Awesome / The Myth of Link & Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Moments pages are Spoilers Off. Read at your own risk!

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1 - The Awakening

• The Sheikah Slate is used as the justification for Link having hammerspace. Why is that awesome? Because this means that he can literally hold anything and everything that he could ever need in a small magitek tablet, from weapons to clothes. Link is truly an Army of One with the device at his side.
• Link fights a Red Bokoblin, just like most first-time players will. Link happens to trigger his power of Flurry Rush which he uses to shred the Bokoblin apart. It's the first time he's in a fight with something that right now can kill him, and he still dishes out a Curb-Stomp Battle. And Link is barely even exhausted from it.
• It's Nightmare Fuel, but the adaptation of Calamity Ganon's introductory scene is nightmarishly awesome because despite all the horror he witnesses, Link's first resolve is to go and fight it and end its existence.

2 - The Trials of the Runes

• For the Magnesis Trial, Link creatively uses Magnesis to slam the heavy metal objects in the shrine to shield himself and attack the Guardian Scouts.
• During the Stasis Trial, Link manages to charge up a boulder with so much energy that he launches it with such force that it cracked the interior wall. A Guardian Scout in the Cryonis Trial, manages to survive when Link uses an ice column to get above the machine and then does a vicious diving attack with his sledgehammer.
• Link's first encounter with a Decayed Guardian is a terrifying sequence, but he turns it around on a dime when he tests out a theory that works: he uses a shield bash to reflect the beam back into the machine's eye.
• An entire encampment of monsters falls to Link. He takes out the scout and then explodes the red barrel inside of the skull they carved out as a home. It works, killing all the Bokoblins except the blue one, Link kills by using Flurry Rush with his archery skills.
• Link managing to climb up the massive cliff is a huge accomplishment, though the constant threat of him slipping and falling to his death certainly may mask the accomplishment. Right before that, Link bridges the gap between the main plateau and the ground beneath the cliff by using a bomb. Which is something that can be done in the game. And he crosses the treacherous makeshift bridge.

3 - Secrets of a Century

• The flashbacks indicate that the Divine Beasts and the Guardians were unearthed and restored within the lifetime of the kingdom. That doesn't sound like much, but four these things are mountain-sized mechanical wonders that should have taken multiple years to get out, but Hyrule got them out within Hylian lifetimes.
• It's in a nightmarish scene, but the imagery of Zelda alone going to face the Eldritch Abomination that is Ganon is a tribute to her character as a Determinator, especially with the fact that she wanted it to swallow her whole.

4 - Kakariko Village

• Link gets a chance to show off some more of his skill and some of his newfound strength and stamina when he fights the camp of monsters that seems to have taken down everyone that has passed by it before Link did.
• While Link is on his way to Kakariko Village, he's ambushed by a mobile Guardian. And Link wins. Yes, it's by the skin of his teeth, but he still won a fight with a Guardian using nothing but his trusty shields.
• Impa's powers of telepathy are impressive, with how she influences Link's vision of the tapestry behind her, and animating it to tell him the history of Hyrule and Calamity Ganon.

5 - Locked Mementos

• Link gets to play out a scene that players likely have done numerous times. He gets to go all out as a Big Damn Hero, paragliding down from Hateno Tower and saving a married couple Holden and Mara. This time, he does it by using Flurry Rush in midair to kill all the Bokoblins in just a second of firing perfectly aimed arrows.

6 - Ancient Weaponry

• Akkala Citadel was the sight of a Last Stand by the remains of the Hyrulean Army. Yes, it ended with them all dead, but give the Hyrulean Army credit for being Defiant to the End against the apocalyptic power of the Calamity.
• Link has an Offscreen Moment of Awesome when he chooses to go through the Torin Wetland and takes down the Guardians in there, and this is without any gear that can take them down easily.
• Instead of taking the blue flame down one hill and going all the way up the other, Link instead ignites a single arrow with the blue flame, and then fires a perfect shot into the wind. The arrow ignites the furnace, and he does this in one shot.

7 - Sacred Ground Ruins and Lake Kolomo

• Link pulls another Big Damn Heroes moment when he saves two women from Silver Bokoblins.
  • He kills a Silver Bokoblin, one of many Demonic Spiders from the canon game, in one hit by decapitating it.
  • The other one gets a moment of awesome when it gives Link a fight so vicious that the two women hiding from the monsters get involved by throwing stones to distract it.
• After remembering the ceremony, Link fights with two Guardians. The last time he fought two was in the Torin Wetlands, where he came out exhausted. This time? He kills them both almost as if they were nothing thanks to his ancient arrows.
• Link's first fight with a Yiga Clan member ends with Link easily dodging the Yiga's iconic vertical strike and then easily slitting the Yiga's throat. It's disturbing scene, but Link's swift victory shows why he's the Hero of Hyrule. Someone from the nearby stable outright tells him that he has ever seen anyone kill a Yiga before.
• Beedle made the journey from Akkala to Hateno Village in what seems to be just a couple of days, with a heavy backpack of supplies weighing him down.

8 - The Ancient Columns and Kara Kara Bazaar

• As nightmarish as Medoh's abrupt cry is, the sheer power behind the beast's cry is cool, especially since it's enough to tremble the entire village. Makes one wonder what this thing was like when it was on the heroes' side.
• Kass reveals that the people of Hyrule did not like the Hyrulean King's ruling that Sheikah technology was to be banned. More than that, they engaged in mass protest, choosing to make their homes near icons of Sheikah technology, mostly the shrines, in defiance of their king. Alas, it was for nothing, but it is amazing that an entire kingdom defied their king to such a degree.
• Link's ambush of the Moblin in the Ancient Columns, where he pays homage to gamers' tactics. He uses a puddle of water to electrocute the water the Moblin is stepping in, which is something gamers can do in the original game. Points to the Moblin as well for surviving not just this, but a bomb arrow to the head.
• Zelda's flashback attack by the Yiga is expanded to include Zelda's own attempts to save her own life. Her powers are weak, but the girl has spunk and determination. While she fails, Link coming to her rescue is even more awesome. His very presence is enough to frighten away the last two surviving Yiga Footsoldiers.
• Naboris. The epic Divine Beast finally appears, and it's awesome and terrifying to see how Link describes it. It's almost an Eldritch Abomination, with how its described as this thing kicking up a sandstorm just by existing, and then its roar sending trembles through the very sand.

9 - Eldin Canyon and Irch Plain

• In a subdued moment, Link's on top of the Woodland Tower ready to find his next memory. When suddenly he hears a voice described as being like a singing siren that's beckoning him. Any fanatical gamer of this series will instantly know who this voice belongs to. It's Fi calling out to her master, wishing to be wielded by him once more.
  • Each of the three songs she sings to him are icons from across the series. Unlike the original games, each of these songs are given lyrics. And all three of them are directly beckoning Link from across multiple incarnations to come to her and wield her against the forces of evil.
    • The first is the iconic Ballad of the Goddess, the song Fi's most well-known for singing. Even though the prophecy has long-been fulfilled, it still serves as a prophecy here, foreshadowing the inevitable moment Link will hold the Master Sword triumphantly as he does when you find it in the game.
    • The second is the Song of Time. The lyrics are taken from this video. Unlike the prior one, this one is a direct beckon to Link. Fi wants to be wielded by her master.
    • The third is the Title Theme of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Unlike the other songs, the author had no references to go off of. The author created the lyrics to match with the melody and the choir, and it fits perfectly. You can almost imagine these lyrics being sung and ending with the howling of Wolf Link.
• Link officially tests his theory about the potential Elemental Rock-Paper-Scissors between fire/ice weapons and ice/fire enemies. He instantly kills several Fire Lizalfos testing his theory right.
• Rudania's introduction. Link had already seen it when he first awakened, but now he sees it up close and personal, and realizes the magnitude and power of this mechanical lizard. Its so powerful that just walking is described as causing lava (which is extremely thick and dense) to tremble like water. Even Link can't help but be amazed with it.
• In the adaptation of the "A Premonition" memory, Link had all the awesomeness to himself since he took out an entire army of monsters and Lynels himself. This time, he and Zelda work together to take down an even larger version of the monster group. And it's made clear that Zelda's control and finesse over her powers has grown quite a bit, as many monsters are shredded by crystals, burned by fire, or broken as if thrown around like dolls in the wind. Zelda doesn't shy away from being an Action Girl this time around. She is Link's equal in combat.
• During a quiet moment at the Serenne Stable, a Guardian suddenly charges at the stable, sending everyone into a terrified scramble. Link the Action Hero shows how much more powerful he's become, and not with any magic, by destroying the Guardian in one hit with one his newfound ancient arrows. The last time he fought a Guardian, he really needed to work for it. Now he can wreck them with a single shot from a bow.

