_____ _ _ _ __ |_ _| |__ ___ | | ___ __ _ ___ _ __ __| | ___ / _| | | | '_ \ / _ \ | | / _ \/ _` |/ _ \ '_ \ / _` | / _ \| |_ | | | | | | __/ | |__| __/ (_| | __/ | | | (_| | | (_) | _| |_| |_| |_|\___| |_____\___|\__, |\___|_| |_|\__,_| \___/|_| |___/ _____ _ _ |__ /___| | __| | __ _ / // _ \ |/ _` |/ _` | o / /| __/ | (_| | (_| | o /____\___|_|\__,_|\__,_| , . / ,. . ) . ,-. | , ,-. / | . , , ,-. | , ,-. ,-. . ,-. ,-. / | | | |< `-. /~~|-. |/|/ ,-| |< |-' | | | | | | | `--' ' ' ' ' ` `-' ,' `-' ' ' `-^ ' ` `-' ' ' ' ' ' `-| ,| `' The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Game Boy): VinnyVideo's FAQ/Walkthrough =============================================================================== Table of Contents =============================================================================== [INTRO] Introduction [BASIC] The Basics [WALKT] The Walkthrough [ENEMY] Bestiary [HEART] Pieces of Heart [SHELL] Secret Seashells [CHEAT] Glitches and Tricks [REFER] References to Other Games [QUEST] Frequently Asked Questions [VERSN] Version History [COPYR] Copyright [CONTC] Contact Information Navigation tip: Use the Find feature (Ctrl-F) to find what you're looking for. For example, search for [SHELL] to jump to the section with the list of Secret Seashells. =============================================================================== Introduction [INTRO] =============================================================================== It took almost a year, but my guide for Link's Awakening is finally finished! The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is a truly excellent game. This was the first Zelda game I ever played, and I still think it's one of the three or four best games in a really great series. The graphics, music, and sound are all good despite the Game Boy's limited capabilities. The play control is among the best I've seen in any game (Game Boy or otherwise), although being limited to two buttons for items is sometimes annoying. The storyline contrasts greatly from other Zelda games; both the plot and characters are surreal and slightly absurd in a "Lost" or "Myst" kind of way. Link's Awakening does have its critics who don't like the constant Mario references, but I think they're neat. There's a good number of dungeons (I won't say how many), and they're just right on the difficulty scale. Most of the bosses, unfortunately, are a bit too easy. This game introduces us to the Trading Game, the Fishing Pond, and many other mainstays of newer Zelda games. One more nice thing about Link's Awakening is it has the biggest variety of enemies in any Zelda game I know of - and none of them are Wall Masters! This guide is designed to be free of spoilers when possible. Still, if you read ahead in the guide, you're probably going to reduce your enjoyment of the game. Finally, keep in mind this guide is designed for the original Game Boy version of the game. If you play Link's Awakening DX or the Nintendo Switch version of the game, you're going to notice a few differences. =============================================================================== The Basics [BASIC] =============================================================================== Link's Awakening has simple but very effective play control. It shouldn't take much explanation to learn how to play, but I'll include the controls just in case you need a refresher. Control Pad: Move Link A: Use the item equipped to the A button (usually your sword); talk to people B: Use the item equipped to the B button; speed up conversations Start: Go to Subscreen, where you can change equipped items and view the items you've collected Select: View map screen Whirling Blade Attack: Hold down your sword button and release once your sword starts flashing. This powerful attack covers a wide area. To save your game, press A, B, START, and SELECT at the same time. It's a little tricky to do. The next time you play, you'll start from the last door you entered. I have created a map in .PNG format for each dungeon in the game. They look really nice and can be useful in finding your way through the dungeons. You can download them at GameFAQs.com or Neoseeker.com. However, you can use my guide without using those maps, or even the simple ASCII maps found at the end of each of my dungeon strategies. Here's how to interpret the ASCII maps found in this guide: | or - Normal entry || or = Locked o Bombable wall ^ One-way door Room 1 is always the dungeon entrance. The other room numbers specify the recommended order in which you should first enter the rooms. You can't use these numbers as a substitute for the guide, though, since many dungeons require backtracking, and some rooms have multiple levels or passages. Also, I produced these ASCII maps back in 2002, and my guides sometimes use a better order. These numbers are for reference only. =============================================================================== The Walkthrough [WALKT] =============================================================================== Here's the exciting part. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Getting Started ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- First, turn on your Game Boy and watch the opening sequence. Begin a save file and give your character a name (many people, but not all, pick "Link"). The game begins in Mabe Village, at Marin and Tarin's House. Marin found you on the beach and took you to their house. Talk to Tarin to get your shield (officially known as the Wooden Shield) back. Then exit the house. Walk around Mabe Village and talk to all the people. Every time you finish a dungeon, go back and talk to everybody in Mabe Village. Most of the characters will have new things to say. Some characters are helpful, while some are just goofy. Visit the Phone Booth if you want to talk to Grandpa Ulrira, who provides vague hints that might be just helpful enough to get un-stuck in the game. Check the books in the library for hints on how to perform basic gameplay operations. When you've talked to everybody and read the signposts, you might not know what to do next. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Wooden Sword ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Your first objective is to go down to the shores and retrieve your trusty sword. To get down there, go to the library and head as far south as you can, jumping down a few hills and climbing down some steps. Avoid the rock-spitting Octoroks in the area. When you can't go south any more, start heading east. Hold down the shield button (B) to push the sea urchin out of the way. On the shore is the sword. This item is the most useful in the game. You can swing your sword to attack meanies or cut tall grass. I almost always have it as my A-button item. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mabe Village Sidequests ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now that you have your sword, you can advance quite a bit farther into the game. Cut some tall grass just north of the library and jump off the cliff into the well. You'll be in a room with a Piece of Heart. There are twelve of these in Link's Awakening, and every time you collect four Pieces of Heart, you get a new Heart Container. Pieces of Heart aren't easy to find, though. Make sure you go to the Trendy Game once you have 10 Rupees. At the crane game, you can win Magic Powder, which you'll need later, but there's a free way to earn it. You can also win Rupees or a Shield (useless since you have one). But what you really want is the Yoshi Doll - the object in the middle. It's very important later on in the game. Talk to the storekeeper to begin playing. Hold B to move the crane horizontally until it's directly above the Yoshi Doll. Then hold A for a brief time to lower the crane so it's just a little above the doll. If you do it right, the crane will pick it up and you'll be the winner of a Yoshi Doll! There's a fishing pond two screens north of Madam MeowMeow's House where you can go fishing. Each round costs 10 Rupees, but don't play until you have at least 20-40 Rupees. If you catch one of the two big fish, you'll get 20 Rupees and a Piece of Heart. A turbo button makes it a bit easier to reel it in. You'll probably have to catch a couple of the smaller fish before you can get the big one to bite. In the grassy field in eastern Mabe Village, chop the grass with your sword until you find a Secret Seashell. If you collect a lot of these, something good is bound to happen! Before you leave Mabe Village, you might want to check out the Tool Shop. You can buy 3 Recovery Hearts for 10 Rupees, a Deluxe Shovel for 200 Rupees, and a shield for 20 Rupees. Buying a shield is only useful if it gets eaten by a Like Like. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Mysterious Woods ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Mysterious Woods are, well, mysterious! This area is located to the north of Mabe Village. Chop the bush at the northwest corner of Mabe Village to enter the forest. The Owl will brief you on what to do next as soon as you enter. You'll find that the woods are full of enemies called Moblins. Some wield swords, while others attack using their bow and arrows. These troublemakers can be defeated easily with a couple of whacks from your sword. You'll notice that there's an endless loop in the western part of the woods. If you can't figure it out by yourself, check the next paragraph. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Magic Powder ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Enter the cave in the central part of the Mysterious Woods (also known as the Mysterious Forest). Defeat the Keese (bats), bash the crystals with your sword, push the rock to the side, and open the chest for 50 Rupees. Go through the passage until you find that the road is blocked. You can't access the Piece of Heart yet, but you can push two of the boulders to the left to open a path through the other side of the cave. You'll be in another part of the Mysterious Woods, where you'll find a Sleepy Mushroom, an item that's useless for now. Now return to the entrance of the cave and follow the trail leading from the northeast part of the Mysterious Woods. Go south and east to find the Witch's Hut. Use the Sleepy Mushroom in front of the witch to get some Magic Powder. This item has sundry applications, such as lighting lamps, burning enemies (a cumbersome attack strategy), and even irritating noses. In real life, it's generally wise to limit your contact with strange forest mushrooms and witches. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tail Key ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To get the Tail Key, find the raccoon in the western part of the forest and sprinkle some Magic Powder on him. He'll have an allergic reaction and you'll find out who he really is. Just say no to drugs. You can then proceed north, where there's a treasure chest. Open it for the Tail Key! This allows you to gain entry into the first dungeon. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tail Cave ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now that you have the Tail Key, you can access the Tail Cave. The Tail Cave is located southeast of Mabe Village; simply head east from the screen south of the library, and then follow the zig-zagging trail. Insert your key in the keyhole and you'll open the entrance to the dank, dreary dungeon. When you first enter the Tail Cave, go left. Use your sword to swoosh the two Hardhat Beetles into the pit, making a Small Key drop down. Take it, as it allows you to open a locked door. From here, go left to a room with a treasure chest and some Zols, who pop up when you come near. Get rid of them all and open the chest. You will get the Compass! This will show you the locations of the treasure chests in this dungeon, and it also plays a tone whenever you enter a room that has a key in it. Then go back to the first room and go up one screen. Defeat the Zols and knock the Hardhat Beetle into the pit. Step on the switch and open the chest for your second Small Key. Now go east one screen. You'll find a room with two Stalfoses and two bats. Defeat them all to reveal a treasure chest. Inside is the Map. The Map will show you all the rooms of the dungeon on the Subscreen, and will distinguish rooms you've entered from those you haven't. It also shows you where the Nightmare's Lair is. You're already well on your way to getting through the Tail Cave. Return to Room 4. Go west and defeat all the Keese to open the doors. Head north and defeat the Mini-Moldorm to reveal a treasure chest containing 20 Rupees. From here, go east to Room 8, where you'll find a treasure chest. Inside is the third and final Small Key. Watch out for the Mini-Moldorm and Sparks. Now that we've got our keys, we can insert the remaining pieces of the puzzle. In Room 9, go through the locked door, but look out for the Razor Trap. Go east and around the blocks. Push the western block to open the door. Then you'll be in a room with some Spiked Beetles. Push them over with your shield and slash them to beat them, revealing a stairway. Go down and you'll be in a side- scrolling room with some Super Mario-style Goombas. These can be slashed easily. Go left and climb up the ladder to reach Room 13. Go up the hall to a chest, avoiding the Razor Traps. Inside is the dungeon prize - the Roc's Feather. This enables you to jump over pits and enemies. This is the item I have equipped to the B button most of the time. You'll need Roc's Feather to get the Nightmare's Key. Go back to Room 5 and go through the one-way door. This is Room 16. Go up (return to the west room to reach this door) to find a room with a Lock Block. Jump across the pit and use your key to unlock it. Go up the stairs and west to find the Nightmare's Key! Return to Room 16 and unlock the eastern door with your final Small Key. From here, go north, where you'll find a vexing trio of enemies called Three of a Kind. Slash them with your sword to stun them. If you stop all of them when they're all displaying the same card suit, a chest appears. Open it to get the Stone Slab, which allows you to read the tablets on the wall (these usually show vague hints about where to find the Nightmare's Key). Go south to the previous room. Jump across the gap and enter the east door. You'll encounter a tough bad guy called Rolling Bones. Well, he's tough if you don't know what to do. Jump over his spiked barrier, then start pounding him with your sword. The north door opens, and a portal appears that warps you back to the first room of the dungeon. Ignore it and go north. Avoid the Razor Traps (use Roc's Feather to jump over them) and ignore the staircase. Open the Nightmare Door to the north and face the Nightmare! ---------------------------------------- King of Worms MOLDORM ---------------------------------------- I couldn't resist trying to give the Link's Awakening bosses cool subtitles like the Ocarina of Time bosses (such as Bio-Electric Anemone BARINADE or Evil Spirit from Beyond PHANTOM GANON). Anyway, this Nightmare is pretty easy. Before entering his room, power up your sword to begin a Whirling Blade Attack. Then slash the Nightmare's tail. After each hit he frantically runs around at high speed. Use Roc's Feather to help avoid his rampages. Hit him again after he calms down and repeat. If he knocks you into the pit, you'll wind up in a basement (climb the ladder back to the room before the Nightmare). Once you defeat Moldorm, take the Heart Container that drops down and go forward to get the Full Moon Cello, your first Instrument of the Sirens! [24] | [12]-[10]-[11] [23] || | [15] [ 9]-[18]=[17] [20] [22] | | | | | [14] [ A]o[ 7]-[ 8]-[16]=[19]=[21] | | ^ [13] [ 6]-[ 4]-[ 5] | [ 3]-[ 2]-[ 1] 20 Rupees: 7 Compass: 3 Key: 2, 4, 8 Map: 5 Nightmare's Key: 18 Secret Seashell: A Stone Slab: 20 Roc's Feather: 15 Stairs: 12-13, 22-23 Nightmare: 23 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One More Goodie ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In Room 7, you'll find a Mini-Moldorm. Defeat him to win a treasure chest with 20 Rupees if you haven't done so already. If you've found some bombs on your journey, you can then bomb the cracked wall to find a Secret Seashell. Bombs can be found by defeating the Ghinis in the Cemetery, among other places. You can also buy some at the item shop once you've purchased the Shovel. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After the Dungeon ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After you obtain the first instrument, a message appears. "...SWAMP... A path opens... in the blooms..." it reads. The owl will talk to you and will tell you to go to Goponga Swamp in the north. Go back to the village and a couple of kids will tell you that some Moblins "dognapped" BowWow. You'll have to rescue him, but not right now. First, you should talk to everybody in the town. If you go to the Quadruplets' House, you can give the Yoshi Doll to their mother and she'll give you a Ribbon. Take the Ribbon to BowWow's House. Give it to the small dog in the doghouse and she'll give you some Dog Food. It's full of juicy beef. Then, go down south to Toronbo Shores and visit Sale, the eccentric alligator who lives at the House o' Bananas. He'll exchange the Dog Food for Bananas. Yes, an alligator that craves pet food. This is a goofy video game. You can't do any more trading for a while, though. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Shovel ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By now, you may have enough money to buy yourself a Deluxe Shovel at the shop in Mabe Village. If so, you should. You might also want to buy some more Bombs. The Deluxe Shovel is fairly useful. If you ever get low on life, you can start digging around to find money and hearts. Although slow, this will help build up your energy and pocketbook. Also, try going to BowWow's house and digging for a Secret Seashell in the doghouse. Go back to the shop when you have 980 Rupees so you can buy the Bow & Arrow Set. It's also possible to steal things from the store, but I do not advise such immoral practices, even in a video game (and because the shopkeeper will kill you if you ever return to the store, and everyone will start calling you THIEF). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Heartfelt Advice ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you're lucky, you've found two heart pieces so far. One more can be found in Koholint Prairie (east of the woods, just up the trail from the witch). Hop over the hole using Roc's Feather and you can get it. Then, from the nearby Witch's Hut, go east to the cemetery. You might want to attack the Ghinis (ghosts), who occasionally drop bombs when defeated. On the southwest graveyard screen, push the lower-right tombstone forward to discover a cave. Inside, push the stone right, then make a tricky jump to the tiny ledge. From there, jump over to the Piece of Heart! This should get you your fifth Heart Container. It will come in handy very, very soon. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Moblins ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When you're ready to face the Moblins, go north from where you got the Heart Piece around the holes, or take the long way by going north through the cemetery and the Tabahl Wasteland. Beware the highly damaging crows in this area. Look around for a small cave with an owl statue in front. Inside are the Moblins. Equip your shield and sword, and get ready to battle. The first Moblin is all alone. Let him run into your drawn sword. Defeat him to enter the next room, which has four Moblins with bows and arrows. Use Whirling Blade Attacks to get rid of them quickly so you won't have to face a barrage of arrows. The final room contains the Great Moblin. After a great quote ("You came here to get me, but it is I who will get you!!"), he'll start shooting arrows at you, and then charge into the wall like a bull. He'll be dazed for a few seconds, and this is your chance to hit him with your sword. Move up and down along the wall to dodge the arrows. Repeat this process until you KO him. Then enter the next room and free BowWow! This dog will tag along with you, and he can defeat most enemies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mucho Dinero ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Exit the cave, listen to the owl, and go west and south to the Mysterious Woods. At the northwest exit lives a strange man named Mr. Write. He is a reference to Dr. Wright of the Super NES SimCity game, who is himself a caricature of Will Wright, the creator of the SimCity series. That's why he's supposed to look a little bit familiar. Talk to him if you want, and then go north to a cave. Inside is a 20-Rupee chest that can be reached using Roc's Feather. Then go east to Goponga Swamp. BowWow will destroy the Goponga Flowers, which can't be defeated any other way at this time. Isn't BowWow helpful? Clear away some of the blooms to the southeast to reveal a 50-Rupee chest. Then head northeast and let BowWow clear away the flowers blocking the cave. This is the entrance to the Bottle Grotto. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bottle Grotto ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Bottle Grotto is the second dungeon. BowWow is happy to eat the Goponga Flowers that block off the entrance to the Bottle Grotto dungeon. Unfortunately, you can't take him into the dungeon (you'll leave him at the gate, like Yoshi in a Super Mario World Ghost House). This dungeon is loaded with pots, some of which hide Rupees, hearts, bombs, and arrows underneath. From the start, go north to the dark Room 2. Sprinkle Magic Powder on the two lamps at the top of the steps to open the eastern door. You'll then meet two Stalfoses. Defeat them both for a Small Key. Open the locked door in the same room to find a Shy Guy. If you own the Bow & Arrows, you can beat the Shy Guy with arrows. Otherwise, it's easy just to use a Whirling Blade Attack on the enemy's unprotected backside. When you beat him, a chest appears. Open it for the Compass. You'll find it to be helpful. Go north and then east to Room 5, where you'll find a crystal ball. Slashing it makes some blocks rise and others sink into the ground. Keep in mind that when you hit the crystal, you change the position of every block in the dungeon. Hit the crystal ball once and go south to Room 6. Get the Shrouded Stalfos out of the way and hit the crystal ball once, allowing you to access the Small Key in the chest. Backtrack to Room 2 and open the locked door to the west. In Room 7, watch out for the Razor Traps. Light the torches with Magic Powder if you want to be able to see where you're going. Beat the bats to open the door. Light the torches, jump across the gap, and push the Hardhat Beetle into the pit using your sword. Open the chest for the Map. How nice! Return to Room 6 (the one with the Shrouded Stalfos). Go right to the next room. Jump across the platforms, collect the floating Magic Powder refill, and step on the floor switch to reveal a chest. Inside is a key. Go north and defeat the duo of Shy Guys to make a key fall down on the other side of the room. You'll have to circle all the way around to get it (go east from Room 5), although you could use bombs from that side of the room). Be patient, and only hit crystals needed to get past the blocks that are in your way. After getting your key (you should have two in your inventory), use it in Room 11 to open a door. Ignore the Spiked Beetles. Room 12 requires you to push the two blocks together to reveal a staircase. It leads to a 2-D tunnel with some lifts. Equip Roc's Feather and use the platforms to cross over the spikes. Climb the ladder to Room 13. Watch out for the pit, the Keese, and the Spark. If you need the floating heart, make sure to light the lamps first. Then enter the one-way door to the north and battle a mini-boss. This is Hinox, a Cyclops kind of guy who tosses an endless stream of bombs at you. When he stops throwing, he'll charge at you and try to throw you, WWE- style. Avoid standing on the unsteady parts of the floor. Use a few Whirling Blade Attacks on Hinox and you'll win quickly, revealing the warp portal to the beginning of the level. Room 15 has some stairs that take you to Room 22, although you can't reach them yet. For your reference, they lead to a connecting tunnel full of Piranha Plants. Go north to Room 16, which has a unique enemy called an Eye Vacuum. While it's active, it sucks enemies - and you - toward it. Wait for it to stop, and then open the chest for a fragment of a Stone Slab. It reads: "First, defeat the imprisoned Pols Voice. Last, Stalfos..." In Room 17, open the chest for 20 Rupees. Then unlock the door, where you'll find some ghosts. Sprinkle Magic Powder on the lamps and they'll go away and leave behind a chest. Open it for the Power Bracelet! This item is highly important, as it allows you to lift pots, boulders, and other heavy objects. You can now access most of the locations in the overworld. Back in the previous room, lift the pots and take the upper right fork. Go right and keep hitting the switch and going right until you reach the treasure chest, which has a Small Key inside. Hit the switch once more and head right to the next room. Jump over the Hardhat Beetle and keep going east. Turn south at the crystal switch to Room 22. Push one of the upper blocks down and another one to the side to allow access to the Pols Voice. Beat it by throwing a pot at it. Then defeat the Keese, and finally the Shrouded Stalfos. If done in the proper order, you'll reveal the chest containing the Nightmare's Key. Go north and unlock the Room 21 door to enter Room 23. Beat the Pols Voices with pots. Then defeat the Zol to open up a staircase. It leads to another 2-D section. On the second screen, pick up a pot and ascend the ladder. Stand on the platform while carrying the pot and you'll be heavy enough to weigh down the lift and reach the lower level. Climb the ladder up to the room before the Nightmare. Then hop on across the pits, put on your Power Bracelet, and battle the Nightmare. ---------------------------------------- Phantom Bottle Being GENIE ---------------------------------------- Looks more like some psychotic clown or a baby with a bib. Dodge his fireballs by running left to right. When he starts pursuing you, slash him and throw his bottle at the wall. Repeat two more times to break his pot. At this point, Genie will turn invisible for a short time and then reappear. Use a Whirling Blade Attack on him before he has a chance to throw fireballs at you. Three more hits will bop him out. Then get your fifth (or sixth) Heart Container and go into Room 26 and get your Conch Horn! By the way, if you find this boss to be difficult, buy a Secret Medicine from Crazy Tracy's (I discuss this after the dungeon). Don't forget to get your 50 Rupees in the chest at the start of the dungeon. This loot will come in handy for sure. [18]=[17]-[19]-[20]-[21]=[23] | | [16] [22] | [14]-[15] [26]-[25] ^ | [13] [24] [ 8] [12] | || [ 7]-[ 2]-[ 3]-[ 5]-[10]-[11] | || | | [ 1] [ 4] [ 6]-[ 9] 20 Rupees: 17 50 Rupees: 1 Compass: 4 Key: 3, 6, 9, 10 Map: 8 Nightmare's Key: 22 Stone Slab: 16 Power Bracelet: 18 Crystal Balls: 5, 6, 9, 19, 21 Nightmare: 25 Stairs: 12-13, 23-24, 15-22 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Truckload of Sidequests ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You'll see a message reading "...PRAIRIE... ...PRAIRIE... The Prairie is waiting..." However, before we get to that, there's a lot to be done outside the prairie. You might want to go east and north from Goponga Swamp to Mt. Tamaranch, where the owl will appear. Go to the cave one screen east of Mt. Tamaranch. Inside, push the rocks and smash the crystals to get to the staircase in the second screen (use Roc's Feather to avoid standing on the soft spots too long). The torches will shoot fireballs at you constantly; oddly, this will not happen later on in the game. Go through the Keese-infested tunnel and head through the cave exit, where you'll find a chest with 50 Rupees. From Mt. Tamaranch, I recommend that you go east and explore the Tal Tal Heights region. Make sure to find the Warp Hole. Climb the steps and fall into the hole to activate it. It's not useful yet, but when you find some more Warp Holes, you can use them to warp quickly around the island. Definitely visit Crazy Tracy's House (west of Tabahl Wasteland, north of the Witch's Hut), which you can reach now that you have the Power Bracelet. Talk to her twice and she'll sell you Secret Medicine for a low cost of either 28 or 42 Rupees. This will refill all your life energy if you run out, effectively doubling your number of Heart Containers. If you use it, though, you'll have to buy it again from her. Go to the area southwest of the Witch's Hut (where the zombies live) to find a Secret Seashell. Slash the lone piece of grass and dig under it. North of Mr. Write's house, there's a small cave. Lift up the skull to find a chest with 50 Rupees inside. In the Mysterious Woods, go in the cave from either entrance and head to the screen with the movable rocks. Pick up the skulls with the Power Bracelet to get to the Piece of Heart. In the Mysterious Woods, you'll find a rock in the middle of nowhere. Pick it up to reveal a staircase leading to a strange cavern. Inside, sprinkle some Magic Powder in the hole and a strange character, the Mad Batter, will appear. He'll increase the amount of stuff you can carry. I'd choose bombs; keep saying "No" until he says "I'll let you carry more bombs..."; then say "Yes." Now the maximum number of bombs you can carry is 60 instead of 20! There's a treasure chest near the Mabe Village entrance to the Mysterious Woods. Open it for a Secret Seashell. Then go back to Mabe Village and talk to everybody. You can return BowWow to his owner, among other things (you can't advance in the game if you don't). Talk to Madam MeowMeow and you'll be rewarded in an unconventional way! If you want to, go inside the Dream Shrine and climb into bed. Inside, you can find 100 Rupees and many meanies. It's easier to do this later in the game. At Toronbo Shores, go all the way east to find a treasure chest blocked by some boulders. Open it for 50 Rupees. East of Mabe Village is Ukuku Prairie. Use your Power Bracelet to lift the rocks blocking the entrance. Fall into the Warp Hole one screen east to activate it. It's not useful unless you've activated another Warp Hole. You can use them to warp quickly. Just north is a cave with 50 Rupees inside. Keep jumping to push the rock without falling into the crack in the floor. Explore the prairie and you'll find some stuff. Keep following the trail to the east, but you won't be able to get very far unless you've got some Bombs (buy some at the item shop after you get the shovel, or take some the ghosts occasionally drop in the cemetery). Use them to implode the massive boulder blocking the path, as well as the two fragile caves. Watch out for the enemy- inhabited holes. Turn south at the fork if you want to reach Richard's Villa. If you have precisely five seashells, go to the Seashell Mansion to earn another one. Another shell is under grass one screen east of the Seashell Mansion. A few more Secret Seashells are now available in the Martha's Bay area to the south, but it often makes sense to get those later. A little south of the prairie, you'll find Martha's Bay. In the maze of rocks, you can lift one to reveal a Secret Seashell. Then go into the cave. Look out for the Spiny Beetles under the skulls, and poke at the western wall. When you hear a "Ping!" sound, drop a bomb to open a secret passage. It eventually takes you outside, where there's a Secret Seashell if you dig at the owl statue. In south-central Martha's Bay, there's also a weird bush in the middle of nowhere. Slash it to find a Secret Seashell. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kanalet Castle ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Richard lives in the southern part of Ukuku Prairie. Talk to him and he'll ask you to find his five Golden Leaves at Kanalet Castle. Go north along the trail to Kanalet Castle, and you'll find there's no way through the gate. Go east and you'll find a monkey. Assuming you've been following the Trading Game, talk to him and give him your bananas. He and his friends will construct a bridge leading into Kanalet Castle. Pick up the stick they leave behind and cross the bridge. Go north to the Phone Booth and turn west. Slash the grass to reveal a tunnel under the wall. This leads to a rare 2-D scene outside of a true dungeon. Go west through it and climb the ladder. Now that you're inside the castle walls, you can start looking for leaves. 1. On the west part of the castle, throw a rock at the suspicious crow and he'll fly at you. Slash him twice to defeat him and win your first Golden Leaf. 2. The other outdoor leaf is guarded a bomb-tossing enemy known as Mad Bomber. Look on the eastern courtyard. Keep slashing him when he pops out of the ground, avoiding the bombs he throws (sort of like Whack-A-Mole or Zelda 64's Volvagia). After a few hits, you'll receive a Golden Leaf. Go inside the castle for the remaining three. 3. In the second room inside the castle, you must defeat all the enemies. Watch out for the irksome Bubble, which can optionally be defeated. The Kanalet Soldier enemies aren't incredibly dangerous; they're identical to Moblins and other enemies you've already faced. In the fourth room, don't forget to step on the switch to open the gate outside. 4. On the first room in the second floor, bomb the left crack to reveal a Kanalet knight. Crunch him for another Golden Leaf. 5. Follow the walkway until you're back outside on the upper level. Go through the other door and you'll be in an odd room. Throw a pot at the door to open it (someone on a GameFAQs "Top Ten" feature said this was one of the ten toughest puzzles in video game history, although I figured it out in ten seconds without using a guide). The final leaf is obtained by defeating a tough meanie who wields a ball 'n' chain. Deliver a Whirling Blade move to him between attacks, but get out of his way when he swings the chain. After beating the Ball and Chain Soldier, you get the last Golden Leaf. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Slime Key ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After collecting all five of the Golden Leaves, go back to Richard and give them to him. He'll move over, allowing access to an underground tunnel. Watch out for the Zols and take the left fork, where you can get a Secret Seashell. Then go up the stairs and head outside. When you come out, you'll be in the Pothole Field. Slash the grass to clear a path, but be careful not to fall into the holes that appear when you destroy most of the bushes. The easiest route: Head south to the wall, then head east. Turn north when you reach the wall, and then make your way west when you reach the northeast corner of Pothole Field. When you make it through the maze, you'll reach an owl marker. Slash the bush and dig to excavate the Slime Key. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Key Cavern ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Key Cavern, the third dungeon, is located near the lake on the prairie. Go north and slightly west from Richard's to get to the keyhole. However, once you open the lock, you'll have to circle around Richard's Villa and cross the islands on the lake to reach the dungeon entrance. That's inconvenient. In the opening room, throw a pot at the door to open it. Go north to Room 2, where you must beat all the meanies for a Small Key. That's the first of nine - yes, nine - keys. The Bob-Omb will, after being hit, bounce around the room and eventually explode, so watch out. In Room 3, there's a fake chest with a meanie inside. I'd open it anyway, though. Keep going north past some Stalfoses and Zols until you reach the staircase. Go downstairs to the second floor. No 2-D tunnel here. You'll be surrounded by Zols and locks in Room 6. Use a Whirling Blade Attack to defeat them all. Spend your key to open up Room 7 at the top. Bop the two different flavors of Stalfos for a key, and don't forget to slash the crystal ball once. Go back up the steps to Room 5. You can now access the chest, wherein are 50 Rupees. Go south back to Room 3, beat the Zols, and go right. In Room 8, you can now beat the Stalfos and collect a whopping 200 Rupees from the chest. Woo-hoo! Go back downstairs to Room 6. The western and southern doors are both locked, and both reward you with Small Keys (and nothing else of value) for beating all of the enemies inside. For this reason, you can skip these rooms unless you want to be able to say you've entered every room in the game (I like to). For your reference, both rooms contain a rare enemy called Pairodd that fires laser beams at you and disappears if you come too close. Use a Whirling Blade Attack while jumping to beat them. Also, make sure to circle around the entire room to lure out the hidden Zols. At the four-way fork room, use your key to enter the eastern door. Go up the stairs to Room 12. Circle around the room and beat all the Zols to make a Small Key drop down. Only four to go! Go north and then west to Room 14. Defeat the Zol and Gels to open the doors. Go west to Room 15. Defeat the Zols and Pairodds to reveal a Small Key, your second. Head through the one-way door to Room 16. Topple the bad guys to make the Map chest appear. This will come in handy, especially since you'll soon need to do some backtracking. To access the chest, go through the one-way door and around the staircase. Take the walkway back to Room 14 and push the block to return to the main part of the floor. Take the left northern door up to find "THE BOSS!" These are Dodongo Snakes. Drop three bombs into their mouths to KO them. This reveals the warp portal to the start of the dungeon and opens the door to Room 19. Go through to a really easy block puzzle. Two spaces right of the chest, push the lower block left and the upper block down. Open the chest for the Pegasus Boots! When you use these, they let you run with super speed, enabling you to cross large gaps and smash certain obstacles. Use the warp portal to return to the start of the dungeon. From here, head east. When the Eye Vacuum stops, dash (hold the Pegasus Boots button and also Right) over to the chest, which holds a Small Key. You don't normally need to use the Control Pad when dashing, though. Go north to Room 2 and take the left passage. Use the Pegasus Boots to smash through the crystals. In Room 4, defeat the Zol on the left side of the room (you couldn't access it without the Pegasus Boots). Then circle around to the right side of the room and dispose of the Stalfoses. You'll produce a treasure chest, which contains the Stone Slab (you can see what it says in Room 7). Step into the warp portal at the start of the dungeon to return to the "upper" part of Key Cavern. Go back to Room 13 (one north of the room with the staircase). Go north, east, and north to Room 22. Bop all the bombs and Zols to open the western door. Keep going for a Compass in plain sight! You could've gotten this a little earlier on, but my plan is the fastest possible. From here, bomb the western wall and beat the Bob-Ombs for a Small Key. To reach the southeast room (Room 25), bomb the south wall in Room 21 (look where the arrow's pointing) or the east wall of Room 13. Go through and crunch the Shrouded Stalfoses. Then began dashing with the Pegasus Boots, and use Roc's Feather just as you reach the gap. If done properly, you'll clear the gap. This technique is used fairly often later in the game. After making the leap, climb the steps and cross the gaps (use a normal Roc's Feather jump). Open the chest for the Nightmare's Key. If you have four Small Keys and the Nightmare's Key, you have everything you need to reach the boss. Open the locked block in Room 14 to reach a passage full of locks. Keep unlocking them until you reach the staircase, which takes you to the only side- scrolling section in the dungeon. Use your Pegasus Boots to slam into the Thwomp to knock it down, and then in the next screen, make a long Pegasus Jump to the ladder. When you exit, you'll be in Room 26. Use your boots with the sword equipped to defeat the Pairodds and crunch the crystals. When the enemies are all gone, the door opens. In Room 27, you can earn a Small Key if you defeat all the Keese, but it's basically useless. Then head into the Nightmare's Lair! ---------------------------------------- Evil Optic Receptor SLIME EYES ---------------------------------------- Open the Nightmare's Lair and you'll be faced with a few Zols. Ignore them and dash into the wall to knock down a giant eyeball. Keep slashing the eye until the two eyes are about to separate. Then use your Pegasus Boots to charge into it, splitting it into two smaller eyeballs. Once they divide, go for the individual eyes. After hitting them with your sword, they'll jump high into the air and try to squash you. Use the Roc's Feather to jump when they land so you won't get stunned (Roy Koopa-style). Then quickly Whirling Blade them until they can't take it any longer. When that happens, you win another Heart Container and the Sea Lily's Bell, the third Instrument! [17]-[24]o[23]-[22] ^| | [16] [18]=[20]-[21] ^| || || o [15]-[14]-[13]o[25] [ 7] | || [ 5] [12] [ 9]=[ 6]=[11] | || [ 4] [10] | [ 3]-[ 8] [29] | | [ 2] [28] | | [ 1]-[19] [27]-[26] 50 Rupees: 5 200 Rupees: 8 Compass: 23 Empty (Zol): 3 Key: 2, 7, 9, 10, 12, 15, 19, 24, 27 Map: 16 Nightmare's Key: 21 Stone Slab: 4 Pegasus Boots: 20 Crystal Balls: 7 Stairs: 5-6, 11-12, 13-26 Nightmare: 28 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post-Dungeon Sidequests ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You've found the first three instruments, but things aren't getting easier. The Owl will give you a message and instruct you on where to go next. I'll cover the main sidequests that are now available. Just north of the dungeon is a buried Secret Seashell (dig where the four pieces of grass come together). You can get here by crossing the pond near Richard's Villa. Here's another shell in the same neighborhood: Southwest of the Warp Hole, head to the Phone Booth and use your Pegasus Boots to charge into the tree and knock down an often-missed Secret Seashell. Go to the small cave in Ukuku Prairie (just south of the cemetery) and bomb it if you haven't done so already. You'll reveal an entrance. Crush the crystals, go north, and then head south down the middle. Break the single crystal and push the rock left to access a chest with 50 Rupees. Go north and poke at the walls. When you hear a pinging sound (near the bottom of the north screen), drop a bomb and you'll reveal a secret room! Inside is a Piece of Heart. From outside the cave, go east one screen and you'll meet Tarin. Give him your stick and he'll poke at the honeycomb. After a funny cutscene, you'll win a Honeycomb. From the Kanalet Castle gate, go three screens south and one east. Slash the bush to reveal a staircase. It leads to an underground cave with some crystals. Smash them and you'll be at a fork along a river. North takes you to the highly hazardous Face Shrine (keep out for now); south leads to Martha's Bay and Animal Village. Go two screens south and one east to Animal Village - yes, a village inhabited by talking animals - and talk to everyone. Marin is a very popular figure here. You'll need her help to wake up the snoozing walrus to the south. Make sure to activate the Warp Hole just south of the village at the pond. From the entrance to Animal Village, go west, south twice, west, and north across the bridge. Dig to the left of the owl statue to uncover a Secret Seashell. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Ocarina ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Warp to Mabe Village and talk to everybody (as usual). While you're in the area, go one screen west of the Tail Cave and use the Pegasus Boots to ram into the tree and knock down a Secret Seashell. Return to Mabe Village. Pick up the rocks in front and enter the Dream Shrine. Climb into bed to enter a bizarre dream world. Use the Pegasus Boots to crash through the Arm-Mimics with ease. Climb the steps and open the first chest for 100 Rupees (unless you collected it earlier). Then crash through the crystal to find another chest. Inside is the Ocarina! You'll find it to be very helpful later on. When I first got this item (way back in 1999), I was really surprised - I though ocarinas were only in the title of Zelda 64 (I hadn't played the other Zelda games at that time)! Head to the Weathercock in the center of Mabe Village, where you'll find Marin. Talk to her and she'll teach you how to play the Ballad of the Wind Fish on your Ocarina. Say it sticks in your mind when asked. By the way, you won't forget it even if you don't play it very often. Also, it should be noted that you can play the song to defeat Pols Voices. Go back to Animal Village and trade your Honeycomb to Chef Bear in the southeastern house for the Pineapple. Talk to him again and return to Mabe Village. Marin is gone! Talk to the lad who appears in her place. Go to the southeast corner of Toronbo Shores and you'll find Marin. Talk to her for a while (yes, this is a very strange sequence) and she'll come with you. Try playing the Ocarina, digging, playing the Trendy Game, slashing chickens, falling down the well in Mabe Village, talking to villagers (and Tarin), checking drawers in houses, throwing pots, and going inside dungeons. Going inside the Dream Shrine disappoints, however. Warp back to Animal Village, and use her to awaken the snoozy walrus to the south. He'll hop into the water and get out of your way. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Angler's Key ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You can then enter the Yarna Desert. Look out for the Pokeys and Leevers that inhabit this barren, parched land. Pick up the rock to the east and you'll find a Secret Seashell. You can access the path to it from the northeast corner of the desert. Then head to the northwest screen, where you'll find a boss called Lanmola. Deliver a Whirling Blade Attack when he pops out of the sand, and stay away from the middle of the quicksand so you won't be sucked in. Arrows make it even easier. After a few hits, you'll win the Angler's Key. It'll fall into a hole, though. Let the quicksand in the center swallow you and you'll be able to pick up the key at the bottom of an underground Pincer-laden cave. Before leaving, bomb the northern wall to find another Piece of Heart! Back outside, the Owl will talk with you again and tell you where to go (how bossy!). In Animal Village, Marin will teach you her song, the Ballad of the Wind Fish, if you haven't learned it already. Otherwise, head to the Tal Tal Heights area, preferably using the Warp Hole. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tal Tal Mountain ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you haven't activated the Warp Hole in Tal Tal Heights yet, please do so. This way, you can reach Mabe Village and Animal Village from here with ease. You can get to the Warp Hole by going east from Goponga Swamp. One screen west of the Warp Hole is a keyhole. Insert the Angler's Key to reveal the dungeon and drain some of the deep water near the top of the mountain. Getting to the dungeon, however, requires a trek through the mountains. To get to the Tal Tal Mountain Range area, go through the small cave next to Mt. Tamaranch. You'll need to use the Roc's Feather to keep yourself from falling through the soft spots in the cave when pushing the boulders. Use the Pegasus Boots to break the crystals later in the cave. Open the chest if you didn't earlier in the game. Outside, wade through a damp outdoor path. Enter the nearest cave and head through the tunnel (the chest only contains an enemy) to reach a high bluff. Here you'll meet up with Papahl, a character who's "bonked" (should've brought a Power Bar). Give him a pineapple and he'll reward you with a hibiscus. Notice how "victuals" is misspelled as "vittles" (as is the un-capitalized "nellie," which appears later in the game, and the consistently misspelled "Cemetary"). From here, go one screen north and jump back down to the damp trail. Head east until you reach a spot you can jump down from (before you used the Angler's Key, this area was full of impassible deep water). Now go inside the dungeon! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Angler's Tunnel ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Angler's Tunnel dungeon is very, very wet! I suppose it's designed to look like a fish. Go north to Room 2 and take the walkway as far east as possible. Open the treasure chest for your Stone Slab. Then go north along the high path until you reach a chest. Open it for the Map! Pegasus jump across the huge pit to Room 10. Here we have a wonderful combination of Bubble and Peahat. Bomb the cracked rock and push the other block to access a chest. It holds a Small Key. Go north twice to Room 12 and bomb the cracked block. Open the chest for another Small Key, your second. At this point, go back to Room 2, unless you want to go north at the gap you had to use your Pegasus Boots to cross (it's possible to go north or south from the east or west fork, but it's very tough). In Room 2, flip over the Spiked Beetles with your shield and slash them to open a door to the east. Go through to Room 3, which has the Compass. Defeat all the enemies to open the south door. Go down to Room 4. Inside a chest is another Small Key, which should be your third. Defeat the Water Tektites to open the door leading back to the previous room. In there, unlock the door to the east. Go inside Room 5 and open the other locked door. Go north as far as possible, again using the Pegasus Jump at the gap (it's much easier going straight across). You'll pass through rooms 5, 13, 8 and 9 before you reach the lock block. Open it, push the block forward, and beat the enemies. Head west to Room 14. Beat the twin Zols to drop a key downstairs. However, you can't get it for a while. If you took the tricky shortcut mentioned earlier, you can open the locked door to the north and save a lot of time. Otherwise, go south twice, west twice, and north. Open the chest for a Zol (yuck). Then go north and east to the chest, which has a Small Key. Yay! WARNING: Do not use the Pegasus Boots/Roc's Feather combination in Room 15 to reach the door before you normally would. If you open the locked door to the north, you will make your game impossible to complete without cheating. Return to Room 14, and open the locked door to find a boss, Cue Ball (also called Big Octo). Use the Pegasus Boots to slam into his back. Alternatively, wait for him to come near, and then jump over him with Roc's Feather. Then you can get in a Whirling Blade Attack. Remember that he usually changes direction after a hit or if you go too long without hitting him. After beating him, you reveal a warp to the beginning of the dungeon. In Room 21, use the Power Bracelet to pull a switch and open a door. Quickly enter before it closes. If you're fast, you won't need to use the lever. In Room 22, bop the pair of Zols and open the treasure chest. It's the Flippers! These make it possible for you to swim in deep water. Press B to dive and A to swim more quickly. South of the Flippers room, you'll find a room with five shiny floor tiles. Step on them in the right order (use trial and error; correct ones will shine when you stand on them) to reopen the door. You don't need to enter it, but you do need to remember the order in which you stepped on the tiles. In Room 9, go down the stairs to find a key underwater in the side-scrolling section. This is the key I said you'd be able to retrieve a little later. Now you know why! You couldn't swim here without the Flippers. Now head to Room 24 (west of the nearby room with the Spiked Beetles), where you can now reach the chest. It holds 50 Rupees. Return to Room 18 and get rid of the Water Tektites. Then step on the tiles in a special order. Do it properly to reveal a staircase. Go down to a side-scrolling section with Thwomps. Stand near them to activate them, then run under them as they reset. You'll have to jump on the second one as it rises in order to reach the ladder. When you exit, go south and you'll get yourself the Nightmare's Key! Then go north and east to Room 15, and step on the switch to open a door. Unlock the Lock Block and go down the stairs. There are a few Cheep-Cheeps to deal with, but these are easy to beat with your aquatic fencing skills. When you exit the tunnel, go west and unlock the big door. When you unlock the Nightmare's Lair, you'll notice that he isn't home! Actually, he is. Go down the stairs to face him underwater. ---------------------------------------- Gargantuan Masked Fish ANGLER FISH ---------------------------------------- So I ripped the boss's subtitle straight out of Majora's Mask. What's wrong with that? Float above Angler Fish and use your sword to attack him rapidly. This fishy Nightmare will occasionally charge at you, causing rocks to come crashing down. His charge attacks are damaging, but if you have at least seven Heart Containers, it's easiest just to keep whacking the sword button until the fight ends; don't bother trying to dodge the attacks. After beating him, you win another Heart Container and another musical instrument, the Surf Harp. By the way, there's one chest I didn't cover (it really didn't fit into a natural order). Take the warp portal to the mini-boss room and make your way to Room 13, where the Flippers enable access to a 50-Rupee chest. [22]-[21] | | [28] [23] [20] [12] | | || | [27] [18]-[19]-[14]-[ 9] [11] | | | || | [26]-[17] [24]-[ 7]-[ 8]-[10] | || | | [16]-[15]-[ 6] [13] | | | || [25]-[ 2]-[ 3]=[ 5] | | [ 1] [ 4] 50 Rupees: 13, 24 Compass: 3 Empty (Zol): 17 Key: 4, 10, 12, 19 Map: 9 Nightmare's Key: 25 Stone Slab: 5 Flippers: 22 Stairs: 16-18 Nightmare: 27 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Manbo's Mambo and Fun with the Flippers ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Those Flippers are great. They facilitate access to a lot of important things. Your first priority is one screen west of the previous dungeon, where there's a small cave along the river. Inside lives a fish named Manbo. He'll teach you a new song for your Ocarina, Manbo's Mambo. This tune is very useful because it warps you to Manbo's Pond (near the cemetery) whenever you play it. If used in a dungeon, it'll take you back to its entrance. You can switch songs on the Subscreen. Also in the river (three screens east of Angler's Tunnel) is a small wet cave. Dive down inside to find a Heart Piece! Another Heart Piece can be found in the moat of Kanalet Castle, near the southwest corner. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Ghost ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chances are, you're going to get haunted by a ghost soon. He's a little annoying, and he prevents you from entering dungeons. To get him off your back, take him to his house, the House by the Bay, which is located a little east of Toronbo Shores. I've always though this scene was kind of pitiful... Then take him to the cemetery. His grave is the lone tombstone just west of the Witch's Hut. After you get him out of your way, you'll get a message from a certain nocturnal bird of prey. He'll tell you to go to Martha's Bay. First, try sprinkling a little Magic Powder on the ghost's grave. Lastly, don't forget to take the Secret Seashell under the pot at the House by the Bay. One time I was able to get this seashell before meeting the ghost, but I wasn't able to repeat it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- More Stuff to Do ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In Ukuku Prairie, in the pond next to the third dungeon, there's a lone piece of grass. Slash it to reveal a Secret Seashell. If it lands in the water, just leave the screen and come back. In Animal Village, give your Hibiscus to Christine the goat, who lives in the third house from the left. She'll trade it for a Letter. Great!? Take it to Mr. Write, who lives just north of the Mysterious Woods, and he'll give you a Broom. Mr. Write is sure going to be in for a surprise about that pen pal/lover if he finds out who she really is. That's another reason why you have to be careful when meeting Internet friends in real life! Curiously, the real-life Mr. Wright says he likes buying "funny things off the Internet, like uranium" and relics from the Soviet space program. But that's beside the point. Anyway, you might want to talk to everybody in Mabe Village, and usually, if you've been playing normally, you now have enough money to buy the Bow & Arrows Set from the store. It costs a whopping 980 Rupees. You almost have to have it by Level Six. However, there's a way you can prevent this expenditure from making a huge dent in your wallet. Immediately after buying it, as your Rupee total is going down, save your game. If you're lucky and fast, your Rupee total will not have plummeted to 0. Afterwards, warp to Animal Village, and go west and south to Martha's Bay. There's a small island in the middle of nowhere, in the southwest corner of Martha's Bay. Smash the grass to find a Secret Seashell. Go one screen east to find a huge patch of grass, some holes, and a cave. Use a Whirling Blade Attack while jumping to slash the grass nearest the gap. Then cross over the pit with Roc's Feather and the Pegasus Boots. Go down the stairs to an underground area. Swim up the tunnel, avoiding the enemies, and you'll be back outside. Go west and enter the other cave to reach a special chamber. Sprinkle Magic Powder in the central hole to summon that goofy bat, the Mad Batter. He'll upgrade your Magic Powder, bombs, or arrows. I'd choose arrows, unless you didn't boost your bomb capacity the last time you saw him. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The L-2 Sword ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Have you been paying attention? If so, you should now have 20 Secret Seashells. Go to the Seashell Mansion in Ukuku Prairie for a big surprise! It's the Level- 2 Sword! This sword is twice as powerful as your old one, and it can fire a beam when you're at full health. Having it makes the last four dungeons much easier. Once you have it, treasure chests that would have held Secret Seashells now contain 20 Rupees, and other shells are no longer accessible. If you don't have 20 Secret Seashells yet, check my appendix to see which ones you've missed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Catfish's Maw ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To get to the fifth dungeon, swim to the center of Martha's Bay. At the west end of the dungeon, near the rocks, press B to dive, where you'll be taken to a 2-D section. You can then go inside. This dungeon is a little wet in places, and it's crawling with Stalfoses, including a large-scale skull guy. "Maw" means stomach, for those who lack dictionaries. I'm not sure what the dungeon map is supposed to resemble - maybe a wiggling fish, or perhaps an intestine or tapeworm. From the start, go west directly to Room 3. Beat the enemies to open the western door. The Iron Masks are frustrating. To beat them, you must slash their unprotected backsides. When they're gone, go west to Room 4. Inside is the Compass! That's a nice way to start, isn't it? Then take the stairs to a 2-D tunnel with some Super Mario Bros.