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Considering how easy mostPrince of Persiagames are, you might be surprised to discover thatPrince of Persia: The Lost Crownis actually a very challenging Metroidvania that’s not going to make things easy on you.
This high level of challenge comes through in every aspect of The Lost Crown’s gameplay, but perhaps the biggest is its combat. Not only can normal enemies defeat you with just a few hits if you aren’t careful, but bosses are incredibly difficult skill checks that are going to require a lot of patience and pattern mastery.Luckily, that’s where Sargon’s most powerful abilities, Athra Surges, come into play.
What Are Athra Surges?
Athra Surges are powerful abilities that Sargon can use in battle by filling up his Athra meter, which can be found in the bottom right of the screen and can be filled up by attacking enemies and parrying their hits.Each Athra Surge has a different level attached to itwhich means it takes up a certain amount of the Athra Surge bar, with more powerful ones taking up more meters.
Taking damage will cause your Athra meter to go down, so verify to keep parrying enemies and avoiding hits that are unblockable.
There are 10 Athra Surges to be found in The Lost Crown in total, but the playercan only equip two at once, meaning they need to choose which ones are best for which situation. You start the game off with two Athra Surges,but the other eight have to be found throughout Mount Qaf, sometimes on the main path but often from exploring the world.
Every Level 1 Athra Surge
Verethragna’s Smite
The very first Athra Surge that you’ll discover in Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is Verethragna’s Smite. It’s a simple offensive attack that lets Sargon use one bar of meter to perform apowerful series of front-facing sword swipes that can even harm enemies who are shielding.
You won’t need to do anything to unlock this Athra Surge, as it’ll become available to you as soon as you’re able to start using these powerful abilities.
Shahbaz' Spirit
This next Level 1 Athra Surge is another offensive one thatcauses Sargon to perform a powerful upwards strike that hits enemies in a cross-slash patternwhich means it’ll get anyone who is caught above you. It’s a bit situational, but very powerful against flying enemies when you don’t want to use up your arrows.
To unlock this Athra Surge, you’re going to want tohead towards the Sacred Archives after unlocking Clairvoyance. Right near one of the Wak Wak trees,you can head up and towards the diamond marker placed on the map above, using Clairvoyance to show you paths you can jump across.Keep going until you reach a room with Alternate Sargon standing in it. Defeat him and you’ll unlock Shahbaz' Spirit.
Wind of Sistan
The Wind of Sistan Athra Surge is another offensive move thatcauses Sargon to summon a small whirlwind that surrounds him and hurts any enemies that are in the vicinity. As you can imagine, it’s a great crowd-control move that attacks enemies on either side.
This Athra Surge can be foundwhile exploring The Depths section of Mount Qaf. Close to where you drop down from the Lower City, you’ll find a room situated at the map marker above.Interact with the skeleton that you see on the platform above the bug nestand you’ll get the Wind of Sistan.
Vayu’s Wave
The final Level 1 Athra Surge is another offensive one thatcauses Sargon to fire off a powerful projectile wave of Athra that pushes back any enemies caught in its path, whether you’re in midair or on the ground. It can be interrupted, though, so it’s one of the least safe abilities you’re able to equip.
Unlocking this Athra Surge is very easy, as all it requires Sargon to do isgo to the top-right corner of the Haven area on the map and complete all of Artaban’s first nine combat challenges. These essentially act as tutorials, and once you’ve finished the one about Athra Surges, you’ll unlock this powerful move.
Every Level 2 Athra Surge
Bahman’s Breath
Although this is one of the first Athra Surges you’ll unlock in Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, that doesn’t stop it from being one of the best in the game. This is a defensive ability thatcauses Sargon to place a small healing zone in the area that lets him regain health when standing in it.
Bahman’s Breath is one of the few Athra Surges that can’t be missed,as you’ll unlock it after talking to the first Wak Wak tree you encounter in the Hyrcanian Forest while chasing Menolias very early on in the game. Speak to Kamil, the spirit in the Wak Wak tree, and you’ll be given this powerful Athra Surge.
Arash’s Ray
The Arash’s Ray Atrha Surge is apowerful offensive move that lets Sargon fire an incredibly powerful beam attack from his bow that goes through enemiesand causes massive damage. It’s great if you’re a more defensive player that avoids direct conflict.
Unlocking this Athra Surge will come naturally as it’s part of the main story quest.During the third story quest, The Tiger and the Rat, Sargon will be tasked with chasing down an old man and getting his map back.This chase will lead you to a battle against Alternate Sargonwho, when defeated, will drop this Athra Surge for you to collect.
This is also where you’ll unlock the Shadow of the Simurgh Time Power.
Hadhayans' Might
Hadhayans' Might is an offensive Athra Surge thatcauses Sargon to teleport into the air and then attack the ground, causing anyone who is caught below him to be dealt a massive amount of damage. It can only be activated from the ground, but does take away a lot of health from enemies.
This Athra Surge is an optional unlock that can be found whileexploring the Soma Tree area. Right near the Forest Ruins fast-travel point (which you’ll need Clairvoyance to unlock),you’re able to go to the right and up to find a room with two Alternate Sargons at once. Defeat them both to be awarded this Athra Surge.Go to where you see Sargon standing on the map above to find this one.
Every Level 3 Athra Surge
Soul Of Gilgamesh
Without a doubt,Soul of Gilgamesh is one of the most useful Athra Surges in the whole of Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, and one of the coolest-looking ones too. Activating this not only restores all of Sargon’s health, but it alsocauses him to enter a Super Saiyan-esque state that lets him move around faster, hit enemies harder, and prevent you from taking as much damage from enemy attacks.
This essential Athra Surgecan be found in The Pit of Eternal Sands, right near the Wak Wak tree that you’ll discover on the left side of the map. Go to the area pictured above on the map and you’llsee a wall that needs to be destroyed using the Dimensional Claw ability, which you’ll have unlocked by this point in the game. Do that, andyou’ll fight an alternate Sargonthat awards you the Soul of Gilgamesh Athra Surge.
Bahamut’s Rage
This Athra Surge is an offensive move that letsSargon summon a massive whirlwind that causes smaller enemies to fly into the air and then get smashed into the ground, usually killing them in one blow. It’s great for crowd control, but not so helpful when it comes to individual or heavier enemies.
Unlocking this Athra Surge is fairly simple, as it can bediscovered after defeating Orod as part of the sixth main quest, The Celestial Guardians.
Rashnu’s Judgment
Rashnu’s Judgment is an Athra Surge thatcauses Sargon to ready himself for a counter-attack that then does a ton of damage to whichever enemy hits him while it’s active. As powerful as the counter-blow is, it’s pretty situational and requires a lot of mastery of attack timings to get right.
Just like Bahamut’s Rage, this Athra Surge is also fairly simple to unlock, asyou’ll get it after defeating Menolias as part of the sixth main quest, The Celestial Guardians.
