Monster Gods

Cyclopes

The Cyclopes were gigantic one eyed monsters. Hesiod mentions only three (not a race or tribe): Arges (thunderbolt), Steropes (lightning), and Brontes (thunder), obviously storm gods.They were born to Gaea and Uranus. They were also the first smiths. When Cronus came to power he imprisoned the Cyclopes in the lower levels of Tartarus. The were released by Zeus and fought with him against the Titans. As a reward for their release the Cyclopes gave Zeus his weapons of lighting and thunder. They continued as his workers at Mount Olympus forging his thunerbolts. Arges was killed by Hermes while he guarded Io for Hera. Apollo killed at least one of the Cyclopes to retribution for Zeus killing his son Aesculapius.

Hecatoncheires

Hecatoncheires means "hundred handed". They were gigantic and had fifty heads and one hundred arms each of great strength. There were three of them: Briareus also called Aegaeon, Cottus, and Gyges also called Gyes. They were born to Gaea and Uranus. Their mutual hatered of Uranus caused him to force the Hecatoncheires back into Gaea's womb. This parcipatated Gaea's rebellion against Uranus. When Cronus came to power he imprisoned the Hecatoncheires in the lower levels of Tartarus. The were released by Zeus and fought with him against the Titans. They were able to hurl huge boulders as many as a hundred at a time against their opponents. One of them, Briareus, served as Zeus's bodyguard.

Giants

The Giants were generated from Uranus blood resulting from his castration by Cronus. They became powerful enough to try to unseat Zeus and the Olympians early in their rule. When the gods won they imprisoned the Giants in the lower levels of Tartarus.

The Aloadai

were twin giants (brothers) who attempted to storm the home of the gods by piling three Greek mountains--Olympos, Ossa and Pelion--one on top of the other.

Ares tried to stop them but was defeated and imprisoned for thirteen months in a bronze urn, until he was rescued by Hermes. Artemis later brought about their destruction when she raced between them in the form of a deer. They both took aim with their spears, but missed and isntead struck each other dead. sons of Iphimedia, queen of Aloeus, by Poseidon, whom she induced to make her pregnant by going to the seashore and disporting herself in the surf.

Kharybdis

was once a beautiful naiad and the daughter of Poseidon and Gaia. She takes form as a huge bladder of a creature whose face was all mouth and whose arms and legs were flippers and who swallows huge amounts of water three times a day before belching them back out again, creating whirlpools. She is described as a voracious woman, who stole oxen from Heracles, and was hurled by the thunderbolt of Zeus into the sea, where she retained her voracious nature and gained her monstrous form.

The Graeae

were three, ancient sea-daimones (spirits) who personified the white foam of the sea. They were grey from birth, and shared among themselves a single detatchable eye and tooth. Perseus stole these and compelled the sisters to reveal the hidden location of their sister Gorgones. Three of their names suggest rather dire monsters--Deino "the terrible." Enyo "the warlike" and Persis "the destoyer." The offspring of Phorkys and Keto and sisters to the Gorgons.

Gorgons

Terrible female monsters with snakes for hair. Deadly hunters, assassins of the Gods. Oddly their are three Gorgons which have very different origins. Stheno and Euryale were born as gorgons from Titans. The immortal twins of Phorcy and Ceto. Medusa was not immortal and was cursed by Athena, becoming the third and most deadly Gorgon. The stare from a Gorgon can turn any living thing into stone. The offspring of Phorkys and Keto.

The Medusa

The Medusa was a deadly, cursed creature, but not always...

Medusa was originally a ravishingly beautiful maiden, "the jealous aspiration of many suitors," priestess in Athena's temple, but when she and the "Lord of the Sea" Poseidon were caught together by Athena's temple, the enraged Athena transformed Medusa into a Gorgon and made her face so terrible to behold that the mere sight of it would turn onlookers to stone. Perseus describes Medusa's punishment by Athena as just and well earned. At the time of her death and beheading, Medusa was heavily pregnant with Pegasus who sprung from her open neck.

Pegasus

Pegasus was a winged horse and good flyer. The Pegasus was the result of the ill fated mating of Medusa and Poseidon. It was born from Medusa when her head was cut off by Perseus. Tamed by Bellerophon it served as his mount during his adventures including his slaying of the Chimaera. When Bellerophon attempted to fly Pegasus to Mount Olympus he was dismounted by Zeus. Pegasus continued on and made it to Mount Olympus. Here Pegasus spent his days carrying lighting bolts for Zeus.

Chrysaor

Chrysaor was the result of the ill fated mating of Medusa and Poseidon. He was born from Medusa when her head was cut off by Perseus. Twin brother of Pegasus and Geryon.

Geryon

son of Chrysaor and Callirrhoe and grandson of Medusa, was a fearsome 3 bodied giant who dwelt on the island Erytheia of the mythic Hesperides in the far west of the Mediterranean. A more literal-minded later generation of Greeks associated the region with Tartessos in southern Iberia. Brother of Pegasus and Chrysaor.

Goddess Hekate

Was the goddess of magic, witchcraft, the night, moon, ghosts and necromancy. She was a child of Gaia and Uranus from whom she received her magic power over heaven, earth, and sea.

Hekate assisted Demeter in her search for Persephone, guiding her through the night with flaming torches. After the mother-daughter reunion became she Persephone's minister and companion in Haides.

