#topic: siege

[age-of-moonknight]

“Reborn,” Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu (Vol. 2/2024), #2.

Writer: Jed MacKay; Penciler and Inker: Alessandro Cappuccio; Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg; Letterer: Cory Petit

[thesovereignsring-if]

If that about Linnet is true, then it’s totally fair. It’s Siegfried, I (the reader) would too.

Siegfried romance dlc when?? I want to be random npc #172 and romance him.

I don’t have any plans to make Alberich and Sieghardt romancable in any kind of DLC. The brothers take up a special spot in my brain that’s is very separate from how I think about my ROs and I don’t want to cross those wires. They will always take up that familiar-platonic spot in my heart that is very hard to leave.

I know they are very popular and beloved, but everyone is only allowed to love them from afar. UwU

That being said, even if I do not do it myself, fic writers and fanartists are always welcome to indulge however you see fit. Go crazy 👍

[spraypaintstainonawhitewall]

waitwaitwaitwaitwait how did i never connect this before

its so her

og artist: https://x.com/marissasketches/status/1234914592871993344

[pricemarshfield]

reading world of thedas for the dragon age au i’m writing and man. it has me yearning for a version of veilguard that didn’t come to pass…

[pickyperkypenguin]

that chronic illness experience when you are asked to list your body parts that are currently in pain and you do and it takes weirdly long time and the others are looking at you and you feel like the stupidest person on earth

[steamclouds]

@an-excellent-choice made a post asking us why our Tav's let Volo do his weird surgery on them and Voradras actually doesn't! He catches onto what Volo is trying to do and scrambles away immediately, he won't let that wizard get anywhere near his eyes and is quite wary of him for a while afterwards.

But I can give some info about his eyes! He has heterochromia (which isn't really of any significance). And the dark scleras are because some matron mother of his house in Menzoberranzan got tricked by a tiefling wizard centuries ago. And those eyes are the last remnant of some infernal blood, which was the result of that very short-lived relationship!

[doldrumcalamity]

I have a genuine interest in twitch streamers like Jynxzi and Kai Cenat because they're a really really great barometer for what generation alphas into. Like, Zoomers by and large when they were the age that the oldest gen alpha is (12-13) were watching youtubers instead of streamers but the general idea was the same. In terms of Jynxzi specifically it sort of goes to show that acting like an unmedicated kid with ADD and yelling at the camera never really goes out of fashion as long as your audience is sufficiently young enough to gain an intense attachment to you and he can guarantee the furthering of his career as a streamer so long as he doesn't stick to Rainbow 6 forever, I can absolutely see a future where Jynxzi is generation alphas pewdiepie but hopefully less fucking weird. Generation alpha is just starting to hit their stride and im watching very very very closely and with great interest.

[endosexual]

If they do sth for the anniversary of the fall of vukovar at today's game i will lose my shit

[katabay]

earlier this year I started writing a comic about the siege perilous-grail quest situation after finally finishing the didot perceval, and it started circling around kay and perceval. kay as gatekeeper, taboo anxiety vs chivalry, and perceval not doing things "correctly," arthur's enduring affection for kay. that general area. also the horror of the grail quest itself.

this is comic is part of that narrative arc, so with THAT in mind: this is an abridged scene of a longer arc revolving around kay associating camelot with a cage, perceval's associations with jewelry and knighthood and the color red, and arthur's relationship with kay.

[some other scene context: perceval has injured his hand and can't participate in the tournaments, so he's craving some kind of fight. kay is disinterested in replying to this challenge, but he's not above reminding perceval of their first meeting. it's just mean enough in a weird-intimate kind of way that perceval's like, ok so we're doing the antagonistic version of court romance rituals. he picks up hunting because kay can't leave the castle.]

on the subtext of jewelry:

Clothes Make the Man: Parzival Dressed and Undressed, M.D. Amey

on the topic of kay, gatekeeping, and taboo anxiety:

Cei and the Arthurian Legend, Linda Gowans

the whole Red Knight/Perceval Shows Up In A Dead Man's Suit Of Armor transgression-situation (which kay references through red jewelry) mentioned is told in both de Troye's and Wolfram's Perceval narratives :)

anyway! to close out all this out: the transgressions. incredible! what is camelot but a bunch of transgressions stacked on top of each other tbh.

