Magicka 2: Complete Guide

How to survive (and stop killing your friends in) Magicka 2: the element system, spell shapes, Magicks, co-op etiquette with friendly fire, the campaign's tricky encounters, Challenges, Artifacts and achievements.

Researched September 2026 — current as of patch 1.2.2.0 (January 2019) plus the July 2019 Mac login fix; no newer updates. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

About the Game

• Released: May 26, 2015 by Pieces Interactive and Paradox Interactive, on Windows and PS4; Mac and Linux followed (public beta October 22, 2015, full release November 10, 2015).
• What it is: A top-down co-op action game where every spell is built on the fly from elements. One to four wizards, friendly fire always on, hot-join co-op with checkpoints.
• Campaign route: From the ruins of Aldrheim through Crystal Bay and the Vanir Highlands to Castle Vanirhall, guided by the vampire-who-isn't, Vlad.
• Modes: Main Campaign, Challenges (arena-style waves; five base challenges plus DLC ones) and Trials hidden in the campaign.
• Difficulties: Normal, Hard and Bananas (the achievement list confirms all three).
• Online note: Some features use a Paradox Account (patch 1.2.2.0 in 2019 reworked the account screens). The game still has a server browser for public games, added in update 1.1.1.0.

Quick Start

• You have eight elements on eight keys. By default: Q Water, W Life, E Shield, R Cold, A Lightning, S Arcane, D Earth, F Fire.
• Queue up to five elements, then choose how to cast. The same elements do very different things depending on cast type.
• Some elements cancel each other. Opposites (like Fire and Cold, or Life and Arcane) wipe each other from your queue instead of combining.
• Some elements fuse. Water plus Fire makes Steam; Water plus Cold makes Ice; Poison is the new hybrid in Magicka 2. The queue shows the hybrid icon when it forms.
• Heal yourself with Life, self-cast. It is your main healing tool; get this muscle memory first.
• Shield first, then think. A Shield-based spell buys time when you are overwhelmed.
• Friendly fire is always on. Beams, sprays and explosions hurt allies as much as enemies.
• Magicks are big special spells with cooldowns. You find new ones as tomes in the campaign (for example, Teleport in Chapter 2 and Thunderbolt in Chapter 3, added in update 1.1.1.0).
• Revive your friends. Dead players can ask for a revive (you can toggle that voice line in the Audio settings), and reviving each other constantly is normal.

Elements

Element | Key | What it is good for

Water | Q | Pushes, extinguishes fire, makes targets Wet; base for Steam, Ice and hybrids

Life | W | Healing (self or allies); damages undead-type foes

Shield | E | Walls, domes and personal barriers

Cold | R | Slows and freezes, especially on Wet targets

Lightning | A | Chains between targets; punishes Wet enemies

Arcane | S | Raw damage beams and mines

Earth | D | Heavy projectiles and rock-based spells

Fire | F | Burning damage over time

Hybrids

Hybrid | Made from | Use

Steam | Water plus Fire | Scalding spray and area damage; strong combo base

Ice | Water plus Cold | Shards and frozen projectiles that hit hard

Poison | The new hybrid element in Magicka 2 | Damage over time; stacks nicely with other elements

Opposites (they cancel)

• Fire and Cold cancel each other.
• Life and Arcane cancel each other.
• Lightning clashes with Water and Earth.
• Shield does not stack with another Shield.

If a spell suddenly fizzles, you almost certainly queued an opposite.

Casting Methods

Every queue can be delivered in several ways:

Cast | What happens | Example use

Forward (aimed) | Projectiles, beams or sprays toward the cursor | Fire spray, Arcane beam, Earth boulders

Area | Effect in a ring around you | Knock back swarms; Shield plus Earth rock wall

Self | Apply the spell to yourself | Life to heal; Shield to protect; Water to put yourself out

Weapon | Imbue your melee weapon with elements | Adds elemental damage to sword swings

Spell hierarchy basics: Shields shape a spell first (walls and barriers), then heavy projectiles (Earth or Ice), then beams (Life or Arcane), then sprays. So adding Earth to a Fire queue turns a spray into a fiery rock, and adding Shield turns almost anything into a wall or mine field.

