Summary
Throughout theGod of Warseries, bloodshed, vengeance, aniconic story, and savage weaponry are expected and beloved by fans formany years. Among fans of the series, the weaponry aspects are often cited as one of their favorite things aboutGod of War,especially certain overpowered items.
This list will mainly focus on weapons, and will not include spells or tools like the Head of Medusa. Weapon enchantments will also not appear on this list, so runes and enhancements are out. Now that the rules are set, here’s why these arethe best weapons inGod of War.
Updated Jun 07, 2025, by Rhenn Taguiam:Fans of theGod of Warfranchise wait with bated breath as the series marks its 20th anniversary in 2025, which means surprises might be in store to celebrate. While there has been no news of remasters or new releases yet, fans might want to start replaying their favoriteGod of Wartitles. However, fans going through the games might be eager to remind themselves which weapons Kratos wielded the best in his tenure as Ares’s soldier and as the God of War.
19Thera’s Bane
Engulf The Blades Of Athena In Flames
WhileThera’s BaneinGod of War: Ghost of Spartais essentially an “ability,” its nature and gameplay effect practically transforms it into a new weapon. Kratos can only get Thera’s Bane from the chest of the titular Titan, Thera, as he frees her from her prison deep in Atlantis. As a result, Kratos gets access to “primal” fire that engulfs his Blades of Athena in fierce fire.
Gameplay-wise, this simply “upgrades” the Blades of Athena. However, in addition to boosting their power and speed, Kratos can now use the Blades of Athena to “implant” exploding magma into his enemies and can even destroy the armor and shields of other creatures more easily. Thera’s Bane also gives the Blades of Athena a black and red color scheme, making them more effective representations of Kratos’s wrath.
18Guardian Shield
An Effective Retractable Shield
Obtained during the events ofGod of War, theGuardian Shieldfirst appears as part of Kratos’s left gauntlet. In this form, the Guardian Shield consists of a small disc surrounded by a wrench-shaped swirling plate and two longer plates underneath. When activated, the Guardian Shieldextends into a bucklerthat allows Kratos to protect himself from attacks. Gameplay-wise, the Guardian Shield can be used in conjunction with Kratos’s fists, the Blades of Chaos, and the Leviathan Axe.
Kratos using the Guardian Shield is a testament that the aged former God of War is still capable of holding his own in combat. When used, the Guardian Shield endows Kratos with a plethora of skills, such as being able to break an opponent’s guard and even deflect blasts back to opponents. He can attack opponents from a sprint, and even quickly swap stances to perform swift attacks.
17Draupnir Spear
The Second Official Norse Weapon In Kratos’s Hands
Alongside the Leviathan Axe, theDraupnir Spearis considered thesecond “official” Norse armamentthat Kratos manages to acquire inGod of War Ragnarok. Originally taking the appearance of an enchanted duplicating ring, Kratos was instructed to bring the ring to the Lady of the Forge to ask for her assistance in transforming it into a spear. After transforming into a spear as it appeared in the Norse myth, Kratos hoped to use it in the fight against Heimdall in the hopes of stopping his “fate” of killing his son Atreus in Ragnarok.
In the game, Draupnir is a dual-purpose weapon with its ability to hit opponents at any range. Its affinity to wind can draw enemies close before blasting them from afar. Meanwhile, the duplicating magic of its ring source meant Kratos could spawn near-infinite copies of Draupnir to do with as he wanted, such as throwing them at opponents, creating platforms for traversal, or detonating powerful blasts by slamming them on the ground.
16Blades Of Athena
The Most Iconic Upgrade
While the Blades of Chaos remain as Kratos’s most recognizable andbest weapons, theBlades of Athenawere perhaps the most recognizable upgrades throughout the franchise. Bestowed by none other than Athena herself, the Blades of Athena served exactlythe same function and purpose as the Blades of Chaos. This time around, her own variation had more godly power, as reflected with the engravings that glowed red and the golden aura it gave in Kratos’s possession as the God of War.