[randomness-is-my-order]

while i’m on the topic, it is very hilarious and also very insightful that mxtx actually plainly tells us how anyone else except wei wuxian would have fared without their golden cores/spiritual powers by putting thousand-plus cultivators in exactly that situation during the second siege. the way they all absolutely lose their shit, fumble around, lose coherence of thought, see-saw between decisions and become, essentially, helpless and useless is eye-opening. hell, jiang cheng ends up so affected that jin ling is able to manhandle him into the cave. the cultivators from the biggest clans aren’t able to come up with anything to save their asses and it takes shizui to point out the array for them to even consider it as an option. if wei wuxian, lan wangji and the juniors weren’t there, sooooo many disciples would have lost their lives–simply because of how incompetent they collectively became once they lost their spiritual powers. if they made a coordinated effort, they could have still held the corpses off, but it’s just that... they weren’t able to, mentally, get past their sudden lack of powers. they were disoriented.

now, i’m not saying that this isn’t a normal reaction to have. it’s totally understandable how these people were huge messes, especially in such a high stakes situation. it is just that it puts into perspective how AWESOME wei wuxian is to have had his golden core cut out of him, voluntarily, then beaten within a micrometre of his life, then thrown straight into the hell on earth aka the burial mounds and then instead of succumbing instantly, he instead overcame these impossible circumstances and somehow, survived and found alternative powers to keep him going. that is nothing short of mind-boggling, awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping. not one person in that siege-laying populace would be able to accomplish that and it held some of the finest cultivators their world has to offer. because no one, other than wei wuxian, had the internal capabilities to build their strengths up from a source that wasn’t their spiritual powers. without their golden cores, they would be toast faster than a human within one kilometre of the sun’s radius. and i love love love how mxtx hits us with this fact in our faces in exactly the scenes that are all about undoing the falsehoods and allegations that wei wuxian, until then, had been levied with in the larger cultivation world’s perspective.

[runespoor7]

@spriteofmushrooms' tags:

#novel#jiang cheng thinks ''zidian would never lie to him'' which is SO funny and sad#girl why is your bestie a spiritual weapon#would sandu lie to you?? is that why it's in time out????

Isn't Sandu in time out because that's a sword, it's what he was supposed to wield in tandem with WWX, and if WWX isn't using his - if WWX reconstructed himself around another weapon (which JC resigns himself to when he claims Chenqing as a prize; that is what WWX cares about; that is what WWX would try to gain back, Chenqing and his identity as the YLLZ, not Suibian and his identity as part of YMJ and JC's right-hand) - then it's hard/unpleasant for JC to wield. They were supposed to be the Twin Prides. Side by side, with Sandu and Suibian.

Zidian otoh has no such association with WWX!

Please reblog for size purpose 🙏

Explain your choice if you want! (Please no hate against other adaptations!)

[qiu-yan]

avoidance

if i had been in jiang cheng's position immediately after the fall of lotus pier, i probably would not have tried to strangle wei wuxian.

i don't like dealing with negative emotions, so instead i'd probably say some bullshit like "whaaat? no, it's not your fault and i don't blame you at all, so don't worry about it," and then just put all my energy towards trying to survive. except i would blame wei wuxian. i would very much blame him, from the depths of my soul. even if i tried my hardest to convince myself not to blame him, that i should not blame him, that i do not want to blame him - nonetheless, my subconscious would remain convinced that, were it not for him, my family and everyone i grew up with would still be alive.

and, because of that resentment, i would begin to pull away from him.

i would not save wei wuxian from that wen patrol. even if i did love that deeply, my resentment would still blunt my reaction time and i would not be able to act in time. for the sake of convenience, let's say that wen ning rescues wei wuxian from lotus pier anyways. wei wuxian lives. what happens then? on one hand, i still resent him for causing the deaths of all my family; on the other hand, though, now i also feel guilty for allowing him to be captured and tortured simply because i would not die in his place. how do i deal with these complicated emotions - these unsightly, ugly emotions? i don't. i bury them and pretend they don't exist, because running away from difficult feelings is how i've always lived my life - i run away from him, because whenever i see him, this twinned of resentment and guilt rear their ugly heads again.

thus, because of my emotional unavailability, the relationship tanks. maybe wei wuxian gets his core melted, somehow picks up demonic cultivation anyways, and is thus pulling away from me as well; maybe the avoidance comes from both ends. and if wei wuxian instead notices that something is wrong and starts pestering me about what's wrong - well, i have full faith in my ability to deflect. i am long-practiced in diverting the focus of a conversation specifically to imply that the other party's concern isn't welcome.

thus, by the time the sunshot campaign ends, our relationship would have severely deteriorated. and then, because of this, i would take wei wuxian leaving our sect to protect the wen remnants as the actual end of our bond. unlike jiang cheng, i would not even argue against wei wuxian's leaving, nor say things as sentimental as "if you insist on protecting them, then i cannot protect you" - instead, i'd simply write off our relationship as doomed and sever it peacefully.

