Demeter

Overview

Quotes

Gallery

Relationships

Demeter
General Information
Title	Goddess of Seasons
Affiliation	Mount Olympus
Keepsake	Frostbitten Horn
Status Curse	Chill Freeze
Relationships
Family	Hyperion (Father) Theia (Mother) Persephone (Daughter) Zagreus (Grandson) Melinoë (Granddaughter) Helios (Brother) Selene (Sister) Eos (Sister) Hestia (Older Sister) Hera (Younger Sister) Hades (Foster Brother/Son-In-Law) Poseidon (Foster Brother) Zeus (Foster Brother/Brother-In-Law) Athena (Foster Niece) Ares (Nephew) Hephaestus (Nephew) Artemis (Foster Niece) Apollo (Foster Nephew) Hermes (Foster Nephew) Dionysus (Foster Nephew)
Relations	Mortal Farmman (Lover) †
Behind the Scenes
Voice	Laila Berzins

“	I understand, young Zagreus, that you would seek to leave that bitter darkness for this bitter cold? Quite honestly I fail to see why. But I'll aid your plight, why not? For I can offer plenty of assistance, and you soon shall grow fond of it, I think.	„
	~ Demeter

Demeter is the goddess of agriculture as well as sacred law and the cycle of life and death, the giver of life and in turn, the taker of it.

Many of the boons she offers to Zagreus inflict her signature Status Curse, Chill, which causes enemies to slow down and, possibly, shatter, spreading the Curse. In addition to that, she offers the 2nd highest raw percentage damage increase. Her other boons vary between helping survivability by healing, increasing damage, or boosting your different boons over time by increasing their rarity.

Demeter boons excel at control, as Chill slows enemies down the more Zagreus strikes them. Since Chill is easy to stack and maintain, this also enables good synergy with the Mirror of Night Upgrade, Privileged Status.

Demeter only appears after reaching the surface for the first time (just reaching the final boss, they don’t have to be defeated), making her one of the five Olympian gods (the other four being Poseidon, Hermes, Aphrodite and Zeus) who will not appear in the very first run of a save.

Demeter will return in Hades II and offer her boons to her granddaughter Melinoë in her fight against Chronos. Her new signature Status Curse will be Freeze which causes enemies to stop for 2 seconds and can later be reapplied again after 10 seconds.

Characteristics and Personality

Lady Demeter, the Goddess of Harvest, Agriculture, and Seasons, was once benevolent, hardworking, strong-willed, and protective. However, her pain and grief over losing her beloved daughter Persephone resulted in the infamous "Endless Winter," causing her to take on a more wintry appearance and bitter personality.

As a mother, she was kind but overly controlling, keeping her daughter on a tight leash out of fear for her safety. Due to Persephone's mortal heritage, she saw her as fragile, and refused to consider her feelings, not even listening when she tried to tell her about Hades. Her overprotection led to a rift between them.

The ice Queen, in interactions with other Olympians, she is shown to be despising them and unfoundedly blames mortals for Persephone's disappearance. She is quite imperious, spiteful and only seems to hold her daughter and later Zagreus in high regard. They respect her and are cautious around her, fearing what the eldest of the Olympians might do.

Even the most inflexible of the Olympians appeared to yield to Zagreus, despite her 'steel-like gaze,' relutance and distrust of everyone, and don't throw in the towel. However, gradually, she opens up and reciprocates the young man's captivating kindness, seeing in him 'something "familiar" to her eyes' and reminding her of happier times when she used to have a soft heart. She aids him in his escape from confinement.

At first, she seems to act as a kind of icy matriarch, always rigid and sour in Zagreus' presence. She bitterly advises Zagreus never to fall in love with a mortal, as such cases are doomed to failure. When she discovers that Zagreus is actually her grandson, she warms up in his presence, and acts more reasonably with all. Demeter starts to soften with he, affectionately calling him "little sprout" and undoing her eternal winter with Persephone's return, slowly warming her frozen heart. But she makes it clear that she hasn't forgotten the incident, leaving a part of Mount Olympus frozen as a perpetual reminder that she had not forgotten the incident.

