Hades II: all achievements + prophecies
May. 2nd, 2026 09:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
schneefinkI played a lot more Hades II and had a lot of fun. And I even finally got a Melinoe icon, look. (Still too lazy to type the dots on her name every time.)
I finally got all achievements and fulfilled all prophecies, which is a good moment to finally post my run notes.
#63, I decided to keep going with god mode even in an underworld run because right now I want story progression. Got a very nice build with Selene coat, but it was still very nice to have god mode just so I could be a little less careful in the Chronos fight. …I hope I'm not learning bad habits, ahem.
I got Gigaros from Zagreus, but also suggested to him that he talk to Chronos first before trying to kill him, nice. And Melinoe called him Big Brother :)
#64, back to Olympus – I got enough hints from various characters ^^ with aspect of Circe, again, but Hephaestus' cast this time. I gave another nectar to Heracles, who suspected it might be poisoned, and then said he's neither god, nor mortal, nor shade, and was born not only to die like all mortals but also to kill. Then this time I met Circe!, but she talked about Typhon being defeated instead of the aspect, unfortunately. I also asked Prometheus about Dora and he said neither he nor Dora are to blame for mortalkind's failings, vices, and downfalls. (The run before Hades said he wanted nothing to do with Prometheus' sentencing, that was Zeus' doing.) I got the Ares&Hephaestus duo boon, Ares called him hard-working and said as the only true-born sons of the King and Queen of Mount Olympus they ought to rise to the occasion and assert themselves, but Hephaestus said he doesn't want more responsibility, his forge and his wife are enough. (Noo my notes are getting long again.)
I again had three DDs going into the Typhon fight, but this time despite the 20% damage reduction of god mode I lost all three of them and survived with just 5 HP, phew.
Afterwards I got the incantation to destroy Typhon from Hecate: just need to beat him two more times. (Could do that asap, but otoh, the temptation to visit Zagreus a few more times just to see what their conversations would be like…)
And I visited the hot springs with Icarus, who explained to Melinoe that mortals have shame about their bodies, and Melinoe says that shades such as him and Odysseus are "close enough to gods," ookay.
Then I did another chaos trial, and then I went to the fishing pier with Odysseus. Who said now as a Shade he's "finally free," hmm. I also got the incantation "Greatest Gift of Gaia," I'm curious how it'll work with fishing in particular. I'm only missing the rarest fish from the Mourning Fields and the Rifts of Thessaly.
#66 (I think?), beat Chronos again with Charon's axe and Toula's help. I forged a bond with Chaos along the way, my first one :) Melinoe said she gives them ambrosia because she's in awe of them and Chaos called Melinoe "amusing, more than I originally thought" ^^ Other notable conversations included Hera telling me not to help Heracles because he's in the middle of "a journey of self-discovery", Hades asking after Hecate, and Hecate afterwards saying he should not thank her because she failed in her task to safeguard the realm. Chronos said Melinoe is a witch, no mere god, and asked if she really thought the gods were better for the world than he, Melinoe said this is not what this is about, Chronos asked than what is it about. Zagreus not being able to hear Melinoe anymore is a convenient way to stop their conversations for now so I go up to Olympus instead.
#67, Melinoe Blades: I lost a DD each to Eris and Prometheus and was pretty pessimistic if I was even going to make it to Typhon, but then I got Tall Order active and right before Prometheus I'd also gotten Sun Worshipper, and I had an almost-fully upgraded Lunar Ray, and I didn't end up losing a single DD to Typhon himself. I met Demeter in the Palace! She asked Melinoe to call her grandmother (although perhaps not here.)
I found out on Reddit that I need to upgrade a non-Melinoe weapon aspect to level V to get the passphrase for the hidden aspects, so now I have to decide which ones I want to unlock first and then get more Nightmare.
I went after Eris in the next run for that with 2 fear and beat her, but as expected got beaten by Prometheus (Athena refused to give me any DDs back, boo.) Before that I unlocked level 5 of the aspect of Selene and during the run I got the passphrase for the hidden aspect from her – only to come back and find out it's too expensive to get rn ^^ Next one, axe, with the nightmare I got I upgraded aspect of Charon to level 5 – although I'm not sure I have enough to unlock the hidden aspect of that one, either… should have started with staff or blades, probably. At least I can order nightmare from Charon now. And Toula has an adorable little witch hat.
#69: I beat Typhon for the fourth time, go me, with Selene's aspect of the Coat this time. It was very close again: I used the crystal figurine and that activated my Strength card, which was very convenient because I had no DDs left when I got to the Summit. (I really need to get better at fighting Prometheus.) I almost died to the Tail, which is my least favorite of the Summit minibosses, but then at the top of the Summit I got Hera's Legendary, that helped a lot. I also wouldn't have made it without meeting Dionysus, I got a boon from him that gave a lot of healing.
Back at the Crossroads I got the axe's aspect of Nergal – doesn't sound that great tbh but I will of course try it out. More importantly, I cast the incantation Disintegration of Monstrosity – which required Gigaros for some reason?, I thought Gigaros was meant to destroy Chronos; ah well. Now, to defeat Typhon one more time.
#70: I eradicated Typhon \o/ (was I meant not to find any gems on this run?, whatever.) I got all possible duos between Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, and Apollo, and didn't lose a DD the entire run (though it was close a few times.) And I had Morph as a hex, not one of my favorites, and only met two allies, Medea and Circe – no, three, Heracles too, I almost forgot.
So then back home I cast Dissolution of Time! Looking forward to how that goes. Interestingly I can't take either Selene's or Athena's trinkets because both are "busy investigating the eradication of Typhon" – I wonder if that means I won't get a hex this next run?
#71: (It did.) I beat Chronos! On the same run where he kidnapped Hecate – I wonder what it would have been like if I hadn't succeeded on that run actually, fairly bleak in the Crossroads I assume.
An epic level 12 (because of King's Ransom) storm cast, doubled because of aspect of Circe, did a lot of the work along the way and in the third phase, too.
And then, the ending. I was nervous because I heard it's not great, though at least better than when the game first came out. And it was… fine, I guess. Chronos' change of heart because what he really cared about was having his family was definitely foreshadowed, though it still seemed pretty extreme, especially because having a grudge for being literally cut apart is very justified; I think that might have been what seemed especially weird to me, that he seemed entirely apologetic and remorseful and not have even a trace of anger left about his dismemberment, did he really work through all that in the new memories? Well tbf that would have been a major topic until he could become such an accepted member of the family, so that kiiinda makes sense. Having memories of two timelines is also interesting – still room for plenty of angst. Only everyone from the House of Hades got the extra memories, right? Hm.
From what I heard about the changes I'm very glad I didn't play the first version! (Thank you Silksong.)
The carriage ride during the credits was very pretty.
#72: Finding out what the new underworld run looks like. Both Hecate and Scylla are definitely in the new timeline, Cerberus too, he just likes running around in the Fields and happens to become infested with miasma, and then Chronos is a remnant, a possibility that apparently needs eliminating. Huh.
I had a conversation with Hecate where she said she was initially angry because she thought Melinoe would be wiser than choosing to be stuck at the Crossroads instead of living at the House of Hades, and Melinoe said this is where she wants to be.
