Contemplated compositions, devices, and methods are drawn to various antigens from Herpes Simplex Virus type 1 (HSV-1) and Herpes Simplex Virus type 2 (HSV-2) and their use in vaccines, therapeutic agents, and various diagnostic tests. In particularly preferred aspects, the antigens are immunodominant and have quantified and known relative reactivities with respect to sera of a population infected with the pathogen, and/or have a known association with a disease parameter.