Beginner combos worth learning

Combo idea | How to build it | Why

Self-heal | Life, cast on self (add more Life for more healing) | Keeps you alive; learn this first

Emergency wall | Shield plus Earth, area cast | Blocks a swarm instantly

Steam spray | Water plus Fire, forward | Wide, strong damage

Freeze and shatter | Water spray, then Cold, then Earth or Ice projectile | Wet targets freeze; frozen targets shatter

Zap the wet | Water spray on enemies, then Lightning | Lightning hits Wet targets harder

Arcane beam | Arcane plus a damage element, forward | Big single-target damage (and big friendly fire)

Magicks

Magicks are special spells with fixed element recipes. In Magicka 2 they are learned from tomes found in the campaign, have cooldowns, and can be saved as templates: since update 1.1.1.0, scroll the mouse wheel to pick your favorite Magick in Magicka 1 style (gamepad: LB plus the D-pad opens the Magick menu).

Magicks confirmed by official notes or achievements include:

Magick | Notes

Teleport | Found in Chapter 2; escape tool and repositioning

Thunderbolt | Found in Chapter 3; heavy strike from above

Higherland Breeze | Also freezes water (update 1.1.1.0)

Sacrifice | Reworked in update 1.1.1.0; read the in-game description

Push | Knockback; the final-boss challenge achievement bans it

Concussion | Area blast; also banned by that achievement

Your in-game spellbook shows every Magick you have found and its element recipe. Practice recipes in quiet moments until you can type them without looking.

Co-op and Friendly Fire

• Assign roles. One healer/support wizard (Life, Shield), one crowd-control wizard (Water, Cold, Earth), and damage dealers keeps runs smooth.
• Never beam through a friend. Arcane and Life beams hit whoever is in the way.
• Call big spells. "Steam incoming" saves lives.
• Heal others with Life cast forward. A forward Life beam or spray on an ally heals them.
• Revive fast. A downed wizard is lost damage and healing. The Ress plz achievements track 100 and 1,000 revives.
• Laugh. The achievements for killing your friends 100 and 1,000 times exist for a reason.

Campaign Tips (Spoiler-Light)

• Explore side paths. Tomes, robes, staffs and weapons are hidden in the levels; many unlock new loadout options.
• Talk to Veterans of the Wizard Wars. Finding them all is an achievement (Respect Your Elders).
• Dark Altars: Activating one triggers a tough extra fight; surviving is an achievement (That Escalated Quickly). Save first if you can.
• Trials: Special challenge rooms inside the campaign; beating all on each difficulty earns the Trial by Fire series.
• Kebab Cart encounter: You can protect the cart; finishing without it taking damage earns Don't Touch My Food!
• Prison arena: A melee-only clear earns Shank Master.
• The Khan fight: If you activate the orc warriors before it, winning earns Bring Your Orcs to Work Day.
• Elin's fight: Beat Elin without killing her Vanir backup for No Collateral Damage.
• Vanirhall torches: Put out all the torches without restarting from a checkpoint for Heart Hoarder.
• Final boss: Beating it without Water sprays, Push or Concussion earns It's "Football" not "Soccer".

Artifacts

Artifacts are modifiers you toggle before a run, "switches and options" that change how the game plays and add replay value. They range from silly to brutal; the 2019 patch notes mention one called Piñata Madness, which turns animal gore into something more festive. Try a few once you have finished the campaign.

Challenges and DLC

• Challenges: Survival-style arenas. Beating the five base Challenges on Normal, Hard and Bananas earns the Wizard's, Professor's and Sage's Diplomas.

Magicka 2 has three paid DLCs on Steam (all also bundled in the Deluxe Edition):

DLC | Released | What you get

Gates of Midgård Challenge Pack | September 15, 2015 | Three new challenge maps themed on gates to the North, South and East, each with its own environmental hazards; one is pitched as exceptionally hard

Three Cardinals Robe Pack | September 15, 2015 | Cosmetic robe sets: Winter Ruler (North), Raiments of Arobea (South) and Gusoku (East), each with a matching staff and weapon

Ice, Death and Fury | December 15, 2015 | Four co-op scenarios (Protect the King, Troll Cave, Darkness, Old Wizard), three standalone boss fights (Insane Maxi, Mr Carrot, The Great Porkolino) and three robe sets (Death Apprentice, Scavenger, Robe of Riviera)

Which DLC is worth it? Ice, Death and Fury is the one with the most new gameplay. Gates of Midgård is for groups who enjoy the Challenge arenas. Three Cardinals is purely cosmetic, though its robes come with their own staff and weapon.

Challenge tips

• Pick a spot with a wall at your back. Waves come from several directions; a corner or a Shield-Earth wall narrows the angles you have to cover.
• Split the ring. In co-op, have each wizard face a different direction instead of everyone spraying the same side (and each other).
• Keep a healer back. Challenges end when everyone is down, so one wizard who never overcommits carries the run.
• Save Magicks for the waves with special or hard enemies. Since update 1.1.1.0 these enemies are visually distinguished, so you can spot them coming.