10 - West Necluda and Hyrule Castle

• Link finally encounters the skeletal monsters one night. The tonic given to him by the women he rescued from the Silver Bokoblins at the Sacred Ground Ruins comes into play when one of them wounds him, healing him quickly. He even more quickly realizes that the only way to stop them is to destroy all the skulls, a nice reflection of gamers' first time encountering these things and realizing the same thing.
• Zelda's powers finally become stable and firm and are at their strongest in the flashbacks.
  • Nayru's Love is crystal clear and indestructible, and she has enough control over it to use it as a prison instead of just a shield for herself.
  • Farore's Wind is strong enough that Zelda doesn't just carry herself, but can take others with her in any direction she wishes, with very little effort, a stark contrast to where she struggled to just make sand move.
  • Din's Fire is powerful enough that it can evaporate rainwater around it, and Zelda can use a tiny spark of it to roar a fire to life, when the sparks were said to be colder than the ambient air when she first had them.
• Link finally goes to the incredibly terrifying realm of Hyrule Castle, where encounters his first Guardian Turret. The first time he encountered a Guardian Stalker, he was horrified and struggled. This new model doesn't even scare him, though he's cautious about it, and easily destroys it without a struggle. He does the same with the aerial Guardian Skywatcher.
• Link fights his first Silver Moblin. He displays his strategy, which can easily reflect player strategy, by zapping it with a shock arrow, stealing its claymore, and then freezing it with Stasis to attack it. While it's stunned and tumbling, Link hits it so hard that both the Moblin's skull and the claymore shatter to pieces. Link is growing more and more powerful, and it shines here.
• There's a clip in the second flashback that teases the eventual introduction of the iconic character Terrako from Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, and not just that one, it even teases the appearance of diminutive versions of Skywatchers and Turrets, too.
• Zelda gets an immensely gratifying Calling the Old Man Out moment when she rips into her father for never really being a father to her, and only ever focusing on her powers and awakening them. She doesn't hold back and forces him to listen to her by using the powers he didn't know that she had grown so strong with. It leaves King Rhoam thoroughly shaken.
• Link obtains a few things from Zelda's room. Aside from some of her outfits that have somehow survived a century without decay, he also finds his iconic Hylian Shield, the first step he takes to reclaiming his title as the Hero of Hyrule. He also finds a couple of mystical bracelets that look like Urbosa's Daybreaker that automatically size themselves to fit him, and trigger a burst of power when he clashes them, much like a a very famous Amazon.

11 - Spring of Power and Sanidin Park Ruins

• Link is so good at fighting monsters that him triggering Flurry Rush in the air and killing two Bokoblins can be generously called an afterthought, and only takes a couple lines in the narration.
• Right when Link gets into the Spring of Power, Hylia beckons him. He's gathered so many Spirit Orbs that he suddenly experiences a power surge, and the surge makes him so strong that he can break rocks with his bare fingers.
• A moment for gamers of the whole franchise. While sleeping, Link has a bizarre dream of being in a foggy white dimension, where he finds himself facing a golden wolf missing an eye...that transforms into a skeletal knight that Link automatically knows is the Hero's Shade. And Link ends up fighting the Hero's Shade.
  • As a way to contrast the Hero of the Wilds and the Hero of Twilight, while the latter was soundly defeated, the former puts up a vicious fight that ends in a Mutual Kill. The Hero's Shade has some extra powers that he didn't originally have, and our Link has some new skills and equipment (like his bracelets that absorb magical and physical energy to redirect it), and it makes for an awesome titanic fight on the page.
  • Even better is that some of the attacks used by the Hero's Shade are some of the hidden moves in Twilight Princess.
• Once the fight is over, several other wolves appear. The description of a few of them make it clear that these are the wolf forms of Link's predecessor heroes. The Hero's Shade proudly declares that Link will become the most powerful of all the heroes.
• The Lord of the Mountain's presence is teased with Link witnessing its glow at the top of Satori Mountain.

12 - Lanayru East Gate and Hyrule Field

• Link finally goes to the memory near to Kakariko Village in the Lanayru East Gate. He mows his way through all of the monsters in the promenade, using his mystical bracelets to absorb shock arrow attacks, and sniping at them with his bow. He then kills all the Lizalfos in the water with a beam of electrical magic to shock the water.
• Unlike the original memory of "Return of Calamity Ganon", Zelda's declaration that she will fight carries much more weight. Unlike the canon memory, Zelda is of use on the battlefield. Even better is that she uses her Age of Calamity Special Attack quote "I will fight for Hyrule in any way I can!"

13 - The Blatchery Plain

• Impa confirms that the bracelets Link's wearing belonged to Urbosa. They're called the Daybreaker Bracelets. Even in death, a Champion found a way to help him in his quest, and before he could even free a single Divine Beast to boot.
• Paya shows off how knowledgeable she is when it comes to Hyrule's history. Link sings her the three different songs, and she names them and their history without even breaking a sweat.
• As horrifying as it is, Link's fight with the Yiga Footsoldier is extremely one-sided in his favor. The Yiga doesn't stand a chance against him, as he's literally cut to pieces by Link.
• The "Zelda's Awakening" memory is a mix of Heartwarming Moments, Tear Jerkers, and Awesome Moments.
  • The fact that despite them inevitably beginning to lose, the fact that Link and Zelda were able to take down the army of Guardians invading Fort Hateno by themselves is amazing.
  • Zelda gets one subtly for the fact that she was able to emerge from the fight unscathed. Between physical warriors and mystical warriors, Zelda's power prove more useful in the fight. When she faces three Guardians, she uses Farore's Wind to lift them up into the air, Nayru's Love to shred their armor with crystal shards, and Din's Fire to destroy them.
  • There's Zelda's willingness to sacrifice herself for Link through everything, despite it being his job to do that for her. It's what finally activates her power, saving herself and destroys the Guardians in the field.
  • Fi comes to the rescue, giving Zelda hope when all seemed lost. It gives her the strength to keep going, handing Link off to Purah and Robbie, and getting ready to fight.
  • Finally, we get to the main event. We'd seen her growth, we'd seen her powers at work. In the game, we saw just a flash of her power take down the field, which we just saw here. But this one has a noticeable difference when Zelda gains a Power Tattoo that is designed as an ornate owl. Once she gains a Heroic Second Wind thanks to Fi, Zelda activates her power yet again. She doesn't just levitate like she does in the games, but she turns into a giant spectral owl that literally combats the storm created by Calamity Ganon. Even better is the Calamity Ganon senses her power and her threat, enough to outright challenge her. Zelda has truly awakened.

14 - The Korok Forest

• The Hero's Shade alongside the other wolves representing the other heroes approach Link in another dream. He speaks for all of the preceding heroes in saying they're proud of Link for going through a painful quest, and advise him to retrieve the Master Sword, as she wants him to wield her.
• Link comes to the end of the torches in the Lost Woods. He has no idea how to move forward from here. In the game, he has to use a torch to follow the winds in the woods. Here? Fi herself makes her appearance, and says hello to him, and in a direct Shout-Out to The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, guides Link to his weapon.
  • It's implied that stories about Fi are the inspiration for the voice of Sheikah technology, as her voice is described as being similar to the Sheikah Slate's voice.
• When Link grabs the Master Sword, he's immediately transported to the Sword Monks Shrine. He has to overcome the immense agony to both his body and spirit to draw his weapon yet again. He powers through it and draws the sword, immediately unlocking the sword's true splendor by default. He's just that worthy of the sword's true power.
  • He's transported again to the dimension of the Hero's Shade. He and all the other wolves adopt their likenesses they had when they were the heroes, showing them their green tunics. The Heroes of Time, Twilight, and the Skies are the main ones to address Link. It's a very beautiful and awesome moment where the preceding heroes truly pass the torch to the current Link. They also bestow upon him their own extensive skills from throughout the years.
• Fi's Info Dump reveals something incredible. Groose from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword became The Chosen One of Din through his actions and Character Development. As The Unchosen One, he impressed her enough that she decided that he was truly worthy to be a hero throughout time, reborn as Ganondorf Dragmire. Unfortunately, Demise's curse also chose him. But it comes right back around when you remember that in a prior chapter, Ganondorf was calling to Link. He's been Fighting from the Inside for 120,000 years!
• The final main flashback where Zelda leaves the Master Sword to recover. We actually get to see the moment where she goes and confronts Calamity Ganon. She teleports herself to Hyrule Field and does an Unflinching Walk towards Hyrule Castle, deactivating and destroying Guardians left and right as a mere afterthought, and saving numerous lives as she did. She does a mass one-shot by using the Bow of Light to destroy and disable every Guardian around Hyrule Field. Only then does she confront Ganon, and in a blast of bright light seals him in a deadlock that she would continue for 100 years.

15 - Lakna Rokee Quest

• Link shows off just how much he despises the Yiga by willingly wasting an ancient arrow on the Blademaster who intended to attack him and kill Dorian, instantly disintegrating him. Even better is that this is a legit way to kill him in the game.
  • More subdued, but it's pretty impressive that Link, a non-Sheikah, was able to sneak up on Dorian, an experienced Sheikah, and the Sheikah spend their lives mastering the arts of stealth.
• At the end of the chapter, Link describes a knock on his door at home, which was accompanied by strange whistling. He opens the door to find Symin with the three little Guardians that were in Zelda's study. Terrako, the one from Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Cerako, the diminutive Skywatcher, and Argiko, the diminutive Turret. And Purah actually made sure they would be immune to Ganon's corruption.

