In Supergiant Games’ Hades, the gods of Olympus, Olympians, are helping Zagreus in his quest to leave and escape the Underworld. By helping Zagreus, the Olympians believe he is fighting his way to leave the Underworld and be with them in Olympus. They do not know that that is not Zagreus’ actual intention at all, and he wants to leave the Underworld to find and talk to his mother. Besides, without their aid, Zagreus would not be able to escape the Underworld.
One of the Olympians that helps Zagreus in his Underworld escape attempts is Hermes. In Hades’ lore, Hermes is Zagreus’ cousin. Hermes, the God of Swiftness, is also the god of commerce, trickery, and travel. Hermes is also the messenger of the gods and who escorts souls into the afterlife (called a psychopomp). In this guide, you will get to know Hermes’ boons that will help Zagreus in his Underworld escape attempts.
Zagreus gets help from the Olympians in the form of boons, which are upgrades that make him stronger. A boon can be obtained from completing chambers as a reward or by purchasing it from Charon’s Shop for 150 Obols. Boons, however, are effective only during the current escape attempt, after which they vanish once Zagreus has died and returned to the House of Hades.
Boons
Hermes offers boons that improve Zagreus’ Dash and Cast recovery and boons that improve Zagreus’ speed in different ways. However, unlike the boons from the other gods of Olympus, Hermes’ boons do not occupy the Attack, Special, Cast, Dash, or Call boon slots on the left side of the screen as Hermes’ boons are designed to complement the other gods’ boons. It is also important to mention that Hermes’ boons cannot be upgraded with a Pom of Power.
For Fated Authority and Charon’s Shop, Hermes’ boons are in a different item pool than other gods of Olympus’s boons. Hermes’ boons can still appear first before a certain god’s boons that have been given a higher chance to appear because of that god’s keepsake. It is also worth noting that Zagreus can only obtain up to three of Hermes’ boons per run, with the third of these only available by purchasing it from Charon’s Shop in the Temple of Styx.
The following are Hermes’ boons:
| Boon | Description | Rarity | Boon Requirement |
| Swift Strike | Your Attack is +X% faster. Works in decreasing weapon attack charge time by X%. | Common: Attack Speed: +10% Rare: Attack Speed: +20% Epic: Attack Speed: +30% Heroic: Attack Speed: +40% | None |
| Swift Flourish | Your Special is +X% faster. Works in decreasing weapon special charge time by X%. | Common: Special Speed: +10% Rare: Special Speed: +20% Epic: Special Speed: +30% Heroic: Special Speed: +40% | None |
| Flurry Cast | Your Cast is +X% faster and fully automatic. It cannot be combined with the Aspect of Beowulf. It cannot be combined with the Aspect of Hera. Requires the Infernal Soul Mirror Ability. | Common: Cast Speed: +20% Rare: Cast Speed: +40% Epic: Cast Speed: +60% Heroic: Cast Speed: +80% | None |
| Quick Favor | Your Call charges up automatically. | Common: Auto Gauge Gain: +1% (every 2 sec.) Rare: Auto Gauge Gain: +1% (every 1.5 sec.) Epic: Auto Gauge Gain: +1% (every 1 sec.) Heroic: Auto Gauge Gain: +1% (every 0.5 sec.) | Aphrodite’s Aid, Ares’ Aid, Artemis’ Aid, Athena’s Aid, Demeter’s Aid, Dionysus’ Aid, Poseidon’s Aid, or Zeus’ Aid |
| Hyper Sprint | For X seconds after you Dash, become Sturdy and run +100% faster. | Common: Duration: 0.5 sec. Rare: Duration: 0.6 sec. Epic: Duration: 0.7 sec. Heroic: Duration: 0.9 sec. | None |
| Greater Haste | You move X% faster. | Common: Movement Speed: +20% Rare: Movement Speed: +30% Epic: Movement Speed: +40% Heroic: Movement Speed: +50% | None |
| Quick Recovery | After you take damage, quickly Dash to recover up to X% Health lost. | Common: 30% Health lost Rare: 40% Health lost Epic: 50% Health lost Heroic: 60% Health lost | None |
| Greater Evasion | You have a +X% chance to Dodge. | Common: Dodge Chance: +10% Rare: Dodge Chance: +15% Epic: Dodge Chance: +20% Heroic: Dodge Chance: +25% | None |
| Greatest Reflex | You can Dash +X more time(s) in a row. | Common: Extra Dashes: +1 Rare: Extra Dashes: +2 Epic: Extra Dashes: +3 Heroic: Extra Dashes: +4 | None |
| Second Wind | After using Call, gain Dodge chance and movement speed for 6 Sec. | Common: Bonus Dodge Chance & Move Speed: +30% Rare: Bonus Dodge Chance & Move Speed: +33% Epic: Bonus Dodge Chance & Move Speed: +36% Heroic: Bonus Dodge Chance & Move Speed: +39% | Aphrodite’s Aid, Ares’ Aid, Artemis’ Aid, Athena’s Aid, Demeter’s Aid, Dionysus’ Aid, Poseidon’s Aid, or Zeus’ Aid |
| Quick Reload | Foes drop Cast Ammo stuck in them faster. It cannot be combined with the Aspect of Beowulf. It cannot be combined with Crystal Beam. It cannot be combined with Curse of Drowning. It cannot be combined with Slicing Shot. It cannot be combined with a Trippy shot. Requires the Infernal Soul Mirror Ability. | Common: Drop Time: 5 Sec Rare: Drop Time: 3.75 Sec Epic: Drop Time: 2.5 Sec Heroic: Drop Time: 2 Sec | None |
| Side Hustle | Each time you enter a Chamber, gain a bit of wealth. It is not affected by boons that modify wealth gain. Applies to the Temple of Styx mini-chambers. | Common: Bonus Wealth per Chamber: +10 Obols Rare: Bonus Wealth per Chamber: +13 Obols Epic: Bonus Wealth per Chamber: +16 Obols Heroic: Bonus Wealth per Chamber: +19 Obols | None |
| Rush Delivery | You deal bonus damage based on any bonus move speed. | Common: Bonus Damage from Bonus Speed: 50% Rare: Bonus Damage from Bonus Speed: 75% Epic: Bonus Damage from Bonus Speed: 100% Heroic: Bonus Damage from Bonus Speed: 125% | Greater Haste, Hyper Sprint, or Lambent Plume (Keepsake Ability) |
| Auto Reload | You regenerate Cast Ammo faster. Requires the Stygian Soul Mirror Ability. | Common: Regeneration Time: 2.75 seconds Rare: Regeneration Time: 2.5 seconds Epic: Regeneration Time: 2.25 seconds Heroic: Regeneration Time: 2 seconds | None |
| Greater Recall | Your Cast Ammo automatically returns to you. Requires the Infernal Soul Mirror Ability. | Legendary | Flurry Cast, Quick Reload, or Lambent Plume (Keepsake Ability) |
| Bad News | Your Cast deals more damage to foes without Cast Ammo on them. First shot damage: +50% Requires the Stygian Soul Mirror Ability. | Legendary | Auto Reload or Lambent Plume (Keepsake Ability) |
It is also important to note that accepting all of Hermes’ Boons at least once will complete one of the prophecies in the Fated List of Minor Prophecies called God of Swiftness which will reward 150 Gemstones.