-style balance lifts. When you stand on one, it falls while another corresponding platform rises. When you exit the side-scrolling area, you'll be in Room 5. Defeat the Stalfoses and shatter the crystal-like objects. Push the blocks together for a Small Key! Go back to Room 3 and open the locked door with it. Go west and beat the Iron Masks to open the door. Watch out for the Razor Traps. Go west to Room 8. Inside, dispose of the twin Iron Masks using the pots and you'll make a chest appear. Open it for the Map. Now that you have the Map and Compass, life gets a little easier. Head east twice to return to Room 6. From there, go north twice to Room 10. What's this bully here? It's Master Stalfos! This massive Stalfos meanie requires you to stun him by slashing his side. Then drop a bomb when he's down. Repeat twice to send him to his next room. Go east to Room 11, which has a chest with a note inside. In Room 12, push the block up, go west, and return to reset the room, push the block east, go north to reset the puzzle, go back, and push the block. Then step on the switch to open the Skull Master's door. This is the second battle (you can tell the order by looking at the number of blocks in the corners of the room). He'll take two bombs before moving on. From the block room, go north, north, and west to Room 16. To unlock the door, you'll have to beat all three of the Zols in the room. Break the pots and push the blocks to reach the Zol on other side of the room. After beating them, head north to Room 17, where you'll do battle with Master Stalfos for a third time. Use the same tactics as before. Two hits do the trick. Go west to find the Stone Slab and a trio of Stalfoses. The final battle is far away. Play Manbo's Mambo to warp to the beginning of the dungeon. Head back to Room 5 (use the staircase in Room 4). Go left to face Master Stalfos one more time. He'll take three bombs. After beating this persistent skull meanie, you win the Hook Shot, which lets you pull yourself toward blocks and chests and stuff like that. It also removes the helmets of Iron Masks. Tip: For most of the remainder of this dungeon, assign the Hookshot to one Button (for me, A) and Roc's Feather to B. Also, I spell it as one word, as it is known in other Zelda games. Warp back to the start of the dungeon. Use the Hookshot in Room 2 for 200 Rupees. From here, go west, north, and west to Room 7. Beat the Iron Masks with your Hookshot to open the doors. Go north to Room 20 and then west to Room 21. Hookshot to a block to glide across the traps and to safety. In the next room, Hookshot to the chest, which holds a Small Key. Then Hookshot back to Room 20. Hookshot the hook across the gap to form a ladder. Pick up the pot if you need a fairy, and then go north to Room 23 and unlock the door. Here you'll face a pair of Gohmas. When their eyes open, quickly slap them with the Hookshot before they shoot you. Each one requires six hits. It's best to deal with the lower spider first. If a Gohma begins shaking, move away before it charges at you. For the impatient, you can play the Ballad of the Wind Fish to make them open their eyes. After beating them, the warp portal appears and the upper door opens. There's no need to enter it yet, though. In Rooms 14 and 15, you can use your Hookshot to get 50 Rupees each from the chests (keep using your Hookshot to grapple to the blocks and chests). Then in Room 25, you can get a Small Key with your Hookshot. It's working overtime, isn't it? Return to Room 12 and go west to Room 29 and then north to Room 30. Dive down in the center of the water to discover a watery 2-D passage full of Bloopers. This tunnel takes you to the Nightmare's Key, where you need to use your Hookshot to form a bridge. You can take the stairs in Room 23 (near the warp portal) or 11, and both will eventually lead to the Nightmare, but not without a lot of help from your trusty Hookshot! If you took the Room 23 route, go east to reach a staircase. It takes you to a side-scrolling area where you must Hookshot to the Bowser statues (I'm not making this up). Skip the next paragraph. If you went through the tunnel in Room 11, hop across the SMB-style bridge, which has several weak jumping Cheep-Cheeps. Back in the dungeon, keep traveling east to the stone inscription and beat the Stars. This section was not covered earlier in my guide, by the way. Keep going east, push the block, and move to the next paragraph. Unlock the Lock Block. Then Hookshot across the gap to the block, and unlock the door to the Nightmare's Lair. ---------------------------------------- Giant Masked Insect SLIME EEL ---------------------------------------- OK, I came up with another recycled subtitle. Equip the Sword and Hookshot. Your goal is to shoot your Hook Shot into the Nightmare's mouth. When you pull him out of his hole, slash his heart until you KO the tough meanie. He could pop up in any of four holes, so be patient. It's easiest if you Hookshot Slime Eel's mouth from near the middle of the room. Either stay in the edge of the room or use Roc's Feather to avoid the boss's spiked tail, whose speed (but not motion) is unpredictable. Also keep in mind that one of the eels is fake; when you Hookshot it, it will leave its hole and blow up in a few seconds. After beating the fifth Nightmare, you win the Wind Marimba and another Heart Container. [19]-[ 5] [34] [18]-[17] | | [33] [31] [16]-[15] | | | [26]-[27]-[28]=[32] [30] [14]-[25] | | [29]-[12]-[13] | [24]=[23] [10]-[11] | | [22]-[21]-[20] [ 9] | | [ 8]-[ 7]-[ 6] || [ 4]-[ 3]-[ 2]-[ 1] 50 Rupees: 14, 15 200 Rupees: 2 Compass: 4 Empty (Note): 11 Key: 22, 25, 34 Map: 8 Nightmare's Key: 31 Stone Slab: 18 Hook Shot: 19 Stairs: 4-5, 11-26, 30-31, 23-32 Nightmare: 33 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Magnifying Lens and Other Goodies ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After completing the fifth dungeon, you'll receive a message. "...SHRINE... An island secret in the shrine..." Your next destination is the Face Shrine. But first, go to the cave in Animal Village. You can reach it by going north from where the walrus once slumbered. Bomb the entrance and go inside. Push the rocks into the holes and jump across to where the Hardhat Beetle is. Knock it into the hole using your Hookshot and jump over to where it was. Bomb the north wall and go through the corridor. Drop a bomb and pick it up and throw it at the cracked block across from you, or use a Bomb Arrow. Then circle around, Hookshot to the block, and collect the Piece of Heart. Are you paying your little item overtime? You'll also find Grandpa Ulrira's wife in Animal Village. She loves to sweep, but her broom's broken. So give her your Broom and she'll present you with a Fishing Hook. Go to the southeast part of Martha's Bay and dive off the right side of the bridge, where you'll meet a fisherman. Give him the hook, which he'll use to fish up a Necklace. Give the Necklace to Martha, the mermaid in the north-central screen of Martha's Bay. She'll then allow you to take a scale from her tail. Now visit the mermaid statue, which can be accessed by using your Hookshot just south of the bridge. After inserting the scale (press A), you'll be able to push the statue, revealing a staircase! Go forward to the pedestal with the Magnifying Lens! It'll come in handy someday (OK, three times). One of those times is in the previous room, where you'll be able to see the formerly invisible enemies (these are the only invisible enemies in the game). By the way, now that you have the Magnifying Lens, you can sell an item (probably the Shovel) at a special shop in a cave at Toronbo Shores. In return, you'll get the Boomerang, which allows you to defeat Sparks and Bubbles with ease, among other things. These enemies are everywhere in the next couple of dungeons, so consider acquiring this optional item now. In the Mysterious Woods, look for 50 Rupees in the cave blocked by boulders. Pick them up and go inside. Use your Hookshot to reach the chest. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Frog's Song of Soul ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have at least 300 Rupees, make sure to do this necessary side quest (although you can wait until after getting the sixth instrument). Exit Mabe Village to Ukuku Prairie. Head south until you come to several holes and a well-armed Moblin. Defeat it and use the Roc's Feather/Pegasus Boots combination to jump the gap, although it's possible (but tough) to cross it with just the Roc's Feather. You are now in the Signpost Maze. Read the sign and go straight south to the next sign. Watch out for the Zols and Spiny Beetles in the area, and use the Hookshot when necessary. If you mess up, you'll have to start over. Follow the signs until you open a secret passage. It leads to Mamu - the Japanese name for Wart, Mario's nemesis in Super Mario Bros. 2. Yes, this is a very odd character to appear here. Pay him 300 Rupees to learn the Frog's Song of Soul. I wish they had included this groovy music in Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Twilight Princess! This song is used only twice, but it's very important. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Adventures in the Mountains ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I recommend that you go to the Tal Tal Mountains if you need more Rupees or Secret Seashells. Go through the cave next to Mt. Tamaranch. In the third chamber of the cavern, use the Hookshot to zip across the gap to the chest, which has 50 Rupees. Go outside and east past the deep water to the easternmost cave. Go inside and bomb the dry spot in the water to reveal an entrance. Go up the stairs to find some Rupees and rocks. You'll have only one chance to open the chests, so be careful here. Each rock can be pushed only once. If you're good, you should collect 80 Rupees; the westernmost chest can't be opened. Then go south, leave the cave, and grab a Secret Seashell from the chest. Go back to the high stream above Angler's Tunnel that I mentioned earlier. Climb up the stairs, go west, and you'll reach the Hen House. Go inside to meet Ingo (I think that's him) and hear some of the best music in the game! Go east along the bridge to reach a photo spot. From the Hen House, cross the bridge to the right and lift the rock for a Secret Seashell (assuming you still have the L-1 sword). West of the Hen House, Hookshot across the gap and slash the bush to reveal a cave. As soon as you enter it, you'll find a Spiny Beetle hiding under a skull. Bomb the indentation below the skull to find a tunnel. It leads to a Heart Piece. Keep heading west and use your Hookshot to cross the chasm. Eventually you'll reach a hazardous section where boulders are falling from the mountain. Climb the mountain to reach a 50-Rupee chest. Right next to it is a rock that hides a staircase. Go inside to reach another one of those strange rooms. Sprinkle a little Magic Powder in the hole and the Mad Batter will be back. He's my personal all-time favorite Zelda character, for what it's worth! He'll power up the item of your choice. If you've followed my guide, the only thing left to upgrade will be Magic Powder. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rapids Ride ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It's possible to play through the entire game without going to the Rapids Ride. In fact, you won't miss anything great if you don't go here. However, this is one of the most fun mini-games in any Zelda game, and it's got great music! Also, you must play it a couple of times if you want to be able to say you've seen every screen on the map. To get here, go east in the Tal Tal Heights area until you come to a river. Hookshot across to the other side and go around to the Raft Shop. Pay 100 Rupees to borrow the raft. Get aboard and start going. Use the Roc's Feather to jump and get the floating items. The Control Pad steers, although it's often hard to move against the current. The best Rupees are the ones that are the toughest to reach. Usually you won't be able to recoup the 100 Rupees by the end, although you can easily get 80 or so. At the end, you'll wind up in the north Face Shrine area. Play Manbo's Mambo, or go through the nearby cave to return to Tal Tal Heights. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Face Key ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Head on over to the Face Shrine area, which is north of Animal Village. The Face Shrine area on the map is not the same as the Face Shrine dungeon (Level 6). When you enter the area, the Owl will tell you to go to the south shrine. However, to get there, you'll have to make your way through a dangerous ruin. Keep going east past the boulders and Tektites until you can turn south into the main ruin section. The Zols are a problem, but an even bigger problem are the Armos Statues, which come to life if you push them. You have to, though, to get them out of your way. When you push them, quickly slap them with your Hookshot. This will stun them so you can walk through them safely. Go south, west, west, and north. From here, go east to find a secret passage under the Armos Statue. It's a secret cave with a Secret Seashell. If you don't need it, keep going south (from the west end of the screen), west, and north. After a while, you'll get to the southern temple. Go inside and you'll find an enormous Armos Statue! Approach the Armos Knight and it'll come to life. Slam it with a Whirling Blade Attack, and use the Roc's Feather to jump when it does. If you're on the ground when it lands, you'll be stunned. If it's stunned after landing and you're not, you'll have a head start on your Whirling Blade Attack. After a few hits, it will shed its armor and become faster. By the way, it's slower - but much easier - to beat the Armos Knight with a dozen arrows. After you defeat this bully, you win the Face Key. You can also go into the next room, light it up with some Magic Powder, and read a message on the wall (which I won't spoil, but you really need to see it). When you exit, the Owl will speak to you and tell you to go to the north shrine. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Face Shrine ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Like the past few dungeons, the Face Shrine is hard to access. Swim east through the river into the Face Shrine area and you'll come to an island with two Armos Statues. Activate the left one and stun it with your Hookshot. It was hiding a secret passage. Pass the fish, Hookshot across the abyss, and you'll be outside. Insert the Face Key in the keyhole to make the dungeon rise from the ground. The Face Shrine is the sixth dungeon. It is massive and intricate, and completing it requires you to use of a truckload of bombs. Blowing stuff up is fun, but the same cannot be said of the Wizzrobes, the dungeon's layout, and the somber music. You'll find that this dungeon is very challenging and quite frustrating without a guide. You definitely want to have the Bow, the L-2 Sword, and at least two capacity upgrades by now. Room 2 is to the left of the entrance. There's a trio of enemies who keep disappearing and reappearing in the same place - Wizzrobes. They shoot beams at you. You can slash them to push them to the same area, and then you can take them all out with one bomb. Drop it when they become invisible. Alternatively, defeat them with a Bomb Arrow - equip Bombs and the Bow and press A and B at the same time. You'll use this tactic many times in the Face Shrine. After beating them, the upper door opens. It leads to a 50-Rupee chest. Go back to the previous room and take the left upper path. Go north and west to a room with a Shy-Guy and a crystal ball. Drop a bomb by the crystal and stand on the upper-left block. Wait for the bomb to explode and activate the crystal. Then go north to Room 6. Beat the Zol and lift the northwestern pot to find a switch. Step on it to open the door. In Room 7, bop the Wizzrobes with the method of your choice to win the Map. Use the Hookshot if you need to activate the crystal ball if you hit it by mistake. Go up to the next room and turn right. There you'll find the Stone Slab. Back in the previous room, throw a pot at the door to open it, and then go up to Room 10. Make a right turn to find the Compass and a 10-bomb refill, both of which are very helpful. Hit the crystal in the corner and follow the walkway from Room 11 to Room 14. A valuable Small Key will drop down when you beat the Wizzrobes. Watch out for the irritating Bubble, however. Go back to Room 6, but this time you want to be on the right side of the room. If the blocks are up, just launch an arrow at the crystal in Room 7. This allows you to reach the right side of the room. Make sure to bomb the crystal again in Room 5, though (you'll see why soon). Follow the walkway if you want to see the Stone Slab. Otherwise, drop a bomb next to the wall to blow open a passage. You'll reach a dark room full of Zols. Beat the Zols (definitely light the torches first) to reveal a staircase. This takes you to a 2-D tunnel full of weird giant Bubbles that bounce around the room. When you come out, you'll find yourself in a room full of Wizzrobes. However, you may have to go back to Room 5 and toggle the crystal ball if you didn't follow my directions. If the blocks are down, simply beat the Wizzrobes and Mini-Moldorm to open the door. In Room 17, there's a fairy under the pot - and the More Powerful Bracelet! This upgraded item will come in handy. You can now lift those weird elephant-like statues in the dungeon. Go through the one-way door to Room 5. Pick up the statue and smash it at the wall. You'll open the door, which leads to a 100-Rupee chest. Go back up to Room 10 and throw that statue at the door. You'll reach a room with 100 more Rupees, and you'll also be taken to the Rapids Ride, where there's a Secret Seashell (or 20 Rupees, if you have the L-2 Sword). Go back into the dungeon and play Manbo's Mambo to return to the start of the dungeon (alternatively, you can throw the Horsehead Puppets around until they both land right side up, and then go back the way you came). We've finished up the left half of the Face Shrine. Let's take care of the other side. First make sure the blocks are up in Room 5. From the dungeon entrance, go east. Throw away the weird statues on the conveyor belts, and watch out for the Razor Traps. In Room 20, you'll be slammed by a barrage of tiles that come flying at you. Stand in the northwest corner and defend yourself with your shield or sword. After they finish, the door opens. Go up and throw a statue at the eastern door to open it. Beat the Wizzrobes and go south. In here, beat the Stars, go up the west staircase, jump onto the blocks, activate the Razor Trap, jump over it, and head up the walkway. Open the chest for 50 Rupees - the hard way. Then jump down and head north until you come to a damp tunnel with a Small Key. Head back to Room 21 and unlock the door. In Room 24, eliminate the Zols so the lamps won't shoot flames at you. Then bomb the upper wall to reveal Room 25. Inside is a boss, Smasher. Throw his little black ball back at him to defeat him. If you're good, you can throw the orb at him several times without giving him a chance to pick it up again. Four hits will beat the boss, creating the warp portal. In Room 26, don't go up. If you do, you'll find yourself back in Room 21 (a lot like the raccoon's trick in the Mysterious Forest). Instead, pick up the big statue, which hides a staircase. The tunnel is full of Sparks and requires you to jump across some ladders. You'll wind up in Room 27. Here, you'll be faced with a salvo of tiles that come up from the floor. Hold out your shield while standing in the northeast corner and you'll win a Small Key. You can use it to open the locked door in the same room! Go north and throw the statue at the door. In this new part of an old room, throw the Horsehead Puppets until both are standing up (it will take many tries); that's when the door will open. Go through to a staircase. In the side-scrolling section, use the Pegasus Boots to sprint under the Thwimps and avoid damage. This takes you to Room 28. Play the Ballad of the Wind Fish to dispose of the Pols Voices, opening the doors. Go north and equip Roc's Feather and the Power Bracelet so you can jump the Sparks and lift the pots. Go up to Room 30 to find 200 Rupees. Use the Hookshot to activate the crystal, and keep tossing the horses until they're both up. Go back south to find a familiar boss: Dodongo Snakes. Feed 'em some bombs and they'll go bye-bye. Go west into the newly-opened door and Hookshot across to the other side of the room. Open the Lock Block and head north to Room 34. Here's a chest... but it won't open! Actually, you can open it. Throw a pot to break the lock and obtain the Nightmare's Key! Go back to the loop part of the stage (play Manbo's Mambo, enter the warp portal, and go north). Take the stairs again to Room 27. Go south to Room 36 and let the eye suck up all the Zols (one in each cardinal direction) into the pit, opening the door. In Room 37, you'll have to beat a single Wizzrobe. However, there's also a nasty (and indestructible) Beamos, which fires a laser if its eye sees you. Be very careful! Push the block into the pit and go north. In Room 38, you can turn the Sparks into fairies by sprinkling Magic Powder in the lights. This could turn out to be a good energy recharge before entering the Nightmare's Lair. ---------------------------------------- Face of Evil FACADE ---------------------------------------- This is the only boss that you don't use the corresponding dungeon prize against. When the battle starts, you'll be faced with a barrage of floor tiles (again)! Stand in the corner and hold out your shield to defend yourself. Try to pick up the pots so they won't fly into you. After that, look out for the holes that appear. To score a hit, drop bombs on the face when you it becomes visible. This is actually a very easy Nightmare - a good thing after this difficult dungeon. After just five bombs, you'll have another heart and a Coral Triangle. [18] [30] | | [10]-[11] [14] [40] [34] [29] | | | | | | | [ 8]-[ 9]-[12]-[13] [39] [26] [33] [28] | | || | | || | [ 7]-[ 6]o[15] [27] [38] [25] [32]-[31] | | | o | [ 5]-[ 4] [36]-[37] [24] [35] ^ | || | [17] [ 3] [21]-[22] | | | | [16] [ 2]-[ 1]-[19]-[20] [23] 50 Rupees: 3, 22 100 Rupees: 4, 18 200 Rupees: 30 Compass: 11 Key: 14, 27, 33 Map: 7 Nightmare's Key: 34 Stone Slab: 11 L-2 Power Bracelet: 17 Crystal Balls: 5, 7, 11, 18, 29, 34 Endless Loop: Top of 26 Stairs: 15-16, 26-27, 9-28, 18-Rapids Ride Nightmare: 39 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reviving the Flying Rooster ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After beating the sixth Nightmare, you'll receive a message (again). Then the Owl will talk to you and tell you what to do next (sort of). Your next stop is Mabe Village, where there's some stuff to do. You may wish to replenish your bomb and arrow supply and talk to some people. The main location this time, however, is directly north of Marin and Tarin's House. Do you see the Weathercock? Push it forward and you'll find a cave! Inside are some old bones. But if you play the Frog's Song of Soul, you may be able to revive those dry bones. Look! It's the Flying Rooster! With the Power Bracelet, you can hold onto him and fly for as long as you want to, enabling you to cross massive gaps - for example, the one in the southwest corner of Kanalet Castle (a Secret Seashell is your reward). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Bird Key ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The owl will give you a message when you approach the cave that leads to the main Tal Tal Mountain area. On the same screen as the Hen House, go in the small cave on the east side. Go inside and use the Flying Rooster to fly to the north passage. In the next room, use the rooster to circle around the wall. You can then get yourself the Bird Key! Dungeon keys are seldom located in the open air, but this one is. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Eagle's Tower ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The seventh dungeon is located east of the waterfall above Angler's Tunnel. Go through a series of caves (use your Hookshot to cross the gap, and make sure to bomb the wall to reveal a Fairy Fountain) and you'll eventually reach the tower. Put your Bird Key in the rock to open up the level. By now, you've probably realized that each dungeon has gotten progressively harder, and this dungeon's no exception. While each dungeon has its own personality, this stage has quite a few new elements, as well as some old features we haven't seen in a while. Most notably, this dungeon has three or four stories. Three or four? You'll find out later. It's also the only dungeon that isn't supposed to be shaped like something. Too bad you can't use the Flying Rooster in here. One more important note: I've hoped that my guide would primarily be used as a reference to help you through the harder spots in the game. With this dungeon, however, I recommend that you follow my guide to the letter. If you don't know what you're doing, the dungeon will be quite frustrating, and it's possible to get yourself in a real jam. At the start, go east and jump over the spikes and Razor Traps. Go east again to Room 3, where there are two Like Likes. Vanquish them and you'll receive a Small Key. To make things more fun, the lamp shoots at you, and there's a Bubble bouncing around. Use the key to open the locked door in the same room. Go north to the staircase, which takes you to the corresponding room on the second floor (Room 5 on my map). In Room 6, use the Power Bracelet to pull the lever and (temporarily) open the gate. See that little black ball? It's called the Orb. You can pick it up using the Power Bracelet and use it to smash enemies or pillars. If it falls in a hole, you'll find it back at this pedestal. Take it west. The first pillar is in Room 7. Toss the Orb at the column and it collapses. That was simple enough. Throw the Orb over the blocks and jump diagonally across the gap. Go south, circle around, retrieve the Orb, and eliminate the second pillar. Go south to Room 9 and hit the crystal ball. VERY IMPORTANT: Throw the Orb over the wall near the crystal. You'll need it later. Then go all the way north to Room 10. Throw the horse heads until they're standing up. Then you'll earn the Map. Beware of the Bubble in the room; if you have the Boomerang, use it to defeat the Bubble. In Room 7, push the block and go west through Room 11 and then north into Room 12. Slash the weird Three of a Kind guys so the card suits are the same, and you'll win the Compass. Usually, you're in good shape now, but you actually need patience, hours, and a strategy guide. Jump into the pit on the left side of Room 8 (make sure the blocks are down) and you'll be in Room 13. Climb the stairs and jump onto the block to the north. Take the blocks west and then south to Room 17. Open the treasure chest for the Stone Slab. Take the staircase in this room up to Room 20. Go down to Room 21 and you'll find the bomb-tossing meanie, Hinox. Defeat him for a Small Key. Two arrows end the fight really quickly. The flames from the torches make it a little tougher, but not much. Go east to Room 22, which has more of those card suit baddies. Beat them all to reveal a chest on the other side of the room. Go right to Room 9. If you followed my directions, the Orb will be waiting for you. Shoot the crystal ball to make the blocks in this room high (this'll save some time). Go back west to Room 22 and throw the Orb across the pit. Then return to Room 20 (the room with the staircase and the one-way door). Go through the revolving door and you'll be faced with a barrage of tiles. Equip the Shield and Roc's Feather, and change corners if the Bubble comes near. Afterwards, go east through the door and place a bomb between the torches, imploding the wall. Go south down the corridor and bomb the other wall. Then Hookshot across the room to get your hard-earned 20 Rupees from the chest. Now go north with your Orb to smash down a pillar. Just one more! Throw your Orb across the pit (again) and jump down the pit, returning you to the start of the dungeon. It'll take a long time to get back, though (there's no way to avoid doing this). Go all the way east and then north to the staircase. Now you can reach the treasure chest. Inside is the Mirror Shield! This is a souped-up shield that reflects beams and many other things you couldn't block before. Also, it can't be eaten by Like Likes. Then fall into the adjacent hole and you'll be on a walkway in Room 4. Go north for a while and you'll discover a Small Key! Return to the room where you found the Mirror Shield. Go south and unlock the gate, allowing you to reach the stairs to the upper level of the room. Go west to Room 9. Head west again and the Orb will be waiting for you, assuming you followed my directions. Go west and north and take your Orb through the one-way door between Rooms 20 and 23. Drop the Orb in a safe place and prepare for some attacking tiles. After that, go right and smash down that pillar! That's the last one. When it collapses, the fourth floor will collapse and will merge with the third (maybe killing a whole bunch of Philistines). Now you can reach the door to the Nightmare's Lair. First, though, return to the tile room. When the tiles finish, drop through the westernmost hole and go north to the treasure chest on the first floor. It contains a Secret Seashell or 20 Rupees, depending on whether or not you have the L-2 Sword in your possession. Just for fun, you might want to explore the upper reaches of the first floor (which I didn't cover, although they don't contain anything useful). Then you will have finished the first two floors (whew!). That's the hard part. Give yourself a pat on the back! If you don't want to enter every room in the dungeon, go south and jump down from the high walkway. Head north to the staircase, which returns you to Room 20. Go south and east twice to the familiar Room 9. Shoot an arrow at the crystal and go up the stairs. You'll be in Room 31 on the third floor. Go north and east to Room 33 and you'll be faced with a bunch of flying baddies, Battle Bats. Defeat EVERY ONE of them in one squad and you'll open a door and create a warp portal. Stand near the corner and slash rapidly. Inside the next room is the Nightmare's Key. Simply push the blocks together to make the chest appear. If you have the Boomerang, use it to get rid of the Sparks beforehand. Go south and west twice to the Nightmare Door. Open it and you won't find the Nightmare yet. Stomp the Goombas if you need heart refills. If you want, you can go north and east to Room 41, where you can get 50 Rupees. However, it's extremely difficult to earn them. A particularly annoying Beamos is on a conveyor belt and you must throw the horse head statues until they're standing right side up. It's NOT worth the effort. By the way, if you followed my guide, you'll finish this guide with an extra Small Key. You won't be allowed to carry it over to a future dungeon, like in the original Legend of Zelda. To get to the Nightmare, climb the stairs in Room 39 and Hookshot across the room. Go around and climb the staircase. ---------------------------------------- Giant Bird of Prey EVIL EAGLE ---------------------------------------- You'll find the same guy who saw earlier in Room 34, but this time Grim Creeper's got a new henchman, a giant eagle. I think this is the hardest boss in the game, especially if you only have a Level 1 sword. At first, he soars back and forth across the screen. Simply jump up and slash him, preferably using the Whirling Blade Attack. Later on, he adopts two new strategies. When he shoots a barrage of arrows at you, use your shield to deflect them, being careful to stay on the tower. When he swoops down at you, slash him or get out of the way. Note that you can also use the Hookshot or arrows against him (the Hookshot is better than arrows). Always stand near the middle of the tower. Don't fall off the screen, or you'll have to start the battle all over again - even if you fall while the boss is exploding!. After beating him, your life energy is extended by another segment (of course). Descend the ladder and jump down and get your Organ of Evening Calm. F1 F2 F3 [30]-[29]-[28]-[27] [12] [10] [40]-[41] | | | | | | [16]-[15]-[14]-[26] [23]-[11]-[ 7]-[ 6] [38]-[39] [42] [34] | | | | ^ o | | || || | | [17] [19]-[13]-[ 4] [20]-[24] [ 8]-[ 5] [37]-[36]-[32]-[33] | | || | o | | | | [18]-[ 1]-[ 2]-[ 3] [21]-[22]-[ 9]=[25] [35]-[31] 20 Rupees: 22 50 Rupees: 41 Compass: 12 Key: 3, 21, 27 Map: 10 Nightmare's Key: 34 Secret Seashell: 30 Stone Slab: 17 Mirror Shield: 5 Crystal Balls: 5, 9, 26, 34 Stairs: 4-5 (F1-F2), 29-12 (F1-F2), 17-20 (F1-F2), 28-10 (F1-F2), 9-31 (F2-F3) Nightmare: 32 (up the stairs) Although you can go to the fourth floor if you want to, I don't include it on the map because it disappears after crushing the four pillars. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Opening the Final Dungeon ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You've now collected seven Instruments of the Sirens, but you still need one more. You'll receive a message (as usual). It says "...OCARINA... The music of the Ocarina leads..." The Flying Rooster has gone to the Hen House, in case you're wondering what happened to him. There's not much to do now except go to the next dungeon. You'll find Marin in the mountains, stranded on a broken bridge just west of the Hen House. Use the Hookshot to rescue her. Afterwards, the Owl tell you to go to the final dungeon. Keep going west, following the same route you used to reach the capacity upgrade mentioned before my Face Shrine guide. Avoid the rolling boulders, go west, and jump down to a cracked wall. Blow it open to reveal a cave. Inside, hold out the Mirror Shield to protect yourself from the fire cannon. Back outside, go west to the dungeon entrance. Defeat the crows, then play the Frog's Song of Soul to revive the turtle blockading the dungeon entrance. This is a really easy "boss" - just keep slashing it, and watch out when it lunges at you. Eight regular hits or four Whirling Blade Attacks do the trick. When it's gone, enter the final dungeon! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Turtle Rock ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Turtle Rock dungeon is big and eventful, boasting seven keys, six breakable walls, and six bosses. Lava also abounds, and falling in makes you lose half a heart. At the start, go north twice and east once to Room 4. Touch the strange block and it'll start moving, forming a bridge over the lava. You can control the direction it travels in by using the Control Pad. Steer the rolling rock to the left part of the room and you'll be able to reach the treasure chest in Room 3 (simply push the first and third blocks from the top to the side, and the middle block up or down). Inside is the Map. Boy, will it come in handy! Then bomb the cracked wall at the top of the screen to enter Room 5. Take the stairs to a 2-D section. Here, simply jump across the lava pits while avoiding the Podoboos. You emerge in Room 6, which has a few pits and pots. There's also a new enemy - Ropes. This snake enemy (I thought it looked like a rubber ducky when I first saw it) charges at you when it sees you, but it's not too dangerous. Open the treasure chest and you'll get a fragment of a Stone Slab. Room 7 has a familiar mini- boss, Smasher. Pick up the black ball and give him a taste of his own medicine. In Room 8 to the north, you can read the Stone Slab and take a shortcut to Room 12. For now, though, take the western door to Room 9, where there's a rolling rock. Steer it in a zig-zag pattern so it covers all the holes and you'll win a Small Key. This isn't the last time you'll be practicing this maneuver in this dungeon. Room 10 to the west has a chest, but your reward for opening it is just a meanie. Go west to Room 11. Beat the Sparks if you have a Boomerang. Step on the floor switch under the northwestern pot to open the south door. In there, defeat the Arm-Mimics if you want to create a shortcut to Room 8. Go west from Room 11 and then you'll be back in Room 2. It's easiest to defeat the bashful Vire with the Boomerang or beams from the L-2 Sword. When you beat it, you'll be able to enter the left door (or the other one where we came from, for that matter). In Room 13, stand behind the blocks to protect yourself from the Beamos while beating the Ropes. Once you dispose of the snakes, you can head north to Room 14, which has the old bomb- throwing mini-boss, Hinox. You remember him. Just slash him with your sword. In Room 15, use the rolling rock to cover all the gaps and produce a 20-Rupee chest. Go south to Room 16, where you can get 50 Rupees from a chest guarded by Sparks. Room 17 to the west has a guy with a spiked roller - Rolling Bones. You remember this fella, too. Jump over the barbed hurdle and smash him. Go south and collect the Compass from the chest. Don't let the Eye Vacuum suck you in, though, or you'll be sent to the dungeon entrance. Go north twice to Room 19 and defeat the Vire to make a Small Key drop down (your second). You've now finished most of the lower part of Turtle Rock. Go back to Room 4 and push the rolling block so it stops in the middle of the five northern blocks. Push the fourth block from the left into the lava and go forward. Open the locked door and turn east. There's another locked door between Rooms 21 and 22. In Room 22, watch out for the Razor Traps and take the stairs. In the side-scrolling screen, use the Hookshot to grapple to the Bowser statues. At the end, go through Room 23 to Room 24, which has heart, arrow, bomb, and Magic Powder replenishments. Go back to Room 22 and head through the one-way door to Room 25. Slash the Zols to open the north door. Make sure to grab the floating bombs; you'll need 'em. In the next room, we meet a pair of rare enemies, Gibdos. These mummies take a lot of hits, even with the L-2 Sword. And for more difficulty, you're fighting them on a floor that crumbles if you stand on any one spot for more than second or so. For that reason, keep moving. Defeat both Gibdos to win a Small Key. Head west from here and ignore the Dodongo Snakes for now; they must be defeated from the balcony. Go west to Room 28 and then up to Room 24. In that room, you can get 20 Rupees if you Hookshot to the chest. If you do this, however, you'll have to take the staircase back to Room 22. Retrace your steps to Room 28. Unlock the door that separates rooms 28 and 29 and go west twice. Beat the Ropes and the Vire to open the western door. Go through and head up the stairs. This allows you to Hookshot to the chest, which has 50 Rupees. Take the staircase on the main level and you'll find yourself outside. There's a Warp Hole (the fourth and final) and a Piece of Heart. This should be your twelfth and final heart piece, so it should give you a new Heart Container. Go east to the other door, which takes you back to the dungeon. See those enemies down there? Those are Dodongo Snakes. Toss some bombs into their big mouths and you'll win a Small Key. Now that you're on the high level, you can reach it. From Room 30, go south to Room 32. Notice the statue that's surrounded by lava. Shoot an arrow at it and you will win a Small Key. I still can't believe I found that on my own without using a walkthrough or even having played A Link to the Past. Watch out for the Sparks in the room. Room 33 to the south has some helpful power-ups. Return to Room 32 and go west. Push the blocks to access a chest with a Small Key, but watch out for the vexing Beamos. At this point, you can't do anything else in this part of the dungeon. You should have three Small Keys in your possession. Play Mambo's Manbo and return to Room 4. Use the rolling rock to go right to Room 35. Shatter the bombable wall and you'll find a Crystal Ball. This is the only one in the dungeon, and it controls only three blocks - very important blocks! Hit it ONCE. You can also bomb the wall below you. Return to Room 25 (the one reached through a one-way door, where there are many cracked blocks). Bomb the left wall to reveal Room 37. It's dark in here, so light the lamp with Magic Powder. Jump across the pit and open the locked door. In the next room, simply beat the Rope to open the door. Optionally, you can bomb the wall in the southwest corner of the room to form another shortcut. In Room 39, bomb the western and southern walls to create two more passages. Then unlock the locked door at the walkway. Take it back in Room 38 and Hookshot across the room to the ledge with the stairs. Open yet another Lock Block and you'll be able to access the staircase. We're in another side-scrolling area with lava, Podoboos, and lifts. Mario experience helps here. Go down from Room 40 to Room 41. Here we challenge a boxer boss named Blaino. Two L-2 Whirling Blade Attacks will be sufficient to beat him. Just don't let him get in one of his super punches, or you'll wind up at the start of the dungeon. It can often be difficult to penetrate his little jabs. When he's defeated, the door opens and a useless warp portal appears. Take the northern door to the right to the chest (assuming you hit the crystal ball like I told you to). Then you can receive the Magic Rod! This fun item lets you burn things, including the ice cubes that block a couple of important passages in this level. You can use it as many times as you want; it won't deplete your Magic Meter like in A Link to the Past. Burn, baby, burn! Also, the maxed-out inventory screen looks nice. Go to Room 34 on the west end of the dungeon (you can use the shortcut you made earlier to speed things up) and go south a screen. This is Room 42. Light the twin lamps with your Fire Rod to reveal a treasure chest. Inside is the final Small Key in the game. Kind of sad if you think about it... Head back to Room 4 (with the rolling rock) and ascend the staircase nearest you. Now that you have the Fire Rod (this is the name I use for the rest of the guide), you can dissolve the ice blocking your way in the 2-D section. On the second screen, melt only the top layer of ice; you need the bottom layer to reach the