Hades 2 can oftentimes be an overwhelming experience, between deadly bosses, dangerous new enemies of the surface, and Chronos’ constant villainous interference. You’ll need every advantage you can get to come out on top, and with that in mind, it’s pretty easy to overlook one of the most useful, animal companions. Melinoe can have a cuddly animal familiar accompany her through the underworld. And it’s not just for show as these pals provide a variety of benefits. Here’s everything you need to know about recruiting pet companions in Hades 2. And don’t worry, your furry friends can’t get hurt, no matter how many times you spam attacks.
How to Unlock Both Animal Familiars in Hades 2
Before recruiting an animal familiar, you’ll need to play at least a few hours of Hades 2. While it’s not exactly clear everything you need to do, there seem to be a few requirements. In our experience we had reached the second biome Oceanus at least once, and unlocked the incantation that would remove the barrier to the surface — although we didn’t complete it.
After you’ve done this you’ll need to keep going on runs and fighting the first, boss, Hecate. At some point, after beating Hecate multiple times she’ll say, “Do bring an animal familiar along next time, it’ll make things more interesting for me!”
At that point, she’ll give you the Faith of Familiar Spirits incantation, which you’ll need to complete the Crossroads cauldron. To do this you’ll need two ingredients, Nectar x2 and Lotus x1. Nectar can be found as a reward during runs, or you can purchase it from the merchant for 30 bones. Lotus is an ingredient that appears in Oceanus, and can be gathered anytime without tools. Completing the incantation will give you a Beast-Loved Morsel, and now all you need to do is give it to an animal to recruit them. If only real-life pets were that easy to please.
There are currently two animal familiars in Hades 2, Frinos the frog and Toula the cat. Keep in mind the game is in Early Access, and more will likely be added later. In fact, there are two mysteriously open spots right next to where you’re unused animal companion resides.
Frinos resides in Melinoe’s room, right where you respawn every time. Just give him the morsel, and the frog will accompany you.
Recruiting Toula is a bit more complicated. You’ll need to brew another Beast-Loved Morsel, which requires two Lotus and one S-Dust (Star Dust).
Later on in Hades 2, you’ll learn the Abyssal Insight incantation, which adds the Chaos Trials to the crossroads. To get this incantation you may need to speak to enter the Chaos realm a few times, and speak to Chaos, as it gives you the incantation.
Once you’ve added the purple crystal to the weapon room, you can take on Chaos Trials to earn S-Dust. Each one awards S-Dust, and after you unlock the trials you can also buy S-Dust from the merchant for 800 bones.
Now to actually find Toula, you’ll need to get to the surface, on the path to Olympus. You’ll see Toula early on, but once you unlock familiars the cat will move on. You can find her after beating the first biome on the surface, specifically on the dock in the Rift of Thessaly region. Just bring a tasty snack along and gift it to the cat, and you’ll have yet another pet to accompany you.
How to Upgrade Animal Familiars in Hades 2
Both Frinos and Toula come with their own unique abilities, and also let you gather extra resources. Frinos will block random projectiles for Melinoe, while dashing past Toula during battle will make the cat attack. Rewarding your pets with snacks will help their abilities grow even stronger. Each morsel you give a familiar will allow you to level up one of three bonds. Here are the bonds for both.
Frinos
- Life Bond: Frinos grants you +20 health. Can be upgraded to 30 and 40.
- Soul Bond: Frinos can compel one wayward spirit for Psyche. Can be upgraded to twice and three times.
- Strength Bond: Whenever Frinos jumps on an enemy it causes 10 damage. Can be upgraded to 20 and 30.
Toula
- Heart Bond: Toula grants you an extra DeathDefiance that restores 10 health. Can be upgraded to 20 and then 30 health.
- Soul Bond: Toula can catch one fish per night. Can be upgraded to two and three.
- Claw Bond: When Toula is in your sprint she’ll attack for 99 damage, once per battle. Can be upgrade to twice and three times per battle.
If you want to switch companions after you’ve befriended both, just head to where you’re gathering tools are and press the corresponding button to have the new companion swap in.
