This Hades Chaos Boons Guide may contain spoilers for Hades. Proceed at your own risk.
When I started being offered Chaos’s boons, I was hesitant to accept them. There was no good incentive, in my mind, to take a Boon that had a negative consequence when I could wait to get a consequence-free one.
Gradually, however, I began to start looking closer at what Chaos was offering in my determination to complete the Chaos and Nyx storylines; I realized just how strong their Boons were. Moreover, I learned that the more boons you could get, the better.
Confronting dear old dad with more than a handful of deities to back you up with their super-cool abilities makes that final fight a breeze. Plus, those negative consequences started to become less consequential, ending faster than I realized as Zagreus (The Protagonist) blazed through chamber after chamber.
The Bottom Line
Chaos’s Boons are absolutely worth it, no matter what point you’ve reached in the story. Chaos is an essential part of the game, and their Boons embody their existence as a deity, encouraging you to cause a bit of chaos in your game by taking both a short-lived curse and a long-lived blessing.
The curses are gone before you know it, and the blessings, more often than not, allow Zagreus to wreak havoc through the varying levels.
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How to Get Chaos’s Boons
The first step is finding a Chaos Gate. It takes six escape attempts before the gates begin to spawn, so if you’re just starting the game, you’ll have to play a bit before you can meet Chaos and start receiving their Boons.
When entering a Chaos Gate, you will lose health unless you have the Cosmic Egg. You can generally expect to lose about 20 health every time you enter a gate. This damage can be hard to cope with in the early game, but hey, the whole point of Hades is to die repeatedly. You cannot enter a Chaos Gate if your health is too low.
What are Chaos’s Boons
Unlike many of the other Boons in Hades, Chaos’s Boons are a double-edged sword. While they can be powerful, they can also be dangerous and lead Zagreus to a premature return home.
Considering that the point of the game is that with every death, you become stronger, this really isn’t a horrible deal, even if it is incredibly frustrating to die when you’re nearly ready to fight Hades. The Boons of Chaos offer both a curse and a blessing, with the boon only becoming useful after you have powered through the curse’s effects.
The Blessings
| Boon | Description | Rarity | Extra |
| Affluence | Any Charon Obel’s that you find are worth a randomly generated percentage more. | Common: 30-50% more.
Rare: 45-75% more. Epic: 60-100% more. |
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| Ambush | You can deal a randomly generated percentage more damage when striking foes from behind. | Common: 40-60% more.
Rare: 60-90% more. Epic:80-120% more. |
To obtain this boon, you must have the Shadow Presence ability offered by the Mirror of Night. |
| Assault | You deal a randomly generated percentage more damage when striking undamaged foes. | Common: 30-40% more.
Rare: 40-60% more. Epic:60-80% more. |
To obtain this boon, you must have the Fiery Presence ability granted by the Mirror of Night. |
| Eclipse | Any Darkness and Gems you find are worth a randomly generated percentage more. | Common: 75-100% more.
Rare: 112.5-150% more. Epic: 150-200% more. |
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| Favor | Boons you take have a randomly generated percentage chance of being Rare or better. | Common: 11-20% more.
Rare: 16.5-30% more. Epic: 22-40% more. |
This boon will also increase your chances of getting Epic and Legendary boons by 10%. |
| Flourish | Your Special attack deals a randomly generated percentage more damage. | Common: 30-60% more.
Rare: 45-90% more. Epic: 60-120% more. |
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| Grasp | You gain one extra Cast Ammo. | Regardless of the rarity, you will only gain one extra Cast Ammo. | |
| Lunge | Your Dash Attack will deal a randomly generated percentage more damage. | Common: 30-40% more.
Rare: 45-90% more. Epic: 60-120% more. |
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| Shot | Your Cast will deal a randomly generated percentage more damage. | Common: 30-40% more.
Rare: 45-60% more. Epic: 60-80% more. |
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| Soul | You gain a randomly generated amount of increased health. | Common: 30-40 more.
