Carried by Casts Circe Guide

Ever since the reworks in the Unseen EA patch, Circe has been one of my favorite Aspects. Coincidentally, the Aspect of Circe is also one of the best weapons in Hades 2.

I'll discuss my recommendations for both High Fear and any fear strategies. Honestly, Circe may be the easiest Weapon to beat the surface and underworld with, no matter your skill level, how much fear you're using, or what type of play style you prefer. It's a Titan of a weapon, and very, very safe to wield.

Aspect of Circe is also the best Rank 1 Aspect because the main thing you want is the double Cast, and the starting Psychic Leash damage of 10 damage/0.2s is still quite good.

If you are struggling to push fear for to complete Testaments, give Circe an honest try.

I suggest using the table of contents on the right (above on mobile) because I'm obsessed with this aspect and go into great detail explaining how to optimize its mechanics, and multiple build variations.

With that said... on to the build!

• At the bottom of this guide, you'll find my victory screenshots featuring the builds I used to clear 65 Fear with Circe on both the Surface and the Underworld. The loadout in the builder below is essentially a copy of the UW, with a few recommended changes.

This build is split in two. One the left of the gap, you'll see my go to choices, and roughly the build I used to clear 62 Fear with Aspect of Circe.

On the right you'll find alternative options to build around Hestia's Scorch instead of Zeus. Smolder Ring is just as powerful with double Casts, so it's up to your personal preference which version to go with.

• One extra build tip: DO NOT USE Winner's Circle. It will nerf the damage of each Cast use while using this build.

Before getting into the rest of the build, let's discuss how to play Aspect of Circe. After you get your Cast Boon and tier-2 buff—Double Strike / Pyro Technique—the most important thing is optimizing your Cast and Psychic Leash mechanics.

Psychic Leash

If you check the victory sheet below you'll see that Cast damage more than doubled everything else, and Psychic Leash came in at #2!

• For the purpose of explanation and strategy, I'm going to assume you are using Raki. Everything will still apply to Toula, but with one caveat: you need to remember to Sprint over and wake her up every so often.

The main thing to focus on is to keep Dashing and Sprinting to the opposite side of your feathery friend. Doing so keeps the targeted foe in the Leash line. DO NOT underestimate the Leash damage.

Leash Against Guardians

Guardians are pretty easy to keep in your Leash. Generally speaking, you want to keep rotating around Guardians to stay behind them and out of many of their attacks.

This works perfect with Aspect of Circe because you'll naturally be rotating with Raki. The Leash has unlimited distance/range, so you can drop Cast, run away, and keep lining up the Guardian in the Leash's path.

Abuse the range of your Special to maintain distance from the Guardian while also min/maxing that laser leash.

Leash Against Standard Foes

The main difference with managing the Leash in standard Encounters is just the number of enemies. Now is the time to make full use of the unlimited Leash length and line up as many foes as possible in its deadly path!

Even if Raki is across the map pecking some random isolated foe, still keep any foes you are targeting between you and your Familiar.

Generally, use the same strategy from the Guardian encounters. Keep rotating around foes with Raki, and purposely try to keep foes in the Leash as much as possible.

Animal Familiar Cast

Raki will almost always be flying right on top of enemies. Therefore, you can often drop cast as you normally would without giving too much extra thought to the second Cast placement.

However, if you get lazy and stop paying attention to Raki's positioning, you'll lose the double Cast damage and negate the whole point of Aspect of Circe!

Double Cast Against Guardians

Especially against more stationary Guardians like Cerberus and Typhon, misplacing a Cast wastes a ton of damage, and prolongs the fight. Don't rush it. Take your time,

• Cast Combat Loop: Dodge into position, and use The Messenger (VIII)'s Cast move speed buff + invulnerability to quickly and safely get out. This is the easiest way to keep enemies in the center of every double Cast.

When a Guardian summons reinforcements, pay attention to who Raki is pecking. Sometimes it's best to hold onto your Cast for 1 or 2 seconds to wait for him to fly back to the Guardian. The double Cast damage is the foundation and entirety of this build, so be methodical about every Cast placement.

Exact strategy will be Guardian specific, but some guidelines are:

• Wait for the Guardian to use a move that locks them in place, then drop Cast (ex: Chronos' Time Burst)
• Against Guardians like Prometheus who have dash moves, wait until they use the dash, dodge and drop Cast while they are recovering. If you place it before, they will just dash out of the Cast.
• Keep an eye on Raki. Even if you are running away, as long as he's still attacking the Guardian you can use Cast to trap them in Raki's Cast, and reactivate the Leash.

General Cast Tips

Possibly the most underrated power of having two Casts is the massive crowd control AoE you get. Drop Cast, and stay on the perimeter where ensnared foes cannot lunge at you.

• For an in depth look at optimizing Cast mechanics, see the dedicated guide.

Every Boon we are targeting is centered around maximizing your standard Cast damage. Whether you are going with Hestia or Zeus, all other components are strategies will apply to both.

Keepsakes

Start with Cloud Bangle or Everlasting Ember (based on desired Cast). If you have re-rolls from The Champions (XXII), use up to 2 rolls (3 fates) to get their Cast.

• When you aren't able to start with the Cast, either attack is the next best choice (Heaven Strike / Flame Strike) or their ranged casts are good too (Lightning Lance or Glowing Coal).

