| ā | You're a long way from the Crossroads, Trouble! So, this is where the real action is, huh? Weren't you supposed to still be practicing? | ā |
| ~ Eris |
Eris is the personification of Strife and the daughter of Nyx, being the last of all children of Nyx.
In Hades, she is only mentioned as one of the previous bearers of Exagryph, the Adamant Rail.
She appears in Hades II, appearing at the start of Oceanus and subsequent areas if the player is progressing too fast. Eris will "Bless" Melinoƫ with an increase damage taken debuff that increases with each area cleared. She is also the final boss encounter in the Rift of Thessaly.
Characteristics and Personality[]
As strife incarnate, Eris' purpose is to cause chaos wherever she goes and is seemingly attached to Melinoƫ, having a history of following her around wherever she goes according to Icarus. She offers her a 'helpful' gift that brings about an annoying curse, besides being an occasional annoyance. Despite being an immortal, Eris' behavior is reminiscent of that of a spoiled teenager; she is only interested in short-term gratification and having fun at the expense of others. Her fondness for candy and her tendency to leave the wrappers for Melinoƫ to pick up is a good representation of her overall disposition.
She is mischievous and, at times, casually destructive, not being interested in anything in particular related to the war against Chronos or her family's fate, and simply relishes in the strife of the situation. She is a nuisance to Melinoƫ, not out of any real allegiance to Chronos, but simply because she likes to torment people and she sees Melinoƫ as an easy target. Her lack of direction and petulant behavior makes her rather unpopular among her siblings; both Moros and Nemesis mention clashing with her on various occasions. This unpopularity appears to extend to everyone else in the Crossroads as well who see her as troublesome and untrustworthy.
Eris also has a tragic side; without choice, her purpose is to only cause strife for others, being imbued with it, even though she has made little effort to change. She harbors an inferiority complex towards all her siblings who seem to be better, more responsible, and more dedicated than her in their roles, making her the black sheep of her family.
Though she often claims to be content with her lot in life, she in truth harbors a deep resentment and bitterness towards her mother and the rest of her siblings as she feels that she was never given a choice to be anything other than the goddess of strife unlike them who presumably did get to choose. In a conversation with Melinoe, Eris confesses that she actually envies them for their domains lamenting that she could've been the goddess of old age or friendship if her siblings hadn't come along and taken them before she had a chance to.
After arriving at the Crossroads, Eris will continue to be mischievous, but she may attempt to be friendlier with Melinoƫ, though this might be her rebellious spirit coming into play. Despite their tension, Melinoƫ is uncharacteristically drawn to her, described in the Book of Shadows like a moth to a flame.
Physical description[]
Eris has fair skin and a youthful appearance, with a grey buzzcut and purple irises. Eris is considerably smaller than her sister Nemesis; she is about the same size as Melinoƫ. She has large, feathery black wings which enable her to fly. She wears extremely thick, black eye makeup, black lipstick, and a moon-shaped stone on her forehead.
She wears a black gorget adorned with multicolored tassels, which match her earrings. Her lime green, cobalt, and red color motif (most visible on her shawl) correlates with the three attack colors of the Furies. Her dress consists of a blue skirt, a black bodice, and a white, quilted bustline with three triangles in each color. She carries her ammunition on a belt with a gold buckle shaped like an apple, which is a reference to the Apple of Discord. Her nails are painted to match the rest of her outfit, and she wears a bracer on one arm and bracelets on the other. There are what appear to be candy bars tucked into her belt, which she consumes when she visits the crossroads.
History[]
Past[]
Eris was born as the last of the children of Nyx and was designated as Strife, never having the choice to decide what she wanted to be. Surrounded by her various siblings, she always felt that they ignored her and thought themselves better without trying to understand her, allowing her rebellious nature to flow, and always disobeying her mother's strict control and rules.
At some point after the Titan War, Eris stole the Adamant Rail from the goddess Hestia and planned to use it to sow chaos. It's unknown exactly what happened during this period but eventually the weapon would end up leaving her possession.