after all, he owes me nothing. i am entitled to neither his labor nor his presence. if he wishes to leave, then he is free to go; if he wishes to no longer be family, the i will no longer think of him as so. in fact, the less familiarly i think of him, the better: it is at once much easier and much more comfortable for me to believe, in a post-hoc sense, that someone who has left me actually never wanted to be with me to begin with, and i therefore have not lost anything of value at all. and this loss would not hurt me as much as it hurt jiang cheng in canon. after all, i, unlike jiang cheng, am a veteran at avoiding all thought on topics that distress me; instead, i'd soon find something new and exciting with which to distract myself.

i would not visit wei wuxian in the burial mounds. if jiang yanli insisted on seeing him, perhaps i would accompany her there, but i would not make any conversation with him myself beyond what is absolutely necessary. i would consider the death of jin zixuan unforgivable. i would consider the death of jiang yanli unforgivable. but perhaps i would not feel as wretchedly betrayed as jiang cheng does in canon: after all, i in this scenario, unlike jiang cheng, have already given up on wei wuxian a long time ago.

i would probably lead the first siege of the burial mounds. i would not hold the same level of animosity against the wens as jiang cheng does in canon - in general, while i can hold onto subconscious resentment for a long time, actively clinging onto seething hatred for extended periods of time is difficult for me. perhaps i'd even speak up more for the wen remnants, out of purely some abstract moral concern for the wellbeing of POWs; however, i'd stand down the moment any of said speech put my own people in danger. perhaps i'd lead the first siege of the burial mounds because it is expected of me. or perhaps i'd genuinely want the man who hurt my sister to die.

either way, if i then encountered wei wuxian in the burial mounds battlefield, i would actually kill him. it would be easy for me to do so.

---

as you might have guessed, the "i" in this passage is not actually me (yanyan) from real life. if it were Me In Real Life in jiang cheng's position i would probably just die.

instead, the "i" in thjis passage is a different MDZS character. prize for you (bragging rights) if you can guess who it is!!!!!

[narrativelysignificantturtleduck]

the thing about zuko becoming firelord at the end of the show is that it's not like. a flaw of the writing that an inexperienced teenager takes on political leadership. it's important symbolically both in universe and to the show that zuko is the one to lead his country into its decolonial peaceful future bc he is the member of his family who broke the cycle and took a moral stance about the war. iroh is older and experienced, yes, and we know his moral stance on the war, but there's a lot of baggage there, what with the siege of ba sing se and being the brother of the old fire lord. it doesn't convey that same sense of hope for the future and change, either to the viewer or the in-universe fire nation. zuko's kinda politically perfect - he's still part of the ruling family so it's not perceived as foreign usurpation, but he's young and his banishment and rebelliousness make it believable that he'll actually make change in the nation. and since this is a kids show where these kids are the ones who will save the world when the adults failed it feels very full-circle to have him assume that role. will it be tough on him? you betcha! is that a valid topic to explore in post-canon fic? absolutely! was this the right choice, both in-universe and from a narrative perspective? also very much yes

[oceansoul001]

Couple of random thoughts regarding KCD2 last conversation with Hans.

[Spoilers!!!]

1. You can have this conversation either still in Suchdol (after talking to Sir Hanush) or in the Devil's Den post credits. They don't differ beside last topic ("What are your plans now?") that is removed if you choose the latter.

2. Generally there is not much of a difference between romance and non-romance paths. Romanced Hans tells you everything that the non-romanced does, just adds a few unique sentences. You can probably notice switch of tone in "What are we going to do about the wedding" topic, for the romanced lines: "I'm not sure what to do... after what happened, you know...? I mean... me and you... I suppose we'll just have to wait and see how things turn out..." I find this reaction very believable given the situation, I recon they both need some time to sort things in their heads, as the ongoing siege/bringing reinforcements didn't leave them much time and space for reflection. So I am very okay with them not discussing the topic further at this point. And, I know this might sound strange, but I also really like that there are no love confessions at this point, I greatly dislike it when games throw them at me after literally one night spent together with someone.

