Iratus: Lord of the Dead is a tactical role-playing game developed by Unfrozen and published in 2020 by Daedalic Entertainment for Microsoft Windows , macOS , and Linux .
94-516: Players take the tole of Iratus, a necromancer who desires to raise hordes of undead and escape from a dungeon. Iratus works his way up from the bottom of the dungeon to the surface. He starts able to create simple creatures, such as skeletons and zombies, from defeated foes. As he gains power, more complicated creatures become possible, such as banshees and vampires. The creatures gain experience in combat and special abilities are unlocked as they gain experience. Combat uses turn-based tactics and
188-720: A culture hero , but the Romans, who believed themselves the heirs of Prince Aeneas of Troy, considered him a villainous falsifier. In Virgil 's Aeneid , written between 29 and 19 BC, he is constantly referred to as "cruel Odysseus" ( Latin dirus Ulixes ) or "deceitful Odysseus" ( pellacis , fandi fictor ). Turnus, in Aeneid , book 9, reproaches the Trojan Ascanius with images of rugged, forthright Latin virtues, declaring (in John Dryden 's translation), "You shall not find
282-544: A "group who were plotting to invoke the demon Berich from inside a circle made from strips of cat skin" were obviously participating in what the Church would define as "necromancy". Herbert Stanley Redgrove claims necromancy as one of three chief branches of medieval ceremonial magic , alongside black magic and white magic . This does not correspond to contemporary classifications, which often conflate "nigromancy" ("black-knowledge") with "necromancy" ("death-knowledge"). In
376-420: A boar hunt. Odysseus swears her to secrecy, threatening to kill her if she tells anyone. When the contest of the bow begins, none of the suitors are able to string the bow. After all the suitors have given up, the disguised Odysseus asks to participate. Though the suitors refuse at first, Penelope intervenes and allows the "stranger" (the disguised Odysseus) to participate. Odysseus easily strings his bow and wins
470-399: A branch of theurgic magic . As to the practice of necromancy having endured in one form or another throughout the millennia, An Encyclopædia of Occultism states: The art is of almost universal usage. Considerable difference of opinion exists among modern adepts as to the exact methods to be properly pursued in the necromantic art, and it must be borne in mind that necromancy, which in
564-403: A lawful wife; but the mother that bore me was bought, a concubine. Yet Castor , son of Hylax , of whom I declare that I am sprung, honored me even as his true-born sons." The majority of sources for Odysseus' supposed pre-war exploits—principally the mythographers Pseudo-Apollodorus and Hyginus —postdate Homer by many centuries. Two stories in particular are well known: When Helen of Troy
658-453: A little makeover by Athena); yet Penelope cannot believe that her husband has really returned—she fears that it is perhaps some god in disguise, as in the story of Alcmene (mother of Heracles)—and tests him by ordering her servant Euryclea to move the bed in their wedding-chamber. Odysseus protests that this cannot be done since he made the bed himself and knows that one of its legs is a living olive tree . Penelope finally accepts that he truly
752-568: A marketplace in the underworld where the dead convene to exchange news and gossip. There are also several references to necromancers – called "bone-conjurers" among Jews of the later Hellenistic period – in the Bible . The Book of Deuteronomy ( 18:9–12 ) explicitly warns the Israelites against engaging in the Canaanite practice of divination from the dead: When thou art come into
846-476: A name like Polyaretos , "for he has much been prayed for " ( πολυάρητος ) but Autolycus "apparently in a sardonic mood" decided to give the child another name commemorative of "his own experience in life": "Since I have been angered ( ὀδυσσάμενος odyssamenos ) with many, both men and women, let the name of the child be Odysseus". Odysseus often receives the patronymic epithet Laertiades ( Λαερτιάδης ), "son of Laërtes ". It has also been suggested that
940-423: A new Christian context, albeit demonic and forbidden. As the material for these manuals was apparently derived from scholarly magical and religious texts from a variety of sources in many languages, the scholars who studied these texts likely manufactured their own aggregate sourcebook and manual with which to work spells or magic. In the notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci , it is stated that "Of all human opinions that
1034-426: A number of the extant plays by Aeschylus , Sophocles ( Ajax , Philoctetes ) and Euripides ( Hecuba , Rhesus , Cyclops ) and figured in still more that have not survived. In his Ajax , Sophocles portrays Odysseus as a modern voice of reasoning compared to the title character's rigid antiquity. Plato in his dialogue Hippias Minor examines a literary question about whom Homer intended to portray as
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#17327900900951128-520: A part in his downfall. One tradition says Odysseus convinces a Trojan captive to write a letter pretending to be from Palamedes. A sum of gold is mentioned to have been sent as a reward for Palamedes' treachery. Odysseus then kills the prisoner and hides the gold in Palamedes' tent. He ensures that the letter is found and acquired by Agamemnon, and also gives hints directing the Argives to the gold. This
