Invictus Maneo/Zagreus

**“**Last one standing.**”**
— Invictus Maneo selection quip
Against his father's wishes, **Zagreus** has an undying ambition to escape the Underworld, having never felt at home there even as its prince. He never gives up no matter what comes his way, regularly cheered on by friends and (some) family. Zagreus is humble and kind, protective of those he loves and disregarding his royal status to see them as his equals. He is also stubborn, never giving up and standing up against everybody and everything that comes his way. Though sometimes blasé and even mischievous, Zagreus is a good man at heart.

Zagreus originates from the 2020 game Hades, and his home stage is Tartarus.

## Basics

Zagreus is a middleweight zone breaker character, making use of all of the Infernal Arms weapons in battle, giving him unprecedented versatility. With his above-average speed and great combo potential, he is a dangerous character to face up against, dominating the battlefield with some ease.

Zagreus uses his Infernal Arms in basic combat. His ground combat has him use the Stygian Blade's strikes for his jab combo and the Shield of Chaos' bull charge for his dash attack. His forward tilts make use of his Heart-Seeking Bow's power shot, his up tilts make use of his Twin Fists' rising cutters, and his down tilts make use of his Eternal Spear's spinning attack. In the air, Zagreus' neutral air uses his spear, his forward air uses his blade, his back air uses his bow, his upper air uses his fists, and finally his down air has him throw his shield. When guarding himself from enemy attacks, Zagreus will use the Shield of Chaos instead of the standard guard shared between all characters, which lasts longer but leaves him vulnerable on his backside. The Adamant Rail only comes in play during Zagreus' throws, which he uses to shoot his enemies away after pummeling them.

What you see up there is all he has though, as he lacks a traditional special moveset. Because of that disadvantage, Zagreus struggles with returning to the stage. The gifts that can be blessed upon him are all he's really got otherwise.

## Specials

* **Special A: Property Gift**
Zagreus will be affected by a positive property by one of the Olympian deities. This property is rather strong and has a huge impact on his playstyle.
	+ Aphrodite increases Zagreus' overall range, making the hitboxes of his attacks slightly larger with an accompanying pink aura to show their extended reach.
	+ Poseidon makes Zagreus' attacks launch enemies further away, but his attacks become much weaker and thus racking up damage becomes less important.
	+ Dionysus permits Zagreus a double jump, improving his stage recovery and letting him reach even the highest targets. No additional bonuses.
	+ Artemis adds critical hits to Zagreus' moveset, the first of which has a 50% chance of happening. Every successful critical halves the success rate.
	+ Zeus boosts Zagreus' speed by a considerable amount and makes his attacks slightly less laggy, rendering him more efficient at making combos.
	+ Athena transforms Zagreus' shield into her own; if an enemy attacks that same shield, Athena will slam them with it as punishment against them.
	+ Ares deliberately decreases Zagreus' launching power but gives him amazing damage output; good Zagreus players can rack up damage really fast.
* **Special B: Special Cast**
Zagreus will cast a spell- not an impressive projectile, but can be improved by an Olympian aid. It changes color to represent the chosen aid.
	+ Aphrodite's cast travels rather slowly, but it can be aimed diagonally unlike the other casts. If it connects, the target's stats are all temporarily weakened.
	+ Poseidon's cast increases speed for as long as it's out, slamming into foes to deal only moderate damage but knocking them back far horizontally.
	+ Dionysus makes the cast move along slowly in wavy shapes, but if it connects, it makes the foe really dizzy and gives Zagreus ample time to punish them.
	+ Artemis makes the cast auto-aim onto a target, dealing critical hit damage 25% of the time. Successful criticals do NOT halve the success rate.
	+ Zeus transforms the cast into a burst of chain-lightning that bounces between all of Zagreus' targets. If there's one target, it'll choke them with moderate strength.
	+ Athena's cast travels around Zagreus' body until it's hit. It won't protect him too well, but it'll absorb some of the damage. Also deflects projectiles.
	+ Ares sends razor-sharp casts in the enemy's direction, which cannot chase the enemy but come out really fast in an attempt to shred them up a little.
* **Special C: Curse**
A curse will be inflicted onto the nearest opponent. They must be at least a fourth of the screen away from Zagreus and cannot be out at the same time as casts.
	+ Aphrodite makes the victim deal 20% less damage for a time.
	+ Poseidon makes the victim take rapid damage, leaving them open.
	+ Dionysus makes the victim flinch long-term, leaving them open.
	+ Artemis makes the victim take 10% more damage for a time.
	+ Zeus makes the victim's next attack deal them moderate damage.
	+ Athena makes the victim take more damage from behind.
	+ Ares makes the victim take an instant burst of mild damage.
* **Special D: Aid Switch**
A circle of Olympian Aids will circle Zagreus, forcing him to select which one he wants to have aid him in battle. This can be done by flicking the analog stick in the direction of the favored aid. Once the aid is chosen, Zagreus can take advantage of their bonuses for 15 seconds. They each require a lot of time to recharge.
* **Showstopper: Olympian Call**
Zagreus summons all seven of the aforementioned Olympians the moment his auto-fired cast hits a target. They'll focus on Zagreus' weak cast, empowering it with all their boons and making it flash in their signature colors. Once it hits the foe, it will give them numerous status ailments and inflict immense damage.