Hades 2 offers six essential weapons, over a dozen Olympian gods providing boons, and a deep progression system using Arcana cards, resources, and keepsakes that help you defeat Chronos, the Titan of Time. As Melinoë, the Princess of the Underworld, you'll master witchcraft, utilize Omega attacks powered by Magick, and navigate both the Underworld and Surface routes while building relationships with mythological characters at the Crossroads hub.
| System | Key Details | Priority for Beginners |
|---|---|---|
| Nocturnal Arms | 6 weapons with multiple aspects each | Start with Witch's Staff, unlock Sister Blades early |
| Arcana Cards | Permanent upgrades using Ash and Psyche | Unlock Death card first (grants Death Defiance) |
| Magick System | Powers Omega attacks, fully restores between rooms | Use liberally, magick restoration is easier than health |
| Boons | Temporary powers from gods (4 rarities) | Focus on synergies over individual boon strength |
| Gathering Tools | 4+ tools for resources | Prioritize Crescent Pick for Silver early |
| Keepsakes | Unlocked by gifting Nectar to NPCs | Luckier Tooth provides extra survivability |
Welcome to the Underworld! Whether you're a returning fan from the original Hades or completely new to roguelikes, Hades 2 has evolved the formula with deeper systems, new mechanics, and an expanded world. This ultimate beginner's guide breaks down everything you need to know to survive longer, grow stronger, and make meaningful progress with every run through Erebus and beyond.
Contents
The most fundamental concept in Hades 2 is simple yet powerful: dying is not failing, it's progressing. Unlike traditional games where death sends you back to a save point, every death in Hades 2 serves a purpose in your overall journey.
Every run through the Underworld collects valuable resources that transfer to your next attempt. When Melinoë falls in battle, she returns to the Crossroads hub with all the materials she gathered, including Ash for Arcana upgrades, Bones for purchases at the Wretched Broker, Psyche for expanding your Grasp capacity, and all minerals, plants, and seeds collected along the way. These permanent resources form the backbone of your meta-progression system.
Temporary power-ups reset with each death, meaning all God Boons disappear, your collected Obols (gold coins) vanish since they can only be spent during runs at Charon's shop, and your progress through regions starts fresh. However, every story conversation, relationship level, weapon unlock, and permanent upgrade remains intact.
Each death reveals new dialogue with NPCs at the Crossroads, potentially unlocks new Incantations at Hecate's Cauldron, introduces you to additional gods and their boons, and teaches you enemy patterns for future encounters. The game is designed around making 50-100+ runs, with each attempt pushing you closer to defeating Chronos while unraveling the full story.
In your first dozen runs, prioritize collecting resources over reaching far into the Underworld. Focus on doors that reward Ash, Bones, and Psyche rather than always pushing for the next region. This resource foundation enables powerful permanent upgrades that make all future runs significantly easier.
Hades 2 introduces a combat system that's more complex than its predecessor, with new mechanics centered around witchcraft and strategic resource management.
Combat revolves around mixing different attack forms for maximum effectiveness. Your Basic Attack executes quick combos ending with a powerful finishing strike. The Special Attack varies dramatically by weapon, often covering weaknesses like adding ranged options to melee weapons or defensive capabilities. Your Cast creates an arcane circle that ensnares enemies, providing invaluable crowd control that should be used on cooldown against groups.
Omega Attacks are charged versions of your moves that consume Magick for devastating power. Hold the attack button to charge, and the Sorceress Arcana Card slows time while channeling, giving you safe windows to unleash these powerful strikes. The Omega Cast not only traps enemies but deals significant damage when the effect ends.
Dashing provides crucial invincibility frames when timed correctly, making it your primary defensive tool. Unlike the original Hades, Melinoë dashes less frequently but can transition into a Sprint by holding the dash button. Some boons enhance Sprint with damage or status effects, though this gradually drains Magick.
The Magick system fundamentally changes how you approach combat compared to the first game. Unlike health, Magick fully restores when entering new rooms, making it a resource you should use aggressively rather than hoarding. Numerous boons provide Magick restoration during combat, and several Arcana Cards enhance your Magick capacity and regeneration.