Nemesis still being here is very strange, I had a conversation where she made it very clear again that she wants to be out there and do her job and make sure evil-doers get Retribution, and it's not clear why she still needs to be here. Artemis seemed delighted that Melinoe will continue re-tracing her steps and Artemis gets to continue hunting and hanging out with her, but Nemesis?, and I can't imagine her role in the runs was big enough to be ~required.
#73, going up: the whole Summit is in a time bubble (and Hermes can enter and leave.) Makes more sense than only the House tbh, since Tartarus would also be Zagreus' domain, but I haven't seen Hades there yet, I assume that'll look different. I met both Circe and Icarus (on Mount Olympus, interestingly) and neither of them had heard about Chronos being defeated, not big on spreading the good news apparently. Heracles had, but seemed sure that nothing will change, like nothing has before. Prometheus also said that he'll continue doing what he has, and seemed to be saying that this will continue to be his future now, hm. Zeus then said they'll close the Palace for the foreseeable future – that, combined with the earlier hints that Zeus is considering drastic measures to deal with Typhon, makes me worry a bit, ngl. I hope it won't be like Greece and I can never get back there, that'd be a shame, but I unfortunately suspect so.
Back at the Crossroads I had a conversation with Icarus in which he asked that surely Melinoe won't have to continue as before and Melinoe insisted harshly that the job is not done, hm. I also heard Nyx talk to Nemesis and tell her that she's to stay here and cooperate with Hecate – with apparently no regard for what Nemesis wants, almost made me feel sorry for her, Nyx is not a very caring mother to her own children. Melinoe also told Hecate that she's sorry Hecate didn't get memories of the alternate timeline, and that Hecate wasn't present in those memories. Hecate says that's probably because Persephone didn't need her.
I did another Chaos trial: those can be very convenient to e.g. get Legendary boons.
The prophecy to find the Fates was updated to say I need to become closer to several people, one of them Moros, so I gave him another nectar and he asked if that was because of a prophecy, heh. I also cast the incantation to go back to an earlier time, which didn't have an effect anymore except add an altar, but I wanted it done anyway.
I think there were a couple more interesting conversations but I was too lazy to take screenshots to remember them.
#75(?), I took an Infernal Contract from Charon and ended up in Elysium, fighting against Zagreus! Fun. Of course I lost, I barely had any boons and a chaos curse besides, but definitely doable.
Next I beat Chronos with Nergal. Not my favorite weapon but more fun than I thought at first. I also met Hades and Persephone in Tartarus – you'd think they'd at least renovate that chamber more so it doesn't remind Hades as much of his imprisonment. And I got more nightmare, enough to upgrade aspect of Pan to level 5, so now I need to find Artemis for the passphrase. Most pacts send me into the underworld rn but the prophecy suggests I talk to Heracles and Prometheus so that's overworld runs, hm.
And I invited Hecate to the fishing pool. The conversation had Hecate reassure Melinoe not to feel guilty for taking the time to fish despite her task – that felt misplaced since the "task" after the ending isn't time-sensitive anymore. I wonder how many more conversations would have felt weird like that already if I'd finished even sooner, and how many there will still be.
Next I went to the Underworld again but Artemis didn't give me the passphrase yet, boo. I tried out the Jewelled Pom, which requires me to have no re-roll Arcana active, nice to switch it up once in a while. Nyx was visiting Chaos and when asked if she'll visit the Crossroads again said she wants her children to be as independent as possible, didn't you just give orders to Nemesis last night? (Ngl I'd somehow forgotten that Selene is a foster daughter of Nyx and was disappointed to find that out during the ending, idk.)
#78, overworld run with Pan (feels underwhelming even at level 5 tbh), successful thanks to 3 extra DDs from Athena (et al), still didn't get the passphrase from Circe.
#79: I finally dared to activate the Vow of Rivals! And fought Polyphemus in the middle of Medea's poisons, ugh. Buut I made it through and only died to Typhon. I also talked with Prometheus about the Fates, which was apparently enough for the prophecy to find them to qualify. And I got the waking phrase for Lim and Oros from Artemis: I got the blades' aspect of Morrigan, nice.
With that one I next did the underworld with Vow of Rivals, with 8 fear this time, the highest so far: VoR Hecate cost me all three DDs, that was tough. (Okay to be fair I also didn't play great.) Buut I recovered and beat Chronos. Before that I gave him nectar outside the crossroads and got a wristwatch from him as a trinket, neat.
I then did another underworld run. I'm not too far from getting all duo boons and legendaries.
And after that I did a chaos trial for more star dust, with that I brewed more treats for my familiars, and I finally fully upgraded all of them and could get all of them cute outfits. I picked the demonic look for Frinos and the infernal one for Gale, for now.
I got the waking phrase for the torches from Moros, but I need to brew more shadow extract to unlock it. I also went to the hot springs with Hecate and then gave her nectar: she's feeling deeply guilty for how she raised Melinoe and almost wants Melinoe to condemn her for it, which Melinoe refuses to do.
And Odysseus is having a melancholy phase where he sits at the taverna a lot and talks about how he's thinking about the sirens' song (I unlocked all their songs at the music maker for him), and first he said he and his wife and son are no longer close but then says he does still think about them, hm.
Hecate confronted Nemesis with her insubordination and offered for Nemesis to leave, but Nemesis said her place is here. Hecate says she can stay and deal out as much retribution as she wishes. Nice of her. Hopefully that'll make Nemesis settle down though I doubt it, judging from a conversation soon after. Nyx also visited and Hecate said none of her children made any trouble, heh.
Most of the Vows point downward atm but I really want to go up next to talk to Medea again and also Heracles and Circe.
#83: Back to Ephyra, where I unfortunately didn't meet Medea, but I beat VoR Polyphemus without losing a DD this time iirc, go me. And then I beat VoR Eris on my first try! She has the Rail's aspect of Lucifer, interesting. I lost all DDs to her but then even beat Typhon.
I aaalmost beat VoR Scylla on my next run, so close. Love her new make-up xD
A few more overworld runs looking for Medea, and then I finally unlocked all weapon aspects! I did a run with Morrigan again, I really enjoy that one, and then one where I tried out Supay and one with Shiva. I died in the overworld a few times but I did make it to Polyphemus and Circe with the Knuckle Bones: Odysseus got his closure with Polyphemus, but I still need to find Circe once more.
#88, I did two Chaos trials as well for star dust and got two duo boons I'd still been looking for – very convenient for those, but I don't see for what from the outside.
I maxed out my affinity with Hecate, for now – Melinoe is very hesitant to call her by name but she was invited :) Hecate is still holding something back, says the book, and I'm mad that this is one of the few things I was spoiled for, I'd love to know what theories I'd otherwise have.
I also talked with Moros a lot and I gave him ambrosia, which unlocks the romance part, but the prophecy still wants me to get to know him more, the Fates really are setting him up. (Unless I just need to talk to him and not offer him gifts, idk.)
Next I should try to beat VoR Scylla because I had interesting conversations with both Heracles (who thinks everyone close to him is doomed, iirc, which, knowing his history, kinda fair) and Prometheus (who still seems to be working toward some kind of plan?) – I was also spoiled for VoR Prometheus sadly but still look forward to it.
