Hades 2 is an exciting game with two major regions: Underworld and Surface. Each of these two regions is made up of different locations and dungeons. While the first half of the game consists of the Underworld dungeons, the second half will take you to the Surface. Well, the process is not as easy as it sounds. Players can’t randomly make their way to the Surface whenever they want. It requires a proper method.

Currently, the Surface comprises two locations: the City of Ephyra and the Rift of Thessaly. These two locations contain most of the valuable resources and incantations. So, naturally, the unlocking process is not going to be an easy one. Don’t worry if you are not sure of the unlocking process. We are here to help you with all the necessary information. 

How to Go to the Surface in Hades 2 (and Unseal the Wards)

Reaching the Surface is part of the story in Hades 2. As players keep progressing through the game and complete the activities in the Underworld, especially the activities that Tartarus offers, eventually they will reach the entrance of the Surface, which needs to be unlocked first. This unlocking process requires players to perform an incantation to remove the seal, named Incantation Permeation of Witching Wards.

Let’s discuss the process in more detail to make things easier. The unlock process of this incantation requires players to meet and interact with NPCs whenever they find these characters. For example, after they have battled Hecate, the enemy becomes an ally who will give you important suggestions at the right time. Among her suggestions, one includes the use of the Incantation Permeation of Witching Wards. 

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The suggestion is not enough. Now, the next step requires them to unlock the incantation. This incantation again requires players to summon and speak to Moros, the God of Doom, when they are at Crossroads. While fighting Chronos, you shouldn’t kill him. All you need to do is fight him to unlock the incantation in the cauldron. This may take a few attempts, so be prepared to invest some time.

Now that the spell is unlocked, focus on collecting the resources that need to be submitted to the cauldron to perform the spell. The resources include 1x Cinder, 1x Shadow, and 3x Molly. So, it’s time to find these items. Cinder can be found by defeating Hecate in Erebus. Once she is taken down, she will drop a Cinder. Shadow can be acquired by using an alchemy recipe given by Chaos during an interaction. It consumes 30x Psyche, 30x Ash, and 3x Fate Fabric.

These three items can be purchased from Wretched Broker, but none of them are easy to get. These items cost a lot of Bones. So, make sure you have collected enough Bones by doing lots of in-game activities, especially Fated quests. After you have received Shadow, the final resource to gather is Molly. These can be randomly found in Erebus. There are no specific locations to get Molly. So, roam around Erebus, and you will get enough Molly.

Once you have all three resources in your stock to perform the incantation, submit them to the cauldron, and the seal will break, unlocking the Surface to explore. Again, there’s a twist. Once you reach the Surface, you will soon realize that surviving there for a long time is impossible. You may get killed a few times before you finally understand the thing.

How to Survive on the Surface in Hades 2

As soon as you ascend to the Surface, some strange things will start happening, and players will start losing their health. This is the biggest obstacle that is going to prevent players from exploring the region. But that’s not a permanent thing. Of course, without a clue, there’s no way to understand what’s going on, so, again, for the solution, speak to Chaos. He will explain the reason and the solution.

Players can easily get rid of this problem by performing another incantation named Unraveling a Fateful Bond. Again, this incantation should be unlocked before players perform it. Well, that’s not tough. Speaking to Chaos will unlock this spell. Once it is unlocked, start looking for the following items to perform the spell: 2x Lotus, 2x Moss, 2x Nightshade, and 2x Thalamus. 

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Among these items, finding Lotus requires players to get back to Oceanus, which is technically the second location they have explored during the Underworld journey. Lotus can be found on the ground randomly. Pick them up, and there’s no specific tool required to harvest them. The next item on the list is Moss. This one is tricky to acquire. Moss can only be harvested on the Surface. Precisely, Moss spawns randomly in the City of Ephyra. 

Once you get access to the Surface, don’t hesitate and have a speed run through the City of Ephyra to collect 2 Moss and get back to the cauldron before your HP gets too low to survive. Luckily, Moss can be found here and there in the City of Ephyra. So, players may not need multiple tries to collect Moss. 

After Moss, the list has Nightshade. Nightshade can be grown from Nightshade seeds. These seeds can be found in Erebus, the first location to visit in the Underworld. So, get back to the location and dig up the seeds. Plant them and wait for the flowers to bloom. Get these flowers, and you are done with the third item. The final one is Thalamus. 

Thalamus can be grown from Thalamus seeds, which can be found in the Chaos’ Realm. While explaining the incantation, Chaos will offer you one Thalamus seed, but the other should be collected. Bring a shovel to harvest the Origin seed from Chaos’ room. Once you have all four ingredients, submit them to the cauldron, and the curse will no longer affect players. Now, you are free to roam around the region and explore the Surface to its fullest.

That’s everything players need to know about how to access the Surface in Hades 2. As you are progressing through the game, you must be curious about several things, including the unlocking process of Book of Shadows. Our guide has all the details you need to know about this unlocking process. Moreover, whenever you face any issues regarding Hades 2, check out our guides for more knowledge about them.