Weapon of the Week: Blades of Exile

Is this not one of the greatest sword designs of all time? For heck's sake, the blade is coming out of a monster's mouth!

Franchise: God of War

Appearance: God of War III

Type: Swords

The sword is a simple weapon. With its effective and basic design, its easy to pick up and use. Its probably the most effective of all melee weapons. Of course, a regular old sword is boring, and you aren’t going to impress a lot of people with it unless, a) you can do some crazy awesome stuff with it, or b) have a crazy awesome sword. Often times, characters have a sword that combines both. God of War’s anti-hero, Kratos, has two such swords.

The God of War franchise tells the tale of Kratos, a former Spartan general who became a servant of Ares. Throughout the series, Kratos’s hatred for the Olympian Gods (and his general unlikability) grows until Zeus kills him out of fear that he will destroy Olympus, and by extension, the world. Spoilers: Kratos manages to kill most of the Olympians in a quest for vengeance and wipes out all life on Earth in the process. Yeah, Kratos is a bit of a jerk, but his tools of destruction are really cool, especially his Blades of Exile.

Really, I could have chosen any of Kratos’s chained blades, since they’re all basically the same. But in the end I chose the Blades of Exile because not only do they look badass, but also because I’m most familiar with God of War III. The Blades of Exile work much like Kratos’s other chained blades. In action, the blades can extend like chains, greatly extending their range and effectiveness. The blades themselves can also act like chains, meaning you can pull off some awesome platforming and killer moves. The Blades also give Kratos the ability to summon a phantom army of Spartan hoplites, which is exactly as awesome as it sounds.

Its a shame the Blades are owned by one of the least likable characters in fiction, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t awesome in their own right. Next time, we have a mech to talk about. Until then, see you next time.