1222-440: A prophecy that Troy could not be taken without him. By most accounts, Thetis , Achilles' mother, disguises the youth as a woman to hide him from the recruiters because an oracle had predicted that Achilles would either live a long uneventful life or achieve everlasting glory while dying young. Odysseus cleverly discovers which among the women before him is Achilles when the youth is the only one of them to show interest in examining
1316-474: A review aggregator, Iratus: Lord of the Dead received positive reviews. During the game's early access phase, several online magazines posted their impressions. Andy Kelly of PC Gamer wrote the game seems like a simple turn-based tactics game at first, but the monsters' number of special abilities gives it depth. Kelly cited these combat mechanics, and the "lavish artwork", as making it fun enough to overcome
1410-464: A self-destructive nature, Odysseus is frequently viewed as a man of the mean, a voice of reason, renowned for his self-restraint and diplomatic skills. He is also in some respects antithetical to Telamonian Ajax (Shakespeare's "beef-witted" Ajax): while the latter has only brawn to recommend him, Odysseus is not only ingenious (as evidenced by his idea for the Trojan Horse), but an eloquent speaker,
1504-565: A shipwreck during a thunderstorm in which all but Odysseus drown. He washes ashore on the island of Ogygia , where Calypso compels him to remain as her lover for seven years. He finally escapes when Hermes tells Calypso to release Odysseus. Odysseus is shipwrecked and befriended by the Phaeacians . After he tells them his story, the Phaeacians, led by King Alcinous , agree to help Odysseus get home. They deliver him at night, while he
1598-676: A skill perhaps best demonstrated in the embassy to Achilles in book 9 of the Iliad . The two are not only foils in the abstract but often opposed in practice since they have many duels and run-ins. Since a prophecy suggested that the Trojan War would not be won without Achilles , Odysseus and several other Achaean leaders are described in the Achilleid as having gone to Skyros to find him. Odysseus discovered Achilles by offering gifts, adornments and musical instruments as well as weapons, to
1692-497: Is Arcesius , son of Cephalus and grandson of Aeolus , while his maternal grandfather is the thief Autolycus , son of Hermes and Chione . Hence, Odysseus was the great-grandson of the Olympian god Hermes. According to the Iliad and Odyssey , his father is Laertes and his mother Anticlea , although there was a non-Homeric tradition that Sisyphus was his true father. The rumour went that Laërtes bought Odysseus from
1786-585: Is Outis ("Nobody"). Odysseus takes a barrel of wine and the Cyclops drinks it, falling asleep. Odysseus and his men take a wooden stake, ignite it with the remaining wine, and blind him. While they escape, Polyphemus cries in pain, and the other Cyclopes ask him what is wrong. Polyphemus cries, "Nobody has blinded me!" and the other Cyclopes think he has gone mad. Odysseus and his crew escape, but Odysseus rashly reveals his real name, and Polyphemus prays to Poseidon, his father, to take revenge. They stay with Aeolus ,
1880-556: Is polytropos , literally the man of many turns, and other translators have suggested alternate English translations, including "man of twists and turns" (Fagles 1996) and "a complicated man" (Wilson 2018). In the account of Dares the Phrygian , Odysseus was illustrated as "tough, crafty, cheerful, of medium height, eloquent, and wise." Relatively little is given of Odysseus' fictional background other than that according to Pseudo-Apollodorus, his paternal grandfather or step-grandfather
1974-517: Is a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer 's epic poem the Odyssey . Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in that same epic cycle . As the son of Laërtes and Anticlea , husband of Penelope , and father of Telemachus , Acusilaus, and Telegonus , Odysseus is renowned for his intellectual brilliance, guile, and versatility ( polytropos ), and he
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#17327900900952068-531: Is abducted, Menelaus calls upon the other suitors to honour their oaths and help him to retrieve her, an attempt that leads to the Trojan War . Odysseus tries to avoid it by feigning lunacy, as an oracle had prophesied a long-delayed return home for him if he went. He hooks a donkey and an ox to his plow (as they have different stride lengths, hindering the efficiency of the plow) and (some modern sources add) starts sowing his fields with salt . Palamedes , at
2162-428: Is adapted from Late Latin necromantia : a loan word from the post-Classical Greek νεκρομαντεία ( nekromanteía , or 'divination through a dead body'), a compound of Ancient Greek νεκρός ( nekrós , or 'dead body') and μαντεία ( manteía , or 'divination'). The Koine Greek compound form was first documented in the writings of Origen of Alexandria in the 3rd century AD. The Classical Greek term
2256-529: Is an accepted version of this page In Greek and Roman mythology , Odysseus ( / ə ˈ d ɪ s i ə s / ə- DISS -ee-əs ; ‹See Tfd› Greek : Ὀδυσσεύς, Ὀδυσεύς , translit. Odysseús , Odyseús , IPA: [o.dy(s).sěu̯s] ), also known by the Latin variant Ulysses ( / juː ˈ l ɪ s iː z / yoo- LISS -eez , UK also / ˈ juː l ɪ s iː z / YOO -liss-eez ; Latin : Ulysses , Ulixes ),
