Trained by Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft, Melinoë can use Magick during combat and cast mystical spells that assist her in her quest to kill Time. But what are all the Hades 2 Incantations, and what kind of rewards do they offer?
There are 53 Incantations in Hades 2, all of which can only be unlocked at the Crossroads Cauldron. Most Incantations are inaccessible until you pass some kind of prerequisite. You’ll either have to meet or defeat a certain enemy, become better friends with your allies, or find yourself in dire need of something. Some Incantations come to Melinoë as if shared by some greater force. Regardless of how the spells appear, they’re all incredibly useful in Melinoë’s fight to defeat Chronos and free her family.
All Hades 2 Incantations and Rewards
Below you’ll find the list of all Incantations in Hades 2 and what they offer on activation. Every Incantation requires materials, as you can’t make a good stew without a bit of meat. Again, keep in mind that most Incantations won’t be available until they’re needed. Often, that means you’ll only be able to learn them once you’ve made enough progress in your quest. Keep playing, and soon you’ll gain access to the whole list.
The early-game Incantations require materials that are rather easy to locate. With Gathering Tools, you should be able to gather enough ingredients in the first in-game week to unlock a large portion of the below list. The further down you go, however, the more expensive the Incantation, and the more danger you’ll be in when searching for the necessary resources. When you have enough reagents to complete an Incantation, there will be a large, yellow exclamation point hovering over the Crossroads Cauldron.
There are also rare resources created via Alchemy, which I’ll go over after the list.
These two guides should help you discover what you need for the Incantations below:
| Incantation | Materials Required | Reward |
|---|---|---|
| Fated Intervention | 1 Silver, 2 Ash, 2 Moly | Gain the attention of the Three Fates, who later grant you access to the Fated List of Minor Prophecies. |
| Summoning of Mercantile Fortune | 10 Bones | Brings the Wretched Broker and their shop to the Crossroads. |
| Night’s Craftwork | 1 Ash | Unlocks the Crescent Pick tool at the Silver Pool, allowing you to gather minerals. |
| Flourishing Soil | 1 Moly | Gives you two Soil Plots in which to use seeds to grow plants in the Crossroads. Reward: +1 Nightshade Seeds. |
| Kinship Fortune | 60 Bones | The Wretched Broker will begin selling exotic goods, such as Nectar. Reward: +1 bottle of Nectar. |
| Forget-Me-Not | 1 Moly | Allows you to place a reminder icon on items with materials you need. |
| Reagent Sensing | 1 Moly | Selene will guide you to nearby resources after each finished Encounter. |
| Gathering of Ancient Bones | 2 Limestone | Randomly gives one Main Weapon a Grave Thirst, allowing you to earn +2 Bones after every Location. |
| Doomed Beckoning | 3 Fate Fabric, 1 Nightshade | Causes Moros to appear to you after a later failed run, which soon leads him to join you in the Crossroads. |
| Briny Lifespring | 3 Limestone, 3 Lotus | Creates a safe Location in Oceanus that contains a health pool. The chamber can contain resources. |
| Divination of the Elements | 5 Psych | Reveals the elemental affinities of godly boons, leading to powerful Infusion Boons. |
| Floral Fortune | 1 Ash, 1 Nightshade | Creates a Pawn Shop tab at the Wretched Broker’s store, allowing you to sell goods for Bones. |
| Woodsy Lifespring | 3 Silver, 1 Moly | Creates a safe Location in Erebus that contains a health pool. The glade can contain resources and will introduce you to an animal familiar. |
| Rise of Stygian Wells | 1 Moly, 1 Nightshade | Causes some Locations in the Underworld to have a Well of Charon, where you can exchange Gold Crowns for healing, materials, or temporary buffs. |
| Surge of Stygian Wells | 3 Moly, 2 Cattail | Causes a Well of Charon to appear in the safe area between Regions. |
| Cleansing of Fountain-Waters | 1 Moly, 1 Lotus | Enhances Fountains, which will now offer +10% Life on use. |
| Purification of Fountain-Waters | 1 Nightshade, 1 Cattail | Fountains restore an additional +10% Life on use. |
| Kindred Keepsakes | 4 Limestone, 2 Moly, 1 Lotus | Keepsakes cabinet will appear in the safe area between Regions. |
| Propensity Toward Gold | 1 Limestone, 1 Fate Fabric | Locations may contain Golden Urns that reward in up to 15 Gold Crowns when shattered. |
| Rite of Vapor-Cleansing | 2 Moly, 2 Lotus, 2 Nightshade | Unlocks the Hot Springs, causing it to appear in the Crossroads. The communal Hot Springs are used to deepen relationships and make Odysseus increasingly uncomfortable. Reward: +1 Bath Salts, 1 uncomfortable war uncle. |
| Permeation of Witching-Wards | 1 Cinder, 1 Shadow, 3 Moly | Allows Melinoë to travel past the Warded gateways and reach the surface area. |
| Consecration of Ashes | 6 Ash, 1 Cinder, 6 Fate Fabric | Enhances the Altar of Ashes so you can upgrade Arcana Cards. Reward: +3 Moon Dust. |
| Rite of Social Solidarity | 2 Nectar, 2 Garlic | Unlocks the Crossroads Taverna, where you can deepen relationships. Reward: +1 Ambrosia. |
| Reviving a Mournful Husk | 1 Myrtle | Allows you to revive Golden Boughs in the Fields of Mourning. |
