Cycnus of Troy
Son of Poseidon who was invulnerable to weapons and fought Achilles on the beach at Troy until strangled with his own helmet strap.
The Legend of Cycnus of Troy
No weapon could pierce his skin — so Achilles strangled him with the strap of his own helmet. Cycnus, son of Poseidon, defended the Trojan beach when the Greeks landed. Arrows bounced off him. Spears shattered. Achilles threw everything he had and nothing worked. Finally, Achilles tackled Cycnus and throttled him with his helmet chinstrap, the one part of his equipment that was not divine. As he died, Poseidon transformed him into a swan (kyknos). The fight established Achilles's dominance immediately upon arrival — even an invulnerable opponent could not survive him. It also foreshadowed Achilles's own vulnerability: the greatest warrior had his own fatal weak point.
Parents
Poseidon
Symbols
Fun Fact
Cycnus (swan) gives us the constellation Cygnus and the concept of a swan song.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
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🗡 heroGreatest warrior of the Trojan War
The greatest warrior in the Greek army at Troy, nearly invulnerable thanks to being dipped in the River Styx as an infant — except for the heel by which his mother held him.
Ajax
🗡 heroThe immovable warrior who held the Greek line
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🗡 heroSwift warrior of the Locrians
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Perseus
🗡 heroHero who slew Medusa
The son of Zeus and Danae who beheaded Medusa, rescued Andromeda, and founded the Perseid dynasty of Mycenae.
Achilles
🗡 heroThe greatest warrior of the Trojan War
The swift-footed son of Peleus and Thetis whose wrath drives the Iliad and whose choice between glory and life defines the heroic ideal.
Euphorbus
🗡 heroCombat, beauty
Trojan warrior famed for his beauty who first wounded Patroclus before Hector delivered the killing blow
Tydeus
🗡 heroThe ferocious warrior who forfeited immortality
A hero of savage courage who fought as one of the Seven Against Thebes but lost Athena's gift of immortality in his final moment.
Hippomedon
🗡 heroNone recorded
One of the Seven against Thebes, a towering warrior known for his ferocity in battle
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🗡 heroSon of Zeus who died at Troy
Sarpedon was a son of Zeus and the greatest Lycian warrior at Troy — his death forced Zeus to confront the limits of even divine power.
Ajax the Great
🗡 heroMightiest Greek warrior after Achilles
Ajax son of Telamon was the tallest and strongest of the Greek warriors at Troy, a tower of a man who fought with a massive shield and never received divine aid.
Caenus
🗡 heroTransformation, Invulnerability, Gender
Lapith warrior transformed from a woman into an invulnerable man by Poseidon, killed by Centaurs pounding him into the earth.
Bellerophon and Pegasus
🗡 herohubris, fall
The hero who tamed Pegasus and slew the Chimera but was destroyed by his own hubris when he tried to fly to Olympus.