Cronos (Greek: Κρόνος), was the leader and last of the mighty Titans who were born to Gaia and Ouranos. He fathered the first of the Olympians with his wife Rhea. He fought in the Titanomachy where he was overthrown by his son Zeus. His punishment by Zeus after the battle was to forever carry Pandora's Temple on his back in chains. He is a minor character in God of War, a minor ally in God of War II and a major antagonist in God of War III.
Cronos, often referred to as Cronus or Kronos, is a prominent figure in Greek mythology. He is the offspring of Gaia and Ouranos. As the final child of this divine pair, Cronos ascended to the throne as the King of the Gods. He seized power by overthrowing his father, Ouranos, with a flint sickle provided by Gaia.
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Who was Cronos' wife and what were their offspring?
Cronos, the last of the mighty Titans and leader, was wedded to Rhea. Together, they birthed the first Olympians. To prevent a prophecy from coming true, Cronos swallowed his offspring. When Zeus was born, Rhea concealed him and tricked Cronos with a stone in cloth. Zeus later dethroned Cronos during the Titanomachy.
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What was Cronos' role in the Titanomachy?
Cronos, the leader of the Titans, was a central figure in the Titanomachy. Fearing a prophecy of being overthrown by his offspring, he swallowed his children. His wife Rhea deceived him into swallowing a stone, sparing their child Zeus. Zeus led the rebellion against the Titans, resulting in Cronos' downfall. As punishment, Zeus condemned Cronos to carry Pandora's Temple on his back in chains forever.
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What was Cronos' punishment after being overthrown by Zeus?
Following his overthrow by Zeus, Cronos, the titan god, was condemned to an eternal punishment. He was cursed to wander the Desert of Lost Souls, bearing the weight of Pandora's Temple chained to his back. This harsh punishment continued until the desert sands stripped his flesh.
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How is Cronos depicted in the God of War series?
In the God of War series, Cronos, alternatively spelled Cronus or Kronos, is depicted as the last and leader of the Titans. He fathered the first Olympians with Rhea, his wife, and was overthrown by his son, Zeus, during the Titanomachy. His punishment was to eternally carry Pandora's Temple on his back, chained. Cronos meets his end in God of War III, when the Blade of Olympus is thrust into his skull. He is a god of the harvest and is often mistaken for Chronos, the primordial god of time.
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Greek Mythology
In Greek mythology, Cronus (also spelled Kronus or Kronos) was the last of Gaia and Uranus' children and was the King of the Gods. During the reign of Uranus, the hundred armed Hecatonchires and one-eyed Cyclops were imprisoned within Tartarus, causing Gaia great pain. Gaia constructed a sickle and ordered her children to use it against Uranus, but they refused. Only Cronus was brave enough to take the weapon. When Uranus met with Gaia, Cronus ambushed his father Uranus and castrated him with the sickle; from the blood sprouted the Gigantes, The Furies, and Aphrodite.
After defeating Uranus, Cronus reimprisoned the Hecatonchires and the Cyclops along with the Gigantes and set the dragon Campe to guard them forever. He and his sister-wife, Rhea, took the throne of the world as Emperor and Empress, respectively. This period of Cronus' rule was called the "Golden Age," as the people of the time had no need for laws or rules; everyone did the right thing, and evil was absent.
Cronus learned from the Sisters of Fate that he was destined to be overcome by his own son, just as he had overthrown his father. As a result, although he sired the gods Demeter, Hera, Hades, Hestia, and Poseidon by Rhea, he swallowed them all as soon as they were born to prevent the prophecy from happening. The sixth and final child, Zeus, would become the son destined to overthrow Cronus and defeat the Titans.
Cronus was usually depicted with a sickle, which is used to harvest crops and also the weapon used to defeat Ouranos. Other children he is reputed to have fathered was Chiron, by Philyra.
His counterpart in Roman mythology is Saturn and his Canaanite counterpart is El.
In the God of War Series
Birth and Early Days
In the beginning, the mighty Titans were sired by the union of Ouranos and Gaia. They were all born on the Island of Creation, home to the Sisters of Fate. Above any other beings, including the Titans, the Sisters of Fate were gifted with the very power of natural order and manipulated the threads of life and death of all living things, and thus could shape the fate of every god, monster, animal, or human at their whim. The Titans feared the Sisters of Fate for this and left the Island of Creation to rule the mortal world.