Achievement Hunting

The list has 47 achievements. Most are either story/difficulty clears, cumulative grinds, or one-off encounter conditions (covered in the campaign tips above). Plan runs around them:

Type | Achievements | How to get them efficiently

Difficulty clears | We Have Normality, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, The Safe Word is "Bananas"! | Clear the campaign on Normal, Hard and Bananas. Bananas is far easier with a full co-op team

Trials | Trial by Fire, Trial by Fire+Lightning, Trial by Fire+Lightning+Death | Beat all campaign Trials on Normal, Hard and Bananas

Challenges | Wizard's, Professor's and Sage's Diploma | Beat the five base Challenges on each difficulty

Damage | Humble Beginnings (1,000,000), Serious Damage! (5,000,000), Terrible Terrible Damage! (20,000,000) | Accumulate naturally over replays and Challenges

Healing | Nurse (100,000), Doctor (500,000), Miracle Worker (2,000,000) | Play the healer role in co-op; healing allies counts

Kills | Warlock (1,000), Archmage (10,000) | Challenges are the fastest source of enemies

Revives | Ress plz... (100), RESS PLZ! (1,000) | Co-op only; they come naturally

Friendly fire | Did I Do That? (kill friends 100 times), Oh, My Bad (1,000) | Co-op, and it will happen whether you try or not

Deaths | Just Another Wizard Day (die 100), Trial and Error (die 1,000), I Meant To Do That (kill yourself 100), Trying to Get "Trial and Error"? (kill yourself 1,000) | Grind these together in a private session

Restriction runs | Focus Saver (finish Chapter 5 without using Magicks), Focus Spender (finish Chapter 3 without using Spells) | Chapter 3 without Spells means leaning on Magicks and melee; bring a co-op partner

Story moments | The King's Speech (listen to the King's entire speech), Respect Your Elders, That Escalated Quickly | Do not skip dialogue; explore every side path

Several achievements have hidden descriptions on Steam; they unlock through exploration and secrets, so a first blind playthrough that checks every corner will pop a lot of them.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Spamming random keys. Know what you are queuing; opposites waste your turn and some combos hurt you.
• Lightning while wet. If you are Wet, casting Lightning can shock you. Dry off with Fire (carefully) or wait.
• Beaming through teammates. Stand side by side, not in a line.
• Forgetting self-heal. Life self-cast should be reflexive.
• Hoarding Magicks. They have cooldowns; use them.
• Skipping side paths. You miss tomes, gear and achievements.

Advanced Tips

• Pre-wet then freeze or shock. Water is the best setup element in the game.
• Shield-Earth walls as chokepoints. Build a wall and spray over it.
• Five-element stacking: More copies of one element increase its power; three Fire plus two Steam hits harder than a random mix.
• Weapon imbues are underrated when enemies are resistant to sprays.
• Watch the damage report on the defeat screen (added in 1.1.1.0): it tells you what killed you most, which usually means your friends.

FAQ

Can I play Magicka 2 solo? Yes, the campaign scales from one to four wizards. It is harder alone because no one can revive you, so lean on healing and Shield.

Does it run on Mac and Linux? Yes. Mac and Linux support came in late 2015, and a 2019 update fixed Paradox Account logins on Mac.

Is friendly fire optional? No, it is always on.

How do I get more Magicks? Find tomes during the campaign. Teleport is in Chapter 2 and Thunderbolt in Chapter 3.

What is Bananas difficulty? The hardest difficulty. There are separate achievements for finishing the campaign, Trials and Challenges on it.

What do Artifacts do? They are toggleable modifiers that change gameplay for replays.

Which DLC should I buy? Ice, Death and Fury adds the most gameplay (four scenarios and three boss fights). The Deluxe Edition bundles all three DLCs.

Is the game still updated? No. The last patches were 1.2.2.0 (January 2019, Paradox Account changes) and a July 2019 Mac login fix.

Sources

• Magicka 2 on Steam
• Magicka 2 Steam news (patches 1.1.1.0, 1.2.2.0, Ice Death and Fury DLC)
• Magicka 2 Steam achievements
• Magicka 2: Ice, Death and Fury on Steam
• Magicka 2: Gates of Midgård Challenge Pack on Steam
• Magicka 2: Three Cardinals Robe Pack on Steam
• Magicka 2 — Wikipedia
• Magicka — Wikipedia (element system)
• Magicka 2 — Paradox Interactive