Top 10 Best Heroes of Olympus Characters

This list dives into the favorites from Rick Riordan's world, where demigods face down legendary monsters, navigate intense friendships, and figure out how to handle some very complicated family drama, usually with some crazy magic powers thrown into the mix.

You get a mix of fearless leaders, misunderstood loners, and brainy strategists who all bring their unique talents to the epic adventures that span the series.

The Top Ten

Percy Jackson

Perseus "Percy" Jackson is a fictional character, the title character and narrator of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. He is a demigod, the son of Poseidon and a mortal woman named Sally Jackson. Percy first appears in the novel The Lightning Thief.

Honestly, I have favorite parts in every single book of The Heroes of Olympus mainly about him.
In The Son of Neptune, I love the way he talks about Arion and how the only thing that kept him going was just Annabeth's face. In The Mark of Athena, I love his little Diet Coke escape plan - it had me dying! And he sneaks out with Annabeth. Love that part.
In The House of Hades, Percy is just so caring about Annabeth, I nearly cried. And in The Blood of Olympus, he's just the normal Percy I love. Shame on those who don't vote for him, even if he's 1st!

Percy has done SO many accomplishments, such as defeating Ares and leading an army against Kronos. He has done things that are even considered impossible, such as diving from high distances. He was offered immortality! He is such a good swordsman.
Nico and many other characters have stated how Percy was the most powerful demigod they had ever met. That is how powerful he is. He has done every quest you can think of. Percy is also a noble character and is very humble and kind.
Leo Valdez

Leo Valdez is a major character from the book series Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan. He is one of the seven demigods mentioned in the Prophecy of Seven. A Greek demigod and the son of Hephaestus, Leo possesses the ability to create and manipulate fire, a power known as pyrokinesis.

So, it was just sad. Leo's past was sad, and his whole "seventh-wheel" and "no girlfriends until the end, but then in the end, he died" thing was just sad. I ship him with Hazel since they were incredibly connected. How can I explain it? It was just complicated. Nobody's past was as sad as his (even Nico's). He wore a mask of laughter to hide his pain.
He was hilarious, but that was just one side of him he created to hide his true feelings, and that was what made me love Leo.
Just think of it. He was the only character that actually died and caused actual grief among a lot of people. You know, only Sammy mourned Hazel's death? I'm sure I'm going to lose my appetite for weeks over Leo's death. A loss of an excellent character! But thankfully, he revived.
Nico di Angelo

Nico di Angelo is a fictional character created by Rick Riordan. He appears in Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus, and parts of The Trials of Apollo. As a son of Hades, Nico is a demigod with unique powers and responsibilities.... read more

I think Nico is the best because of everything he's been through. His mom died, then his sister, then the labyrinth, then Percy, then the bronze jar, then Cupid, then Jason, then hell. Twice! Tell me this guy hasn't been through enough! Despite that, he's also brave and powerful. I don't think, in either of the wars, if Nico wasn't on Percy's side, the end of the world wouldn't have happened. This is the best character, no doubts.

I simply love Nico. He is so full of emotions, pain, and sorrow. Despite this, he is an important presence for the Seven with his powers and his love throughout the whole series. He can fight everything, and he always exits from every single battle - with a monster or with feelings - a little bit weakened, a little bit more broken, but still there with his grin, his tears, and a lot of problems he never asked for but anyway has to deal with.
Besides, even if I didn't know him, I would love him only for saying, "Those who are heartless once cared too much." A sentence which means a lot to me. If I were a character in any book, I would probably have the way of thinking of Annabeth - curious, smart, a bit brave too - but totally the heart of Nico.
Annabeth Chase

Annabeth Chase is a daughter of Athena and one of the main characters in both the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and the Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan. She is also Percy Jackson's girlfriend and is recognized for her intelligence, leadership, and courage in battle, which all come from... read more

Annabeth is such a strong character. All the rest of the seven have supernatural abilities (e.g., flying, charmspeak, shapeshifting), whereas she only has her brains. Yet, I feel she is the strongest out of all of them because she uses common sense and logic to win battles. She outsmarts the enemy rather than beating them in a battle of physical strength. For this, she can be underestimated, but she always manages to come out on top.
Annabeth is a highly determined and ambitious character. She will stop at nothing to reach a goal and get what she wants. She has had a hard time trusting people at times, which is probably due to her past relationships with her family and with Luke. She often prefers to work independently. I think for this, she is misunderstood by people such as Leo, who find her intimidating and standoffish. But Annabeth feels she has to do everything herself, for fear if she allows someone else to carry out a task, they will get hurt or won't carry it out as well as she would. To be honest, she probably would do the job best.
Annabeth is such an under-appreciated character in so many ways. She is often viewed merely as Percy Jackson's girlfriend and labeled "the smart one" of the seven. But there is so much more depth to her character, and she is by far my favorite in the series.
Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano

