Hippolyta is the daughter of the
Greek god of war
Ares and
Otrera, and the step-sister to
Phobos. She and her sister
Amazons would help create war, stealing the female children in the process to enlarge their armies. The group protected the cow-goddess
Io as a favor to her grandfather
Zeus. After many years of ruling the Amazons, Hippolyta meets
Hercules when he,
Jason, and the
Argonauts land near her city stronghold of
Themiscyra. There, they attempt to steal Hippolyta's enchanted
girdle and any slaves they could along the way. Fearful for her sister's life, Hippolyta's sister Antiope willingly disguises herself as Hippolyta. Jason, thinking her to be the Amazon queen, kidnaps Antiope and made her his bride. She eventually has a son with him,
Hippolytus, whom Antiope named after her sister. Initially resenting Hercules for the initial invasion, Hippolyta eventually falls in love with him. Over the centuries, she tries various attempts to win his affection, forming a love/hate relationship with him. As shown in a
Howard the Duck story, Hippolyta has historically been one of the bearers of the Amulet of Pazuzu. As the Howard the Duck comic involves storylines that are both in and out of continuity, it is unclear if the Amulet exists in the
Marvel Universe. In her first modern-day appearance Hippolyta helped
Pluto, the Roman god of the dead, in his plan to avenge himself on Hercules by posing as a movie actress and tricking the hero into signing a "movie contract" that in reality bound him to Pluto's realm,
Hades, while Pluto was disguised as the director. When Hercules was given the contract she told him that in the film he conquered the Netherworld by defeating Pluto and she remained by his side all the time, causing him to sign the contract. She then revealed who she really was to Hercules. But
Thor came to his aid, and the heroes caused so much damage to Hades that Pluto himself broke the contract just to be rid of them. Hippolyta also formed a new generation of Amazons from female runaways in
New York City called the
Bacchae. The group has clashed with such heroes as the
Fantastic Four and the
X-Men. Much later, Hippolyta reappeared in the pages of
The Incredible Hercules, visiting her father Ares in an attempt to rally him to one of
Hera's new schemes. Ares rebuffs her, however, and when Hippolyta returns, she is murdered by her daughter Artume, who is tired of her mother's obsession with Hercules. During the
Dark Reign storyline, Hippolyta is among the dead people in Erebus when Hercules travels to the Underworld.
Hela later brings Hippolyta (under the moniker "Warrior Woman") from the Underworld to help the
Valkyrior defeat the Doommaidens. Hippolyta then joins Valkyrie's
Fearless Defenders as a full-time member of this group. During the
Monsters Unleashed storyline, Valkyrie and Hippolyta battle the Leviathon Tide monsters in
Edinburgh. ==Powers, abilities, and equipment==