Given their godly nature, the Blades of Athena had some sort of divine power when activated by Kratos. Named Divine Reckoning, this is activated when Kratos slams the blades into the ground, causing a tornado to encircle Kratos and blast away anyone who dared come near him.
15Blade of Artemis
The Perfect Blade Against Ares
Compared to his signature Blades of Chaos, theBlade of Artemiswasa huge and curved bladethat fit Kratos’s huge stature. Bestowed to him by Artemis for his fight against Ares, the Blade of Artemis has a characteristically slower yet more brutal approach to combat, unlike the fast and loose Blades of Chaos.
What makes the Blade of Artemis quite a sight to behold is its origins. According to Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, she used the Blade of Artemis to slay a Titan. Its armor-piercing qualities perhaps reflect its innate strength. Should Kratos have planned on using this in his later adventures, the Blade of Artemis would’ve allowed him to go toe-to-toe with the ancient Titans with relative ease.
14Gauntlet Of Zeus
Gauntlets That Fought Titans
Despite its gargantuan size, Kratos still managed to wield theGauntlet of Zeusand use its destructive energies to kill the likes of Persephone. And while Kratos would eventually lose this to its rightful owner, Zeus, shortly after retrieving it from its temple, the Gauntlet of Zeus was still extremely powerful.
At its core, Zeus had Hephaestus forge the Gauntlet as a means of being able to chain the Titans to the depths of Tartarus. Given its gigantic size, it was meant to be wielded by Zeus in his gigantic godly form. When wielded properly, the Gauntlet of Zeus can help its user achieve superhuman feats of strength, as well as summon various kinds of lightning that reflect Zeus’s control over the elements. Kratos was at some pointto possess armorthat allowed him to wield the Gauntlet at its full power.
13Army Of Hades
Although not a weapon per se,Army of Hadeswas a power that Hades himself granted Kratos after the latter had slain Pandora’s Guardian. Various variations of the Army of Hades appear in subsequent games, all manifesting whenever Kratos defeats Hades oran aspect of his power.
Unlike other more destructive godly energies, the Army of Hades was proof of the gods’ insurmountable power as divine beings. When using this power, Kratos uses the army of the dead to do his bidding, allowing him to summon various forces of the undead to fight on his behalf. These begin as ordinary souls that wielded swords, to souls that wielded various weapons such as axes and falchions - a reflection of Kratos’ growing capabilities of calling upon stronger souls from the deeper parts of the Underworld.
12Blade Of The Gods
A God-Killing Sword
Players who roamed around during the firstGod of Wargame would see a strange-looking footbridge that connected the Statue of Athena with Suicide Bluffs, particularly because of its shape - a sword. However, this was actually an actual sword, with the blade being made of metal. Namedthe Blade of the Gods, Kratos actually used the sword in his fight against Ares after Pandora’s Box increased his size to that of a god’s.
The Blade of the Gods acted like an actual sword, withKratos being able to take full advantage of his physiqueto wield it. This was the sword he used to land the killing blow to Ares and replace him as the God of War, making it quite a memorable weapon capable of slaying the gods.
11Bow of Apollo
The Bow With The Power Of The Sun
Whilethe Bow of Apollorestriction is to the tool’s category, it holds more power than other weapons that share the utility category. Much like Typhon’s Bane fromGod of War 2, that was a weapon it merely is best for crowd control.
The Bow of Apollo makes this list for its ability to maintain combos better than most weapons. The bow shares its resource bar with other tools allowing it to break attack chains and AOE down foes. It is undoubtedly the least powerful weapon on this list. Yet, its utility of continuing combos and suspending smaller enemies makes it a great help.
10Artemius Blade
An Upgraded Form Of Artemis' Glory
Early on in the firstGod of War,Athenagrants players this purple scimitar-like sword. At first, this weapon is good to use, but most players will drop the weapon after a few moments of using it.
When fully upgraded, this weapon does hold an impressive power, able to down weaker foes in just a few swings. The primary cons of this weapon are its very stale move set. Unlike most weapons that gain new moves when leveling them up,the Artemius bladeonly grows in power. A simple and powerful weapon, at least it glows red when at full strength, which is the only noticeable difference.
