility_support_slot.ini

]utility_key=6
log_level=error
Edit the settings and restart the game. You can change utility_key for Dedicated Key mode if you aren't using Mod Bindings Menu. It accepts a-z, 0-9, f1-f12, numpad0-numpad9, page up/down, home/end and insert/delete.

Find UtilitySupportSlot.log in Bingus Shared Loader's log folder:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\CowboyBingus\Helldivers2\Logs\UtilitySupportSlot.log

error is the default and reports failures, so a clean session may leave an empty file. info includes readiness/mode messages, and debug includes detailed weapon, HUD and resupply events. For an issue report, include the mod version, whether you were hosting or joining, both weapons, the Switch Weapon On Pickup setting, binding mode, what each player saw and the relevant log. Raising logging requires an INI edit and restart.

Credits​

The gameplay logic is mine, but I had GPT-6.1 Sol help with research, implementation, debugging, and documentation.

Big thanks to CowboyBingus, the creator of Bingus Shared Loader, Mod Options Menu, and Mod Bindings Menu. Bingus Shared Loader provides mod loading and logging, and this mod wouldn't exist without it. The optional menus make configuration and keybinding easier.

I'd also like to thank the creators of HD2Runtime, SkyeShade, and LinksLinkToMemory, notzelda, for their development and research tools. They helped me inspect live game state, understand weapon and multiplayer behavior, and run experiments throughout development.

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Source​

GitHub