16 - Reaching Zora's Domain

• How does Link prove Sidon's theory that Link is a strong Hylian warrior? He grabs a rock and shatters it like it was glass.
• Aside from an early narration mentioning Link killing Octoroks and Lizalfos, much of the winding path to Zora's Domain is glossed over, as even the fights with the monsters aren't even worth describing anymore, with Link's new Super-Strength and Cerako to collect resources for him. Cerako can use the Runes to fight, using Magnesis creatively to use metal weapons against their own attackers, and uses Remote Bombs as a form of dynamite fishing to kill the Octoroks.
• Link's daughter, Princess Lochlia of the Zora, finally appears for the first time in the flesh. Her initial appearance establishes her Lady of War Action Girl nature, killing monsters with incredible grace with a one-pronged spear designed after her mother Mipha's weapon. She even has Link's Flurry Rush power.
• Link and Cerako both fail to notice a Lizalfos nearly ambushing him. However, Link kills the Lizalfos with the Mortal Draw, which is described as cleanly decapitating the Lizalfos.
• Link uses another Hidden Skill from Twilight Princess, the Jump Strike. The original game's shine mechanic indicating the move is ready is replaced with Link charging his sword with the power of the Wolf Spirit, and creating a shockwave that kills a whole lot of Lizalfos in a single move.
• When Link reaches Luto's Crossing, he speaks to Sidon who's in the water below. Here, he's ambushed by a group of Silver Moblins. Link is happy with this, as he now gets to use another move. He lets them encroach around him, and unleashes the power of the Great Spin that kills every single one. Even Cerako knew to put some distance between herself and Link, and Sidon is in awe.
• Link finally gets the last of the main Sheikah Monk Spirit Orbs, and he obtains his green tunic that counterparts his predecessors as a reward for truly proving himself as the Hero of the Wilds.

17 - History of the Zora

• Lochlia stands out at the East Reservoir Lake observing Ruta when she hears the vicious roar of a Lynel coming from Ploymus Mountain. Her words imply that she's killed it before multiple times.
• King Dorephan has none of Muzu's discriminatory attitude towards Hylians, reminding him of Lochlia's own heritage. King Dorephan considers Hylians a part of his family, and doesn't stand for any Fantastic Racism against them.
• Cerako shows off that she's also a surveillance drone when she goes to see Ruta and transmits images back to Link's Sheikah Slate.

18 - Battle Against the Lynel

• Link has far more than enough shock arrows to go to Ruta directly. However, he still chooses to combat the Lynel, implicitly to get rid of one more monster from the area, at least for a time.
• Lochlia has control over water through her weapon, the Lightscale Spear, which has an artifact like the Zora's Sapphire. She uses this power to great effect in the fight against the Lynel, and as she admits to Link, has done this so many times that the Lynel is golden.
• Sidon, as in canon, had in the past vanquished a mountain-sized Octorok that was terrorizing Hateno Bay, the Fell Octorok. The Lightning Lynel, as is called here, was Lochlia's own version of that, which she did to earn the adoration of her people who didn't like her Hylian ancestry. And this is against a monster with a weapon that is specifically strong against Zoras.
• Link and Lochlia show off why they're two of the most skilled warriors in the land in their fight against the Lightning Lynel. They work together with Cerako as support, and they consistently wound and distract the monster, and especially make sure to disarm it. They use their speed, and Lochlia uses her powers over water to create incredibly high pressure beams to attack the creature. And they win!
• The Lightning Lynel shouldn't be discounted, even if it's a monster. It puts up a hell of a fight and endures numerous grievous wounds, even losing an eye before it finally goes down. It forces Link and Lochlia to work together to even survive the fight, and Cerako's presence makes it clear that had she not been there, they may have lost. Gold Lynels are not to be underestimated.

19 - The Disenthralling of Ruta

• Link, Lochlia, and Sidon all fight Ruta from the outside. They manage to disable Ruta's water spouting while sustaining no injuries on their side, against a Mechanical Abomination.
• Link and Lochlia alternate defending against the ice blocks fired from Ruta, with the former using Cryonis, while Lochlia deflects them with her spear, all the while that Sidon is carrying Link on his back.
• Ruta eventually gets desperate and fires off ten blocks of ice, five cubes and five maces, far too many for Link to fight off with Cryonis alone. Lochlia destroys the cubes since she can't target the maces with their spikes threatening her, and this frees up time for Link to focus on the maces. Father and daughter showing some impressive synergy.
• The last obstacle in their way is a large ice monster...that falls to one strike from the Savage Lynel Bow that mystically splits one ancient arrow into five.
• Small example, but nonetheless Cerako follows Link into the Divine Beast, and finds first terminal for Link, the one where Magnesis is used to turn a cog to lift the control terminal. She also uses Stasis to freeze the ball on the pole with good enough timing that Link can get the control terminal. Finally, she uses a Remote Bomb to wreck a Malice Eye.
• The fight against Waterblight Ganon. It's a nightmarish entity, but Link and Cerako fight viciously until they defeat it. And they use every tactic they can, freezing it with Stasis and firing arrows at it.
  • Even more awesome is Cerako's Cowardly Lion moment where despite being terrified of Waterblight Ganon, she still chooses to stick with her master and fight it. She even willingly acts as The Bait to distract the monster when the water rises!
  • The fight is over when Cerako distracts Waterblight Ganon long enough to get Link swim around and get under it so that he can shoot it. He then gets to use the Ending Blow on the blight, impaling its eye and vanquishing it.
• The moment where Mipha, the quiet and most reserved of the Champions, takes full control of Ruta and smoothly pilots it into position to take aim at Calamity Ganon. As ladylike as she is, she's still a Champion for a reason.

20 - The Lightscale Trident

• King Dorephan's ceremony to honor Link's heroic actions in saving the domain is both sweet and incredible, as it's basically one grand decree that Hylians are not to be discriminated against. Especially when he, via Link's four grandchildren, grants Link Mipha's weapon.
• Link practices with the Lightscale Trident, testing its powers, and he masters it quickly, remembering Mipha's lessons in teaching him how to use spears. While he's not as adept with it as Mipha or Lochlia who can make fine weaponry and compress the water to an extremely lethal pressure, the fact that he can do that at all is quite impressive considering he isn't even a Zora.

21 - Entering Gerudo Town

• In a private moment with her grandmother, Paya expresses her wish to learn to fight. Despite her mother's subtle warnings and protests, Paya's resolute in becoming a stronger fighter.
• Tarrey Town's transformation. Where it was just a little rundown outcrop of rock over a marsh covered in rocks, it's now a bustling island of culture and commerce, with each member that Link had sent finally achieving their dreams. In fact, Bolson claims that it didn't even take long for everyone to get there, and they were all able to get the town on its feet super quickly thanks to having everyone they needed.
  • And what is Bolson's reward to Link? Half a million rupees, and a cache of all four gemstones in huge amounts (sapphires, rubies, topaz, and diamonds), worth millions of rupees. As a final thank you, Bolson announces that one house will always be his.
  • The best part is what Link does with his incredible bounty...he donates it to Purah so that she could continue her extensive research into Sheikah technology. She's beyond grateful and ecstatic when she receives this from him.

22 - Reclaiming the Thunder Helm

• Link's invasion of the Yiga Clan Hideout. As nightmarish as the things he sees in there are, his complete and utter single-handed decimation of the clan (using mostly his combat skills instead of the Wolf no less), is pure Catharsis Factor since the Yiga are so depraved.
  • He uses the Great Spin to kill six Footsoldiers simultaneously, and uses it again, and with so much power that he reduces the second group to Ludicrous Gibs.
  • He takes one hostage and forces her to spill the beans on what they're doing, and she is utterly terrified of him.
  • Link heals Barta with Mipha's Grace and together, they fight the Yiga.
• At one point, Link gets wounded by the Yiga, but Mipha comes to his rescue, even in the hideout whereas in the game, she can't help him in there. She barely even questions it when she realizes who Link is.
• In a very weird way, Link's "fight" with Master Kohga is so one-sided because of the latter's stupidity that it comes back around to being cool to see the leader of the Yiga get trounced so badly by Link who isn't even fighting at full power.

23 - Prepare to Fight the Sandstorm

• Barta proves that she's quite The Determinator, running straight across the desert sand to her hometown, all so that she could try to help Link get out of the hideout. It may not have been necessary, but her willpower rivals Link himself.
• Link has a moment of horror at what he did in the hideout. However, Buliara of all people gives him quite the Rousing Speech by reminding him of the absolute depravity the Yiga reach, meaning what he did may have been horrifying but was ultimately the right thing.
• The scene between Link and Buliara is paralleled between Riju and Link respectively. Riju feels down about herself, and doesn't feel she's worthy to be a leader, but Link is the one who gives her a Rousing Speech in turn about how she's more than worthy, referencing his own relationship with Zelda and his belief in her.
• The flashback scene with Urbosa is a quiet private moment showing the love that she has for Zelda and Link, until Urbosa shows off her power and snaps her fingers, unleashing a bolt of lightning so powerful that it sends a tremble that rocks even Naboris.
• Riju does the same as Urbosa, snapping her fingers and calling an incredibly powerful bolt of lightning.

