The Best Hades 2 Boons

The Hades 2 early access gives us a tantalizing look at the roguelike game, allowing us to test out new Hades 2 builds, introduce ourselves to the new, and returning, cast of Hades 2 gods, and most importantly, hand out gifts like candy. We have played as much Hades 2 as humanely possible, and have figured out the best boons so you can dominate the underworld.

All Hades 2 boons

In addition to ranks, which increase the effect of the boon, they all have an elemental affinity. After unlocking the Divination of the Elements at the cauldron, you’ll see an element on the top left corner of the skill as you choose it.
Generally speaking, these are the same as that of the god or goddess, so Zeus tends to have Air, and Poseidon has water. However, there are exceptions, and some gods have multiple elements that their skills tap into. These matter because some boons require you to have an affinity for specific elements by collecting some of them from your previously selected skills. There are other ways to collect elements; one of Narcissus’ perks gives you one of each.
Here are all of the Hades 2 boons and perks we found during the early access, along with our picks for the best ones for each god and NPC:

Aphrodite

The main trick with Aphrodite is to stack any Weak effects, which reduces any afflicted enemy’s damage output by 30%. This means it’s much safer to damage foes while up close. The best Aphrodite perks are Broken Resolve, Rapture Ring, Glamor Gain, and Secret Crush.

Apollo

Apollo’s boons grant you the power to curse your enemies with the Daze ailment, which has a chance to cause enemies to deal no damage whenever they hit you. While it’s not something that triggers often, it can come in clutch during difficult boss fights. The best Apollo perks are Back Burner, Blinding Sprint, Critical Miss, Dazzling Display, Extra Dose, and Nova Strike.

Arachne

Arachne is the NPC encounter you can find in the first area, Erebus. You can choose one of three dresses, each granting you a significant buff to your armor and a set perk. Any armor purchased at Charon’s shop will grant you the armor again should it run out, and Arcana Cards can help you keep it by adding more durability.
The best ones are the Azure Dress or Lavender Dress if you want to use magick, the Emerald Dress if you want guaranteed health recovery, or Scarlet Dress if you want more AoE damage.

Artemis

Artemis occasionally assists off-screen during a run to take on a large wave of enemies. Upon their defeat, she’ll appear, and you can talk to her to get one of her boons. They mostly increase your chance of dishing out critical hits or giving you extra attacks, so our picks for the best ones are Easy Shot, First Blood, Lethal Snare, or Support Fire.

Chaos

Chaos is one of the stranger boons you get. Firstly, you normally sacrifice some health to enter their domain, and then you’re essentially cursed for the next few encounters before gaining a powerful buff. There are quite a lot of them to choose from, but the simplest to complete curses with the biggest reward are Addled Blood, Fixated Affluence, Ordinary Defiance, and Rejected Will.

Circe

You find the enchantress Circe in the Rift of Thessaly, and she’ll offer one of three upgrades. The best ones are Old Herbal Remedy, Lapis Lazuli Insight, and Red Cirtrine Diviniation.

Demeter

Melinoë’s grandmother will bestow her with a chilly touch to her attacks, allowing her to freeze an opponent to the ground. This can be particularly handy when dealing with shielded and highly aggressive opponents, making it a decent option for ranged weapons or attacks. The best Demeter boons are Arctic Ring, Cold Storage, and Ice Flourish for freezing ability, while Rare Crop is good for buffing your other perks, and Winter Coat gives you a defensive shield.

Echo

Upon meeting a cloaked figure in the Mourning Fields, you’ll soon realize she can’t say much beyond what she last heard. The best perks here largely depend on your current situation. If you had a particularly good run prior to the one you’re on now, you can get some of that former power back with Boon Boon Boon. Reward Reward Reward is the other mostly default option as your previous item is likely something that buffed your current build.

Hades

Trapped in Tartarus, the former God of the Dead, Hades, is shackled next to his trusty guard dog Cerberus. His gimmick is that his perks either affect aspects of the final boss or give you a powerful perk to help eliminate them quickly. Deep Dissent and Old Grudge are great options for messing with Chronos, while Howling Soul is the most consistent of the rest of your options.

