Deimos
Deimos was the personification of dread and terror — the brother of Phobos who accompanied Ares into war.
The Myth of Deimos
Deimos personified the cold dread that spreads through armies before battle — not sudden panic but the slow, grinding terror of knowing what approaches. He was the son of Ares and Aphrodite, twin brother of Phobos, and accompanied his father's chariot alongside Enyo to every battlefield. In the Iliad, the brothers drove Ares to the fields before Troy, where Athena and Heracles both opposed the war god. Deimos's image was carved on shields and painted on armour to demoralise enemies. Together with Phobos, he represented the psychological dimension of warfare that the Greeks understood deeply — that fear could rout an army more effectively than spears.
Parents
Ares and Aphrodite
Symbols
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
Phobos
⚡ godGod of fear and panic in battle
Phobos was the god of fear who accompanied his father Ares into battle, spreading terror before the armies.
Ares
⚡ godGod of war, violence, bloodshed
God of the brutal, savage side of war. Unlike Athena's strategic warfare, Ares represented the raw violence and chaos of battle.
Ares
⚡ godGod of brutal, bloodthirsty warfare
The god of the savage violence of battle — feared, hated, and necessary, embodying the bloodlust that the Greeks recognised but did not admire.
Hysminai
⚡ godCombat, fray, hand-to-hand fighting
The daimones of close combat and the chaotic violence of the battlefield melee
Kydoimos
⚡ godBattle confusion, the din of war
The daimon of the uproar and bewildering chaos that overwhelms warriors in the thick of combat
Phobia
💭 conceptFear, irrational dread, anxiety disorder
An irrational persistent fear of a specific thing, from Phobos, the divine personification of fear and panic.
Phrike
⚡ godHorror, shuddering, trembling fear
The daimon of the physical shudder of horror that seizes the body in moments of dread
Enyo
⚡ godGoddess of war and destruction
Enyo was a goddess of war who delighted in bloodshed and the destruction of cities — she accompanied Ares and Eris into battle.
Makhai
🐉 creaturepersonifications
Daimones of battle and combat, born from Eris, who haunted every battlefield in the Greek world
God of War
💭 conceptWar, bloodlust, battle rage, courage
Ares embodies the brutal, violent side of warfare and was feared even by his fellow Olympians.
Panic
💭 conceptFear, terror, sudden irrational dread
Sudden uncontrollable fear, from the god Pan whose shouts in the wilderness caused stampedes of terror.
Abas
🗡 heroKingship, warfare
King of Argos renowned as a fierce warrior whose very shield could terrify enemies