Hades 2 - How To Unlock All Weapons And Aspects

Hades 2 pits you against countless foes, each deadlier than the last. Naturally, you're going to need weapons that can lay waste to your opponents. Here's our guide on how unlock all weapons and aspects in Hades 2.

How to unlock all weapons and weapon aspects in Hades 2

Trying to unlock all weapons and aspects in Hades 2 can be downright convoluted at times. Although weapon unlock mechanics are fairly straightforward, the means of acquiring their aspects still remains uncertain (we were genuinely surprised when we received a prompt about it during our playthrough).

In any case, our Hades 2 weapon and aspect unlock guide first discusses how each weapon is obtained. This section is followed by tips on how to use these armaments effectively, along with suggestions on ideal Daedalus Hammer upgrades. Finally, we discuss the incantation that lets you choose additional aspects.

As an aside, we also have a best boons/skills guide. You can check our suggestions to learn of synergies among various skills and armaments.

There are currently five weapons available in Hades 2. We know that there's one more that will be introduced later on, given that the game is still in early access.

• Witch's Staff - This weapon is available by default.
• Sister Blades - Requires 1x Silver. This resource can be mined in the Erebus zone if you have the Crescent Pick gathering tool.
• Moonstone Axe - Requires 15x Silver. This just means you have to keep redoing runs while hoping that there are several Silver nodes in Erebus.
• Umbral Flames - Requires 3x Silver and 3x Cinder. The latter is dropped by Hecate, the boss of the Erebus region.
• Argent Skull - The Argent Skull doesn't appear right from the get-go. You have to progress a bit by doing some extra runs. Later, you can acquire it by spending:
  • 2x Glassrock/G.Rock - Take the Crescent Pick and continue on your journey until you reach the Fields of Mourning (i.e. the third zone in the Underworld). Once there, look for black mineral deposits.
  • 1x Bronze - Bronze only comes from the surface world, specifically the City of Ephyra. Reaching it is quite a complicated process, but we have a surface world/wards guide to help you out.

Given that the Witch's Staff is the default weapon in the game, it's also the most beginner-friendly. You'll probably make use of it for a very long time since it's quite reliable.

The attack and omega attack are nothing to write home about, but the special move is great, especially once you pick up the Double Moonshot from the Daedalus Hammer boon. With it, your specials fire two projectiles that seek enemies. This is ideal if you just want to hang back and shoot opponents from afar.

As for ideal god boons, you'll want to acquire Apollo's Nova Flourish and Artemis' Support Fire. The former increases the size and damage of your specials (akin to large golden orbs). The latter causes seeking arrows to fly out to hit hostiles whenever you use attacks and specials.

The Sister Blades (i.e. dual daggers) might be the best weapon in Hades 2. It's because of its high attack speed and bonus damage when hitting enemies from behind (i.e. backstab). Ideally, you should get the Skulking Slice boon from the Daedalus Hammer, while also pairing it up with boons from the following gods:

• Hephaestus - Powerful blasts triggered by your attacks.
• Aphrodite - Increased damage against opponents that are very close.
• Demeter - Freeze hostiles then backstab them.
• Artemis - Fast attack speed means you get more chances to land crits eventually.

The Moonstone Axe is a slow weapon that packs a tremendous punch. You're guaranteed to hit multiple creatures with its wide-arc swings, followed by a crushing overhead smash at the end of the attack combo chain. The special, meanwhile, can block some enemy attacks (it's not as good as the Shield of Chaos from the first game).

The two most viable Daedalus Hammer upgrades for the Moonstone Axe are:

• Hell Splitter - Your attack becomes an overhead chop that has 300 power.
• Executioner's Chop - The final move in your attack sequence hits twice, but it uses 20 magick.

These two offer amazing synergy because all your attacks will be limited to just the overhead smash, which also counts as the "final move" in the sequence. In short, every attack you do has the 300-power buff that ends up hitting twice. The only downside is that basic attacks will deplete your magick quickly, so you need god boons and Arcana Cards that help with mana regen. Lastly, since you're using a ton of mana in each encounter, you might want to double-up with certain Selene blessings/upgrades.

The Umbral Flames is primarily for medium-range combat. Its basic attack shoots out spectral orbs, and its special/omega special causes several fireballs to surround you. The problem is that it doesn't do as much damage as the other armaments in the game. Similarly, you have to hold down the attack button for a longer time to continue using the omega ability. This can be risky since you still need to avoid enemies.

If you really want to keep using it, then we suggest grabbing upgrades/boons from the Daedalus Hammer (Growing Coils) and Artemis (Support Fire). Spam your special as often as you'd like, and look for god boons that make your special inflict debuffs.

The Argent Skull is the last unlockable weapon in Hades 2 (for now). Think of it as a shotgun, since it fires skulls that deal high damage. Its special move, meanwhile, causes Melinoe to rush forward while beams erupt along the sides. One potential issue you might face is that the skull ammunition needs to be picked up just so you can attack again, making the process a bit confusing.

