- "In this trident resides the power of Atlantis. In the wrong hands, it would bring destruction. But in the hands of the true heir, it would unite all our kingdoms above and below."
- ―Atlan[src]
The Trident of Atlan, also known as the Sacred Trident, is an ancient Atlantean relic forged for and originally wielded by the ancient king of Atlantis, Atlan. Centuries after Atlan's exile and death, the trident was claimed by one of his descendants, Aquaman, to defeat Orm Marius and he became the new king of Atlantis.
History[]
A king's weapon[]
- "And the trident could only be wielded by the strongest Atlantean. And it gave King Atlan mastery over the seven seas."
- ―Atlanna[src]
The Trident was forged in the Kingdom of the Deserters from the steel of Poseidon for Atlan, the first ruler of Atlantis.
Great Fall of Atlantis[]
- "It made him so powerful that the ocean itself became jealous and sent a terrible earthquake to destroy Atlantis."
- ―Atlanna[src]
One day, during an experiment conducted by Atlan, the power of the trident released a powerful wave of energy that sunk Atlantis to the bottom of the ocean, mutating the citizens to be able to survive underwater.[1]
Following the Great Fall, a guilt-ridden and horrified Atlan exiled himself to the Hidden Sea, charging the Karathen with protecting it from all but the rightful heir to the throne of Atlantis. The Karathen implies that while dead, Atlan's consciousness and spirit still lingers in his skeleton so that even if the Karathen is defeated, his skeleton will not release it until the rightful heir attempts to remove it.[1]
Wielded by Aquaman[]
In 2018, following the destruction of his mother's trident, Arthur Curry traveled to the Hidden Sea to recover the Sacred Trident as the true King of Atlantis. After proving himself to the Karathen, Curry used the power of the trident to connect to all of the animals in the sea.[1]
Battle of the Brine[]
As Orm was laying waste to the Kingdom of the Brine, Aquaman burst forth from the molten seabed riding atop of the head of the Karathen brandishing the Trident in all of its torrential glory. While all on the battlefield saw such a phenomenon take place, Ocean Master was not deterred.[1]
Pressing the attack with his legions just as Arthur Curry summoned an army of countless sea forms from all across the deep; including the savage Trench, to aid him in battle.[1]
Even causing many a mount of his hated brother's forces to turn on their riders in the battle. In final battle while atop one of the Atlantean galleons, the two would resume the battle that took place in Atlantis some time ago. This time, Arthur had the advantage of being out in the open air, as Orm was inexperienced with fighting outside of the water. Over a long drawn out battle with many on both Arthur and Orm's side watching, Aquaman disarms the would-be conqueror by splintering his trident with one blow; right after performing the pole arm technique Vulko taught him as a boy.[1]
Alternate universes[]
Knightmare[]
Aquaman's trident in the ruins
In a potential future, the world fell into ruin as the entity known as Darkseid invaded the Earth and began terraforming it. He brought the war to Atlantis and impaled Arthur Curry with the trident, as he laid waste to the realm. Mera took up the trident to help save the world from the armies of Apokolips. When a mind-controlled Superman flew down to attack her and her teammates, Mera raised the trident, preparing to make her final stand. At a later point in time, the Trident could be seen in the ruins of the Justice League headquarters.[2]
Capabilities[]
- "It's more than a story. It's real. It was forged by the greatest weapon masters in history. Crafted from Poseidon Steel for King Atlan, the first ruler of Atlantis. Legend says the trident was imbued with the power to command the sea."
- ―Nuidis Vulko[src]
Atlan's Trident is an incredibly powerful weapon, which can only be handled by the true heir of Atlantis. This relic of immense importance serves as a conduit through which mariner kings can channel and greatly magnify their abilities.
Atlan lays with his trident
Through it, any natural powers the king of Atlantis has are greatly magnified, allowing Atlan to stun the powerful New God Darkseid with a mere shockwave, and being granted possession over the full power of the seven seas and through it, their ability to command any creature amongst the vast oceans is greatly magnified. This was demonstrated when Arthur, the true heir of Atlantis, took the trident, and gained the ability to perfectly sense every creature of the ocean on the planet Earth and reach out to them all (including the savage Trench).
Having been created from an extremely dense metal, the trident is an extremely resilient weapon, which shows no apparent damage either from the ages nor after the extensive use that Atlan gave it; a prominent example of its durability and resiliency, was during Arthur's final clash with Orm: it was not only able to break Orvax's trident, but it had the capability to shatter Orvax's trident like it was glass.
In addition, it is very likely that it is also magical in nature, like many tridents of Atlantis. An example would be when Arthur used it to conjure lightning underwater during the war against Orm's Atlantean forces.
Trivia[]
- In DC Comics, the Dead King's Scepter was the original weapon of Atlan, later known as the Dead King, and was forged alongside six other Atlantean relics.
- Within recent publishing, Arthur's trident acted as a focusing point through which he could channel and amplify his natural abilities, and often using it as a dowsing rod to better use his Marine Telepathy with.
- In DC Comics, Aquaman's trident has possessed numerous magical capabilities, effectively serving as a magical conduit to produce a variety of effects.
- In Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, it's stated that only Atlantean royalty can hold the trident due to an enchantment placed upon it.
- In the Injustice 2 mobile game, the Trident can be collected as one of the five gear pieces of "King of Atlantis Aquaman". When equipped, it gives him bonus critical attack chance. Regardless of whether he has it equipped, King of Atlantis Aquaman can be seen wielding it in-game.
- US residents had the limited-time chance to obtain a real life copy of the Trident by entering a prize draw by DC Universe.
Behind the Scenes[]
- There is a noticeable difference in design between Atlan's trident as shown in Aquaman and its appearance in Zack Snyder's Justice League.
