The best favors in Hades 2

blessings of the gods are at the heart of every successful run-in Hades 2. The Olympian gods also have a vested interest in killing Time (aka Chronos), so they let you borrow their powers temporarily.

Whether it’s an elemental effect that lets you clear a room of enemies or a stat boost that keeps you from dying without a care in the world, finding the best favors can significantly change your fortunes during a run. Here’s an overview of it how favors workplus our selections for the best blessings inside Hades 2.

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How favors work in Hades 2

Image: Supergiant games via Polygon

You can get blessings in the middle of your life Hades 2 runs via two methods: by clearing a room of enemies, or by purchasing them from Charon’s shop for gold coins.

Boons give you passive stat boosts or change the way your attacks, specials, casts and dashes work. Each god generally tends to grant a different effect – Poseidon’s favors push enemies away from you, for example, while Hestia’s incinerates them – but not all favors have that effect.

In Hades 2During the Early Access period we encountered blessings from the following gods, but keep in mind that we haven’t ‘finished’ the game yet, so more gods may appear later.

• Aphrodite: benefits that tend to apply the weak status effect
• Apollo: favors that tend to apply the intoxication status effect
• Artemis: benefits that increase the chance of critical hits
• The meter: favors that tend to freeze enemies
• Hephaestus: favors that tend to increase your defenses
• Hermes: blessings that make you faster
• Hestia: favors that tend to burn enemies
• Poseidon: favors that tend to push enemies back
• Zeus: favors that tend to shock enemies

Some gods that were in the original Hadessuch as Ares and Athena, do not seem to be present in it Hades 2 (at least that’s what we’ve seen).

Boons are available at four rarity levels: common, rare, epic, and heroic. The higher the rarity, the more effective the blessing. (For example, a boon that deals 40% bonus damage at regular rank can deal 50% bonus damage on rare occasions.)

Finding a Pom of Power allows you to level up a boon of your choice, increasing its effectiveness. When choosing a room, pay attention to the symbol of a pomegranate.

If you equip a memento associated with a specific deity, you are more likely to encounter blessings from that deity while running. And if you unlock the ‘Kindred Keepsakes’ incantation, you’ll gain the ability to switch Keepsakes between regions. While you can never completely remove the randomized element Hades 2it’s a way to gain more influence over your builds.

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The best favors in Hades 2

Image: Supergiant games via Polygon

For the purposes of this guide, we’ve focused solely on the “standard” benefits you might encounter while running. In other words, this list does not include Chaos bonuses, Selene’s Hex bonuses, or bonus effects from characters like Arachne or Narcissus. While all of these bonuses are quite effective – and definitely worth paying attention to while running – they are equal more up to fate than the rest of Hades 2. It’s not

At a glance, here are our picks for the best blessings inside Hades 2which we have arranged alphabetically according to the god who can bestow them on you.

Below we explain why these are the best benefits – and, because not all benefits are suitable for all circumstances, we explain some of their limitations.

Best Aphrodite Favors

Flutter bloom And Flutter strike are not effective for all builds. But if you’re a fan of close-range weapons like the Sister Blades or the Moonlight Ax, expect to deal up to twice as much damage (or more!) with each hit, depending on the rarity of the boon.

Healthy rebound is all about betting on your own success. It’s rare that if you clear a room with 80% of your health remaining, you’ll heal yourself completely. Combining this with an Arcana card like Wayward Son, which heals you a little after each room, is an easy way to keep your health up.

Wispy Wiles, meanwhile, only works if you have four sky-themed favors, but focus on getting Aphrodite’s favors, and you’ll reach that threshold in no time. Having a 15% chance of avoiding any damage if you get hit is a (pardon the pun) godsend.

Best Apollo Favors

Supernova is the type of boon that fits into any build, and is particularly efficient at crowd control: it makes your casts grow larger over time, trapping more enemies in place.

Best Artemis Favors

Support fire was easily one of the best favors in the original Hadesand remains one of the best for Hades 2. Every time you hit an enemy with an attack or a special, you Also hit them with an arrow that deals 10 damage.

Best Demeter Favors

Freezing enemies in place is crucial for the crowded rooms that are cluttered Hades 2‘s late game levels. Two advantages work together to achieve this. Arctic ring Freezes all enemies in your cast while Cold storage keeps them frozen longer (anywhere from two to five seconds depending on rarity).

Winter jacket reduces your total magic meter, but gives you a barrier that absorbs one damage case each encounter. No matter how perfect you are, we all make mistakes and get hit from time to time. Winter Coat is the most effective insurance plan you can get.

Rare crop is only worth it if you can find it early in a run. Initially, it weakens all your favors, reducing them to a common rarity. But every three encounters they will increase in rarity. If you get it early enough, you’ll end up with a series of high-ranking boons by the time you reach the final boss.

Best Hephaestus Favors

New condition protects you from all damage for eight seconds at the start of each encounter. Act fast while you have the advantage!

By the time you get the Fields of mourningmost enemies have armor and your attacks usually do minimal damage. Molten Touch increases the damage you deal to the armor (by up to 50% depending on the rarity of the boon), making it invaluable for late-game regions.

Best Hermes Favors

If you are lucky enough to encounter Hermes, Greater evasion is one of the most useful defensive advantages in Hades 2. Even a regular rarity gives you a 10% chance of avoiding damage. Combine this with Aphrodite’s Wispy Wiles and you’re about as invincible as they come.

Nitro boost offers a nice perk to your sprint (you run a little faster), but the real reason to get this boon is that it gives you the same type of one-hit protection barrier as Demeter’s winter coat.

Best Hestia Favors

Burnt offering gives you a permanent (for the duration) increase to your health and magic meters, but in exchange for one of your existing favors. You can see which favor you’re giving up, so if it’s one you’ve built around, you don’t have to go through with the exchange. But if it’s one you can live without, the significant boost to your stats is often worth it.

Smoldering ring is not just a good pun. All enemies you encounter in your cast will take sustained fire damage; you can trap a handful of enemies in your cast and ignore them while still gnawing away at their health bars.

Best Poseidon Favors

Hydraulic power works extremely well in combination with Mint Condition, from Hephaestus. For the first 10 seconds of each encounter, your attacks and specials deal increased damage. If you have both of these equipped, you can spend the first few seconds of each encounter without worrying about it.

Wave blooming is best used with long-range weapons, such as the Witch’s Staff. If enemies get too close, you can use this to push them back so you can maintain a safe distance.

Best Zeus Favors

Like the first HadesZeus’ shocking favors were a favorite among speedrunners. But the shock effect Hades 2 has lag, meaning you don’t get the kind of instant gratification damage you would get in the first game – except Thunder sprint, which automatically deals shock damage to enemies you approach. Struggling with a boss? Receive this blessing and literally run circles around them to win!