#90-97: I did some Chaos trials, including my twentieth in total, and then died to Zagreus in Elysium. I completed my bond with Moros: I'm still not very interested in that romance btw but it's fine, I guess.
Next I beat Chronos with Hel, and then I picked Anubis again and this time I beat Zag! Much easier to do from Oceanus than Erebus, unsurprisingly. Champion of Elysium, go me. (I assume I have to do that a few more times to get his keepsake?) All three underworld runs were attempts to fulfil the Fates' prophecy, but each time I didn't manage because I accidentally killed my foes too quickly and/or had bad luck with fountains etc. At least I beat VoR the last two times, which unlocked VoR 3.
Next few: I think it was on run #101 when I finally managed to trigger the epilogue! I met the three Fates. …who apparently, at least that's what they claim, have just been chilling, enjoying their time off, and want to continue doing that, oh and one day there will be a new age and mortals will decide their own fate. …okay? Idk that was kind of a let-down. Though at least Nyx said afterwards that they were probably just pretending that they didn't need help, which would make sense because the prophecy did say "help us" after all.
The bigger thing was the conversation with Hecate in the bath afterwards. (She wasn't at the Crossroads when I returned so I started a new run but she didn't say anything when I met her in Erebus, so I let myself die immediately afterwards bc priorities.) I'm so sad I got spoiled for Hecate being Melinoe from a different timeline, but at least not about the details. Raised by Selene alone to take revenge, taking Chronos down by herself, and then being sent back "closer to the beginning" of Time, which Melinoe interprets as aeons ago. Long enough that she can call herself a Titaness, at least. …oh wow, Hecate's relationship with Selene in this new timeline must be very different. And Selene (presumably) doesn't know! So was Hecate around back when Chronos was still alive the first time? Because one way I could justify her not being more vigilant about Chronos coming back again (it didn't take Zagreus that long to find him – though time might not be linear through the mirror connection) could be that Hecate contributed to this bindings and thought that because of her contributions he wouldn't be able to get out like he did in her own time. But she was very wrong. Another thing she feels terribly guilty for. Heck she tells Melinoe that she loves her more than she could ever love herself, which in context of how much she seems to dislike herself, much less touching.
(I of course immediately went to AO3 and was disappointed not to find more Hecate & Selene fic. Contemplating.)
I did a few more overworld runs afterwards and earned the first gift of the Veil. I also finally got the knuckle bones to Circe and Odysseus talked to her: not that he had much to say? Unsure how much he was hoping she would still feel fonder about him but they both agreed to put it behind him and he just said he was glad to have met her, basically. And I got a recipe from Medea that let me delve one level deeper into Hypnos' dream – still not wake him though. I'm still having trouble with VoR Polyphemus and Eris, even though I'm at 48% damage reduction with god mode now, they usually cost me at least one DD each. I also tried to get Heph Legendary and the Ares&Zeus duo boon, both the last I still need, surely I'll get them soon.
Prometheus implied that the Fates declaring the next age will be for mortals to decide their fate is what he's been waiting for, which makes sense for him and is a good reason for him to do all this, I like that; and then he said that they'll keep fighting until then, which of course is necessary on a Doylist level but I'm not sure I get it in-game. Would something prevent that age from coming to pass if Melinoe didn't keep retracing her steps? Or maybe he's glad he's part of Melinoe's task so that the gods can't imprison him again, an idea I read somewhere and like a lot.
Moros said he probably will be out of a job, which I don't quite understand, why would his "job" as Doom depend on the Fates doing theirs? Yes he was their guardian but he's a god, an incarnation even, of his own, like Thanatos and Nemesis; and it was at least implied that Nemesis will leave sometimes on her own errands, iirc, which makes sense to me.
Btw I'm increasingly getting lines that make less sense considering I'm past the ending, the first few I barely noticed but I guess I had higher expectations for attention to detail like that.
Patch 2:
Reading through the patch notes, I think this was good timing for me because I was close to finishing several of the prophecies that got extra content (yes you can watch it later but it's not the same.) Arachne's prophecy just appeared on the list even though it wasn't before, ah well. I had conversations with Nemesis and Moros about Hypnos, then I met Medea again on the surface and then I finally woke him up. A bit anti-climactic, even with the new scene after but that at least made it better. I hope he shows up again.
I also had another conversation with Prometheus about why he fought Melinoe to begin with, apparently he foresaw no other way with this outcome, and teaming up also wouldn't have gone the way Melinoe might expect, also because it was never about mortalkind for Melinoe.
I did an underworld run that ended quickly after a terrible showing against VoR Hecate, but in my defense I'd fought against Zagreus before, I beat him again and got his keepsake, nice.
And I could give nectar to Icarus in the crossroads but I talked to him first and then he flew away. Melinoe said she always wanted to fly with him and he said he wanted that too, but he had to do that on his own, and that shades and goddesses don't mix.
I also got dialogue with Moros asking how he's settling in, that must be a mix-up ^^
105 runs in total.
#106, I finally brought Odysseus to talk with Scylla, and after that he left for a while to find his wife and son. (I still like my headcanon that he's been in contact with them the entire time but it's increasingly unlikely.) And I finally got the last duo boon, now I'm only missing the Heph legendary. Zeus said Prometheus wasn't punished enough for what he did ("denied us the glory of bestowing fire unto mortalkind on our own terms"), he's the worst. Hecate implied she left Hypnos asleep for Melinoe to practice her craft on, heh. While Nemesis said she always thought Hypnos was Melinoe's type, huh, weird.
My next overworld run I died to Prometheus again, but at least I got to talk to him, which triggered the conversation with Dora to restore her memories. I did a chaos trial to get the star dust for the incantation and then Dora disappeared for a while. The dream comforter also showed up in the crossroads – I already know what it does, spoilers, but that one I'm not too disappointed I found out about and also it was entirely my own fault.
#109, I did an underworld run with the Strength arcana – I was a bit hesitant but it was fun. Fates' Whim, too, the Pom and Card keepsakes are very good for that.
After that I did my first Dream Dive! I went through the Mourning Fields, Thessaly, Tartarus, and Ephyra, and made it through. That was fun, and I want more gold stars for the familiar outfits.
Dora regained her memories and talked about the jar: Melinoe told her it wasn't her fault if it wasn't on purpose, but Dora is not convinced. Melinoe even asked Hecate afterwards if she's supposed to accept that her relatives where so careless and cruel to mortals, if Prometheus is right about the gods.
Odysseus also returned! He talked with Penelope and Telemachus and says it went well and he'll visit them again. So much for my theory, ah well ^^
Then I did another overworld run, with 0 fear, and I got an epic level 6 volcanic flourish plus the Heph duo boons with Poseidon and Hestia, that hit like a truck and I got my fastest overworld clear yet.
#112: I beat Zagreus with 2 HP left, go me, and then still made it through Oceanus and beat Chronos at the end :) Trick Knives is a very good hammer. Still really enjoying Fates' Whim with the family keepsakes and Strength.
#113-#119: Several more successful underworld and overworld runs, all with Fates' Whim and Strength. I completed Circe's "test" about cursing Scylla, and I gathered tears for Medea but she didn't let me give them to her yet. I barely saw Athena and could only talk to her about Arachne once, but I met Narcissus and Echo talking a few times twice. And I brewed an incantation to make Skelly's bones stronger.