BUT. Directly after this part comes the non-romance part where Hans worries about his bride being ugly and then proceeds to talk about naming his son after Henry, and I don't know... I mean, yeah, we all are aware of the fact that Hans most probably still has to get married, and have an heir, and it does not matter at all whether something happened between him & Henry, or not, but is this really the thing he would casually say at this moment...? Okay, maybe he would, it's Hans. But what is even more bizarre to me is my Henry, who is happily babbling as if nothing has changed at all, even though like a minute ago he was this awkward mess thanking Hans for "the encouragement". So what I'm trying to say is, I would prefer at least for Henry to act/respond differently in the romanced version and remain more awkward throughout this convo. But maybe I'm overthinking this! 😅

3. Another difference in the romance path occurs when discussing Hans' injury, as only in this version Henry asks if he can take a look at the wound later, and I think it is so sweet. Very minor detail, but I love it. ❤️

4. The thing that I definitely don't like is asking Hans about his talk with Hanush, and Hans responding with "You don't need to know everything", like??? My guy. Please. You've just shared with me probably the most intimate and secretive moment OF YOUR LIFE, and now you don't want to tell me some shit about Hanush, even though it is not even a secret and like everyone in Rattay already knows (your own words!). I don't get it at all, why in the romance path this still requires a speech check and why is Hans so weird about not telling me "everything", even though mere hours ago he was ready to die from grief if I don't come back 😭

5. Speaking of dying, romanced Hans can say the following at the beginning of your conversation: "I'm glad nothing happened to you. That would have killed me", but it only happens if Sam does not survive. So not in my game, as I would never leave my brother behind. Hans can also admit that he was jealous of Sam, which for me was very clear during the game, but also under the condition that Sam does not survive.

6. Last, but not least - I wish we could have another conversation with romanced Hans after couple in-game days pass, after we both have had a chance to collect our thoughts. Nothing groundbreaking, just something short and sweet, and you know, maybe get the possibility to share a kiss in our room at the Devil's Den when we want... I know it might sound greedy, or silly, after all we've just got this perfect, almost unreal relationship at all, but nothing can stop me from dreaming. 🥹

Happy to hear your thoughts on the subject! ❤️

[wangxianficrecs]

Rewind 2024 - Part I

WangxianFicRecs - Rewind 2024

Part one of our favourite stories published in 2024. If you also want to give a shout-out to a story, submit an ask and we will share it in an upcoming post featuring Follower Recs and Proud Author Spotlights.

~*~

much sweeter than

by mellowflicker

T, 3k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: Lan Wangji gets married knowing one thing: his husband is his equal.

~*~

Day 4: Time Travel

by UseMyMuse (@museywrites)

G, 1k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Part of Musey's Lanuary 2024

Summary: Lan Sizhui knows his parents are happy, but he wants to fix things so they never had to suffer. Against his better judgement, he goes back in time, though he isn't sure if things will turn out the way he expected.

~*~

old wounds, like hidden ghosts

by wordsonpage (@ronniexian)

T, 2k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: "Wei Ying, Wei Ying, you are a menace." "Oh, yeah," Wei Wuxian plays along. "And what are you gonna do about it, Hanguang-jun?" "Perhaps I should leave you." - Lan Wangji is possessed by a vengeful spirit during a night hunt. It takes Wei Wuxian a long, painful moment to notice. (my accidental darkji threadfic, cleaned)

~*~

my name on your lips

by kopicanai

T, 2k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: To the mortals, he is Hanguang-jun. To the other gods, he is Lan Wangji. To Wei Wuxian, he is simply Lan Zhan. A Chinese gods AU

~*~

Changed for the Better

by tigerlilly3224

M, 4k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: “T-They have busy lives. It’s hard for them to step away.” Wei Wuxian didn’t usually stutter. He was tripping over his words. Trying to justify the accusations faster than his mouth can form the sounds. His brain brought up the long prepared list of why the Jiang’s did and always would come first. Lan Wangji narrowed his gaze. “You lower your own worth for their sake. You told me you wrote wrong answers on assignments so you wouldn't get a better grade than Jiang Cheng. You are your own person Wei Ying and you live as if you take up too much space. I want -“ {aka. college roommates wangxian learn to navigate their lives and heal each other along the way ✨🫶} ** on page panic attack, past referenced/implied emotional child abuse & neglect // rating due to topics both mentioned & implied but there is no spice here just feels

~*~

Having one soulmate in this life is enough

by secretninjagirl (@shawoloser)

M, 1k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: “Wei Ying, come to bed,” he says. His eyes are still so soft, and his voice is so warm. “Yes,” Wei Wuxian says, wondering if his voice sounds as unsteady as he feels. He doesn’t know what this means, but he’s powerless to resist his soulmate. He will take whatever Lan Wangji is willing to give him. ------ A "missing scene" of sorts from episode 43 of The Untamed. The pan out over the Jingshi with their song playing felt very much to me like a subtextual sex scene. So I wrote that hypothetical scene.

~*~

🔒 For good

by apathyinreverie (@apathyinreverie)

M, 6k, Wangxian & Xiyao | Kay's Rec

Summary: Wangji should have seen this coming. (Kind of mafia AU. Where the Jins are their usual treacherous selves but Wei Ying is perfectly capable of getting revenge. Which they absolutely deserve. For having made his Lan Zhan so much as frown.)

