Zelda: Difference between revisions

| caption      = Key art of Zelda from ''Tears of the Kingdom''

Zelda is the ruling princess of [[Lesser Hyrule]] in ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]''. When [[Ganon]] his army into Hyrule and seized the [[Triforce of Power]], Zelda took the [[Triforce of Wisdom]] and broke it into [[Triforce Shard|eight fragments]]. She then told her servant, [[Impa]], to find someone with enough courage to find the pieces and use it to destroy Ganon; the evil king found out about this and imprisoned Zelda. She is ultimately rescued by [[Link (The Legend of Zelda)|Link]], after he reunites the Triforce of Wisdom and defeats Ganon.

==''Oracle of Seasons'' and ''Oracle of Ages''==

The Royal Princess of Hyrule, Zelda is a sign of hope to the people of Hyrule. She has vivid dreams which allow her to foresee evil in the distance. Zelda sends her royal nurse Impa to the land of Labrynna in order to find Nayru, the Oracle of Ages, and bring her back to safety in Hyrule. However, Impa never quite completed that journey as planned and the evil power of Veran took control of Impa, and eventually the Oracle of Ages herself.  

[[File:FSA-Princess-Zelda.png|200px|right]] In ''Four Swords Adventures'', Princess Zelda uses her telepathy to call her friend [[Link]] and ask him to come to [[Hyrule Castle]]. Link joins Zelda and the [[Shrine Maidens]] to investigate the seal on [[Vaati]] at the [[Four Sword Sanctuary]], due to the ominous clouds and darkness covering [[Hyrule]]. Before they can reach the Four Sword Sanctuary, [[Shadow Link]] appears and imprisons Zelda and the Maidens. Link gives chase to the Four Sword Sanctuary, where he draws the [[Four Sword]], splitting himself into four and releasing the seal on the Wind Mage Vaati.

After being sent to a remote area of Hyrule, the Links search the land for the Maidens and Princess Zelda. They eventually find Princess Zelda inside the [[Tower of Winds (Four Swords Adventures)|Tower of Winds]] and continue to the [[Realm of the Heavens]]. Once the Links find the [[Dark Mirror]], they are powerless to stop it from endlessly producing Shadow Links. Princess Zelda uses her power to stop the Mirror and end Shadow Link's presence.  

Once the Links defeat Vaati, the Tower of Winds begins to collapse, forcing Link and Zelda to retreat to safety. During this phase, Zelda must be protected and certain puzzles must be solved to allow her to progress. Upon nearing the exit of the Tower, the floor begins to collapse, sending the Links and Zelda deep beneath the Tower.  

While the four Links are incapacitated, Zelda attempts to seal away [[Ganon]] herself, but is imprisoned once again. The four Links wake up and fight Ganon together, and eventually weaken him enough to break the seal on Zelda. The Links must then protect Zelda from Ganon's attacks while she creates a ball of light intended to paralyze Ganon. Once the ball of light is ready, the Links then shoot a [[Light Arrow]] through it and into Ganon, stunning him momentarily. Princess Zelda and the Maidens proceed to seal Ganon away within the Four Sword, defeating Ganon and restoring peace to Hyrule.  

Once again, Zelda takes on the role as the princess of Hyrule.  

Zelda is Link's childhood friend. At the beginning of the game, Zelda takes Link to the [[Picori Festival]]. She takes part in a lottery competition and wins first prize. Although there were many fine prizes, Zelda chooses a [[shield]] and gives it to Link. However, when celebrating the winner of the sword competition that was held, the winner turns out to be the evil Wind Mage [[Vaati]] and he turns Zelda to stone. Thus Link sets out on a quest to find a way to save Zelda.  

After Link retrieves the three [[Fused Shadow]]s for Midna, Zant appears and casts a curse on Link which prevents him from returning to Hylian form when not in Twilight. After Midna refuses to assist Zant in conquering the world of light, he mortally wounds her by exposing her to light. Immediately after this, the [[Light Spirit]] [[Lanayru (Light Spirit)|Lanayru]] transports Link and Midna from Zant's presence, and the injured Minda tells Link to hurry to Princess Zelda.  

Zelda is the princess of the Royal Family of Hyrule and a descendant of [[Tetra]] from ''[[The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker|The Wind Waker]]''.  Princess Zelda suspects that Chancellor Cole is involved with the recent disappearance of the Spirit Tracks that seal away the Demon King. After Princess Zelda slips Link a note so that the two could meet in private, they escape the castle and begin a journey to the Tower of Spirits.  