Hephaestus

Hephaestus is one the best of the godly bunch and easily one you can build around if you’re using ranged weapons. His earth-based perks give you boosts to overall damage or apply Vent to hit enemies for an extra hit of burst damage. This has the potential to make short work of even the toughest foes. Our picks for the best Hephaestus boons are Furnace Blast, Molten Touch, Tough Trade, and Volcanic Flourish for damage, while Fixed Gain gives you bonus defense and magick recovery.

Hera

Hera’s main boon perk she gives you is the ability to deal damage to multiple enemies at once with the Hitch ability. As soon as you affect one enemy with this ailment, each subsequent hit you inflict upon them will splash out the damage to every other enemy on screen. This is best used with ranged weapons, and our picks for the best boons are Dying Wish, Hereditary Bane, Sworn Flourish, and Nasty Comeback.

Hermes

The speedy messenger of the Olympian gods is perhaps the most universally beneficial boon-giver. His perks all revolve around making you dodge more easily and improving your attack speed or making enemies and their projectiles slower. You won’t get many of these during a run, but our favorites are Greater Evasion, Hard Target, Nitro Boost, Swift Flourish/Swift Strike, and Witty Retort.

Hestia

Many of Hestia’s boons cause the Scorch ailment, which does damage over time. This can be especially handy for dealing with bosses at any range while also melting enemy shields with ease. The best Hestia perks are Fire Extinguisher, Flame Flourish/Flame Strike, Smolder Ring, Flammable Coating, and Natural Gas.

Icarus

You can find Icarus in the Rift of Thessaly, and he’ll give you a choice of one of three inventions. The best of these by far is Destructive Coating, which has barely any downside. Supply Chain is also incredible for those looking to buff their boons quickly.

Medea

Upon finding Medea in the City of Ephyra, the curses she can give you are some of the most powerful effects you can get for surface runs. Those using Magick builds should go with Traces of Spirit, while Life from the Dead has a small chance to give you a tiny bit of recovery. Suffering on Sight can be decent, but the randomness of its ability means you can’t rely on it to get you out of fighting a tough enemy.

Narcissus

Within the walls of Oceanus, Narcissus’s gifts are all very good in their own way. It largely depends on what you need at any given time, but the universal best choice is Life Savings as it essentially gives you an extra life. Heartfelt Condolences gives you the most max health, while Mixed Blessings will give you a random boon from one of the gods.

Poseidon

As God of the Sea, it’s no surprise that Poseidon’s water-based boons focus on knocking enemies back with waves. This can help pin a tough foe into a corner, do bonus damage to those affected by his Slip ailment, or drive away anything that gets too close. Therefore, it’s better to use melee weapons where possible. Our picks for the best Poseidon perks are Breaker Spirit, Fluid Gain, Slippery Slope, Wave Strike, and Hydraulic Might.

Selene

The Titaness of the Moon is an unlikely ally in the fight against Chronos, but her boons all affect your Hex attack. After hitting enemies with Omega attacks, you’ll charge up the use of this unique technique based on the Magick spent. It depends on your build as to which one is the best for you, but the best ones are either Lunar Ray for the burst damage potential, Moon Water for its unparalleled recovery, and Phase Shift because it makes everything slower and easier to avoid.

Zeus

Zeus’s lightning skills will curse your foes, but you can only take advantage of it by keeping up the pressure. Whenever an enemy is affected by Blitz, they are struck by lightning after they take 120 damage within the curse’s duration. You can buff this further with the best Zeus perks: Double Strike, Electric Overload, Heaven Flourish/Heaven Strike, and Storm Ring. Toasting Fork is practically mandatory for successful runs as it ensures that even if you don’t get the damage in on time, you’ll still hit them with a lightning bolt when you reach the threshold.

Are there any Legendary Boons in Hades 2?

The good news is that Legendary Boons are in Hades 2 but are also incredibly hard to find. It seems like the main way to get them to appear is to get specific Boons from a single god, and eventually, they’ll offer the Legendary Boon. We recommend using Hades 2 keepsakes, which increases the chance for a single god’s Boon icon to appear at the end of each room. Each god has one legendary boon, which you can find details about in their relevant boons section.
Now that you know our picks for the best Hades 2 boons and have all the information you could need on the rest, you can pick and choose what works for you and create an unstoppable build.  Before you jump in for real, check out our guides on the Hades 2 Arcana Cards – an invaluable resource for surviving the underworld’s onslaught.