Zeus

"We will unite. We will stand together. And I will wipe out this plague! Olympus...will PREVAIL!" - Zeus

Template:Infobox gods

Zeus is the King of Olympus and one of the main antagonists of the God of War series.

Greek Mythology

In Greek Mythology, Zeus (Ζεύς) was the king of the Gods, ruler of Mount Olympus, and god of the sky and lightning. His symbols were the Thunderbolt, Eagle, Bull, Serpent, and Oak Tree. Zeus was the child of the Titans Cronos and Rhea, and the youngest but strongest to all his siblings. It was Zeus who led his brothers and sisters into battle against the Titans, claiming the throne of his father and banishing the Titans to Tartarus. He then married his sister Hera, goddess of women and marriage. Zeus was well known for his erotic escapades with beautiful mortal women, resulting in many godly and heroic offspring, including Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Persephone, Dionysus, Perseus, Heracles, Helen, Minos, and Kratos. With Hera, Zeus fathered Ares, Hebe, Eris, and Hephaestus. His Roman equivalent is Jupiter.

In the God of War series

Birth and Early Days

It was foretold that Cronos would someday be overthrown by his children. To prevent this prophecy from becoming true, the mighty Titan swallowed his children, imprisoning them within his belly. Standing on the Summit of Sacrifice, Rhea, distressed by the loss of her children, saved her last child, Zeus, by tricking Cronos into swallowing a stone wrapped in cloth. She summoned an eagle to take Zeus to an island far away from the watchful eyes of Cronos. It was on this island that Gaia, mother of Earth, would raise him and nurture his desire to free his brothers and sisters, overthrowing Cronos and becoming king of the gods.

Great War

After freeing his brothers and sisters, Zeus declared war on the Titans, consumed with feelings of revenge. Betraying Gaia, the very Titan who had raised him, he waged war on all the Titans for the sins of only one. The new rulers of the world, the Gods, calling themselves Olympians, fought against their predecessors with great ferocity. The battle between the Olympians and the Titans formed the landscape of the mortal world, shaking the earth with massive earthquakes and crumbling mountains. During the war, Zeus created the all powerful Blade of Olympus, which was used to banish the Titans to the foulest pits of Tartarus, using the Gauntlet of Zeus to create the chains that bind them. Cronos would later be forced to endure great suffering by having Pandora's Temple chained to his back and wander the Desert of Lost Souls for eternity, carrying Pandora's Box which was created to seal away the evils that spawned from the war.

Ares and Kratos

Zeus' Betrayal

"You must vow to forever serve me!"
"I serve no one!"
"Then you leave me NO CHOICE!" - Kratos and Zeus.

See also: God of War: Betrayal
See also: God of War II

As the new God of War, Kratos was far more ruthless than Ares ever was. He waged a vicious campaign in once again glorifying Sparta throughout Greece, capturing many cities. Zeus was uneasy about the new appointed god, feeling unsafe upon his throne in Olympus. Once, when Kratos was assaulting a city in his mortal avatar form, he encountered an elaborate plot to destroy his reputation, that included assassination of Hera' favorite beast, Argos, by an unknown assassin, with blame falling entirely on Kratos. The situation was made even worse when Hades' minions attacked Kratos, and the messenger of Olympus, Ceryx, who was sent to make sure Kratos will not uncover the culprit behind the events, was slain by the infuriated God of War.

Zeus advised Athena to warn Kratos that with every city destroyed in the Spartan army's conquest, the wrath of gods would grow ever stronger. Kratos failed to comply with Athena’s warning and descended from Olympus down to the island of Rhodes, where his men lay siege.

As an enormous god, Kratos tore Rhodes apart and was killing and destroying everything. However, Kratos did not realize that Zeus, in the form of an eagle, had followed him. Flying over the massive Kratos, Zeus drained some of the godly power from him as Kratos had just recently become a god and was not fully in control of his power, shrinking the god of war to his human size. Zeus then used the stolen power to animate the Colossus of Rhodes, a statue of Helios which overlooked the city. With the metallic monster assaulting Kratos throughout Rhodes, Zeus prepared to bait his trap with the one thing Kratos could never resist: his Power.