Cronos, the Titan of Time and Harvest was the youngest son of Heaven and Earth and hated his sire Ouranos, the Ruler and Creator of the Universe for how tyranical he was in his ways and how he treated his mother Gaia. Deep down, perhaps due to being the youngest his hate for his father came from an ambition to rule himself in his stead, to stand out among his older brothers and the elder protogenoi deities inhabiting the world.
So, when Gaia beseeched her Titan children to stand by her side against the Tyrant, no one dared to volunteer but Cronos. He challenged his father and fought him for the supremacy over the universe. The mighty Cronos castrated his father with his blade, a mockery of his many lustful advances on the Earth Mother. And so it was how the Golden Age of the Titans began.
Cronos, the mighty ruler of the world, was prophesized to be overthrown by his own children in the future. To prevent this from coming true, Cronos tried to bribe the Sisters of Fate into changing his destiny by granting them the Steeds of Time. However, this gift would not prevent the prophecy from coming true, for the Fates only listened to their own council, present or no present. In a second attempt to prevent this from happening, his wife, Rhea, bore his children and one by one he swallowed them whole, imprisoning them within his belly. Rhea could not bear another loss, for she already had five children taken from her. When the sixth child was born, Rhea called upon an eagle to take the baby far away from the watchful eyes of Cronos. In the baby's place, Rhea wrapped a stone in cloth and offered it to Cronos, who foolishly believed it to be the baby and swallowed it whole.
Great War
Unknown to Cronos, the sixth child was raised under Gaia, who was also disapproving of her son's cruel treatment of his children, thus nurtured the child's desire to one day free his siblings from his father. When the sixth child, now known as Zeus, came of age, he freed his brothers and sisters from Cronos. Now declared themselves as the Olympians, they would ultimately declare war against the Titans, including the one who saved Zeus from a terrible fate, Gaia. The mighty Titan Atlas was the military leader of the Titans in their epic battle against the Olympians. Mountains were hurled like pebbles and tremendous earthquakes shook Greece. Cronos had almost been defeated by having his soul taken by his son Hades, but was saved by Atlas, who was defeated by Hades and Poseidon. After Zeus created the Blade of Olympus, a powerful weapon, the Titans were banished to the darkest pits of Tartarus to endure great suffering for all time, but Cronos would be granted another great fate in that time, for his son Zeus would not make the mistake he did, of slaying his own father. Cronos would live.
Zeus' Punishment
A carving found in the Desert Ruins, showing the Temple being chained on his back
Not wanting to store Pandora's Box in the Flame of Olympus, which would require the sacrifice of Pandora to retrieve anything stored within the flame, Hephaestus lied to Zeus saying storing it on Cronos' back would be a much safer place since defeating Cronos is no easy task.
Believing Hephaestus, Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon ordered Pathos Verdes III to construct Pandora's Temple on top of Cronos, by chaining him down and constructing it on top of him. He was then forced to wander the Desert of Lost Souls with Pandora's Temple chained to his back forever until the spinning sand rip his flesh of his bones. As suggested by Hephaestus, it was hinted Cronos was supposed to kill anyone who tried to obtain Pandora's Box, but it is implied he defied this order and allowed anyone to attempt to use Pandora's Box to destroy Olympus. When the Titan Horn would be blown, Cronos would be called upon to allow countless warriors to endure the many dangers which lurked within the temple. Above all warriors, Kratos, the Ghost of Sparta, was responsible for completing the many feats within the temple and even retrieving Pandora's Box so he could kill Ares, the God of War, for tricking the Spartan into killing his family. Kratos was successful at retrieving Pandora's Box, but Ares sensed that Kratos had the Box and hurled a pole at the Spartan, killing him. Ares then had his Harpies take Kratos to the Underworld and bring the Box to him. After Ares was killed and Kratos became the new God of War, Zeus became consumed with fear and banished Cronos to the pits of Tartarus so that the Titan is tormented for all eternity. That happened because Zeus blamed Cronos for Kratos's success on finding Pandora's Box.
Encounter with Kratos
Cronos giving Kratos the power to use Cronos's Rage.