2350-480: Is believed to be a synthesis of astral magic derived from Arabic influences and exorcism derived from Christian and Jewish teachings. Arabic influences are evident in rituals that involve moon phases, sun placement, day and time. Fumigation and the act of burying images are also found in both astral magic and necromancy. Christian and Jewish influences appear in the symbols and in the conjuration formulas used in summoning rituals. Practitioners were often members of
2444-763: Is eventually turned into a horse by Athena. Odysseus is one of the most recurrent characters in Western culture . Dante Alighieri , in the Canto XXVI of the Inferno segment of his Divine Comedy (1308–1320), encounters Odysseus ("Ulisse" in Italian) near the very bottom of Hell: with Diomedes , he walks wrapped in flame in the eighth ring ( Counselors of Fraud ) of the Eighth Circle ( Sins of Malice ), as punishment for his schemes and conspiracies that won
2538-479: Is evidence enough for the Greeks, and they have Palamedes stoned to death. Other sources say that Odysseus and Diomedes goad Palamedes into descending a well with the prospect of treasure being at the bottom. When Palamedes reaches the bottom, the two proceed to bury him with stones, killing him. When Achilles is slain in battle by Paris , it is Odysseus and Ajax who retrieve the fallen warrior's body and armour in
2632-434: Is fast asleep, to a hidden harbor on Ithaca. He finds his way to the hut of one of his own former slaves, the swineherd Eumaeus , and also meets up with Telemachus returning from Sparta. Athena disguises Odysseus as a wandering beggar to learn how things stand in his household. When the disguised Odysseus returns after 20 years, he is recognized only by his faithful dog, Argos . Penelope announces in her long interview with
2726-475: Is found in Homer 's Odyssey . Under the direction of Circe , a powerful sorceress, Odysseus travels to the underworld ( katabasis ) in order to gain insight about his impending voyage home by raising the spirits of the dead through the use of spells which Circe has taught him. He wishes to invoke and question the shade of Tiresias in particular; however, he is unable to summon the seer's spirit without
2820-597: Is her husband, a moment that highlights their homophrosýnē ("like-mindedness"). The next day Odysseus and Telemachus visit the country farm of his old father Laërtes . The citizens of Ithaca follow Odysseus on the road, planning to avenge the killing of the Suitors, their sons. The goddess Athena and the god Zeus intervene and persuade both sides to make peace. According to some late sources, most of them purely genealogical, Odysseus had many other children besides Telemachus . Most such genealogies aimed to link Odysseus with
2914-816: Is mentioned regularly in Virgil 's Aeneid written between 29 and 19 BC, and the poem's hero, Aeneas , rescues one of Ulysses' crew members who was left behind on the island of the Cyclopes. He in turn offers a first-person account of some of the same events Homer relates, in which Ulysses appears directly. Virgil's Ulysses typifies his view of the Greeks: he is cunning but impious, and ultimately malicious and hedonistic. Ovid retells parts of Ulysses' journeys, focusing on his romantic involvements with Circe and Calypso, and recasts him as, in Harold Bloom 's phrase, "one of
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3008-550: Is supposed to explain also the insecurity of the phonologies ( d or l ), since the affricate /t͡θ/, unknown to the Greek of that time, gave rise to different counterparts (i. e. δ or λ in Greek, θ in Etruscan). In the Iliad and Odyssey Homer uses several epithets to describe Odysseus, starting with the opening, where he is described as "the man of many devices" (in the 1919 Murray translation). The Greek word used
3102-416: Is the practice of magic involving communication with the dead by summoning their spirits as apparitions or visions for the purpose of divination ; imparting the means to foretell future events and discover hidden knowledge. Sometimes categorized under death magic , the term is occasionally also used in a more general sense to refer to black magic or witchcraft as a whole. The word necromancy
3196-600: Is the volunteer who eventually fights Hector. Odysseus aids Diomedes during the night operations to kill Rhesus , because it had been foretold that if his horses drank from the Scamander River , Troy could not be taken. After Patroclus is slain, it is Odysseus who counsels Achilles to let the Achaean men eat and rest rather than follow his rage-driven desire to go back on the offensive—and kill Trojans—immediately. Eventually (and reluctantly), he consents. During
3290-520: Is thus known by the epithet Odysseus the Cunning ( ‹See Tfd› Greek: μῆτις , translit. mêtis , lit. "cunning intelligence" ). He is most famous for his nostos , or "homecoming", which took him ten eventful years after the decade-long Trojan War . The form Ὀδυσ(σ)εύς Odys(s)eus is used starting in the epic period and through the classical period, but various other forms are also found. In vase inscriptions, we find