Misleading Kratos into believing he was at his side, Zeus gave him the Blade of Olympus to use against the Colossus. Draining all of his godly power into the blade, Kratos defeated and destroyed the Colossus, weakening himself in the process. It was at this time that Zeus revealed himself to Kratos. He asked Kratos to become his personal servant, but the proud god of war refused, disgusted. After a hopless battle, the god of war finally fell. Claiming that the cycle would end here, the king of the gods took the Blade of Olympus and impaled Kratos, leaving him to die, and then experience eternal torment in Underworld.

Within seconds of his seeming victory, Zeus took the Blade of Olympus and destroyed everything in Rhodes, including Kratos' Spartan army. While Kratos was thought to be dead, Zeus also attacked and destroyed Sparta itself, partly because many Spartans had worshipped Kratos far more than the rest of Olympus, but mostly as an act of revenge for Kratos' unwillingness to succumb to him. Having done these deeds, and believing the problem with Kratos to finally be resolved, Zeus left for his throne on Mount Olympus.

Kratos' Revenge

"Come down here and face me now, Zeus!!" - Kratos

Unfortunately for Zeus, Kratos was far from finished. Aided by Gaia and the Titans, he returned back to life, journeyed to the Island of Creation, and defeated the Sisters of Fate. With time itself at his command, the Ghost of Sparta returned to the moment when Zeus betrayed and killed him, emerging from a portal and knocking the Olympian to the floor. Surprised at this development, Zeus declared that he had underestimated Kratos, presuming that the Sisters of Fate had aided him. Kratos, picking up the Blade of Olympus, claimed the Sisters were dead. The two combatants charged towards one another, taking to the skies as they attacked. They ended up on the Summit of Sacrifice, where an epic battle began.

Kratos fought Zeus furiously and managed to deliver several powerful blows, but Zeus unleashed his full might on the vengeful warrior in the form of a deadly electrical storm. Unable to overpower the furious god, Kratos feigned surrender, kneeling in front of the Blade of Olympus and asking Zeus to end his life, releasing him from his torment. Granting what he thought was the Spartan's final request, Zeus raised the Blade and warned Kratos that his torment was just beginning. The great god was tricked, however, and Kratos, using the Golden Fleece, repelled Zeus' blow and took the Blade from him, pinning both of his arms to a rock and stabbing him numerous times until Athena intervened.

Zeus took this opportunity to free himself and narrowly escape death at the hands of Kratos. This did not go unnoticed by Kratos, who immediately took the blade and made one more attempt on the severely weakened Zeus. However, Athena jumped in the way of what should have been the final blow, and died instead of her father. Despite this, Kratos was far more affected by Athena's death then Zeus himself, who coldly ignored her death while warning Kratos that he had started a war that he could never hope to win before fleeing. Before she died, Athena told Kratos that he was compelled to destroy Zeus just as Zeus did to Cronos, for Kratos was Zeus' son. This was the cycle Zeus had mentioned when he killed Kratos before. Declaring that no son should ever destroy his own father, Athena told Kratos that Zeus must live so that Olympus will prevail. God after god would deny Kratos his vengeance, for they would protect Zeus for the sake of Olympus. Kratos, watching the fallen Athena disintegrate, felt betrayed yet again and, using the Loom Chamber, he returned to the first Titan-God War, urging the Titans to accompany him back to his own time, where a defeated Zeus had fled back to Mount Olympus.

The Second Great War

"My brothers, we were forged in victory. A victory that ended the great war and brought forth the reign of Mt. Olympus. Born from the depths of the underworld. Rooted in the river of souls. Our mountain emerged out of the Chaos. As it grew, so to did the might of the Olympians. We created a world of peace, a world of prosperity, a world that lives in the shadow and safety of my mountain. A mountain that has come to be the absolute measure of strength and power. Now, on this day, that power is to be tested. The mortal Kratos, seeks to destroy all that I have wrought. Brothers, put aside the petty grievances that have splintered us for so long. We will unite. We will stand together. And I will wipe out this plague! Olympus... will PREVAIL!!!" - Zeus

See also: God of War III

Fleeing to Olympus, Zeus called forth a meeting with fellow gods Hades, Poseidon, Helios, and Hermes, claiming that they must put aside their petty grievances and unite against Kratos. As he exclaimed he would wipe out the plague created by one mere mortal, Olympus began to shake. Looking to the edge of the mountain, the gods trembled as they gazed upon the Titans, who were thought to have been in Tartarus, being led into battle by Kratos himself.

