Thanatos

“

The Oracle may have yet spoken truth. The Marked Warrior shall bring about the destruction of Olympus. Ares chose poorly that day. He took your brother when it should have been you. None of that matters now. Nothing you do is of your own choosing.

”

Template:Infobox gods Thanatos is the Greek god of death, and the main antagonist in God of War: Ghost of Sparta. He is the ruler of the Domain of Death and father of Erinys.

Greek Mythology

In Greek mythology, Thánatos (in Greek, Θάνατος – "Death") was the daemon personification of death. He was a minor figure in Greek mythology, often referred to but rarely appearing in person. His name is transliterated in Latin as Thanatus, but his equivalent in Roman mythology is Mors or Letus/Letum, and he is sometimes identified erroneously with Orcus (Orcus himself had a Greek equivalent in the form of Horkos (Όρκος - "Oath"), God of the Oath).

In God of War Series

God of War: Ascension

Thanatos wasn't mentioned in the game itself, but it's curious to notice that, for being a Primordial god, it is very likely that he participated in their war, which was mentioned at the intro of the game.

The mentioned war was so vicious that almost all of the Primordials died during it, and Thanatos was one of its few survivors, which is also a proof of the great strength and power he possesses, even against other gods. It is possible that, since many gods were dying in the war and he is the god of death, he was getting stronger at each time another god perished.

It is unknown how harmed he was in this war, however. If he gained any scars from the conflict, they are probably hidden under his clothes, and do not cause enough pain to stop him in a battle, as he showed in Ghost of Sparta or might have regenerated them.

In Multiplayer,when a warrior respawns after death,the announcer may sometimes say "Thanatos will have to wait."

God of War: Ghost of Sparta

Thanatos was an ancient God, who predates the times of Olympus. He took Deimos, who was believed to be the Marked Warrior, a prophesised being who was told to destroy the reign of the Gods, from Ares' hands. Thanatos was the one responsible for imprisoning and torturing him.

Kratos' search for his brother led him to realize where Deimos is imprisoned. At one point of the journey, Thanatos used a corpse as a medium, warned Kratos to not pursue his path further, and even scoffed at the apparent foolishness of Kratos' journey, angering the Spartan even further.

Finally, Kratos made his way into the Domain of Death, where Thanatos tried to discourage him numerous times. In the final moment of the battle between Kratos and Deimos, Thanatos appeared, snatched Deimos from behind, then reminded Kratos that he had killed his daughter and that he would 'suffer for it'.

Thanatos flew down with Deimos to the Suicide Bluffs; Kratos followed behind. As Kratos arrived, Deimos attempted to resist, but was ultimately overpowered by Thanatos and knocked over the edge. Kratos rescued Deimos at the very last minute, finally made peace with his nearly insane brother, and the two went to fight Thanatos together.

Thanatos had been waiting for them, and, having realized that the prophesied "Marked Warrior," the warrior told to destroy Olympus, was not Deimos, but Kratos, cackled evilly. Both brothers ignored his mockeries and began to fight him.

During the battle, Thanatos fought the Spartan brothers using his blade and took the form of a gigantic winged black monster, similar to Erinys. In the heat of the battle Deimos had saved Kratos from Thanatos' grip, only to be smashed into the rocks, killing him. A furious Kratos attacked Thanatos, destroyed his monstrous thick armor. Mortally wounded, Thanatos reverted to his humanoid form.

During his weakened state Kratos beat him down without mercy, only to be met with taunts by the weakened deity. Kratos then grabbed Thanatos' cracked chest, opened it further and impaled him with his blades, which finally killed him. Before Thanatos perished, he taunted Kratos one final time by giving him a devilish grin.

Later on, the Grave Digger revealed to Kratos he had become "Death, the destroyer of worlds."

Powers and Abilities

Being an entity older than the Olympians themselves, and the fact that no god nor mortal dared to enter his domain, Thanatos was a very powerful being.

His great power was enough to let him survive the war of the Primordials. He was probably responsible for the deaths of many Primordial gods which is an incredible demonstration of the fact he is strong enough to fight and kill other gods.

He is capable of manipulating dead bodies and use them as mediums. In fights he uses a long curved blade, which he uses with great proficiency for powerful combos. He, like Erinys, can reveal a pair of large wings to power his already deadly combos with aerial combat.

Thanatos is powerful enough to fight both Kratos and Deimos at the same time, and seemingly overpower them. He managed to separate the two of them with his blinding attack, and grab either of them with relative ease.

Thanatos can transform into a large powerful armored beast which, like Erinys, possesses a durable skin and is also capable of using a blast similar to that of his daughter's from his mouth, albeit much larger and powerful as the mere reflection of this attack is strong enough to knock Thanatos temporarily. As a being older than the Gods, Thanatos was immortal, possessing vast strength, vast stamina, vast durability,vast agility,regeneration, flight (due to wings), shapeshifting, vast speed, vast endurance and accuary

Trivia

At the end of the Rage of Sparta soundtrack, Thanatos' name, or "death" in the English translation, is chanted by the choir repeatedly.
Thanatos is the second son of Erebus and Nyx Kratos killed, the first being Charon.
When Thanatos turns into a giant monster, his head resembles The Skull of Keres.
He seems to have a sour disposition towards Ares, as he called him "unwise", and even claimed that Ares chose poorly the day Deimos was taken. Despite this, Ares seems to have had the strongest relationship with Thanatos than any other god. Thanatos agrees to take Deimos from Ares, implying Ares is willing to enter the Domain of Death and the Skull of Keres is located in the Temple of Ares.
In the in-game cinematics, his eyes are pale, whereas during gameplay, they are not.
Thanatos is the only final boss in the series who is not a member of Kratos' immediate family.
There may have been a reference to Thanatos in God of War III, when Kratos faces Zeus and tells him that "The hands of death could not defeat me."
In Greek mythology, Thanatos had no children.
During the cutscene where Deimos and Kratos battle Thanatos, he breaks the 4th wall by saying "You are nothing but a pawn in a game you don't know is being played." He is most likely talking about the soon events of God of War III or the game God of War itself, which can be believed with an easter egg from God of War showing that Kratos is unaware about being in a game.
At the end of God of War II, Kratos proclaims to Gaia, that both Ares and Athena were dead. He never mentioned the death of Thanatos. This may imply that Thanatos didn't choose sides during the Great War, so his death shouldn't make a difference. It can also be assumed that since Ghost of Sparta was released after God of War II the events of the former game were not written into canon.
Thanatos is the first one in the series who mentioned the Sisters of Fate and also the first who planned to defy them as he proclaims to Kratos that the Fates wouldn't hold him from killing him. Additionally, this foreshadows the end of the game.
After Kratos stabs Thanatos' chest, he had made a "girly" scream or possibly an error or the sound of the explosion.
It is possible that Thanatos had a human lover, who gave birth to his daughter, Erinys. Although he may have reproduced asexually, this is highly unlikely.
Kratos reflected Thanatos' attack, although he does not possess the Golden Fleece or the Sun Shield. It is possible that the beam is weak enough to get reflected by the Blades of Athena or added at Kratos' godly powers.
The Blade of Thanatos is available for download on the PSN store.This sword focuses on ranged attacks, instead of melee ones.