Hyrule Castle (Twilight Princess)
Games | ||
Location | ||
Boss | ||
Mini-bosses | ||
Inhabitants | ||
Rewards | Completion of Game | |
| Guides | ||
|---|---|---|
Walkthrough | ||
Hyrule Castle is the final dungeon in Twilight Princess. It isn't the longest dungeon in the game; however, it contains a collection of some of the most difficult enemies in the entire game. Link and Midna go to Hyrule Castle directly after learning from Zant that his God (Ganondorf) has escaped the Twilight Realm, and has been reborn in the Light World.[1] Midna makes the connection to the strange Twilight Barrier that has taken shape surrounding Hyrule Castle. She uses the Fused Shadows to destroy the barrier and open the entrance to Hyrule Castle.
The first obstacle for Link as he enters the Hyrule Castle Courtyard is to collect a key to unlock the entrance to the actual castle portion of the dungeon. This objective leads him into a fight with one of the Mini-Bosses of Hyrule Castle, King Bulblin. Once Link has gotten the key and has entered the castle, he will face off against the other two Mini-Bosses of the dungeon; a Darknut and an Aeralfos. Eventually, Link makes his way to the top of the castle, and into the Throne Room. Here, he finds Ganondorf, sitting on the Throne of Hyrule. They chat; which mainly consists of Ganondorf calling the Interlopers' attempt to defy the gods pathetic.[2] He later admits that they had possessed some skill, just lacked power.[3] Soon enough, Link and Ganondorf begin the final fight of the game; an epic four-phase battle that requires Link to have mastered everything he has learned throughout his adventure.
Enemies
Hyrule Castle features a mix of the hardest enemies Twilight Princess has to offer. This is fitting because Hyrule Castle is the final dungeon in Twilight Princess. Below is a list of all the enemies in Hyrule Castle.
- Enemies in the Hyrule Castle
Mini-Bosses
- Main article: King Bulblin
- Main article: Darknut
- Main article: Aeralfos
Hyrule Castle features three separate Mini-Bosses, all of which are very difficult enemies that are each much too familiar to Link. The three Mini-Bosses include King Bulblin, a Darknut, and an Aeralfos. The first battle is against King Bulblin in the Hyrule Castle Courtyard. This battle is very similar to the one that they had in the Bulblin hideout in the Gerudo Desert, where King Bulblin was guarding the entrance to Arbiter's Grounds. It is a difficult battle, but one that can easily be won by using constant Back Slices or Helm Splitters. The reward for defeating him is the key that will unlock the door that leads to Hyrule Castle. Next up is the battle against the Darknut. It is not any different from any Darknut fight Link has had before, and is a quick and easy battle. The only reward for winning this battle is the ability to move on in the dungeon. The final Mini-Boss battle in Hyrule Castle is against an Aeralfos. The Aeralfos is an enemy that Link has seen multiple times before, mainly inside the City in the Sky, so again the battle is quite easy. The reward for defeating it is another Small Key.
Ganondorf
- Main article: Ganondorf
The Boss of Hyrule Castle, who is also the Final Boss of Twilight Princess, is a very common The Legend of Zelda villain, Ganondorf. The battle against Ganondorf has four different phases, all of which involve Ganondorf being in a different form. In the first phase, he has possessed Zelda and used her as a puppet to fight Link. Phase Number 2 has Ganondorf in his Ganon form, very similarly to the final battle against Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time. The third phase takes place on horseback in Hyrule Field. The fourth and final phase is a classic Sword-and-Shield battle, where the best swordsman will win. Ganondorf wields the Sages' Sword, the same one they tried to kill him with, which he kept after being imprisoned into the Twilight Realm. After hitting Ganondorf with the Ending Blow, he will stand and start to talk. He tells Link to not think that this is the end,[4] saying the history of light and shadow will be written in blood.[5] It is then that the Triforce of Power leaves Ganondorf, and he dies.
Dungeon Items
Hyrule Castle features the same four Dungeon Items that all dungeons in Twilight Princess have; the Dungeon Map, the Compass, the Big Key, and the Small Keys.
