The Centauromachy (or the battle of Centaurs and Lapiths) is a significant episode in Becoming Jason. The episode is strongly based on the Metamorphoses by Ovid, whose version had a memorable impact upon me when I read it at school. The myth is based around the wedding of the Lapith king Pirithous and Hippodamia. The centaurs are reluctantly invited as bastard offspring of Pirithous' father Ixion.

The episode allows me to introduce the young Theseus. Although he will not sail with the expedition, he will have a signfiicant role in later on in the saga. It also allows me to introduce Nestor, well-known from his role in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and even at this young age demonstrating the wisdom and good counsel for which he is famed. The greater role of the centaur Nessus in Becoming Jason allows me to add some elements to the myth and another justification for the centaur's hatred of men.