Zeus dispatched the gods to deal with the Titans, who are mostly successful in dislodging their foes off Mount Olympus. However, Kratos and Gaia reach Zeus after their combined efforts destroy Poseidon, with Kratos again confronting his father. Fed up with his son's impertinence and willingness to destroy everything to kill him, Zeus created a huge lightning bolt to blast them both off Olympus, with Kratos ending up in the Underworld for the third time. However, Kratos returned to Olympus, killing Hades, Helios and Hermes along the way. He then sought out Pandora, the creation of Hephaestus, who was the key to pacifying the Flame of Olympus guarding Pandora's Box, and who had been hidden from Zeus by the smith god to protect her. Hephaestus revealed when Kratos killed Ares, fear gripped Zeus. Because Kratos retrieved Pandora's Box from Cronos' back - after Hephasteus assured his father that no one could possibly do so - Zeus savagely beat the truth out of Hephaestus. Zeus sent Hephaestus and Cronus down into the Underworld as punishment, while locking Pandora in the Labyrinth, built by the architect Daedalus, on the ultimately unfulfilled promise to return his son to him in exchange for his services.

When Kratos raised the Labyrinth to bring Pandora to the Flame, the latter was willing to commit to her purpose, but Kratos refused to let her. Unfortunately, Pandora ran right into Zeus, who stood before the Flame. Kratos demanded that Zeus release her; The King of the gods retorted that he shouldn't confuse Pandora, whom he considers nothing more than an object, to his own daughter Calliope, but guessed that he already had. He shows the destruction of Olympus as proof of Kratos' need for atonement for the slaughter of his family. Zeus then remarked that taking pity on Kratos was his greatest mistake, as would the latter for showing pity on Pandora. Father and son then fought, causing even more destruction on Olympus. The latter then rushed to prevent Pandora from reaching the flame. Zeus encouraged him not to fail her like he did his family, a comment that hit a very sore spot with Kratos. In rage, he reluctantly let her go and then charged at his father. He picked himself up and opened the box, only to find it empty. Zeus laughed at Kratos, pointing out that after all he had sacrificed, all he’d accomplished was another stunning failure. Angrier than ever, Kratos pursued Zeus to the very same dais he had first confronted the king of the gods at the beginning of the game.

The Ghost of Sparta found his father gazing out upon the ravaged world, musing that he had much to do once Kratos is dead. They then faced-off again before Gaia interrupted their fight, intent on killing them both. The two escaped into a chest wound on the Titan (inflicted on her during the initial attack on Olympus), where they continued to fight in front of Gaia's heart. Kratos was eventually able to throw Zeus against the heart, before stabbing both with the Blade of Olympus, defeating both Gaia and Zeus. When Kratos came to, he removed the blade from Zeus' body, only for a dark specter of the god to rise from it. Proclaiming that he tired of his son's defiance, Zeus grabbed Kratos and infused the power of fear into his very soul. However, with the help of Pandora's spirit, Kratos was able to forgive himself for his sins and discovered that the power of Hope-which he had sought to find in the box-was inside him all along. Returning to the real world, Kratos freed himself from Zeus' grip, before slashing the ghost repeatedly, forcing his spirit to return to his body. Kratos then discarded his weapons and proceeded to beat Zeus to death with his bare hands. His vengeance finally complete, Kratos watched as the King of the Gods perished, releasing lightning into the sky and sending the world into utter chaos.