I'm this close to winning with every weapon aspect! I also fully upgraded all Arcana and I did one run with Judgment – not my favorite tbh.
I also finished my affinity bond with Odysseus – ngl I was a bit disappointed that the last conversation of that on the fishing pier was about shades possibly making assumptions about the two of them (or, as Melinoe suggests, about Odysseus and Hecate) but I can still give him more gifts, after all.
Nemesis beat Chronos! She finally made her way into Tartarus, but couldn't make it into the House on her own (apparently Hades' shades didn't open for her, continuity issue or the wrong door?) But then she talked with Chronos, and he sent her against another Chronos remnant and she beat him first try, good for her. She's planning to continue doing that while Melinoe deals with Typhon remnants, though Melinoe will still fight Chronos remnants as well because she can see her family on that route, more than enough for both of them after all. I gave Nemesis two more nectar and she at least apologized for doubting Melinoe could do it – though in the same conversation she said she doesn't know if she could, another continuity issue (this one I filed as a bug.)
I also invited the Spirit Mixer, who presumably has the same function as the guy in the bedroom in Hades 1: cosmetic ranks, nothing more. Before I invest heavily I really need to try out a few more decorations: there's some I simply don't like, but I want to try out different taverna benches etc. I did unlock all arcana card decorations, not that I need them but just because I wanted all of them.
I have 41/50 steam achievements, but some of them will take a while longer, like doing the "Greater Chaos Below" trial – fully randomized with 20 fear?, the highest fear I've cleared so far is 12. And I haven't even met the VoR 3 fights yet (though I'll probably get to those soon.)
#120, I beat Typhon with Moros' torches and finally fulfilled the prophecy "Bearing Dark Gifts" for beating a run with every weapon aspect, nice. Next I beat the underworld on 16 heat, including VoR Cerberus, with Morrigan – I got a bit lucky with boons but it was still not as bad as I'd feared. Then I did a bit of decorating in the Crossroads :)
Immediately afterwards I thought "hey why not" and did the overworld with Circe with 12 fear and VoR 3, and I beat Prometheus and Hercules together on my first try and Typhon after :) A high-level Hephaestus attack (in this case, or special) is a beautiful thing, and this time I didn't even get the Poseidon duo boon, only Hestia's.
That got me the second statue. I'm at 54% god mode rn. I still couldn't give Medea the distilled tears! But I got the recipe to brew something for Icarus, at least.
Next I decided to try VoR 3 Prometheus and Heracles again – and promptly died to Polyphemus, oops. I succeeded in my second attempt though and took down Typhon too. Then I did another Dream Dive (on 16 fear) and beat that too, and now Raki has a phoenix form (though I'm not sure yet if I prefer moon-touched.) Did some more Crossroads renovations. And I finally gave the tears to Medea and brewed the ectoplasm to give to Icarus.
Next run, I finally encountered VoR Chronos and died in the third phase. I also summoned Athena, who suggested she could talk to Arachne because this matter is distracting for Melinoe and therefore for her, and finished the Narcissus & Echo storyline (not my favorite one, not very compelling imo, not even enough to try and sort out my thoughts about it.) The one after that I suggested the plan to Arachne, and then beat VoR Chronos!! Even though my build didn't really come together the way I wanted, I didn't get any of the duos I was aiming for (between Apollo, Demeter, Poseidon, and Zeus), but still did very good damage with Circe, and Night Bloom was crucial. Evil Eye also helped a lot.
Finally added some tent decorations, too.
#128: Next underworld run Athena finally deigned to talk to Arachne and demanded a sincere apology – which Arachne refused to give. And to be honest, fair, she didn't actually do anything wrong apart from being arrogant and possibly rude and that shouldn't lead to a curse like this. But then clearly I don't value the crime of heresy enough, heh. (I don't remember if Arachne recounted what exactly happened in-game.) In that same run I made it to Chronos and beat him while wearing the Fuchsia dress! Without Hephaestus, even, just the silken sash starting in Oceanus and aspect of Charon (for ranged damage) with heroic level 11 tidal ring, heroic arctic gale, heroic mental block etc. (And no fear, of course – apart from the one that gives armored enemies specific abilities because I'm still missing one to complete the prophecy.)
Afterwards I did another run mostly to talk to Arachne again and fulfil the prophecy, so I wasn't even that disappointed to die to VoR Hecate. She is still tricky.
#130, I found out that for the "Unrivaled Prowess" prophecy it's enough to encounter VoR Chronos and Typhon, not to beat them, so I figured it would be easy. I made my way up to VoR Typhon with Moros torches – and I beat him first try!! Go me. And I didn't even need Night Bloom as a crutch ^^ But my second favorite Hex, Lunar Ray, was very helpful, as was Zeus' Legendary and Medea's Harm for the Afflicted curse. I'm at 60% damage reduction from god mode.
Next up: the randomized chaos trial achievements. I did the first Chaos Below run where I got Morrigan blades, now I just need to win the second one in a row.
#132, I did win the second one in a row, with Hel skull. By the end of Erebus I was pretty much only worried about getting White Antler in Tartarus and that fortunately didn't happen.
Now the only Steam achievement I'm missing is Great Chaos Below, which I think is very common – going to attempt that soon, but hopefully complete the last two prophecies (the dream dives one and bared fangs) first.
#133, completed one dream dives prophecy and another one appeared (using all weapons during one) – I might try to do that one first while slowly raising the fear, to prepare for great chaos below. I did another one with aspect of Nergal, fully upgraded this time: still not my favorite weapon aspect but better.
#135: I beat Great Chaos Below!! On my first try!! Wow. 60% god mode but who's counting. Melinoe staff, Gale, three DDs (but neither Origination nor Huntress nor Furies!), and level 2 Frenzy and a lot more enemies and less healing but not so bad. MVP was definitely Nightbloom once again, but Demeter's Freeze was also very helpful.
Goddess of Nightmares, go me! 100% Steam achievements \o/
After that I did one more Dream Dive and finally got the Bared Fangs prophecy, nice. Now all I need is to finish the new one about Dream Dives.
#137, I did two more dream dives to finish that prophecy, and instantly got a new one to do a dream dive with 24 fear. Next time.
At some point here or a bit earlier I finally met Icarus and gave him the ectoplasmic draught, and he showed up in the tent shortly afterwards. And several other interactions I did not take notes for. Raki has a phoenix form now! I usually run with either him or Hecuba (in her chaos form.)
#138 - #141: took me a few tries, and 64% god mode, but I beat a dream dive with 24 fear and fulfilled the last prophecy, go me. Took me a little over 110 hours.
And immediately afterwards turned off god mode because from now on I'm only playing for fun, no more specific goals, which feels nice. Still things to do, like max out relationships and all weapon aspects and get more decorations and some specific dialogue (I recently remembered I should try and meet Persephone while wielding her aspect, for example) and do the rest of the chaos trials, but all entirely optional.
I'm almost definitely going to play a bit more, but probably slow down. (I am already considering which game to play next: Slay the Princess, Spiritfarer, MIO...)