Dungeon Map
- Main article: Dungeon Map
The Dungeon Map can be found in a Treasure Chest while Link is searching the left side, right side in the GCN version, of the Hyrule Castle Courtyard. The chest is guarded by a fence, and the only way to move this fence is to use the Gale Boomerang on the windmills in the area in a specific way designated by the design on the ground just ahead of the fence. Doing it correcting with allow Link the opportunity to grab the Dungeon Map.
Compass
- Main article: Compass
The second Dungeon Item is known as the Compass. The Compass will show Link the location of every Treasure Chest in the dungeon by displaying a small icon on the map which corresponds to the actual location of the chest. It can be found in the first room of the actual castle portion of the dungeon on the platform that Link can climb to with his Clawshot. The chest will not appear until Link has defeated all the Bokoblins and Lizalfos in the area below.
Big Key
- Main article: Big Key
The Big Key is the one and only key that has the ability to open the locked door that guards the Throne Room, the location where Ganondorf lies. It is found in a large chest inside Hyrule Castle.
Small Keys
- Main article: Small Key
In total, there are three Small Keys found in Hyrule Castle that all unlock a locked door somewhere in the dungeon. The first is acquired after defeating King Bulblin. The second is found in a chest in the secret area to the north of the castle, and the final one is found on a balcony area inside Hyrule Castle, being guarded by an Aeralfos. Only two of these three keys are required to complete the dungeon, the third one is completely optional. If completed, it allows Link to enter a room that can be found directly beside the locked Boss Door. It is filled with chests that contain Rupees and other goodies.
Treasure Chests
Hyrule Castle contains a total of 27 Treasure Chests, which is by far the most of any dungeon in Twilight Princess. Inside all these Treasure Chests are items that can be spilt in three main categories: Rupees, Dungeon Items, and Regular Items.
Rupees
In total, there are sixteen Treasure Chests in Hyrule Castle that house any amount of Rupees. Two of these chests holds the most valuable rupee in the entire game, the Silver Rupee. It is worth a whopping 200 Rupees, and is very, very rare. The next two chests both carry a single Orange Rupee, which in Twilight Princess is worth 100 Rupees. The third most valuable rupee in Twilight Princess, the Purple Rupee, can be found in three chests. Of the 9 remaining chests, four hold a Red Rupee, two hold a Yellow Rupee, one carries a Blue Rupee, and the final two house a single Green Rupee. That's a total of 857 Rupees waiting to be collected. Unfortunately, Rupees are pretty much useless at this point in the game, so most of, if not all of, these Rupees will be wasted.
Dungeon Items
Of the six Dungeon Items that are found in Hyrule Castle, all of them except for a single Small Key are found in a Treasure Chest throughout the dungeon. The Dungeon Map is, the Compass is, the Big Key is, and two of the three Small Keys are.
Regular Items
There is a large assortment of Regular Items that are found in Treasure Chests throughout the dungeon. These items include Pumpkin Seeds, Bombs, Arrows, and Water Bombs.
Pumpkin Seeds
There is but a single Treasure Chest in Hyrule Castle that contains any amount of Pumpkin Seeds, which are used by Link with his Slingshot. The Treasure Chest contains 50 seeds, and is found in the optional room at the end of the dungeon.
Bombs
There are two Treasure Chests in Hyrule Castle that contain Bombs. The first contains a small amount of ten Bombs. The second doubles this total, containing twenty Bombs.
Arrows
There are two chests in Hyrule Castle that contains any amount of Arrows. The first carries 30, while the second carries 20. These arrows can be used with Link's Hero's Bow.
Water Bombs
The final Treasure Chest in Hyrule Castle contains Water Bombs, fifteen to be exact. This is an odd item to collect, as Water Bombs are never used in Hyrule Castle.
References
- ↑ "Already he has descended and been reborn in this world... As long as my master, Ganon, survives, he will resurrect me without cease!" — Zant, Twilight Princess.
- ↑ "Your people have long amused me, Midna. To defy the gods with such petty magic, only to be cast aside... How very pathetic." — Ganon, Twilight Princess.
- ↑ "Your people had some skill, to be sure...but they lacked true power." — Ganon, Twilight Princess.
- ↑ "Do not think this ends here..." — Ganon, Twilight Princess.
- ↑ "The history of light and shadow will be written in blood!" — Ganon, Twilight Princess.