Boss Battles

[WookieNinja87]

Is it just me or are the bosses insanely annoying/difficult. I have beaten Hades many times but damn even the second and beyond bosses of Hades 2 puts Hades to shame. Chronos is just a cheap add on spawn simulator, Scylla has way too much visual clutter on the screen, Cerberus has way too many massive aoe attacks that he can spam, Cyclops just jump ropes all over you, and Eris.....yeah who doesn't love a flying blitzkrieg that can up their power without taking damage or anything and one shot you? Only boss I haven't struggled on so far is Hecate and I've gotten to Chronos at least 3 times. Love Hades and for the most part I have enjoyed Hades 2 but the bosses with some level designs is quickly frustrating and turning me away. Sad after putting hundreds of hours into Hades.

[Ravenari]

I definitely felt this way in the beginning! (At least for some, Polyphemus I found stupidly easy the first time I fought him, because I had a very nice build for him - i.e. faster than average Dash / Sprint / Movement + a fast Cast channel - builds can make/break Polyphemus and Eris). But I don't feel this way anymore, because it's very much a matter of building the resources to help your play style (i.e. upgrading weapons, unlocking Arcana and so on) and building the right builds.

Cerberus' AOE attacks hardly matter if you stay in close and dash through him and spam strong Cast + Special or Attack builds on him.

Chronos is predictable though sometimes very fast with certain attacks, and his most dangerous attacks are the easiest ones to avoid once you've learned them.

You actually benefit from taking the time to learn his patterns (stage 2 Chronos becomes very easy after that).

Scylla has a lot of visual clutter for sure, but becomes a lot easier to deal with once you figure out the order you want to take out all of the musicians in.

Cyclops is extremely slow and easy to dash the attacks once you get to know the patterns of attack.

Eris is a piece of work, but again, things like certain Selene boons and certain Chaos boons etc. help with her battle a lot. So does simply getting stronger through upgrading Arcana, Death Defiance, etc.

Maybe because you put hundreds of hours into Hades, you've forgotten how often you may have been dying in the beginning while farming Darkness etc. to put into the mirror to give yourself more than one dash. Or maybe it's just taking a while for you to find your vibe! Most players seem to be defeating Chronos in between around 10-25 hours of gameplay, and I have to say for myself, I got very frustrated at first, but I did find winning in that final fight extremely satisfying, and I haven't lost to him again since.

(I do think playing Elden Ring extremely badly has given me more patience through frustrating bosses + learning their move sets lol).

It might be worth watching some Let's Plays so you can see someone else doing the boss fight/s successfully for both build ideas, and also to learn the move sets while you're not stressed out about it / fighting for your life. It won't take long for you to start getting the hang of the patterns. If you can handle the Guardians and Bosses in Hades I, you're going to be able to crack the Guardians / Bosses in II! It just might take some time to get to the build-states you want.

Keep an eye on the balance too. Aphrodite's boons are way more powerful at the moment, but aspects of Hephaestus are fairly broken if you're not getting the right boons. So the gods you may have relied on in Hades I might be letting you down in Hades II if you're looking for that kind of familiarity. I wish you luck, though I'm sure it won't be long at all until you get there.

[WookieNinja87]

"Eris is a piece of work, but again, things like certain Selene boons and certain Chaos boons etc. help with her battle a lot. So does simply getting stronger through upgrading Arcana, Death Defiance, etc."

Well Selene's Boon didn't help me much. I had the Dark Form boon and I used it and when it ended I was stuck in place only able to move when I dashed or sprinted. I had to build up another hex and use it to return to normal but damn that wasted some much needed health lol. Funny first time it happened but I really hope they fix that bug. Also I've been using all sorts. I do like the Smith and Fire boons though Poseidon special with upgraded staff specials is really broken especially with hermes's faster special.

[Ravenari]

Originally posted by WookieNinja87:

"Eris is a piece of work, but again, things like certain Selene boons and certain Chaos boons etc. help with her battle a lot. So does simply getting stronger through upgrading Arcana, Death Defiance, etc."

Well Selene's Boon didn't help me much. I had the Dark Form boon and I used it and when it ended I was stuck in place only able to move when I dashed or sprinted. I had to build up another hex and use it to return to normal but damn that wasted some much needed health lol. Funny first time it happened but I really hope they fix that bug. Also I've been using all sorts. I do like the Smith and Fire boons though Poseidon special with upgraded staff specials is really broken especially with hermes's faster special.

The best Selene boon for Eris imho is the one that specifically slows time for 5 seconds (I can't remember the name of it), but as a friend said 'it's almost sad how easy that can make Eris.' Anything that churns through a lot of magic to charge it up can have you setting that off 3+ times in a battle with her. Also running out of range of her bullets (they do have a range that ends), and using the apple sculptures if they haven't been blown up yet, also using Frinos as a familiar once you unlock him. If you get high magic you can spam omega attacks/specials/casts (whichever is fastest) out of range and just repeatedly charge up that hex, and then get 5 seconds of heavy attacks on Eris each time.