Physical description

Demeter's appearance is themed around winter and ebbing life. She is an elderly woman with blue lips and silvery-white hair worn in twin braids that cross her chest and loop back over the opposite shoulder. Six shoots of pale blue wheat frame her head, and she wears icicle-like earrings and ornaments that resemble snowflakes above her head. Her blue robe is flecked with a frost-like pattern on the abdomen, and her cape is made of snow with large blue snowflakes on its shoulders. Her forearms are mostly covered in ice, with only her digits and small parts of her forearms having visible skin, and she wears a small ring or bit of snow on her left ring finger. The only bits of green on her person are her eyes and the green ribbon she holds, which looks much like Persephone's hair ribbon. A cornucopia, covered in snow and containing no food, appears behind her.

In Hades II, Demeter has tied her hair and now wears armor. She maintains a winter motif in her clothes, but now it seems it fades into an autumm motif in some points.

History

Before Hades

Demeter was born to the Titans Hyperion and Theia and like the rest of the Titan's children she rebelled against them. She wielded the Twin Fists of Malphon in battle and personally defeated her father in combat.

She once fell in love with a mortal farmer and the two conceived a daughter named Kore/Persephone. However her mortal lover passed away, leaving her alone to raise their daughter. She lived with her daughter on Mount Olympus until one day Persephone disappeared. Demeter searched the world for her missing daughter but her search proved fruitless. With her daughter lost, she concluded that all of humanity must suffer for it, creating the infamous Endless Winter that caused devastation through plant death, famine, and drought for mortals.

Hades

Demeter appears to Zagreus after he reaches the surface for the first time and lends Zagreus her boons to help him escape the Underworld. When Hades learns of Demeter aiding Zagreus, he's fearful of her and is one of the reasons why he is keeping Persephone's existence a secret, partially out of fear of what she would do if she knew the truth about Persephone's disappearence, this is due to Zeus, who took her by surprise and without consulting her or Hades. Even if Persephone wanted to join Hades, whom her mother doesn't like and would blame for everything, Demeter would not accept hearing that her daughter made that choice on her own account. Not even Zeus could contain her fury if Demeter found out the whole truth.

Epilogue

When she finally learns that Persephone is the Queen of the Underworld and that Zagreus is her grandson, she takes it relatively calmly. Although she disagrees with Persephone's choice of suitor, she accepts that their hearts do what they want.

Affinity

If given Nectar, Demeter will give you the Frostbitten Horn.

Demeter's affinity gauge is maxed out at 7 hearts, requiring the gifting of 6 Nectar and 1 Ambrosia.

Favor

Demeter's favor requires completing the Epilogue, then a few instances of dialogue with her. The favor is completed when Demeter requests Zagreus to "be more candid with her" next time.

While it is not possible to forge a bond with Demeter before the Epilogue is completed, maxing out her affinity gauge to the locked heart will count towards the requirements to trigger the Epilogue.

Codex entry

'...Over time, mortals have come to fear great Demeter, eldest of Olympians, goddess of seasons, bringer of plenty, and taker-away of it. I cannot imagine she is moved by any of their offerings. Much is said of her in hushed tones, not unlike the ones reserved for the master here. Once, she administered her gifts of sustenance with generosity, until some stroke of Fate befell. She changed, and has never been as giving since. The mortals who once prayed to her for plenty now beg mostly for mercy. My understanding is, despite popular belief, Demeter is no direct relation to Lord Hades or his brothers, being born of more ancient Titan stock; she certainly has taken pains to distance herself from Zeus in particular, often leaving Olympus for long stretches, in search of something. Or someone. Not that I would know a thing of it; only the mutterings of shades descended to this realm from freezing cold or famine. Surely, they pray, the seasons are due for a turn for the better?'

