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Typhon

the storm Titan and Father of Monsters

Typhon was the storm Titan, youngest child of Gaia and fathered by the abyss Tartarus. After his Giant brothers fell to Zeus, he challenged the King of the Gods and was sealed within a frozen mountain, where Kratos later blinded him to claim his power.

By Sam

Typhon was a Titan with power over wind and storms, the youngest child of Gaia and the only one fathered by the primordial abyss Tartarus. Known as the Father of Monsters, he challenged Zeus himself after the death of his Giant brothers and was sealed within a mountain for it. Ages later, Kratos descended into that frozen prison to claim Typhon's Bane, blinding the embittered Titan in the process. (God of War II; Hesiod, Theogony)

Birth and the Father of Monsters#

Typhon was the youngest child of Gaia. After she and her Titans fell from power in the Great War, the Earth Mother conceived Typhon with her dark counterpart Tartarus, the personification of the abyss. Their only child became a mighty storm Titan of extraordinary power. He lived beneath the earth with his wife, the serpent-woman Echidna. As the Father of Monsters he counted his many children as his family and loved them dearly, among them the Nemean Lion and the Hydra. (Hesiod, Theogony; God of War II: The Official Strategy Guide)

The challenge to Zeus#

Gaia's designs against the Olympians were not finished, and at her urging the Giants waged war on Olympus, ending in failure and their death at the hand of Zeus. The loss of his brothers enraged Typhon, who then went, again at Gaia's behest, to face the King of the Gods himself. The challenge was a serious threat, but it ended in his imprisonment within Mount Etna, where he was embedded into the rock of the mountain, unable to move. Standing victorious, Zeus offered the defeated Titan a bargain: in exchange for his continued non-belligerence, Zeus would spare Echidna and their family, leaving the monsters as challenges for future heroes. Typhon accepted, and the bow named Typhon's Bane, infused with his storm and wind powers, was set into his left eye. (Apollodorus, Library; God of War II: The Official Strategy Guide; God of War II)

Some time afterward his nephew Prometheus was chained to Typhon's hand on the outside of the icy mountain, condemned to be devoured by an eagle each day for giving fire to mankind. In the novelization of God of War II, the long imprisonment has left Typhon bitter, hating the Gods and blaming his mother Gaia for the schemes that had doomed the Titans, counting himself the child she had burdened most. (God of War II; God of War II (novel))

Kratos in the frozen mountain#

When Gaia guided Kratos toward the Island of Creation, she sent him into Typhon's cavern. The Titan refused to see him and, as if the mountain itself had come alive, seized Pegasus in his hand, forcing Kratos to descend. Angered by the appearance of an Olympian, Typhon tried to kill him, but with his arms trapped in the stone he could only blow gusts of icy wind to hurl the Spartan into the caverns below. (God of War II)

Kratos picked his way along the rocky paths, avoiding the storm Titan's breath, until he reached a path to Typhon's face. He leapt to the left eye, stabbed it repeatedly, and tore out Typhon's Bane, a wind bow that held the Titan's powers. When Typhon tried a final blow, Kratos shot his other eye with the Bane and blinded him. Even blinded, the furious Titan kept trying to blow the Spartan away, cursing him and vowing he would pay for what he had done. Kratos then used the Rage of the Titans to free Pegasus from Typhon's grasp and flew on. The novelized account of their meeting adds that Typhon refused an alliance even with one who shared his hatred of Zeus, fearing that any aid given to Kratos would cost his wife and children their lives. (God of War II; God of War II (novel))

Fate#

Typhon plays no part in God of War III. He doesn't join his fellow Titans in the assault on Mount Olympus, and the games never say what became of him, so it remains possible that the storm Titan is still trapped inside his mountain. (God of War III)

Frequently asked questions

Who was Typhon in God of War?
Typhon was a Titan with power over wind and storms, the youngest child of Gaia and the only one fathered by the primordial abyss Tartarus. Known as the Father of Monsters, he lived beneath the earth with his serpent wife Echidna and sired creatures such as the Nemean Lion and the Hydra.
Why did Typhon challenge Zeus?
When Gaia's Giants warred on Olympus and were slain by Zeus, the loss of his brothers enraged Typhon. At Gaia's behest he went to face the King of the Gods himself, and the challenge ended in his defeat and imprisonment within Mount Etna.
How was Typhon imprisoned?
After defeating him, Zeus embedded Typhon into the bedrock of Mount Etna, unable to move. Zeus offered a bargain to spare Echidna and their family in exchange for Typhon's continued non-belligerence, and set the bow named Typhon's Bane, infused with the Titan's storm and wind powers, into his left eye.
How did Kratos blind Typhon?
Gaia sent Kratos into Typhon's frozen mountain, but the Titan refused to help a fallen Olympian and tried to blow him to his death with icy wind. Kratos climbed the Titan's face, stabbed and tore Typhon's Bane from his left eye, then shot his other eye with the Bane to blind him.
What happened to Typhon in the end?
The games never say. Typhon plays no part in God of War III and doesn't join the other Titans in the assault on Mount Olympus, so he may still be trapped inside his mountain.

Sources

  • GameGod of War II, Santa Monica Studio, 2007
  • GameGod of War III, Santa Monica Studio, 2010
  • BookGod of War II: The Official Strategy Guide, BradyGames, 2007
  • BookGod of War II (novel), Robert E. Vardeman, Del Rey, 2013
  • BookTheogony, Hesiod, around 700 BC
  • BookLibrary (Bibliotheca), Pseudo-Apollodorus, 1st or 2nd century AD

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