Hades+in+Mythology+versus+Hades+in+SMITE

Back to Culture Back to Media Back to Home Top Hades 1 **This wiki page will go over the key aspects of Hades in Mythology and Hades in the game SMITE and show what aspects of Hades Hi-Rez Studios did not incorporate into their take on the god.**

Branding is one of the most important factors for the success of a company. It is the company’s image and is also a way to spread popularity. SMITE by Hi-Rez Studios is a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, or MOBA, where the players divide into two teams of five and fight using gods from various pantheons. The players’ goal is to take objectives in order to reach and defeat the final objective, the enemy titan. One of the biggest appeals of SMITE is the large selection of gods from mythologies around the world, such as Celtic and Mayan Gods, so it is vital to the SMITE brand for the representation of the god to be as accurate to the lore as possible. People who look at SMITE for the first time can recognize a god or mythical creature that they know, and this sparks the interest that is very beneficial to SMITE. It is vital to SMITE’s branding that the portrayal of each and every god is accurate to the lore, or mythology and religion they come from.

**Mythological Portrayal of Hades** Hades is often portrayed as mature, bearded man who is adorned in robes. He usually sits on his throne in his palace. As lord of the underworld, he has many being under his command, such as judges, ministers, and attendants of the dead. For example, Thanatos is the daimon of the dead and a minister of Hades. Thanatos is one of two other underworld figures that Hades references in the SMITE, the other being Cerberus. 2
 * Hades' Image**

Hades has been depicted with different weapons. He has been shown with a scepter or a bident. In SMITE, regular objects can be used as weapons, such as Bacchus’s wine jug, so if we take this into consideration, a libation vase and a cornucopia that Hades is often depicted holding could have been potential weapons for Hades in SMITE. 3 One of the most famous weapons of Hades is the Helm of Darkness, also known as the Helm of Hades. With the power to turn the user invisible, this item was featured in other tales, such as when Perseus was hunting Medusa. 2
 * Hades' Power and Weapons**

Using his scepter, Hades had the power to sunder the earth. He could create passageways between the world of the living and the world of the dead. He also had control of the souls of the dead. Hades could summon dead warriors to do his bidding as he is the lord of the underworld. As stated before, Hades is also the god of wealth and precious metals, because he has dominion over the earth. 2

