Pick target Heat by weapon.
Avoid: Turn on many conditions.Hades · Guides
Hades Heat: raise Pact difficulty one condition at a time
Use this after at least one clear, when the Pact of Punishment starts offering rewards and difficulty tradeoffs.
Primary sections
Start with your problem
Heat can look like a simple difficulty number, but each Pact condition punishes different weapons, builds and habits.
Track target Heat per weapon, add low-risk conditions gradually, avoid conditions that match your failure pattern, and treat Infernal Gates or statues as optional goals.
Swap condition family.
Avoid: Change weapon and boons at same time.Check lowest unclaimed weapon target.
Avoid: Assume higher Heat skips reward tiers.Problem solver
Diagnose the Heat and Pact blocker
Start from the run state that changes your next action.
New Pact
Difficulty and reward systems just opened.
Pick target Heat by weapon.
Do not: Turn on many conditions. heatFactsSudden failures
Condition attacks current weakness.
Swap condition family.
Do not: Change weapon and boons at same time. weaponAspectFactsReward confusion
Bounty track is being misread.
Check lowest unclaimed weapon target.
Do not: Assume higher Heat skips reward tiers. artifactsPlayable tools
Use this while planning your route
These tools turn the guide into a quick decision surface for boss attempts, builds, quests and backups.
Decision tool
Heat and Pact next-action selector
Pick the current blocker and get the safest next action.
Choose the current state to get the next action.
Checklist
Heat and Pact verification checklist
Use this before changing weapon route, Heat, keepsake or save state.
Video
Hades official Steam trailers and media
Open the official Steam store media section for current trailers, screenshots and publisher-provided video assets.
Open official Steam mediaPlayer problem
Heat can look like a simple difficulty number, but each Pact condition punishes different weapons, builds and habits.
Track target Heat per weapon, add low-risk conditions gradually, avoid conditions that match your failure pattern, and treat Infernal Gates or statues as optional goals.
Start with target Heat
Plan the next reward track rather than raising the number randomly.
- Check weapon bounty target.
- Add one controlled condition.
- Keep the weapon route familiar.
Match condition to failure pattern
Do not add a condition that attacks the thing already killing the run.
- Avoid Forced Overtime if timing is the blocker.
- Avoid Tight Deadline if route speed is weak.
- Avoid healing cuts if sustain is required.
Use milestones after consistency
Erebus gates and statues are challenge goals.
- Treat them as optional.
- Do not greed with weak HP.
- Separate cosmetic goals from reward routing.
Heat condition triage
| Condition family | Use when | Avoid when |
|---|---|---|
| Enemy damage/speed | Boss patterns are stable. | Dodging/timing is the blocker. |
| Healing/shop pressure | Route does not depend on recovery buys. | HP management is the blocker. |
| Boss remixes | Normal boss is solved. | Boss phase is still unfamiliar. |
| Timers | Clear speed is consistent. | Rooms already feel rushed. |
Action checklist
Do this in order
- Clear once before normal Heat planning.
- Check target Heat by weapon.
- Add one condition or one condition family.
- Avoid conditions that match current weakness.
- Review bounty and reward result after the run.
FAQ
Common questions
When should I start Heat in Hades?
After the first clear on normal saves, then raise conditions gradually by weapon target.
What Heat conditions are safest?
It depends on weapon, build and failure pattern. The safe choice is the condition that does not punish your current weakness.
Sources