~*~

🔒 Bright the Day We Met

by ereshai (@ereshai)

G, 1k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: Xichen wasn’t even sure Wangji was open to finding his soulmate. The mechanism of soulmate matching was inexact and open to misinterpretation. It was very frustrating. Wangji had always preferred certainty.

~*~

💙 Lay my body down

by tawaen

M, 54k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: One of the fragments of Wei Wuxian's soul, splintered during the first siege of the Burial Mounds, uses the energy released by the Yin Tiger Tally and flees backwards through time to another moment where Wei Wuxian was close to death – after the fall of Lotus Pier, at the hands of Jiang Wanyin. Knowing how his first life will end, Wei Wuxian decides to hide his survival, and leave the cultivation world behind.

~*~

The White Jade Hairpin

by YilingSani (@yiling-sani)

G, 1k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: Happy Birthday, dear Hanguang-Jun!

~*~

Tell Me To Stay

by YilingSani (@yiling-sani)

G, 14k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: With heavy steps, Wei Ying walks back to the living room and plops down on the sofa again. His silver eyes travel around the room for a while, mind flooded by memories of sunny mornings, meals and cosy evenings together and all the surfaces they fucked each other on. Then they stop at the door of Lan Zhan's study. If he walked out right now... If Lan Zhan walked out right now and spoke to him, Wei Ying would throw the backpack away, hold his boyfriend close and never let him go. He begs. He begs it would happen. He begs Lan Zhan to somehow feel how much on the edge Wei Ying is balancing right now. "Please," he whispers - the tightening feeling in his throat is slowly choking him while the silver eyes threaten to fill with tears. "Please, Lan Zhan."

~*~

Heart of hearts

by apathyinreverie (@apathyinreverie)

M, WIP, Series, 40k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: It won't be until several days later that Wangji will know to be grateful for Jiang Wanyin’s insistence to split up in their search. (Or, JC and LWJ spend those months searching separately and LWJ ends up finding Wei Ying a little earlier. Wei Ying who doesn’t remember anything beyond his own name. So, LWJ takes his chance and takes Wei Ying home. To Gusu.)

~*~

💙🔒 your heart is mine to fortify

by sunflowersfield

G, 2k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: A few mornings later, Wei Ying stares up at his ceiling and listens to the wind blowing through the willow tree outside his window. It is 4:15 a.m. and he is wide awake once more. For a while, the howling wind is the only sound he hears, and then, there is movement from somewhere below him. The opening and closing of cabinet doors. Light footsteps tapping on a hardwood floor. The clanging of metal against glass. Lan Zhan has arrived at the bakery. Wei Ying allows himself to be swept away by the symphony of sounds that Lan Zhan unknowingly creates as he begins his day. His breathing slows, and his body relaxes bit by bit. He imagines that he is listening to a lullaby written just for him. And just like a lullaby, the symphony guides him back to sleep. Or: Wei Ying lives in the apartment above Lan Zhan's bakery. Or part 2: Wei Ying learns how to accept Lan Zhan's help.

~*~

Brand New Moves

by tawaen

T, 7k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: In the most ambitious heist ever planned, Team Rocket attempts to steal two legendary Pokémon – one from the Burial Mounds Gym Leader, Wei Ying; and one from the Snow White Pavilion Gym Leader, Lan Zhan. These two former rivals are paired up to battle against one another for the first time since becoming Gym Leaders! Will they be able to defeat Team Rocket? Or will they loose their composure and their Pokémon? (Just joking, Wei Ying and Lan Zhan never even notice Team Rocket. They only have eyes for each other!)

~*~

marital customs

by shijieswife

M, WIP, 2k, Wangxian | Kay's Rec

Summary: Cangse, with the growing up on a mountain under the hand of an immortal cultivator who had not descended in several hundred years, often has not a clue, about a single one of the customs down the mountain. She has very little idea of customs, or respect for them, despite her decades living down from the mountain. And this, unlike other things, is something Changze has no experience in either - the art of dealing with suitors for your first born child’s hand.

~*~

(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for these hard-working authors if you like – or think others might like – these stories.)

[thedansemacabres]

ARES CHTHONIOS, DEFENDER OF LAND

[IMG ID: A photograph of a dark, smoky landscape that turns the sun a brightly-dim red hue. The background is obscured by the ash, with tall trees in the distance. In the foreground is a single house, the blue hidden by the dark ash, with tall oak trees to the right accompanied by a visible large SUV. The scene is dark and dreary].