Kratos also discovered the magic Cronos had hidden within the Steeds of Time. This magic, called Cronos' Rage, allowed Kratos to electrify his enemies much like Poseidon's Rage. Nothing else is known about the Titan other than the fact that he was responsible for destroying his own father, starting a vicious cycle. This cycle was between fathers being destroyed by their sons, much like Kratos tried to do when he fought Zeus upon the Summit of Sacrifice.
After Hephaestus, The Olympian Blacksmith God, "allies" himself with Kratos against Zeus he tasks the Spartan with retrieving the Omphalos Stone from Cronos' stomach, with which he can fashion a weapon for Kratos that "will give you the retribution you so rightly deserve." When Kratos enters Tartarus, he comes across Gaia's fallen hand before Cronos appears holding Kratos responsible for Gaia's death.
Cronos revealed that after Kratos used Pandora's Box to kill Ares, Zeus became consumed with fear and banished Cronos to the Pits of Tartarus so that the Titan would be tormented for all eternity. He blames the Spartan for his torment. Kratos defends that he was tasked by the Olympians to kill Ares; Cronos retorts that he did so only because of his need for vengeance but now vengeance comes to him.
Cronos tries to squash Kratos, despite the latter claiming that he now fights against Zeus. When the Titan attempts to crush Kratos between his massive fingers, Kratos uses Solar Flare to blind him. Cronos still tries to squash him, but Kratos manages to maneuver his way around Cronos' body, tearing one of Cronos' fingernails off. Cronos eventually catches up with Kratos, and swallows him whole.
Death
“
I should have expected this from a coward such as yourself! A coward who kills his own kin!
”
Cronos' death by the hands of Kratos.
After being swallowed by Cronos, and falling down his throat to his stomach, Kratos located the Omphalos Stone, before he used the Blade of Olympus to slice his way out, causing him intense pain and spilling out his intestines. Cronos desperately tries to cover his wound while Kratos emerges from his stomach with the item. Cronos then pleads for his life, saying that since Kratos had what he came for he should just leave Cronos be. Ignoring the Titan's pleas, Kratos climbed up Cronos' chest, and shattered a piece of Cronos' shackles, which impaled him through the jaw, causing him extreme pain. Cronos desperately attempted to remove his chains from his jaw, before being left immobile cursing his situation. In one final act of defiance, Cronos cursed Kratos stating "I should have expected this from a coward such as yourself! A coward who kills his own kin!"
Kratos then walked over Cronos's face and prepared to stab him in the head with the Blade of Olympus. The Spartan ignored him and stabs his forehead, lethally wounding him. Cronos then slowly collapsed on the ground and died right above The Forge, with his head entering inside. Kratos indeed killed his grandfather, Cronos, and sought to kill his father, Zeus. However, Cronos had turned on his own offspring centuries before by imprisoning them in his stomach, making his condemnation rather hypocritical.
God of War 2018
Kratos, Atreus and Mimir exchange words before entering Jörmungandr's stomach, with Mimir stating that he's been to strange places before, but this will be a first. Atreus agrees with Mimir, saying he's never been inside a giant's stomach before, and asks if his father has ever been inside a giant's stomach before. Kratos replies, "Never one that was not trying to eat me" implicitly referring to Cronos. Mimir replies, "We really should expect that sort of response at this point."
Personality
Cronos, much like his son Zeus, was very power hungry and paranoid, as he destroyed his father Ouranos, only so he could replace him as the new ruler of the universe, but became deeply afraid of his own children, fearing that one of them would overthrow him, swallowing any of his children moments after they were ever born. However, he seems to care for his brethren, unlike his son Zeus, who hardly cared for any Olympian, (though only after being infected by the evils) as he was ready to kill Kratos for supposedly killing his mother Gaia.
After being defeated during the Great War, forced to carry Pandora's temple on his back and then imprisoned in Tartarus to suffer for all eternity, Cronos became extremely enraged, feeling a deep hatred for Kratos, blaming him for Zeus's wrath and Gaia's supposed death, refusing to even listen to Kratos' reasons.
Unlike other foes, he doesn't underestimate Kratos since he knew the Spartan could defeat anyone by himself. When overpowered by Kratos, he begged the latter to spare him since they were family but when that was ignored he (hypocritically and defiantly) called him a coward who slaughters his own.