Princess Zelda appears in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds|A Link Between Worlds]]'' and resembles her princess appearance from previous Zelda titles. Much like in ''Ocarina of Time'', [[Impa]] is her nursemaid.  

[[Link]] first meets Zelda after he witnesses [[Seres]] being transformed into a painting by [[Yuga]]. At first, Zelda does not know who Link is, but she mentions that she saw him in her dreams. After being told about Seres, the princess takes the events seriously and gives Link the [[Pendant of Courage]], one of three crucial elements to obtaining the [[Master Sword]]. Zelda then tells Link to seek the elder [[Sahasrahla (A Link Between Worlds)|Sahasrahla]], who will be able to give him more information about what to do next.  

Zelda appears in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild|Breath of the Wild]]'', once again as the princess of [[Hyrule#Breath of the Wild|Hyrule]]. From a young age, Zelda was scholarly and interested in research. This eventually transformed into a passion with the discovery of the [[Guardian (Breath of the Wild)|Guardians]] and the [[Divine Beast]]s early in her life. After her mother died when Zelda was six years old, the duty fell upon the princess to discover the power of the Goddess [[Hylia]] that slept within her. This proved to be difficult, however, for varying reasons. Zelda was often more interested in discovering the secrets of the ancient [[Sheikah]] technology found throughout Hyrule; and the "sealing power" eludes her, much to the the displeasure of her father, [[King Rhoam|King Rhoam Bosphoramus Hyrule]]. For some time, she took the frustrations of this out on her designated protector, the Hylian Champion [[Link (Breath of the Wild)|Link]], that Link's path as the chosen hero was of relative ease - but she began to warm up to him after he saved her life from a [[Yiga Clan]] attack in [[Kara Kara Bazaar]].

When Calamity Ganon finally returned, Zelda still had not awoken the power deep inside her. The plans she created as the leader of the [[Champion]]s began to rapidly unravel. All four Champions, many of Hyrule's residents, and her father died soon after Ganon's takeover. Ganon took control of the Divine Beasts and Guardians and used them to annihilate [[Central Hyrule]]. With nowhere left to turn, Zelda was on the run with Link, trying to recover any ground they could. The two were heavily outmatched, however, and were trapped by a [[Guardian Stalker]] on [[Blatchery Plain]] in [[West Necluda]]. With his last breaths, Link, still trying to protect Zelda, confronted the Guardian. Zelda however, managed to find the courage to confront the Guardian herself and protect Link in the face of evil. By doing so she finally unlocked her power and used it to destroy many Guardians within the nearby area.  

All was not well though, as Link soon collapsed to the ground and died in Zelda's arms. When she had finally lost all hope, the Master Sword began to glow with a blue aura and spoke to the Princess. The voice speaking to her was [[Fi]], who indicated that Link could still be saved if he was taken to the [[Shrine of Resurrection]]. After Link began his slumber, Zelda traveled to the [[Korok Forest]] and placed the Master Sword in its pedestal to wait for its master to return in one hundred years. She then made her way back to Hyrule Castle, and used her newfound power to contain Ganon until Link's return.  

Once one hundred years had passed, Link was awoken by Zelda's voice in the Shrine of Resurrection. She informed Link that her power to contain Ganon within the Castle was weakening, and soon she would no longer be able to contain the evil. After the King's spirit informed Link of how to approach the new world, Zelda watched over Link as he wrested the Divine Beasts from Ganon's control. Combined with the power of these beasts and the Master Sword, Link returned to Hyrule Castle as Zelda's power finally gave way and Ganon broke free of his prison.  

[[File:TotK Zelda.jpg|right|200px]]

{{quote|The heir to a power that imprisons darkness. She sacrificed her freedom over 100 years ago to keep Calamity Ganon sealed away and prevent him from further destroying Hyrule. After Link helped free her from that long duty, she committed herself to rebuilding and restoring Hyrule-but has now gone missing.|In-Game Description}}

 

 

Zelda first appears in the prologue to ''Tears of the Kingdom''. She is exploring the [[Beneath Hyrule Castle]] area with [[Link]], after [[Gloom]] has started to appear and afflict nearby Hylians. When the two find the [[Zonai]] murals along the walls of the passage, she is initially excited to learn of [[Hyrule]]'s founding's that correlate with her studies. After venturing further into the area they discover the corpse of [[Ganon#Tears of the Kingdom|Ganondorf]]. When the arm holding him falls to the ground, a [[Secret Stone|stone]] falls towards Zelda, which she picks up. Ganondorf soon comes to life, and lifts [[Hyrule Castle#Tears of the Kingdom|Hyrule Castle]] into the air, along with destroying the cavern they are in. Zelda falls with the crumbling ground, and disappears into a bright light.  