I read some fic I enjoyed, not as much as I hoped but to be fair I did not look for very long. And very pretty art.
I
I finally got all achievements and fulfilled all prophecies, which is a good moment to finally post my run notes.
#63, I decided to keep going with god mode even in an underworld run because right now I want story progression. Got a very nice build with Selene coat, but it was still very nice to have god mode just so I could be a little less careful in the Chronos fight. …I hope I'm not learning bad habits, ahem.
I got Gigaros from Zagreus, but also suggested to him that he talk to Chronos first before trying to kill him, nice. And Melinoe called him Big Brother :)
#64, back to Olympus – I got enough hints from various characters ^^ with aspect of Circe, again, but Hephaestus' cast this time. I gave another nectar to Heracles, who suspected it might be poisoned, and then said he's neither god, nor mortal, nor shade, and was born not only to die like all mortals but also to kill. Then this time I met Circe!, but she talked about Typhon being defeated instead of the aspect, unfortunately. I also asked Prometheus about Dora and he said neither he nor Dora are to blame for mortalkind's failings, vices, and downfalls. (The run before Hades said he wanted nothing to do with Prometheus' sentencing, that was Zeus' doing.) I got the Ares&Hephaestus duo boon, Ares called him hard-working and said as the only true-born sons of the King and Queen of Mount Olympus they ought to rise to the occasion and assert themselves, but Hephaestus said he doesn't want more responsibility, his forge and his wife are enough. (Noo my notes are getting long again.)
I again had three DDs going into the Typhon fight, but this time despite the 20% damage reduction of god mode I lost all three of them and survived with just 5 HP, phew.
Afterwards I got the incantation to destroy Typhon from Hecate: just need to beat him two more times. (Could do that asap, but otoh, the temptation to visit Zagreus a few more times just to see what their conversations would be like…)
And I visited the hot springs with Icarus, who explained to Melinoe that mortals have shame about their bodies, and Melinoe says that shades such as him and Odysseus are "close enough to gods," ookay.
Then I did another chaos trial, and then I went to the fishing pier with Odysseus. Who said now as a Shade he's "finally free," hmm. I also got the incantation "Greatest Gift of Gaia," I'm curious how it'll work with fishing in particular. I'm only missing the rarest fish from the Mourning Fields and the Rifts of Thessaly.
#66 (I think?), beat Chronos again with Charon's axe and Toula's help. I forged a bond with Chaos along the way, my first one :) Melinoe said she gives them ambrosia because she's in awe of them and Chaos called Melinoe "amusing, more than I originally thought" ^^ Other notable conversations included Hera telling me not to help Heracles because he's in the middle of "a journey of self-discovery", Hades asking after Hecate, and Hecate afterwards saying he should not thank her because she failed in her task to safeguard the realm. Chronos said Melinoe is a witch, no mere god, and asked if she really thought the gods were better for the world than he, Melinoe said this is not what this is about, Chronos asked than what is it about. Zagreus not being able to hear Melinoe anymore is a convenient way to stop their conversations for now so I go up to Olympus instead.
#67, Melinoe Blades: I lost a DD each to Eris and Prometheus and was pretty pessimistic if I was even going to make it to Typhon, but then I got Tall Order active and right before Prometheus I'd also gotten Sun Worshipper, and I had an almost-fully upgraded Lunar Ray, and I didn't end up losing a single DD to Typhon himself. I met Demeter in the Palace! She asked Melinoe to call her grandmother (although perhaps not here.)
I found out on Reddit that I need to upgrade a non-Melinoe weapon aspect to level V to get the passphrase for the hidden aspects, so now I have to decide which ones I want to unlock first and then get more Nightmare.
I went after Eris in the next run for that with 2 fear and beat her, but as expected got beaten by Prometheus (Athena refused to give me any DDs back, boo.) Before that I unlocked level 5 of the aspect of Selene and during the run I got the passphrase for the hidden aspect from her – only to come back and find out it's too expensive to get rn ^^ Next one, axe, with the nightmare I got I upgraded aspect of Charon to level 5 – although I'm not sure I have enough to unlock the hidden aspect of that one, either… should have started with staff or blades, probably. At least I can order nightmare from Charon now. And Toula has an adorable little witch hat.
#69: I beat Typhon for the fourth time, go me, with Selene's aspect of the Coat this time. It was very close again: I used the crystal figurine and that activated my Strength card, which was very convenient because I had no DDs left when I got to the Summit. (I really need to get better at fighting Prometheus.) I almost died to the Tail, which is my least favorite of the Summit minibosses, but then at the top of the Summit I got Hera's Legendary, that helped a lot. I also wouldn't have made it without meeting Dionysus, I got a boon from him that gave a lot of healing.
Back at the Crossroads I got the axe's aspect of Nergal – doesn't sound that great tbh but I will of course try it out. More importantly, I cast the incantation Disintegration of Monstrosity – which required Gigaros for some reason?, I thought Gigaros was meant to destroy Chronos; ah well. Now, to defeat Typhon one more time.
#70: I eradicated Typhon \o/ (was I meant not to find any gems on this run?, whatever.) I got all possible duos between Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, and Apollo, and didn't lose a DD the entire run (though it was close a few times.) And I had Morph as a hex, not one of my favorites, and only met two allies, Medea and Circe – no, three, Heracles too, I almost forgot.
So then back home I cast Dissolution of Time! Looking forward to how that goes. Interestingly I can't take either Selene's or Athena's trinkets because both are "busy investigating the eradication of Typhon" – I wonder if that means I won't get a hex this next run?
#71: (It did.) I beat Chronos! On the same run where he kidnapped Hecate – I wonder what it would have been like if I hadn't succeeded on that run actually, fairly bleak in the Crossroads I assume.
An epic level 12 (because of King's Ransom) storm cast, doubled because of aspect of Circe, did a lot of the work along the way and in the third phase, too.
And then, the ending. I was nervous because I heard it's not great, though at least better than when the game first came out. And it was… fine, I guess. Chronos' change of heart because what he really cared about was having his family was definitely foreshadowed, though it still seemed pretty extreme, especially because having a grudge for being literally cut apart is very justified; I think that might have been what seemed especially weird to me, that he seemed entirely apologetic and remorseful and not have even a trace of anger left about his dismemberment, did he really work through all that in the new memories? Well tbf that would have been a major topic until he could become such an accepted member of the family, so that kiiinda makes sense. Having memories of two timelines is also interesting – still room for plenty of angst. Only everyone from the House of Hades got the extra memories, right? Hm.
From what I heard about the changes I'm very glad I didn't play the first version! (Thank you Silksong.)
The carriage ride during the credits was very pretty.
#72: Finding out what the new underworld run looks like. Both Hecate and Scylla are definitely in the new timeline, Cerberus too, he just likes running around in the Fields and happens to become infested with miasma, and then Chronos is a remnant, a possibility that apparently needs eliminating. Huh.
I had a conversation with Hecate where she said she was initially angry because she thought Melinoe would be wiser than choosing to be stuck at the Crossroads instead of living at the House of Hades, and Melinoe said this is where she wants to be.
