There are a lot of different mechanics going on in the hit roguelike Hades, made by Supergiant Games. And, because of that, some of the more “subtle” systems can be overlooked. For example, not many players knew about the Skull Icons underneath the Reward Previews for Rooms, which let them know if the rewards (and difficulty) of these rooms are enhanced.
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Hades, the roguelike ARPG from Supergiant Games, was one of the biggest hits of 2020, but there are plenty of other indie roguelikes to explore.
Dark Thirst is another subtle mechanic and one that a majority of the Hades fanbase doesn’t know enough about. Here’s a guide to everything players should understand about Dark Thirst and how it works in the game.
Updated November 1st, 2024 by Jacob Buchalter: With Hades 2 doing well in Early Access (they actually just released a new big update, the Olympic Update, at the time of writing this) there’s never been a better time to get into the Hades franchise. And, while you don’t necessarily need to have played the first game to enjoy the second, it does help. So, for those who are playing Hades for the first time, returning to it for fun, or even just prefer the first game over the second, here’s a deeper look at one of the lesser known buffs/systems in the game, the Dark Thirst system.
What Is The “Dark Thirst” Buff?
Dark Thirst refers to a passive buff that’s applied to one of the Infernal Arms, and grants Zagreus 20 percent more Darkness from drops for the entirety of that run, should he choose that specific weapon.
The buff is applied ‘randomly’ to one specific Infernal Arm at a time, and will typically change with every run. Players can visually tell which Weapon has the Dark Thirst buff by the purple glow around the weapon.
How is Dark Thirst Decided?
How The Game Chooses Which Infernal Arm It’s Applied To
The aspect of Dark Thirst that confused players for the longest time wasn’t really ‘how it worked’ but more of how it’s applied and gained. Dark Thirst is randomly applied to one of the six Infernal Arms every time Zagreus completes (or fails to complete) a run. To put it in very simple terms, it’s pretty much RNG.
Dark Thirst will never be applied to the weapon that Zagreus just used in his most recent escape attempt.
This is likely why a portion of the Hades player base never knew about this buff, as there are quite a lot of people who find one Infernal Arm that works for them and continue to use only that weapon for the rest of their runs.
The last thing to note, and one of the most obvious (yet still important) things, is that Dark Thirst is applied to the entire Infernal Arm, which includes all of its Aspects and complete/incomplete Heat Levels. This means that if a player selects the weapon to which Dark Thirst is applied, they do not need to choose a specific aspect or Heat Level to get the benefits of the buff.
The Utility Of The Dark Thirst Buff
Is It Really Worth It To Use?
It can’t be understated how useful this buff is for farming, by the way. A 20 percent increase to all Darkness earned in a run is absolutely huge when players are grinding out Darkness. Grinding Darkness in Hades can grow tedious after a certain point, so anything to make it easier is highly useful. That said, do note that this 20% increase is applied to each individual pickup, and not the end total of all Darkness obtained throughout the run.
Additionally, keep in mind Dark Thirst can actually be more of a curse than a blessing, depending on the circumstances. For example, say a player does incredibly well with the Stygian Blade, but is absolutely awful with the Shield of Chaos.
For all intents and purposes, it probably makes more sense for them to keep grinding with the Stygian Blade, even if the Shield has the Dark Thirst Buff. If Dark Thirst is applied to the player’s least favored weapon, it’s slower to use Dark Thirst and move slowly through a run (or fail it altogether) than it is to ignore Dark Thirst and keep using the weapon that works. However, for those who want to have their cake and eat it too, there is a way to manipulate the game so that Dark Thirst at least applies itself to a better weapon. Simply start an escape attempt and then die as soon as possible, to reset the Dark Thirst random application.
- Franchise
- Hades
- Released
- September 17, 2020
- How Long To Beat
- 23 Hours