Gameplay mechanics/Hades II

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HadesHades II

This page covers the basic Gameplay Mechanics of Hades II. It also functions as a glossary of terms.

Abilities

Melinoë has 6 different abilities that she can use in his escapes from the Underworld. They can all be enhanced with Boons, Keepsakes, or items. The Daedalus Hammer tweaks a weapon's Attack, Dash Attack, Special, or Ω Move, often drastically changing the ability and substantially increasing its damage.

Attack

A weapon's primary attack; usually a fast hit with a short cooldown. Some weapons have a separate attack used by holding the Attack button.

Special

A weapon's special attack; usually a slower-hitting ability with utility, like ranged damage or damage within an Area of Effect (AoE).

Cast

Unlike the first game, Melinoë's cast differs from Zagreus'. Melinoë's cast is a magick circle that she can conjure on the ground at her current position that ensnares any enemy caught within it.

Dash & Sprint

Dash is movement ability which can evade attacks or get into position. While Dashing, Melinoë is immune to all damage. Dashes can cross gaps and barriers. Attacking during or immediately after dashing performs a quick Dash Attack. It is possible to use cast, special, or attack while dashing with most weapons, but doing so disables Melinoë' immunity for the rest of the dash.

Sprint is another movement ability that can be activated while holding the dash key/button. When activated, Melinoë will move at faster rate but will be unable to attack until she ends her sprint.

Magick

Main article: Magick

Magick is a resource that Melinoë uses to primarily cast Ω Moves however, some Boons and Daedalus Hammer upgrades may have a Magick cost.

Ω Moves

Ω Moves are empowered abilities that Melinoë can cast by holding their respective activation key/button. Only Attacks, Specials and Cast are able to become Ω and each have a cost of .

Ω Attacks and Specials are dependent of their weapon that Melinoë is currently using but the Ω Cast is the same. Ω Cast causes damage to enemies within the cast once the cast effect ends.

Damage

Main article: Damage Calculation

Damage can be inflicted by Melinoë, enemies, and a variety of environmental and bonus effects.

Damage increase percentages in Hades II are "additive", which means any % increase is based on an ability's initial damage (a.k.a "base damage") and are added separately — they do not scale off each other.

Example: if an attack does 10 damage, a 50% increase would make the attack deal 10 + (10 × 0.5) = 10 + 5 = 15 damage. If that same attack gains another 30% increase, it would produce 10 + (10 × 0.5) + (10 × 0.3) = 10 + 5 + 3 = 18 damage.

Backstab

Bonus damage applies to foes attacked from behind, known as a Backstab.

Backstab damage can be enhanced by:

• Increasing the rank of the Aspect of Melinoë (Sister Blades):
  • Backstab damage: +0%/+20%/+30%/+40%/+50%

Critical Hits

Critical (Crit for short) is a modifier that makes foes take more damage than usual (multiplicative increase). A critical attack will deal at least 300% damage to an enemy, but can be further increased by other effects. All Artemis Boons grant crit chance and damage.

Punished

Bonus damage can be applied to enemies suffering from at least 2 Status Curses, through the Origination Arcana Card.

Punished Damage can be increased by:

• Upgrading the Origination card
  • Punished Damage: +25%/+38%/+50%/+63%

Traps

Traps are various hazards found in the Underworld and Surface, such as the Steam Plates in Oceanus, to the Thorn Bushes in the Fields of Mourning. Traps can damage Melinoë and enemies, but hurt enemies considerably more than Melinoë.

Other Effects

These are other gameplay mechanics in Hades II without a general category.

Armor

Not to be confused by the Armor that Melinoë can get.

Armor is found on Elite enemies. Armored enemies are outlined in yellow, gain an extra yellow health bar, and are immune to stuns and Knockback until that extra health bar is depleted.

Destroying armor by depleting its health bar usually briefly stuns the affected enemy. If Melinoë deals more damage than the entire armor health bar in a single hit, the remaining damage is ignored — it doesn’t “overflow”.

Some Daedalus Hammer upgrades and Boons increase damage to armor.

Elite Foe

Elite Foes are a variant of enemies marked with a skull symbol next to their health bar. These enemies are stronger than their normal counterparts, possessing Armor and additional abilities.

Some elite foes, such as the Deep Serpent, only appear in miniboss chambers.

Status Curses

Status Curses are debuffs applied by Boons. See the full list of Status Curses.