Hades Guide
Supergiant Games2020PC, PS5, Xbox, SwitchRoguelikeRating: 93
Hades is a roguelike action game by Supergiant Games. Players control Zagreus, son of Hades, as he attempts to escape the Underworld. Each run is unique with random boons from Greek gods, but the story progresses between attempts. The game features fast-paced combat, beautiful art, and incredible writing and voice acting.
🎮 Getting Started
Core Loop
- Run: Attempt to escape — you will die, a lot
- Die: Return to the House of Hades, talk to characters, progress story
- Upgrade: Spend Darkness on permanent upgrades (Mirror of Night)
- Repeat: Each run gets easier with permanent upgrades
💡 Dying is part of the game. You're supposed to die — the story progresses through deaths.
⚔️ Combat Tips
- Dash: Has i-frames — use it constantly
- Special attack: Throw your weapon — recall for damage
- Cast: Bloodstones — ranged damage, retrieve by hitting enemies
- Call: Ultimate ability — charges during combat
- Boons: God upgrades — synergize them for powerful builds
⚡ Best Boon Combinations
- Artemis + Zeus: Critical hits + lightning chains
- Ares + Athena: Doom + deflect dashes
- Poseidon + Zeus: Knockback + lightning
- Dionysus + Ares: Hangover + Doom stacking
- Duo boons: Special combined effects — look for these
🪞 Mirror of Night (Permanent Upgrades)
- Shadow Presence: Bonus damage on unaware enemies — get first
- Death Defiance: Extra lives per run — essential
- Greater Reflex: Extra dash charges
- Boiling Blood: Damage boost when cast is in enemy
⚠️ Keep playing. The first escape takes 15-25 runs. After that, you'll be escaping regularly.
🎁 Boon Pairs That Break Runs
- Duo boons need two gods at a certain rarity - check the codex before you commit to a build
- Athena deflect plus Zeus chain lightning clears rooms without aiming
- Ares doom stacks and Aphrodite weak combine into the highest single-target damage
🪞 Mirror and Aspects
- Mirror of Night: take the extra dash and the death defiance before any damage upgrade
- Aspect of Arthur on the sword and Aspect of Chiron on the bow are the two easiest high-damage builds
- Switch aspects per run instead of forcing one weapon
🔥 Pact of Punishment
- Raise Heat one notch at a time; Hard Labour and Convenience Fee are the cheapest points
- Clear the final boss at Heat 0 before adding any pact condition