Boons can occasionally apply Priming, which temporarily reduces maximum Magick. While this might seem concerning, the tradeoff is usually worth the powerful effects provided. Don't let Priming discourage you from accepting strong boons.
Yellow armor bars on enemies represent a critical mechanic: armored foes cannot be interrupted by your attacks. Until you break their armor, they'll continue their assault patterns regardless of your strikes. Prioritize weapons, boons, or strategies that quickly shred armor to regain control of encounters. Fast-hitting weapons like the Sister Blades excel at armor breaking, while slower weapons benefit from armor-stripping boons.
Most regular enemies will flinch when struck, creating opportunities for aggressive play. Use your Cast's snaring circle as a defensive wall when overwhelmed, forcing enemies to cluster in predictable patterns. Position the Cast between you and approaching groups, then punish trapped foes with Omega attacks or special moves.
Hades 2 provides six unique weapons called Nocturnal Arms, each with distinct playstyles and multiple aspects that dramatically alter their function.
The default weapon offers excellent balance for beginners, combining reliable melee combos with ranged omega attacks. The staff's special performs a spin attack that provides breathing room against surrounding enemies. This versatility makes it forgiving for players still learning enemy patterns and optimal engagement ranges.
Best Boons: Percentage-based attack boons from Aphrodite, Apollo, or Hestia work wonderfully with the staff's consistent damage output. Zeus on special creates lightning area effects that synergize with crowd control.
Fast, aggressive dual-daggers excel at applying status effects rapidly. The combo chains quickly, and the special throws projectile daggers for ranged harassment. This weapon suits aggressive players who stay mobile and strike frequently.
Best For Beginners: The Sister Blades offer the most beginner-friendly experience because fast animations mean more opportunities to dash away from danger, you can apply multiple boons' effects rapidly, and the throwing special provides safe poke damage.
Best Boons: Status effects that trigger per-hit shine here. Aphrodite's Weak, Hestia's Scorch, or Zeus's Shock all stack quickly with the Blades' attack speed. The Origination Arcana Card amplifies curse damage, making triple-curse builds exceptionally powerful.
This heavy weapon delivers devastating strikes with wide swings that hit multiple enemies. The special deploys a shield that blocks incoming attacks, providing a defensive option for players who prefer trading blows. Charging attacks between enemy waves maximizes the axe's potential.
Best Boons: Percentage-based damage multipliers transform the axe into a boss-shredding machine. Apollo's or Aphrodite's attack boons provide massive single-hit damage. Poseidon's knockback effects pair well with the axe's crowd-clearing swings.
Pro Tip: Focus your boons on attack and whirlwind capabilities rather than the special. Charge whirlwind attacks during boss phase transitions, then dash-cancel to reposition safely.
A projectile-heavy weapon ideal for keeping distance and applying pressure. The flames' special creates lingering fire zones. This weapon demands strong Magick management and suits players who prefer ranged combat.
Best Boons: Magic regeneration boons are essential for sustained flame usage. Hera's Magick restoration, Zeus's Static Shock for energy gain, and Hestia's fire-synergy boons create potent builds. Pair with the Frinos keepsake to maximize Magick pool.
Explosive charges with unique recharge mechanics make the skull unpredictable but rewarding. The special has a quick cooldown, enabling burst damage windows. This weapon rewards players who enjoy timing-based gameplay.
Best Boons: Explosion-enhancing boons from Hephaestus create devastating combo potential. Demeter's Freeze effects control crowds between skull charges. Focus on cooldown reduction and explosive damage multipliers.
A hybrid melee-ranged weapon with blocking mechanics, the Black Coat offers the highest skill ceiling but tremendous rewards for mastery. The special blocks attacks while enabling counterattacks, requiring precise timing and positioning.
Best Boons: Boons that trigger on-block or counter-attack scenarios amplify the Coat's unique mechanics. Poseidon's wave effects, Hephaestus's explosive counters, and defensive boons that reduce damage taken while blocking all synergize powerfully.
