Hades is a 2020 dungeon crawler published by Supergiant Games. Throughout the game, you control Zagreus, son of Hades, as he attempts to escape from the Underworld.
As you have probably guessed, the game is based on ancient Greek mythology. To help Zagreus escape from his father’s domain, various gods and entities come to his aid, offering items, combat tips, and, most importantly, boons granted by the main Greek pantheon. In this article, I will tell you which boons are best to have in combination to raise your chances of escaping.
But first, I need to quickly break the combat system down for you.
Once you are done unlocking, you will have a choice of five weapons: Stygian Blade, Eternal Spear, Shield of Chaos, Heart-Seeking Bow, Twin Fists of Malphon, and Adamant Rail. Each of the weapons has an Attack, which usually strikes the enemy at close range, and a Special, which mostly deals damage in a region or hits several enemies. In addition to the weapons, Zagreus has a built-in ability called Cast, which is a long-range attack that launches a Bloodstone that deals 50 points of damage on impact. When a relevant Boon is used, Zagreus can use a Call to channel the power of an Olympian, and it usually deals a lot (like, a lot) of damage.
That’s pretty much it; now onto Boons!
You can get Boons for clearing rooms or buy them from Charon for 150 Obols, and they only last for the duration of an escape attempt. Boons can be split into five main categories based on what they change: Attack, Special, Cast, Dash, and Call. You can only equip one Boon per category.
Generally, you would want to get a balanced set of Boons. Although the gods' willingness to bestow a Boon in each run is determined by fate alone, there are some combinations worth pursuing to increase your chances of escaping. Here are 10 Boon combos that are powerful enough to smite those pesky foes:
10. Delaying the Inevitable [Ares + Demeter]
Sometimes you just want everyone around you to chill
What Delaying the Inevitable is Useful for:
Helping keep smaller foes at bay when fighting bosses
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Shield of Chaos
- Adamant Rail
Ares and Demeter are a god combination people rarely think about, but with some creativity, you can make them work together. It’s all about delaying the movements of your foes and the damage you deal.
Demeter’s Boons are useful for their Chill effect, which slows foes down by 4% for eight seconds. Ares, in turn, offers the Doom status curse that causes the foe to take damage after 1.1 seconds.
What Makes Delaying the Inevitable Great:
- Slowing smaller foes down by using Chill helps you keep them away while you focus your fighting efforts on bigger enemies, which is useful when fighting any boss in the game.
- Using Adamant Rail’s cover fire or throwing Shield of Chaos while using Doom will let you quickly deal a lot of damage to several enemies at once.
- Chilling foes helps you aim your Blade Rift attacks more precisely, allowing you to remain out of range.
9. Conductive [Poseidon + Zeus]
That liquid justice could go well with a side of zap
What Conductive Is Useful for:
Dealing ranged damage without a ranged weapon
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Stygian Blade
- Twin Fists of Malphon
Don’t combine electricity and water… Unless you want to make some Wretched Thug’s day a lot harder. If you prefer to use melee weapons but get overwhelmed by too many enemies, this combo is for you.
Poseidon’s Boons are useful for their knock-away effect, and Zeus’ gifts come with lightning that strikes foes in addition to your attacks. This way, you can keep the foes away from you while still dealing damage to them from afar.
What Makes Conductive Great:
- Knocking foes away helps you manage who you are fighting at any given moment, and stacking extra lightning damage on top of that lets you kill foes much faster.
- Rupture and Jolt-containing Boons are not easy to come by, but the effects result in self-inflicted damage, which becomes more and more useful the stronger the foes get.
- No matter what dash-modifying Boon you get, it would be easy to complement with the Boons from the other deity.
8. Berserk [Ares + Dionysus]
Delicious Health from the ancient reserve
What Berserk Is Useful for:
Maintaining Life Total
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Eternal Spear
- Shield of Chaos
Let Ares give you the gift of fighting, then let Dionysus make you go insane with it. Why worry about getting hurt when the good old god of wine will help you get some of that health back?
Ares’ Boons are great for both ranged and close combat. Delayed damage from Doom will be as good as Blade Rift here because in this combo you will pick Dionysus’ health-related Boons.
What Makes Berserk Great:
- Restoring health is not the easiest thing to do in Hades, so having Boons that help you get some hearts back is always handy.
- Hangover and Doom both inflict delayed damage, so putting one on your Attack and the other on your Special will help you stack damage either way.
7. But a Blur [Hermes + Demeter]
Is this a meta-game comment, Hermes?
What But a Blur Is Useful for:
Evading foes (fast), Casting
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Eternal Spear
- Adamant Rail
Another untypical god pairing, but trust me on that one. Hermes will help you go fast, and Demeter will make your foes go slow. The net speed difference will be so great the Crawlers won’t even see you coming.
For this combo, any speed Boons from Hermes are good as long as they complement Demeter’s. Also, Cast-affecting Boons from both will take your Casting abilities to the next level.
What Makes But a Blur Great:
- Both Demeter and Hermes offer Cast-enhancing abilities, so if you tend to Cast a lot, this pairing is for you.
- High difference in speed helps avoid both close and ranged attacks, which is useful when fighting a mixed group of foes.
- Both Demeter and Hermes offer healing Boons that can help you restore your Life Total in a pinch.
6. Ranged [Artemis + Poseidon]
Some witches getting slapped with that crit
What Ranged Is Useful for:
Efficient use of ranged weapons
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Heart-Seeking Bow
- Adamant Rail
If ranged weapons in Hades feel inefficient, it’s because you haven’t found the right Boons for them yet. You’re really missing out on those sweet, sweet Crits, so grab your trusty bow and let the gods take you for a chase.
