Book 1, Part 1.1: Prologue

Welcome to Book 1, Part 1 of Part 1! [I had to divide things up more than I thought I would so… It’s weird. Sorry.]


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I shall return on Wednesday with the next installment! It will be called: A Plague on All Your Houses! Or, something like that. I figured it out, and based on the progress I have made so far, averaging it all out, I should be done re-telling the Iliad in three years. Haha… We have a long way to go. I’m excited. *swoons*


P.S. I TOLD YOU I WOULD GET HADES IN HERE SOMEHOW, Mwahahahahahaha…


To Read A Plague Be Upon You Click HERE.

Who You Need to Know Part III: The Immortals

*If you missed it:
Who You Need to Know Part I: Argives
Who You Need to Know Part II: Trojans*


…also known as Gods and Goddesses and a Random Sea-Nymph. If you don’t know anything about Greek mythology/traditional religion that sucks. I’m only going to give you the basics. Also, where have you been? *shakes head in disapproval*


IANR.Im.ZeusZeus, king of the gods, husband of Hera, brother to Poseidon and Hades, lover of many, more concerned with people learning lessons than taking sides, although people consider him on the Trojan side, because Thetis.

IANR.Im.HeraHera, queen of the gods, Zeus’ wife, allied with Athena, on the side of the Argives.

IANR.Im.AthenaAthena, daughter of Zeus (popped out of his head one day), allied with Hera, on the side of the Argives, all about war and wisdom.

IANR.Im.PseidonPoseidon, brother of Zeus and Hades, helped the Trojans build their city but they never re-paid him, therefore, on the side of the Argives. Also, Argives are big ship people and, therefore, give him proper sacrifice and attention, since he’s in charge of the sea and earthquakes and such.

IANR.Im.HephaestusHephaestus, husband to Aphrodite, lame, god of metalsmithing, makes Achilles armour and rescues him from Scamander, so kind of on the Argives’ side?

IANR.Im.AphroditeAphrodite, daughter of Zeus, mother of Aeneas so, therefore, on the side of the Trojans. She’s all about love and war and comes off much more a wimp than she actually is.

IANR.Im.ApolloApollo, son of Zeus, twin brother to Artemis, gods of music and the sun, on the side of the Trojans.

IANR.Im.ArtemisArtemis, daughter of Zeus, twin sister to Apollo, goddess of the hunt and people like slaves and outcasts, on the Trojan side, just like her brother.

Ares, god of war, just war, no brains, lover of Aphrodite, supports Trojans mainly, but really as long as people are fighting he’s happy.

IANR.Im.HermesHermes, messenger of the gods, kind of hilarious, I love him. Sort of on the Argives side, but helps the Trojans as well.

IANR.Im.LetoLeto, daughter of Titans, mother of Apollo and Artemis, sort of on the Trojan side.

IANR.Im.ThetisThetis, sea-nymph, mother of Achilles, calls in a favour from Zeus to try and convince him to side with the Argives. Not sure this really did her son any good, tbh.


There are your Immortals! Next time we will finish everything up with our handful of characters who aren’t on one side or the other of the war.

To Meet The Rest Click HERE.

Who You Need to Know Part II: Trojans

*If You missed Part I: The Argives, click HERE.*


The Trojans are descended from Greeks, probably, but don’t tell them that. More on their geography later. For now! The main and supporting cast.

Main Characters

IANR.Tr.HectorHector, son of Priam, The Mightiest Warrior, husband to Andromache, father of Astyanax, actually has a brain and uses it too.

IANR.Tr.PriamPriam, king of Troy, husband to Hecuba, father of Hector, Paris, Deiphobus, Cassandra, and gods know who else, kind, but not always useful.

IANR.Tr.ParisParis, son of Priam, brother to Hector (etc.), stealer of Helen, xenia-breaker (more on that later), causes All of the Problems.

IANR.Tr.HelenHelen, ex-wife to Menelaus, lover of Paris, fairly useless as a character.

IANR.Tr.AeneasAeneas, Trojan nobleman, son of Aphrodite, has his own epic, less whiney than Odysseus’, son of Aphrodite, supposedly founded the city of Rome… er, or begat the son who begat the son who did.

IANR.Tr.AndromacheAstyanaxAndromache, wife of Hector, mother of Asytanax, actually has a personality, unlike Helen.

Astyanax, son of Hector and Andromache, not very important, but tiny and adorable.

IANR.Tr.HecubaHecuba, wife of Priam, Queen of Troy, shows up in one of the Greek plays later.

IANR.Tr.PolydamasPolydamas, friend to Hector, has good advice… that no one ever listens to. [And no… I don’t know what to say in response to how his character turned out.]

Supporting Cast

IANR.Tr.AntenorAntenor, nobleman, adviser to Priam, fathered many Trojan warriors, apparently, hates Helen.

IANR.Tr.AgenorAgenor, son of Antenor, warrior, attempts to fight Achilles, kind of important.

IANR.Tr.GlaucusGlaucus, Lycian, ally to the Trojans, his dad knew Diomede’s dad, a bit dense.

IANR.Tr.DolonDolon, spies on Greek ships, not very important.

IANR.Tr.PandarusPandarus, archer, Ruins Things.

IANR.Tr.DeiphobusDeiphobus, son of Priam and Hecuba, brother to Cassandra, also gift of prophecy

IANR.Tr.CassandraCassandra, daughter of Priam, sister to Deiphobus, blessed with prophecy via Apollo

IANR.Tr.PolydorusPolydorus, youngest son of Priam, brother to Hector, runs fast – but not fast enough.

IANR.Tr.EuphorbusEuphorbus, a fine Trojan warrior. Only moderately important.


There you have it! Your beautiful Trojans. Next time we will meet our Immortals.

To Meet the Immortals Click HERE.

How Macedonian Became Wealthy

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NOTE: The 20 year old son being Alexander the Great, of course. 😉

Macedonian is North of Greece and West of Thrace. They may or may not have been considered Greek themselves, but based on what I know about the Greek world, Macedonians were probably considered barbarians or at the very least country-hicks. They would have spoken with a slightly different accent or dialect, and possibly had their own language as well (I don’t know a lot about Macedonian history, so I’m not sure about these things). They did, indeed, grow rich during the Pelopponesian War. This war was between Athens and Sparta, and I’m sure there will be more about that in the future. [Be Prepared: there is a LOT of speechifying in Thucydides.]

Philip II was able to gain control of most of Greece (except Sparta) and married a woman, Olympias, who was much more Greek than he was. Plutarch says it’s because he saw her and fell madly in love. This may be, but it also made sure that the heir to the throne would be familially aligned to both Macedonia and Greece.

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ALSO: If anyone wishes to read more about Alexander the Great there are some FREE online sources:

Plutarch: random dude who wrote about Greek and Roman lives. Find the Loeb Classical Library translation HERE.

Diodorus Sicilus: I actually don’t know much about this guy, but you can find out more and his history books, also the Loeb Classical eidition, HERE.

Arrian: My favourite (I own the Landmark version) is The Anabasis of Alexander.  There is a free online version HERE, but be warned, it’s pretty crappy. Like. Nothing spelled right, really old translation, thee’s and thou’s crappy.

A not free book I found useful is In the Footsteps of Alexander by Miles Doleac. There are a plethora of pictures and everything. You can find more information about it at Goodreads. You can find it for sale HERE. [If the link doesn’t work and you’re looking for a used copy I personally recommend betterworldbooks because they donate books and do happy things. If they don’t have it I go to bigwords to find the cheapest copy I can. I have some personal issues with both Amazon and Barnes & Noble and that’s why I’m not re-directing you there.]