3384-650: Is to be reputed the most foolish which deals with the belief in Necromancy, the sister of Alchemy , which gives birth to simple and natural things." In the present day, necromancy is more generally used as a term to describe manipulation of death and the dead, or the pretense thereof, often facilitated through the use of ritual magic or some other kind of occult ceremony. Contemporary séances , channeling and Spiritualism verge on necromancy when supposedly invoked spirits are asked to reveal future events or secret information. Necromancy may also be presented as sciomancy,
3478-608: Is viewed from the side, as in Darkest Dungeon . Heroes attacked in combat can be driven insane, at which point they may flee, turn against their teammates, or become more difficult to kill. The combat in Iratus was inspired by Darkest Dungeon , and the central concept of playing an evil character came from Dungeon Keeper . For other gameplay elements, the developers cited Slay the Spire and Disciples II . The artwork
3572-507: The Munich Manual of Demonic Magic : The rare confessions of those accused of necromancy suggest that there was a range of spell casting and related magical experimentation. It is difficult to determine if these details were due to their practices, as opposed to the whims of their interrogators. John of Salisbury is one of the first examples related by Richard Kieckhefer , but as a Parisian ecclesiastical court record of 1323 shows,
3666-713: The Epic Cycle is called the Telegony , and is now lost. According to remaining fragments, it told the story of Odysseus' last voyage to the land of the Thesprotians. There he married the queen Callidice . Then he led the Thesprotians in a war with their neighbors the Brygoi (Brygi, Brygians) and defeated in battle the neighboring peoples who attacked him. When Callidice died, Odysseus returned home to Ithaca, leaving their son, Polypoetes , to rule Thesprotia. Contradicting
3760-651: The Trojan Horse , which allows the Greek army to sneak into Troy under cover of darkness. It is built by Epeius and filled with Greek warriors, led by Odysseus. Odysseus and Diomedes steal the Palladium that lay within Troy's walls, for the Greeks were told they could not sack the city without it. Some late Roman sources indicate that Odysseus schemed to kill his partner on the way back, but Diomedes thwarts this attempt. Homer's Iliad and Odyssey portray Odysseus as
3854-531: The Catholic Church condemned it. Though the practitioners of necromancy were linked by many common threads, there is no evidence that these necromancers ever organized as a group. One noted commonality among practitioners of necromancy was usually the utilization of certain toxic and hallucinogenic plants from the nightshade family such as black henbane , jimson weed , belladonna or mandrake , usually in magic salves or potions. Medieval necromancy
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3948-530: The Christian clergy, though some nonclerical practitioners are recorded. In some instances, mere apprentices or those ordained to lower orders dabbled in the practice. They were connected by a belief in the manipulation of spiritual beings – especially demons – and magical practices. These practitioners were almost always literate and well educated. Most possessed basic knowledge of exorcism and had access to texts of astrology and of demonology . Clerical training
4042-491: The Greek verbs odussomai ( ὀδύσσομαι ) "to be wroth against, to hate", to oduromai ( ὀδύρομαι ) "to lament, bewail", or even to ollumi ( ὄλλυμι ) "to perish, to be lost". Homer relates it to various forms of this verb in references and puns. In Book 19 of the Odyssey , where Odysseus' early childhood is recounted, Euryclea asks the boy's grandfather Autolycus to name him. Euryclea seems to suggest
4136-501: The LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee ( KJV ). Though Mosaic Law prescribed the death penalty to practitioners of necromancy ( Leviticus 20:27 ), this warning was not always heeded. One of the foremost examples is when King Saul had the Witch of Endor invoke the spirit of Samuel , a judge and prophet , from Sheol to divine
4230-529: The Middle Ages was called sorcery, shades into modern spiritualistic practice. There is no doubt, however, that necromancy is the touch-stone of occultism, for if, after careful preparation the adept can carry through to a successful issue, the raising of the soul from the other world, he has proved the value of his art. The archvillain in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings fantasy, Sauron, first reappears in
4324-458: The Prophet, "Why hast thou disquieted me?" Saul died the next day in combat, with Chronicles 10:13 implying this was due to the prohibition against necromancy. Many medieval writers believed that actual resurrection required the assistance of God. They saw the practice of necromancy as conjuring demons who took the appearance of spirits. The practice became known explicitly as maleficium , and
4418-552: The Trojan War and reassert his place as rightful king of Ithaca. Homebound from Troy, after a raid on Ismarus in the land of the Cicones , he and his twelve ships are driven off course by storms. They visit the lethargic Lotus-Eaters and are captured by the Cyclops Polyphemus while visiting his island. After Polyphemus eats several of his men, he and Odysseus have a discussion and Odysseus tells Polyphemus his name
