In Hades 2, garlic is required to obtain various important upgrades, including many incantations. For example, you may need garlic to restore the Crossroads Taverna. Since garlic cloves are solely found in a secret area, however, you may have missed them.
Here’s where to find garlic cloves and grow garlic in Hades 2.
How to get garlic in Hades 2
To obtain garlic, you must plant garlic cloves in Melinoë’s garden at the Crossroads. Garlic cloves are only found in the City of Ephyra, which is the region on the Surface.
To unlock the Surface in Hades 2, you must defeat Hecate, meet Hermes during a randomized encounter, and brew the “Permeation of Witching-Wards” incantation, which requires three moly, one cinder, and one shadow.
Beware that Melinoë won’t be able to survive on the Surface for long, due to the Chthonic Fate curse, so you’re unlikely to find any garlic before her time runs out. Luckily, you can counter this curse by brewing the “Unraveling a Fateful Bond” incantation at the cauldron. This incantation requires two stacks of the following ingredients: nightshade, lotus, moss, and thalamus. Like garlic, moss is only found on the surface, but it often spawns before you enter the City of Ephyra, so it’s a bit easier to obtain while the Chthonic Curse is still active.
Once you’ve gained access to the City of Ephyra, look for digging spots (small piles of dirt) and interact with them to obtain a couple garlic cloves. Beware that digging spots spawn randomly, so you’ll need a bit of luck to find them. If you’ve unlocked the “Bravery of Familiar Spirits” incantation, you can increase your likelihood of finding garlic cloves and other digging spots with Hecuba the hound. Upgrade Hecuba’s “Earth Bond” skill with witch’s delights and bring Hecuba along with you to increase the number of digging spots on your runs.
Got some garlic cloves? Upon your next visit to the Crossroads, be sure to plant them in the garden. It’ll take five turns (five completed rooms during any kind of run) to harvest the garlic.