Powers and Abilities
Cronos possessed extreme strength and stamina, which can be attributed to his massive size. As King, he is the biggest and most powerful of his generation, and his physical prowess was arguably almost as great if not completely matched with Atlas. He was also the only one brave enough to stand up to his father Ouranos, dismember him, and become the new King of the Gods. Even long after his downfall, Zeus remembered the might of his father and regarded him as the greatest of the Titans. His mother also praised him, as when seeing his grandson Kratos survived his fall from Olympus and making back it up, she remarked the blood of Cronos served him well. Standing at 1600 feet tall, Cronos is easily the largest Titan in the God of War series.
Superhuman Stamina: Cronos endured his punishment for a long time, and suffered massive wounds from Kratos that would have killed any mortal, gods and even other titans, such as having his stomach sliced and intestines spilled, as well as having his jaw impaled, and finally surviving some seconds with the Blade of Olympus on his forehead, whereas other gods were killed almost instantly by Kratos with much less effort. Even while removed from his domains and divine powers, he retained his great strenght and endurance.
Superhuman Strength: Cronos was strong enough to hold the entire Temple of Pandora on his back for centuries without resting, and even walking on both legs with it. He was also able to battle against and defeat his father, Ouranos. During his battle with Kratos he was able to brush some of his bindings off.
Superhuman Durability: Cronos possesses superhuman durability, being able to survive the battle against his father and endure brutal beatings from Kratos, although he was eventually killed by the God of War with the Blade of Olympus.
Resilience: Like Atlas, he was able to show a great deal of resilience against the Claws of Hades as he was able to hold on to his soul for a great amount of time.
Rapid Regeneration: After Kratos sliced his stomach wide open with the Blade of Olympus, we see a few moments later that his wound was healed. It may already have happened in the past, as Zeus original plan to save his siblings was to ambush and slice Cronos stomach open. Nonetheless very impressive of him to regenerate from an Blade of Olympus gutting while being a powerless shell of his former self.
Agrokinesis (former power): As the Titan of the Harvest, Cronos was one of the most important deities for mortal existence. The Golden Age of Mankind owes its name in a great way to the constant abundance of food on the Earth during Cronos reign. His daughter Demeter inherited this domain from him.
Atmokinesis (former power): Cronos' Rage commands lightning, as is expected of Cronos himself back in his prime as the Lord of the Cosmos. His son Zeus is stated to have replaced Cronos in that position as King of the Heavens, ruling from above the rest of creation.
Chronokinesis (former power): The Amulet of the Fates draws its temporal power from Cronos Rage, the novelization clarifying that the power of the Fates and Cronos are similar and compatible. Cronos is stated to have created the concept of Time by his birth. The Steeds of Time originally belonged to him and bear the name of his domain. Ever since his downfall in the Titanomachy, he and the rest of the imprisoned Titans have been depowered and most of their domains overtook by Olympian and traitorous Titan counterparts.
Power Bestowal: Cronos gave his remaining powers to Kratos on the Steeds of Time, which aided him in his quest to seek the Sisters of Fate. Cronos' powers showed similar capabilities to that of his sons Zeus and Poseidon, being that he could control lightning and thunder.
Overall Empowerment: Much like Zeus' Fury, Cronos Rage amplifies Kratos physical and magical attributes, aswell as feeding the Amulet of the Fates.
Astral Projection: He was able to project his image into the domain of the Sisters of Fate who allow no divine interference on their Island.
Trivia
When God of War was originally developed as a standalone title, a secret video showed Cronos' remains being discovered in modern day, with soldiers entering Pandora's Temple. This movie was rendered non-canon after the series went in a different direction.
However, Cronos's death in God of War III mirrors this by having Cronos dying from having the Blade of Olympus stabbed into his skull, leaving a mark, and falling down on his stomach shorty after, which could make the secret video canon, though this has yet to be confirmed.
Cronos should not be and is often confused with Chronos, who is a primordial god of time. Cronos however is a god of the harvest.
Early concept art for Pandora's Temple present different ideas for Cronos. One such example included the temple being twice as large as its final design and being used to keep Cronos bound in place with his arms legs and head chained to the ground, while another concept had the temple constructed solely atop the Titan's cranium, implying either the temple was smaller or Cronos was much larger.
In God of War II, Cronos is voiced by Lloyd Sherr. In God of War III, he is voiced by George Ball. His Japanese voice actor was the late Shozo Iizuka.
