Though popularized in the Wonder Woman (2017) film (looking much less bad-ass by the way) the God Killer sword actually began its existence within the pages of a Deathstroke story. As the DC Comics' Convergence event, the publisher released a series of 8-page DC Sneak Peek editions to preview all of the post-Convergence/DC You storylines. DC Sneak Peek: Deathstroke (2015) was published on its own digitally and in print as the backup story for Convergence: Shadow of the Bat (2015) #2. In that preview, Deathstroke was offered a contract by Hephaestus, divine blacksmith of Mt. Olympus, "to kill a god." Hephaestus put down a deposit in the form of gold coins falling from the sky and presented Slade with the only weapon capable of ending a god, the mystical God Killer sword. Long story short, Deathstroke took the job, fought alternately against and alongside Superman and Wonder Woman, and fulfilled the contract by killing the Greek Titan, Lapetus, with the God Killer. This post takes a closer look at the deadly blade and the destruction that comes with it.
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| Deathstroke with the God Killer Art by Tony S. Daniel |
Though he didn't have it for long, Deathstroke wielded the God Killer with devastating results. The sword itself was forged by Hephaestus at the behest of Apollo and was to be used to eliminate the Titan Lapetus in the event of Apollo's death. The sword was made of the mysterious super element known as Eighth Metal, which was used to forge weapons and armor for the gods, including Apollo's Sunblade and Wonder Woman's mystic bracelets. The God Killer is capable of discharging a blast of destructive energy causing an extreme amount of damage. It is also capable of absorbing any type of force and then redirecting it at twice its original magnitude. In addition, the Eighth Metal composition allows the God Killer to reconstruct itself were it to ever be damaged or destroyed.
The God Killer is semi-sentient as was evident when Deathstroke first used it. Slade described the experience as being guided by the blade to accomplish its goals rather than being a just a weapon. The God Killer actively compels its wielder toward their intended target. The blade is also capable of reading its wielder and then altering its form to best suit them. The God Killer once even became two smaller swords allowing Deathstroke to take on multiple opponents simultaneously. The sword can also act as a conduit for the thoughts and memories of any divine being (god or Titan) that has touched it. Once these thoughts have been absorbed into the God Killer, they can then be accessed by the next wielder of the sword whether they are god or mortal.
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| Deathstroke with the God Killer. This doesn't end well for Lapetus. Art by Tony S. Daniel |
Regardless of who wields it, the God Killer sword is one of the most dangerous weapons that has ever been created in the DC Universe. It becomes even more dangerous in the deadly hands of someone like Deathstroke the Terminator. But if you think about it, any weapon created specifically to kill a god shouldn't be anything less.