After unlocking all available weapons and defeating Hecate with each one in Erebus, you'll receive the Aspects of Night and Darkness incantation recipe. Spend 5 Bronze and 1 Nightshade at the Cauldron to unlock weapon aspects at the Silver Pool. Each aspect fundamentally changes how a weapon functions, effectively providing 30+ different playstyles across six base weapons.
Priority Aspects for Beginners: Aspect of Pan for Sister Blades enhances already-strong fast attack patterns, while Aspect of Charon for the Moonstone Axe provides defensive utility that helps newer players survive longer.
Boons form the temporary power system that defines each run's unique character. Understanding how to select, synergize, and optimize boons separates successful runs from frustrating defeats.
Four main rarity levels determine boon strength. Common (white) boons provide baseline effects, Rare (blue) offer enhanced values, Epic (purple) deliver powerful bonuses, and Heroic (orange/red) grant exceptional power. Higher rarities appear less frequently but dramatically increase effectiveness.
Beyond standard rarities, Legendary boons are unique pinnacle abilities each god provides once per run. Duo Boons combine two gods' powers with special requirements, creating synergistic effects more powerful than either god alone. Infusion boons scale based on how many boons of a specific element you've collected, rewarding focused elemental builds.
Active boons fill specific slots visible on your HUD: Attack, Special, Cast, Dash, and Magick Restoration. These directly modify your combat abilities and replace previous boons in the same slot. If you select Zeus's attack boon then later choose Hestia's attack boon, Zeus's effect disappears entirely.
Passive boons stack without limits, appearing in your boon menu rather than the main HUD. These provide utility effects like increased resource collection, enhanced rare boon chances, damage reduction, or special trigger conditions. Passive boons can't be overwritten, making them consistently valuable additions.
Early run boons should establish your primary damage source. Choose a strong attack or special boon from gods like Hestia (Scorch), Aphrodite (Weak), Apollo (Blind), or Poseidon (Waves) to define your damage pattern. Mid-run selections should complement your primary damage with synergistic effects. If you're applying Scorch with Hestia, seek boons that enhance Scorch duration or damage.
Late-run choices should maximize your existing build rather than pivoting to new strategies. Look for Poms of Power to level up your key boons, duo boons that combine your collected gods, and defensive or survivability boons to sustain your power through final boss encounters.
Poseidon's wave effects excel at crowd control, pushing enemies into walls for bonus damage. Less effective against single targets or bosses, but essential for overwhelming mob rooms.
Hestia's Scorch builds create exponential damage as enemies burn. Pair with fast weapons that rapidly stack Scorch, then dodge away while damage ticks. High-rarity Scorch boons can melt bosses.
Hephaestus's explosive effects depend heavily on rarity and cooldown reduction. Low-rarity explosions feel underwhelming, but high-rarity explosive boons with short cooldowns devastate everything.
Zeus's lightning strikes provide consistent bonus damage and chain between enemies. Excellent for clearing groups and pairs well with high-hit-count weapons.
Demeter's Freeze effects provide control and damage. Frozen enemies take increased damage, making Demeter boons valuable for both offense and defense.
Aphrodite's Weak debuff reduces enemy damage output while increasing your damage to weakened foes. One of the best defensive boon lines available.
Apollo's Blind effects and critical strikes reward precise play. Higher skill ceiling but exceptional damage potential.
God keepsakes force specific gods to appear in the first region, letting you secure critical foundation boons. The Fountain keepsake (from Primordial Chaos) increases boon rarity chances significantly. Hera's boons can randomly upgrade your boons to Heroic rarity, creating powerful spikes. Reroll options appear more frequently in Hades 2 than the first game, allowing selective optimization.
Pro Strategy: Equip a god's keepsake in region one to guarantee their attack or special boon, establish your damage foundation, swap keepsakes in region two for complementary gods, and hunt for duo boon opportunities in regions three and four.
The Arcana system replaces the Mirror of Night from Hades, providing permanent upgrades that affect every run. Understanding optimal Arcana progression dramatically accelerates your overall power growth.