Rare: 45-60 more. Epic: 60-80 more. |
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| Strike | Your Attack deals a randomly generated percentage more damage. | Common: 30-40% more.
Rare: 45-60% more. Epic: 60-80% more. |
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| Defiance | You gain one more use of Death Defiance in your current run. | This is a Legendary boon. | This boon requires one other Chaos boon. |
The Curses
The curses associated with Chaos’s Boons can be terrifying in prospect, but fear not, the curse itself cannot kill you, at most dropping Zagreus to one hit point. Although our chthonic protagonist will make the injured sound, visual, or voice-line effect, the curse cannot send Zagreus floating home via the River Styx.
| Curse | Description | Extra |
| Abyssal | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you will take 300-500% more damage from traps. | |
| Addled | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you take 3-5 points of damage each time you Cast. | |
| Atrophic | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, your Life Total is reduced by 25-49 points. | This curse will not appear if your total health is less than 50. |
| Caustic | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, slain foes will toss an Inferno-Bomb toward you. | |
| Enshrouded | For the next 4-5 chambers, the reward previews are hidden. | |
| Excruciating | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you take an increased 20-50% more damage. | |
| Flayed | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you take 3-5 points of damage each time you use your Special. | |
| Halting | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, your Dash has a 20-50% reduced range. | |
| Maimed | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, each time you Attack, you take 3-5 points of damage. | |
| Pauper’s | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you cannot earn any Charon Obels. | |
| Roiling | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you face 30-80% more foes. | |
| Slippery | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you cannot collect your Cast Ammo for 10-15 seconds. | This boon will not appear when the Stygian Soul talent is selected. |
| Slothful | For the subsequent 3-4 encounters, you have a 40-60% reduced movement speed. |
The Best Combination
It is tough to gauge the best combination, considering that the varieties of curses and blessings are highly randomized. Gaining specific combinations can be a one-in-a-million chance, and it highly depends on what type of run and build you are doing.
Farming Run
If you are attempting a farming build, Eclipse paired with Slippery would likely be the best. Although Slothful and Halting are technically not harmful, they are seriously annoying when you’re trying to speed through chambers.
Under all circumstances, avoid the curses Pauper’s and Enshrouded. While either of those curses is active, it will make farming a challenge at best and impossible.
Speed Run
If you are trying to speed run the game, I would argue that Strike is your strongest boon. Not only do you feel like you’re going faster when you dash, but you can also deal more damage this way. Under all circumstances, avoid Slothful and Halting, as they will slow your speed drastically.
Instead, I would argue that Pauper’s would likely be the best curse for this type of run, considering that Charon Obels aren’t as important when you’re simply trying to blaze through each level.
No-Damage Run
As pointless as this type of run sounds, it is a genuine run that people attempt. Should you want to try the challenge for yourself, I would argue that Grasp is one of the best blessings to take.
An extra Cast Ammo means an extra attack from a long-range, keeping you out of harm’s way. I recommend avoiding any curse that deals damage and instead opt for something like Enshrouded or Pauper’s.
Damage Build
For damage builds, you have a plethora of options to pick from. Ambush, Assault, Flourish, Lunge, Shot, and Strike deal increased damage. Overall I would rally for Shot as the most powerful of these blessings, as Shot can be one of your most vital assets in the final fight.
As for curses, your options are more open for which ones would be the best for this build, but in my opinion, the best one would be Caustic. It is the least frustrating and perhaps the easiest to avoid and deal with.
Weapon and Boon Combo
Out of a bias for thematic appropriateness, I would argue that the best weapon you can use when aiming for a boon or two from Chaos is the Shield of Chaos, specifically utilizing the Aspect of Chaos.
Due to the shield’s ability for ranged attacks, melee attacks, and defense, it could be argued that the Sheild of Chaos is one of the best weapons in the game. More importantly, however, it’s one of the best weapons for dealing with Chaos’s curses.
