Talos, the Bronze Colossus

The myth

Talos was a bronze giant who guarded the island of Crete. Apollodorus records different versions: for some he was the last of the race of bronze; for others a work of Hephaestus given to King Minos. He ran around the island three times a day and hurled stones at approaching ships. He had a single vein, running from neck to ankle, sealed by a bronze nail. When the Argonauts arrived, Medea bewitched him; according to Apollonius of Rhodes, he grazed his ankle on a rock, the ichor poured out and the colossus fell.

Why it has this power

An Epic level-8 card with 2800 ATK and 2900 DEF: the higher defense belongs to the bronze guardian no one gets past. He is a Thunder Machine, a game choice tied to the rite that fuses bronze, gold and lightning, with the Wisp and Hammer constellations. He is summoned by the Rite of Hephaestus's Forge.

Did you know

Ancient coins from the Cretan city of Phaistos show Talos as a winged youth hurling a stone.

Connections

Where to get it

• Ritual: Summoned by the ritual Rite of Hephaestus's Forge, with the materials Walking Tripod of Hephaestus, Golden Maiden of Hephaestus, Thundering Sentinel of Olympia.
• It never joins the collection: you summon it mid-duel, by fusion or ritual.

Sources

1. TALOS - Bronze Cretan Giant of Greek Mythology — Aaron J. Atsma, Theoi Project
2. The Library, Book 1 — Pseudo-Apollodorus (trans. J. G. Frazer), Theoi Classical Texts Library
3. Argonautica, Book 4 — Apollonius Rhodius (trans. R. C. Seaton), Theoi Classical Texts Library