Palace of Twilight/Hyrule Castle
Items/Weapons: Light Sword
Heart Pieces: 2 // 45/45
Poe Souls: 3 // 60/60
Golden Bugs: 0 // 24/24
Empty Bottles: 0 // 4/4
Howling Stones: 0 // 7/7
Head forward to meet some of Midna’s people, weird but otherwise harmless. Take the bridge west and through the door. Head north, defeating enemies along the way, then further north you’ll fight a new enemy, a mask in the form of Zant. It warps around the room, shooting fireballs at you. To fight it, use your Shield Attack on the projectiles, then slash with your sword when it’s stunned. Open the chest that appears for a Small Key. Clawshot a target at north to the high platform and head through the locked door. Jump down north to the lower level and head into the black fog to metamorphose into wolf Link. This will happen throughout the dungeon. Use your senses to navigate and head northeast to find a way out. Fight the Zant mask using Midna’s charge attack, then two chests appear. The one at southeast is the Compass, the one north is a Small Key. Defeat the Shadowlings guarding them. I know it’s weird to get the Compass before the map, but them’s the breaks. Clawshot to a target to the northeast, then to another target by the chest. Drop and head north to the locked door and through it. Head north to the glowing orb to meet your next mini-boss, an Image of Zant. Like the Shadow Ganons from Zelda games past, this hologram of Zant is fought somewhat differently from its predecessors. First, defeat the waves of enemies that come intermittently throughout the battle. Use your spin attack at will. When you get close enough to “Zant”, use sword attacks, especially when a red orb appears over his head. After the battle, go around the central fog north to the orb called a Sol, which Midna explains. Slash the hand holding the orb, then carry it back to the opposite side of the room, dissipating the fog. The hand, actually a Floor Master, will suddenly follow you. Watch its shadow on the floor to avoid being hit and drop the Sol in the slot in the middle of the fog to make stairs appear. Fight the Shadowlings by the stairs, then fire an arrow at the hand to stun it continually as you ascend the stairs. At the top, clawshot the Sol to grab it and head back out the south door. Head south and the Floor Master will follow. Head to the center and drop the Sol in the slot to make more stairs. Defeat the Shadowlings again and stun the hand with arrows as you take the new stairs. Again, clawshot the Sol to take it, then take the ledge south and toss the Sol up the stairs. When the hand is revived, stun it again. At the south end, defeat more enemies, then jump off south to the door and through it. The hand will continue to follow you. Head west to the passage through the fog carrying the Sol, then drop the Sol and clawshot the target by a chest. Open it for a *Heart Piece*. There’s just one more left in the game. Stun the hand, then grab the Sol and head south, defeating other enemies along the way, then carry it through the south door. The hand is now out of range. Shine the Sol’s light on the Twilight beings to revive them, then place the Sol in one of the pedestals in the middle area. Stand on the light it emits to the east to carry you to the platform, then head north through the door. One more Sol to retrieve and this time it’s not so easy. Defeat the Keese to the south, then clawshot a target on either wall, then clawshot to the target on the ceiling. Lower yourself while attached to the moving platform. Ride it above the fog in the middle area to another platform and another Zant mask will appear. Use a Shield Attack to repel its projectile attack back at it, then head north across the moving platforms while it’s stunned. Defeat it when you get close, and open the chest to the north for a purple rupee (worth 50). Open the chest that appears (for defeating the Mask) by the door for a Small Key. Use it to open the locked door and head through. Head north into the fog to turn wolfie, then defeat three Shadow Beings as usual. Head north and turn back into human Link. Defeat the Mask and three more will appear. Crud. The best attack is Midna’s charge as a wolf. When they’re all defeated, a chest appears higher up. At north, clawshot the wall target, then to the ceiling target, pulling yourself up the ledges. Open the chests on each ledge for rupees, a Small Key, and the Dungeon Map. Clawshot to the north ledge and head through the locked door. Another Image of Zant to defeat. Use the same fight tactics as earlier to beat it. The only difference is a fire attack he uses against you and stronger enemy melees. Slash the hand holding the Sol and carry it to the pedestal. Stun the hand coming at you, then take the stairs, defeating more enemies, then clawshot the Sol to you atop the stairs. Head south through the door. Carry the Sol to another pedestal and drop it there. Stun the hand coming from the previous room and defeat the enemies that surround the area. The Sol has opened up a complex series of stairs. Clawshot to the north target, then into an alcove at the east end. By now, the hand is alive. Stun it quickly, then jump to the stairs, then to a ledge high up south. Clawshot the Sol to you, then jump to the south door and head through. Carry the Sol while taking the moving platforms across the room. Stun