| Golden Lifespring | 3 Marble, 3 Shaderot | Creates a safe Location in Tartarus that contains a health pool. The chamber can offer resources. |
| Necromantic Influence | 5 Psyche, 5 Nightshade | Sprinting into Lone Shades will cause them to attack foes before dispersing. Look for the Shades with crescent moon insignias on their heads. |
| Empath’s Intuition | 1 Fate Fabric, 3 Myrtle | Updates the Book of Shadows to include information on your relationship status with friends and acquaintances. |
| Unraveling a Fateful Bond | 2 Lotus, 2 Moss, 2 Nightshade, 2 Thalamus | Lessens the effects of Melinoë’s blood-curse, allowing her to travel on the surface for longer. This unlocks after reaching the surface. |
| Rich Soil | 3 Lotus | Creates two more Soil Plots in the Crossroads. |
| Rite of River-Fording | 4 Driftwood, 2 Cattail | Unlocks the Crossroads Fishing Pier so you can further deepen relationships. Reward: +1 Twin Lures. |
| Unearthed Troves | 5 Limestone, 1 Nightshade | Randomly creates an Infernal Trove in a Location, which, on activation, challenges you to kill enemies quickly for Gold Crowns. |
| Abyssal Insight | 2 Fate Fabric, 2 Pearl, 2 Moly, 2 Nightshade | Unlocks the Pitch-Black Stone in the Crossroads Training Grounds to run Chaos Trials and earn the Star Dust resource. |
| Faith of Familiar Spirits | 2 Nectar, 1 Lotus | Allows you to gain Animal Familiars to bring along in runs. Reward: +1 Witch’s Delight. |
| Aspects of Night and Darkness | 5 Bronze, 1 Nightshade | Unlocks Aspects for Main Weapons, which can be activated at the Silver Pool. |
| Sandy Lifespring | 3 Iron, 3 Driftwood | Creates a safe Location in the Rift of Thessaly that contains a health pool. The isle can offer resources. |
| Greater Favor of Gaia | 2 Marble, 4 Bronze, 4 Iron | Allows you to upgrade Harvest Tools further in the Silver Pool. |
| Summoning a Colony of Bats | 3 Moss, 3 Rubbish | Activating bat-filled cages in the City of Ephyra gives you access to a map of the area. |
| Attending a Faithful Beast | 1 Tears, 1 Wool, 4 Wheat | Animal Familiars stay in Training Grounds and can harvest +2 more times after fully rested. |
| Rush of Fresh Air | 3 Fate Fabric, 1 Wool, 2 Driftwood | Causes a Shrine of Hermes to appear in some Locations on the surface. The shrine allows you to put in a delivery for things like materials and boons. |
| Surge of Fresh Air | 2 Fate Fabric, 2 Garlic, 2 Mandrake | Causes a Shrine of Hermes to appear in the safe area between Regions. |
| Observance of Gaia’s Secrets | 7 Moly, 7 Lotus, 7 Moss | Grants a 20% chance to find +1 more resources that are gathered by hand. |
| Insight into Offerings | 2 Ambrosia, 2 Poppy, 1 Golden Apple | Reveals a full list of all Olympian Boons in the Book of Shadows. |
| Verdant Soil | 1 Wheat, 1 Garlic | Adds two final Soil Plots in the Crossroads. |
| Circles of Protection | 1 Moly, 1 Lotus, 1 Mandrake Root | Activates Warding Circles in random Locations in Erebus. These circles will prevent damage at the place of activation for five seconds. |
| Summoning of Historic Travails | 3 Marble, 1 Zodiac Sand | Causes the Learned Shade to appear in the Crossroads. Speaking with them allows you to view the outcomes of all your runs. |
| Summoning of Personal Insights | 2 Shaderot, 2 Poppy | Causes the Record Keeper Shade to appear in the Crossroads. Speaking with them allows you to view your stats. |
| Circles of the Moon | 1 Moly, 1 Lotus, 1 Mandrake | Whenever you activate Warding Circles, fully recharge your Hex if it is not ready. |
| Ashen Memories of Life | 50 Ash, 5 Pearl, 5 Cattail | Whenever you claim rewards of Ash, gain +5 Max Life. |
| Psychic Slivers of Clarity | 100 Psyche, 5 Cinder, 5 Mandrake | Whenever you claim rewards of Psyche, gain +3 Max Magick. |
| Bones of Burnished Bronze | 10 Fate Fabric, 5 Tears, 5 Wheat | Whenever you claim rewards of Bones, gain +5 Armor. |
| Nectar of Godly Savor | 5 Wool, 5 Nectar, 5 Garlic | Whenever you claim rewards of Nectar, gain +1 Lv. Pom Slice |
| Temporal Fluctuation | N/A | Lets time-slow effects such as Phase Shift (Selene) work vs. [Final Boss]. |
| Dissolution of Time | ??? Zodiac Sand, ??? Entropy | Suppresses the ability for Chronos to return to life after defeat. |
All Alchemy recipes in Hades 2
Like with Incantations, you learn about Alchemy and obtain recipes as you progress through the game. There’s at least one recipe that’s tied directly to story progression, so it’s important to check the Alchemy tab at the Crossroads Cauldron every chance you get. Thankfully, there aren’t as many recipes to learn as there are Incantations. And unlike Incantations, Alchemy can be used as often as needed.
| Alchemy Recipe | Materials Needed | Reward |
|---|---|---|
| Shadow Extraction | 30 Ash, 30 Psyche, 3 Fate Fabric | Awards +1 Shadow after 12 While. |
| Beast-Loved Morsel | 1 Star Dust, 1 Lotus | Awards +2 Witch’s Delight after 14 While |
| Moonlit Essence from Shadow | 1 Cinder, 1 Shadow | Awards +5 Moon Dust after 8 While. |
| Moonlit Essence from Stars | 1 Star Dust | Awards +3 Moon Dust after 4 While. |
| Sweet Nectar | 1 Golden Apple | Awards +3 Nectar after 8 While. |
Completing Alchemy recipes takes time, which is indicated by something called ‘While’. Learn more about While and how it passes by reading our helpful guide.