How many Death Defiances are you working with at this stage in the game? And do you have the Arcana active that slows enemies when you Cast?

But yeah that's why I said 'certain' boons. There's boons I'd pick for Chronos that I wouldn't pick for Eris, and it feels like they want people to think in terms of different builds for going up vs. going down. (Though personally I've never found Dark Form all that useful. It sounds like it will be but it's either broken or I can't figure it out or enemies spamming attacks makes it not very useful anyway - I'm sure some people love it, but I always stick with things like Phase Shift and the time one whose name escapes me).

It sucks that you've encountered bugs along the way which make it extra frustrating. I have to admit I nearly didn't get early access so I could play the polished game instead and miss the part where I lose simply because the game's still getting figured out and I might get randomly nuked because my sprint doesn't load, etc., and not because I'm just pants at playing (which I am quite often).

[WookieNinja87]

Originally posted by Ravenari:

Originally posted by WookieNinja87:

"Eris is a piece of work, but again, things like certain Selene boons and certain Chaos boons etc. help with her battle a lot. So does simply getting stronger through upgrading Arcana, Death Defiance, etc."

Well Selene's Boon didn't help me much. I had the Dark Form boon and I used it and when it ended I was stuck in place only able to move when I dashed or sprinted. I had to build up another hex and use it to return to normal but damn that wasted some much needed health lol. Funny first time it happened but I really hope they fix that bug. Also I've been using all sorts. I do like the Smith and Fire boons though Poseidon special with upgraded staff specials is really broken especially with hermes's faster special.

The best Selene boon for Eris imho is the one that specifically slows time for 5 seconds (I can't remember the name of it), but as a friend said 'it's almost sad how easy that can make Eris.' Anything that churns through a lot of magic to charge it up can have you setting that off 3+ times in a battle with her. Also running out of range of her bullets (they do have a range that ends), and using the apple sculptures if they haven't been blown up yet, also using Frinos as a familiar once you unlock him. If you get high magic you can spam omega attacks/specials/casts (whichever is fastest) out of range and just repeatedly charge up that hex, and then get 5 seconds of heavy attacks on Eris each time.

How many Death Defiances are you working with at this stage in the game? And do you have the Arcana active that slows enemies when you Cast?

But yeah that's why I said 'certain' boons. There's boons I'd pick for Chronos that I wouldn't pick for Eris, and it feels like they want people to think in terms of different builds for going up vs. going down. (Though personally I've never found Dark Form all that useful. It sounds like it will be but it's either broken or I can't figure it out or enemies spamming attacks makes it not very useful anyway - I'm sure some people love it, but I always stick with things like Phase Shift and the time one whose name escapes me).

It sucks that you've encountered bugs along the way which make it extra frustrating. I have to admit I nearly didn't get early access so I could play the polished game instead and miss the part where I lose simply because the game's still getting figured out and I might get randomly nuked because my sprint doesn't load, etc., and not because I'm just pants at playing (which I am quite often).

I have the Death Defiance Arcana at max rank and I always use it. I also have the first cat familiar that gives me another DD. So about 4 defiants. Still burn through them getting to her and then at her. I dunno just fallen hard from the happiness I felt first playing it. I've played Hades for over 100 hours so I know that it's tough and you should expect to die but damn this is just absurd. I have the different weapon aspects and all the weapons and have been getting good boons and still haven't beaten Chronos or Eris. It's like the devs just don't want you to win on skill and RNG is a really piss poor thing to base a game solely off of. It's fun mind you but if it's consistently bad then no they should change it. There's many things I've seen in this sequel that I don't like like the dash for instance. Having a sprint is nice but only one dash with a cd (even if minor) is just doesn't feel good. It's like they took all the good stuff of Hades and dumpstered it.

[♥BlackSun♥]

You joking right?

[WookieNinja87]

Originally posted by ♥BlackSun♥:

You joking right?

If I was a comedian sure but I'm sure after reading this you are going to use your last IQ point to say "GiT guuuuD".

[Ren O'the Blade]

Frinos is better than the cat, the extra health you get is about the same you get on the Cat's Death Defiance, except that health you get back from Defiance is percentage based, so the more health you have the better, meaning Frinos is actually worth more health overall, plus he can stop projectiles if you get him in between you and the projectiles.

Now while there is no simple strategy I can give to kill Chronos besides massive damage, which is how I spank him, usually have between 250 to 350 HP by the time I get there and 3 death defiance. I usually only struggle on the 1 hit deaths on the second phase. If I do not mess up there, he is a free kill for me most runs. Examples of synergies I use to get him. daggers(aspect of Artemis) Aphrodite and near damage boon for attack with , Daedalus hammer and 300% on final attack, or 200% back stab damage. Staff(aspect of Momus) Poseidon special damage boon with, Chain lightning with Zeus. Cast builds can work well too. Just stack anything that can be stacked, Demeter, Appolo or Hestia damage after cast explodes, Hestia or Zeus changing cast to targetable spell and Zeus or Demeter adding damage while the cast is going on, zeus having lightning raining down during the cast or Demeter adding a cyclone. All in all Chronus is a war of attrition he is so hard to avoid all his attacks all the time. So DPS lessens that amount of dodge time you have to put in.