the hand when it comes near. If you happen to fall, head north to a black orb and the Sol will light it up, creating two elevator platforms. At the south end, stand near two orbs to activate them with the Sol’s light, then take the new elevator platform south and through the door. The hand won’t follow you now. Shine the Sol’s light on any remaining Twilight citizens, then carry it to the middle with the elevator platform and drop it in the last pedestal. After a cinema, you receive the Light Sword. Now head east to the previous room to retrieve the last Heart Piece. The Light Sword cuts the fog so you can navigate it as human Link. On the southwest end, take the elevator platform to a chest with a purple rupee (worth 50). Take the southeast elevator platform to a chest with the final *Heart Piece*. Congrats. Head back to the previous room and go north of the pedestals atop a ramp. Defeat the Shadow Birds that flock, then use a spin attack on the wall of black fog to clear a space, then jump across through it before it closes up again. Head through the north door. Cut the fog with your new sword and defeat the variety of enemies here. At the north end, carry each of the two deactivated Sols to two pedestals in the middle of the fog, using your Light Sword to cut an opening, and make stairs appear. Climb them to find a black, deactivated light orb and hit it with your sword to create a glowing blue tile on the floor. Use it like an elevator to the east end and drop off. Defeat the enemies, then head east and defeat the four Masks of Zant with your new sword that cuts through them easily. Open the chest that appears for a Small Key. Near the chest are three deactivated Orbs. Stand in the middle of them and use a spin attack to light up all three at once. An elevator platforms carries you west. Drop off and head through the locked door. Defeat a slew of Shadow Beings and Shadow Birds here, then activate two orbs simultaneously at the west end with a spin attack. Ride the elevator south, then east, and get off there. Defeat the single Mask of Zant and a few more appear. Spin attack two orbs and ride back to the balcony, defeating the Masks until a chest appears in the north end. Open it for a Small Key. Use a spin attack to cut the fog on the east side, then go through it and clawshot the target at north. Take several more targets to the top and open the chest here for the Big Key. Drop down to the bottom level and head through the northeast locked door. Head east and defeat the Shadow Beings that appear in the traditional barriers. Cut through the east fog to find four orbs. Use a spin attack to light them all at once, then ride the elevator to the top to meet four more elevators. Jump to the west one, then ride it to two new ones. Jump to the rightmost one, then west to the ledge. Defeat the Twilight Deku Baba atop it, then head north to another elevator. Ride it east to three platforms, reached by clawshotting a target nearby. Defeat the Mask of Zant there, then clawshot to a ceiling target. When an elevator platform appears below you, drop to it to head west and clawshot another target to make the rest of the gap. Defeat another Mask of Zant to make a chest appear and open it for a Small Key which in turn makes an elevator platform appear in the middle area. Jump to it to ride it to the top and head through the north locked door atop the stairs. Cut through the fog and defeat the Shadow Beings at the north end, bottle the fairy from a pot, then head through the boss door. Finally you meet with Zant, Usurper King as he is nicknamed. After a long cinema with the court jester of Twilight, you will fight Zant in six stages reminiscent of previous dungeons. As long as the fight is, it’s not all that difficult. The first is in the Forest Temple. Like Diababa, Zant hovers off a swamp of goo, firing projectiles. Block with your shield, use your boomerang to bring him towards you, and slash with your sword, extra powerful as a Light Sword. Continue this strategy to move on to phase two in the Goron Mines. Like the fight with Biggoron, Zant will rock the casbah on a rickety magnetic platform above the lava. Use your iron boots immediately to magnetize and continue this strategy whenever he jumps up and down. Wait for Zant to fire projectiles (a common theme apparently), dodge an attack sans iron boots, and get close to use sword attacks on him. That’s it for this phase. Next you’re in Lakebed in a revival of the Morpheel show. Use your Zora Armour and Iron Boots to sink down. A giant Mask of Zant appears with the real Zant appearing from inside. L-Target him, using your clawshot to bring him towards you and slashie slashie. Avoid the projectile attacks with your shield as usual. After a while, four masks appear. Only one reveals Zant inside. Use L-targeting to find him, then clawshot him in to slash away. The fourth phase reconvenes in the Forest Temple with a Baboon fight restaged. Change your clothes and no iron boots this time. As Zant hops the pillars, he’ll stop on one to fire projectiles. Roll into this pillar two times (emphasis: TWO TIMES) to make him fall, then slash away. The next phase is at Snowpeak where he balloons in a mimic of Blizzeta (a.k.a. evil Yeta). A convenient camera angle allows you to avoid his shadow. Roll out of his way as he crashes (boom) and