Shades

A group of shades in the Elysium arena

“

What is the soul? An ember from the depths of Chaos, nothing more, I think. But it is all we are, as mortals; and it is all we are reduced to, once we inevitably fade away.

„

~ Achilles

Shades are the posthumous souls of humans, animals, creatures, plants, and all other living organisms from across the multiverse, all of which flow down and gather into the chthonic realm of Hades, God of the Dead, after their passing.

While some mortals seem to appear in the Underworld as disembodied spirits or ghosts, other souls appear as they did when they were alive. The exact in-universe reason for this is unknown, though it is implied by Melinoë to be through willpower.

In the case of Dora, if a shade were to completely forget their life when they were alive, perhaps by drinking from the river Lethe like she did, their physical appearance would resemble the common ghost-like shades.

Though it is possible to destroy a Shade's physical form, this is ultimately only a minor inconvenience for them as the Shade in question will eventually regenerate itself in the same chamber of the Underworld where it was last defeated no worse for wear.

In certain cases, a Shade after being sorted into one of the locations of the Underworld will begin to physically change into monsters known as the Perilous Foes so as to better reflect the actions that they had committed in life.

Notable Shades

• 
  Achilles
• 
  Asterius
• 
  Daedalus
• 
  Dora
• 
  Echo
• 
  Eurydice
• 
  Icarus
• 
  Narcissus
• 
  Patroclus
• 
  Odysseus
• 
  Orpheus
• 
  Skelly
• 
  Sisyphus
• 
  Theseus

Trivia

• Some fans speculate that a Shade’s appearance depends on how important they were alive. For example, heroes like Achilles and Odysseus are more likely to be allowed to keep their physical forms then, say for example, a simple farmhand who died as a result of a mishap. However, if this was the case, it wouldn't explain why villains such as Sisyphus and neutral beings like Eurydice have been shown to keep their bodies after death.
• It's confirmed in the codex that animals are also allowed entry into the Underworld after death as several of the River Denizens are noted to be shades of fish that had died and that the Dracons found in Asphodel were likely once the souls of snakes.
  • Birds might not become Shades as Zagreus claims to have never seen a bird before and has difficulty imagining what one would look like if described. Though it's also very likely that a bird's shade might not resemble what it originally looked like back when it was alive.
• Despite still being alive when Zagreus killed them, none of the Satyr Cultists, Snakestones, Gigantic Vermin, or Crawlers are seen anywhere else in the Underworld. It's possible that they didn't get to keep their bodies after death and so would be unrecognizable as Shades or that they just haven't been judged yet as Hades mentions several times that he and his staff are currently overworked and simply may not have had time to get to them.
  • Likewise, none of the enemies that Melinoë slays when she's up on the Surface appear in the Underworld later when she's on her way to confront Chronos, though as with the first game it's likely that they simply haven't been judged yet given that Hades is currently incapacitated.
• It's currently unknown if major deities can become Shades if or when they are destroyed or if they simply cease to exist.
  • Minor Deities who can still be killed by conventional means, such as Nymphs like Eurydice and Echo, become Shades upon death just like mortals.
  • Zagreus is killed repeatedly throughout Hades only to find himself back at the House of Hades where he started, though his is a unique situation having been born within the Underworld and he also has an important high-ranked position within it.
  • The Titans were chopped into pieces by the Olympians after the war and scattered throughout Tartarus to ensure that they could never physically reform. However, its currently unknown if this counts as becoming a Shade or not.
  • Thanatos himself mentions that there'll one day come a time when he "claims the gods themselves" though its deliberately left ambiguous as to what exactly this would mean for the deities in question.
• Zagreus can overhear and discover different shades' causes of death while inside the House of Hades.
  • One such shade's cause of death was a falling tortoise, and they say, "Prophecies have a way to catching up to you...". This likely references Aeschylus, who died from an eagle dropping a tortoise on his head after mistaking it for a rock suitable for breaking the shell. Furthermore, it was said Aeschylus had been staying outdoors to avoid a prophecy that he would be killed by a falling object.
• If Melinoë examines the shades in the training area of the Crossroads, the Narrator will comment that some shades of the Underworld do not develop any physical or ghostly form and are instead rendered down to their base essence. This prompts Melinoë to ask if he is alright, implying that the Narrator’s soul can only exist as an invisible presence that observes and describes the actions of others.
• When Melinoë returns to The Crossroads after fighting an end boss from either route, a group of six small shades will follow her in a line.