In Hades 2, Melinoë can make use of many Arcana Cards to get significant buffs during your runs toward either the House of Hades or Mount Olympus. But true to that, picking the right cards can be a key differential between reaching Chronos or being forced to end your attempt early. To help you avoid the latter and optimize your chances of success, here are the best Arcana Cards to unlock first in Hades 2.
The Best Arcana Cards to Unlock First in Hades 2
As you can discover new Arcana Cards in Hades 2 by unlocking adjacent ones on the board, we decided to arrange our recommendations based on their in-game numerical values. We also will omit The Sorceress, as unlocking the card is mandatory. All the values below are referent to the cards while a Common rarity.
The Wayward Son
Okay, this one is a given. The Wayward Son —which represents Zagreus— will allow Melinoë to heal 2 Health after exiting any chamber. The healing will be increased to 4 HP if her Health value is below 30%. Although it is very unlikely that you will, do not sleep on this card, and make sure to keep it enabled at all times during the early and mid-game.
The Wayward Son will become available after you unlock The Sorceress and will cost 1x Ashes. The card will demand 1 Grasp.
The Huntress
The third overall card in the board, made available after you unlock The Wayward Son, The Huntress allows you to deal 30% more damage while having less than 100% Magick. This card is a must-use, as you will most likely make constant use of Omega moves during your runs. Using it will also allow you to maximize your DMG while not equipped with specific boons and will offer a huge boost when paired with the right ones. The Huntress will cost 3x Ashes and need 1 Grasp.
The Titan
The seventh overall card, The Titan is an obligatory pick when arranging your cards for a run and will increase Melinoë’s Health and Magick by 20. There’s not much more to be said here, as base stat increases are always welcome (especially when bosses like Chronos can deal 40 DMG per attack). The Titan will become available after you unlock The Wayward Son and will cost 7x Ashes. To keep the card active, you will need 2 Grasp.
The Unseen
The Unseen card will allow you to regenerate 2 Magick per second while in battle. Even if some may think the buff is minor, it will prove to be a key differential. Remember, although your Magick value will be replenished at the start of each encounter, it won’t go back natively during it.
The Unseen will become available after you unlock The Huntress, The Titan, or the Night cards and will cost 20x Ashes / 5 Grasp.
The Lovers
Representing Hypnos and Eurydice, The Lovers allows you to ignore the first instance of damage dealt by all bosses during their encounters. Although significantly more expensive than the cards above, using it will help reduce the blowback of mistakes when faced with the game’s mightiest foes.
The Lovers can be made available by unlocking the Night or The Messenger. The card will cost 30x Ashes / 2 Grasp.
Eternity
No matter which stage of the game you are in, very few Arcana Cards in Hades 2 will top Eternity. When active, the card will give Melinoë Death Defiance. Similar to how it worked in the first game, each instance of DD will allow her to get back up with 40% Health immediately after receiving a killing blow. Upgrading the Card will allow you to get up to 3 extra lives.
You can unlock a path to the Eternity card by unlocking either The Titan, The Swift Runner, or The Centaur. The card will cost 20x Ashes and will demand 4 Grasp.
Related:
Hades 2: 10 Tips for BeginnersThe Centaur
Following Eternity, The Centaur will allow you to get a 3 Health and 3 Magick increase per 5 locations/rooms visited. Differently from most picks in our list, the card will not cost any Grasp and will be enabled automatically if you have active cards whose values go, without skipping, from 1 to 5. You will need to expend 25x Ashes and 1x Cinder to unlock it.
Excellence
For all tired of only finding low-rarity boons, we have Excellence. When active, the card will increase the probability that you will meet rare boons by 30%. Like with The Titan card, there’s not much to be said here, as there’s no downside to getting better boons. Excellence will become available for 35x Ashes after you unlock either Origination, the Queen, or The Moon. As you can see above, you will need 5 Grasp to activate it.
Although a late-game investment, I also recommend that you unlock the mentioned Queen card as soon as possible. Once active, the card will provide a 6% chance of finding Duo Boons, which are by far the best in the game. The card will cost 40x Ashes and 1x Tear. The latter can only be acquired by defeating Cerberus.
You can currently play Hades 2 exclusively on PC via both Steam and The Epic Games Store.