In God of War, Kratos was surprised that a Titan still lives. However, this makes little sense because he had seen and fought Atlas five years prior in Chains of Olympus. This is due to the latter game being developed after the former, despite taking place before it chronologically.
In God of War, Cronos is shown in cutscenes with only four fingers in each hand, but in God of War II and God of War III, he has five.
Interestingly, just before Cronos tries to kill Kratos, he mentions the opening of Pandora's Box as the reason Zeus was consumed by Fear of the Spartan, something Athena and Kratos didn't seem to realize themselves until the end of God of War III. It seems strange that Kratos was unfamiliar with this by the end of the game, considering Cronos had already mentioned it to him previously (it is possible Kratos simply didn't register what Cronos was saying or remembered it).
It is also possible that Cronos was not actually aware of the above, and was not saying that Zeus had been consumed by the literal abstract evil of Fear despite this turning out to be case, but merely poetically stating that Zeus was afraid of Kratos due to him having the powers of the Box, which is similar to a statement made by Hera, where she affirms that Zeus' fear of Kratos consumed him.
When Cronos is defeated and choking on his own blood, the cut Kratos made in Cronos' body is no longer there, and the chains on his left arm have reappeared as well. This was highly likely caused by a developer error.
In God of War, Cronos' name was spelled as "Kronos" and as "Chronos" in the God of War soundtrack.
Pandora's Temple, which is chained onto the back of Cronos as he fights Kratos in God of War III, is much smaller in size than the one shown in God of War, but is also shown to be more damaged and decayed than it did originally.
When returning to Hephaestus with the Omphalos Stone, Cronos' collapsed corpse can be seen from the Forge.
In God of War II, Gaia told Kratos before entering the Island of Creation, "Changing his fate, thus the fate of others." This could mean that Cronos was fated to die in the Desert of Lost Souls, but after Kratos had altered time with the Threads of Fate, he was then fated to die in Tartarus.
Cronos is ranked on 84th place of the Top 100 Videogame Villains on IGN.
In God of War III, at the same part of Gaia's Heart Chamber where Zeus' Eagle is located, there are two drawings Zeus made in the stone walls when he was a child, both showing Cronos. In the first one, Cronos is seen eating smaller people - probably Zeus' brothers and sisters. In the second one, Cronos is surrounded by more small people. If Kratos goes closer, he will see that one of the small beings is opening Cronos' belly with some kind of sword and the other figures are fleeing from the hole. This was most likely Zeus' first plan to rescue his brothers and sisters from inside Cronos and also what gave Kratos the idea to cut Cronos' belly to escape it. The sword used by Zeus isn't likely to be the Blade of Olympus, however, as it was created during the Titanomachy, a long time after. It was more likely to be a common sword, or the Blade of the Gods as it is golden.
Unlike the other Titans who seem to be made of rock and other elements (for example, molten rock, like Perses), Cronos, and possibly Rhea and Atlas, seems to be fully organic, and even has intestines. The reason for this is partially unknown, as other Titans, such as Prometheus, are also fully organic, and as such he seems to be considerably weaker than the rest of the Titans.
It is possible the Titans could shift their appearance to their whim prior to being stripped of their powers.
Technically, Zeus had indirectly saved his father's life, as when Kratos flooded the world by killing Poseidon the Desert of Lost Souls would have been destroyed and Cronos with it if he had not been banished to Tartarus.
Before Cronos attempted to swallow Kratos, he stated eating him would be more unpleasant for him, a comment that unknowingly foreshadowed his death.
According to Stig Asmussen, Cronos is 1,600 feet tall.
However, official Sony Documents state Cronos to be 40 feet taller than this, 1640 feet tall or 500 meters.[3]
In the description of the carving in Desert Ruins depicting Pandora's Temple being chained to Cronos's back, Cronos' name is misspelled as "Kronos". This spelling mistake exists in God of War' both the original PS2 and the God of War Collection versions.
According to Cory Barlog, Thamur was slightly smaller than Cronos at the time of his death; however, because the Jötnar can assume any size they want, Thamur could be larger than Cronos back when he was alive.[4]
The above seems very unlikely, however, as Thamur's fall managed to create new mountains and his fallen corpse covered an extensive portion of a mountain range, while Cronos, even at his immense size, would still not be as big as a mountain (although it is likely he could grow to such a size)