4512-546: The Trojan War in Homer's account. Along with Nestor and Idomeneus he is one of the most trusted counsellors and advisors. He always champions the Achaean cause, especially when others question Agamemnon's command, as in one instance when Thersites speaks against him. When Agamemnon, to test the morale of the Achaeans, announces his intentions to depart Troy, Odysseus restores order to the Greek camp. Later on, after many of
4606-585: The Trojan War. In a famous passage, Dante has Odysseus relate a different version of his voyage and death from the one told by Homer. He tells how he set out with his men from Circe's island for a journey of exploration to sail beyond the Pillars of Hercules and into the Western sea to find what adventures awaited them. Men, says Ulisse, are not made to live like brutes, but to follow virtue and knowledge. After travelling west and south for five months, they see in
4700-544: The aid of the Achaeans, because an oracle had stated that Troy could not be taken without him. A great warrior, Pyrrhus is also called Neoptolemus (Greek for "new warrior"). Upon the success of the mission, Odysseus gives Achilles' armour to him. It is learned that the war can not be won without the poisonous arrows of Heracles , which are owned by the abandoned Philoctetes . Odysseus and Diomedes (or, according to some accounts, Odysseus and Neoptolemus ) leave to retrieve them. Upon their arrival, Philoctetes (still suffering from
4794-441: The assistance of others. The Odyssey ' s passages contain many descriptive references to necromantic rituals: rites must be performed around a pit with fire during nocturnal hours, and Odysseus has to follow a specific recipe, which includes the blood of sacrificial animals, to concoct a libation for the ghosts to drink while he recites prayers to both the ghosts and gods of the underworld. Practices such as these, varying from
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#17327900900954888-532: The authors of the Manual knowingly designed the book to be in discord with ecclesiastical law . The main recipe employed throughout the Manual used the same religious language and names of power alongside demonic names. An understanding of the names of God derived from apocryphal texts and the Hebrew Torah required that the author of such rites have at least a casual familiarity with these sources. Within
4982-409: The behest of Menelaus' brother Agamemnon , seeks to disprove Odysseus' madness and places Telemachus , Odysseus' infant son, in front of the plow. Odysseus veers the plow away from his son, thus exposing his stratagem. Odysseus holds a grudge against Palamedes during the war for dragging him away from his home. Odysseus and other envoys of Agamemnon travel to Scyros to recruit Achilles because of
5076-486: The better man, Achilles or Odysseus. Pausanias at the Description of Greece writes that at Pheneus there was a bronze statue of Poseidon, surnamed Hippios ( Ancient Greek : Ἵππιος ), meaning of horse , which according to the legends was dedicated by Odysseus and also a sanctuary of Artemis which was called Heurippa ( Ancient Greek : Εὑρίππα ), meaning horse finder , and was founded by Odysseus. According to
5170-433: The cannibalistic Laestrygonians . Odysseus' ship is the only one to escape. He sails on and visits the witch-goddess Circe . She turns half of his men into swine after feeding them cheese and wine. Hermes warns Odysseus about Circe and gives him a drug called moly , which resists Circe's magic. Circe, being attracted to Odysseus' resistance, falls in love with him and releases his men. Odysseus and his crew remain with her on
5264-518: The conniving king. Odysseus is said to have a younger sister, Ctimene , who went to Same to be married and is mentioned by the swineherd Eumaeus, whom she grew up alongside, in book 15 of the Odyssey . Odysseus himself, under the guise of an old beggar, gives the swineherd in Ithaca a fictitious genealogy: "From broad Crete I declare that I am come by lineage, the son of a wealthy man. And many other sons too were born and bred in his halls, true sons of
5358-515: The contest. Having done so, he proceeds to slaughter the suitors (beginning with Antinous whom he finds drinking from Odysseus' cup) with help from Telemachus and two of Odysseus' servants, Eumaeus the swineherd and Philoetius the cowherd. Odysseus tells the serving women who slept with the suitors to clean up the mess of corpses and then has those women hanged in terror. He tells Telemachus that he will replenish his stocks by raiding nearby islands. Odysseus has now revealed himself in all his glory (with
5452-434: The dead in "a mixture of high-pitch squeaking and low droning", comparable to the trance-state mutterings of shamans. Necromancy was prevalent throughout antiquity with records of its practice in ancient Egypt , Babylonia , Greece , ancient Etruria , Rome , and China . In his Geographica , Strabo refers to νεκρομαντία ( nekromantia ), or "diviners by the dead", as the foremost practitioners of divination among
5546-458: The disguised hero that whoever can string Odysseus' rigid bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axe shafts may have her hand. According to Bernard Knox , "For the plot of the Odyssey , of course, her decision is the turning point, the move that makes possible the long-predicted triumph of the returning hero". Odysseus' identity is discovered by the housekeeper, Eurycleia , as she is washing his feet and discovers an old scar Odysseus received during
