Who Is KRATOS In GREEK Mythology? | Mythical Madness

We know Kratos, the ghost of Sparta and the God of War. His story is a tale of revenge and redemption, but did you know Kratos exists in real Greek mythology too? Though there is not much info on him, the tale Kratos is a short one. But before we get started for those who don't know the story of Kratos from God of War, we have a catch up for you. The first God of War game introduces Kratos as a fierce Spartan warrior who was quickly rising through his ranks to become the youngest commander of the Spartan army. His career looked to be really promising, but the power of a strong enemy seemed to be rising very quickly. The Barbarians. During a battle that lasted several hours, it seemed like Kratos' life and career had come to an end. The sheer size of the Barbarian army couldn't be defeated. This is until Kratos calls for help from the God of War, Ares. Since he valued victory over anything, Kratos pledged his life to the God of War to come out as the This later on in the story would turn out to be a really bad decision, since it is fair to say gods in the God of War universe are not very noble creatures. Kratos was given weapons, like the Blade of Chaos. The burning chains from which would be seared into Kratos' skin, leaving permanent burnt marks on his forearms. For many years, Kratos served as the God's servant, doing unspeakable deeds for him. Until a day when he came across a temple and killed all of the people inside. Eventually, he realized his final two victims were his wife and child. That was the very moment when Kratos realized that he could not bear the consequences of the path he had chosen, and he would have to kill Ares to be set free from this path. Before leaving the temple, an oracle from the temple curses the Spartan and bonds the ashes of the wife and child to his body. Kratos was then named the Ghost of Sparta. Kratos served the gods for ten more years until he finally confronts the goddess Athena about the nightmares he got due to the people he has killed. Athena and Kratos would strike a deal in which Kratos would stop Ares from destroying Athens. And in turn, Athena would bring a resolution to Kratos' nightmares and provide him with Pandora's Box, which would help him kill Ares. But while trying to open Pandora's Box, Kratos was killed by Ares and sent to the underworld. But Kratos refuses to accept his fate. It makes his way out of the underworld and eventually kills Ares by unleashing the powers by opening Pandora's Box. This was the first time a mortal had killed a god, and upon killing Ares, Athena reveals that despite his sins being forgiven, he would never be able to forget what he has done. In hearing so, Kratos decides to jump from the highest mountain in Greece to kill himself. But this was not the fate he was born with. So Athena brings him back to the peak and tells him to assume the new position of the God of War, as his seat is now vacant. With the newfound powers of a god, Kratos would start to flatten cities at his will and cause massive destruction. This was noticed by the other gods as this was causing a massive amount of distress for the people of Greece. To stop Kratos, Athena would resurrect the Colossus of Rhodes. But at this point, Zeus also intervenes by giving Kratos Blades of Olympus to aid him in defeating the Colossus. But after defeating Colossus, Kratos found out the blade would drain of all his powers and leave him vulnerable. Zeus then reveals himself and once again kills Kratos, sending him to the depths of the underworld. This time though, Kratos stays in the underworld for a while longer and meets Gaia. Both devise a plan to defeat the Olympians. Kratos would once again return to the world of the living, after defeating several enemies, many of which were gods. Using the loom of fate, Kratos returns back to the time when Zeus defeated him, after which he changes the outcome of the battle by trying to kill Zeus and in turn killing all the gods which came along in his path. It is revealed during this fight that Kratos was the son of Zeus, making him a demigod. But this no longer mattered to him, as his only goal now was to kill all the gods that came his way. Once again, using the loom of fate, Kratos and Gaia create an army of titans, recreating the battle between the titans and the Olympians. With this army, Kratos climbs up the tallest peak in Greece, where Zeus had escaped. Upon reaching the top, an eagerly awaiting Zeus throws his thunderbolt and sends both Kratos and Gaia falling back to the underworld. This time though, while defeating Hades, Kratos learns how to kill Zeus with the help of the Pandora box used to kill Ares. Though Pandora's box was hidden behind the flames of Olympus, with the help of Pandora, the box was opened with nothing to be found inside it. With the world in chaos now, the final battle between Kratos, Zeus and Gaia is fought, and Kratos comes out the victor. And with this, the Greek pantheon comes to an end. Athena once again appears in her new form, telling Kratos when he opened the box to kill Ares, he released the evils of the world, which even affected the gods. But along with the evil, there was hope inside the box, which gave Kratos the power to kill Zeus. When Athena asks Kratos to return hope back to her, Kratos impales himself due to his lack of trust in gods and returns hope back to humanity. And with this story of Kratos comes to an end, till his reincarnation in the Norse myth. This story portrays Kratos as a figure covered in chaos and destruction, something this mythical counterpart does not share with him. In contrast, the story of Kratos, from Greek myth, is a shorter one. His name is far less spoken among the gods, and his existence dates back to the Titans. He is the god of war and the son of Pallas and Styx. He is the sibling of Bea, the god of strength. Some also say he is the brother of Nike, the goddess of victory. During the war of Titanomachy, Kratos allied himself with Zeus against the Titans. Similar to his fictional counterpart, Kratos had a reputation for being violent and causing a fair bit of bloodshed. After the war with the Titans, Kratos and his siblings took renowned positions at Zeus' side as he started to start a new regime in the presence of powerful entities. Despite being the son of a Titan, the reason why the children of Pallas were allowed to dwell with Zeus was that Zeus had decreed after the Titanomachy that all those who had not held offices under Kronos would be given positions in his regime. Because Styx came to Zeus first, along with her children, Zeus honored them as among the highest members of his new regime. Styx, Zelos, Nike, Kratos, and Bea's voluntary change in allegiance represents the certainty of Zeus' victory over the Titans. After this, the mention of Kratos is made, while he enforced punishment upon Prometheus on Zeus' orders for stealing fire from the gods and gifting it to the humans. To know more about this story, check out our video on Zeus, Who is Worse, Hades or Zeus, where we go into more detail about the story. So, despite sharing the name, the myth and fiction of Kratos are far more different from one another. The video game counterpart is far more revered in his representation. In fact, in his later evolution in God of War 2018, Kratos is shown as a changed man, coming far from his roots and becoming wiser and more kind. Tell us in the comments down below which version of Kratos do you prefer, and which one do you think is more powerful? 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