use the Ball & Chain, aiming for the foot. In a hilarious scene, Zant hops around on one foot, shrinking considerably down to a tiny size. Chase him and slash away with your sword, continuing the pattern to finish the phase. The sixth and final phase is in Hyrule Field in a great sendoff of the final Ganondorf battle in Wind Waker. With two swords, he’s pretty formidable. Use Jump Attacks or Jump Strikes when he lunges slowly. When he spins around, dodge well to avoid them (sidestepping is helpful). When he stops for a rest (lazy bum), slash with no mercy. After the fight, the Fused Shadows are returned in full. However, the game is not over yet. There is still the matter of a bigger foe: Ganon. That’s right….he’s BAAAACCCKK! Grab the Heart Container, your very last one that fills the 20th slot of your health meter (huzzah!), then use Midna’s warp and save. Head to the south end of the chamber and press A in front of the hypnotizing symbol to be transported back to the Mirror Chamber in the desert. Now that you have all the niceties of the game….oh wait, what’s that? Three Poe Souls, you say? Okay, smart guy. I did forget a little thing called the Cave of Ordeals, a copycat of Paper Mario TTYD’s Pit of 100 Trials. You are probably well-equipped for this trial, so if you dare, warp to Gerudo Mesa, then head down the stairs into the underground cave. Be prepared to finish 50 floors of nothing but big, bad enemies, with every tenth floor a safe haven with a Great Fairy (I wondered when they were going to show up). Unfortunately, the Great Fairies don’t heal you, but they release fairies into the spring fountains in each area you found a Light Spirit. Could’ve used that help before, but you wouldn’t last in the Cave before now. And not to brag (well, maybe a little), but I finished the Cave in one try from start to finish. I hope you can master it too. For a list of enemies and fighting strategies, see my page devoted to the Cave. On the 17th floor is a *Poe Soul*, on the 33rd floor is a *Poe Soul*, and on the 44th floor is a *Poe Soul*, so that about does it. Visit Jovani in Castle Town to be rewarded with a Silver Rupee (worth 200), a rarity in this game. Whoopee! As I normally do before the final dungeon in my walkthroughs, here’s a final checklist of major items to finish up. Again, all of these are included in the walkthrough, so good for you grasshopper if you’ve read the whole thing up to now. Check your inventory for the following: 4 Bottles, 3 Bomb Bags, 2 Arrow Quiver upgrades (up to 100 max), ability to hold Bomb Arrows and Water Bombs, Magic Armour (598 rupees from Malo in Castle Town, southeast store in central square), Howling Stone/Golden Wolf Hidden Skills (7), Golden Bugs (24, cash in at Agitha’s in Castle Town), Poe Souls (57 + 3 in the Cave of Ordeals, cash in at Jovani’s in Castle Town), and Heart Pieces (45, should have 20 full hearts in the health meter). All set? Warp to Castle Town and head north from the central square to Hyrule Castle. Midna will turn into some kind of spidery creature to destroy the barrier around the castle using the Fused Shadows. Grab the handles of the next two doors and head forward into the last dungeon. Technically, it’s not really a dungeon, because it’s pretty short after the tough trials in the Palace of Twilight. So, here’s how to finish it and reach Ganon. Head northwest following a stony road to a gate where a barrier appears. Fight the Moblins until the road is restored, then take the northwest door. Head forward…smack into another barrier. Geez Louise. Defeat the Moblins to break the barrier, then head through the northwest wall opening and far north down the road. Grab the chain left of the gate and pull to open, then head through. Head northeast to another barrier and in the middle you’ll reunite with King Bulbin, for the fourth and final time. The fight is the same as in Gerudo Desert. Use the Back Slice and Helm Splitter attacks to defeat him, especially when his sword gets stuck. He’s big and slow, so not a big deal. He gives you a key. Open the chest in the north for a red rupee (worth 20, not that you’ll need it now), then head back into the courtyard through the southeast door. Head northeast and fight another mob of Moblins (he he, that cracks me up) in the barrier, then head through the northeast door. Use the Ball & Chain (sorry, B&C) to knock down the towers where the Moblin Archers stand guard. Head to the west middle area and ride a boar along the east wall through the wooden fences all the way north. Against the gate, face the small pillars with pinwheels atop them. Oh no, what to do, alas, without me cheat sheet! Never fear, use the boomerang on ye garden foliage (leaves, mortal) to uncover a pattern. As the Goron Merchant in Wind Waker would say, most agreeable. Follow the pattern when activating the pinwheels with your boomerang to open the gate. Open the chest here for the Dungeon Map, then climb the ladder at left. Cool view. Head south and jump off to the ground below, then head back to the courtyard. Find the big building in the north center and head through the door. Head forward to meet another barrier with Moblins and (what ho?) Lizalfoses. Defeat them to make a chest appear. Climb the steps near it and clawshot the chandelier and drop to it. Open it for the Compass. Clawshot more