24 - The Liberation of Naboris

• Riju may be a child, but she's just as determined as the adult Link is to save her town from the threat of Naboris.
• Riju's ritual to enact the lightning barrier from the Thunder Helm is no longer just a speech, but is in fact a graceful ritualistic dance that creates a soft dust devil around her, that then finishes with her chant and a snap of her fingers calling Urbosa's Fury, summoning the shield. Even the Daybreaker Bracelets reacted to the power of the Thunder Helm.
• Kali and Patricia show no terror in approaching Naboris. They're just as fearless as their riders. They weave in and around Naboris's feet without any fear at all.
• Riju concedes that going into Naboris herself is likely too dangerous given her young age. She entrusts Link to do it, and knows that he will succeed. True courageous people know their limits. The Gerudo are in good hands with her.
• Cerako investigates a tunnel in Naboris's neck, and helps him get the Guardian Shield ++ by herself, flying through dangerous lasers and destroying Malice Eyes.
• Thunderblight Ganon may be smaller than Waterblight Ganon, but it's no slouch. As a Lightning Bruiser with Super-Speed and powers over electricity, it's no slouch, and is a formidable adversary. Urbosa even comments that her death at its hands was a warrior's death. It's so durable that even a strike from five ancient arrows hitting it at once doesn't kill it.
  • It's nightmarish but still villainously awesome when Thunderblight very nearly kills Link by tricking him into using a sword move that required him to get close. The only reason it failed in its mission was because he had already freed Mipha.
• Link's first major attack against Thunderblight Ganon is him using Flurry Rush to slash at the monster with the Master Sword, which overwhelmed it's shield.
• When Mipha saves Link's life from Thunderblight's strike, Link taunts the creature by sarcastically asking it if it really thought it'd be so easy.
• Link and Cerako both throw metal pikes at Thunderblight when it tries using them to guide electricity around the Divine Beast to attack them.
• Link gets to use the Great Spin on the blight, and right afterwards, Cerako helps him to get the final fatal strike in its eye, flooding it with the power of the Wolf Spirit.
• While Fi revealed it to Link that Ganondorf is merely a pawn of Demise's curse, Urbosa reveals that she also found this out. In stark contrast to the game, she proudly re-owns Ganondorf as a Gerudo, and wishes for him to reclaim his place among her people. Doubles as heartwarming.

25 - The Daybreaker and the Scimitar of the Seven

• Riju announces a change to Gerudo custom and law: married Gerudo can bring their husbands back to town. It's a major step forward for their culture, and Riju hopes that one day, voe will be a natural part of Gerudo Town.
• Buliara and Riju are proud to gift Link with Urbosa's equipment, both her Daybreaker and the Scimitar of the Seven. In fact, Link likes the Daybreaker so much that he considers changing out the Hylian Shield for it. Doubles as funny, since he does this in front of Buliara who finds it funny In-Universe.
• A female Yiga Footsoldier attacks Link in his home after everything...and despite ambushing him is curb-stomped by him, fatally so. And this is not with the Master Sword and Hylian Shield, but the Daybreaker and Scimitar of the Seven.
  • This Footsoldier tries to give Link a "Reason You Suck" Speech about his brutality in the hideout towards her people, in front of everyone in Hateno Village. Link's response? He heals her wounds and gives a quietly furious Shut Up, Hannibal! to her, calling her and the Yiga out on the needless torture and sadistic violence they incur on innocent people, before painfully killing her with the Scimitar of the Seven and Urbosa's Fury.

26 - A Dark Premonition

• Paya's able to perform some interesting techniques like what her grandmother could do in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, conjuring clones of herself. And she's also capable of conversing with Link without panicking.

27 - Learning from the Rito

• The flashback with Revali has a few moments.
  • Revali does in fact make it clear that despite his jerkish front, he in fact can brag about his skills because he does in fact have them. He has the unique power to vertically ascend which makes him unique among the Rito, as a Champion he's gotta be an incredible warrior, and it's even noted that Revali is only Link's height, meaning he's quite young.
  • In turn, Revali's sister Takki is entirely unimpressed and even subtly makes fun of her brother's bravado. Her brother is a skilled warrior, but even that doesn't immunize from his sister's jabs. She also indicates her own knowledge of combat by taking Revali's "combat art" metaphor and pointing out that the best painters will never win a sculpting competition.
  • Link even comments that the best artists will master different instead of just one, which is exactly what he did.

28 - Finding an Ally in Teba

• Link killing an Ice-Breath Lizalfos in one hit from a fire arrow.
• The Flight Range is noted as showing signs of having been carved out of the rock.
• Teba's determination to fight Medoh and protect his loved ones is as strong as Link's own. He already shows signs of being worthy of the title of Champion in his very first moments.
• The reader sees Link's Flurry Rush from Teba's perspective. In one second, Link destroys five targets. Teba even realizes that the only reason that Link takes forty seconds to destroy twenty targets (which averages one every two seconds) is because they're spread out around the Flight Range. Teba immediately accepts Link as an ally from this moment on.
• Teba also proves that he doesn't just literally have eyes like hawk. He's perceptive enough to read Link's body language and attitude, and recognizes Link's personal stake in the fight against Ganon.

29 - The Unbridling of Medoh

• The fight against Medoh in the sky is quite a spectacle. Teba willingly acts as bait to let Link fight the beast itself so that they can wreck its cannons that create a barrier around it. The two fight well together, especially impressive is the moment where Teba comes to Link's rescue when he's thrown about by powerful air currents.
• Medoh is much more active in the fight than in the game. It tilts itself to aim its cannons, uses its size to its advantage to kick up currents to disorient Teba and Link, and can even perform a powerful aileron roll when its down to one cannon left. Makes it all the more awesome for Link when he successfully destroys the final cannon as its moving.
• Teba concedes that Link is better to fight Medoh on his own. He even turns down Link's offer to heal him, since he believes he'd just be a liability.
• Link's efforts to activate all the terminals in Medoh is impressive, especially since he has to navigate the constant threat of falling from Medoh, and he doesn't once fall off.
• The fight against the enormous Windblight Ganon is the most high-pressure fight, with the greatest power dynamic seen yet. Link has to run in zigzags to keep himself safe, but the blight is thinks enough to lead its shots against him. Cerako thankfully helps out by freezing it with Stasis to help Link.
• Windblight Ganon shows itself as a Combat Pragmatist by flying way out of Link and Cerako's range. The drones it summons don't just redirect energy, they amplify it, and it fires back a much more powerful beam. It's implied that this attack was part of what killed Revali. How does Link block this powerful attack? He uses the Daybreaker Bracelets, shielding himself and absorbing the full power of the attack into his bracelets, much to its shock. This even impresses Revali, who gives a genuine compliment to Urbosa's old bracelets. Link eventually combines this energy along with the power of Urbosa's Fury and the Wolf to kill the blight.
• Link gets to use Urbosa's Fury to knock Windblight out of the air, and then dodges every single beam attack from the blight, and even counters with an ancient arrow attack from the Savage Lynel Bow.
• Cerako gets the best moment. When Windblight Ganon releases its drones again, she hijacks one of the drones herself, and redirects the energy beam back at Windblight.
• Revali's cheers for Link as he fights Windblight Ganon are sweet, and his last one where he yells for Link to kill it is just awesomely sweet.

30 - The Great Eagle Bow

• The Rito finally explain the reason why Revali's Gale is so significant. It came entirely from Revali himself. His training, his skills, his practicing, and an entire lifetime of dedication to defying what was thought to be an irrevocable weakness. Especially since Revali's Gale is a learned power. This means any Rito can learn it, he's just the first.
• We get to see Paya and Link together in combat for the first time to save a traveler. Link strikes first with Urbosa's Fury to kill the weak ones and stun the stronger. Then it's Paya's turn. She uses her grandmother's fighting style and weapon as seen in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, and uses her clones to kill the rest of the Bokoblins herself, which includes a Gold and Silver. Even Link is amazed with her.
• Right after it's revealed that the "traveler" was a Yiga, Link instantly kills her. Also, it makes the Bokoblins awesome in hindsight for trying to fight her, and tragic for falling victim to Link and Paya's attack.

31 - Traumas of a Survivor

• In a moment with Dorian, Link subtly reveals his growth into a slightly Smug Super. He's growing more and more powerful, and he knows it.
• Link learns how Paya learned to fight so fast. It was Training from Hell in the Spirit Realm, from a collection of Sheikah warrior spirits manifesting as Sheik. The training itself is a nightmare, but Paya is awesome for enduring it, especially considering her meek nature before.
• Link's Big Brother Instinct towards Paya when he defiantly tries to attack Sheik for putting Paya through such agony. Becomes awesome for Sheik when she easily catches his punch at her without a struggle.
• Purah upgrades Cerako, or, as she puts it more accurately, fixed her to give her access to more weaponry, including a Ancient Battle Axe++, a Guardian Sword++, and a unique Guardian Shield that is a circular version of a Guaridian Shield++.