staircase. You'll be on the LEFT side of Room 31. Open the locked door to fight the old Cue Ball boss again! Jump over him and bash him on his rear while staying away from the magma. After defeating him, the door to Room 44 opens. Inside is the final Nightmare's Key. Just roll the rock to cover up all the holes. It's pretty easy to figure out, although GameFAQs.com has a chart that shows you how to do this in detail (look under the maps section for the Link's Awakening DX version of the game). Now go back to Room 35 (go east from the early rolling rock room). Head up the stairs to a tunnel. In the first screen, melt all the ice and jump from the high rock to the passage. You'll have to burn some of the ice while jumping. The second half also has an abundance of ice cubes, but you must burn them carefully, since some must remain in place to serve as stepping stones. Burn the bottom row and the fourth column from the left. At the end of the passage, you'll be in a new part of Room 29. Go up and open the door to the Nightmare! ---------------------------------------- Infernal Rock Monster HOT HEAD ---------------------------------------- I find this Nightmare to be extremely easy. Watch out for the lava he splashes everywhere and simply blast him with a barrage of fireballs. Stand near the entrance door and mash the button you have the Fire Rod equipped to. Use a turbo button if you're playing on a Super Game Boy or an emulator. The splashes of fire cost four hearts of damage, but you have to go out of your way to get hit by them. After several hits, Hot Head sheds his armor and starts moving more quickly, but simply continue as you were doing. Sometimes he starts bouncing around the room. When he does, just keep attacking, sidestepping him if he comes close. You should have your final Heart Container and the Thunder Drum in a hurry. [46] [23] | | [44] [45] [24] [40] | | | | [43]=[31]-[30]-[29]=[28]-[27]-[26] [41] | | [34]-[32]o[39]=[38]=[37]o[25] | | o ^ [42] [33]-[ 5]-[20]-[21]=[22] | o || | [19] [15]-[14] [ 3]-[ 4]-[35]o[36] [ 8] | | | | | | o | [17]-[16] [13]-[ 2]-[11]-[10]-[ 9]-[ 7] | | | | [18] [ 1] [12] [ 6] 20 Rupees: 15, 24 50 Rupees: 16, 30 Compass: 18 Empty (Zol): 10 Key: 9, 19, 26, 27, 32, 34, 42 Map: 3 Nightmare's Key: 44 Stone Slab: 6 Magic Rod: 41 Crystal Ball: 36 Stairs: 8-12, 4-31, 30-outside, 27-outside, 22-23, 38-40 Nightmare: 45 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Wind Fish's Egg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You'll receive one more message now. "...EGG... The egg at the mountain calls." Your final destination is Mt. Tamaranch. Before you can battle the final Nightmares, however, you're going to have to make a trip to the Library in Mabe Village. The book on the lower-right corner of the room, "Dark Secrets and Mysteries of Koholint," will show you the route you need to follow to reach the final boss (write it down). This pattern is random and varies for every save slot. You must have the Magnifying Lens in order to read the book. In addition, make sure you go to the cave at the beach (blow open the cracked wall with a bomb). Inside, you'll find a guy (a Goriya, an enemy who used boomerangs in older Zelda games) with an item you'll need to defeat the final Nightmare. I recommend that you trade him the Shovel or Pegasus Boots. You're going to have a tough time against the final bad guy if you don't buy his Boomerang. Once you've down all these things, you're ready to face the final Nightmares. Use the Ocarina (song #1) to crank out a little tune in front of the Wind Fish's Egg. After playing the Ballad of the Wind Fish, the Owl will appear and a hole will appear in the egg. Make sure to save now, as this is the furthest point in the game where you can save. Enter and fall into the hole. You'll then be in a maze. Follow the route you learned at the library and you'll reach the final boss. These guys aren't incredibly tough, but they are not pieces of cake. You'll have to use a whole assortment of items, including Magic Powder and the Boomerang, although most of them require sword attacks. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Final Nightmare ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The final fight occurs in six stages, as follows: Giant Gel: Also known as Shadow Bot or Black ChuChu, this phase is extremely easy. A black blob bounces around, and you must sprinkle Magic Powder on it three times. Agahnim's Shadow: Zelda veterans will know what to do with this guy. Use your sword to reflect the magic waves back at him. Watch out, though; a certain magic beam can't be hit back (there's no way to tell when this attack will appear). Moldorm's Shadow: You'll quickly realize this bad guy is just like the boss you faced in the first dungeon. When you hit its weak spot (the tail), it starts scrambling around at high speed. Use your shield to protect yourself until it slows down and you can hit it again. Ganon's Shadow: This is the most difficult sector of the fight. Keep using slashing the boss with Whirling Blade Attacks until he starts shooting flames from his trident. Keep moving around the edges of the room to avoid them. When he throws his trident at you, move out of the way and prepare to attack with a Whirling Blade move. Repeat until the next phase begins. Lanmola's Shadow: The boss moves quickly at you, but it's not difficult if you're quick. A single Fire Rod, Hookshot, or Whirling Blade Attack topples Lanmola's Shadow. Dethl: Notice how the music has changed. This is it - the final battle! Assign Roc's Feather to one button so you can jump over the swinging arms. When the eye opens, attack. Either use 15-20 arrows or one quick strike with the Boomerang. I'm choosing the latter to get to the ending credits. Congratulations! You've completed The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. Now grab a cold nonalcoholic beverage and watch the ending and the credits! Be sure to salute Shigeru Miyamoto, Koji Kondo, and everyone else at Nintendo for making a great game. =============================================================================== Bestiary [ENEMY] =============================================================================== Link's Awakening has a LOT of enemies. It's conceivable that I might have missed a meanie or two, so please tell me if I did. I do not include inanimate obstacles that can nonetheless inflict damage, including Razor Traps, the fireball cannon on Tal Tal Mountain, and holes in the ground. By the way, Zelda IV's motley crew of bosses include Armos Knight, Blaino, Cue Ball (a.k.a. Big Octo), Dodongo Snake, Gohma, Great Moblin, Grim Creeper & Battle Bats, Hinox, Lanmola, Mad Bomber, Master Stalfos, Rolling Bones, Smasher, and Turtle Rock. Check my guide for tips on defeating those. ------------------------------ Anti-Kirby ------------------------------ Found: Eagle's Tower This enemy, based on Nintendo's Kirby character, will attempt to inhale you, but it's rare and fairly easy to avoid. You can use your Boomerang, Fire Rod, or bombs to defeat it. ------------------------------ Arm-Mimic ------------------------------ Found: Dream Shrine, Turtle Rock These enemies move opposite your direction. If you move left, it moves right! If you go up, it goes down. The Whirling Blade Attack is the best way to defeat it. If there are large groups of them, the Pegasus Boots may be of assistance. ------------------------------ Armos Statue ------------------------------ Found: Face Shrine Area These look like ordinary statues, but if you push against them, they'll come to life! They can only be defeated using arrows, bombs, or the Boomerang, but it's best just to stun them with the Hookshot or shove them out of your way using the sword. Or, if possible, don't activate them in the first place. ------------------------------ Ball and Chain Soldier ------------------------------ Found: Kanalet Castle You fight only one Ball and Chain Soldier in Link's Awakening, and winning earns you a Golden Leaf. Stay away when it flings its mace at you, and then give it a couple of whacks with your sword. Drop back and repeat until it's KO'd. ------------------------------ Beamos ------------------------------ Found: Face Shrine, Eagle's Tower, Turtle Rock This enemy remains tough - just like it was in A Link to the Past. Beamos spins around and fires a laser at you when it sees you. Try to stay on the side opposite the eye, and use Roc's Feather or the Mirror Shield to avoid the beam. There's no way to defeat Beamos. ------------------------------ Beetle ------------------------------ Found: Ukuku Prairie These spider-like bugs emerge from certain holes of Ukuku Prairie. A feeble Enemy, it can be defeated with your sword or almost anything else. ------------------------------ Blooper ------------------------------ Found: Catfish's Maw If you've played Super Mario Bros. or Super Mario Bros. 3, you know how Bloopers work. These squids are able to hurt you even if you're on the sea floor, however. ------------------------------ Bob-omb ------------------------------ Found: Key Cavern Also known as Bombites. These come in two forms. One kind will, when slashed, start bouncing around the room, eventually exploding. The other kind will start a countdown if you hit it with your sword. When the timer reaches 0, it'll blow up, so stay away. ------------------------------ Bomber ------------------------------ Found: Ukuku Prairie, Martha's Bay, Tal Tal Heights, Face Shrine Area This enemy goes by many names, including Flying Bomber and Zirro. These weird flying mushrooms, which slightly resemble Super Mario Bros. 3's Para-Goombas, fly slowly and toss bombs everywhere. When you try to hit them with your sword, they usually fly away. They're very difficult to defeat if you don't have the Boomerang, so it's best just to ignore or avoid them. ------------------------------ Boo Buddy ------------------------------ Found: Bottle Grotto Only found in the second dungeon, these Mario-based meanies are best defeated by lighting the torches, which makes them fly away, leaving behind the Power Bracelet. You can also beat them with your sword once you've lit a lamp. They really don't look that much like the Mario Boo Buddies. ------------------------------ Bubble ------------------------------ Found: Kanalet Castle, Angler's Tunnel, Face Shrine, Eagle's Tower These skull-like balls ricochet around the room and can only be defeated using the Boomerang or Magic Powder, often producing a fairy. At least they don't subtract from your Magic Meter like in other Zelda games. ------------------------------ Buzz Blob ------------------------------ Found: Koholint Prairie, Ukuku Prairie, Martha's Bay These enemies return from A Link to the Past. Buzz Blobs are best ignored, as they move slowly and are easy to avoid. If you hit one with your sword, you'll get electrocuted. If you sprinkle Magic Powder on a Buzz Blob, it will become a Cukeman. ------------------------------ Cheep-Cheep ------------------------------ Found: Angler's Tunnel, Catfish's Maw, caves The fish found in side-scrolling sections are very similar to the Super Mario Bros. 3 versions of Cheep-Cheeps. They sometimes jump straight out of the water, but they can easily be beaten with your sword. When underwater, however, they cannot be touched safely. A different, non-stompable version of this meanie appears in some underground streams, and yet another form (Angler Fry) harasses you during the fourth Big Boss. ------------------------------ Crow ------------------------------ Found: Tabahl Wasteland, Kanalet Castle In the gloomy Tabahl Wasteland, these annoying birds stay in trees and swoop to attack you when you approach. A rarer form of this enemy appears in the Kanalet Castle courtyard and won't attack unless you throw a boulder at it. You can then defeat it before it leaves the screen for a Golden Leaf. ------------------------------ Cuccoo ------------------------------ Found: Mabe Village I don't think these can really be classified as enemies, but these famous chickens will react if you slash them 20 times or so. Why not find out what happens on your own? Be prepared to leave the screen or take cover in a building, however. ------------------------------ Cukeman ------------------------------ Found: By sprinkling Magic Powder on a Buzz Blob Most players will never see this enemy. This goofy cucumber-like character will appear if you sprinkle Magic Powder on a Buzz Blob. Press A to talk to it and it'll give you a series of messages advertising the Nintendo 64, which was in the beginning stages of development under the name Ultra 64. ------------------------------ Eye Vacuum ------------------------------ Found: Bottle Grotto, Key Cavern, Turtle Rock These rare enemies try to draw in both heroes and enemies. If you fall into the eye, you'll be sent to the beginning of the dungeon. When it stops sucking things in, bash it with your sword. ------------------------------ Flying Octorok ------------------------------ Found: Ukuku Prairie Weird. These are basically the same as regular Octoroks, but these can jump to avoid attack. They would be called Para-Octoroks in a Mario game. ------------------------------ Gel ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto, Key Cavern; by hitting most Zols Gels are smaller versions of Zols that appear when you hit them with your sword. They can't harm you directly, but they will latch onto you and prevent you from moving quickly or using your sword. Press the sword button quickly to escape. They share many qualities of the Mugger Micro-Goombas found in Super Mario Bros. 3. ------------------------------ Ghini ------------------------------ Found: Cemetery These ghosts reside in the Cemetery. If you push against certain tombstones, a Ghini might just emerge from the grave! They fly around the screen fairly quickly and take a huge number of hits to defeat, but when defeated they usually drop a nice item like bombs, arrows, or a fairy. ------------------------------ Giant Bubble ------------------------------ Found: Face Shrine Two larger-than-usual (and completely indestructible) Bubbles appear in a side- scrolling room in the Face Shrine dungeon. Its appearance, however, is more like that of an overgrown Spark. ------------------------------ Giant Ghini ------------------------------ Found: Cemetery The same as regular Ghini, only bigger. This ghost appears if you push against a certain grave in the northeast part of the Cemetery. ------------------------------ Giant Goponga Flower ------------------------------ Found: Goponga Swamp The same as Goponga Flowers, only bigger. ------------------------------ Gibdo ------------------------------ Found: Eagle's Tower, Turtle Rock Gibdos are tough mummy enemies. They take many hits to defeat and are insensitive to pain. They have no "kickback" - they don't bounce backwards or recoil after being hit. At least these Gibdos don't make you scream and freeze in fright like in Ocarina of Time. One blast from the Fire Rod will burn a Gibdo's bandages off and turn it into a Stalfos. ------------------------------ Goomba ------------------------------ Found: Many dungeon 2-D sequences, Kanalet Castle underground, Eagle's Tower These classic mushroom meanies from the Super Mario Bros. series make their first Zelda appearance in Link's Awakening. They most often appear in side- scrolling sections, although a small number appear inside dungeons. Wherever they appear, the easiest way to beat them is by hitting them with your sword or stomping them using Roc's Feather. Stomping them is the preferred method, since it will always yield a Recovery Heart. ------------------------------ Goponga Flower ------------------------------ Found: Goponga Swamp These flowers block your way through Goponga Swamp. Occasionally they shoot unidentified projectiles (maybe fireballs) at you, as well. Initially, only BowWow can get rid of them, but later on you can defeat them using your Hookshot, Fire Rod, or your L-2 Sword. ------------------------------ Gordo ------------------------------ Found: Toronbo Shores Sea urchins appear exclusively on the beach. A sword will beat them with ease, but those who don't have a sword will have to push them using a shield. They resemble the Urchins that appeared in Super Mario World, but I think these are supposed to be the urchins from Kirby's Dream Land. ------------------------------ Hardhat Beetle ------------------------------ Found: Caves, Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto These enemies, which look a little like Lowders from the Adventure of Link, can't be defeated. However, you can knock them into a pit to get them out of your way. ------------------------------ Iron Mask ------------------------------ Found: Catfish's Maw These enemies wear helmet-like masks, so you can only defeat them from the back. They're slow, but they change direction frequently enough to make it hard for you to hit their backsides. If possible, use the Hookshot to remove their masks. Bomb Arrows also work well. ------------------------------ Kanalet Soldier ------------------------------ Found: Kanalet Castle Identical to Moblins. ------------------------------ Keese ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto, Key Cavern, most caves These bats reside in most caverns. They fly in clockwise patterns, but they're very easy to beat using the sword or almost any other weapon. ------------------------------ Leever ------------------------------ Found: Toronbo Shores, Yarna Desert, Tal Tal Mountain Range These familiar enemies continually pop up out of the ground in sandy areas. Your sword can take care of them with ease, but their sheer quantity may cause problems. ------------------------------ Like Like ------------------------------ Found: Goponga Swamp, Tal Tal Heights, Eagle's Tower Few video game enemies inspire the same kind of hatred among players that Like Likes do. However, the Koholint species of Like Likes is comparatively weak. If you get snatched by a Like Like, it will swallow you and (if it's equipped and of the L-1 variety) your shield. Tap the A button to escape. If you do lose your shield, you can sometimes recover it if you defeat the Like Like. You can also buy a new one at the Mabe Village Item Shop. Like Likes take a few hits with the sword. At five years of age, I thought it was fun to get eaten by Like Likes on purpose. I enjoyed buying shields at the Item Shop! ------------------------------ Mini-Moldorm ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Face Shrine, caves Mini-Moldorms are miniature forms of the Tail Cave boss. They move in rather quick circular paths and take two hits with the L-1 sword. ------------------------------ Moblin ------------------------------ Found: Mysterious Woods, Ukuku Prairie, Tal Tal Heights These common enemies come in two different sprites and employ two different attack strategies. Some Moblins have swords and shields and will fight you hand-to-hand if they see you. Others shoot arrows (some say they throw spears, but Moblins in Minish Cap and Twilight Princess carry bows). Moblins living in the Mysterious Woods look slightly different from those who dwell in the Tal Tal Heights and Ukuku Prairie areas, but they behave identically. ------------------------------ Monkey ------------------------------ Found: Toronbo Shores An unusual enemy that appears only once. This primate lives in a tree and knocks coconuts down at you. It can't be beaten, but you can slam into the tree using the Pegasus Boots if you really want it to go away. The coconuts can be slashed with your sword - a good source of Rupees. ------------------------------ Mutt ------------------------------ Found: Mabe Village These dogs aren't real enemies, but they'll bite if you hit them with your sword. You can burn them up with Magic Powder or your Fire Rod, but that's not very nice. ------------------------------ Octorok ------------------------------ Found: Toronbo Shores These have appeared in every one of the first dozen Zelda games. Koholint Island's Octoroks stay on the ground and move slowly. They spit rocks at Link, although these projectiles can easily be avoided or blocked using your shield. One slash with the sword will put an Octorok down for the count. ------------------------------ Pairodd ------------------------------ Found: Key Cavern These duck-like baddies are some of the rarest enemies in Zelda history. Use the Pegasus