The Minotaur

as the Greeks imagined him, was a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, "part man and part bull". He dwelt at the center of the Cretan Labyrinth, which was an elaborate maze-like construction designed by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, on the command of King Minos of Crete. The Minotaur was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus.

The Harpies

were the spirits of sudden, sharp gusts of wind. The triplet sisters were known as the hounds of Zeus and were despatched by the god to snatch away people and things from the earth. Sudden, mysterious dissappearances were often attributed to the Harpyiai. The Harpies were once sent by Zeus to plague King Phineus of Thrake as punishment for revealing the secrets of the gods. Whenever a plate of food was set before him, the Harpies would swoop down and snatch it away, befouling any scraps left behind. When the Argonauts came to visit, the winged Boreades gave chase, and pursued the Harpies to the Strophades Islands, where the goddess Iris commanded them to turn back and leave the storm-spirits unharmed. The Harpies were depicted as winged women with the lower bodies of birds. The Daughters of Thaumas and Elektra and sisters to the goddess Iris.

Sirens

Beautiful winged sea nymphs who sang such sweet songs that listeners forgot everything and died of hunger. The Sirens are sisters who lure sailors to their death. The song of the Sirens is irrestable but, the they reside beyound unpassable reefs which destroy the sailors boat when they try to reach the Sirens. Among those tempted were Jason on the Argo and Odysseus. Odysseus escaped from them by filling his crew's ears with wax while he tied himself to the ship's mast. The Argonauts were saved by Orpheus' music. Aglaope (beautiful face), Aglaophonos (beautiful voice), Himeropa, Leucosia (white being), Ligeia (shrill), Molpe (music), Parthenope (maiden face), Peisinoλ? (persuading mind), Raidne (improvement), Teles (perfect), Thelchtereia, Thelxepeia (soothing words), Thelxiope (persuasive face) are their names. The three most famous were Parthenope, Ligea, and Leucosia. The 12 daughters of Achelous and a muse.

The Anemoi Thuellai

were the Daimones (Spirits) of the violent storm winds, sons of the monstrous storm-giant Typhoeus. They were kept locked away inside the floating island of Aiolos to be released only at the command of the gods to wreak their havoc.

The Anemoi

were the gods of the four directional winds. Boreas the North-Wind, Zephryos the West-Wind, Notos the South-Wind, and Euros the East-Wind. They were closely connected with the seasons : Boreas was the cold breath of winter, Zephyros the god of spring breezes, and Notos the god of summer rain-storms.

The Makhai

were the gods or spirits (daimones) of battle and combat. The spirits Homados (Battle-Noise), Alala (War-Cry), Proioxis (Onrush), Palioxis (Backrush), Ioke (Onslaught), Alke (Battle-Strength) and Kydoimos (Confusion) were probably all numbered among the Makhai.

Acras

Zeus, a tireless womaniser, fell in love with Callisto the nymph and they had a son, Acras. According to myth, in a fit of jealous rage, Zeus' wife, Hera, turns Callisto and her son into Bear-like creatures. They left and found sanctuary on the islands off the Atlantic coast of Africa with the Gorgades.

Lykaon

was an early king of Arkadia who lived in the time before the Great Deluge. He sought to test the divinity of Zeus by serving the god a slaughtered child. Zeus was furious, destroyed the fifty sons of Lykaon with his lightning bolt. He spared their father only to be then cursed for eternity as a horrifying beast. Each night, when the sun disappeared below the horizon, Zeus's curse became active, transforming Lykaon into a wolf-like beast with no human memories. Each morning the first rays of sunlight would break the curse returning Lykaon to his human form. To ensure the punishment was severe enough, Zeus also cursed Lykaon with Agelessness.

Hamadryads

are Dryads who have had their life in danger which has forced them to become one with the tree, transforming them into a deadly and powerful creature. Since they once were dryads, they are beloved and cared for by their kin. The Hamadryads can up-root and move from place to place at will. They are also sometimes sent into battle.

Cerberus

Cerberus is the three headed dog with a dragon tail which guards the entrance to the underworld. Allowing the dead to enter but, never leave. Fetching Cerberus was the last labor of Heracles. Brother to Orthus.

Orthus

was a two-headed dog and a brother of Cerberus, both whelped by the chthonic monsters Echidna and Typhon.

Chimaera

Spawned by Typhoeus and Echidna, the Chimaera had three heads - lion, goat, and snake .Its body was also mixed having the front part of a lion, middle of a goat, and snake for a tail. It breathed fire. It ravaged Lycia, killing cattle and setting fires until it was killed by Bellerophon.

The Sphinx

in Greek tradition, was a giant animal with the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless. Those who cannot answer her riddle suffer a fate typical in such mythological stories, as they are killed and eaten by this ravenous monster. Daughter of the Chimaera and Orthus.

The Nemean lion

was a vicious monster in Greek mythology that lived at Nemea. It was eventually killed by Heracles. It could not be killed with mortal weapons because its golden fur was impervious to attack. Its claws were sharper than mortal swords and could cut through any armor. Son of the Chimaera and Orthus.

The lion is usually considered to have been the offspring of Typhon and Echidna; it is also said to have fallen from the moon as the offspring of Zeus and Selene, or alternatively born of the Chimera. The Nemean lion was sent to Nemea in the Peloponnesus to terrorize the city.

Areion

was an immortal horse born to the goddess Demeter after she was raped by Poseidon in the shape of a horse. He was first owned by the Arkadian Ogkios, then by Herakles and finally by Adrastos.