Heracleo (Spartacus)

Heracleo leads a band of Cilician pirates, commanding them with cunning and opportunism.

Names	Heracleo
Gender	Male ♂
Race	Human
Occupation	Pirate
Origin	Spartacus: War of the Dammed Episode 3: (S3E#) "Men of Honor" (February 8, 2013)
Alignment	Anti-Villain
Age	30s
Created By	Steven S, DeKnight, Brent Fletcher
Height	185 cm (6ft 0in)
Weight	77kg (169.7 lbs) (12.1 st)
Personality Type	ESTP
Portrayed By	Vince Colosimo

Appearance

A middle-aged pirate with dark hair and a foreign accent, Heracleo has a distinctive presence. He wears a leather cloak and a rag around his head, with a small dimple beside his nose. In battle, he wields a unique axe, later replacing it with an unusual sword while in the service of Crassus. After his clash with Spartacus, he acquires a prominent scar on his forehead.

Personality

Charismatic and captivating, Heracleo carries an undeniable charm. He is outgoing and celebratory, often insisting on revelry even in mundane moments, much to Spartacus' annoyance. He delights in showcasing his influence, cheering loudly when proving his reach extends far. A frequent drinker, he shares camaraderie with his fellow pirates, including Castus. His humor is sharp, dubbing Spartacus "King Spartacus" in jest. However, beneath his jovial exterior lies a cunning and unprincipled man.

Heracleo is a self-serving privateer, driven solely by wealth and personal gain. While he fulfills his agreements, his loyalty is dictated by profit, making him prone to betrayal if a better offer arises. His reputation for deceit and lack of honor has led the rebels to question his reliability, particularly regarding grain trade dealings. Despite his prior alliance with Ennius, Heracleo harbors a strong attraction to Ennius' wife, Laeta, and brazenly pursues her—even after branding her as his slave.

Biography

War of the Damned

Heracleo arrives at the city gates alongside Castus, Tryphon, and Adherbal, carrying a wine amphora as an offering for trade. He soon reveals that he has a secret arrangement with the city's Aedile, requiring the official's seal to ensure safe commerce.

Despite the mistrust of others in his army, Spartacus ultimately agrees to a deal with the pirate.

Outside the city, tensions rise when Heracleo delivers fewer supplies than promised. Unarmed and on the verge of a brawl, the situation shifts when Tiberius leads a sudden Roman attack. Instead of dividing them, the ambush forces Spartacus’ rebels and Heracleo’s pirates to unite against a common enemy. In the battle, Heracleo personally saves Spartacus' life. Seizing the opportunity, he signals his ships, which bombard the Romans with explosive projectiles, earning Spartacus’ trust and finalizing their agreement.

Despite securing supplies for the rebels, Heracleo’s shipments are often heavier in wine than food due to the scarcity of food-bearing ships as winter approaches. He warns Spartacus against wasting resources on Roman prisoners, but Spartacus remains steadfast in his principles. Nonetheless, they move forward with a larger scheme—one that promises profits for Heracleo and strategic gains for the rebellion.

One night, Heracleo and Castus drink with Nemetes and Lysiscus. As Castus passes out and Heracleo grows intoxicated, Nemetes and Lysiscus take advantage of his loose tongue, extracting information about Spartacus’ plans. Nemetes hurries to inform Crixus, while Lysiscus stays to press Heracleo for more details.

The next day, Heracleo and his crew depart on their ships, setting their plan into motion. At the docks, Spartacus bids him farewell and assigns his trusted man, Sanus, to accompany the pirates. Before leaving, Heracleo assures Spartacus they will return for Castus, who remains unconscious from the previous night’s revelry.

Following an unseen negotiation with the Romans and the murder of Sanus, Heracleo reappears at the port with his fleet. When questioned about Sanus' fate, he cryptically replies, "He did not fall to the Romans, but to desires and the weight of gold no king could resist," before unleashing hidden Roman soldiers from within the ships.

A fierce battle erupts as Spartacus and Gannicus fight off the ambush. Heracleo briefly duels Pollux, managing to throw him overboard before the rebels rally together—Crixus, Naevia, and others cutting down the Roman forces. Spartacus leaps onto the ship, killing one of Heracleo’s pirates before personally challenging the pirate captain. Their duel is brief but brutal; Spartacus lands a devastating blow, splitting Heracleo’s head open and knocking him into the sea with a deep gash across his face.

Surviving his injuries, Heracleo has the wound stitched and regroups with Crassus. True to their agreement, Crassus rewards him with gold and grants him Laeta, despite her protests as a Roman citizen. Heracleo has his men bind and gag her. Before departing, Crassus warns him to leave the city within a set time—or face death.

Heracleo drags Laeta to Attius’ forge, claiming she will be his queen. He forcibly brands her with his mark, making her his slave. Before he can act further, Sibyl and Gannicus arrive. Heracleo, amused by Gannicus’ survival, justifies his betrayal, arguing that selling out Spartacus was necessary to avoid a brutal death and secure wealth. When Gannicus threatens him, Heracleo mockingly acknowledges the gladiator's prowess but warns that in their battle, he might kill "the little one"—indicating Sibyl—before he falls. Gannicus coldly dismisses the claim and attacks.

During the fight, Gannicus appears to defeat Heracleo and turns his attention to the remaining pirates. However, Heracleo, still conscious, seizes Sibyl, pressing a sword to her throat. Gannicus realizes too late and panics as the pirate taunts him, claiming, "So you do care for her? A pity—because now she dies!" Before he can act, Laeta, seizing the moment, plunges a red-hot branding iron into Heracleo’s throat. Stunned, he clutches the iron before collapsing, dead.

Afterwards, Gannicus takes Heracleo’s cloak and necklace as a disguise, ensuring the pirate's legacy ends in obscurity.

Trivia

• Heracleo is the first and only known person to be killed by Laeta.
• As Laeta is the only known Roman to be unwillingly branded as a slave, Heracleo is also the first and only character in the series to enslave a Roman.
• It remains unclear how he managed to survive underwater despite suffering a severe head wound.
• In an interview, series creator Steven S. DeKnight revealed that Heracleo's name is based on a real-life pirate leader active during the time of the Third Servile War. However, whether this historical figure was the actual pirate who collaborated with Spartacus remains uncertain.
• As the commander of multiple ships, Heracleo may have held the maritime title of Navarchos, an ancient Greek term meaning "leader of ships" or admiral, which dates back to the Peloponnesian War.
• In many ways, Heracleo serves as the pirate equivalent of Ashur.