For Eris, 1 boon makes her a joke, get Hestia, use the sprint boon and poof you avoid 99% of all her shots while sprinting. Some slip through for some reason, but sprint till she stops shooting, put boot to ass, sprint again, rinse and repeat till dead. Of your can hide behind the statues, bait out her shots, Or charge a cast on the other side, they can hit her some times. After she shoots come out, spank her and hide again. When she does that shot where she stands still and the purple target line appears, just run perpendicular to it till she fires, it breaks the statues.

[Tachikoman]

Yes, the fire sprint pretty much trivialised Eris fight. The mobs are more of a challenge in comparison.

[VAL]

I have a hard time believing that you “put hundreds of hours into hades” and are struggling like this. How on earth did you play the first game? I have 300+ hours on hades and the bosses in this game are significantly easier to deal with lol. Im sorry but you deserve this:

“Get good”

[MajorWulf]

beside chronos , spoken for myself , every boss is really doneable even with different builds ,diff weapons and stuff like that , the game is fresh and you need just a few attempts to train...even in hades 1 you dont kill the last boss on your first attempt , and even after the first beating it took a while till he becomes easy pray ...right now i just think chronos needs a few adjusments , from his pure dmg ,especially the thrown scythe , or his insta kill attack , and some telegrafs ...he dont need to be fix to the ground , but a small adjustment her and there ...right now for me it feels like just doneable with the right pure high dmg build , while low dmg build brutally increase the combat time , and my chance to make a wrong step or get a bad situation with shred you appart .

[Nemo]

Eris is the only boss that I have any real complaints about her mix of "hard but learnable". Chronos is appropriately fine as an end boss -- losing time dialation and time stops is cool, and makes his otherwise pretty manageable telegraphs feel tricky and special. I suspect he's not harder than Dad in the first game given that we get so many more rooms to curate our build through, overall.

On average, I think that some of the other bosses could actually be a bit harder, but maybe having played the first game a ton, I understand the game better and am intuitively figuring out the other bosses much better. Hecate, Sirens, Dog, Cyclops, Kraken and the non-Tartarus Minibosses all feel fairly generous and forgiving to me -- My "tries until I rarely die here" rate for all of those bosses is low.

I basically hit Eris or Chronos on non-failed runs after maybe 20 hours of playtime with nowhere near as much maxed progression.
- Hecate is just fundamentally a very good first skillcheck but easier than the Furies and less varied.
- Sirens is hard at first because reading the telegraphs and behavior of three characters is a lot, but everything is highly telegraphed and there are good strategies for concentrating on downing one of them. Overall much more generous of a "multi-boss boss fight" than Theseus and Asterius.
- Cerberos has super giant AOEs, but that's all the fight has, and all of the telegraphs are generous and nothing is really a one-hit-kill anyway.
- Polyphemus has very obvious patterns, and really just requires adapting to his ring stomps. Things get a bit hectic as he stays active during his adds phases, but that's it.
- Kraken is a fine alternating phase boss, but mainly just tests dash discipline and awareness of multiple enemies. I suspect that the clear rate on Kraken for all players is pretty high for anyone who clears Polyphemus.

Eris is the one boss that stands out to me as a bad mix of hard to read, hard to anticipate, and unforgivingly damaging for all attacks.

[Rod, of eight toes]

I'm having a much easier time with Hades 2 bosses than Hades 1.

[Last_Sinner]

Personally got to full clearing in Hades 2 way faster than I did in Hades 1. I find the first two bosses going down to be chill once you know their patterns, third is a bit more dicey with melee weapons but still feels balanced to me. Chronos feels like what a final boss should be - get a reliable attack/special boon or even sprint (Hephaestus is hard to go wrong with), preserve your health through Fields, pick up damage reduction and health increases. Max out a familiar. Open up the Arcana enough (particularly Defiances, Titan, Strength and Huntress.) Then on Chronos, know the patterns. You're not going to avoid everything, just avoid enough and damage enough while doing so.

And make sure you do some runs going up once you can, Hera appearing in both directions after you do is a gift. Eris hits hard but once I understood you can't outrun her rotating attack and to dash through behind her instead, fight was winnable.

[goodbye_bonito]

Originally posted by WookieNinja87:

Originally posted by Ravenari:

I have the Death Defiance Arcana at max rank and I always use it. I also have the first cat familiar that gives me another DD. So about 4 defiants. Still burn through them getting to her and then at her.

If you burn Death Defiances before the final boss then it is not bosses which is a problem

[t1psy]

I did not struggle with any boss in Hades 2, even killed Eris on the first attempt but I imagine her being a tough enemy to beat if your build isn't good enough.

I think it's a skill issue on your side (unfortunately).