Kratos is known for many things including a tragic backstory, insanely powerful weapons, and the deicide he seems to do so easily. One wouldn’t have guessed this from Kratos’s original allegiances to the titular God of War, Ares. However, after he is tricked time and time again by gods, his allegiance to them turned to hatred.
It would turn out Kratos’s training to become the ruthless warrior would make him better suited for his revenge against the gods who gave him this fate.
Here’s all the info you need to know about how many gods Kratos has killed over the course of the God of War canon, and who they were in Greek and Norse mythology.
How many gods has Kratos killed in God of War?
Kratos has racked up more dead gods and goddesses than most people have friends, which is saying something. It seems he got a taste for it after the first time, gaining more skills and power as he went.
Megaera, Tisiphone, and Alecto
The three Furies were sent after Kratos, in the hopes of capturing him and convincing him to go back to the side of Ares. While they were able to successfully trap Kratos, thanks to an illusion, he eventually saw through them and killed the Underworld goddesses one by one.
Megaera, Tisiphone, and Alecto were Roman goddesses of vengeance known as the Furies. They’re tasked with dealing punishments to anyone who breaks an oath with the gods. While they’re shown to be cruel when dealing with Kratos, it’s revealed they had once been fair in their punishments before Ares intervened.
Persephone
After the sun falls from the sky and Kratos is sent on a mission to find Helios, the god of light, he encounters Persephone in the Underworld. She taunts Kratos with her and Atlas’s plan to destroy The Pillar of the World, causing death to all gods and mortals, including his daughter he was reunited with in the Elysium fields. Because of this, he goes back to being the Ghost of Sparta and has to kill her.
Persephone is the God of Spring who was kidnapped and forced to marry the King of the Underworld, Hades. This made Demeter depressed, which stopped crops from growing, so Zeus and Hades came to a deal to bring Persephone back for a limited time. Now Demeter’s mood affects the weather, with fall mourning her loss, winter is Demeter being alone, spring is hope her daughter is coming back, and summer is the time Demeter gets to spend with her daughter.
Ares
The God of War, Ares, spent the entire early God of War timeline messing with Kratos in an attempt to make him into a warrior that can challenge Zeus. After Ares made Kratos kill his family, the god-killer decided that he’d do anything to avenge them. When he finally got the chance to take on Ares, he was finally able to kill the god and have his past sins forgiven. Kratos takes his place as the God of War.
Many are familiar with Ares, the Greek God of War, often known for his reported skill in battle. While he is the image of battle, that also means he has the attributes of some of the worst parts of the war. Slaughter and brutal destruction are also major factors in the character’s personality.
Erinys
After Kratos caused the sinking of Atlantis by killing Thera, Erinys had been seeking him out in the hopes of vengeance. She’s the daughter of the God of Death, Thanatos. She engages in a lengthy battle against the God of War, who defeats her thanks to the blades that were engulfed in Thera’s Bane.
Erinys seems to be based on the deities called the Erinyes, which may be synonymous with the Furies mentioned above. Like three sisters, Erinys is tasked with punishing those who break their oath to the gods.
Thanatos
This God of Death is the father of Erinys and was featured heavily throughout the story as a background actor. He has been orchestrating many events in Kratos’s life since the warrior was a child, including stealing away his brother, Deimos. After confronting the brothers, Thanatos kills the recently freed Deimos before quickly being dispatched by Kratos.
In mythology, Thanatos is the Greek God of Death, acting as a personification of the event. Like in the games, he’s often mentioned in stories but rarely makes an appearance himself. In some stories, he’s said to be merciless and indiscriminate, which fits the personification of death perfectly.
Athena
After becoming the God of War, Athena often offered Kratos advice that he would willingly ignore almost every time. She often pleads with the warrior to not be so brutal when dealing with members of her family. This reaches a climax when Kratos attempts to kill Zeus, with Athena stepping in and taking the hit meant for Zeus.
In mythology, Athena is one of the daughters of Zeus and the Goddess of War. She’s also known for domestic blessings as well, with her being the opposite of Artemis, the Goddess of the Outdoors. She’s considered to be morally and combatively superior to Ares, the God of War before Kratos.
Poseidon
The King of the Seas, Poseidon is one of the big three gods of Greek mythology alongside his brothers Hades and Zeus. He had a bone to pick with Kratos ever since he sunk Atlantis and came to his brother’s aid on Olympus when he called.
However, after a long battle, the ocean god had his eyes gouged out before being killed by Kratos. This caused a catastrophic flood across Greece that killed all inhabitants who were not in high locations like the mountains.
In mythology, Poseidon is still one of the big three Greek gods, with his brothers being in charge of the living and the dead, Poseidon’s domain is the ocean. This also means he’s responsible for ships lost at sea or tsunamis that destroy coastal villages. Because of this, fishermen and sailors of Greece would often pray to him for safe harbor.