5640-646: The environs of Middle Earth as 'the Necromancer of Dol Guldur ' in Tolkien's standalone prologue to the trilogy The Hobbit . In fictional settings such as Dungeons & Dragons , or fantasy video games, necromancy is associated with the reanimation of corpses often meant to be used as weapons. This tradition appears to combine associations of conjuring the dead from European and Mediterranean traditions with elements involving Zombies that seem to derive from Caribbean folklore and practice. Odysseus This
5734-482: The first time news of his own household, threatened by the greed of Penelope 's suitors . Odysseus also talks to his fallen war comrades and the mortal shade of Heracles . Odysseus and his men return to Circe's island, and she advises them on the remaining stages of the journey. They skirt the land of the Sirens , pass between the six-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis , where they row directly between
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#17327900900955828-458: The foundation of many Italic cities. This would seem to contradict The Odyssey , which says that Odysseus' family line can only produce a single child per generation by the order of Zeus, with Telemachus already existing as that sole heir. However, the Odyssey also notes the existence of Odysseus's sister, Ctimene. The most famous of the other children are: He figures in the end of the story of King Telephus of Mysia . The last poem in
5922-406: The funeral games for Patroclus, Odysseus becomes involved in a wrestling match with Ajax "The Greater" and foot race with Ajax "The Lesser", son of Oileus and Nestor's son Antilochus . He draws the wrestling match, and with the help of the goddess Athena , he wins the race. Odysseus has traditionally been viewed as Achilles' antithesis in the Iliad : while Achilles' anger is all-consuming and of
6016-501: The game was released, PC Gamer took another look at it. Steven Messner compared the horror elements negatively to Darkest Dungeon but praised the crafting system, extensive skills, and tactical options in combat. In particular, Messner said that "unlocking new units and discovering all the ways they complement each other is really fun". Jeuxvideo described it as "a solid alternative" to Darkest Dungeon . Necromancer Necromancy ( / ˈ n ɛ k r ə m æ n s i / )
6110-493: The game's derivative nature. Writing for Rock Paper Shotgun , Sin Vega said that she enjoyed the combat, but the game's stand-out feature is crafting new monsters. Commenting on the game's difficulty, RPGamer's reviewer, Pascal Tekaia, called it "a polished, meaty dungeon-crawler for the slightly masochistic crowd". Tekaia praised the tactical options available during combat and recommended it for fans of Darkest Dungeon . After
6204-414: The girl is to be wed to Achilles . Odysseus' attempts to avoid his sacred oath to defend Menelaus and Helen offended Roman notions of duty, and the many stratagems and tricks that he employed to get his way offended Roman notions of honour. Odysseus is probably best known as the eponymous hero of the Odyssey . This epic describes his travails, which lasted for 10 years, as he tries to return home after
6298-782: The great wandering womanizers". Ovid also gives a detailed account of the contest between Ulysses and Ajax for the armour of Achilles. Greek legend tells of Ulysses as the founder of Lisbon , Portugal , calling it Ulisipo or Ulisseya , during his twenty-year errand on the Mediterranean and Atlantic seas. Olisipo was Lisbon's name in the Roman Empire. This folk etymology is recounted by Strabo based on Asclepiades of Myrlea 's words, by Pomponius Mela , by Gaius Julius Solinus (3rd century AD), and would later be reiterated by Camões in his epic poem Os Lusíadas (first printed in 1572). In one version of Odysseus's end, he
6392-476: The heroes leave the battlefield due to injuries (including Odysseus and Agamemnon), Odysseus once again persuades Agamemnon not to withdraw. Along with two other envoys, he is chosen in the failed embassy to try to persuade Achilles to return to combat. When Hector proposes a single combat duel, Odysseus is one of the Danaans who reluctantly volunteered to battle him. Telamonian Ajax ("The Greater"), however,
6486-460: The island for one year, while they feast and drink. Finally, Odysseus' men convince him to leave for Ithaca. Guided by Circe's instructions, Odysseus and his crew cross the ocean and reach a harbor at the western edge of the world, where Odysseus sacrifices to the dead and summons the spirit of the old prophet Tiresias for advice. Next Odysseus meets the spirit of his own mother, who had died of grief during his long absence. From her, he learns for
6580-440: The king's daughters, and then having his companions imitate the noises of an enemy's attack on the island (most notably, making a blast of a trumpet heard), which prompted Achilles to reveal himself by picking a weapon to fight back, and together they departed for the Trojan War. The story of the death of Palamedes has many versions. According to some, Odysseus never forgives Palamedes for unmasking his feigned madness and plays