Each Arcana card requires a certain amount of Grasp to activate, and you start with only 10 Grasp capacity. Spending Psyche at the Altar of Ashes increases your maximum Grasp, eventually allowing you to activate many powerful cards simultaneously. Grasp upgrades appear on the right side of the Arcana screen and should be your second priority after unlocking essential cards.
The Death card is your absolute first priority, costing 25 Ash but granting one Death Defiance per run. This resurrection mechanic restores 40% health when you die, often providing the margin needed to survive boss fights while learning patterns.
The Sorceress card slows time while channeling Omega attacks, creating safe windows to unleash powerful strikes without eating damage. This quality-of-life improvement makes Omega attacks dramatically more practical.
The Furies grants bonus damage when you have multiple curse effects active on enemies. Pairs exceptionally well with multi-status builds using gods like Hestia (Scorch), Zeus (Shock), and Demeter (Chill).
Wayward Son and Persistence increase maximum health and Magick respectively. More health means more mistakes forgiven, while more Magick enables frequent Omega attack usage.
Eternity provides additional Death Defiance charges, effectively giving you multiple lives per run. Unlock this once you're consistently reaching later regions.
Origination amplifies damage against cursed foes and should be prioritized if you're building around status effects. The damage scaling becomes absurd with proper curse stacking.
The Centaur restores health when passing through locations, providing passive sustain throughout runs. Combine with health-per-room boons for impressive regeneration.
The Moon enhances night-based effects and pairs with Selene's boons when you unlock the goddess of the moon.
The Titan provides extra damage against armored foes, essential for quickly breaking through defensive enemies in later regions.
Swift Runner increases dash distance and reduces dash cooldown, improving mobility and survivability. Movement is life in Hades 2.
Runs 1-5 should focus on unlocking Death, Sorceress, and Persistence while spending Psyche on Grasp upgrades. Runs 6-15 should unlock Furies, Wayward Son, Centaur, and continue Grasp expansion. Runs 16-30 should activate Eternity, Origination, Swift Runner and other build-specific cards. Runs 31+ allow experimentation with niche Arcana combinations tailored to specific weapon or god focuses.
The Crossroads hub provides multiple progression systems powered by resources you collect during runs.
Hecate's Cauldron unlocks after your first death, revealing recipes that require specific ingredients. Incantations provide permanent benefits ranging from unlocking new characters to revealing resource locations.
First Priority Incantations: Night's Craftwork (1 Moly) unlocks gathering tools at the Silver Pool, Reagent Sensing (1 Moly) reveals resource locations after clearing rooms, Permeation of Witching Wards unlocks the Surface route doubling available content, and Unlocking the Wretched Broker (10 Bones) provides a merchant for exchanging resources.
The Silver Pool allows crafting tools to collect specific resource types. You can only equip one tool per run, though you can find all resource types regardless of equipped tool. Your tool choice increases spawn rate for that resource type.
The Crescent Pick mines silver and bronze from ore deposits. Silver is crucial for early weapon and tool unlocks, making this the priority first tool.
The Silver Spade digs seeds and plant-based reagents. Essential for Incantation recipes requiring flora.
The Tablet of Peace finds Lone Shades that grant large Psyche amounts. Critical for Grasp expansion in mid-game.
The Rod of Fishing catches aquatic creatures providing unique resources. Useful for specific advanced Incantations.
Pro Tip: Alternate tool usage based on your current bottleneck resource. If you need Silver for a weapon unlock, take the Pick. If you're blocked by missing plant ingredients, take the Spade.
Ash unlocks and activates Arcana Cards at the Altar of Ashes. Appears frequently as room rewards, making it relatively abundant.
Bones purchase items from the Wretched Broker, including Nectar, upgrade materials, and rare ingredients. More valuable than they initially appear.
Psyche increases Grasp capacity at the Altar of Ashes. Harder to farm than Ash but essential for activating multiple powerful Arcana cards.
Silver and Bronze craft weapons, tools, and weapon aspects. Silver particularly gates early progression.
Moly, Lotus, Nightshade, and other reagents fuel Incantation recipes. Track which incantations you want to unlock and gather appropriate materials.