Quotes

For quotes and dialogue regarding Demeter, please refer to Demeter/Quotes.

Mechanics

Demeter boons mostly revolve around Chill and upgrading your Cast effects.

Boons

Hades Boons

Demeter's boon flowchart

Demeter's duo boon chart

Boon	Description	Rarity	Notes	Prerequisites
Frost Strike	Your Attack is stronger and inflicts Chill.	Common: Attack damage: +40% Rare: Multiplier: 1.3-1.5 Epic: Multiplier: 1.8-2.0 Heroic: Multiplier: 2.3-2.5	Tier 1	None
Frost Flourish	Your Special is stronger and inflicts Chill.	Common: Special damage: +60% Rare: Multiplier: 1.3-1.5 Epic: Multiplier: 1.8-2.0 Heroic: Multiplier: 2.3-2.5	Tier 1	None
Crystal Beam	Your Cast drops a crystal that fires a beam straight ahead for 5 sec.	Common: Cast Damage: 8 (every 0.2 sec) Rare: Cast Damage: 9.2 (every 0.2 sec) Epic: Cast Damage: 10.4 (every 0.2 sec) Heroic: Cast Damage: 11.6 (every 0.2 sec)	Tier 1 Beam slowly alters trajectory to hit nearest enemy. Cannot be combined with Aspect of Beowulf	None
Icy Flare	Your Cast damages foes around you and inflicts Chill.	Common: Cast Damage: 70 Rare: Cast Damage: 80 Epic: Cast Damage: 90 Heroic: Cast Damage: 100	Tier 1	Unique to Aspect of Beowulf
Mistral Dash	Your Dash shoots a gust ahead that inflicts Chill.	Common: Gust Damage: 15 Rare: Gust Damage: 22.5 Epic: Gust Damage: 30 Heroic: Gust Damage: 37.5	Tier 1 Gust travels in the same direction you are facing. Range: 300	None
Demeter's Aid	Your Call creates a winter vortex for 5 Sec., deals damage every 0.25 Sec inflicting Chill.	Common: Damage: 10 Rare: Damage: 11 Epic: Damage: 12 Heroic: Damage: 13	Tier 1 Greater call bonus: increases duration to 10 Sec	None
Frozen Touch	After you take damage, damage and completely Chill your foe.	Common: Revenge Damage: 10 Rare: Revenge Damage: 15 Epic: Revenge Damage: 20 Heroic: Revenge Damage: 25	Tier 1 Applies 10 stacks of Chill	None
Rare Crop	Your Boons become Common, then gain Rarity every 3 Encounter(s).	Common: Random boons affected: 1 Rare: Random boons affected: 2 Epic: Random boons affected: 3 Heroic: N/A	Tier 1 This boon cannot be purged, exchanged or upgraded via Ambrosia Delight from Eurydice or via poms. Once taken, shows which Boons are being cultivated as part of the Boon Description. If the player has fewer boons than Rare Crop's rarity can affect, the unused spots cannot be filled after the fact. In the the fourth zone, each small room before the reward counts as one encounter. (might be patch dependent)	None
Ravenous Will	While you have no , take 10% less damage and deal more.	Common: Damage bonus: +10% Rare: Damage bonus: +20% Epic: Damage bonus: +30% Heroic: Damage bonus: +40%	Tier 1 This boon cannot be upgraded via poms.	None
Nourished Soul	Any Health effects are more potent. Restore +30% now.	Common: Improved Restoration: 30% Rare: Improved Restoration: 32.5% Epic: Improved Restoration: 35% Heroic: Improved Restoration: 37.5%	Tier 1 Unsellable This boon cannot be upgraded via poms.	None
Snow Burst	Whenever you Cast, damage nearby foes and inflict Chill.	Common: Damage: 40 Rare: Damage: 50 Epic: Damage: 60 Heroic: Damage: 70	Tier 1	None
