In this account of the Trojan War, it all begins with the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. For Eris, the goddess of discord was slighted, she threw a golden apple among the guests inscribed with 'for the fairest.' The goddesses Hera, Athene, and Aphrodite all claimed the apple, leading to a quarrel. This quarrel was resolved by Paris, the son of Priam, King of Troy, who awarded the apple to Aphrodite in return for a promise of the most beautiful woman in the world, thus, making enemies of the other two goddesses.
This beautiful woman was Helen, wife of Menelaus, King of Sparta. Paris persuaded Helen to flee with him to Troy, leading to an outrage from Menelaus, who called together the leaders of Greece to help him recover Helen. The response was swift, with formidable warriors like Ajax, Diomedes, Nestor, Odysseus, and Achilles joining the cause.
Meanwhile, on the Trojan side, the heroic Hector, brother of Paris, decided to defend his city out of a sense of duty and loyalty. After nine years of war, during which Achilles distinguished himself as a formidable warrior, the tide turned when Achilles withdrew from the war due to a disagreement with Agamemnon. His friend Patroclus borrowed his armour, deceiving the Trojans into thinking Achilles had rejoined the fight. Hector ended up killing Patroclus, which reanimated Achilles' fighting spirit. Achilles then sought revenge leading to Hector's death, causing a severe blow to the Trojans.
Paris subsequently shot a poisoned arrow at Achilles, guided by the gods, that hit his only vulnerable spot - his heel, killing him. With many setbacks and a struggle to conquer Troy, the Greeks resorted to a cunning trick involving a large wooden horse. This horse, perceived as a peace offering by the Greeks, was taken into the city of Troy by the Trojans.
However, Greek soldiers were hidden inside the horse. When the city was silent at night, they came out of the wooden horse, opened the city gates for the rest of the Greek soldiers, and launched an ambush, leading to the slaughter of the Trojans and the fall of Troy. Finally, Menelaus found Helen and took her back to Sparta. The epic tale ended with a completely destroyed city of Troy.