Once unlocked, the Broker accepts Bones to purchase Nectar (30 Bones per bottle), rare crafting materials, and cosmetic items. Early game, prioritize Nectar purchases to unlock keepsakes from key characters.
The social systems in Hades 2 directly impact your combat effectiveness through keepsakes and story progression.
Nectar is precious early game, appearing as rare room rewards or purchased for 30 Bones from the Broker. Each character provides their keepsake on the first Nectar gift, making it critical to spread initial Nectar across multiple NPCs rather than focusing on one relationship.
Priority First Nectar Recipients: Schelemeus provides Luckier Tooth (extra life), Hecate grants Silver Wheel (increased Magick capacity), Nemesis offers Engraved Pin (increased gold collection), and any Olympian gods you favor for their keepsake that forces their appearance.
Keepsakes equip before starting runs and provide unique benefits. Each keepsake has three star levels: one star at initial unlock, two stars after 25 encounters while equipped, and three stars after 50 total encounters while equipped. Higher star levels amplify the keepsake's effects.
Luckier Tooth grants one free death resurrection, separate from Death Defiance, effectively giving you an extra life. Essential for early progression.
God Keepsakes (Zeus, Hestia, Apollo, etc.) force that god to appear in region one, guaranteeing you can secure their attack, special, or other core boon for your build.
Silver Wheel increases maximum Magick by 50 at one star, scaling to 150 at three stars. Critical for Magick-hungry builds using Umbral Flames or frequent Omega attacks.
Engraved Pin (from Nemesis) increases gold collection, letting you afford more from Charon's shops for health, upgrades, and boons.
Continuing to gift Nectar after unlocking keepsakes deepens relationships, eventually unlocking romance options with certain characters. Relationship dialogue often ties to story progression and unlocking additional game features. Some Incantations require specific relationship levels to access.
Relationship Priority: Focus on characters offering mechanical benefits (Hecate, the Broker, Olympians) before purely story-driven relationships. However, all relationship content is worth experiencing, and Nectar becomes more abundant mid-game.
Each zone culminates in challenging boss encounters that require specific strategies to overcome consistently.
Hecate teaches fundamental skills: read her transformation carefully, as the real Hecate speaks while clones remain silent, hit trees to damage witches hiding behind them, and dodge the sheep transformation attack with proper timing to avoid the debuff.
Scylla and the Sirens demand target prioritization. Focus down individual sirens while avoiding area hazards, use your Cast to control adds, and save Death Defiance for the enraged final phase.
Polyphemus (Surface route) tests positioning and patience. Stay mobile to avoid his massive attacks, punish his cooldown windows with Omega strikes, and don't get greedy—a few safe hits beat risky combos.
The Curse Stack: Use the Sister Blades with Zeus (Shock), Hestia (Scorch), and Aphrodite (Weak) to apply three curses rapidly. Activate the Origination and Furies Arcana cards to amplify curse damage exponentially.
The Magic Artillery: Equip Twin Flames with Hera's Magick regeneration boons and Zeus's Static Shock. Stack magic regeneration passives and spam Omega attacks continuously.
The Defensive Fortress: Take Moonstone Axe with Aphrodite's Weak on attack, defensive boons that reduce damage taken, and the Luckier Tooth keepsake. Trade blows knowing you'll outlast enemies.
The Critical Striker: Use Apollo's attack boon with the Witch's Staff, stack critical chance and critical damage boons, and amplify with percentage-based damage multipliers for boss-melting potential.
Hoarding Magick: Unlike health, Magick refreshes between rooms. Use Omega attacks liberally rather than saving them.
Ignoring Cast: The Cast's crowd control is invaluable. Precast before enemy waves spawn to immediately control the battlefield.
Overvaluing Damage: Defensive boons, extra health, and Death Defiance often contribute more to run success than raw damage increases.
Skipping Resource Doors: Early progression requires resources. Don't always chase boons when you need Ash, Bones, or Psyche.
Not Talking to NPCs: Story progression, Incantation unlocks, and gameplay features often require specific NPC conversations. Talk to everyone with exclamation points.