 

Once Link awakens on the [[Great Sky Island]], he is given the [[Purah Pad]] by a [[Steward Construct]], who says it is from Zelda. He is led to believe that Zelda can be found in the [[Temple of Time (Tears of the Kingdom)|Temple of Time]]. This begins the [[Find Princess Zelda]] Main Quest. After opening the door to the Temple, he obtains a [[Recall]] ability from her presence, and uses it to complete another shrine. This allows Link to venture into the area behind the Temple, where he places a glowing [[Master Sword]] into a ball of light. This transfers the sword to Zelda, who is seemingly in a past time. Zelda asks Link to find her somewhere in Hyrule. 

After conferring with [[Purah]], Link travels to the crew investigating the floating Hyrule Castle. There they see Zelda, who mysteriously ascends into the sky and disappears. Purah then advises Link to investigate the four [[Regional Phenomena]], strange reports that come from each major area of Hyrule. At each of these locations, the local residents will report that they have interacted with Zelda. Her presence usually causes detrimental effects, or she doesn't seem to be her normal self. Many times during Link's investigation Zelda appears in front of him, but she disappears before she can be reached.  

When Link helps to resolve one of these afflictions in each area, a former [[Sage]] will tell a story of the [[Imprisoning War]] that was first fought against Ganondorf. [[Rauru (Tears of the Kingdom|Rauru]] and six other Sages, including Zelda as the Sage of Time, attempted to defeat Ganondorf. They were unable to, and Rauru opted to sacrifice his life to keep Ganondorf sealed underneath Hyrule Castle. After resolving all the Regional Phenomena, those at the [[Lookout Landing]] see Zelda up at the Castle floating in the sky. Once Link makes his way there, he chases her around the Castle. As he almost reaches her each time, she is replaced by monsters. She finally appears at the [[Sanctum]], and is explained by Ganondorf to be a fake meant to distract them while he regains his power.  

==Past Zelda==

As instructed by Purah, Link finds the missing fifth Sage, [[Mineru]]. She recounts the Imprisoning War, and notes her experiences with Zelda eons ago. Zelda used her Recall ability to distract Ganondorf, which allowed Rauru to seal him away. When Link transferred the Master Sword to her in the past, she looked for a way to restore it back to its former state. The only way she could was with a method forbidden by the Zonai, but Zelda was firm in her decision and committed to it. Mineru promised Zelda that she would aid Link, even as a spirit, when the time came. She asks Link to find the Master Sword somewhere out in Hyrule.  

Link finds the Master Sword impaled into the head of the [[Light Dragon]] while it is flying around Hyrule. If he has enough [[Stamina Wheel|Stamina]], he will be able to pull the Sword out. This causes him to experience a vision of Zelda, who tells him that the Master Sword is the key to destroying the Demon King. She imparted her strength into the Sword, and hoped it would reach him in the future.  

 

 

In an ending scene that can be found only after completing all [[Main Quest]]s, Link, Purah, Mineru, and all living Sages appear in the Sky at the location where Link transferred the Master Sword to Zelda. The Sages pledge their allegiance and support to Zelda. Mineru disappears for a final time, having completed the task she had originally promised Zelda she would uphold. Zelda promises that she will always work towards the vision of Hyrule that King Rauru, Queen Sonia, and the original Sages had wished for - a land of peace for all time.  

In [[Zelda (Game & Watch)|the ''Zelda'' Game & Watch LCD game]], Princess Zelda is [[Link]]'s "sweetheart", kidnapped by eight evil [[Dragon (LCD Games)|dragons]] who "refused to live in peace with man." Link intends to "destroy the dragons" in revenge and save Zelda.{{Ref|Zelda (Game & Watch) [https://www.zeldadungeon.net/gallery/thumbnails.php?album{{=}}496 instruction manual]}}

File:Zelda-LoZ-Art-2.png|Zelda Artwork from ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]''

File:Zelda-Ages-Sprite.png|Zelda Sprite from ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons|Oracle of Seasons]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages|Oracle of Ages]]''

File:Zelda-Minish-Cap-Sprite.png|Zelda Sprite from ''[[The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap|The Minish Cap]]''

File:Zelda Spirit Tracks Ghost.png|Key art of Zelda in Ghost form from ''Spirit Tracks''