I HAVE HAD A HARVEST OF GOOD CONVERSATIONS AROUND THE TOPIC OF DIVINE ARES, especially as of late, and I have begun to find a deeper appreciation for the theos. Beyond what many hellenic pagans have said, of him using rage for justice and an aspect of revolution, in my personal research I found another related Ares: the Ares of Ge, the land defender, close to the Erinys and fertility goddesses, and who casts his dice based upon holy Dike’s will. Ares was a popular deity in antiquity, worshipped across the ancient world, especially in Asia Minor with his likely syncretism with a local deity and Iliac connections. I will begin to follow a journey with Ares to understand him as more than war and slaughter, similar to my endlessly loving dea Bellona, and thus I have found Ares Chthonios.

This will be a general survey of his historical cult and my understanding of it based upon my own actions in activism, land sovereignty, and also my understandings from the devotion to the war, retribution, and revolution goddess Bellona. I will interlude my personal interpretations, but I hope these are clear, and I urge those interested to see my bibliography to understand more about Ares in a less frenzied context. 

ARES, DEFENDER OF LAND 

A strong function of war in antiquity was the defence of land. War often meant the burning of crops and homes, the raping of women, slaughter of children, destruction of hearths, and sometimes even the destruction of sacred groves of the gods. Sanctuaries could also be raided and plundered, such as the case in Rome, and their goods appropriated for other deities and personal use. Another aspect of war was civil control, as states did not desire rebellion. For this we begin to see the binding of gods, Ares, but also Dionysos. The ancient world did not have the food security that we do—and imagining life without more readily stable food, defending land becomes not only a necessity, but an ethical move. Siege spells death through Limos. Without land, you cannot access the hearth of Hestia, nor is there security from enslavement by other poli in antiquity. 

Ares’ less war-bound primary functions lie in this defence of land. He was widely worshipped, with some facets of this worship were for the purpose of defending the homeland. 

He is described as a personification of the yeoman-hoplite, who was also likely a farmer that arose to defend his homeland and farm in times of war. Cultic evidence suggests that he was also often paired with fertility goddesses, such as Despoina, Chthonia, the Anatolian Mother Kybele, and of course Aphrodite. He lacks the direct agricultural association of Mars, but he possesses the inherent relation to the chora: thus placed in the city’s sacred groves.

Us modern people concerned with justice tend towards movements such as land back and decolonialism. Xenia does not permit us to be bad to foreigners and xenophobia is a pillar of modern bigotry. Ares’ power may be used to brandish the spear in the defence of land—especially in these ages of growing oligarchies and fascism, the defense of land and home becomes ever more important. His passion and rage lend well to an activist from giving up, giving us strength to continue on. Instead of empowering doom, we may pray for Ares’ courage in the fights present and cultural wars to come just as the homeric hymnal asks for his courage and manliness to investigate the worshipper. 

ARES, OF THE GROVE 

Worship of Ares is also often found in sacred groves. As a defender of chora, it is internal sense to place him within nature. His shrines were also found in the countryside in the network of interpolis social and spatial focal politics. His association with the Earth is enough to call him one of the theoi chthonoi and more for than just bloodshed. As Cults and Sanctuaries of Ares and Enualios summarises: 

Ares, it would seem, was believed to stand guard over the agricultural land of the polls and served the divine patron of its human protectors as well. When enemies threatened, it was Ares who guided the warriors of the polls in their attempt to pay back their enemy. Thus the mythology of Ares, in which he is almost always opposes the aggressor and is often roused to action by an attack against his children,reflects the essentially parochial and reactive nature of a god intent on the defense of the land under his protection (Gonzales, pg 61). 

As a defender of land, he is keen to strike against those that threaten his children: he attempts to avenge Askalaphos in the Iliad, he fights Herakles for the body of his son Kyknos, he avenges the death of the Drakon Ismenios by transforming Kadmos and Harmonia, and he avenges the rape of his daughter Alkippe. Ares is a god of protection in his own right.

Another remark is that Ares is connected to drakons, symbols of the protection alongside chthonic earth, and groves as a whole. He fathers a drakon and snakes are commonly associated with him, his sacred grove that contains the fleece also contained a drakon. Another remark from the book on his binding to the land states; 

The oracle from Pamphylian Syedra, once again, most clearly articulates the associations between, Ares, Dike, and the well being of the polis and its chora. Physically bound to the city and its land, the power of Ares would function both as an avenging protector and guarantor of prosperity: “thus will he become a peaceful god for you, once he has driven the enemy horde far from your land, and he will give rise to prosperity much prayed for..” (Gonzales, 62.) 

This oracle will be revisited later, but there is a clear line of Ares and protection of the land. 

