Hades 2 Walkthrough — All Bosses, Weapons and Builds (2026)

Hades 2 is the roguelike sequel from Supergiant Games, almost six years in the making: early access started in May 2024, and the full 1.0 release landed on September 25, 2025. This time the protagonist is Melinoë, Princess of the Underworld and witch of the night. While she slept, the titan Chronos escaped Tartarus, seized the realm of the dead and set his sights on Olympus. In this guide: all 8 main bosses across two routes, the minibosses, the weapons, the aspects and the builds.

Basics: how a run works

• God boons shape your build: new gods wait on Olympus, old friends in the Underworld. Boons attach to your attack, special, cast, dash or sprint.
• Magick powers your Omega moves — charged-up versions of attacks and specials. Hexes are powerful abilities with their own gauge.
• Arcana are passive cards activated with Psyche. The stronger the card, the more it blocks others.
• Keepsakes are companion trinkets that change how you fight. Unlock the incantation to swap keepsakes between biomes — it greatly improves flexibility.
• Familiars: befriend Frinos the frog or Toula the cat — they gather resources and fight beside you.
• Incantations at the cauldron unlock everything important: new areas, weapons and character encounters. Mine resources with the pickaxe along the route.
• Stuck? Turn on God Mode — a gradual toughness boost, no shame. After your first clear, Vows (Fear levels) open up.

Weapons: six Nocturnal Arms and aspects

Weapons are forged at the Silver Pools for resources:

• Witch's Staff — the starting all-rounder: long melee and fast projectiles. The hidden Anubis aspect is the best in the game: it plants a damage field that drags enemies in.
• Sister Blades — speed and backstabs; hidden aspects include Morrigan with a crit identity.
• Umbral Flames — fire orbs; the Eos aspect (A-tier) turns your attack into a growing orbiting projectile.
• Moonstone Axe — slow but crushing; the hidden Nergal aspect builds rage and heals in berserk.
• Argent Skull — a skull-blaster with three "shells" to pick up; Medea's aspect detonates shots at the enemy.
• Black Coat Xinth — armor-suit with a block on the charged Omega attack and homing rockets; the Nyx aspect fires a rocket salvo that copies your strikes.

Aspects unlock via Hecate's "Aspect of Night and Darkness" incantation — run each weapon at least once first.

Underworld route: four wardens

1. Hecate — Erebus. Your mentor tests her student. Pulsing rifts: dash inside the circles — strike — dash back before they collapse. You can ignore the clones, but hit the real Hecate. At 50% health she casts a curse: if it lands, you're a sheep for a few seconds. Dodge into the curse five or six times — it won't catch you. Reward: Cinder for the forge.

2. Scylla and the Sirens — Oceanus. A one-versus-three "rock band" fight: Scylla sings while the guitarist and drummer back her. Take out the guitarist first — his solo is the deadliest — then the drummer, then Scylla.

3. Infernal Cerberus — Fields of Mourning. A possessed Cerberus: three heads, leaping shockwaves and a fiery volley. Stand close — roll through him; for the volley, dodge along the arena.

4. Chronos, Titan of Time — Tartarus. The technical finale of the route, harder than Hades from the first game: fast combos with short animations, scythe waves, clock summons. Keep mid-range, dash through him after each combo, and save healing for phase two, where he calls echoes of past attacks.

Surface route: the war for Olympus

The surface unlocks through the story after your first Hecate victories — follow the cauldron incantations.

1. Polyphemus the Cyclops — City of Ephyra. The easiest warden: slow telegraphed swings, flying rifts (dash away from the center). Important: don't let him eat the sheep — he heals, and a sheep you hit will attack you.

2. Eris — Rift of Thessaly. The goddess of strife with the good old Adamant Rail from Hades: barrages across the arena, and periodically she shoots herself to boost her damage. Keep a dodge rhythm and don't get cornered. This zone hides the secret miniboss Charybdis — hit the tentacles, the body is out of reach.

3. Prometheus, Titan of Foresight — Mount Olympus. Lots of projectiles and no retreat: backing away is punished. The key mechanic — when he leaps off the stage, the arena floods with red zones: memorize the order of the waves and run to the safe tiles in sequence.

4. Typhon, Father of Monsters — The Summit. The final boss: shifting arenas, elemental waves, summoned tentacles and eyes. Save your Hex and healing for the end — the final phase runs longer than it looks.

Minibosses and secrets

Beyond the eight main bosses there are 19 minibosses. Underworld: Root-Stalker, Shade-Lure, Master-Fencer (Erebus); Deep Serpent, King Vermin, Infernal Fish (Oceanus); Phantom, Queen Lamia (Fields of Mourning); Wormant, Doomstone (Tartarus). Surface: Satyr Champion, Erymanthian Boar (Ephyra); Charybdis, Argonaut (Rift); Mega-Dracon, Talos (Olympus); and at the Summit — Typhon in mini-forms: Eye, Spawn, Tail and Twins. Minibosses drop rare materials for incantations and aspects.

Working builds

• Crit machine on blades: a crit aspect + Aphrodite/Artemis boons for damage-to-weak and crit chance. The twin scythe-and-dagger from the 1.0 patch is the base of the most "broken" build against Chronos.
• Anubis staff: drop the damage field → special drags enemies inside → dodge while they burn. Any area boons work.
• Nyx coat: activate Nightspawn — every attack and rocket doubles. The best room-clearing speed in the game.
• Eos flames: fire your Omega attack (light orb), keep it alive with specials — it hits the whole area every couple of seconds.

FAQ

How many bosses are in Hades 2? Eight main ones — four per route — and 19 minibosses, including the secret Charybdis.

What happens after the first clear? The game truly begins: Vows (Fear), new weapon aspects, Steel-Soul-like challenges and the other side of the story open up.

How do I unlock the Surface? Follow the cauldron incantations after your first Hecate victories — sooner or later Melinoë will "rise at dawn".

Who is Melinoë? Princess of the Underworld, daughter of Hades, witch of the Crossroads, Hecate's student — and Zagreus's sister.

This guide is based on version 1.0 (September 2025) with 2026 updates in mind. Ask about any boss or aspect in the comments — we'll break it down in detail.