32 - Finding Goron Painkillers

• When it's time for Link to use the various Goron cannons, he decides to show off a bit to his monster victims. He paraglides past them as they prove to have been members of the Imperial Stormtrooper Marksman Ship Academy and miss every shot. Only then does Cerako activate the cannon to kill them all. And the repeatedly take down monster camps using these cannons.
• A terrifying scene occurs at the end, where someone is shown walking in the violence left behind in the Yiga Clan Hideout. However, the scene also introduces the most iconic character from Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity: Sooga.
• In the scene above, the Yiga discuss their plans to attack all of Hyrule's settlements, but they're not alone. Barta redeems herself, successfully infiltrating the hideout unnoticed and gathers intel on their plans.

33 - The Goron Chief of Old

• It's as funny as it is awesome when Daruk calls the giant mechanical lizard that is Rudania a toy since he's so good with it.
• Daruk easily deflects a giant boulder falling down on him and Link with his shielding power.
• According to Link himself, his first meeting with Daruk was when Link was attacked by monsters. Daruk went to save Link, only to be mesmerized by Link's incredibly combat prowess, so much that he didn't notice a monster attacking him from behind...which Link saved him from. And Link also ate a rock roast in front of him.
• When lava bombs rain down around Link, Cerako puts herself in the way, using a unique attack where she summons a blue sphere and then shoots at it with a Guardian blast, creating a blast wave that destroys every single lava bomb falling in their area.
• Cerako, Link, and Yunobo all fight three Black Moblins.
  • Link uses Revali's Gale to propel himself up and downwards with so much force and power that the Moblin is instantly sliced in half vertically, and with so much speed that there's not a drop of blood on the Master Sword.
  • Cerako disarms her Moblin, then decapitates the Moblin by rising up, freezing it with Stasis, reversing her rotors' rotation, and slamming her Ancient Battle Axe++ down on it.
  • Yunobo, after some encouragement from Link, blasts Daruk's Protection outward with so much power that he smashes the Black Moblin he's fighting against some rocks. It's so strong that the boulder is wrecked.
• Barta successfully runs back to Gerudo Town in time to warn her people of the Yiga's plan to attack.

34 - The Emancipation of Rudania

• For the first time, Cerako finally is an active part of the Divine Beast battle. The others were so fast-paced that Link asked her to stay out of the fight. This time, she goes ahead of him and destroys the sentries released by Rudania to clear the way, and even collects resources for him.
  • She even decides to use Magnesis to throw a metal cube around to destroy sentries, which is exactly what some gamers may have done.
  • She takes down one Black Moblin in a single hit, and then blows the head off another in one shot. Link helped a little bit by electrocuting it with Urbosa's Fury.
  • She finally clears out most of the Malice from Rudania, collects treasure, and solves numerous puzzles within Rudania. Link even comments that he'd be lost without her.
• The fight against Fireblight Ganon is pretty impressive on both sides of the fight.
  • For Fireblight, it's far more badass than it was in the game. Even compared to the other blights, it's Made of Iron, enduring ancient arrows, even losing an an arm that it just grows back, and survives the Ending Blow the first time. It even knows to take Cerako seriously, blade-locking Link and using fire to force Cerako to defend herself. And then there's it's strongest attack, where it spends twenty seconds sucking in hot air before creating a large fireball that doesn't follow Link like in the game, it explodes around the entire Divine Beast. When this fails, it conjures magma bombs to make a huge one to specifically kill Link.
  • Link and Cerako manage to evade or counter each one of these attacks. In fact, they make it angry when they evade its powerful explosion attack. Finally, they manage to use the blight's magma bomb attack against it by using Stasis on the bomb and throwing it back at the blight, breaking its force field and giving Link the opening to kill it.

35 - The Boulder Breaker

• It's incredible that the Rito women were able to fly across Hyrule and deliver warnings to all of the various settlements. But their sheer determination directly affords the people of Hyrule the chance to prepare, however little time they may have to do so.
• Paya's arc with the Yiga comes full circle. Where she was originally shattered just by one stealing her family's heirloom, too horrified to help Link fight another, she's now ready to fight the Yiga when she learns they're going to attack her home.

36 - Rise of the New Champions

• This is one of the biggest battles. It's all of Hyrule's main settlements against the Yiga. And Hyrule wins! Despite the last-minute warning, the four primary settlements inhabited by the New Champions all emerge victorious.
• In each of the four concurrent battles, there is a scene of the fallen Champion pulling a Big Damn Heroes to save their home and their people.
  • In Zora's Domain, Astor conjures an entire army of Malice Guardians. King Dorephan prepares to perform a Heroic Sacrifice for his people...until Mipha rains down a barrage of ice from Ruta on them, destroying them all and scaring Astor away.
  • In Gerudo Town, a pod of Moldugas and a much more dangerous Molduking get ready to annihilate the Gerudo's home...until Urbosa unleashes Naboris's incredibly powerful purple lightning on them throwing them back several feet, and they all disappear while still in midair.
  • In Rito Village, the Yiga summon an armada of Malice Skywatchers that encroach the village ready to destroy it...until Revali fires a streak of light from Medoh that turns into a powerful explosion of light beams that destroys the armada.
  • In Goron City, an Igneo Talus Titan is relentlessly approaching the city to kill all the Gorons, and Yunobo is ready to fight it...until he sees Daruk strike the edge of Death Mountain's crater and a powerful eruption of magma bombs rains down on Igneo Talus Titan, destroying it in one strike.
• The long-lived Zora show what it means to be a master of water and spearmanship.
  • King Dorephan is a Front Line General along with his son and granddaughter, and he uses the power of a giant water axe to prevent the Zora from being hit by a volley of shock arrows, Sidon uses water-constructed sharks to carry shock arrows, and the Lochlia uses water shurikens to blast the water to unleash their electrical power against the Yiga.
  • Bazz leads a group to ambush some of the Yiga.
  • Gruve, the scared Zora on Lanayru Tower, uses a Blademaster's Windcleaver...and accidentally kills five Blademasters and several Footsoldiers in one hit.
  • Sidon throws dead Yiga impaled on his tridents into other Yiga to torment them, and uses shark-shaped bubbles to drown and disorient others. Similarly, Lochlia would either cut Yiga members to pieces with her Lightscale Spear, or she would create sharp weaponry from water so concentrated that it slices cleanly through their flesh.
  • King Dorephan gets the final strike on the main Yiga army, conjuring a tsunami of water strong enough to obliterate the entire legion to nonexistence.
• The Gerudo live up to their inspiration from the Greek Amazons.
  • The Gerudo snipe away at aerial Yiga archers with bomb arrows. They make a perfect strike, reducing them to a cloud of blood and body parts.
  • Captain Teake and Buliara lead the Gerudo into battle against the Yiga, and the two of them mow down Yiga Bladmasters and Footsoldiers so much that they both become The Dreaded to the Footsoldiers.
  • Twelve Blademasters try to overwhelm Captain Teake by encircling her to attack her with their Razor Wind. She scoffs at their idiocy, and leaps out of the way when they attack. The combination of razor winds creates a powerful tornado in the area that sucks up Gerudo and Yiga alike. Teake, unlike the other Gerudo, was able to guide herself through the winds to kill surviving Yiga.
  • Patricia and Kali the sand seals aren't left to the wayside. They make good use of their tusks against Blademasters.
  • Riju shows finesse over her electrical powers when she solely electrocutes the Yiga inside the funnel cloud.
  • Riju combats Kolana personally, and conjures an electric barrier to ensure no one would interfere. The latter doesn't underestimate the former despite her age, and in fact gives her great respect. Riju in turn is unafraid of Kolana, as she was the one who killed Riju's mother, and ends up winning their fight when she holds Kolana down under Urbosa's Fury, and then redirects energy to her unprotected legs to end it.
• The Rito show the power of aerial combat against ground forces.
  • Teba leads Harth and the other Rito warriors into battle against the Yiga. The Rito draw first blood, specifically Teba, by sniping two Yiga archers in midair with bomb arrows before they could even fire.
  • Saki is the sole female Rito, and she's just as much a combatant as the men. She ambushes a group of Yiga intending to kill everyone hiding in the Tabantha Bridge Stable, killing most of them in one swoop. She even kills a Blademaster with a spear.
  • It turns out Saki was just doing a very powerful signal for her husband and the other warriors. They all come flying in, killing the surviving Yiga with a deluge of arrows that leaves no survivors.
• The Gorons aren't ones to be outshine. Despite acting like Dumb Muscle, they're far from it.
  • The Yiga know they're physically frail and would die quickly in a frontal assault, so they attempt to ambush the Gorons. Attempt. Bludo ambushes one group of Yiga, throwing them far into the distance, with some falling into the lava. And other Gorons successively ambushed the other groups, maiming and killing them.
  • Bludo even gives a Badass Boast to the Yiga, stating that the Yiga were foolish and didn't do a good job of avoiding being seen.
  • Yunobo was too scared to help in the fight against the Yiga, but he jumps into action when he sees the Igneo Talus Titan and doesn't hesitate to ask to be shot at it. In fact, he kills it. Unfortunately, it doesn't stick since the Yiga use some magic to heal its ore deposit.