Boots, arrows, bombs, or a Whirling Blade Attack to beat them before they have a chance to teleport across the room. ------------------------------ Peahat ------------------------------ Found: Angler's Tunnel These spinning things can't decide whether they want to live in the grout outdoors or inside gloomy caves. They don't appear very frequently in Link's Awakening, although they're everywhere in Angler's Tunnel. These windmill-like meanies spin around randomly, and they can be damaged when they've stopped moving. ------------------------------ Pincer ------------------------------ Found: Ukuku Prairie, one cave in Yarna Desert Pincers live in holes in the ground found throughout Ukuku Prairie. They pop up out of the ground whenever someone wearing a green tunic comes near. Take a step back and slash them a couple of times. Whenever you see eyes in a hole, move away. ------------------------------ Piranha Plant ------------------------------ Found: Bottle Grotto Another enemy familiar to Mario fans. Two sword slashes and that's it for them. As in Mario games, Piranha Plants stay in their pipes if Link stands on top or next to their pipes. ------------------------------ Podoboo ------------------------------ Found: Turtle Rock These balls of fire work exactly like their Mario counterparts. They fly vertically out of lava pits and can't be beaten, although you can jump over them with relative ease. ------------------------------ Pokey ------------------------------ Found: Yarna Desert Also known as Geldarms, these cacti from the Mario series must be defeated segment by segment unless you use a Whirling Blade Attack. When you hit a Pokey, one of its segments will go bouncing around the area. ------------------------------ Pols Voice ------------------------------ Found: Bottle Grotto, Face Shrine These rabbit-like enemies are supposedly ghosts with sensitive ears. Defeat them using bombs or arrows, or by throwing a pot. The easiest solution is to play the Ballad of the Wind Fish using your Ocarina. ------------------------------ Raven ------------------------------ Found: Tal Tal Mountain Range Also known as Takkuri, this enemy is identical to the Crows, except it looks slightly different and is only found around Turtle Rock. ------------------------------ Rope ------------------------------ Found: Eagle's Tower, Turtle Rock Ropes are snakes. When they see you, they'll start charging in your direction, so take out your sword and let them run into it. Ropes are only dangerous in large doses. Also, for those of you who have ever played a "real" RPG, Zelda snakes will never poison you. ------------------------------ Sand Crab ------------------------------ Found: Toronbo Shores These weak enemies are found exclusively in the Toronbo Shores area. ------------------------------ Shrouded Stalfos ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto, Key Cavern, Tal Tal Mountain Range These are just like Kanalet Soldiers or Moblins. ------------------------------ Shy-Guy ------------------------------ Found: Bottle Grotto, Face Shrine Their official name is Mask-Mimic, but they look just like the Shy-Guys that debuted in Super Mario Bros. 2. These masked enemies move in the opposite direction as you. To beat them, charge up a Whirling Blade Attack and slash their unprotected backsides. Arrows and bombs are also effective. ------------------------------ Spark ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto, Face Shrine, Eagle's Tower, Turtle Rock Yet another Mario enemy. This one hails from Super Mario Bros. 2. Sparks travel around solid objects or the edges of the room. You can use the Boomerang to defeat them and earn a fairy. If you don't have the Boomerang, you can't defeat them. ------------------------------ Spiked Beetle ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto, Angler's Tunnel These spiked enemies move slowly, but they quickly spin toward you if you're on the same rank or file (that's chess talk) as them. To get rid of Spiked Beetles, flip them using your sword, and then slash them a few times while they're lying on their backs. ------------------------------ Spiny Beetle ------------------------------ Found: Caves, Martha's Bay Not to be confused with the Spiked Beetle, these irritating enemies sometimes hide under rocks, bushes, and skulls, and when you come near, they charge toward you, rock and all. These enemies, who are also known as Hoarder, are surprisingly quick and sneaky. You can use the Power Bracelet to lift up the rock when it stops, and then slash the enemy itself, but it's best to ignore them. ------------------------------ Stalfos ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Bottle Grotto, Key Cavern, Catfish's Maw These fragile skeletal warriors are very common. They jump around and try to stomp you, and some knock bones around. Slash it right after it lands. Ranged weapons also work well. ------------------------------ Star ------------------------------ Found: Angler's Tunnel, Catfish's Maw, Face Shrine These infrequently-seen enemies bounce around the room like Bubbles, but these can be defeated with a sword attack. ------------------------------ Tektite ------------------------------ Found: Tal Tal Heights, Face Shrine Area The familiar one-eyed spiders jump around erratically, but they're pretty easy to beat using your sword. ------------------------------ Three of a Kind ------------------------------ Found: Tail Cave, Eagle's Tower A particularly vexing enemy, Three of a Kind appears in a couple of dungeons. They rotate through the four card suits and stop when you hit them with your sword. If you stop all of them on the same suit, a treasure chest will appear. The suits appear in a predictable pattern, but they scroll through very quickly. As a footnote, if you stop them all on the diamond suit, they'll give up Rupees; on hearts, they leave behind recovery hearts. ------------------------------ Thwimp ------------------------------ Found: Face Shrine In Super Mario World, Thwimps were quite different from Thwomps, but in Link's Awakening, Thwimps are simply smaller versions of Thwomps. ------------------------------ Thwomp ------------------------------ Found: Key Cavern, Angler's Tunnel These stone blocks appear in the Mario series, although this incarnation has only eye. When you come near, it'll crash down, trying to squash you, and will then reset. You can't touch its spined side, but you can (and sometimes must) jump onto its top. ------------------------------ Vire ------------------------------ Found: Turtle Rock These bat-like enemies float around in a few rooms in the final dungeon and are quite tough to beat. If you come close they'll zoom off screen for a little while. Try a Whirling Blade Attack while you're in the air after jumping with the Roc's Feather. The Boomerang, Fire Rod, and beams from the L-2 Sword work really well. After you hit it, two little bats will rush towards you with high speed, but those are easy to beat with your sword. ------------------------------ Water Tektite ------------------------------ Found: Angler's Tunnel, Catfish's Maw, Face Shrine These rare enemies don't stray from water and are easily beaten with sword attacks. They behave just like the Skeeters from Super Mario 64 (and Super Mario Sunshine, although those work a little differently). ------------------------------ Wizzrobe ------------------------------ Found: Face Shrine, Eagle's Tower I hate these! The Wizzrobes in Link's Awakening keep disappearing and reappearing, shooting a beam at Link when they turn visible. Use your sword to shove all of them into one corner. Then place a bomb right after they disappear, and you should be able to wipe them out easily. Alternatively, you can defeat a Wizzrobe using four arrows. Best is to use a Bomb Arrow. ------------------------------ Zol ------------------------------ Found: Caves, Mysterious Woods, most dungeons (especially Key Cavern) Among the most common enemies in the game, Zols are little blobs that move slowly and then jump at you. Some pop out of the ground when you approach. When you hit some Zols with a standard sword, they'll turn into Gels. ------------------------------ Zola ------------------------------ Found: Koholint Prairie, Martha's Bay Zolas are aggressive versions of the friendly Zoras from newer Zelda games. Zolas occasionally pop out of the water to spit a fireball at you. They're usually tough to defeat, so it's best just to ignore them. You can use your shield to defend yourself against the fireballs, especially in places like Martha's Bay where Zolas are everywhere. ------------------------------ Zombie ------------------------------ Found: Graveyard Zombies endlessly rise up out of the ground in the area just south of the Witch's Hut. Hit them once to defeat them. I don't think these are the same as the ReDeads from newer Zelda games like Ocarina of Time. =============================================================================== Pieces of Heart [HEART] =============================================================================== Like every other Zelda game, this one has several Pieces of Heart for players to find and collect. Collect four of them to get a new Heart Container. ----------------------------------------------------- 1. Mabe Village Fishing Game ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Sword Visit the Fishing Pond just north of Madam MeowMeow's House. Pay 10 Rupees to play. Catch one of the big fish to earn a Piece of Heart. It's easiest if you catch the highest small fish first, and then aim for the big one directly below you. A turbo controller helps when reeling a fish in. ----------------------------------------------------- 2. Mabe Village ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Sword Just north of the library is a well. Cut the grass above the well and jump off the ledge into it. You'll land near a Piece of Heart. ----------------------------------------------------- 3. Koholint Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Roc's Feather A little north of the Witch's Hut is a Piece of Heart surrounded by holes. Use Roc's Feather to jump over the holes and reach it. ----------------------------------------------------- 4. Koholint Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Roc's Feather Simply push one of the tombstones in the southwest part of the Cemetery to reach a cave. Alternatively, near the area that's infested with zombies, lift the boulder that blocks the staircase. On the eastern side of this cave, push the lower rock east and make a tricky jump to the ledge, from which you can reach the Piece of Heart. I think the game was designed so that you were supposed to not be able to get this Heart Piece until you owned the Hookshot. ----------------------------------------------------- 5. Mysterious Woods ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet Go in the cave and head to the section with the movable boulders. Lift the skulls using the Power Bracelet to gain access to the Heart Piece. ----------------------------------------------------- 6. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Pegasus Boots, Bombs Go to the small cave in Ukuku Prairie (just south of the cemetery) and bomb it to reveal an entrance. Crush the crystals, go north, and turn south down the middle. Poke at the eastern walls with your sword, and when you hear a clanking sound (near the bottom of the northern screen), drop a bomb and you'll open a tunnel! Go through to find a Piece of Heart. ----------------------------------------------------- 7. Yarna Desert ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Marin must open Yarna Desert In the cavern at the north end of the desert, bomb the north wall of the western screen to find it. ----------------------------------------------------- 8. Tal Tal Heights ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers Swim into the flooded cave in the river in Tal Tal Heights. Dive down near the middle of the screen to find it. ----------------------------------------------------- 9. Kanalet Castle ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers Dive near the southwest corner of the moat until you find the Piece of Heart. ----------------------------------------------------- 10. Animal Village ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Hookshot, Bombs Go inside the cave in Animal Village. In the first room, push the rocks into the holes, beat the Hardhat Beetle, and bomb the north wall. Follow the path until you can't go any farther. Drop a bomb and throw it over to the cracked rock, destroying it. Then circle around to the other side of the cave, Hookshot to the rock, and collect the Piece of Heart. ----------------------------------------------------- 11. Tal Tal Mountain Range ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Hookshot, Bombs Left of the Hen House, Hookshot across the gaps and slash the bush to reveal a cave. Go inside and bomb the indentation below the skull to find a tunnel. It leads to the Heart Piece you could see but couldn't get to. ----------------------------------------------------- 12. Tal Tal Mountain Range (near Turtle Rock dungeon) ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Access to Turtle Rock, several Small Keys This is found in a secret area reached by exiting the Turtle Rock dungeon, near the fourth Warp Hole. It's difficult to not get this one. =============================================================================== Secret Seashells [SHELL] =============================================================================== Yes, if you collect enough of these (20), something good really will happen. ----------------------------------------------------- 1. Mabe Village ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Sword Slash through the grassy field to find your first Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 2. Tail Cave ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Tail Key, Bombs In Room 7, bomb the cracked western wall to reach the room between the dungeon's "eyes," which has a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 3. Mabe Village ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Shovel Go in the doghouse at BowWow's house. Dig in the lower-right corner to find the shell. ----------------------------------------------------- 4. Koholint Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Shovel, Power Bracelet Southwest of the Witch's Hut, slash the lone piece of grass and dig under it to reveal a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 5. Mysterious Woods ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet Near the entrance from Mabe Village, pick up the boulder and open the chest for a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 6. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet, 5 Secret Seashells Go to the Seashell Mansion if you have five Secret Seashells. Inside, step forward and receive another shell! If you collect more than five, you won't be able to get this one. ----------------------------------------------------- 7. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet From the Key Cavern dungeon, go east, north, and then west, where you'll find a spot surrounded by grass on each side. Dig at the center to find the shell. ----------------------------------------------------- 8. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet East of Seashell Mansion. Simply chop the bushes. ----------------------------------------------------- 9. Ukuku Prairie (Richard's Villa) ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: 5 Golden Leaves Once you have five Golden Leaves, talk to Richard to access the staircase leading to the tunnel under his villa. Take the left fork and push the rock into the hole to get to the chest. ----------------------------------------------------- 10. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet Under a rock in the maze that connects Ukuku Prairie with Martha's Bay. ----------------------------------------------------- 11. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: 10 Secret Seashells Once you have 10 Secret Seashells, go to the Seashell Mansion to earn another freebie. ----------------------------------------------------- 12. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet, Shovel, Bombs Bomb the indented western wall in a cave near #10. Push the rocks (near the end, push the third from the bottom to the side, and the one above that up) in the passageway. Then go outside and dig near the owl statue. ----------------------------------------------------- 13. Martha's Bay ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Power Bracelet An isolated piece of grass in south-central Martha's Bay. ----------------------------------------------------- 14. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Pegasus Boots Charge into the tree by the Phone Booth near the Mabe Village entrance to Ukuku Prairie. ----------------------------------------------------- 15. South of the Village ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Pegasus Boots One screen west of the Tail Cave, use the Pegasus Boots to ram into the tree and knock down a Secret Seashell. Very easy to miss. ----------------------------------------------------- 16. Martha's Bay ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Pegasus Boots From the entrance to Animal Village, go south twice, west, and north across the bridge. Dig to the left of the owl statue to uncover a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 17. Yarna Desert ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Marin must open Yarna Desert From the northeast corner of the desert, follow the eastern path south until you reach two rocks. Lift one up to reveal a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 18. Toronbo Shores ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers Once you return the ghost to his grave, look in the House by the Bay and pick up the pots. One hides a Secret Seashell. This shell usually doesn't appear until you've finished the ghost sidequest. ----------------------------------------------------- 19. Ukuku Prairie ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers On an island near the Key Cavern dungeon. If it falls in the water, don't worry. Just leave the screen and it'll be back. ----------------------------------------------------- 20. Martha's Bay ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers In the southwest screen of Martha's Bay, swim around to the small island with the single bush. Slash it for a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 21. Tal Tal Mountain Range ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers From where you jumped off to reach Angler's Tunnel, go north to the Hen House. From there, cross the bridge to the east and lift the rock for a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 22. Tal Tal Mountain Range ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flippers From the deep water near where you jumped down to Level 4, go east to the cave. Bomb the dry spot in the water and go up the stairs. Go south past the puzzle with the movable boulders and go outside to find the chest with the shell. ----------------------------------------------------- 23. Face Shrine Area ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Pegasus Boots Very difficult to find. From the entrance to the ruins area, go south, west twice, north, and east. Push the southeastern Armos Statue to find a secret cave with nothing but a chest containing a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 24. Rapids Ride (connected to Face Shrine dungeon) ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: L-2 Power Bracelet From the entrance of the Face Shrine dungeon, go left and make your way to the northernmost room. The staircase takes you to an island in Rapids Ride, where you can get a shell from the treasure chest. ----------------------------------------------------- 25. Kanalet Castle ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Flying Rooster This can only be collected when you have the Flying Rooster with you. In the southwest corner of Kanalet Castle, pick up the Flying Rooster and float over to the staircase. It leads to a chest containing a Secret Seashell. ----------------------------------------------------- 26. Eagle's Tower ----------------------------------------------------- Required Items: Eagle Key In