So far I haven't been able to beat the first boss with anything but Sword. The bow and shield are tough to use but I do like the spear. I need more keys for fists.

My favorite boon I got so far was a Poseidon dash attack, I powered it to level 3 and didn't even need to swing my weapon in most rooms. Dash dash dash! I may have been using bow in that run so I was able to beat Meg for a bow upgrade but it was on a technicality.

I just unlocked the ability to fling more of the cast crystals at a time so I wanted to try some boons that focus on the cast.

The mobs and the lava in the second tier are very hard.

Right now I mostly just experiment and go for keys/darkness/gems when I see them. I usually farm up some decent stuff for upgrades and get promptly sent back to start by Meg.