Nemesis still being here is very strange, I had a conversation where she made it very clear again that she wants to be out there and do her job and make sure evil-doers get Retribution, and it's not clear why she still needs to be here. Artemis seemed delighted that Melinoe will continue re-tracing her steps and Artemis gets to continue hunting and hanging out with her, but Nemesis?, and I can't imagine her role in the runs was big enough to be ~required.
#73, going up: the whole Summit is in a time bubble (and Hermes can enter and leave.) Makes more sense than only the House tbh, since Tartarus would also be Zagreus' domain, but I haven't seen Hades there yet, I assume that'll look different. I met both Circe and Icarus (on Mount Olympus, interestingly) and neither of them had heard about Chronos being defeated, not big on spreading the good news apparently. Heracles had, but seemed sure that nothing will change, like nothing has before. Prometheus also said that he'll continue doing what he has, and seemed to be saying that this will continue to be his future now, hm. Zeus then said they'll close the Palace for the foreseeable future – that, combined with the earlier hints that Zeus is considering drastic measures to deal with Typhon, makes me worry a bit, ngl. I hope it won't be like Greece and I can never get back there, that'd be a shame, but I unfortunately suspect so.
Back at the Crossroads I had a conversation with Icarus in which he asked that surely Melinoe won't have to continue as before and Melinoe insisted harshly that the job is not done, hm. I also heard Nyx talk to Nemesis and tell her that she's to stay here and cooperate with Hecate – with apparently no regard for what Nemesis wants, almost made me feel sorry for her, Nyx is not a very caring mother to her own children. Melinoe also told Hecate that she's sorry Hecate didn't get memories of the alternate timeline, and that Hecate wasn't present in those memories. Hecate says that's probably because Persephone didn't need her.
I did another Chaos trial: those can be very convenient to e.g. get Legendary boons.
The prophecy to find the Fates was updated to say I need to become closer to several people, one of them Moros, so I gave him another nectar and he asked if that was because of a prophecy, heh. I also cast the incantation to go back to an earlier time, which didn't have an effect anymore except add an altar, but I wanted it done anyway.
I think there were a couple more interesting conversations but I was too lazy to take screenshots to remember them.
#75(?), I took an Infernal Contract from Charon and ended up in Elysium, fighting against Zagreus! Fun. Of course I lost, I barely had any boons and a chaos curse besides, but definitely doable.
Next I beat Chronos with Nergal. Not my favorite weapon but more fun than I thought at first. I also met Hades and Persephone in Tartarus – you'd think they'd at least renovate that chamber more so it doesn't remind Hades as much of his imprisonment. And I got more nightmare, enough to upgrade aspect of Pan to level 5, so now I need to find Artemis for the passphrase. Most pacts send me into the underworld rn but the prophecy suggests I talk to Heracles and Prometheus so that's overworld runs, hm.
And I invited Hecate to the fishing pool. The conversation had Hecate reassure Melinoe not to feel guilty for taking the time to fish despite her task – that felt misplaced since the "task" after the ending isn't time-sensitive anymore. I wonder how many more conversations would have felt weird like that already if I'd finished even sooner, and how many there will still be.
Next I went to the Underworld again but Artemis didn't give me the passphrase yet, boo. I tried out the Jewelled Pom, which requires me to have no re-roll Arcana active, nice to switch it up once in a while. Nyx was visiting Chaos and when asked if she'll visit the Crossroads again said she wants her children to be as independent as possible, didn't you just give orders to Nemesis last night? (Ngl I'd somehow forgotten that Selene is a foster daughter of Nyx and was disappointed to find that out during the ending, idk.)
#78, overworld run with Pan (feels underwhelming even at level 5 tbh), successful thanks to 3 extra DDs from Athena (et al), still didn't get the passphrase from Circe.
#79: I finally dared to activate the Vow of Rivals! And fought Polyphemus in the middle of Medea's poisons, ugh. Buut I made it through and only died to Typhon. I also talked with Prometheus about the Fates, which was apparently enough for the prophecy to find them to qualify. And I got the waking phrase for Lim and Oros from Artemis: I got the blades' aspect of Morrigan, nice.
With that one I next did the underworld with Vow of Rivals, with 8 fear this time, the highest so far: VoR Hecate cost me all three DDs, that was tough. (Okay to be fair I also didn't play great.) Buut I recovered and beat Chronos. Before that I gave him nectar outside the crossroads and got a wristwatch from him as a trinket, neat.
I then did another underworld run. I'm not too far from getting all duo boons and legendaries.
And after that I did a chaos trial for more star dust, with that I brewed more treats for my familiars, and I finally fully upgraded all of them and could get all of them cute outfits. I picked the demonic look for Frinos and the infernal one for Gale, for now.
I got the waking phrase for the torches from Moros, but I need to brew more shadow extract to unlock it. I also went to the hot springs with Hecate and then gave her nectar: she's feeling deeply guilty for how she raised Melinoe and almost wants Melinoe to condemn her for it, which Melinoe refuses to do.
And Odysseus is having a melancholy phase where he sits at the taverna a lot and talks about how he's thinking about the sirens' song (I unlocked all their songs at the music maker for him), and first he said he and his wife and son are no longer close but then says he does still think about them, hm.
Hecate confronted Nemesis with her insubordination and offered for Nemesis to leave, but Nemesis said her place is here. Hecate says she can stay and deal out as much retribution as she wishes. Nice of her. Hopefully that'll make Nemesis settle down though I doubt it, judging from a conversation soon after. Nyx also visited and Hecate said none of her children made any trouble, heh.
Most of the Vows point downward atm but I really want to go up next to talk to Medea again and also Heracles and Circe.
#83: Back to Ephyra, where I unfortunately didn't meet Medea, but I beat VoR Polyphemus without losing a DD this time iirc, go me. And then I beat VoR Eris on my first try! She has the Rail's aspect of Lucifer, interesting. I lost all DDs to her but then even beat Typhon.
I aaalmost beat VoR Scylla on my next run, so close. Love her new make-up xD
A few more overworld runs looking for Medea, and then I finally unlocked all weapon aspects! I did a run with Morrigan again, I really enjoy that one, and then one where I tried out Supay and one with Shiva. I died in the overworld a few times but I did make it to Polyphemus and Circe with the Knuckle Bones: Odysseus got his closure with Polyphemus, but I still need to find Circe once more.
#88, I did two Chaos trials as well for star dust and got two duo boons I'd still been looking for – very convenient for those, but I don't see for what from the outside.
I maxed out my affinity with Hecate, for now – Melinoe is very hesitant to call her by name but she was invited :) Hecate is still holding something back, says the book, and I'm mad that this is one of the few things I was spoiled for, I'd love to know what theories I'd otherwise have.
I also talked with Moros a lot and I gave him ambrosia, which unlocks the romance part, but the prophecy still wants me to get to know him more, the Fates really are setting him up. (Unless I just need to talk to him and not offer him gifts, idk.)
Next I should try to beat VoR Scylla because I had interesting conversations with both Heracles (who thinks everyone close to him is doomed, iirc, which, knowing his history, kinda fair) and Prometheus (who still seems to be working toward some kind of plan?) – I was also spoiled for VoR Prometheus sadly but still look forward to it.