the room on the second floor where the tiles fly at you (accessed through the one-way door), drop through the western hole and go north to the chest, which has a Secret Seashell. =============================================================================== Glitches and Tricks [CHEAT] =============================================================================== For purposes of being complete and comprehensive, I feel obliged to inform my readers of the two main glitches of Link's Awakening. Be warned: Using these glitches can make weird things happen to your game - like erasing your save files. Use them at your own risk. ----------------------------------------------------- The Select Glitch ----------------------------------------------------- Sometimes known as the Screen Warp Trick or other names. This is so much fun! Press the SELECT button during a room transition - immediately before you leave a screen (doorways won't work, though). If you press SELECT at the just the right moment, you'll skip to the room after the next instead of changing to the next screen as you normally would. It takes a little practice to do it right. Sometimes you'll end up stuck on a ledge, forcing you to reset. Also keep in mind that this is trick only works on some versions of the game (mostly the earlier ones). There's a Glitch FAQ page on GameFAQs.com that shows you all of the things you can do with this trick. ----------------------------------------------------- The Secret Doghouse World ----------------------------------------------------- This glitch is riskier than the Select Glitch. First go to screen B-11 (Madam MeowMeow's House). Walk to the right side of the house (the back of the doghouse). Hold Down on the Control Pad and tap Right slowly. Eventually you'll be walking toward the fence. Press Left and you should be in a crazy world with messed-up graphics. You'll be able to walk through walls and visit most of the rooms of the dungeons and caverns. The world will work differently depending on the number of enemies you've beaten since you last turned the game on. This glitch works in all versions of the game, including the DX version. Again, Jelly Soup's excellent Glitch FAQ explains this much more thoroughly. ----------------------------------------------------- Dungeon Sequence Breaking ----------------------------------------------------- At certain points in the game, you can complete dungeons out of order. For example, you can complete Turtle Rock before even entering the seventh dungeon if you have the Secret Medicine. Enter the cave with the fireball blaster and run into the fire. You'll run out of energy, but the Secret Medicine will give you just enough time to get through; you're invincible and invisible while the hearts are being refilled. If you just get the main item of a dungeon, you can sometimes move on to the next dungeon without obtaining the Instrument. Also, if you use the Select Glitch, you can complete the dungeons in practically any order you want to. =============================================================================== References to Other Games [REFER] =============================================================================== *** WARNING *** This section may contain explicit spoilers. Almost everything in Link's Awakening is an allusion to something else, with most of its themes being derived from another Zelda game or from the Super Mario series. This section has little to do with gameplay, but it is a unique feature that will help increase many players' enjoyment and understanding of the game. ---------------------------------------- Characters ---------------------------------------- Hen House man = Ingo (Ocarina of Time) Grandma Ulrira = Sahasrahla's wife (A Link to the Past) Grandpa Ulrira = Sahasrahla (A Link to the Past) Grim Creeper = Skull Kid (Ocarina of Time) Madam MeowMeow = Mamamu Yan (Ocarina of Time) Marin = Malon (Ocarina of Time), Zelda (various) Mr. Write = Dr. Wright (SimCity), Dr. Left (Minish Cap) Owl = Kaepora Gebora (Ocarina of Time) Tarin = Talon (Ocarina of Time) Wind Fish = Jabu-Jabu (Ocarina of Time) Playing themselves: Kiki (A Link to the Past), the Mad Batter (A Link to the Past), Richard (For Frogs the Bell Tolls, an obscure Japanese game), Wart/Mamu (Super Mario Bros. 2) ---------------------------------------- Enemies ---------------------------------------- Blooper, Boo Buddy, Cheep-Cheep, Goomba, Piranha Plant, Podoboo, Pokey, Shy- Guy, Spark, Thwimp, and Thwomp all appear in Mario games. Gordo is from Kirby's Dream Land. ---------------------------------------- Items ---------------------------------------- Bomb arrows appear in Twilight Princess. Magic Rod = Magic Wand (The Legend of Zelda), Fire Rod (A Link to the Past) Ocarina = Fairy Ocarina/Ocarina of Time (Ocarina of Time) ---------------------------------------- The World Map ---------------------------------------- The world map is very similar to that of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, although some people might argue that Pothole Field refers to Lon Lon Ranch. Eagle's Tower = Tower of Hera Face Shrine = Eastern Palace Mabe Village = Kakariko Village Martha's Bay = Lake Hylia Mt. Tamaranch = Death Mountain Mysterious Woods = Lost Woods Rapids Ride = Zora's Domain Turtle Rock = Turtle Rock Ukuku Prairie = Hyrule Field Yarna Desert = Desert of Mystery ---------------------------------------- Other Stuff ---------------------------------------- * Blaino (a boxer in Oracle of Seasons) * BowWow (an SMB3-style Chain Chomp) * Christine's fake Princess Peach photo (Super Mario series) * Crazy Tracy (She appears in a new Japanese video game called Captain Rainbow) * Fishing Pond (Ocarina of Time) * Goriya (A boomerang-using enemy in the first Zelda game) * Great Moblin (the Oracle games) * Horsehead Puppets (one of the bosses in Zelda II) * Mad Bomber (Ocarina of Time's castle courtyard) * Marin's song in Animal Village (A Link to the Past's Flute Boy) * Owl statues (Majora's Mask) * Sale the alligator (He's a crocodile and wears a fedora; maybe a reference to the movie "Crocodile Dundee," or possibly Croco from Super Mario RPG) * Secret Seashells (Minish Cap) * Sleepy Mushroom (Ocarina of Time's trade sequence with Grog) * Trading Game (various Zelda games) * Weathercock (A Link to the Past) * The witch (A Link to the Past) * The Yoshi Doll item (Yoshi from Super Mario World) =============================================================================== Frequently Asked Questions [QUEST] =============================================================================== Q: Are there any items I have only chance to collect? A: Yes. One Secret Seashell near Kanalet Castle, which can only be earned while you have the Flying Rooster. Also, two Secret Seashells require you to enter the Seashell Mansion when you have a certain number of shells. However, you don't have to find every Secret Seashell in the game to earn the associated reward. Also, there's a certain point in the game where you have only one chance to hear certain amusing pieces of dialogue (I'll tell you when that is). Q: How many exchanges are there in the Trading Game? A: Fourteen. Here's the full list, although my guide discusses each one in greater depth: 1. Go to the Trendy Game and win the Yoshi Doll. 2. Give the Yoshi Doll to the Quadruplets' Mother in Mabe Village. She gives you a Ribbon. 3. Go to Madam MeowMeow's House in Mabe Village and enter the doghouse in the side. Talk to the little Chomp and trade the Ribbon for Dog Food. 4. Visit Sale's House o' Bananas at the beach and give the alligator the Dog Food. He'll give you Bananas. 5. At Kanalet Castle, give Kiki the monkey the Bananas and he'll construct a bridge and leave a Stick behind. Take it! 6. In Ukuku Prairie, you'll spot Tarin fooling with a beehive. Give him the Stick and he'll leave a Honeycomb behind. 7. In Animal Village, talk to Chef Bear and swap the Honeycomb for a Pineapple. 8. In the Tal Tal Mountain Range area, just east of Mt. Tamaranch, talk to Papahl and exchange your Pineapple for a Hibiscus. To get here, go through the cave east of Mt. Tamaranch to the damp outdoor path. Then make your way through the nearest cave on the damp outdoor trail to reach him. 9. Go to the third house from the left in Animal Village. The goat will trade a Hibiscus for a Letter. 10. Go to Mr. Write's house near the Mysterious Woods and Goponga Swamp. Give him his letter from that less-than-snazzy gal pal and he'll reward you with a Broom. 11. Give the broom to Grandpa Ulrira's wife and you'll receive a Fishing Hook. Depending on the number of dungeons you've completed, she may be found in Mabe Village or Animal Village. 12. Dive down to the right of the bridge in south-central Martha's Bay to find a hidden scene with a fisherman on a boat. Speak with him and exchange the Fishing Hook for the Necklace. 13. Talk to Martha, the mermaid who's floating around in Martha's Bay. Give her back her missing necklace and she'll let you take a scale from her tail. 14. Take the scale to the mermaid statue, which can be accessed by using your Hookshot to cross a gap just south of the bridge at the south end of Martha's Bay. After inserting the scale, you'll be able to push the statue, revealing a staircase! Inside, go forward to the pedestal with the Magnifying Lens. Q: What are Guardian Acorns and Pieces of Power? A: Unique to Link's Awakening, these are occasionally dropped by enemies and temporarily boost your abilities. The Guardian Acorn halves the damage taken when you're hit by an enemy, while a Piece of Power doubles the attack power of your L-1 sword and makes you walk a little faster. Their effects wear off after a few hits by an enemy. Also, you can't have a Guardian Acorn and a Piece of Power active at the same time. Q: Does anything special happen if I complete the game without losing a single life? A: At the very end of the game, you'll see Marin flying instead of a sea gull. In other words, not much. The number of times you've lost a life is recorded on the file select screen. Q: What are Bomb Arrows and how can I use them? A: Equip the Bow and the Bombs. Press A and B at the same time and you'll launch an arrow that explodes when it hits something. This works well against clusters of enemies. This feature didn't appear again in a Zelda game until Twilight Princess. Q: What's the best way to accumulate Rupees quickly? A: Let's face it: Rupees are useful. You can collect money by defeating enemies, digging, chopping tall grass, and opening certain treasure chests. In Mabe Village, there's a large field. If you go there and keep slashing the bushes, you'll find a few Rupees and hearts. Once you buy the Shovel, you can dig here as well. Slash all the bushes, then dig at every space. This unlimited Rupee trick can come in handy, but it's mighty slow! I can't believe I had the attention span as a hyperactive five-year-old needed to do this long enough to accumulate the 980 Rupees needed to buy the Bow & Arrow Set. Q: What happens if you play the Ballad of the Wind Fish in front of the Egg before you've gotten all the Instruments of the Sirens? A: You'll play your song, but nothing will happen. Each time you get a new Instrument, the song will sound a little different when played in front of the Egg. Try it every time you get a new instrument. Q: Is there something in this game I don't know about? A: Well, it's very possible that you've missed a Secret Seashell or Piece of Heart. Also, after your "date" with Marin (when she follows you), try playing your Ocarina, digging, playing the Trendy Game, slashing chickens, falling down the well in Mabe Village, talking to villagers (and Tarin), checking drawers in houses, throwing pots, and entering dungeons. Q: What happens if you keep slashing the Cuccoos in Mabe Village? A: You'll get attacked by a great multitude of chickens. Evacuate the area or take shelter inside an interior room of a sturdy building (away from windows, please). This is a dangerous storm. Report any damage to your nearest law- enforcement agency. This is what your local hurricane warning would tell you! Q: Who is the Bucket Mouse? A: If you use the telephone in Grandpa Ulrira's house, you'll talk to the Bucket Mouse. A Google search seems to reveal that the Bucket Mouse is a fictitious character who only appears in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. Q: Why can't I find the Secret Dungeon? A: It only appears in the re-release of the game. See the next paragraph. Q: How many different versions of the game are there? A: Basically four, excluding different translations and regions. The first version, released in 1993, has the Screen Warp Glitch. This glitch was removed in the next printing. In November 1998, the game was re-released for the Game Boy Color in a new version called Link's Awakening DX. This adds an optional bonus dungeon and a way to collect photographs of certain game events. Also, the chests in dungeons have slightly different contents (the huge numbers of Secret Medicine chests make the game marginally easier), and Stone Slabs are now called Stone Beaks. If you're playing Link's Awakening DX, I recommend using a guide written for that game (like VinnyVideo's!). In 2019, the Nintendo Switch version of Link's Awakening was released. This game includes gorgeous 3-D graphics and some new content. Q: I've beaten the final boss. What can I do now? A: Link's Awakening doesn't have a second quest, but the game's replay value is still very high. * There's probably some Pieces of Heart and Secret Seashells you've missed. Use my guide to help you find them. * Play the Three-Heart Challenge - play through the game without getting any additional Heart Containers. * Try manipulating your game using the Select Glitch. This enables you to complete the dungeons in a weird order and obtain useless items like the L-3 Power Bracelet. * Play the Nintendo Switch remake! * Play the DX version of Link's Awakening for the Game Boy Color, which has an extra dungeon and a few new features, or another Zelda game (like A Link to the Past, the game Link's Awakening is modeled after, or Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons, which use the same engine). Q: How many times have you played through this game? A: Ten. I'm not kidding. Q: What other notes and tips do you have for the game? A: Here are a few miscellaneous tidbits that don't fit anywhere else: * If you ever run out of life energy, press A, B, START, and SELECT (or turn the game off if you've saved lately) before the Game Over screen appears and your lost life won't be recorded on the File Select screen. * If you name your character ZELDA (all caps), the music on the title screen will (temporarily) sound different. It'll be a cool remix of the traditional overworld theme. And if you happen to be playing the German version of the game, you can enter your name as MOYSE and hear a neat techno song. * If you want a really powerful attack, throw your Boomerang and then immediately pick up the Flying Rooster. The Boomerang will hang under you and defeat any enemies in your path. It's not very useful, though, since you don't keep the Flying Rooster for very long. * The Boomerang is the only weapon in the game that can be used diagonally. * It's possible to talk to the trees by the Seashell Mansion. * In Level 5, when the Master Stalfos boss is leaving the room, you can throw a Bomb Arrow at him and make him explode, leaving a Small Key behind. This trick has no practical application. * At the beginning of the game, when you get your shield, press SELECT to view the map (before leaving Marin and Tarin's House) and it'll say you're in the Tal Tal Mountain Range. This glitch was fixed in the DX version. * Play the Ballad of the Wind Fish twice at the entrance to Yarna Desert to make the walrus pop his head out of the water. * The Fairy Fountains can be used as an unlimited number of times, although the fairy won't appear if your energy gauge is full. Fairy Fountains can be very helpful, so remember where they're located (often behind bombable walls in the overworld). * The Link's Awakening font is used throughout Super Mario Bros. Deluxe, the Game Boy Color remake of Super Mario Bros. * I thank Red Shifter for telling me about the western bombable wall in Room 39 of Turtle Rock. =============================================================================== Version History [VERSN] =============================================================================== Oh great, the version history! As if anybody actually cared... 0.1 Began original guide on 7/30/00. 1.0 Did a lot of work from approximately 12/30/01 (when I finally found the last Piece of Heart in Ukuku Prairie) to 1/4/02. 1.15 Scanned in the first half of the old guide I wrote and began my second edition 1/7/08. Thanks, ABBYY FineReader Sprint Plus (an OCR program)! (41 KB) 1.3 Scanned in the second half of my original guide and made more progress. (1/8/08) (70 KB) 1.34 Did some stuff. (1/9/08) (72 KB) 1.38 Focused on enemies. (1/10/08) (74 KB) 1.45 Basic framework is close to completion. (1/11/08) (76 KB) 1.47 Did very little. I've mostly been working on the Madden '96 guide lately. (1/16/08) (77 KB) 1.48 Worked on the Enemy List, but I'm still focusing on my Madden '97 guide. (1/24/08) (79 KB) 1.5 Did very little. With the Madden guides done, I'll be doing a lot more. (1/25/08) (82 KB) 1.51 Changed name of Urchin to Gordo. (1/28/08) (83 KB) 1.52 Did a little more stuff. (2/15/08) (84 KB) 1.54 Verified Tail Cave data. (2/24/08) (88 KB) 1.55 Did just a little. (2/28/08) (89 KB) 1.56 Did very little. (3/2/08) (90 KB) 1.58 Finished enemy list. (5/5/08) (95 KB) 1.6 Finalized formatting. (7/19/08) (97 KB) 1.61 Did a little. (8/25/08) (100 KB) 1.63 Processed numerous notes and such. (9/3/08) (102 KB) 1.66 Verified Bottle Grotto data. (11/25/08) (108 KB) 1.68 Verified most pre-Kanalet Castle sidequests. (11/26/08) (111 KB) 1.71 Completed most of Key Cavern. (11/27/08) (116 KB) 1.77 Reviewed Key Cavern and Angler's Tunnel. (11/28/08) (125 KB) 1.79 Finished pre-Catfish's Maw sidequests. (11/29/08) (129 KB) 1.82 Verified Catfish's Maw. (11/30/08) (133 KB) 1.83 Did most pre-Face Shrine sidequests. (12/1/08) (135 KB) 1.86 Completed Face Shrine and some of Eagle's Tower. (12/2/08) (140 KB) 1.88 Did most of Eagle's Tower. (12/3/08) (142 KB) 1.92 Verified Eagle's Tower and Turtle Rock. (12/4/08) (150 KB) 1.94 Proofread guide and processed notes. (12/5/08) (154 KB) 1.96 Kept proofreading and formatting. (12/6/08) (157 KB) 1.97 Almost complete. (12/7/08) (160 KB) 1.98 Did just a little. (12/8/08) (160 KB) 2.0 Finished things up and submitted guide. (12/9/08) (163 KB) 2.1 Made a few little changes after completing my guide for Link's Awakening DX. (12/20/08) (166 KB) 2.15 Added a pointless note about MOYSE. (9/22/10) (167 KB) 2.2 Made a few updates, improving the formatting and adding some notes about the Switch version. (3/10/20) (171 KB) =============================================================================== Copyright [COPYR] =============================================================================== (c) 2008-2020 VinnyVideo. All rights reserved. All trademarks and copyrights mentioned in this guide are property of their respective holders. You can post this guide on your Web site as long as you give proper credit to VinnyVideo and you don't change anything I wrote. The latest version of this guide will always be available at GameFAQs and Neoseeker, but keep in mind that I don't update this guide very frequently. =============================================================================== Contact Information [CONTC] =============================================================================== If you have any questions or comments about this guide, please send an e-mail to VHamilton002@gmail.com. That's zero-zero-two, by the way. Please follow these guidelines when you e-mail me: * Do include "Link's Awakening" in the subject line. * Do send polite suggestions for ways to make this walkthrough better. * Do ask any questions you have about Link's Awakening gameplay. * Do make a reasonable effort to use decent spelling and grammar so that I can understand what you're trying to say. * Do use patience. I check my messages quite sporadically. * Do not send spam, NSFW stuff, flaming, or profanity. Be nice. Also, you can connect with me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/VinnyVideo. For R. & M.C.