However, if you can find the Bolstered Array upgrade from a Daedalus Hammer, you get extra skull ammo. This is further complemented by Full Salvo, which lets you fire all skull shells at once in a spread pattern. This can annihilate foes if you hit them with all shells at point-blank range.

You can continue playing to your heart's content without realizing that there are additional unlockable weapon aspects in Hades 2. That's because an incantation called Aspects of Night and Darkness only appears much later. Here's what we did in our playthrough:

• We had already unlocked all five weapons.
• We used them in multiple runs.
• We've defeated Hecate many times, but we can't confirm if we were able to do this with all five different weapons.

Eventually, after one such victory against Hecate, she'll mention the Aspects of Night and Darkness, which then becomes available in the cauldron at the Crossroads. To complete this incantation, you'll need:

• 5x Bronze - Keep returning to the City of Ephyra and look for deposits that you can mine using the Crescent Pick.
• 1x Nightshade - You'll need the Flourishing Soul incantation to create more plots for your garden, as well as the Silver Spade gathering tool. Dig up mounds of dirt in Erebus to find Nightshade Seeds, then plant these in your garden. After this, complete five encounters until they're ready to be harvested.

Note that this also makes the Abyssal Insight incantation available. This leads to additional activities known as Chaos Trials.

Once the Aspects of Night and Darkness incantation is complete, return to Melinoe's room. You'll notice that you can now view and unlock weapon aspects in Hades 2.

There are a total of three aspects for each weapon type. One is the Aspect of Melinoe, which is the default option (i.e. what you've gotten used to this whole time). Two more can be unlocked and subsequently leveled up to increase their effects.

Witch's Staff

• Aspect of Melinoe
  • Base effect: Channel your omega abilities +15% faster.
  • Unlock requirements: Available by default.
• Aspect of Circe
  • Base effect: After landing 21 attacks or specials, gain Serenity for six seconds--i.e. +15% omega ability speed and rapid mana restoration.
  • Unlock requirements: 5x Silver and 5x Lotus.
• Aspect of Momus
  • Base effect: While you have no more than 50% HP, absorb your omega special blast to restore +5 HP; +10 special and omega special power.
  • Unlock requirements: 2x Lime and 1x Pearl.

Sister Blades

• Aspect of Melinoe
  • Base effect: Attacks and specials deal more damage when striking enemies from behind.
  • Unlock requirements: Available by default.
• Aspect of Artemis
  
  • Base effect: While channeling your attack, you occasionally parry and riposte after; +20% omega attack speed.
  • Unlock requirements: 15x Silver and 1x Glassrock.
• Aspect of Pan
  
  • Base effect: Your specials seek enemies in your cast and you fire more blades after channeling; +1 blades for your omega special.
  • Unlock requirements: 1x Wool and 2x Shaderot.

Moonstone Axe

• Aspect of Melinoe
  • Base effect: Recover faster after using your attacks and specials.
  • Unlock requirements: Available by default.
• Aspect of Charon
  
  • Base effect: Your cast lasts +3 seconds and erupts like your omega cast if struck by your omega special; +10% cleave cast size and damage.
  • Unlock requirements: 5x Pearl and 1x Obol Points.
• Aspect of Thanatos
  
  • Base effect: Whenever you hit with omega abilities, gain +1% damage that stacks (lasts until you take damage); +4% critical chance.
  • Unlock requirements: 3x Glassrock and 1x Dark.

Umbral Flames

• Aspect of Melinoe
  • Base effect: Flames from your omega special burn longer before expiring.
  • Unlock requirements: Available by default.
• Aspect of Moros
  
  • Base effect: Your attacks linger for six seconds and erupt in a blast if struck by your specials.
  • Unlock requirements: 2x Bronze and 2x Tears.
• Aspect of Eos
  
  • Base effect: Your attacks grow bigger and stronger, returning to you when you sprint; +40% full-grown damage.
  • Unlock requirements: 2x Driftwood and 2x Golden Apple.

Argent Skull

• Aspect of Melinoe
  • Base effect: Your attacks have increased power for every skull shell that you fire that's not yet retrieved.
  • Unlock requirements: Available by default.
• Aspect of Medea
  
  • Base effect: Attacks stay within reach, then explode in a large area on impact or after three seconds; +20% attack and special damage.
  • Unlock requirements: 4x Iron and 1x Nightshade.
• Aspect of Persephone
  
  • Base effect: Any damage you deal generates "glory"--i.e. your omega special lasts five seconds longer and fires continuously while you have control; +10% omega ability damage.
  • Unlock requirements: 1x Moss and 5x Poppy.

That does it for our guide on how to unlock every weapon aspect in Hades 2. We hope you can use these armaments to their fullest potential. Likewise, you could try looking for ideal synergies with the help of our best boons/skills guide. Furthermore, there are Chaos Trials and Oath of the Unseen that you can try out.