#90-97: I did some Chaos trials, including my twentieth in total, and then died to Zagreus in Elysium. I completed my bond with Moros: I'm still not very interested in that romance btw but it's fine, I guess.
Next I beat Chronos with Hel, and then I picked Anubis again and this time I beat Zag! Much easier to do from Oceanus than Erebus, unsurprisingly. Champion of Elysium, go me. (I assume I have to do that a few more times to get his keepsake?) All three underworld runs were attempts to fulfil the Fates' prophecy, but each time I didn't manage because I accidentally killed my foes too quickly and/or had bad luck with fountains etc. At least I beat VoR the last two times, which unlocked VoR 3.
Next few: I think it was on run #101 when I finally managed to trigger the epilogue! I met the three Fates. …who apparently, at least that's what they claim, have just been chilling, enjoying their time off, and want to continue doing that, oh and one day there will be a new age and mortals will decide their own fate. …okay? Idk that was kind of a let-down. Though at least Nyx said afterwards that they were probably just pretending that they didn't need help, which would make sense because the prophecy did say "help us" after all.
The bigger thing was the conversation with Hecate in the bath afterwards. (She wasn't at the Crossroads when I returned so I started a new run but she didn't say anything when I met her in Erebus, so I let myself die immediately afterwards bc priorities.) I'm so sad I got spoiled for Hecate being Melinoe from a different timeline, but at least not about the details. Raised by Selene alone to take revenge, taking Chronos down by herself, and then being sent back "closer to the beginning" of Time, which Melinoe interprets as aeons ago. Long enough that she can call herself a Titaness, at least. …oh wow, Hecate's relationship with Selene in this new timeline must be very different. And Selene (presumably) doesn't know! So was Hecate around back when Chronos was still alive the first time? Because one way I could justify her not being more vigilant about Chronos coming back again (it didn't take Zagreus that long to find him – though time might not be linear through the mirror connection) could be that Hecate contributed to this bindings and thought that because of her contributions he wouldn't be able to get out like he did in her own time. But she was very wrong. Another thing she feels terribly guilty for. Heck she tells Melinoe that she loves her more than she could ever love herself, which in context of how much she seems to dislike herself, much less touching.
(I of course immediately went to AO3 and was disappointed not to find more Hecate & Selene fic. Contemplating.)
I did a few more overworld runs afterwards and earned the first gift of the Veil. I also finally got the knuckle bones to Circe and Odysseus talked to her: not that he had much to say? Unsure how much he was hoping she would still feel fonder about him but they both agreed to put it behind him and he just said he was glad to have met her, basically. And I got a recipe from Medea that let me delve one level deeper into Hypnos' dream – still not wake him though. I'm still having trouble with VoR Polyphemus and Eris, even though I'm at 48% damage reduction with god mode now, they usually cost me at least one DD each. I also tried to get Heph Legendary and the Ares&Zeus duo boon, both the last I still need, surely I'll get them soon.
Prometheus implied that the Fates declaring the next age will be for mortals to decide their fate is what he's been waiting for, which makes sense for him and is a good reason for him to do all this, I like that; and then he said that they'll keep fighting until then, which of course is necessary on a Doylist level but I'm not sure I get it in-game. Would something prevent that age from coming to pass if Melinoe didn't keep retracing her steps? Or maybe he's glad he's part of Melinoe's task so that the gods can't imprison him again, an idea I read somewhere and like a lot.
Moros said he probably will be out of a job, which I don't quite understand, why would his "job" as Doom depend on the Fates doing theirs? Yes he was their guardian but he's a god, an incarnation even, of his own, like Thanatos and Nemesis; and it was at least implied that Nemesis will leave sometimes on her own errands, iirc, which makes sense to me.
Btw I'm increasingly getting lines that make less sense considering I'm past the ending, the first few I barely noticed but I guess I had higher expectations for attention to detail like that.
Patch 2:
Reading through the patch notes, I think this was good timing for me because I was close to finishing several of the prophecies that got extra content (yes you can watch it later but it's not the same.) Arachne's prophecy just appeared on the list even though it wasn't before, ah well. I had conversations with Nemesis and Moros about Hypnos, then I met Medea again on the surface and then I finally woke him up. A bit anti-climactic, even with the new scene after but that at least made it better. I hope he shows up again.
I also had another conversation with Prometheus about why he fought Melinoe to begin with, apparently he foresaw no other way with this outcome, and teaming up also wouldn't have gone the way Melinoe might expect, also because it was never about mortalkind for Melinoe.
I did an underworld run that ended quickly after a terrible showing against VoR Hecate, but in my defense I'd fought against Zagreus before, I beat him again and got his keepsake, nice.
And I could give nectar to Icarus in the crossroads but I talked to him first and then he flew away. Melinoe said she always wanted to fly with him and he said he wanted that too, but he had to do that on his own, and that shades and goddesses don't mix.
I also got dialogue with Moros asking how he's settling in, that must be a mix-up ^^
105 runs in total.
#106, I finally brought Odysseus to talk with Scylla, and after that he left for a while to find his wife and son. (I still like my headcanon that he's been in contact with them the entire time but it's increasingly unlikely.) And I finally got the last duo boon, now I'm only missing the Heph legendary. Zeus said Prometheus wasn't punished enough for what he did ("denied us the glory of bestowing fire unto mortalkind on our own terms"), he's the worst. Hecate implied she left Hypnos asleep for Melinoe to practice her craft on, heh. While Nemesis said she always thought Hypnos was Melinoe's type, huh, weird.
My next overworld run I died to Prometheus again, but at least I got to talk to him, which triggered the conversation with Dora to restore her memories. I did a chaos trial to get the star dust for the incantation and then Dora disappeared for a while. The dream comforter also showed up in the crossroads – I already know what it does, spoilers, but that one I'm not too disappointed I found out about and also it was entirely my own fault.
#109, I did an underworld run with the Strength arcana – I was a bit hesitant but it was fun. Fates' Whim, too, the Pom and Card keepsakes are very good for that.
After that I did my first Dream Dive! I went through the Mourning Fields, Thessaly, Tartarus, and Ephyra, and made it through. That was fun, and I want more gold stars for the familiar outfits.
Dora regained her memories and talked about the jar: Melinoe told her it wasn't her fault if it wasn't on purpose, but Dora is not convinced. Melinoe even asked Hecate afterwards if she's supposed to accept that her relatives where so careless and cruel to mortals, if Prometheus is right about the gods.
Odysseus also returned! He talked with Penelope and Telemachus and says it went well and he'll visit them again. So much for my theory, ah well ^^
Then I did another overworld run, with 0 fear, and I got an epic level 6 volcanic flourish plus the Heph duo boons with Poseidon and Hestia, that hit like a truck and I got my fastest overworld clear yet.
#112: I beat Zagreus with 2 HP left, go me, and then still made it through Oceanus and beat Chronos at the end :) Trick Knives is a very good hammer. Still really enjoying Fates' Whim with the family keepsakes and Strength.
#113-#119: Several more successful underworld and overworld runs, all with Fates' Whim and Strength. I completed Circe's "test" about cursing Scylla, and I gathered tears for Medea but she didn't let me give them to her yet. I barely saw Athena and could only talk to her about Arachne once, but I met Narcissus and Echo talking a few times twice. And I brewed an incantation to make Skelly's bones stronger.
