Guide to (Help You) Unlock Familiars

Learn where to find the little guys of Hades II and what you need to do in order to recruit them.
(Up to date as of the Olympic Update)

Disclaimer

• Hades II, just like its predecessor, is an Early Access game. Guide contents cover up to the most recent update, in which Olympus and the Black Coat were added. I will continue to expand this guide as more familiars become available.
  
  
• Due to the nature of Hades II as a roguelike (lite? Can of worms, there), how long some of these unlock conditions might take for you depends entirely on your approach to the game and your performance. Some events may take longer to proc for some than they will for others, and there's really not much either of us can do about that this time, either.
  
  
• Make sure you've used each gathering tool you can at least once. Unlocks might be tied to having used these, seeing as part of their effects are built into current familiars.

What is a Familiar?

Familiars are animals that can fight alongside Melinoë in the war against Chronos, give her various passives, look really cute and grant her uses of tools she does not currently have equipped to maximize the value of each expedition.

How Do I Find Them?

• (Potentially Not Required) Unlock then perform the Woodsy Lifespring Incantation (which you'll unlock as you naturally progress through the game) at the cauldron in the Crossroads. While exploring Erebus, you may now come across a cat in your travels. Interact with it whenever you come across it.
  
  
• At the start of the Hecate fight, after having beaten her an unknown amount of times and having used a few different gathering tools, she will bring up the concept of familiars and will also grant you a new Incantation.
  
  
• Perform the Incantation. You'll be given 1 Witch's Delight.

Frinos

Little Guy Extraordinaire himself, Frinos is the first familiar you'll acquire. Found in the spawn point at the Crossroads, you should give to him the Witch's Delight you should've just made if you've been following this guide to recruit him.

Toula (and how to make cookies)

This one's a doozy so I will only touch upon the details I absolutely have to as to not turn this guide into a surface unlock one as well. I will assume you've performed the incantation that allows you to explore the surface and the other which lets you actually, you know, survive it.

• Talk to Chaos repeatedly until they grant you an Incantation.
  
• Perform the Incantation. This will allow you to participate in Chaos Trials, which you'll need to do. Go do one.
  
• In the Alchemy tab in the cauldron, make some Beast-Loved Morsel (which I'll keep refering to as cookies in this guide because I'm normal. No offense, Mel) after acquiring the required materials. This is also what you'll need to turn future familiars to your side.

• On the surface, when you arrive at the docks leading to the ships after defeating the Cyclops, you'll come across Toula*. Give the cat a cookie.
  *If you don't encounter Toula at the docks, try finding it in Erebus' fountain chamber a few more times, since its spawn might be linked to an amount of prior interactions and having used the fishing rod before.

Raki

Be warned that, as of making this guide, this and the next familiar were just added in the first content update, so I already had a lot of progress that might or might not be required to meet them at all.

You will meet her in the Fountain Chamber in Erebus two times. First time, you'll talk to her. The second time, if you're carrying a cookie around, you can give it to her to unlock this familiar.

PS: Objectively the cutest little thing in the whole wide world. Will accept no objections. We love Raki in this house.

Hecuba

You'll first find her in Echo's chamber in the Mourning Fields. Interact with her there.


After unlocking & clearing a run with Raki (and, presumably, all other familiars up to this point) you may notice Hecate has new dialogue with an unlock attached (as signaled by the unique [!] icon above her head), which will allow you to bond with her familiars.


Return to Echo's chamber and, if you have a treat, you'll be able to give it to her, unlocking Hecuba a as a familiar.

Gale

You'll find Gale before the boss encounter in Mount Olympus. If you have cookies on you, you can give one to her, thus recruiting her and acquiring the (potentially?) final familiar of the game.

[Som]

Hi, it's a completely random chance, far as I'm aware. So long as you have it unlocked, it should *eventually* show up. I've had it appear on every type of reward possible, so that doesn't seem to be a determining factor, either

[dtutao]

How to get to the Fountain Chamber in Erebus? I have played Erebus 10 times but never find this room? I have unlocked this room and meet it before, it just not show often. Thanks

[Barrelyn~]

Been guessing they'll add some kind of bird familiar for a while. In Erebus there's a shrine with three statues, a frog, a cat and a bird.

[Som]

Yeah, it's just these 2 [for now], we'll see more in future updates, I'd bet. The bats in the cages are to get a bird's eye view of the city's rewards, since it can be very time consuming to check room by room, if not straight up detrimental whilst speedrunning in higher Fear runs (worth noting they pause the in-game timer)

[Killpocalips]

I had just unlocked the cat and wanted to know what other familiars you could get. Did not even know you could tame the frog that's interesting... is it really just these two? I had thought you could tame the bats from one of the cages but that's for something else. :o

[Som]

Have you used every gathering tool? It seems to be tied to that

[^3Ambyz]

I'm on night 28, beaten Cronos and been at the third Surface boss. Still haven't unlocked the incantation and I can see the cookie icon in my inventory (says I have 0).
(everyone is talking about the cat, no joke I have seen it a sh*t loads of times throughout my runs)

[ThornyMu]

I recruited Toula first, and did it in the Erabus fountain the second time I met her, so I never saw her on the docks.

[gucc[]x3gang]

I found after using all the crafting items and weapons atleast once triggers hecate's dialogue for familiars btw.. was wondering why she didn't give me the dialogue after I beated cronos and eris over 10+ times, then I used the tablet which i never touched once and she finally gave me the damn dialogue -.-

[Hex: Gremlin]

"because I'm normal" XD