Reyna is honestly one of my favorite characters in the series. Look at her life. Her backstory is one of my favorites. She had to kill her father to protect her sister. Then, she is imprisoned by pirates and goes to Camp Jupiter. She has such a tough personality and became praetor along with Jason. She loved Jason, but when she realized Piper and Jason were dating, she didn't let her grief ruin her.
And I think that she and Jason would've actually had a better relationship than Piper and Jason. She is a strong, confident person on the outside, but when you get to know her better, you realize how damaged she is. Like I said, she killed her father because she loved her sister. Then Jason goes missing, leaving her basically in charge of the camp alone. Then he comes back. But wait! He has a girlfriend. And she really loved him, but she never showed it.
Think about if your lifelong crush went missing for almost a year. You are paranoid but trying to stay calm. But then he shows up with a new girl and doesn't understand how much you cared about him. How would you feel? I would want to break down and cry my heart out, but she couldn't. Because she had to stay strong for the camp. She really deserves to be higher. She is a role model to me, and she should be one to you too.
Hazel Levesque

I never understood why people don't like her. She's amazing! She came back from the dead after seventy years. She was bullied and was rescued by Leo's great-grandfather. She had to move away from the one person who actually loved her.
After she comes back, she runs into a descendant of her old boyfriend but is still an awesome fighter!

Not many people like Hazel, and that's OK. It's their opinion. But then they start talking about Percy like he's the strongest. I am so sure that Hazel has the potential to be the strongest ever.
Her mist ability is super strong and could kill anyone in seconds. Take her fight with Pasiphae, for example. She just put a trap door under her feet and made her fall down, down, down.
We also saw what the Mist could do with Pasiphae's powers when she lifted the labyrinth. She was able to create a big hole with snakes at the bottom. Not to mention, the hole was very deep. Also, the wall was moving towards them, so at a point, it would've pushed them off.
Not to mention, Hazel can just bury you with gems, get you lost underground because you don't have the same sense of direction, or call on Arion and quickly slice you to death. (I love Hazel if it wasn't already obvious.) Also, her backstory is just pure peak writing.
Jason Grace

Jason Grace was the Roman demigod son of Jupiter, the Roman god of the sky, and the late actress Beryl Grace. He was the younger brother of Thalia Grace, whom Beryl had with Jupiter's Greek form, Zeus.
Jason served as the former co-praetor of Camp Jupiter and the counselor of Cabin 1 at Camp Half-Blood... read more

I don't think people understand that although he's "perfect" with so many characters, there had to be one of them. He's very powerful, and I don't think he should be compared to Percy because that's not fair to either of them. I think people often forget Percy was the original character, so duh, he's going to be a bit more overpowered than is realistic. He also gets more focus in terms of character development since the first series is literally named after him.
Jason is very Roman in that he's disciplined and respectful. Although he needed more character development, I feel he was still a good person and very skilled. I think Jason often is unfairly judged, and although I don't think he's the best character, he isn't as bad as people say he is. Rest in peace, Jason. You were brave, and you deserve Elysium.
Frank Zhang

Frank is really cool, but I feel like a lot of people don't appreciate him as they should.
I love the whole baby-face cuddly vibe that he gives off, even though he's the son of Mars and just wants to be taken seriously. I'm sorry, but honestly, Leo Valdez annoys me so much, and he's such a pain to poor Frank, tormenting him at every chance he gets.
And it drove me insane when he was starting to get interested in Hazel. It was like, "Back off, dude! Frank and Hazel were a thing WAY before you came into the picture." But it turned out all right.
Oh, and one of my favorite lines EVER is, "So your name's not Sammy?" I was dying laughing.

Frank is underrated. He deserves more credit. Yes, he didn't suffer as much as other demigods such as Annabeth, Nico, or Leo, but he did so much, and his power to shapeshift is very overlooked. That power could be used for so much, and he demonstrates it constantly.
Also, the fact that he did all of this while trying not to light a stick on fire is impressive, especially since he was almost always around Leo.
Piper McLean

Piper McLean is a fictional character created by Rick Riordan in The Heroes of Olympus series. She is one of the Seven demigods of the Great Prophecy and is the daughter of Aphrodite. Piper is known for her bravery, charm-speaking ability, and her complex relationship with Jason Grace.

To be honest, she really does a lot. She is just not portrayed as a badass, so people don't take her as seriously as she deserves. She stopped so many battles within the groups and outside. It's important to know that she takes care of the gang's emotional state, as well as helping them kill the enemies. She is a daughter of beauty but is also super smart. This is unique and unpredictable.
Annabeth is smart because she is the daughter of Athena. Piper goes against those odds of being a typical daughter of Aphrodite and is clever and down-to-earth. She is also the only reason Leo stayed at Wilderness and didn't run away. It's because he found a sister. He found family after a long time of being alone. She also risked her own life to save Nico, who she didn't even know at that point.
Calypso

I feel so happy for her at the end. She finally got off the freaking island. She is lovable and generally very cool!

She looks like me. She acts like me. She is awesome. I have made my point.

I love that Rick freed her from her curse and brought Leo back to her.