37 - Hyrulean Resistance

• The settlements in this chapter fighting off attacks may not have the Divine Beasts or their pilots, but they nonetheless show that no one in this After the End setting is a slouch.
• Kakariko Village consists entirely of the Sheikah, the original race from which the Yiga split, and they do very well against their Evil Counterpart.
  • Impa shows that her apparent feebleness is exactly that, just apparent. She tells the Blademaster that she'll slash her leg and then stab her in the throat, which gets her a laugh from the Blademaster. Seconds later, she fulfils her promise without a struggle. Never Mess with Granny indeed. Right after, she uses her clones to create a Flechette Storm of kunai.
  • Cado and Dorian help out, using bomb arrows to clear out Yiga, and snipe away with regular arrows. Nanna and the town tailor were with them, using deadly arrows against the Yiga.
  • Paya finishes the battle when she concentrates the power of her clones into her kodachi, and slams into the ground with an explosion so powerful, it kills all the remaining Yiga...and damages some of the village in the process.
• Hateno Village is the home of Purah and her powerful technology. She shows that even researchers' homes aren't to be trifled with.
  • Terrako fights a Yiga Blademaster woman at the lab itself. She strikes first with a barrage of laser blast when the Blademaster attacks her. She uses an attack taken straight from her attack combo in her debut game, and manifests a sphere of power that detonates like a bomb to send her tumbling down the hill.
  • Purah ends Terrako's fight with a couple of arm cannons. Terrako was doing so well that she gets furious with Purah for stealing her kill.
  • Symin leads a group of residents to rain bomb arrows on the Yiga. They're fighting for their home that had been lucky enough to escape the Great Calamity.
  • Cerako charges into the fray with her weaponry, cutting apart any Yiga that gets close to her. She gets into a more personal fight with a Blademaster...which ends when Cerako impales said Blademaster in the heart.
  • Argiko shows the greatest versatility among the diminutive Guardians. She flies and can scan the environment with great detail in less than a second. She even absorbs energy from the environment around her to charge her laser eye, which splits into multiple beams that each hit and kill a single Yiga. She even uses her Deflector Shield to absorb energy from attacks which she then redirects to kill even more Yiga warriors, this time reducing them to nothingness.
• The titular residents of Korok Forest may be tiny and timid, but even they shouldn't be underestimated.
  • Hestu the Cowardly Lion shows his true nature when he chooses to save his home from being burned to the ground. He uses his powers to create a blast that knocks back all the Yiga. He creates another one to help the rest of his people fight back.
  • The Koroks take to throwing rocks down on the Yiga. Though it isn't very effective, it works to distract the Yiga from Hestu long enough for him to charge his second blast attack.
  • The Deku Tree isn't idle. He uses vines to grab the Yiga stuck in the trees and pinned to the ground by Koroks throwing rocks. The vines suffocate some to death, and others pull the Yiga underground, burying them alive.
• Akkala Ancient Tech Lab is the one that Sooga personally attacks, and is the one Link personally protects.
  • Robbie and Jerrin's son Granté is a relatively subdued and quiet person, but the moment he realizes his parents are in danger, he leaps to protect them. Kapson, Rhondson, Fyson, and Greyson run to help him just the same.
  • Link's very presence makes the Blademasters tremble in terror. Sooga even knows it's better for him to fight Link alone...and he's proven right when Link electrocutes the Blademasters with Urbosa's Fury.
  • Jerrin gets a moment when she snipes a Blademaster out of the air with an Ancient Bow that pierces the Blademaster's body like it wasn't even there.
  • The four people who Link sent to Tarrey Town save the lab when they ambush the Blademasters. Fyson kills one with a bow, Rhondson slices one apart diagonally, Kapson throws a spear into another's back, and Greyson throws a boulder at the last one, crushing him.
  • A villainous one for Sooga. He's the first character who manages to fight on equal grounds with Link, with a Super-Strength that rivals Link's. He then brings them into the air where they can fight without interference. He even blocks Link's Mortal Draw, though he's shaken at how close Link came to killing him. In turn, he comes close to killing Link when he freezes Link in place and nearly decapitates Link. When Link fights back, and he sees his compatriots dead, he wisely retreats.
  • Link is no slouch, even if his fight with Sooga is a hard one. Sure, Sooga freezes Link in place, but Link manages to fight back even when frozen by mentally summoning Daruk's Protection, which has the added benefit of knocking Sooga back and absorbing the attack into the Daybreaker Bracelets.
• Link declares that Hyrule won for now, but also that they all still have unfinished business with the Yiga. The fight is going to be taken to the Yiga this time.

38 - Recovery

• Word of God confirms that no one on Hyrule's side was killed during the Yiga Siege. The Gerudo suffered injuries, some major, but Hyrule itself has pulled through its worst disaster since the Great Calamity itself.

39 - Barriers

• The titular barrier is the shield around the Great Plateau. It's completely impenetrable, and Cerako's attack is absorbed and thrown right back at her. It's an evil but amazing construct of sorcery.
• Conversely, seeing that signals to Purah that they could destroy the barrier with overwhelming force. It absorbs power, so giving it too much could destroy it. This same scene confirms that the Daybreaker Bracelets do not have this weakness, as the magic has somehow overcome that.
• Astor's true attitude towards the Yiga get teased in one little off-hand comment he makes. Sooga and Kolana immediately threaten him not to say that again, lest they choose to get rid of him. They even say that the only reason he's even with them is because he's useful, not because they like having him around.
• Despite the risk, Link chooses to go forth with the Master Trials to unlock his full access to the Wolf Spirit.
• In a sweet tender moment, Link's grandchildren all present the Champions' equipment to the New Champions, and to some extra members, at their grandfather's behest. It's a symbolic and amazing gesture from Link, outright saying to them that they are worthy Champions.
  • Special note to Buliara, since she's not really one of the New Champions, but she is still given Urbosa's Scimitar of the Seven.

40 - Trial of the Wolf

• Link has to go through vicious trials to unlock the Wolf Spirit. And he wins, starting almost nude and with no resources aside from the Sheikah Slate to help him from the outset. What does he overcome to accomplish this?
  • Golden Moblins, Lizalfos, and Bokoblins in the first level. He uses stealth to get close to them, swimming in the water and pulling them in to kill them since they can't swim, rips open the jaws of the Lizalfos, and then kicking the Golden Moblin into the wall with all his strength.
  • A Black Hinox in the second level. Link has to avoid its attacks for the most part, and then uses a Moblin Club to crush its toes, and then using a metal sword to impale its eye, killing it.
  • A Molduking in the third level. He's never fought one, and learns on the spot that it's attracted to vibrations. He also quickly figures out to use a Spherical Bomb to knock it out of the air when it breaches the sand. He repeatedly attacks the monster, gradually losing his safe spaces off the sand, until he's able to eviscerate the monster with an axe.
  • A Stone Talus in the fourth level. The Hinox gave him a Drillshaft as a new weapon. Knowing that this is made to break rocks, he uses it on the awakening Stone Talus, destroying its ore deposit and the Drillshaft in the process. The creature never even had a chance to fully stand up.
  • A pair of Golden Lynels in the last level. He's stuck in the freezing cold with no clothes, and is at risk of freezing, and thus has only minutes at most. He manages to get a Great Flameblade to protect himself from the cold, and a Savage Lynel Bow to use his single ancient arrow to kill them both. He spends several moments evading the Lynels' attacks, as one tosses its bow to the other, and he's left frantically dodging until he ends up knocked out...except he's just baiting the Lynels to investigate him. It works, and he kills them both using a single ancient arrow that his Savage Lynel Bow splits into three.
• The entire scene where Link finds himself in the Wolf Monks' Shrine, a giant coliseum filled with Sheikah Monks who praise him for his abilities. As they disintegrate, a door opens and a bridge extends, revealing the Wolf Spirit, finally granting Link his true power and splendor.
• The final scene shows Link manifesting as the Wolf Spirit in the same way that Calamity Ganon manifests in his spectral boar form, with the trembling ground, blue clouds forming around the Korok Forest before a giant spectral wolf emerges from them, letting out a howl that echoes across the land. As Purah suggested, it fires a beam of energy at the barrier around the Great Plateau, destroying it. Link has truly arrived.