Arctic Blast	Applying 10 stacks of Chill causes a blast, clearing the effect.	Common: Damage: 80 Rare: Damage: 90 Epic: Damage: 100 Heroic: Damage: 110	Tier 2 This boon cannot be upgraded via poms.	Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Mistral Dash, Demeter's Aid, or Snow Burst
Killing Freeze	When all foes are Chill afflicted, they become Slow and Decay.	Common: Slow 10%, Decay Damage: 20 (every 0.5 sec) Rare: Slow 15%, Decay Damage: 30 (every 0.5 sec) Epic: Slow 20%, Decay Damage: 40 (every 0.5 sec) Heroic: Slow 25%, Decay Damage: 50 (every 0.5 sec)	Tier 2 This boon cannot be upgraded via poms.	Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Mistral Dash, Demeter's Aid, or Snow Burst
Glacial Glare	Your Cast fires longer and inflicts Chill.	Common: Bonus Duration: 2 Sec. Rare: Bonus Duration: 2.4 Sec. Epic: Bonus Duration: 2.8 Sec. Heroic: Bonus Duration: 3.2 Sec.	Tier 2 Cannot be combined with Aspect of Beowulf	Crystal Beam
Winter Harvest	Chill-affected foes shatter at 10% hp, inflicting Chill nearby. Shatter Area Damage: 50	Legendary	Tier 3	Requires two of three: Ravenous Will, Arctic Blast, or Killing Freeze
Cold Embrace	Your Cast crystal fires its beam directly at you for +4 seconds. Bonus Cast Damage: +30%	Duo (Aphrodite)	Cannot be combined with Crystal Clarity Cannot be combined with Aspect of Beowulf	One of each: Demeter: Crystal Beam Aphrodite: Heartbreak Strike, Heartbreak Flourish, Passion Dash, or Aphrodite's Aid
Freezing Vortex	Your Cast inflicts Chill, but is smaller and moves slower. Blade Rift size -15%	Duo (Ares)	Cannot be combined with Hunting Blades	One of each: Demeter: Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Mistral Dash, or Demeter's Aid Ares: Slicing Shot / Slicing Flare
Crystal Clarity	Your Cast is stronger and tracks foes more effectively. Beam Damage: +10%	Duo (Artemis)	Cannot be combined with Cold Embrace Cannot be combined with Aspect of Beowulf	One of each: Demeter: Crystal Beam Artemis: Deadly Strike, Deadly Flourish, Hunter Dash, or Artemis' Aid
Stubborn Roots	While you have no Death/Stubborn Defiance your slowly recovers. Life Regeneration: 1 (every 0.8 Sec.)	Duo (Athena)		One of each: Demeter: Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Crystal Beam, Mistral Dash, or Demeter's Aid Athena: Divine Strike, Divine Flourish, Phalanx Shot, Divine Dash, or Athena's Aid
Ice Wine	Your Cast blasts an area with freezing Festive Fog that inflicts Chill. Blast Damage: +30%	Duo (Dionysus)	Cannot be combined with Blizzard Shot	One of each: Demeter: Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Mistral Dash, or Demeter's Aid Dionysus: Trippy Shot
Blizzard Shot	Your Cast moves slowly, piercing foes and firing shards around it. Shard Damage: 20	Duo (Poseidon)	Cannot be combined with the Aspect of Beowulf Cannot be combined with Curse of Drowning Cannot be combined with Ice Wine	One of each: Demeter: Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Mistral Dash, or Demeter's Aid Poseidon: Flood Shot
Cold Fusion	Jolted status does not expire on your enemies' attacks. Jolted duration: 10 Sec.	Duo (Zeus)		One of each: Demeter: Frost Strike, Frost Flourish, Mistral Dash, or Demeter's Aid Zeus: Static Discharge