chandeliers, lowering yourself by the chain when attached to target them, heading north. Drop off on the north balcony and head through the door. Defeat the Dark Nut here and a chest appears to the north. To reach it, stand on the back ledge near the torch to the west, then use your boomerang to snuff out the flame, creating an elevator platform under your feet. Reach the chest and open it for a purple rupee (worth 50). Ah, the colour of royalty. Head east from the chest and through the door, then south to the barred door at the end. Use the lantern to see and fire an arrow at the rope holding the painting to the west that reveals the order to light the torches in the room. Light the torches exactly as shown, starting with the one closest to the flame in the picture, following the pattern across diagonally, then down to the torch right of the picture, then diagonally to the last torch. Move very quickly before the first torch burns out and that should open the door. Head through and defeat two Dinolfos to unseal the doors. Head southeast to the outside to meet another Dragon Knight. Defeat it using the clawshot and sword as you did earlier in the game, then head southeast to the tower and get the Small Key from the chest. Head back towards the door and turn left up the ramp to reach the other side of the tower where a couple of friends and a falcon will save your skin. Much obliged. Open the chest ahead for the Big Key. Climb to the center of the courtyard and head through the north locked door. As a wolf, use your senses and defeat the Undead Rats. You’ll notice a few spirits hanging around. Approach each one, who will guide you along the safe path to a set of broken stairs. Clear them by using the clawshot on the wall torches, jumping to the small pieces when you can, and defeat two Lizalfoses at the top to open up more stairs. Use your spinner on the spinner track, crossing to the parallel track to avoid spikes. At the top, defeat a Dark Nut, then head through the boss door to meet Ganon, the ultimate bad dude. Climb the stairs to the chapel to begin the first of four phases. Is it just me or do the phases multiply as you get further in the game? Just my imagination…The first phase is a fight with Zelda, Puppet of Ganon where you’ll torture an effigy of your one true love. Ah, romance. She hovers around and attacks by divebombing you (dodge it), creating a golden triangle on the floor (don’t stand on it), and most importantly, flinging a ball of light at your head. When this attack occurs, repel it back with your sword back and forth (now this is familiar) until she gets hit. Three hits and you change phases. Now Ganon, Dark Beast is a wolf-like creature. This phase is arguably the toughest. There are two parts to this phase (a sub-phase if you will). First, he’ll run around smashing things and then disappear into a portal. Stand in a relatively safe spot against the wall and aim your bow ready to shoot. Wait for a pink portal to appear and watch it to turn blue, then stun the glowing orb on his head (like the Fyrus battle) with an arrow as he barrels out the portal. When stunned, slash the silver scar on his body. He may try to squash you from above, so look for his shadow on the ground and avoid it at all costs. Also, he may run around and charge at you without entering a portal, so watch for that. Continue the same arrow-stun, scar-slash strategy until when you try to fire an arrow at him, he disappears quicker. Change to wolf Link and stand in the middle of the portals. When Ganon jumps out of one, L-target, press and hold A to grab him, then fling him away to stun him, giving you ample time to attack that silver scar again. After a while, he will barrel out of a single portal very fast without warning, so act fast and continue this strategy to move on to the third phase. Now you fight the real Ganon on Epona. Zelda becomes your riding partner (yippee-ky-yay!). The fight is similar to the King Bulbin fight on horseback when you saved Colin. Ride close to Ganon and L-target him for Zelda to stun him with a light arrow. Once stunned, slash away with your sword. Charge a spin attack as you ride and when the time comes, unleash it to deal major damage. Avoid the phantoms that Ganon unleashes or you’ll be knocked off Epona and have to mount her again. After a while, you’ll enter the final phase with Dark Lord, Ganondorf in a good old-fashioned swordfight. The shield becomes pretty useless here, so use the Back Slice religiously and backflip or sidestep to avoid Ganon’s mighty sword attack. If he leaps into the air, roll to avoid his squashing bod. If you press A at the right moment, you may be lucky enough to engage in a close-up game of arm wrestling with your swords clashing. It’s very climactic and stressful, so keep pressing A if that happens. Once Ganon is down but not out, perform an Ending Blow to finish him off. It’s a great fight, very fun, and you’ll complete the game. Enjoy the amazing final cinema where you’ll meet Midna in her human form. She’s gorgeous (as if there was any doubt). The cinema continues over the end credits and finishes off afterwards, so stay tuned for a shocking finale! This is without a doubt the most satisfying, extraordinary final cinema out of the Zelda series. Congratulations on beating Twilight Princess. Hope you enjoyed the game.
Home