Forcing Boon Synergies: Don't reject strong individual boons hoping for perfect synergy. Good-enough boons that appear now beat theoretical perfect boons that might never show.
Connect with fellow players to share strategies, get help, and stay updated on the latest Hades 2 developments.
Official Supergiant Games Discord (discord.com/invite/supergiant): Join 120,000+ members discussing strategies, sharing builds, and getting news directly from developers. The community channels offer real-time advice and troubleshooting.
r/HadesTheGame Subreddit (reddit.com/r/hadesthegame): The primary Reddit community for both Hades games features build guides, achievement help, story discussions, and fan content. Search before asking questions as many common topics have detailed answers.
Official Supergiant Games Website (supergiantgames.com/blog/hades2-faq): The comprehensive FAQ answers technical questions, platform availability, and development updates.
Hades Wiki (hades.fandom.com/wiki/Hades_Wiki): Community-maintained database documenting every boon, weapon, character, and game mechanic with detailed statistics.
Steam Community Hub (steamcommunity.com/app/1145350): Steam guides, discussions, and workshop content provide platform-specific help and user-created resources.
Most players achieve their first successful run between 15-30 attempts, taking roughly 10-20 hours of playtime. However, reaching the "true ending" requires many more runs to unlock all story content and complete character arcs. Hades 2 is designed for 50-100+ runs to experience everything.
Generally yes, especially for mini-bosses and main bosses. Melinoë's more methodical playstyle and the increased complexity of mechanics create a higher skill floor. However, the difficulty is intentional to challenge veterans of the first game while remaining accessible to newcomers who take time to learn systems.
Not required, but recommended. Hades 2 is a direct sequel with story connections, returning characters, and callbacks that resonate more deeply with prior game knowledge. However, Hades 2 tells a complete story on its own and includes context for new players.
No, keepsakes are locked at run start. However, some NPCs appear mid-run offering their assistance, providing unique benefits separate from keepsakes.
Three-star keepsakes provide maximum benefits and can be equipped indefinitely. There's no penalty for continuing to use maxed keepsakes, though you might want to level other keepsakes to unlock their full potential.
No, all boons reset at death. However, permanent upgrades (Arcana cards, weapon aspects, Incantations) persist forever, making each run stronger than the last despite losing temporary boons.
Complete the Permeation of Witching Wards Incantation at Hecate's Cauldron. This requires gathering specific resources and progressing enough in the Underworld route to unlock the recipe.
Yes! The Pact of Punishment system unlocks after completing certain story milestones, allowing you to increase difficulty through Vows that add specific challenges. You can also enable God Mode in settings, which provides escalating damage resistance after each death.
The game auto-saves between rooms. If you quit during a run, you'll resume at the start of your current room next time you play.
Boons can level up to 6+ times using Poms of Power, though returns diminish at higher levels. Focus on leveling your main damage sources rather than spreading levels across all boons.
Hades 2 offers one of the deepest, most rewarding roguelike experiences available, but it doesn't hand you success easily. Every death teaches lessons, every run builds resources, and every attempt pushes you closer to mastering Melinoë's considerable power.
Start with the fundamentals: unlock the Death Arcana card first, experiment with different weapons until you find your favorite, don't hoard Magick or Death Defiance, and talk to every NPC at the Crossroads between runs. These simple habits establish the foundation for consistent progress.
As you grow comfortable with basics, dive deeper into boon synergies, weapon aspects, and advanced Arcana combinations. The game rewards experimentation and learning from failures. Every seemingly impossible boss will become routine once you understand their patterns and build appropriately.
Most importantly, embrace the journey rather than racing to the ending. Hades 2 delivers its best moments through discovery, relationship development, and the satisfaction of finally conquering challenges that once seemed insurmountable. The path to defeating Chronos is long, but every step forward brings new revelations about this rich mythological world.
Death to the Titan of Time! Your destiny as the Princess of the Underworld awaits in the shadows of Erebus.
Bookmark this guide and check back after major updates, as Hades 2 continues evolving with balance changes and new content in 2025!