The Newcomers

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Meg McCaffrey

SO awesome. She deserves to be so much higher on this list.
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Ares

The Contenders

Iapetus (Bob)

Bob is an emotional character who does anything for friends, and even when he realizes what had happened, he still stays with them and saves Percy and Annabeth's lives.

Bob is cool and awesome! It was sad that he sacrificed himself.

Oh, Bob. That amazing Titan. He deserved more. I love him.
Festus

Oh my God! I love metal fire-breathing dragons repaired by my favorite human in HoO. Festus is just amazing.

What can you not like about Festus? He is a BRONZE DRAGON. There is nothing not to love. Also, the whole suitcase thing… amazing. I love Festus and the human that created him.

I want a metal dragon that actually breathes fire and flies and can compact into a suitcase!
Will Solace

My friends and I were shipping each other with PJ HoO characters, and I got shipped with Will. I love Will, and I don't like the people in the fandom that make him gay and like Nico.

The best boyfriend Nico could ever wish for! He is literally amazing!

He makes Nico happy. He's a ball of sunshine. What's not to like?
Blackjack

Blackjack is always there for Percy when he needs him. He even warmed up to Nico, who smelled like death, eventually.

Blackjack may annoy Percy, but he's never let him down and will push himself to his limits and beyond to help him.

Oh yeah! Anyone who thinks that Blackjack is not awesome is dead!
Thalia Grace

#1 favorite character. She's awesome and you can't deny it. She is super badass and one of the best fighters, not to mention that she's lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis.
Thalia's also so noble. She died to save her friends. How much better can you get? Rick needs to give her way more attention. She deserves her own book, if you ask me.

Thalia is fierce, fun, and great in battle. She is the daughter of Zeus and the sister of Jason. She joined the Hunters of Artemis and is my favorite character ever! You go, girl!

She is so powerful and cool. She could totally take down anyone in her path and is so loyal. She literally got turned into a tree because she chose to protect her friends.
Tyson

To me, Tyson is just one of the sweetest and most lovable characters ever. Peanut butter is the best battle cry. Try to change my mind.

Tyson is just really sweet, in my opinion. He's just so lovable.

Tyson is by far the most lovable character in PJO. He is so sweet and innocent and would do anything for his friends.
I love him.
Luke Castellan

Luke… At the beginning of the PJO series, he was one of, if not my favorite character. And then he had to go and break my 10-year-old heart.
Even though he made some tremendous and unforgivable mistakes, he is one of the best characters. He was a good person who was neglected. He didn't deserve the hand he got dealt, and I pity him. After he died, I was like, good riddance, but now thinking back on it, he was one of the best characters.
I ship him with Thalia all the way.

I mean, he sucked. Then you found out about him, and how can you not absolutely love him? He realized how wrong he was and thought he'd save the world and die as an apology.
Rachel Elizabeth Dare

I don't understand this. Rachel is amazing. We hate her for having a crush on Percy, which is stupid. We all had a crush on Percy. Rachel just happened to be the closest to actually getting with him and potentially ruining Percabeth, so we hate her.
We need to just freaking let it go. She became the freaking Oracle, which was super dangerous. Stop hating on her. She is totally amazing.

She is feisty and can give out prophecies. She also had a crush on Percy aside from Annabeth, and yet Rachel and Annabeth get along fine in The Lost Hero.
Not only that, but they both search for Percy together.
Small Bob

Small Bob is awesome. I love Bob too, of course, but Small Bob that little bit more.

Best cat ever! Small Bob and Festus are the best.

Small Bob is better than everyone.
Gleeson Hedge

Coach Hedge is hilarious. He isn't that smart because no matter the situation, the only solution is to yell DIE while holding a club.
It adds some hilarity to moments that have the potential to be funny but normally wouldn't. I love Coach Hedge!

Hedge should be higher up. He's not the best, but he's so funny, yet also protective and understanding.

He technically counts as a main character since he is there almost as often.
Mrs. O'Leary

She is friendly and awesome. I know I want her as my pet.

How dare you! Mrs. O'Leary is absolutely cool! Really, a friendly hellhound? That's just so cool!
Bianca di Angelo

Bianca reminds me of myself, which I don't always see in a character. I know that a ton of characters are too good to be real, and I love them (Jason and Percy), but Bianca seems so realistic.

Bianca should get more credit! She was an amazing older sister. I wish she was my sister!

I really wish she didn't die, and she's the sister of my favourite character.
Zoë Nightshade

She is sort of mean at first but so loyal. She died for Artemis and trained her Hunters well. Also, the dam scene in one of the books is hilarious!

She had a troubled past, but she is worthy of Artemis herself.

I don't think she should've died, but at least it was to defeat Atlas.
Artemis

Artemis is so strong. She's like the only god who isn't a jerk!
Ella

If you're familiar with Riordan's first series, you would think of harpies as mindless, bumbling chicken ladies, but she is able to redefine her type of myth. Plus, she's the loveable Tyson the Cyclops' girlfriend.