When to Take these Chaotic Boons
Make sure you check what floor you are on before accepting one of Chaos’s Boons freely. Although curses are generally over and done quickly, taking one on with a hefty price to pay before a boss fight can be fatal.
Fortunately, no guesswork is involved regarding what floors boss fights take place on. Bosses in the first three stages will appear in chambers 14, 24, and 36. The rooms right before those stages will always be non-combat chambers.
You are guaranteed to obtain certain items throughout each run, like two Daedalus Hammers, visits to Charon’s shop, and the boons of other deities. What you are not guaranteed to get, however, is a Chaos Gate in every run.
So, when given the option, regardless of the rewards available in other chambers, I recommend entering the Primordial Void with open arms, just as Zagreus usually does when jumping through to visit.
See Also: Comprehensive Hades Items Guide.
Maximizing the Damage, without the Downsides
No, you cannot get rid of the curses completely. However, you can try to negate the effects of both obtaining these boons, and by using specific weapons and abilities to offset the impact of the curses you take on.
As previously mentioned, the Shield of Chaos is one of the best weapons you could utilize to help combat the effect of these curses, though it certainly varies from curse to curse on what method is the most useful.
In general, however, to keep yourself out of range from the excess damage caused by most curses, I recommend that you take one of the ranged Infernal Arms: Aegis (or the Shield of Chaos), Coronacht (Heart-Seeking Bow), and Exagryph (Adamant Rail).
Hades Chaos Boons Guide: FAQs
Question: What are Boons?
Answer: If you’ve gone through at least one or two level runs already, you likely have already encountered a Boon. If not, a boon appears as a glowing orb with a symbol of the gifting deity on it.
Once you accept or click on the orb, you will generally get some dialogue with the gifting deity followed shortly by a list of boons, or bonuses, that you can pick from.
Question: Will Taking Chaos’s Boon Help Build My Favor with them Faster?
Answer: Yes and no. While taking the Boon itself doesn’t help to garner favor with our favorite primordial deity, opting to go through a Chaos Gate where you have to take a Boon offers you a chance to speak with Chaos and to offer Nectar or Ambrosia.
Similar to the other deities in Hades, the only way to build a rapport with them is to opt for their Boon and offer up your gift. The boon will not inherently boost your favor but taking the opportunity as a way to gift will.
Question: Can I Make a Chaos Gate Spawn?
Answer: Not until you find a Well of Charon. Wells of Charon will not spawn during your first run or in the first four chambers of Tartarus, though they will always be available in the stairway after each boss. Even then, you have to wait until six runs in before a Chaos Gate begins to spawn.
Chaos Gates are more common in Tartarus, with their frequency decreasing as you progress through the levels. However, if you want to ensure that a Chaos Gate spawns in your next room, I recommend buying a Light of Ixion from a Well of Charon if one is available to you.
Question: How do I Offset the Health Loss from a Chaos Gate?
Answer: The Cosmic Egg will prevent any health loss when you’re entering a Chaos Gate. However, if you have a preferred Keepsake to keep equipped (I prefer the Lucky Tooth or the Broken Spearpoint), you can offset the health loss with the effects of Chthonic Vitality, available to you through the Mirror of Night.
Question: Can I Make a Certain Combination of Boons Happen?
Answer: No, you can’t. I’ve tried so hard, but in the end, Chaos reigns supreme, and Lady Luck guides your path.
Returning to The House of Hades
There are a lot of challenges that come with taking Chaos’s boons, but that only serves to make the game more interesting. The curses that Chaos provides offer a unique challenge to the game that cannot be obtained through the boons of other deities.
Once your curse is over, allowing for the blessing to take over his boons only makes you all the more powerful – arguably more so than other the deity’s boons.
His boons may be intimidating to take a first and tempting to avoid at all costs, but I urge you, after reading this guide, to start going for Chaos’s boons at every opportunity you can.
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