Personality

Originally, Zeus was a benevolent and kind god. He would punish evil and oath-breakers. His darker side tended to be domineering and at times paranoid. He was power-hungry and will do anything to hang on to his rulership. Despite this, Zeus managed to keep those traits at bay. After being infected with the evil of Fear, his negative tendencies, especially paranoia, were exacerbated to a large degree. Therefore, he allows his fear to overcome his reason and attack Kratos relentlessly.

Powers and Abilities

Zeus' powers and abilities are both awesome and terrifying. He is the most powerful god on Olympus, and possibly the most powerful being in the entire pantheon of gods and Titans. He possesses the abilities of Invincibility and Projection, the ultimate power a god can possess, allowing them to do anything they want and to even have the power to control the world itself. Others include Flight, Summoning, Sensing, Prescience, Conjuration, Conjuring The Elements, Telekinesis, Power Granting, Teleportation, Immortality, Regeneration and Super Strength.

Zeus can Shapeshift, growing to massive sizes and turn into an eagle. He possesses control over the weather, especially thunder and Lightning, making his title as the strongest being in the world very likely. But, like all gods, he is vulnerable to the Blade of Olympus, his own powerful weapon. In battle, he is capable of moving at the speed of light and creating powerful barriers to shield himself. He also has an attack which creates an electrical silhouette of himself, but after draining power from Gaia, Zeus could make full clones of himself that, although not nearly as powerful as the original, could still put up an impressive fight.

When Zeus unleashed his full power, Kratos was unable to overpower him, even though he possessed the Blade of Olympus and had weakened him beforehand. In God of War III, after Kratos had stabbed Zeus through Gaia's heart, Zeus displayed the ability to release an astral projection of some sort (possibly the manifestation of the evils that consumed him), similar to Athena's ghostly form. His spirit fought Kratos and overpowered him, at first removing all of Kratos' weapons and equipment, then infecting the Spartan with fear itself. It brought Kratos to the brink of death and was only defeated when Pandora helped Kratos unleash the power of Hope.

Trivia

In the first game he was voiced by Paul Eiding, while in the second and third game he was voiced by Corey Burton. Corey Burton also provided the voice of Zeus in Disney's Hercules: The Animated Series. Coincidentally, Rip Torn, the voice of Hephaestus, provided the voice for Zeus in the 1997 Disney film Hercules.
In one of the bonus cut-scenes from God of War, Kratos reunites with his mother, discovering that Zeus is his father, who he would later take vengeance upon for abandoning him so many years before. Although this scene is not canon, the idea of Kratos being the son of Zeus was adapted for the sequels that came after.
In mortal appearance, Zeus is still exceptionally tall, muscular and somewhat youthful looking for his age, due to being a god. He had white hair even whilst a newborn child, continuing into early adulthood. His eyes have no pupils, being the same when he was in his early adulthood. But when he was a baby and in God of War II, his eyes had dark blue pupils.
It should be noted that even though Zeus is the younger brother of Poseidon and Hades, he seems much older than the two. Given his ability to shapeshift, however, this could just be a matter of personal taste. In some sources, the regurgitating of Zeus' siblings is regarded as a rebirth of sorts making Zeus both the youngest and oldest of his siblings. This and the desire to command respect through age could explain why he chooses to portray himself as older than his siblings.
In God of War, the Grave Digger that Kratos meets in his quest to destroy Ares has been confirmed to be Zeus in disguise, aiding Kratos in escaping the Underworld. This bears similarities to real Greek mythology, where the gods would often disguise themselves as humans in order to help them.
When Pandora's Box was first opened Zeus was infected with Fear, which caused him to grow more and more paranoid of Kratos overthrowing him.
In the first game, before the room holding Pandora's Box, there is an image of man battling Zeus himself with the caption saying that it's an image of the future. This comes to pass when Kratos, a man, battles Zeus in God of War II and again in God of War III.
According to God of War III, Zeus has had thoughts of revenge against his father, Cronos, since a very early age. On the ledge where Zeus' Eagle was found, a drawing of Cronos eating Zeus' siblings can be found. After taking a closer look to the right, another drawing can be seen, showing a stick figure, assumed to be Zeus, holding a sword and ripping open his father's insides to free its prisoners.