ARES, OF THE PEOPLE

Defending land is equally the defence of people. Undoubtedly there were ancient Greek warriors that would fight to return home, such as Odysseus, and countless unnamed people. Particularly in the context of Iliac Ares, arete is positioned in war as related to material goods and the sadness women and people express at warriors dying relates to their failure as a warrior; their failure becoming agathos. An agathos brings dishonor and shame as he is not able to defend his home, often leaving women and children in distress (Mary, 4). In Iliac poetry, when a warrior lives, he is then chosen by Ares to uphold his Arete. When it comes to Iliac Ares, it makes me wonder about the portrayal of Ares in relation to this—Ares’ humiliation in the Iliad could be related to this idea of failing Arete. 

In this context of ancient society, Ares is enjoyed by common people who take an active role in the pursuits of war. He was invoked by the state for purposes of defending it, much as Apollon was used for colonialism and in war. Ares as the causal force of war, the dangerous slayer, also rallies people to join in union for the fight, 

Plutarch quotes Archilochus, a poet from Paros, also active in the seventh century, as describing the beginning of the close combat within a battle as Ares bringing together the press of battle on the plain. This idea also appears in a mid-fifth century inscription from Samos, in which Ares is described as having brought together the ships of the Greeks and the Medes in battle. Alcaeus’ Ares is the cause of war, and Archilochus’ Ares brings armies together in the conflict which, as other poets tell us, is Ares’ domain (Millington, 113). 

Another small note from Pindar is him positioning Zeus, god of the polis and the people, as an ally to Ares. The Iliad employs an adversarial relationship between them, but Zeus is also a noted war god—elsewhere it is remarked that Apollon’s lyre tames the spear of Ares and the thunderbolt of Zeus. War and the Warrior: Functions of Ares in Literature and Cult describes the friendlier relationship of Zeus and Ares as, 

In his first Pythian Ode, Pindar describes Ares and Zeus as an allied pair,contrasted with Typhon and the forces of chaos, implying that Ares is integrated into, rather than an enemy of the city and civilization (Millington, 128). 

Thus Ares may be compositied with the other theoi as a defender of people. And looking at his name in epithets of other gods—Athena Areia, Aphrodite Areia, Zeus Areios—he is not constantly of strife, but rather comes into unity with the other gods. His association with the Erinyes only puts this as more explicit, as he avenges the blood oath—giving power to the appropriate parties in the Oresteia to avenge the blood-curse. Just as he is mentioned with Dike, the Homeric hymn pairs him as an “aid to Themis” and “ally of mortals” (Rayor, 99).

ARES BEYOND STATELY VALUES

I do critique any reconstructionist that is going to say “chain Ares”, which while in the modern period refers to limiting or constructing, in the ancient world it was to chain Ares’ power to your homeland in particular. It was to ensure his power, by Hermes, would be favoured and stay on your side. Ares’ worship may be further stood in antiquity through this—the Homeric hymn asks to “quell the rebellious”, which for a state would be a primary function of Ares as he could bring civil strife. From a critical perspective, Ares’ worship in this capacity I believe traces back to a rebellious nature—this is a god that can easily bring civil war and revolution, thus he is worshipped to appease this nature and thus secure stability. Then, equally, as a god that brings bloodlust and rage, he also brings peace and the restraint of bloody desires. A function of worship for many in the ancient world is aversion. The same hymnal remarks on Ares to bring courage, not fear, and to tame bloody desires. 

Considering the need to chain and appease Ares, this to my personal understanding shows a deity deeply concerned with the state in a negative manner to said state. He is a vengeance deity, associated with blood-curses, found in actions such us Klytiemennstra’s revenge. Taking a note from my own dea, my understanding of Ares is that he operates as a vengeance god who contests the state on the basis of state injustice. The gods are far more progressive than ancient Greek society was—considering slavery, misogyny, and strife, I find it of no surprise a god of defending land and vengeance would be such a contrarian force. 

I also think of Harmonia, his daughter. A god who was entirely hate and terror would not father the personification of musical and societal harmony. Many of Ares’ children function in harmonic rather than wholly negative roles—even if Eros is sweet and bitter. 

BELLONA, ARES, AND REVOLUTION

Bellona is the roman warrior and hero of excellence, she holds virtue, victory, and retribution in her hands. Rome before the empire understood war as an act of revenge—Rome tried to create and self-justify expansion as a revenge and divine retribution. She essentially acts as a fury. But this retribution and balancing of the scales could turn inwards, and thus, Rome was in tension with her to stay of moral righteousness, lest she bring down her whip upon the city and strike up civil war. Her methods are bloody and furious, deeply caring about wrongs committed, and very rewarding to the righteous and good that follow. 