6674-440: The land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do according to the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one who maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or who useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all who do these things are an abomination unto
6768-477: The legends Odysseus lost his mares and traversed Greece in search of them. He found them on that site in Pheneus. Pausanias adds that according to the people of Pheneus, when Odysseus found his mares he decided to keep horses in the land of Pheneus, just as he reared his cows. The people of Pheneus also pointed out to him writing, purporting to be instructions of Odysseus to those tending his mares. As Ulysses, he
6862-470: The master of the winds, who gives Odysseus a leather bag containing all the winds, except the west wind, a gift that should have ensured a safe return home. However, the sailors foolishly open the bag while Odysseus sleeps, thinking that it contains gold. All of the winds fly out, and the resulting storm drives the ships back the way they had come, just as Ithaca comes into sight. After pleading in vain with Aeolus to help them again, they re-embark and encounter
6956-474: The mundane to the grotesque, were commonly associated with necromancy. Rituals could be quite elaborate, involving magic circles , wands , talismans , and incantations . The necromancer might also surround himself with morbid aspects of death, which often included wearing the deceased's clothing and consuming foods that symbolized lifelessness and decay such as unleavened black bread and unfermented grape juice. Some necromancers even went so far as to take part in
7050-445: The mutilation and consumption of corpses. These ceremonies could carry on for hours, days, or even weeks, leading up to the eventual summoning of spirits. Frequently they were performed in places of interment or other melancholy venues that suited specific guidelines of the necromancer. Additionally, necromancers preferred to summon the recently departed based on the premise that their revelations were spoken more clearly. This timeframe
7144-417: The name is of non-Greek origin, possibly not even Indo-European , with an unknown etymology. Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin. In Etruscan religion the name (and stories) of Odysseus were adopted under the name Uthuze ( Uθuze ), which has been interpreted as a parallel borrowing from a preceding Minoan form of the name (possibly *Oduze , pronounced /'ot͡θut͡se/); this theory
7238-521: The other something like Ulixes, who were combined into one complex personality." However, the change between d and l is common also in some Indo-European and Greek names, and the Latin form is supposed to be derived from the Etruscan Uthuze (see below), which perhaps accounts for some of the phonetic innovations. The etymology of the name is unknown. Ancient authors linked the name to
7332-469: The other three immortal. Circe married Telemachus, and Telegonus married Penelope by the advice of Athena. According to what seems to be later tradition, Odysseus was resurrected by Circe after his death at the hands of Telegonus. Afterward, he marries Telemachus with Cassiphone , the daughter whom Odysseus had with Circe. In 5th century BC Athens , tales of the Trojan War were popular subjects for tragedies . Odysseus figures centrally or indirectly in
7426-408: The outcome of a coming battle ( 1 Samuel 28:3–25 ). However, the so-called witch was shocked at the presence of a familiar spirit in the image of Samuel for in I Sam 28:7 states "Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor" and in I Sam 28:12 says, "when the woman saw Samuel, she cried out in a loud voice", and the familiar spirit questioned his reawakening, asking as if he were Samuel
7520-545: The people of Persia , and it is believed to have also been widespread among the peoples of Chaldea (particularly the Hermeticists , or "star-worshipers") and Babylonia. The Babylonian necromancers were called manzazuu or sha'etemmu , and the spirits they raised were called etemmu . Traditional Chinese folk religion involves necromancy in seeking blessing from dead ancestors through ritual displays of filial piety . The oldest literary account of necromancy
7614-630: The reading of Tiresias' prophecy in The Odyssey that Odysseus will have a gentle death in old age after making it home, the Telogony claims that he met his death at the hands of Telegonus , his son with Circe, after a misunderstanding. Telegonus attacked his father with a poisoned spear, given to him by Circe. Before dying, Odysseus recognized his son. Telegonus then brought back his father's corpse to Aeaea, together with Penelope and Odysseus' son by her, Telemachus. After burying Odysseus, Circe made
7708-465: The sons of Atreus here, nor need the frauds of sly Ulysses fear." While the Greeks admired his cunning and deceit, these qualities did not recommend themselves to the Romans, who possessed a rigid sense of honour. In Euripides' tragedy Iphigenia at Aulis , having convinced Agamemnon to consent to the sacrifice of his daughter, Iphigenia, to appease the goddess Artemis , Odysseus facilitates the immolation by telling Iphigenia's mother, Clytemnestra , that
7802-502: The tales related in occult manuals are found connections with stories from other cultures' literary traditions. For instance, the ceremony for conjuring a horse closely relates to the Arabic One Thousand and One Nights and French romances ; Chaucer's The Squire's Tale also bears marked similarities. This becomes a parallel evolution of spells to foreign gods or demons that were once acceptable, and frames them into