41 - A Corrupted Generation

• The ending of the last chapter is seen from the perspective of the New Champions. They initially think it's Ganon, and it partly is, until they see the Wolf, at which point their fear turns to awe as he destroys the barrier.
• There are multiple different fights, all of which show off characters' combat skills and styles.
  • Hestu, a de-aged Impa, Purah, and Paya all fight Hollow Link. Hestu's creative use of bubbles, Purah's arm cannons, and Paya and Impa's shared Sheikah warrior skills all make for an incredible display of combat coordination. And when Link gets to fight back and threatens Paya, Impa goes full Mama Bear on Hollow Link. Paya gets the final strike, using a giant kunai to pull a boulder that crushes and destroys Hollow Link.
  • Sidon and Lochlia fight back against Hollow Mipha. Sidon is the heavy hitter, Lochlia is the graceful fighter, and both have power over water. The Hollow fights back with incredible power and Hollywood Acid. However, Sidon and Lochlia draw upon the strength of their bloodline, and they vanquish Hollow Mipha by countering its ambush attack, with Lochlia striking its head, and Sidon tearing it in half.
  • Riju and Buliara combat Hollow Urbosa. Their fight is the most brutal, with Riju and Buliara repeatedly dismembering Hollow Urbosa, Patricia impaling it on her tusks with no results. Riju uses the Thunder Helm to shield the three from Hollow Urbosa's dark lightning, and then the three work together to electrocute Hollow Urbosa until it's melting. It tries to kill Riju, but she uses the Daybreaker and reflects the sword such that it impales itself into Hollow Urbosa's melting remains.
  • Teba fights Hollow Revali. It's the shortest of the fights, with Teba overwhelming Hollow Revali with a brutal ambush attack with bomb arrows fired from the Great Eagle Bow, and using his talons like a real predatory bird to rip its head in half, and then his own strength to rip the Hollow in half completely. Hollow Revali never stood a chance.
  • Yunobo fights Hollow Daruk with the Boulder Breaker. He gives himself a brief pep talk, and then swiftly vanquishes Hollow Daruk by slamming it into a rock, and then using the power of heat from the Boulder Breaker to melt the rock. The heat of the melted boulder obliterates it entirely.
  • The mini Guardian sisters fight Malice constructs of the three main Guardian models. The three small Guardians combine their powers and use ambush tactics to vanquish the Malice Guardians, which are massively supersized compared to them. The Malice Guardian Stalker's final moments are spent losing a Beam-O-War between itself and the three Guardian sisters who combined their power into a single beam from a sphere glowing with power.
  • Link fights Sooga, Kolana, and Astor all at once. Link shows what happens when the Great Spin combines with the Wolf's power: an even more powerful blast occurs. When the trio try to gang up on him, Link clashes the Daybreaker Bracelets together, sending all three of them back, and destroying the protection spell Astor cast over them, which is the sole reason they were still alive. As a bonus, Link also robs Astor of his crystal ball, the Malice Orb and purifies it of its Malice Corruption.

42 - The Fourth Spirit

• It's revealed in Paya's vision that Impa is not just a minor player in the grand scheme. She's actually one of The Chosen Ones, as Paya's vision shows her wielding a spirit animal, the Frog.
• Since Paya is chosen to wield the Sheikah Orb, bringing her from Action Girl to basically a Physical God. It truly brings her Character Development to its conclusion, where she now is effectively a Champion herself on the level of Link and Zelda.
  • She is capable of reversing time around the Temple of Time, completely fixing its damage over time. More than that, she even ends up fixing the decayed Guardians around the area, even purifying and seemingly immunizing them from Ganon's influence.
• Hylia reveals that she used the power of her loyal Sheikah to create a fourth spirit in the image of the patron animal of the Sheikah, the Frog, to help ensure that Ganon would be defeated, and she wishes for Impa to wield it. She's not one of the Golden Goddesses, but she still managed to create something that was originally said to be only possible for the Golden Goddesses to create.
• Apparently, the Royal Family of Hyrule got its hands on Dragon Scales from Naydra, Farosh, and Dinraal, who haven't been seen for thousands of years. Scales like that aren't easy to come by.
• Purah has created a new device, the Sheikah Plates, that allows other people to use Runes and teleport around Hyrule.

43 - Scales of an Ancient Era

• Purah destroys a Guardian Turret and a Guardian Skywatcher with her arm cannons.
• Paya learns about her powers as she retrieves her scale, notably that the Sheikah Orb can also access the elements through vocal commands. She uses this to burn a Black Lizalfos to death, electrocute another Lizalfos to death, and freeze another fatally.
• Impa swiftly kills many Silver monsters in the castle's lockup, and finally fights a Stalnox in the main chamber with a single attack combo. She wrecks the Stalnox and loosens its eye with her special attack from Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, conjures a big frog to launch the eye at her, and then uses one of her weak point attacks to destroy the eye.

44 - Pearls and Flames

• Impa expects a big challenge when she arrives at each of the shrines within the springs. However, the Sheikah Monks all tell her that obtaining a scale is an amazing accomplishment itself, and praise her for accepting in doing so.
• What is Impa's final trial to get the Frog Spirit? It's fighting the Battle-Tested Guardian, a DLC character in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity...along with battle-tested variants of a Skywatcher and Turret, the Warfare-Tested Skywatcher and Combat-Tested Turret.
  • She fights the Turret first, and it's mobile unlike other Turrets, and can fly, and can fire homing shots. Impa doesn't falter, using her clones and her powers to summon frogs to overwhelm the Turret and toss it around with the frogs' tongues.
  • She fights the Skywatcher second, and it's even deadlier than the Turret. After being thrown off the Skywatcher, Impa freezes it with Stasis and blinds it by sticking the Devoted Kodachi into its eye and getting stuck there. Finally, she uses a giant kunai to wreck it completely from above.
  • She fights the Guardian last, and it's the deadliest. It gives her the most vicious fight of the three, as its legs give it the ability to physically menace Impa, jump and even swipe at her, along with its ranged weaponry. Nonetheless, Impa still defeats this thing, winning the trial.

45 - The Kindness of the Frog

• Impa has emerged victorious from her trial, and has Hylia's Pearl... only for the Guardians she fought to return to her all at once. She immediately prepares for a fight...and then realizes that they're bowing to her, wishing to fight with her.
• When she offers the final pearl, it lights the torch. The three original goddess flames from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and now Hylia's own goddess flame combine and transport her to a realm where she meets Goddess Hylia, and her prior incarnations from across time. The Golden Goddesses meet Hylia, and they all blast Impa with the flames, strengthening her powers, enhancing her weapon to become the Goddess Kodachi (Impa's own version of the Master Sword) and blessing her with the Frog Spirit. Impa has finally earned her rightful place among the most powerful warriors in the land.
• Impa introduces herself as the Frog Spirit in the same way Link and Zelda introduced their empowered selves to Hyrule, by rising into the air in a giant spectral form, and giving out an epic battle cry strong enough to ripple through the land.
• Paya uses her powers that fixed the Temple of Time to repair the Guardians of War, cleaning their damage, immunizing them from Ganon, and even changing their color to match the Diminutive Guardians.

46 - Trial of the One-Hit Obliterator

• This chapter is the first to adapt "The Champions' Ballad". As expected, Link has to start with a sudden death style trial, vanquishing foes when his body is so weak that one wound would be sufficient to kill him. He still defeats four squadrons of monsters, and completes the four extra shrines on the Great Plateau, all while dangerously weakened. Some of these enemies include Silver and Golden enemies.
• Impa is unable to help him fight, but she does what she can. She scouted ahead to see what Link would have to face. It makes Link's job so much easier.

47 - Songs of the Warriors

• Link doesn't have to go through the challenges the Champions did 100 years earlier, but he still has to fight the phantom version of the Blights with limited resources, and without Cerako, though at least this time around he has the Champions' gifts to help him.
  • For the fight with Phantom Waterblight Ganon, all he has are ten arrows the Lightscale Trident, and a Silver Bow along with the Zora set that lets him swim. Link was shown practicing with the Lightscale Trident and its power over water, and he fights back with his power of Flurry Rush. When the arena floods, Link uses Urbosa's Fury to paralyze the create, and then freezes with Stasis which gives him the chance to vanquish the monster.
  • For the fight with Phantom Thunderblight Ganon, Link wears his Desert Voe set, with the Scimitar of the Seven, the Daybreaker, and the Daybreaker Bracelets. Link allows Thunderblight to attack him, so that he can absorb the power of its attacks, until he decides to clash them to channel the absorbed power and that of the Wolf. His final attack is using the Wolf to create a Flechette Storm of Master Sword copies that shred the Blight apart.
  • For the fight with Windblight Ganon, Link has the Great Eagle Bow, a Rito sword called the Feathered Edge, 300 arrows and 15 bomb arrows. Link overwhelms Windblight with Flurry Rush, firing a barrage of arrows right at his eye to weaken him until he kills it by using the Wolf to deliver a Megaton Punch to its eye.
  • For the fight with Fireblight Ganon, Link has the Boulder Breaker, a bow, and ten ice arrows. Link shows that his Super-Strength is greater than Fireblight's, and even launches the monster with a single strike to its face. And when it tries to use its fire explosion, Link follows it into the air to throw a Spherical Bomb at it while it's sucking in air to knock it down, finishing it off with one final strike from the Boulder Breaker falling far through the air.
• Each of the flashbacks of the Champions meeting with Zelda lets them show off just a fraction of their skills and what made them candidates for being the Champions in the first place.
  • Mipha jumps down a waterfall with her then-toddler daughter Lochlia in tow, gliding down the falls without a struggle. Then she swims back up the falls with both baby Lochlia and baby Sidon riding with her, again without a struggle.
  • Urbosa identifies two disguised Yiga which Link can't even do, and then soundly trounces them both with a graceful performance of sword fighting. Neither of them get even close to hitting her. She finishes the fight with an Off Hand Backhand use of Urbosa's Fury.
  • Revali at first struggles with his wind powers, but upon seeing Zelda, flawlessly pulls off the move and destroys every target in the Flight Range in seconds. He's more than a bit smug, but he honestly has earned his ego.
  • Daruk completely destroys a Bokoblin group menacing an unseen person. He launches two Bokoblins high into the air, and then hits the ground launching the others just as far. This was enough to scare the rest away. Of course, it goes straight into hilarious when Daruk is suddenly terrified of a dog of all things.