The rest of the Keepsakes are totally personal preference—With the exception that if you are using Hestia and don't already have either Aphrodite or Demeter in your God Pool, it's worth equipping one of their Keepsakes in the second region. Having at least one of their duos (Burning Desire or Freezer Burn) is really important for maximizing Scorch Damage.

Weapon & Cast

Although the Aspect of Circe also works really well with Omega Cast builds, but they take longer to get off the ground, require heavy Magick investment, and a lot of time spent channeling the Omega Cast.

• If you are playing without Vow Frenzy Rank II, Omega Cast builds are even more viable than I just described. They are really fun, but for the purpose of this guide, we're going to *ignore* Omega Casts. That would require an entire additional section.

Raki and Toula are by far the best options for Animal Familiars when using Circe. The rest of the Familiars are very inconsistent with their positioning so you'll have trouble utilizing the Psychic Leash and second Cast.

• (Gale follows Melinoë closely, so you can usually get foes in the 2nd Cast with him as well. an ok 3rd option. Hecuba and Frinos are terrible)

Take Toula if you want the extra Death Defiance, and don't mind having to wake her up.

Take Raki if you don't want to manage you Animal Familiar and want peak damage potential. Blitz and Storm Ring can both deal Critical damage, so the birds a great choice with Zeus.

• Hestia's Scorch cannot deal Critical damage, so you won't benefit from Raki's passive. However, he's so good at staying close to foes, he's still an ideal choice for double Cast and Leash.

Arcana Cards

This build is one of the few times I'm going to recommend dropping The Sorceress (I) and using that 1 Grasp for The Messenger (VIII). Other than during enemy spawn phases, I don't even use Omega Moves with Circe Staff.

However, Omega Attacks and really good with any Descura Aspect, so feel free to move around you Arcana to keep The Sorceress (I) on if you like using Omega Attacks/Specials.

Aside from the standard left column and re-roll corner, I personally used The Lovers (XV) because of Vow of Rivals Guardian encounters. But, if you don't feel you need the defensive help, you can use the Grasp elsewhere.

• Even if you have limited Grasp, I 100% recommend prioritizing The Messenger (VIII), The Swift Runner (XI), The Furies (VI), and Origination (XIV).
• The Swift Runner (XI) with be utilized for Sprinting through enemies and maintaining Psychic Leash uptime.

Zeus Variation

Storm Ring and Double Strike are your target Boons from Zeus. Use Cloud Bangle to rarify the Cast and your going to have a high damage build in the first chamber.

Heaven Strike and Heaven Flourish are basically equal choices, so take which ever one is offered or whichever one has higher rarity.

Lightning Lance is not required, but it will make positioning easier since you don't have to run in and drop Cast on top of foes. You can sit back, watch Raki peck their eyes out, and double drop Casts on those foos.

Hestia Variation

Smolder Ring and Pyro Technique are your top priority. If you are offered Demeter or Aphrodite at any point, make sure to take a Curse Boon from them.

Freezer Burn: You'll need Freeze from Ice Strike, Ice Flourish, or Arctic Ring for Freezer Burn.

Similar to Zeus, you should grab Glowing Coal for a ranged Cast if possible. The extra damage opens up new Duo options depending on God Pool, and just makes it super easy to play keep-away with enemies.

Double Smolder Ring racks up Scorch damage crazy fast, and makes it great in both standard and Guardian encounters.

• See How Scorch Works

God Pool

Aphrodite, Demeter, and Hera would be my first picks, but the Cast and Leach damage is so good, it really doesn't matter who else you get offered. You're going to be able to put together a great build regardless.

Nexus Rush will help with crowd damage, and you'll have plenty of time to run around spread Hitch. Moreover, Extended Family will boost both Storm Ring/Blitz and Smolder Ring/Scorch damage.

Blinding Rush is not a good alternative for your Rush Boon if you get Apollo.

All three of these Gods are going to be suitable choices for your open Attack/Special slot. Again, plenty of versatility here, so take whatever is the best you are offered.

Just make SURE you have a Cruse on the open Attack/Special or on the Rush Boon so you can activate Origination (XIV). The global damage from this Arcana is your best friend when it comes to boosting this Cast damage build.

Hammers

The main Hammer upgrades I'd recommend are Rapid Thrasher & Rapid Moonshot, or Wicked Thrasher. This is rare case where I wouldn't classify Hammers as "build defining," so don't sweat it, and take any Hammer that will buff your standard Attack/Special. Just avoid the Omega Attack/Special Hammers.

Hex

Hex is a bit of a strange one for this Circe build. We aren't using much Magick so you won't charge the Hex very often. However, because we have a Cast build, Dark Side doesn't limit our dps, and give a nice 5 seconds of invulnerability.

I wouldn't make it a priority, but if your offered a Boon of Selene, take it. Lunar Ray is another good choice because it charges quickly and you can drop your Casts, Dash away, and blast 'em with your laser!

Well of Charon

This may be an obscure strategy, but anytime I am offered Archaic Seal from a Well of Charon (Next item expires after two Guardians), I gamble on it, and hope for Braid of Atlas (+Cast Damage) or another good Well item in the 3rd or 4th region.

• In my posted run below, you see I got gamblers high and hit that sweeeeet extended Braid.

NPC Boons

Artemis' Pressure Points is great with the Storm Ring variation.

Athena has Mental Block to add even more Cast damage, and make Casting safer by adding Deflect. If you don't need her Death Defiance refills, go for this one.