In Greek mythology, Meriones was a Cretan hero, son of Molus (half-brother of Idomeneus) and comrade-in-arms of King Idomeneus at Troy. Homer calls him a peer of Ares; he fights, spies, helps carry Patroclus, and wins the archery contest at the funeral games.
Adapted from Wikipedia, "Meriones (mythology)" · CC BY-SA 4.0
I.Family and rank
Meriones is son of Molus and Melphis or Euippe. Through Deucalion son of Minos he descends from Zeus, Europa, Helios, and Pasiphaë. Apollodorus places Molus as Deucalion's bastard brother of Idomeneus; Meriones thus stands as the king's squire and dearest comrade. He inherits from Molus the helmet once stolen by Autolycus, which he later lends to Odysseus on the night raid. Hyginus lists him among Helen's suitors; other catalogues omit him.
II.In the Iliad and later epic
In the Catalogue of Ships he co-leads Crete's eighty ships with Idomeneus. He volunteers against Hector, stands sentinel, offers to join Diomedes' spy mission, fights beside Idomeneus like Ares with Panic, wounds Deiphobus, and helps Menelaus bear Patroclus from the field. At the funeral games he places fourth in the chariot race but wins the archery contest by shooting the dove after Teucer cuts its string.
Quintus of Smyrna keeps him active against Amazons and other foes and places him in the Wooden Horse. He is not the minor Trojan or later operatic wanderer of the same name-tradition; this node is Homer's Cretan captain.