48 - The Champions' Ballad

• After everything Hyrule has endured, the entire kingdom's remaining inhabitants are all banding together and getting ready for the final battle. No one is staying out of the fight save for the elderly. And they witness something happening in the sky, where they see
• Link finally completes the final trial, which doesn't look like but functions like a Divine Beast. This is the only one he finishes by himself, as he no longer has Cerako with him.
• Link approaches Monk Maz Koshia, expecting this to be exactly the same as any other Sheikah Monk until the monk moves one of his fingers, closes his fist, and then stands up.
• Link vs. Maz Koshia is one of the biggest fights in the story. Both are incredible masters of their arts and have extensive magical powers to back them up. Link even realizes that Maz Koshia has a powerset that reflects the Blights, with speed, strength, wind powers, and a whole array of abilities.
  • Maz Koshia is the only character who evades Urbosa's Fury.
  • The monk's clones attack Link all at once, and Link is left in a desperate scramble until he can get rid of them.
  • Maz Koshia survives getting slashed and even impaled by the Master Sword, and even survives the power of the enhanced Great Spin.
  • He also tilts the arena to take advantage of gravity to disorient Link and keep him on his toes, and uses metal balls to conjure natural lightning to electrocute Link to the point where only Mipha's Grace saves him.
  • Finally, he catches Link's wrists when he tries to use the Daybreaker Bracelets and kicks Link back into the barrier around the arena.
• How does Link finally defeat Monk Maz Koshia? He nearly goes full One-Winged Angel, taking all of his powers gathered through his journey, and combining them into a powerful beam attack that overwhelms Monk Maz Koshia.
• Monk Maz Koshia is so powerful that he isn't really even defeated, just decides that Link has proven himself to him.
• The reward for completing the final trial and the fight with Monk Maz Koshia is the Master Cycle Zero... alongside a fifth, Divine Beast, Divine Beast Vah Eponia, named for Epona and said to be associated with nature. It is Link's personal Divine Beast, though Maz Koshia will pilot it in his place.

49 - Calamity Ganon

• When Ganon's power grows to the point where he turns the moon into a Blood Moon, Link and Impa are ready to fight when they're suddenly enshrouded by Daruk's Protection, a huge wave of water overwhelms the water, twisters gust the water into spouts, and lightning electrocutes the water. The New Champions joined in the fight along with all their warriors.
• Purah joins in the fight by using a drone Guardian Skywatcher, and she fights alongside her Sheikah brethren and the six silver Guardians.
• Paya is the one who brings the army together, using the Sheikah Orb to bring them through portals. She doesn't just do that, she also can summon monsters from across time including Argoroks, Gohmas, and Moldarachs.
• Hestu even joins in, using his powers and the Koroks all throwing rocks down at monsters.
• Link and Impa go fight Calamity Ganon together, adopting their spectral animal forms. The way it happens is that the two levitate into the air surrounded by their own orbs with unique symbols, and their animal spirits leap from the Great Plateau to approach the Sanctum of Hyrule Castle.
• Each of the Champions, including Monk Maz Koshia, all give a Badass Boast when they unleash their respective Divine Beast's powerful lasers that deal incredible damage to Calamity Ganon.
• The entire Hyrulean army runs to help Link and Impa in their fight against Calamity Ganon, and this includes Kali the sand seal and the New Champions.
• Calamity Ganon itself is quite an impressive fighter, a much improved version of his game counterpart. He shows ingenuity and intelligence more associated with Ganondorf. It makes for a horrifying and amazing fight. And the fact that he survives the onslaught of the Divine Beast assault is amazing itself. He stands up and gives an inhuman roar that officially starts the fight against Link and Impa.
  • The most prominent example is when he overwhelms Impa with a beam attack to keep her busy on defense, and uses a brutal physical assault to overwhelm Link and very nearly kills him.
• Link and Impa show some amazing versatility in their fight.
  • Link uses every power at his disposal, and especially Urbosa's Fury and the Wolf. He even gets so strong that he seems to teleport, and outright pierces Calamity Ganon's invulnerability shield and flooding him with the power of the Wolf. This is in fact the first half of the move that vanquishes Calamity Ganon.
  • Impa doubles the amount of clones she can have. Her special attack from Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is made even more powerful, with even more barrels that explode with incredible force and power, and in fact, this is the other half of the move that ends Calamity Ganon.
• Zelda finally frees Ganondorf from Demise's curse.
• The curse that afflicted Ganondorf adopts its purest form in Dark Beast Ganon. In turn, Link and Impa go One-Winged Angel themselves and adopt their forms as the Wolf and the Frog to fight him. Impa keeps him contained while Link engages in Beam-O-War with Dark Beast Ganon, and wins, weakening him enough that he and Zelda can finally destroy it.
• Kali the sand seal runs back towards Link with a strange desperation. Why? Because she's really Epona reincarnated. She's not just running to help, she's trying to save her master that she's served since his earliest incarnation, as her original form was Link's Crimson Loftwing from Skyloft. Zelda returns Epona to her horse form, and Epona proudly helps her master in the final battle against Dark Beast Ganon.
• Upon his old steed's back, Link uses the Bow of Light granted to him by Zelda, and charges ahead into battle, shooting one glowing sigil after another, weakening Dark Beast Ganon until his forehead opens up to reveal the core of his being. Link uses his power of Revali's Gale to rise into the air and shoot it out as the sky turns blood red and the curse reaches its apogee of anger.
• Zelda is the one who finally vanquishes Dark Beast Ganon. It looks on in horror as Zelda rises from its body. She doesn't even adopt her form as the Owl, instead choosing to sink to the ground and allows it to adopt its boar form as it had always done, and she unleashes a spherical blast of light that consumes the entity and seals it away as it tries to escape her power. She wins, seals it away, and officially frees Ganondorf, who is lain on the ground unconscious, his soul finally freed from Demise's curse.
• Teba saves Link when he's launched by Dark Beast Ganon's dying blast by catching him while he's falling.
• It seems that the fight is not over as a Gold Lynel approaches them...except it doesn't, and neither do the Bokoblins and Moblins that emerge. They just take Ganondorf, their true master. They are now allies to Hyrule.

50 - The Silent Princess

• Paya shows off the power of the Sheikah Orb when she uses it to fix up the entire Great Plateau. She fixes all the damage dealt over the years until it's returned to is former glory as seen 100 years earlier.
• Maz Koshia joins up with the rest of his people.
• It's both heartwarming, sad, and awesome as each Champion officially passes the torch onto their successors, wishing them luck, and acknowledging their respective Divine Beasts and their people are in good hands.
• Riju approaches Karusa Valley where the monsters of Hyrule have taken up residence, implied to be where they're keeping Ganondorf. She's unafraid even facing a Gold Lynel.
• Purah is now in the body of her twenty-something-year-old self, having perfected the aging rune.
• Zelda and Link are on the plains right outside of Kakariko Village in a field of Silent Princesses, discussing the future, what they're going to do to rebuild, and Purah's new Ancient Overclock Unit for the Sheikah Slate when something descends from the sky. It's the ancient dragons, Farosh, Dinraal, and Naydra, returning to the world of Hyrule.

51 - Stinger

• A very special someone makes a cameo appearance, connecting this story (in the online Archive of Our Own edition), to the greater Marvel Fanfiction Universe. It's Rosalina, the guardian of the cosmos. She stops by the world that houses Hyrule. The best part is that neither she nor her Comet Observatory are ever named at all, but the Description Porn of the observatory and Rosalina herself are down to the most minute detail, leaving no question that this is the beloved guardian of the cosmos. Even her only line is awesome, as it establishes that she, this powerful almost godlike entity that ensures the rebirth of the universe, is impressed.
  Rosalina: This world is safe. It needs not our help or protection. She has done well, as she did 100 years ago.
• All of this description comes from Terrako. Her vision is so powerful that she can see all of the Comet Observatory, the Lumas, and Rosalina herself in such incredible detail.

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