7896-456: The thick of heavy fighting. During the funeral games for Achilles, Odysseus competes once again with Ajax. Thetis says that the arms of Achilles will go to the bravest of the Greeks, but only these two warriors dare lay claim to that title. The two Argives became embroiled in a heavy dispute about one another's merits to receive the reward. The Greeks dither out of fear in deciding a winner, because they did not want to insult one and have him abandon
7990-487: The two. However, Scylla drags the boat towards her by grabbing the oars and eats six men. They land on the island of Thrinacia . There, Odysseus' men ignore the warnings of Tiresias and Circe and hunt down the sacred cattle of the sun god Helios . Helios tells Zeus what happened and demands Odysseus' men be punished or else he will take the sun and shine it in the Underworld. Zeus fulfills Helios' demands by causing
8084-637: The variants Oliseus ( Ὀλισεύς ), Olyseus ( Ὀλυσεύς ), Olysseus ( Ὀλυσσεύς ), Olyteus ( Ὀλυτεύς ), Olytteus ( Ὀλυττεύς ) and Ōlysseus ( Ὠλυσσεύς ). The form Oulixēs ( Οὐλίξης ) is attested in an early source in Magna Graecia ( Ibycus , according to Diomedes Grammaticus ), while the Greek grammarian Aelius Herodianus has Oulixeus ( Οὐλιξεύς ). In Latin , he was known as Ulixēs or (considered less correct) Ulyssēs . Some have supposed that "there may originally have been two separate figures, one called something like Odysseus,
8178-467: The wake of inconsistencies of judgment, necromancers and other practitioners of the magic arts were able to utilize spells featuring holy names with impunity, as any biblical references in such rituals could be construed as prayers rather than spells . As a consequence, the necromancy that appears in the Munich Manual is an evolution of these theoretical understandings. It has been suggested that
8272-531: The war effort. Nestor suggests that they allow the captive Trojans to decide the winner. The accounts of the Odyssey disagree, suggesting that the Greeks themselves hold a secret vote. In any case, Odysseus is the winner. Enraged and humiliated, Ajax is driven mad by Athena. When he returns to his senses, in shame at how he has slaughtered livestock in his madness, Ajax kills himself by the sword that Hector had given him after their duel. Together with Diomedes, Odysseus fetches Achilles' son, Pyrrhus , to come to
8366-455: The weapons hidden among an array of adornment gifts for the daughters of their host. Odysseus arranges further for the sounding of a battle horn, which prompts Achilles to clutch a weapon and show his trained disposition. With his disguise foiled, he is exposed and joins Agamemnon's call to arms among the Hellenes . Odysseus is represented as one of the most influential Greek champions during
8460-465: The wound) is seen still to be enraged at the Danaans , especially at Odysseus, for abandoning him. Although his first instinct is to shoot Odysseus, his anger is eventually diffused by Odysseus' persuasive powers and the influence of the gods. Odysseus returns to the Argive camp with Philoctetes and his arrows. Perhaps Odysseus' most famous contribution to the Greek war effort is devising the strategy of
8554-522: Was ἡ νέκυια ( nekyia ), from the episode of the Odyssey in which Odysseus visits the realm of the dead souls, and νεκρομαντεία in Hellenistic Greek; necromantīa in Latin , and necromancy in 17th-century English. Early necromancy was related to – and most likely evolved from –forms of shamanism or prehistoric ritual magic that calls upon spirits such as the ghosts of deceased forebears. Classical necromancers addressed
8648-668: Was informal and university-based education rare. Most were trained under apprenticeships and were expected to have a basic knowledge of Latin, ritual and doctrine. This education was not always linked to spiritual guidance and seminaries were almost non-existent. This situation allowed some aspiring clerics to combine Christian rites with occult practices despite its condemnation in Christian doctrine. Medieval practitioners believed they could accomplish three things with necromancy: will manipulation, illusions, and knowledge: The act of performing medieval necromancy usually involved magic circles, conjurations, and sacrifices such as those shown in
8742-504: Was inspired by Heroes of Might and Magic V , " The Demon Seated ", Dungeon Keeper , and the works of H. P. Lovecraft . The game was successfully crowdfunded in June 2018, entered early access in July 2019, and was released on April 24, 2020. The DLC Wrath of the Necromancer was released on October 28, 2020, and adds another dungeon level, more creatures, and new items. On Metacritic ,
8836-499: Was usually limited to the twelve months following the death of the physical body; once this period elapsed, necromancers would evoke the deceased's ghostly spirit instead. While some cultures considered the knowledge of the dead to be unlimited, ancient Greeks and Romans believed that individual shades knew only certain things. The apparent value of their counsel may have been based on things they knew in life or knowledge they acquired after death. Ovid writes in his Metamorphoses of
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