Aphrodite
Goddess of Love and Beauty
Aphrodite was the Olympian Goddess of Love and Beauty, wife of the smith Hephaestus and one of the few deities to favor Kratos. She aided the Ghost of Sparta in Athens and remained in her chamber through the fall of Olympus.
Aphrodite was the Olympian Goddess of Love and Beauty, given in marriage by Zeus to the smith Hephaestus to keep the peace among gods who feared rivalry over her. She held no love for her husband and took other lovers, among them Ares. When Kratos fought to save Athens, she lent him her favor, and she remained one of the few Olympians to admire the Ghost of Sparta even as he turned against the gods.
Marriage and affairs#
Because of Aphrodite's beauty, the gods feared that rivalry over her would break the peace of Olympus and lead to war. To prevent this, Zeus married her to Hephaestus, who was not seen as a threat. She felt no love for the smith, calling him worthless, and took other lovers, most notably his brother Ares. When Helios caught the two together and told Hephaestus, the smith snared the lovers in an invisible net and exposed them to the other gods in mockery, and the marriage grew only more bitter.
The defense of Athens#
During the struggle for Athens against the hordes of Ares, Athena sought ways to strengthen her champion Kratos and turned to the Goddess of Love. Athena entered Aphrodite's chamber, its walls hung with tapestries of gods and mortals in passion, and persuaded her to aid the cause. Aphrodite appeared to Kratos in the city and set before him the task of slaying Medusa, the Queen of the Gorgons, by decapitating her and turning her petrifying gaze into a weapon. She granted him the power to wield that gaze and allowed him to continue his quest in the name of Olympus. Deep within Pandora's Temple, Kratos later found an ancient necklace of hers and used it to progress toward the Architect's Tomb.
The fall of Olympus#
When Kratos returned to Olympus during his war on the gods, he found Aphrodite in her chamber attended by her handmaidens. Though she tried to draw him to her bed, Kratos had no time for such games. She complained that Zeus had refused to let the imprisoned Daedalus repair the bridges of the city, and when she realized Kratos needed those bridges, she gave him the information regardless, directing him toward Hephaestus for further help.
Aphrodite was one of the few gods Kratos never killed, and one of the few who admired him. Her fate after the destruction of Olympus is uncertain; Athena came to believe herself the only goddess left, though other gods Kratos never faced may have survived elsewhere.
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Aphrodite in God of War?
- Aphrodite was the Olympian Goddess of Love and Beauty. She was married to the smith Hephaestus and was one of the few deities to favor Kratos.
- Why was Aphrodite married to Hephaestus?
- The gods feared that rivalry over Aphrodite's beauty would break the peace of Olympus and lead to war. To prevent this, Zeus married her to Hephaestus, who was not seen as a threat.
- How did Aphrodite help Kratos during the defense of Athens?
- Athena persuaded Aphrodite to aid Kratos, and the goddess set him the task of slaying Medusa, the Queen of the Gorgons. She granted him the power to wield Medusa's petrifying gaze as a weapon.
- Did Kratos kill Aphrodite?
- No, Aphrodite was one of the few gods Kratos never killed, and one of the few who admired him. When he returned to Olympus during his war on the gods, she gave him information about the broken bridges of the city and directed him toward Hephaestus.
- What happened to Aphrodite after the fall of Olympus?
- Her fate after the destruction of Olympus is uncertain. Athena came to believe herself the only goddess left, though other gods Kratos never faced may have survived elsewhere.
Gallery
Images via God of War Wiki
Sources
- WikiAphrodite — God of War Wiki entry
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Related entries
Ares
Ares was the first Olympian God of War, the eldest son of Zeus and Hera and the most hated god on Olympus. Coveting his father's throne, he tricked Kratos into killing his own family to forge the perfect weapon, and so set in motion the fall of the Gods before dying at that same Spartan's hand.
Athena
Athena was the Olympian Goddess of Wisdom, patron of Athens and chief ally of Kratos through his quests against Ares. She sacrificed herself to save Zeus, ascended beyond the Gods, and in the end turned against the very Spartan she had guided when she sought the power of Hope for herself.
