HomeGuidesHades
Hades Boons: the best Boons and Gods to chooseLearn which Gods bestow the best Boons in Hades
Learn which Gods bestow the best Boons in Hades
On this page:
Hades Guide: How to WinWatch on YouTube
Hades Guide: How to Win
Hades Boons overview - how do they work?
Throughout a Hades run, you will be offered various Boons from the Olympians - Zeus, Poseidon, Ares, Aphrodite, and so on. After conversing with a God, you will be offered a choice of three Boons, and must accept just one. Each God has a multitude of Boons which they can offer you, and each Boon can be one of four different rarities. The higher the rarity, the stronger the effect:
There are also special Boons which only appear under very specific circumstances:
Upgrading Boons with Poms of Power
Regardless of their rarity, each regular Boon can be upgraded to the next level using a Pom of Power. Like Boons themselves, picking up a Pom of Power will offer you a choice of up to three Boons to level up, and you must select which one you want to upgrade.
Hades best Boons
So, what are the most powerful Boons in Hades? The answer is complex, because not only are there an awful lot of Boons in the game, but each one can be offered at various strengths, making their benefits variable.
Overall though, there are certain Gods and Boons which I always gravitate towards when given the option. And thus:here are the very best Boons in Hades:
Aphrodite - Heartbreak Strike
Aphrodite doesn’t offer the best Boons on the whole, butHeartbreak Strikestill holds a place in my heart for its application of Weakness with each hit. This gives you great control during fights where it’s almost impossible to avoid being hit (for instance, in Elysium or Styx). Plus the damage boost is as strong as any other God’s “strike” Boon.
Ares - Battle Rage
Ares’sBattle RageBoon is an extremely strong damage bonus for all future encounters. All you need to do is kill one foe in the room, and you’ll gain a huge damage bonus for your next attack or Special. Often this leads to powerful builds which allow you to one-shot-kill most enemies.
Artemis - Support Fire
Athena - Divine Strike & Divine Dash
Athena has possibly the strongest Boons of all, because they allow you to deflect attacks, negating all damage from the attack and returning it to its sender.Divine Strikegives the ability to deflect on each attack, and - even better -Divine Dashdeflects in all directions each time you dash. It’s overpowered.
Demeter - Frost Strike & Frost Flourish
Demeter’sFrost Strikeis enormously powerful. Not only does it add a chunk of damage to your main attack, but it inflicts Chill, slowing down any enemy you hit. The same goes forFrost Flourish, which is better for weapons and builds where you’re using your Special a lot - like Varatha or Stygius.
Dionysus - Strong Drink & After Party
Dionysus’s health-oriented Boons are really quite excellent. Once you’ve unlocked Fountains in each realm,Strong Drinkcan be an absolute life-saver; andAfter Partyallows you to heal back up to a threshold after each encounter, which again can make all the difference during a difficult run.
Hermes - Quick Recovery
If you read myHades tips guideyou’ll know that I spend all my time dash-striking. Which means whenever I’m hit, I tend to dash straight away anyway. This is what makesQuick Recoveryfrom Hermes so powerful: it’s essentially a huge reduction in your damage taken for the rest of the run.
Poseidon - Poseidon’s Aid & Hydraulic Might
Poseidon probably has the best “Call” ability in the game withPoseidon’s Aid, which turns you into an invulnerable, high-damage battering ram. But his strongest boon has got to beHydraulic Might, which dramatically increases your damage for the first few seconds of each encounter - enough to often end the fight before the effect even expires.
Zeus - Lightning Strike & Static Discharge
Hades Boons - full list of every God’s Boons
Aphrodite Boons
Ares Boons
Artemis Boons
Athena Boons
Demeter Boons
Dionysus Boons
Hermes Boons
Poseidon Boons
Zeus Boons
Congratulations! You’ve reached the end of our Boons guide for Hades, which means you now know just about everything there is to know about the Boons that each Olympian can offer. If you’re looking for more ways to increase Zagreus’s power as he strives to escape the underworld, check out our guides on thebest Hades Keepsakesand thebest Hades weapon upgrades.
