If you missed my article about Lancelot, you can find it here.
Thanatos is the Greek god of death, and his Roman counterpart is Mors. Thanatos shouldn’t be confused with Hades, the Greek god of the Underworld. Hades has no dominion over death itself and takes care of those who died and the Underworld itself. However, Thanatos is more than a god of death. He IS death. It is to his embrace you turn to when your life is over.
Thanatos is the son of Nyx, the primordial goddess of the night. Again, she IS the night. He is also the son of Erebus, the primordial god of darkness. He IS darkness. Thanatos’s twin brother is Hypnos, the god of sleep. Their other siblings include Geres (old age), Nemesis (retribution), Apate (deception), Eris (strife), the Fates, and so many more.
Thanatos lives in the Underworld with Hecate, Hades, and others. His symbols are the butterfly and the sword, the inverted torch, butterfly, poppy, and Theta (the eighth letter in the Greek alphabet.). He is hated by Gods and mortals alike. While he is benign, he is indiscriminate. Thanatos takes everyone. While Thanatos is death, others help with specific kinds of death. The Keres are daemons of violent deaths.
Thanatos has only about three stories that feature him specifically. The rest, he might be mentioned but is not truly a figure in it. However, I am aware of these three about him: Thanatos and Sisyphus, the king of Corinth, one about Thanatos and Heracles, and one about Thanatos and Sarpedon. Sisyphus tricked Thanatos and avoided the death that Zeus wanted because Sisyphus pissed him off. Ares ended up saving Thanatos. Heracles overpowered Thanatos so King Admetus and Queen Alcestis could be together for a while longer. In Sarpedon’s case, Zeus sent Thanatos to get his son Sarpedon’s body after his death.
What do you think of Thanatos? I know I hope he is kind when it is my time. He does make sense in this game, though. Have you played him? Let me know in the comments below. Until next time, have fun storming the castle!
