Hades is one of the most exciting roguelikes to come out in the past couple years, featuring memorable characters and a variety of items and upgrades to spice up each playthrough. One of the most important aspects of Hades is the selection of weapons that Zagreus can equip, each one giving him a different playstyle.
While each weapon has its benefits and advantages, some weapons are clearly better than the others. For most of Hades, players will want to diversify their choices in weapons, but if they're trying to break a record or get past that tricky boss, they may want to rely on a weapon that is sure to do well. Here's a quick ranking of all the weapons available in the game.
6 Stygius, Blade Of The Underworld
Stygius is the first weapon that Zagreus is able to use: a basic longsword with a balanced moveset. It is well-rounded, sporting both decent damage and speed. However, it also does not shine particularly brightly in either department, making it rather middle-of-the-road. Stygius's biggest weakness is that it lacks range, forcing Zagreus to engage with enemies in close combat. While the Piercing Wave upgrade can remedy this, the player can't count on being able to get that particular upgrade in every playthrough.
Stygius's upgrades overall are underwhelming, and so are its aspects. The Aspect of Poseidon, for example, is only really good for cast-based builds. And while Excalibur's Hallowed Ground can save the player from a tough pinch, it doesn't do much to increase Stygius's damage potential despite being a Hidden Aspect. While Stygius is a decent weapon to use, all of the weapons that Zagreus obtains later simply outclass it in many aspects.
5 Exagryph, The Adamant Rail
Exagryph is the last weapon that Zagreus can unlock, and it's an extremely unique one. It's essentially a rifle that rapidly fires bullets, and can also launch a bomb that deals damage in an area. It can do a lot of damage quickly, but it is hampered by the fact that it needs to be reloaded rather frequently. While the Delta Chamber upgrade can remove this reload requirement, it is again not something the player can count on consistently attaining.
Exagryph's biggest problem is that it can be rather slow on the damage-dealing side. While Exagryph's aspects can provide a variety of interesting bonuses, none of them really resolve this main problem. The Aspect of Eris does boost Exagryph's damage a fair amount, but not to the level of other weapons. However, Exagryph is very good at clearing large groups of enemies, especially with its special attack. Several upgrades also boost the special's ability to deal spread damage.
4 Aegis, The Shield Of Chaos
Aegis holds the unique ability to block attacks, allowing Zagreus to reduce the damage done to him. Additionally, it possesses quick melee attacks and a ranged attack to deal with faraway enemies. While throwing the shield will cause Zagreus to lose his ability to attack for a while, this can be circumvented by equipping the Aspect of Zeus, which allows Zagreus to attack even after throwing his shield.
The Aspect of Zeus is especially powerful, since the thrown shield creates a Blitz Disc that moves very slowly, creating great potential for dealing tremendous damage over time. Combine this with powerful boons like Doom-granting effects (particularly the Merciful End boon, which allows Deflect effects to immediately trigger Doom), and Aegis can become an extremely potent weapon. Without these, Aegis's damage potential is not very high, but it can be a wonder with the right boon choices.
3 Varatha, The Eternal Spear
Varatha is one of the fastest weapons in the game. Its special is a powerful ranged attack, and its spin attack gives it a strong area attack to deal with multiple mobs. Add to that its naturally long range and its powerful dash strike, and a strong case can be made for calling Varatha one of the best weapons in Hades.
Unfortunately, Varatha does have several that hamper its usefulness. One of them is its lack of useful aspects. Many of them are gimmicky, such as the Frost Fair Blade, which cuts Zagreus's life in exchange for a draining spin attack. Another weakness is that Varatha's spin attack requires a charge to reach its full potential, making it less useful compared to other area attacks, such as Stygius's Nova Smash. Still, these weaknesses are minor compared to Varatha's many strengths.
2 Coronacht, The Heart-Seeking Bow
Coronacht is likely one of the first weapons Zagreus will unlock, and it provides an extremely different playstyle from Stygius. It is Zagreus's first ranged weapon, and it is rather simple. Zagreus can hold the attack to shoot farther away, and use its special to release a volley of arrows in a wide area. It is a decent ranged weapon, but it is rather slow and not very good at dealing damage fast.
However, the Aspect of Chiron changes things considerably. Zag's Attack will turn all arrows fired by the Special into homing arrows, turning a wide-ranged special attack into a devastating shotgun. Add a boon effect like Doom or Hangover, or an upgrade like Relentless Volley or Concentrated Volley, and Coronacht can cause life bars to melt like butter. Even without the Aspect of Chiron, players can still simulate a similar effect by releasing the volley at point-blank range, causing all arrows to hit the same foe.
1 Twin Fists Of Malphon
The Twin Fists of Malphon can appear quite unassuming. Their range is rather short, even when compared to Stygius. However, it is the fastest weapon in the game, able to deal a flurry of blows before the enemy can react. The Twin Fists have incredible aspects as well, especially when powered up by Titan Blood. Zagreus's personal aspect gives him innate dodge; the Aspect of Talos allows its special to draw enemies in and debuff them at the same time; and the Claws of Enkidu provides a special that makes foes take an extra burst of damage, similar to Doom's effect.
The Twin Fists really shine when combined with the Merciful End Duo boon. With the right setup, Malphon can stack Doom effects with regular effects and trigger immediately with a Special, creating a deadly combination that can cause huge amounts of damage even to bosses. While Merciful End can be used with any weapon to decent effect, it reaches its max potential when used with Malphon. The Twin Fists are the best weapon for anyone wanting to deal huge amounts of damage quickly.