Here’s How You Beat the New Version of Odolwa in Majora’s Mask 3D

For those unaware, the Odolwa boss fight in Majora’s Mask 3D has been completely revamped to the point where you have to throw out the old strategy to beat him originally and attempt all new tactics. As such, I am giving you a spoiler warning right now – the entirety of this fight is spoiled ahead.

Originally there were two ways to beat Odolwa. You could pop up and do damage to him from below by popping out of a Deku flower, or you could more commonly stun him with an arrow strike, and then slash away at any part of his body – typically his legs. Rinse and repeat until defeated. He wasn’t a particularly difficult fight and for many it was a bit of a let down – there was really no strategy involved and he barely blocked or made any sort of effort to attack the player. Everything has changed, arguably for the better.

The following information is based upon a summary of the fight by Zelda Universe and a gameplay video from IGN which will be displayed at the bottom of this post.

As with all the bosses in Majora’s Mask 3D, an eye has been added to the boss as a weak point. The eye is located on the back of his head and striking it is the only way to do any real damage to him. There are three methods you can use to cause the damage, including two methods that will stun him entirely, allowing for quick sword slashes to the eye to seal his fate.

Strategy One: Nuts from Above

Nintendo has added in more Deku flowers this time around, encouraging the player to make better use of them. Instead of popping up from underneath him, a very difficult strategy in the first place and one that no longer damages in, instead you can merely fly above him and drop Deku Nuts from above directly onto the eye. One direct hit to that eye from above will stun him. In classic Zelda fashion, this opens him up to a few direct slashes to the eye itself for a few seconds. You can use this method over and over again to defeat him in what is proibably the easiest strategy of them all if done correctly.

Strategy Two: Ranged Victory

One method that is a built off the original version of the boss is the ability to stun him with a well place arrow. The arrow has to be a direct hit to the eye on the back of his head, which is much harder to pull off because Odolwa is much better at block attacks this time around. He also moves a bit more than he use to and is a lot more aggressive. Still, you can dodge and get behind him and still stun him with a well placed arrow – but you have to be absolutely perfect in execution. I could see this being a method speedrunners might work to perfect. Once stunned, slash away.

Strategy Three: Swordsmanship

This is by far the longest strategy in terms of battle length, but also one that is effective. You can beat the boss by using nothing but your sword. If you properly dodge Odolwa’s attack, there is a small opening to get in some slashes on his legs. This won’t cause any direct damage like it use to, but he will still flash red with every spot on attack. Perform enough of these attacks and it will also stun him, essentially chopping him down to size. This allows you to attack his exposed eye just like the other two methods. This is a much slower strategy, since it requires multiple attacks to reach the stun phase.

I’m sure over time folks will find new strategies for beating Odolwa, such as some tricky bomb throws. As it stands today however, these are the three preferred methods for beating a boss who’s challenge and strategies have been altered to fit a more updated design.