**Portrayal of Hades in SMITE** media type="youtube" key="Vz4_kVfmRjs" height="360" width="640" 4 **This video is a part of a cartoon series published by Hi-Rez Studios that animates some of the lore of a god.** **Hades' Image and Animations** Hades stands tall compared to most other gods is equipped with tattered robes, horns, and bone gauntlets and pauldrons. His scepter is also made of bone. Under his robes, Hades is a skeleton. He has the slightest bits of flesh that are visible on the hands and hips, but the bone is more prevalent. This image shows off his relation to death, the underworld, and everything dark. Hades floats along with a trail of miasma following behind. Hades’ abilities all have a purple color to them, with moving parts and lengths, similar to a thick mist. Hades’ passive ability animation is a purple mist that floats around the enemies that are affected. Hades’ first ability animation is of Hades moving through the earth and arriving at the next location, and purple rocks fly up when he is moving. This ability sounds like rocks are moving. Hades’ second ability animation is a wave of purple effects; it sounds like a quick shriek. Hades’ third ability animation is of him slamming his scepter on the ground. A dark pulse is sent from Hades after he does this. If an enemy is affected by Blight, when they explode, a small purple crater erupts where they are standing. This ability creates a low thudding noise. Hades' ultimate ability animation is of him rising and channeling the souls, swirling in a circle around him. This ability has wailing screams that depict the torture that these souls are going through. The theme for his abilities is darkness and souls, and this hearkens back to the main underworld depiction that Hi-Rez is going for. 5 media type="youtube" key="JL1G7S2LiYA" height="360" width="640" 6 **This video showcases a custom skin for Hades and makes Hades smaller and his animations cartoonish.** In SMITE, gods have four active abilities and one passive ability. This means that there are only five ways for Hi-Rez to portray the powers of the god. Hades’ passive ability is called Blight. Blight is a type of plant disease, like mildew. This refers to decaying and miasma that is characteristic of the underworld. His passive works to increase the strength of his other abilities, adding extra effects to each one, similar to how decay would increase vulnerability. He can apply Blight to enemies by using his basic attacks or some of his abilities. Hades’ first ability is called Death From Below. Hades goes down into the ground and emerges at a target location. This ability shows how Hades has control of the underworld, being able to use it to run away and attack. Death From Below can also apply blight and the added effect from Blight, if Blight was already applied, is that enemies are slowed. Hades’ second ability is called Shroud of Darkness. Hades applies the Silence CC, so enemies can no longer use their abilities, in a cone in front of him. The added effect from Blight is that enemies have the Fear CC, where enemies lose control of their character, applied instead of the silence. This ability can also apply blight. Shroud of Darkness refers to Hades’ dark attributes and the increased effect of Blight, the Fear, refers to the fearfulness that Greeks had towards Hades. Hades’ third ability is called Devours Souls. Hades deals damage in a radius around him. Enemies that are blighted explode and do more damage to other enemies and heal Hades and his allies. Devour Souls demonstrates control over souls and how they are part of his dominion. Combining this ability with Blight is incredibly powerful and depicts how Hades can rip souls from enemies to restore his own health. Hades’ fourth ability, his ultimate ability, is called Pillar of Agony. Hades stands still and channels a large circle around him, pulling enemies inside the circle towards him and doing damage. Hades gains defenses because he is vulnerable when he is channeling this ability. If enemies are affected by Blight, they lose protections. This ability is a strong team-fight ability that enables Hades’ teammates to attack the enemy. Pillar of Agony represents even more control over souls; the animation is him pulling the souls of the enemies closer. Hades’ abilities work together to make each of them more powerful. This shows sickness and decay will wither away and bring death. 5 **Hades' Voice Lines**  Hades’ voice is creepy and raspy. Many of his voice lines include him telling other gods that they will all end up in the underworld eventually. As the lord of the underworld, he controls the souls of the dead. This depicts the side of Hades that loves to control, and he knows that he will have control over the other gods when they die. Hades also makes references to Cerberus and Tartarus. Some of Hades’ lines are directed towards other gods. For example:"I'll take care of the ocean while you're gone, brother!" is a direct taunt towards Poseidon where Hades references when Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades drew lots for dominion and Poseidon rules the ocean. Hades’ tone and lines depict him as very controlling and arrogant. 7
 * Hades' Abilities**

**What Aspects of Hades do Hi-Rez Studios not incorporate?** There are many aspects of the mythology behind Hades that are not present in Hi-Rez Studio’s depiction of Hades. Some of this can be attributed to Hi-Rez reserving shared aspects of other gods that may come out, for example, Hades’ aspects of wealth and precious metals. However, a missing piece that is very important is the Helm of Darkness. It can be said that what he wears is the helm and that is why his face is invisible, but it looks more like a hood that is attached to his robe. In normal depictions of Hades, he is full bodied, although he is the lord of the underworld that does not mean that he has to be undead himself. Hi-Rez may have mixed up Haides, the name for the underworld, with Hades, the god. It seems strange that Hades would be so frail in SMITE when he is a god. Even other gods of death or underworld, such as Anubis or Ah Puch have very strong builds. Hi-Rez Studios also fails to give Hades any references to any of his underlings, such as Charon. As a very old god in the game, he has had a remodel to revamp his animations, but minimal additions have been made to this depiction.

Works Cited 1Dwight, Mary Ann, and Tayler Lewis. “Hades or Pluto.” Grecian and Roman Mythology, 3rd ed., A. S. Barnes & Company, 1876, p. 156. 2 “HAIDES.” HADES - Greek God of the Dead, King of the Underworld, Theoi, www.theoi.com/Khthonios/Haides.html. 3Cartwright, Mark. “Hades.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, 19 July 2012, www.ancient.eu/Hades/.' 4Smite by Hi-Rez Studios. “SMITE Lore Ep. 55 - Who Is Hades?” YouTube, YouTube, 2 Nov. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz4_kVfmRjs.5 5Hi-Rez Studios SMITE. 4.19 ed. Georgia Media, 2017. Web 10 October 2017. https://www.smitegame.com/ 6Smite by Hi-Rez Studios. “SMITE - New Skin for Hades - Heebee Chibi.” YouTube, YouTube, 4 Nov. 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=JL1G7S2LiYA. 7“Hades Voicelines.” Smite Wiki, 12 Sept. 2016, smite.gamepedia.com/Hades_ voicelines.

Back to Top