At an unknown period prior to the events of Hades, Eris conceived many children of her own, with her brother Thanatos remarking that it's partly thanks to the "dedicated efforts" of Eris and her offspring that he is so busy all the time.
Hades[]
The Adamant Rail ended up in the possession of Zagreus, who could unlock her Aspect.
Before Hades II[]
At some point, the Adamant Rail ended up back in her possession.
Hades II[]
Eris appears as Melinoƫ traverses the borders of the Underworld, giving her a curse to make her attempt more difficult if the game detects that the player is progressing too fast. She later appears at The Crossroads, where she uses the pact between Hecate and Nyx to hang out safely even as she pollutes the area and taunts the residents. Her main appearance is at the beach of the Rift of Thessaly, where she fights Melinoƫ to prevent her from proceeding to the Olympians' aid. Her motive appears to be keeping the war between Chronos and the Olympians going for as long as possible due to sheer amount of Strife it causes.
"Blessing" Of Strife[]
If Melinoƫ progresses too fast in the early-game, Eris will appear and "bless" her. This "blessing" cannot be refused and there is no way to get rid of it, as it lasts for the whole current run. This can be avoided by having roughly half health, calculated after each zone's post-boss fountain, as Eris will only appear if the player is above a certain current health threshold.
| Icon | Description | Type | Notes | Prerequisites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
āBlessingā of Strife Your foes deal +20% damage. This grows each Encounter. |
"There are those who can inspire wrath and malice through no fault of their own." Increases by +5% after clearing each Encounter. |
Book of Shadows Entry[]
Trivia[]
- She is the youngest child of Nyx.[1]
- She is best known for starting the Trojan War by tossing the Apple of Discord into Peleus and Thetis' wedding feast, which is why the player receives golden apples for defeating her.
- Like her older sister Nemesis carrying the Stygian Blade under her own aspect, Eris too carries the Adamant Rail under her aspect, the Aspect of Eris.
- It is mentioned that she acquired the Adamant Rail "again," implying that she had it at some point in the past.
- Her design uses the color themes of the Furies Megaera, Tisiphone, and Alecto; it's not yet known if it's intentional.
- Nemesis represents divine justice and retribution, while the Furies carry out this justice by punishing serious crimes, especially "within their own families." In the game, Nemesis mentions the promise to take care of Eris, but ends up abandoning her, possibly suggesting Eris is being ironic about Nemesis being a goddess of justice and being unjust to her.
- Eris mentions she could have been Old Age or Friendship rather than Strife, referencing other two of Nyx's Children, Geras and Philotes, respectively.[2]
Myth Facts[]
- Eris' genealogy differs between poets' interpretation of Greek mythology. According to Hesiod, she is the daughter of Erebus and Nyx. Whereas according to Homer, she is the daughter of Zeus and Hera and twin sister of Ares, whom she rode alongside into battles.[3][4]
- In the Iliad, Eris initiates the earliest events that would lead to the War on Troy, tossing a golden apple inscribed, "For the most beautiful," into the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. The act was in the upset of not receiving an invitation alongside the other gods, among them Athena, Aphrodite and Hera.[4]
- In Theogony, Eris births many children, each and every one embodying the strains of discord.
Additional Notes[]
For additional information on Eris (mythology) that does not pertain to Hades, see Wikipedia's article: Eris (mythology)
References[]
- ā https://youtu.be/M08NOMIv0Co?si=cO2cx7jPfgzukLok&t=34m13s
- ā https://youtu.be/WfLakq3IAQ8?si=Lvwav_6-xbh-2UhD&t=12m
- ā https://www.worldhistory.org/Eris/#:~:text=Eris%20is%20the%20Greek%20goddess,cause%20of%20the%20Trojan%20War.
- ā 4.0 4.1 https://www.britannica.com/topic/Eris-Greek-and-Roman-mythology
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