As a huntress, Artemis is great at enhancing ranged weapons, raising their base damage and increasing the chances of a Critical hit. Poseidon’s knock-away boons will help you keep the foes far enough away to hit them with an arrow.
What Makes Ranged Great:
- Artemis is your best bet to increase the Critical damage chance, which is invaluable in an intense boss fight, and Poseidon’s knock-away helps keep foes at bay.
- While using ranged weapons, you can deal close-quarter damage with Poseidon’s Typhoon Fury or Breaking Wave, which deals extra damage to foes you slam into barriers.
- Artemis’ Cast-enhancing Boons are all useful, while Poseidon offers useful Call-modifying boons; these two Boon types complement each other well, especially in this god pairing.
5. Dancing with Death [Aphrodite + Ares]
Love is in the air! If by "love" you mean "total annihilation", of course
What Dancing with Death Is Useful for:
Reducing incoming damage in close combat
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Stygian Blade
- Eternal Spear
All is fair in love and war, and this combo is just another proof of that. Weaken your enemies, then deliver deadly strikes to bring them down, or make them fight each other while stabbing them in the back.
Aphrodite’s Weak effect will make sure you receive less damage while using Ares’ Doom or Blade Rift, and the love goddess’ Charm effect will cause your foes to fight for you.
What Makes Dancing with Death Great:
- There is no underestimating Aphrodite’s Charm effect that makes foes fight for you. Inflicting Ares’ Doom on top of that will make sure that your problems solve themselves.
- Ares’ Boons are often close-range oriented, which puts you at risk of taking some serious blows to the noggin. Aphrodite’s Weak effect will help reduce the incoming damage.
4. Girl Power [Athena + Artemis]
Okay, the Underworld isn't that miserable, but thank you anyway
What Girl Power Is Useful for:
Staying safe while using ranged weapons
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Heart-Seeking Bow
- Twin Fists of Malphon
Hades is not shy of strong female characters, so make use of their blessings to deliver Critical hits granted by Artemis while making use of Athena’s defense powers.
Athena offers Boons that can deflect attacks and make you invulnerable, which can protect your back while you shoot at foes from a distance.
What Makes Girl Power Great:
- Athena’s Deflect Dash functions incredibly well paired with Artemis’ bow enhancements; not only will you deal more damage with your projectiles, but you would also be able to turn enemy attacks against them.
- Athena’s Aid Boon will briefly make you invulnerable to attacks, so you can use your call to give yourself cover as you shoot foes with increased Critical damage chance.
3. Lightning Fast [Zeus + Hermes]
The foes don't know they shouldn't touch exposed wires
What Lightning Fast Is Useful for:
Avoiding being hit while dealing damage
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Eternal Spear
- Shield of Chaos
In hand-to-hand and ranged combat alike, Zeus’ Boons will let you zap your enemies on top of your regular attacks, and Hermes will make sure they are delivered on time and not a second later.
For this combo, any lightning-related enhancement is useful. Paired with Hermes’ powers that grant you dodging abilities and extra speed, you can move out of range in time while watching your foes get electrified.
What Makes Lightning Fast Great:
- One of my favorite Boon combinations is Hermes’ Greatest Reflex, which increases the number of times you can dash in a row, and Zeus’ Thunder Dash. This combination enables you to Dash between foes while dealing a lot of damage without even using your weapon.
- Zeus’ Aid has high Call damage, and Hermes’ Quick Favor makes your God Gauge charge automatically, so you can use your Call more often.
- Hermes allows you to increase the speed of your Attack, and you can add Zeus’ Lightning Strike on top so the chain-lightning repeatedly strikes foes.
2. Party Hard [Dionysus + Aphrodite]
Get those foes some wine and love to make them weak in the knees
What Party Hard Is Useful for:
Applying debilitating status effects to foes
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Eternal Spear
- Twin Fists of Malphon
These gods work in tandem to make your enemies weak and auto-damaged, enabling you to slay them without receiving too much damage yourself.
Dionysus’ Hangover will make sure the enemies are taking damage, while Aphrodite’s Weak will reduce the damage you receive. You can always make use of Dionysus’ healing Boons to help you keep your health up, too.
What Makes Party Hard Great:
- Dionysus’ Hangover is stackable, meaning you can inflict up to 20 seconds of repeated damage on a foe. Paired with Aphrodite’s Charm, it makes for some significant passive damage.
- Weak effects and Dionysus’ healing Boons will make sure your Life Total is intact as you climb through the levels.
1. Tactician [Athena + Ares]
Nothing like smiting your foes on a good Elysium day. Or night. Time isn't real in the afterlife.
What Tactician Is Useful for:
Efficient close combat while staying shielded from damage
Best Weapons to Use With:
- Stygian Blade
- Shield of Chaos
Make use of Ares’ fighting advantages and Athena’s intelligence with this Boon combination. Their Boons will make your fighting as efficient as it gets.
Ares’ Doom effects often force you to get close to your foes, leaving you vulnerable to damage, but Athena’s Deflect abilities let you parry any close-combat attack that comes your way. Also, make sure to have some Blade Rift Boons in store for the foes that tend to stay out of close range.
What Makes Tactician Great:
- Inflicting passive damage through Ares’ Doom works really well with Athena’s Deflect abilities that keep you well-defended.
- Athena’s Boons also offer the Exposed status effect, which increases the damage dealt when you strike foes from behind. Paired with increased damage from Ares, you can one-hit many foes.
