You’ve probably spent hours dashing through the Underworld, wondering where the hell the big guy is. In the original game, Ares was everywhere. He was the king of the "Doom" stack—that satisfying thwack of delayed damage that melted bosses. But things changed in the sequel.
The ares boon hades 2 situation is actually a bit of a curveball. For a long time during the early development phases, he was completely MIA. Now that he's officially back in the roster via the "Warsong" update, he doesn't just hand out power for free. You have to earn it. Honestly, if you're looking for the old Doom mechanics, you’re going to be surprised. He's shifted his focus to a new status effect called Wounds, and it changes everything about how Melinoë handles a crowd.
How to actually unlock Ares in Hades 2
Most players make the mistake of looking for him in Erebus or Oceanus. He won't show up there. Not at first. To get Ares into your god pool, you have to push through the surface route. It’s a scripted trigger. You need to reach the peak of Olympus and face Typhon at least once.
You don't even have to win that fight. Just seeing the Father of Monsters is enough to signal to the God of War that you’re worth his time. Once that encounter happens, Ares starts appearing in subsequent runs. If he still isn't showing up, check your Vows at the Altar of Ashes. If you have the Vow of Forfeit active, it can sometimes mess with scripted boon spawns by turning them into onions. Nobody wants an onion when they’re looking for a legendary blade rift.
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Understanding the Wounds mechanic
Forget Doom. In this game, it’s all about Wounds. When you pick up a core ares boon hades 2 like Vicious Strike or Vicious Flourish, you aren't just getting a percentage damage buff. You’re applying a curse that adds +50 Power to the hit that triggers it.
The catch? It has a 3-second internal cooldown per enemy.
- Vicious Strike: Your Attack inflicts Wounds.
- Vicious Flourish: Your Special inflicts Wounds.
- Grievous Blow: This is the must-have. It grants a massive global damage increase (up to 200% at high rarities) against Wounded foes.
This makes Ares a "burst and wait" god. You hit them hard once, let the Wound settle, and then capitalize on that massive damage window. If you're using a fast weapon like the Lim and Oros daggers, you might feel like the 3-second wait is too long. But pairing it with Mutual Destruction—which gives you a chance to deal double damage based on your Max HP—turns Melinoë into a literal tank that hits like a semi-truck.
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The best Ares synergies and builds
Ares is no longer a solo carry god. He's a team player now. If you try to build a pure Ares run without any help from the other Olympians, you’re going to have a bad time. His base damage percentages are actually some of the lowest in the game. You have to use him to "prime" the enemy for other big hits.
The Hestia Pairing (The Fourth Degree Build)
Hestia’s Scorch effect does damage over time, which fills the 3-second gap while you're waiting for Wounds to refresh. When you get their Duo Boon, the combustion effect can trigger off the Wounded status, leading to some of the highest burst numbers currently possible in the game.
The Zeus "Blitz" Combo
Since Ares offers massive global damage increases through boons like Grievous Blow, he is the perfect partner for Zeus. Blitz requires you to deal a certain amount of damage to "pop" the lightning bolt. With Ares' 200% damage boost active, you can trigger those Blitz bolts almost instantly.
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Why Falling Blades feel different
Blade Rifts are back, but they’re now called Falling Blades. They function more like a rain of swords rather than a moving vortex. While they look cool, they can be finicky. The community consensus is that they are a bit underwhelming unless you snag the Cutting Edge Duo Boon with Apollo. That specific synergy increases the area of effect by 50% and makes the blades drop an extra time. Suddenly, the screen is just a blender of steel.
Actionable Next Steps for Your Next Run
If you want to make an Ares build work tonight, stop treating him like a primary damage dealer and start treating him like a multiplier.
- Prioritize the Surface: If you haven't seen Ares yet, stop going down to Tartarus for a few runs. Focus on reaching Typhon to unlock the Ares god pool.
- Grab the Sword Hilt: Once you meet Ares, give him Nectar immediately to get the Sword Hilt Keepsake. This lets you "rarify" his boons once per night, which is crucial because his high-tier damage multipliers (like Grievous Blow) scale like crazy with rarity.
- Kill Count for the Bond: To max out your relationship and get the character bond, you’re going to need to slay a lot of enemies—somewhere in the neighborhood of 2,000 to 10,000 depending on your progress level. Ares respects nothing but a high body count.
- Avoid Fast, Low-Damage Spam: If you're running a build that relies on 20 tiny hits per second, Ares’ Wounds will feel wasted. Swap to an Aspect that favors heavy Omega moves or single, high-impact strikes to get the most out of the 3-second cooldown.
Mastering Ares in this sequel is less about the chaos of war and more about the precision of a veteran general. He’s harder to use than Zeus or Poseidon, sure. But when that 200% damage modifier kicks in and you see a Guardian’s health bar evaporate, it all clicks.