Question: In your opinion, how powerful is Hera? This isn't a who can beat who question. I want to know how you would quantify her power and authority as queen of the gods, a woman and Zeus's wife.
Very. Very very very.
Among the Dodekatheon, Hera is literally second in authority only to Zeus. Queen is not a mere figurehead title; she has very real, very important political power and is not afraid to use it, and the other gods (many of whom are in the unfortunate position of being her illicit stepchildren) are right to fear upsetting or irritating her. The only person who can put a lid on Hera is Zeus, and all others are subordinate and subservient to her. Breaking the law or disrespecting her is not only political suicide, it's also likely to end in a terrifying display of Justice powers that leaves the upstart gasping for air. And she's not afraid to lay down an asskicking if someone dares challenge her or her authority, as Artemis found out when she got thoroughly trashed for trying to oppose Hera across a mortal battlefield.
If you're in the Greek pantheon, Hera is the highest authority aside from her husband, and since she has his ear, she's halfway there anyway. Don't piss her off. Don't ignore her. And if she wants you to do things, for god's sake do them, kids.
Among other pantheons, there are the usual political considerations; as queen of the Dodekatheon, nobody can really afford to insult or ignore Hera among the other gods, either, but she isn't their queen so they get to treat her as visiting royalty rather than the big boss she is at home. She's due all the highest diplomatic honors and most gods would probably try to please her if possible (because why risk pissing her off, right?), but she can't take over their lives on a whim, so there's a tiny bit more breathing room.
In our games, we often find that the king gods have their important political meetings, but their queens have equally important dealings with one another and often steer policy in the direction they want it to go. Figures like Hera, Frigg, Isis and the Tridevi are an entire shark-pool of political intrigue, power and influence all unto themselves, equaling that of their male counterparts.
Interesting post.
ReplyDeleteConsidering that Amaterasu is the only female Pantheon leader that I am aware of, what is her relationship / view of Hera and what is Hera's view of Amaterasu?
Incidentally just how much of Zeus's ear does Hera have in your games? As in what is their relationship like? Some fictions have them both perpetually at each other's throat while some have Zeus as a bit more loving towards Hera except he can't help be attracted to random beauty over #999999....
Can't speak for Hera's opinion of Amaterasu and vice versa, but based on the source material, it's safe to bet that Zeus and Hera are in tru wuv.
DeleteZeus just has a serious problem keeping it in his pants. A serious, serious, serious problem.
Zeus' relationship with Hera is probably similar to many monarch-consort relationships: he's the ending final word and she can't gainsay him, but she is probably the only person in existence who can make suggestions or argue points of politics with him without getting in trouble for it.
DeleteWe assume that Zeus and Hera are exasperatedly loving toward one another, and even at their worst not likely to actually leave each other. Zeus went to some lengths to get her to marry him in the first place, and despite his wandering eye and her obvious distress, they also have passages that talk about their abiding love (and hots) for each other. They're a very solid political unit, and while one might make decisions without consulting the other (particularly if they want to be sneaky), they would probably never actively undermine each other on anything important
Hera: a name for that sinking feeling you get when you think about the Dodekatheon.
ReplyDeleteHer tea tasts like Arete.
DeleteHow do Justice powers work? Do they work by priority where the worst offense being hit with Justice takes offense, or can a bunch of people with Justice all hit each other?
ReplyDeleteFor example:
Hera hits Zeus with Justice for cheating on her. Then Zeus hits Hera with Justice for challenging his authority with her own Justice. Then Guan Yu hits them both for Hedonism thanks to Code of Heaven, and then they BOTH turn around and hit Guan Yu for disrespecting the gods(themselves) with their own Code of Heaven?
Justice powers work on the target if they are guilty of the crime you accuse them of, full stop, no other qualifications necessary. You have to know what you're punishing to use Justice boons (since most of them require Judgment before any others will work), so it won't punish a random crime but rather whatever you're specifically seeking to address. Having Justice doesn't make you immune to breaking the law (although one must hope you try not to be the lawbreaking Justice god too much, right?), so it's entirely possible for people with Justice to use it on one another, even in the same scene, provided they both successfully accuse the other of a crime that they have actually committed.
DeleteIn your example, the only part that probably wouldn't work would be Zeus whammying Hera for using Justice on him; that's not her challenging his authority, but rather enforcing his authority, since he's the one who created the laws he then broke. Hera can only ding him for cheating because he agrees that cheating is illegal, so she's actually legally in the right and Justice will not punish her for it.
But yeah, Guan Yu could totally bust in and Code of Heaven some Justice on the twosome if they are in fact being hedonistic (Zeus definitely... not sure I know of any examples of Hera being a hedonist, though). And yeah, since it's totes illegal for people to come in and challenge Zeus on his own turf, both of them could in turn slap Guan Yu in the face for it.
Folks with Justice always depend on the laws (either local or Code of Heaven'd) to regulate what they can do, so they tend to be more aware of and careful not to break them than other folks. Nobody wants to be part of a crazy Justice-chain.
What is Hera's status with respect to Poseidon and Hades? I mean, Zeus is King on Olympus, but his brothers are kings in their own right in their respective domains. For that matter, how much authority does Zeus have over his brothers?
ReplyDeleteZeus Trumps all. Hera Is number 2.
DeleteJust don't tell them that.
Zeus really doesn't have any practical authority over his brothers, who are kings of equal domains (long post about it back here!). According to some versions, he might technically be king over all the gods and not just the ones on Olympus, but practically he can't actually do anything to Hades and Poseidon and they all know it. That's why he has to ask them to do things, like requesting Hades release Persephone, instead of just ordering them to; they can and will tell him no.
DeleteThe brothers likely view Hera as an extension of Zeus and his authority; not as important in her own right (ancient Greek dudes, still sexist), but not to be trifled with lest she get her husband involved. They probably respect and avoid irritating her when possible.
Now I'm imagining a tea party with Hera, Amphitrite and Persephone bitching about their husbands behind there backs. At least, until Hera's Vengeance kicks in and she murders Persephone.
DeleteOn a more serious note, how much authority do the other two Queens have in relation to each other?
I'd imagine it's the same as the dudes - they have absolute power in their realms, but Hera is technically able to boss them around but won't because that would be political mistakes.
DeletePoor Persephone!
There's Hera, Frigg, Isis and the Tridevi... and then there's Eztli.
ReplyDeleteShe'd probably do better if it were a literal typhonian/nemean shark pool.
I have a feeling Anat would be down with that.
DeleteNah, Etzli is easy to sidestep. Just treat her like an overprotective puppy with enormous fangs.
DeleteFucking Enormous Fangs.
She should just do what Marduk does - show up places and invite everyone to a royal monster hunt instead of trying to have political conversations.
DeleteAh, Hera. The only one in the greek pantheon I still have a deep hatred for after a game. Though now that I look at, I'm glad I killed her grandson, a scion of Hephaestus and glad she tried to kill my Irish Scion subtly. The only thing is I hate how it all transpired and I got shafted.
ReplyDeleteSomeone just need to cut Zeuz's balls off. Castrati can still get it up, they just don't knock anyone up.
ReplyDeleteYa.... but as is the case with the Greeks, castration takes away your authority (take Ouranos as the big example there). >.>
DeleteRemember that the big dick has a prophecy of being overthrown hanging over him, so maybe being clipped is in his near future.
ReplyDelete