We hate Chronos. He’s cold-hearted, arrogant, and loathed by every god, goddess, and creature from Greek mythology. Plus, he murdered your entire family and corrupted your pet in Hades 2.
By the time you’ve defeated Hecate, Scylla, and Cerberus, you’ve piled up enough rage and Boons to take on the final boss, Chronos, in Hades 2. Unfortunately, your anger alone isn’t enough to defeat him. To stand a chance against Chronos in Hades 2, knowing his moveset and devising a strategy to counter it is a must.
Hades 2: Best loadout to beat Chronos
To get the best loadout against Chronos in Hades 2, equip the Argent Skull and grab Boons from Apollo and Hermes to build up your speed.
Best weapon
The best weapon for this encounter is the Argent Skull. Most of Chronos’ attacks are telegraphed, so keeping a distance to focus on the marked areas you must avoid gives you the upper hand in battle.
If you’d rather go melee, I suggest picking the Moonstone Axe to deal extra damage.
Best Boons
Any Boon that ups your speed is great. But with Apollo’s Blinding Sprint, you can inflict Daze on enemies and Sprint faster. Hermes’ Midnight Oil Boon makes you faster if your Hex is charged. Being faster than the guy who controls time itself is a huge bonus.
On the topic of Hexes, Wolf Howl is straightforward enough to help you in this fight. You just launch into the air and deal a chunk of damage. Since this is a two-phase boss fight, depleting Chronos’ health bar faster is a must.
Hades 2: How to beat Chronos in phase one
Chronos phase one moveset
Here’s every attack Chronos can unleash during the first phase of his boss fight in Hades 2:
| Visual reference | Move | Counter Attack |
|---|---|---|
 | Chronos throws his scythe around the arena, frisbee-style. | When you spot the golden frisbee coming your way, dodge toward the back of the arena. |
 | Chronos spawns a circle of spheres around him. | Stay away from melee reach until the spheres disappear. |
 | Chronos cleaves the area in front of him with his scythe. | When you see him blink, he’s charging this attack. Dodge to the outskirts of the arena to avoid incoming damage. |
 | Chronos shields himself and spawns beasts in the arena. | Focus on defeating the beasts first, then go back to Chronos. |
 | Chronos throws spinning spheres all over the arena. | As you deal with the beasts, avoid the trios of spheres. Prioritize avoiding. The beasts can wait. |
 | Chronos dashes forward, piercing you with his scythe. | Use your Sprint to dodge sideways. |
 | Chronos deploys a Cast on the ground and traps you inside. | To avoid damage, Sprint away from the telegraphed Cast. |
 | Chronos spins his scythe, pulling you toward him and dealing damage upon contact. | Sprint away from the scythe’s reach until the attack is over. The beasts can wait. |
Chronos phase one strategy
To beat Chronos in phase one in Hades 2, prioritize evasion over confrontation. Even when he summons beasts to the arena, make sure you avoid first. Deal damage as a second priority.
His scythe’s rifts are the most frequent threat in this part of the fight, so stay mobile to avoid being caught in their explosive aftermath.
But by far the most deadly move to anticipate is his menacing scythe wall of air, which drags you towards it. Look out for a telltale pause, a blinking white in Chronos’ sprite, and retreat to safety.
The best advice I can give you is to stay behind Chronos, especially if you’ve got the Backstab bonus, or at a safe distance to minimize risk.
If you’re wielding the Argent Skull, exploit its ranged capabilities to chip away at his health from afar.
Alternatively, if you have a melee weapon, stay close behind him and be ready to dodge his teleports and dashes.
Hades 2: How to beat Chronos in phase two
Chronos phase two moveset
Here’s every attack Chronos can unleash during the second phase of his boss fight in Hades 2:
| Visual reference | Move | Counter Attack |
|---|---|---|
 | Chronos compels Melinoë to stand in the time sigil on the floor. | Stand inside the sigil. |
 | Chronos cleaves the area in front of him with his scythe. | When you see him blink, he’s charging this attack. Dodge to the outskirts of the arena to avoid incoming damage. |
 | Chronos unleashes a rapidly closing telegraphed circle on the ground. If you’re inside this circle, you take damage. | As soon as you spot the circle closing, look for a gap between the golden flames to escape. The bigger the circle, the easier it is to escape. |
 | Chronos telegraphs a circle on the ground and then deals damage to those standing on it. | Stand on the unmarked section of the arena to avoid damage. |
 | Chronos telegraphs four clock hands and unleashes his frisbee scythe attack simultaneously. | Stand outside the telegraphed area and look for the incoming frisbee attack. |
 | Chronos marks a large portion of the arena with telegraphed, circle-shaped attacks. He traps you inside a dome if you stand on the telegraphed circle | Stand outside the circles to avoid taking damage. |
 | Chronos marks a large portion of the arena with telegraphed clock hands and unleashes spheres simultaneously. | Stand outside the clock hands to avoid damage, and look out for the incoming spheres. |
 | Chronos summons beasts to the arena. | Deal with them when you can, but avoiding incoming damage takes priority. |
 | Chronos spins clock hands around the arena, dealing damage in the process. | Stay ahead of the spinning clock hands to avoid damage. |
Chronos phase two strategy
The stakes are higher in phase two of the battle against Chronos in Hades 2, with his health fully restored and deadly new tactics at his disposal.
As soon as the second phase begins, the arena becomes treacherous, shrouded in darkness save for one illuminated area. Stray into the shadows, and you get instantly obliterated, a single misstep sealing your fate with a devastating 999 damage blow. Just stand in the light.
Throughout the fight, Chronos unleashes clockwork beams and paralyzes domes. Keep an eye on the shifting light patterns and dodge accordingly. Though formidable, Chronos remains vulnerable to a well-timed assault if you master the arena’s dynamics and his moveset.
Like in the first phase, keeping a strategic position behind him is essential if you’re going for a melee build. Ranged weapons like the Argent Skull work fine, too, and let you focus on avoiding the telegraphed attacks without having to worry about Chronos’ scythe cleaves.
Hades 2: Chronos boss fight rewards
After you defeat Chronos in Hades 2, you get Zodiac Sand as a reward. You can use it for your Incantations back at The Crossroads.
The best use for Zodiac Sand in Hades 2 is to craft the Judgement Arcana Card. This is arguably the best card in the game. It costs 50 Ash and one Zodiac Sand to create but consumes zero Grasp. When activated, it triggers three, four, or five random inactive Arcana Cards after each boss fight.