Helios
Helios was the God of the Sun and Guardian of Oaths, second only to the greatest Olympians in might. Once saved by Kratos from the Titan Atlas, he later fell to the same Spartan, who tore off his head and used it as a lantern through Olympus.
Hephaestus
Hephaestus was the Craftsman of Olympus, the smith who forged Pandora's Box, the Blades of Chaos, and the Gauntlet of Zeus. Cast down to the Underworld and stripped of his standing, he died protecting his daughter Pandora from Kratos.
Olympians
The Olympians were the third and final generation of gods to rule over Greece, led by Zeus after they overthrew the Titans in the Titanomachy. First the allies of Kratos and then his enemies, they were slain almost to the last across his years of vengeance, their fall bringing ruin upon all of Greece.
Zeus
Zeus was the King of Olympus and ruler of the Greek Pantheon, the youngest son of Cronos who freed his siblings, ended the Great War, and claimed the heavens. Father of Kratos, he became the great antagonist of the Greek age and fell at last to the very son he had tried to destroy.
Mentioned in11 entries
Aphrodite's Handmaidens
Aphrodite's Handmaidens were two mortal women who served and attended the Goddess of Love in her chamber upon Olympus. Among the few mortals who showed no fear of Kratos, they remained at their mistress's side through the fall of the city.
Euryale
Euryale was an immortal Gorgon and the sister of Medusa, who took the throne of the Gorgons after Kratos slew her kin. From her temple on the Island of Creation she sought to sacrifice the Ghost of Sparta to the Sisters of Fate, until he cut off her head and turned it against his enemies.
Gorgon
The Gorgons were a serpentine race of female monsters whose gaze turned the living to stone. Ruled by three matriarchs, Medusa, Euryale, and Stheno, they marched in the army of Ares and were hunted across Greece by Kratos, who claimed their severed heads as weapons.
Greek Gods
The Greek Gods were the pantheon that ruled over Greece across three generations, the Primordials, the Titans, and the Olympians. Once the masters of mortals, monsters, and the natural world, they were brought to near extinction by Kratos in his war of vengeance against Olympus.
Hephaestus
Hephaestus was the Craftsman of Olympus, the smith who forged Pandora's Box, the Blades of Chaos, and the Gauntlet of Zeus. Cast down to the Underworld and stripped of his standing, he died protecting his daughter Pandora from Kratos.
Hyperion
Hyperion was the Titan of the Sun and Light, eldest and wisest of the sons of Ouranos, who first bore the Power of the Sun before his son Helios. He fell with his kind in the great war, and the gates that bear his name still cross the world.
Medusa
Medusa was a Gorgon queen who fought among the armies of Ares during the siege of Athens. Slain by Kratos at the command of Aphrodite, her severed head granted him the petrifying power of Medusa's Gaze.
Mount Olympus
Mount Olympus was the sacred home of the Olympian gods and the center of all Greece, ruled by Zeus from a golden palace. It rose from the Underworld after the first Titanomachy and was destroyed by Kratos in his war of vengeance against the gods.
Olympians
The Olympians were the third and final generation of gods to rule over Greece, led by Zeus after they overthrew the Titans in the Titanomachy. First the allies of Kratos and then his enemies, they were slain almost to the last across his years of vengeance, their fall bringing ruin upon all of Greece.
Pandora's Box
Pandora's Box was the artifact forged by Hephaestus to contain the Evils born of the Great War. Hidden within the Flame of Olympus and guarded across an age, it granted the power to slay a god to whoever opened it, and held within it one final power: Hope.
Pandora's Temple: The Vault of Pandora's Box
Pandora's Temple was a vast trap-laden temple built upon the back of the wandering Titan Cronos to house Pandora's Box and keep it from the enemies of Olympus. After 2,500 years of failed attempts by countless heroes, Kratos became the only mortal to reach the Box within.
Get new articles in your inbox
No spam. New lore drops, canon conflicts, and deep dives only when they’re worth reading.
Some links on Lore Fortress are affiliate links. If you buy through them we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.