Hades
The God of the Underworld is responsible for all the souls that are traveling into his domain and the various entities that call it home. He had wanted to fight Kratos for a long time after the God of War killed his wife, even though she couldn’t stand him. After transforming into a large monster out of The River Styx, Kratos ripped the soul right out of Hades’s body, killing him. This caused the dead souls to run rampant, with no one longer in charge.
Hades is the God of the Underworld and king of the dead, keeping a watchful eye over everything that happens there. He seems to have attachment issues, stealing away the goddess Persephone to marry him against her will.
When Persephone tried to leave, he made her eat three Pomegranate seeds, which meant that she was permanently tied to Hades from that point on.
Helios
In the God of War series, Helios first became a major player when he was captured and the world fell to darkness thanks to Morpheus. After being freed, he would later come to the defense of Olympus against the titans, where he would be crushed in the hands of the titan Perses. Kratos would seek him out on the ground before ripping his head from his shoulders. Killing Helios caused the sun to be covered by dark clouds and rainstorms.
The God of Light is the caretaker of the Sun and also the personification of it. Many will have heard of the chariot that pulls the sun across the sky, of which Helios was said to be the driver. In the Odyssey, he runs to Zeus to punish Odysseus’s crew when they eat his cattle on his private island.
Hermes
The messenger of the Gods, Hermes isn’t often given a lot of credit in modern movies in TV, with Kratos calling him a “fly from the ass of Zeus.” However, after teasing Kratos considerably, the warrior catches up with the messenger who was also his half-brother. While killing Hermes, Kratos insults the God of Speed before cutting off both his legs and killing him. This would cause a wide plague to spread across the land, affecting any remaining plant, animal, or people still left alive.
Hermes has the ability to travel across boundaries quickly, which makes him a great messenger for the gods of Olympus to mortals or other creatures. One of his more iconic symbols includes sandals with wings on them that allow him to move faster.
Hephaestus
Kratos would first find the God of Smithing when he was traveling through the Underworld in an earlier game. After defeating a titan above his lair, Hephaestus sent Kratos on a suicide mission, hoping it would kill him before he could get to his daughter, Pandora. When the suicide mission is completed, he tries to kill Kratos one more time before the God of War impales him on his anvil.
Hephaestus was the Greek god that represented craftsman, not just smithing. According to the legends, he was deemed unworthy during birth and was exiled before being brought back later. Hephaestus would make all of Olympus’s weapons and armor that they’d use in battle.
Hera
Zeus’s wife Hera didn’t make a lot of appearances in God of War until Kratos enters Olympus in the hopes of taking down his father and any other god in his way.
She can be seen drunkenly grieving her plants that have been affected by Kratos’s killing of the other gods. He initially ignores her before she continues to pester him. Kratos snaps her neck when she makes a comment about Pandora being a “whore” though. Hera’s death causes all plant life to wither and die.
In Greek mythology, Hera is one of Zeus’s many lovers, often referred to as his wife. With her husband known for his many affairs often result in children, it’s ironic that she’s the Goddess of Lawful Marriage.
She’s also known to protect women during childbirth, which may have created some awkward scenarios with Zeus’s children produced by an affair.
Zeus
The fight between Zeus and Kratos had basically been building since the God of the Sky stole his brother Deimos from their home. After Zeus betrayed and then killed him, Kratos finally resolved to kill Zeus and end the Olympian’s reign. The God of War had an epic battle inside the chest of the titan Gaia before killing Zeus with his bare hands.
Zeus is the king of all the gods on Olympus, the ocean, and the underworld, although his brothers may protest that. As the one in charge, Zeus would assign roles to the other gods. He would also have several children with a seemingly endless amount of women, usually when a new Greek hero needed a backstory.
Mimir
The character who’s always got something wise to say, Mimir, is found by Kratos chained to a tree after attempting to trick Odin. While it’s kind of cheating, Kratos does kill Mimir by cutting his head off. However, the wise advisor is later revived by Freya and becomes the third member to join the Kratos traveling party.
Mimir in Norse mythology means someone that is wise and has a lot of knowledge. Similar to the game, the figure is beheaded by the Vanir Gods and that head was gifted to Odin. Odin revived the head, wearing it on his side, with the head often repeating secret knowledge to him.
Baldur
Son of Odin and Freya, Baldur was prophesized to face a “needless death,” so his mother placed a curse on him that would ensure his invulnerability. But, in doing this, she also made it so the Norse god can’t feel anything at all. This causes Kratos and Atreus trouble for most of the game until they realize they can get rid of him with mistletoe.
After breaking the curse, Kratos snapped Baldur’s neck.
In Norse mythology, Baldur was regarded as one of the favorite Æsir gods due to his kindness and beauty. To protect him, his mother Figg asks everything in the world not to harm her son, to which they agree. However, she doesn’t ask mistletoe, believing it to be too young to swear an oath. When Baldur’s blind twin brother is throwing stuff at his invulnerable brother, he accidentally throws mistletoe after being tricked by Loki.
Baldur’s death is supposed to bring about Ragnarok, the end of the Norse gods and the Nine Realms, which also happens to be the title of the next God of War game.
