MegaBonk Athena Guide

Athena is one of the hardest characters to use in MegaBonk. Starting with Aegis as her main weapon makes the early game brutal, since the shield is weak until you stack attack speed, size, and regen. But with the right build and strategy, Athena can scale into a powerhouse capable of clearing even Tier 2 runs.

How Athena Works

Athena begins with Aegis. Unlike most weapons, Aegis doesn’t deal reliable damage early on. It blocks and retaliates, which means you need time and upgrades before it feels like a proper weapon. Without support, early waves can overwhelm you quickly.

To make Athena viable, you must build around her shield and focus on defensive scaling before offense. Once she’s stable, she snowballs through global buffs and shrine farming.

Best Build for Athena

Main Weapon: Aegis (mandatory start)
Secondary Weapons: Aura or Axe for consistent damage output
Core Tomes: Attack Speed, Size, Shield, Damage
Optional Tome: XP Pickup Range for faster scaling
Key Items: Moldy Cheese, Thorns, Burgers, Crit multipliers

Attack Speed is the most important tome because it directly lowers Aegis downtime, letting shields recover faster and deal more retaliatory damage. Size makes the shield hit more enemies, while Damage and Shield Tomes scale both defense and offense.

Pairing Aegis with Aura gives safe passive damage around you, while Axe adds more boss DPS. The two work differently but both help cover Athena’s weak early game.

Early Game Strategy

The first few minutes with Athena are survival focused. You won’t kill fast, so your best move is to rush shrines and break pots for loot and items. The extra buffs from Challenge Shrines or Moai Shrines will give you the boost you need to actually start scaling.

Don’t take unnecessary swarms or curses early. You’re too fragile and too slow to deal with stacked bosses without at least one or two tomes online.

Mid to Late Game

Once you secure Attack Speed and Shield upgrades, Athena stabilizes. Her Aegis becomes a reliable defensive wall and starts reflecting enough damage to matter. At this point, you can take on Boss Curse Shrines for extra chests and push silver farming.

In Tier 2 runs, Athena can shine with the right setup, but it requires patience. She needs shrine farming more than most characters, so always prioritize map control.

Boss Fights

The final boss is Athena’s hardest challenge. Her slow movement and reliance on Aegis make it difficult to reach pylons and dodge homing projectiles. It is possible, but you’ll need high shield uptime, strong regen, and practiced movement.

Developers have confirmed balance adjustments are planned, so Athena may see smoother scaling in future updates. For now, success is possible but demands near-perfect execution.

Final Blurb

Athena is one of the toughest but most rewarding characters in MegaBonk. Starting with Aegis makes the early game painful, yet with shrine farming, attack speed stacking, and smart secondary weapons, she can hold her own in Tier 2. If you want a challenge run with high payoff, Athena is the one to master.