Starting Speedrunning in Hades
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Starting Speedrunning in Hades
Updated 3 years ago by Jerds

This is some high level starting info to help you get started with speedrunning Hades.


Getting Started

You've come to the right place to start your research! First steps include: Watching speedrun videos from the leaderboards, check out the Resources section, read any guides here. You can also check #speedtech on the Discord, check out runners on Twitch. Ultimately, you will simply need to practise going fast and try recording your videos to get comfortable.

If you've tried all of the above and still have questions, feel free to hit up runners who are streaming on chat or the friendly folks on Discord. The Hades Speedrunning community is extremely friendly and supportive.


Recording and Submitting Video

All speedruns you record to submit to the leaderboards will require a video of the run in full, where you to show the Victory at the end of the run.

  1. Use free programs (such as with OBS) or a streaming service to record your runs. You can trim local videos easily by editing free software like OpenShot or Windows Photos

  2. The video must be setup to be permanent on the platform (eg YouTube, Twitch). "Recent Broadcasts" on Twitch will auto-delete, so will not be approved

  3. Timestamp the starting point of the run if it is a part of a longer video

  4. Don’t cover vital information with a camera. No sound is necessary for a submission, but it’s preferred

  5. Using LiveSplit to show your time splits and records is optional for submitting runs, but it's a helpful tool for recording and improving your time. It's very helpful for RTA categories especially. There is a guide on how to setup LiveSplit in the Guides list.


What Seeds Are and How They Work

A seed is a predetermined starting state for an escape. RNG for room rewards kicks in after chamber 2.

  1. The "Give up" option appears in the pause menu after taking damage in a room. Giving up will return you to the House of Hades, but your next run will use the same seed

  2. Dying (or taking the exit after a victory, which leads to a death) will generate a new seed for your next run

  3. Unseeded categories require you to show a death/victory before beginning the next run. This confirms a random seed is being used

  4. Save files for good seeds are often posted in the Resources section in the sidebar. Mods (such as EllosStartingBoonSelector on NexusMods) can be used to manually select seeds


General Info

  1. IGT means In Game Time, and you can display the timer through settings in game. Categories like Any Heat use IGT

  2. RTA means Real Time Attack, which is a real time measurement. The Fresh File and All Weapons categories (and races) use RTA. Runners often display, record and compare real time using LiveSplit. There is a guide on setting up LiveSplit in the Guides index

  3. What is a good time to aim for? This depends on the category you are trying. For Any Heat, aim for under 15 minutes IGT. If you measure RTA for Any Heat (as a personal challenge or for race practice), then aim for under 25 minutes. However, there is no cut-off point for any times for leaderboard submissions

  4. The "best weapon or aspect" to use is constantly evolving, and also a matter of personal preference (you need to be able to use it, and enjoy it after all). If you check the leaderboards you can get a pretty good indication of what is proven to work well.


Getting Faster

  1. Take free rooms! Every biome has the potential for 3 free rooms. Mid-shop, which is almost guaranteed, NPC or "story" rooms (Sisyphus/Eurydice/Patty) and a fountain. Every time you see mid-shop, you should take it. Every time you see an NPC you should take it. Fountain is a low random chance, but if you get it, it saves a ton of time. You should also take every Chaos gate you see

  2. Each chamber has a difficulty value, based on your depth in the current biome. Each enemy is worth a certain number of points, and enemies spawn until that value is reached. Elite rooms have a higher difficulty value, but also remove many low-value enemies from the pool. This makes them faster on average but, with enough luck, normal rooms have the fastest possible time

  3. In Styx, you should ALWAYS take a miniboss first. They are incredibly fast, and will save you a lot of time over the larger rooms. For your second path, take the other miniboss, unless a normal room is offering a boon that you really need

  4. Check Wells every time you see them. Finding a Light of Ixion can save you upwards of 20-30 seconds, especially in Elysium. Damage boosts are always great, especially on cast builds. The difference just a single Braid or Prometheus Stone makes on Zeus Cast is noticeable immediately after buying it

  5. Learn what your chosen aspect does best, and make sure you are really taking advantage of it. For example, on Nemesis Sword, Achilles Spear, or Eris Rail, keep your buff online as much as possible.

  6. Pausing when making decisions (shop purchases, room choices) saves a lot of IGT

  7. Make sure you are building toward something, and not just duct-taping the run together. In most cases you want to pick a Duo/Legendary to aim for, and then a secondary for once you get that. For example, on Demeter Fists, you can aim for Merciful End, with a secondary Deadly Reversal.

  8. Mirror Setup: For new runners, the recommended Mirror setup is: Shadow Presence, Cthonic Vitality, Death Defiance, Greater Reflex, Boiling Blood, Infernal Soul, Deep Pockets, Thick Skin, Family Favorite, Dark Foresight, Gods' Legacy, and Fated Persuasion. There are a few changes that can be made depending on build and skill level - such as Stygian vs Infernal, or High Confidence vs Thick Skin

  9. Heat Setup: Extreme Measures 2 makes the Lernie fight faster by grouping the heads closer together. Forced Overtime makes enemies spawn faster, but is also much riskier. When running real-time (RTA) categories like All-Weapons or races, Tight Deadline removes survival rooms. However, in-game time (IGT) categories benefit from survival rooms because they pause the timer

  10. For the summon keepsake, we recommend using Meg.


Thanks to ShipGoSync, Museus7, Wriste13 for contributing.