UNDERWORLD NOTE
A clear starting plan.
The Axe turns a safe opening into a large hit. Its deliberate pace makes the next enemy action important: you cannot make every recovery window fit the longest attack. Start with controlled normal strikes, then add a charged move when the room gives you time.
Melinoë’s aspect provides normal Attack Power and maximum Life as it is upgraded. Charon instead builds around a Cast triggered by Omega Special; Thanatos rewards clean play with Omega critical potential. Those are different upgrade budgets, not cosmetic preferences.
This is a practical first-clear route. If you already know another aspect’s timing, use the aspect notes below to adapt the sequence.
UNDERWORLD NOTE
A sequence you can repeat.
- 01
Wait for commitment
Keep enough space to see an enemy begin its move. Cast the approach so smaller enemies cannot interrupt from every direction.
- 02
Use the right-sized hit
Take a normal strike if the opening is short. Use an Omega only when its channel and recovery fit the space you have created.
- 03
Leave before the next tell
Move out when the enemy begins to recover. Do not decide to finish a long sequence merely because the first hit connected.
- 04
For Charon, align the pair
Place a normal Cast, then aim Omega Special through it. Treat the Cast and detonation as one planned action with a real Magick cost.
UNDERWORLD NOTE
Give each Boon a job.
The choices below are starting directions and fallbacks. They are not a guarantee that a random run offers every piece. Read the actual range, trigger and Magick condition before taking a named choice.
Nova Strike / Sworn Strike
A percentage-based Attack Boon supports the aspect’s normal Attack Power. Check the wording before assuming a normal-Attack modifier also improves the Omega.
Solar Ring or another compatible Cast direction
Charon changes the value of the Cast slot. Choose its payoff deliberately and do not fund an unrelated normal-Attack plan at the same time.
Lucid Gain
The current version no longer asks you to stand inside your Cast. It is still an economy to check against your actual costs, especially after a costly Hammer or support choice.
UNDERWORLD NOTE
Choose the action, then the Hammer.
A Hammer can change which action deserves your next upgrade. Check the equipped aspect, eligible moves and added costs rather than treating three suggestions as a guaranteed package.
Executioner’s Chop
An ordinary Attack direction for players who can safely commit to it. Test the added commitment against the enemies in your current route.
Sudden Cleaver
A possible Omega-Special direction. It matters most for a run using that action repeatedly, rather than for a normal-Attack plan.
Psychic Whirlwind
An Omega-Attack direction that changes how you play the spin. Treat a moveset-changing Hammer as a reason to retest your sequence.
UNDERWORLD NOTE
Four ways to play this weapon.
Melinoë
Normal Attack Power and maximum Life.
Use its extra durability to learn safe strike windows without turning every opening into a long channel. Put normal Attack support on the action that benefits.
Watch for: Attack and Omega Attack are distinct terms. Read modifiers closely before paying for a spin-focused plan.
Charon
Omega Special detonates your Cast.
Build the pair: place the Cast, align the Special and maintain a recovery effect. The intended target area matters more than being beside every enemy.
Watch for: Old Lucid Gain instructions may tell you to stand in the Cast. That requirement changed at v1.0.
Thanatos
Faster normal Attacks and a clean-play Omega critical engine.
Preserve your momentum by taking clean openings. When an enemy breaks your rhythm, rebuild control rather than immediately chasing the next critical hit.
Watch for: Normal Attack speed and Omega critical effects do different jobs; a normal-only setup does not use every part of the aspect.
Nergal
A heavy hidden moveset with a Berserk healing window.
Work toward the window with controlled hits, then use its recovery while still respecting incoming damage. Upgrading the aspect changes how forgiving the plan feels.
Watch for: Healing is conditional and the build has ramp-up. It is not a reason to deliberately trade into every boss attack.
UNDERWORLD NOTE
Fix the awkward moment.
I take damage finishing the combo
End the combo early. The next safe turn has more value than squeezing out one extra swing and losing the Life needed for the next room.
I am trying to block with Special
Old Axe guides can describe a removed blocking behaviour. The current Axe and the Black Coat are different defensive tools.
My Charon build runs dry
Confirm the Gain effect is triggering, then review extra Magick costs. A famous combination does not make every additional cost free.
UNDERWORLD NOTE
Take one question into the next room.
Practise the first hit alone, the full normal chain and the Omega Attack as three separate decisions. In a real room, say which opening you saw before choosing one. That small pause teaches more than repeating a full chain into every enemy.
Keep the same aspect while testing that one habit. Once it works, change one Boon choice or one movement decision and observe what improves.
THE SOURCE DESK
What this guide is built on.
Reviewed . Latest gameplay note found: Post-Launch Patch 2 · Hotfix 5, published . The newer September publisher post covers the documentary and concert.
Our routes, comparisons and first-clear recommendations are editorial synthesis from the references below. They are not a claimed Cobalt playthrough or a measured damage simulation.
- Supergiant Games · official Steam announcements ↗Post-Launch Patch 2 and Hotfix 5; checked 3 November 2026.
- Hades Wiki · Moonstone Axe ↗Moveset and aspect reference.
- Mobalytics · Charon Cast/Special analysis ↗Independent check of Charon and the current Lucid Gain distinction.