Hades II Boons

Boon	Description	Rarity	Notes	Prerequisites
File:Ice Flourish.png Ice Flourish	Your Specials now deal more damage and inflict Freeze.	Common: Special Damage: +40% Rare: Special Damage: TBA Epic: Special Damage: TBA Heroic: Special Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Ice Strike.png Ice Strike	Your Attacks inflict Freeze.	Common: Attack Damage: +30% Rare: Attack Damage: TBA Epic: Attack Damage: TBA Heroic: Attack Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Arctic Ring.png Arctic Ring	Your Casts repeatedly deal damage in the area and inflict Freeze.	Common: Cast Damage: 10 (every 0.5 Sec.) Rare: Cast Damage: TBA Epic: Cast Damage: TBA Heroic: Cast Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Frigid Sprint.png Frigid Sprint	Your Sprint forms a Cyclone around you that lingers after you stop.	Common: Cyclone Damage: 4 (every 0.25 Sec.) Rare: Cyclone Damage: TBA Epic: Cyclone Damage: TBA Heroic: Cyclone Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Tranquil Gain.png Tranquil Gain	After remaining inactive for 1 Sec., rapidly restores File:Magick.png until you act.	Common: Magick Restoration: +25 (every 1 Sec.) Rare: Magick Restoration: TBA Epic: Magick Restoration: TBA Heroic: Magick Restoration: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Winter Coat.png Winter Coat	After you enter a Location, Prime a barrier that absorbs 1 instance of damage.	Common: Magick Primed: 20 Rare: Magick Primed: TBA Epic: Magick Primed: TBA Heroic: Magick Primed: TBA	TBA	TBA
Rare Crop	Your Boons become Common, then gain Rarity every 3 Encounter(s).	Common: Random boons affected: 1 Rare: Random boons affected: 2 Epic: Random boons affected: 3 Heroic: N/A	TBA	None
File:Local Climate.png Local Climate	Your Omega Cast deals bonus damage and follows you, even as you start to Channel it.	Common: Cast Damage: +20% Rare: Cast Damage: TBA Epic: Cast Damage: TBA Heroic: Cast Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Gale Force.png Gale Force	Your Casts also create a Cyclone at the binding circle.	Common: Cyclone Damage: 4 (every 0.25 Sec.) Rare: Cast Damage: TBA Epic: Cast Damage: TBA Heroic: Cast Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Plentiful Forage.png Plentiful Forage	Whenever you gather plants, seeds, or mushrooms, gain Template:Max Life. Receive 1 Template:Mystery Seeds now.	Common: Max Life from Gathering: +5 Rare: Max Life from Gathering: TBA Epic: Max Life from Gathering: TBA Heroic: Max Life from Gathering: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Weed Killer.png Weed Killer	Your Omega Attack deals more damage, but uses +10 Template:Magick.	Common: Omega Attack Damage: +50% Rare: Omega Attack Damage: TBA Epic: Omega Attack Damage: TBA Heroic: Omega Attack Damage: TBA	TBA	TBA
File:Cold Storage.png Cold Storage	Your Freeze effects last longer.	Common: Freeze Duration: +2 Sec. Rare: Freeze Duration: TBA Epic: Freeze Duration: TBA Heroic: Freeze Duration: TBA	TBA	TBA

Trivia

• Achilles refers to Demeter as the eldest Olympian, yet Aphrodite's birth by Uranus and Thalassa, technically positions her as the most ancient. This might suggest that Aphrodite would be considerably younger in the game's canon, or it could be attributed to confusion among mortals.
• In Greek Mythology, Persephone is the daughter of Demeter and Zeus. In Hades, Persephone is the daughter of Demeter and a mortal man.
• In Greek mythology, Demeter's actual parents are Cronus and Rhea, just like Zeus, making them actually brother and sister.

Additional notes

For additional information on Demeter that does not pertain to Hades, see Wikipedia's article: Demeter