I see my dea as a goddess of justice, as retribution for wrong that is done is often a key component of justice. Compared to Justicia, who was used for imperial propaganda, Bellona became sidelined in the times of the empire but her popularity did not wane. In this I see a homoplasy between these two gods: Ares’ masculinity would naturally contribute to his more stately portrayal than Bellona, but he is in enough tension with the polis to require a binding by Dike and Hermes from anxious polis religions. And as he is guided by Dike, justice herself, he must often have very good reason to be a volatile causal force. 

Less on my interpretative notes, this quote gives an idea to modernised Ares worship:

Pamphylians of Syedra, who inhabit a rich land of mixed men in shared fields, plant a statue of bloody, man-slaying Ares in the middle of the city and beside (him) perform sacrifices as you bind him with the iron bonds of Hermes, and on the other side let Justice administer the law and judge him; let him resemble a suppliant. Thus will he become a peaceful deity for you, once he has driven the enemy horde far from your country, and he will give rise to prosperity much prayed for. And you, at the same time, take great pain, either chasing them or placing them in unbreakable bonds, and do not, out of fear of the pirates, pay their terrible penalty. For thus will you escape from all degradation (Gonzales, 2010, 280).

Ares here is directly connected to prosperity and defense of people. And most of all, he can be peaceful. One of Ares’ essential traits is his endless bloodlust and rage, which when guided by justice, gives rise to holy revolution and the passionate urge to do good. He as the gods of these things also gives my senses a modern interpretation of a passage in the homeric hymnal: 

Mighty Ares, gold-helmed chariot master, shield-bearer, bronze-armored city guard, strong-willed,  strong-armed, untiring spear strength, defense of Olympos, father of Victory in war, aid to Themis, tyrant to enemies, leader of righteous men, wielding manhood’s scepter, your red orb whirling  among the seven paths of the planets through the ether where your fiery stallions bear you above the third orbit (Rayor, 99).

While quelling rebellion, it is stated that he also leads the righteous. For a personal interpretation, I can easily see it as such: rebellious men are quelled, but righteous men are led, and oftentimes the revolutionary is a person aspiring for right societal change—the feminist argues against the coil and chains of sexism, the indigenous revolutionary against colonialism, and many such examples. I would never shame the rightful anger of a revolutionary. And this is another aspect of Ares I see: his anger and bloodlust may be channelled for the purpose of societal equity-health and stability. Tyrants in ancient Greece were not initially viewed poorly, but after the ancient Greco-Persian war, tyrants became viewed as an enemy of people and democracy. Ares’ hymn thus describes a stance against tyranny, requiring no imagination for the modern day. 

ENDING NOTES

This post is both a survey and a modern look at the evidence. I urge everyone interested to read Cults and Sanctuaries of Ares and Enyalios: A Survey of the Literary, Epigraphic, and Archaeological Evidence to gain a better understanding of him and to develop the historical literacy on Ares. And for Ares’ darker associations, there are plenty of other texts expressing the rightful  pessimism on war. As a fragment of Archilochus says, Ares is “common” to all people, and war affects us all. But this side of Ares does not have to be the one that people still know him for—he is like my dea in this, still bloodshed and slaughter, but he is also a defender and protector. Just as Dionysos drives people mad and Apollon kills through plague, Ares embodies the dualities and complexities of the conflict. I find it depressing that Ares has not been uncoupled or understood in his darker aspects compared to Athena or Apollon. Several are quick to pick away Athena’s war aspects as a vintage value, even her historical misogyny, but not Ares. This I find to be a shame. 

If you liked this post, please consider checking out this post on my wordpress!

References 

Gonzales, M. P. (2004). Cults and sanctuaries of Ares and Enyalios: A Survey of the Literary, Epigraphic, and Archaeological Evidence.

Gonzales, M. (2010). The oracle and cult of ares in Asia minor. DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals). https://doaj.org/article/e9173c9623d24726bc11a08093a1df74

Lewis, & Sian. (2025, March 10). Tyranny | Meaning & Facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/tyranny/Greek-tyrants

Meghan Poplacean, D. (2017). The Business of Butchery Bellona and War, Society and Religion from Republic to Empire. The Department of History and Classical Studies  McGill University, Montréal. https://escholarship.mcgill.ca/concern/theses/b8515q959

Millington, A. (2014). War and the Warrior: Functions of Ares in Literature and Cult. In Doctoral thesis, UCL (University College London). https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1427880/

Scott, M. (1979). PITY AND PATHOS IN HOMER. Acta Classica, 22, 1–14. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24591563

Serrati, J. (2022). Gender and the Ritual Lament: Women as the Arbiters of Aretē and Virtus, 2022. Ageless Aretē: Essays From the 6th Interdisciplinary Symposium on the Hellenic Heritage of Sicily and Southern Italy.