Hunters of Artemis

The Hunters of Artemis are chaste maidens, usually but not limited to human, demigod or nymph. Each of her hunters have sworn loyalty to Artemis, to join her in the hunt and stay away from men for the rest of their lives. They are gifted with excellent ranged capabilities and hunting skills, and possess eternal youth and immensely enjoy hunting and being at Artemis' side. They are, however, sworn to be a Hunter forever and to be an eternal maiden (to remain unmarried forever). Because of this, many of the Hunters have a great hatred for males and dread even traveling with them (as seen in The Titan's Curse).

If a Hunter falls in love, Artemis will remove their immortality and may turn them into an animal. The Hunters reflect the Vestal Virgins of Ancient Rome and it is possible that they (the Vestal Virgins) are to be their Roman counterpart though this is unlikely due to the fact Vestal Virgins are the followers of Hestia in her Roman form Vesta.

Known Hunters



 * Artemis (Leader)
 * Zoë Nightshade (Lieutenant, deceased)
 * Bianca di Angelo (deceased)
 * Thalia Grace (Present Lieutenant)
 * Phoebe
 * aero/Laundry

Special Powers and Items
The Hunters have a silvery aura and are probably stronger, faster, and more accurate than the average demigod/nymph/mortal. They carry magic silver bows, arrows, and two hunting knives. In the Battle of Manhattan they all had swords at their sides. They are eternally young unless they break their oath. If a Hunter falls in love, Artemis will remove their immortality as falling in love would break their oath to Artemis. They still can be killed in fights and weapons however, but not by diseases, age, or illnesses. They are accompanied by white wolves and hunting falcons, and in The Lost Hero it is shown that the Hunters and the wolves can understand each other. In the summer, Hunters wear white shirts, silvery camo pants, and black combat boots. In winter, they wear silver ski jackets, blue jeans,and the same boots.

Oath
If a maiden wants to become a Hunter, she must recite an oath. Once Artemis agrees to that oath, it is binding and the Hunter must live by it for the rest of their days.

Oath: I pledge myself to the Goddess Artemis I turn my back on the company of men, Accept eternal maidenhood,  And join the Hunt.

The Sea of Monsters
The Hunters were briefly mentioned when Luke told Percy, Annabeth and Tyson the story of Agrius and Oreius' mother. Apparently, their mother was ordered by Aphrodite to fall in love. She refused, and went to Artemis for help, becoming a Hunter. But Aphrodite got revenge by enchanting the woman into falling in love with a bear, resulting in Artemis abandoning her in disgust.

The Titan's Curse
The Hunters appear at the beginning of the book, saving Percy and his friends from a Manticore by the name of Dr. Thorn, though they were too late to save Annabeth. The Hunters set up camp, and Artemis interviews Percy and Bianca about what the manticore (Dr. Thorn) said to them. She immediately realizes something is stirring and that she must hunt it. Zoë says that the Hunters will set out immediately, but Artemis refuses saying that the task is too dangerous for anyone but a goddess. She tells Zoë that the Hunters must go to Camp Half-Blood while she is away, and that she will get a ride for them from her brother. Zoë protests that the Hunters hate Camp Half-Blood, and we learn that the last time they were there, several cabins burned down. Dionysus apparently blames the Hunters; Zoë insists it was "foolish campers" who were to blame.

When Apollo arrives, he greets Artemis by calling her his "lil' sis". Sibling bickering occurs, until Apollo begins greeting others. This conversation reveals how deeply Artemis cares for her Hunters; when Apollo, saying, "I hate it when pretty girls get turned into trees. Man, there was this one time-" makes an allusion to Daphne. (The story of Daphne is an old Greek legend about a huntress of Artemis who Apollo fell in love with; she didn't return his affections, and in trying to escape from him she was turned into a laurel.) Artemis is apparently still upset about it, as she cuts him off coldly and abruptly, saying, "You should go."

It also reveals the depth of the hatred many Hunters have for boys; when Apollo offers to help Zoë with her pack, saying "Here, sweetheart, let me help you with that", she responds by "recoiling, her eyes flashing murderously," and Artemis is forced to intervene. When they finally get Apollo to focus (sort of) and get everyone loaded onto the "sun bus", the Hunters pile into the bus "as far away as possible from Apollo and the rest of us highly infectious males", as Percy notices.

The Hunters are the only people who are allowed to stay in Artemis' cabin. Whenever the Hunters come to Camp Half-Blood there is a traditional, not-so-friendly game of Capture the Flag. During this game of Capture the Flag, the Oracle walks down from the attic and personally gives the Hunters (specifically Zoë) a quest. Zoë, Bianca, Thalia, Grover, and Percy go on a quest to go search for Artemis, who is in trouble.

At the end of the book, Zoë perished at the hand of her father, Atlas, when she leaped between him and Artemis to save her goddess' life. Artemis loved her so much that when Zoë died, she placed her in the sky as a constellation. Bianca di Angelo was also one of those who died during their quest to find Artemis. Thalia joined the Hunters after their quest, so she could avoid the prophecy by never turning sixteen.

The Last Olympian
In the Battle of Manhattan Percy finds himself short due to all the demigods of Ares' cabin staying behind. Just then Thalia leads the Hunters to help. Many are lost in the battle, but if they hadn't joined in, the battle would have been lost.

The Lost Hero
The Hunters were first mentioned as helping to find Percy. Later, when Jason, Hedge, Piper, and Leo were recovering from falling into freezing waters, a pack of wolves lead by Lycaon tried to kill the group with the exception of Jason. The group try their best to defend themselves, but without having a weapon made of silver all they could do was hold them off. A silver arrow then hit Lycaon and he and his pack retreated as the Hunters had arrived as they had been tracking him down. As the Hunters set up camp, Thalia, Jason, and Leo went into a cave to talk about Jason's past while Piper and Hedge recieved medical care in one of the tents that the Hunter, Phoebe, set up. Leo later wanted to get the blueprints for the tents when he saw them fold up into a tiny square. Thalia later lead the Hunters to defend the Wolf House and find the place where Hera was being kept. They attacked the wolves, though Khione interfered by freezing them all. They are later saved by Hera. Thalia gives Piper a business card, saying that the Hunters can use someone like her. Near the end of the book, Piper throws the card into the fire at camp, as she wasn't interested because of her love for Jason preventing her from living a life of maidenhood.