I'm this close to winning with every weapon aspect! I also fully upgraded all Arcana and I did one run with Judgment – not my favorite tbh.
I also finished my affinity bond with Odysseus – ngl I was a bit disappointed that the last conversation of that on the fishing pier was about shades possibly making assumptions about the two of them (or, as Melinoe suggests, about Odysseus and Hecate) but I can still give him more gifts, after all.
Nemesis beat Chronos! She finally made her way into Tartarus, but couldn't make it into the House on her own (apparently Hades' shades didn't open for her, continuity issue or the wrong door?) But then she talked with Chronos, and he sent her against another Chronos remnant and she beat him first try, good for her. She's planning to continue doing that while Melinoe deals with Typhon remnants, though Melinoe will still fight Chronos remnants as well because she can see her family on that route, more than enough for both of them after all. I gave Nemesis two more nectar and she at least apologized for doubting Melinoe could do it – though in the same conversation she said she doesn't know if she could, another continuity issue (this one I filed as a bug.)
I also invited the Spirit Mixer, who presumably has the same function as the guy in the bedroom in Hades 1: cosmetic ranks, nothing more. Before I invest heavily I really need to try out a few more decorations: there's some I simply don't like, but I want to try out different taverna benches etc. I did unlock all arcana card decorations, not that I need them but just because I wanted all of them.
I have 41/50 steam achievements, but some of them will take a while longer, like doing the "Greater Chaos Below" trial – fully randomized with 20 fear?, the highest fear I've cleared so far is 12. And I haven't even met the VoR 3 fights yet (though I'll probably get to those soon.)
#120, I beat Typhon with Moros' torches and finally fulfilled the prophecy "Bearing Dark Gifts" for beating a run with every weapon aspect, nice. Next I beat the underworld on 16 heat, including VoR Cerberus, with Morrigan – I got a bit lucky with boons but it was still not as bad as I'd feared. Then I did a bit of decorating in the Crossroads :)
Immediately afterwards I thought "hey why not" and did the overworld with Circe with 12 fear and VoR 3, and I beat Prometheus and Hercules together on my first try and Typhon after :) A high-level Hephaestus attack (in this case, or special) is a beautiful thing, and this time I didn't even get the Poseidon duo boon, only Hestia's.
That got me the second statue. I'm at 54% god mode rn. I still couldn't give Medea the distilled tears! But I got the recipe to brew something for Icarus, at least.
Next I decided to try VoR 3 Prometheus and Heracles again – and promptly died to Polyphemus, oops. I succeeded in my second attempt though and took down Typhon too. Then I did another Dream Dive (on 16 fear) and beat that too, and now Raki has a phoenix form (though I'm not sure yet if I prefer moon-touched.) Did some more Crossroads renovations. And I finally gave the tears to Medea and brewed the ectoplasm to give to Icarus.
Next run, I finally encountered VoR Chronos and died in the third phase. I also summoned Athena, who suggested she could talk to Arachne because this matter is distracting for Melinoe and therefore for her, and finished the Narcissus & Echo storyline (not my favorite one, not very compelling imo, not even enough to try and sort out my thoughts about it.) The one after that I suggested the plan to Arachne, and then beat VoR Chronos!! Even though my build didn't really come together the way I wanted, I didn't get any of the duos I was aiming for (between Apollo, Demeter, Poseidon, and Zeus), but still did very good damage with Circe, and Night Bloom was crucial. Evil Eye also helped a lot.
Finally added some tent decorations, too.
#128: Next underworld run Athena finally deigned to talk to Arachne and demanded a sincere apology – which Arachne refused to give. And to be honest, fair, she didn't actually do anything wrong apart from being arrogant and possibly rude and that shouldn't lead to a curse like this. But then clearly I don't value the crime of heresy enough, heh. (I don't remember if Arachne recounted what exactly happened in-game.) In that same run I made it to Chronos and beat him while wearing the Fuchsia dress! Without Hephaestus, even, just the silken sash starting in Oceanus and aspect of Charon (for ranged damage) with heroic level 11 tidal ring, heroic arctic gale, heroic mental block etc. (And no fear, of course – apart from the one that gives armored enemies specific abilities because I'm still missing one to complete the prophecy.)
Afterwards I did another run mostly to talk to Arachne again and fulfil the prophecy, so I wasn't even that disappointed to die to VoR Hecate. She is still tricky.
#130, I found out that for the "Unrivaled Prowess" prophecy it's enough to encounter VoR Chronos and Typhon, not to beat them, so I figured it would be easy. I made my way up to VoR Typhon with Moros torches – and I beat him first try!! Go me. And I didn't even need Night Bloom as a crutch ^^ But my second favorite Hex, Lunar Ray, was very helpful, as was Zeus' Legendary and Medea's Harm for the Afflicted curse. I'm at 60% damage reduction from god mode.
Next up: the randomized chaos trial achievements. I did the first Chaos Below run where I got Morrigan blades, now I just need to win the second one in a row.
#132, I did win the second one in a row, with Hel skull. By the end of Erebus I was pretty much only worried about getting White Antler in Tartarus and that fortunately didn't happen.
Now the only Steam achievement I'm missing is Great Chaos Below, which I think is very common – going to attempt that soon, but hopefully complete the last two prophecies (the dream dives one and bared fangs) first.
#133, completed one dream dives prophecy and another one appeared (using all weapons during one) – I might try to do that one first while slowly raising the fear, to prepare for great chaos below. I did another one with aspect of Nergal, fully upgraded this time: still not my favorite weapon aspect but better.
#135: I beat Great Chaos Below!! On my first try!! Wow. 60% god mode but who's counting. Melinoe staff, Gale, three DDs (but neither Origination nor Huntress nor Furies!), and level 2 Frenzy and a lot more enemies and less healing but not so bad. MVP was definitely Nightbloom once again, but Demeter's Freeze was also very helpful.
Goddess of Nightmares, go me! 100% Steam achievements \o/
After that I did one more Dream Dive and finally got the Bared Fangs prophecy, nice. Now all I need is to finish the new one about Dream Dives.
#137, I did two more dream dives to finish that prophecy, and instantly got a new one to do a dream dive with 24 fear. Next time.
At some point here or a bit earlier I finally met Icarus and gave him the ectoplasmic draught, and he showed up in the tent shortly afterwards. And several other interactions I did not take notes for. Raki has a phoenix form now! I usually run with either him or Hecuba (in her chaos form.)
#138 - #141: took me a few tries, and 64% god mode, but I beat a dream dive with 24 fear and fulfilled the last prophecy, go me. Took me a little over 110 hours.
And immediately afterwards turned off god mode because from now on I'm only playing for fun, no more specific goals, which feels nice. Still things to do, like max out relationships and all weapon aspects and get more decorations and some specific dialogue (I recently remembered I should try and meet Persephone while wielding her aspect, for example) and do the rest of the chaos trials, but all entirely optional.
I'm almost definitely going to play a bit more, but probably slow down. (I am already considering which game to play next: Slay the Princess, Spiritfarer, MIO...)
I read some fic I enjoyed, not as much as I hoped but to be fair I did not look for very long. And very pretty art.
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