Dead Hand

Dead Hand is a mini-boss found in Ocarina of Time. It resides at the Bottom of the Well in Kakariko Village as well as the Shadow Temple in the Graveyard.

Characteristics
Whether this monster was created by Ganondorf or a natural occurrence is unknown, but many consider it to be a part of Ganondorf's group. Dead Hand has a zombie-like head with a large jaw. Its blood is a green color, and purple blotches (thought to be bloodstains) cover its body. Multiple seemingly disembodied hands, usually four to six, circle the chamber in which Dead Hand resides. The creature uses these hands to snag prey, at which point its main body emerges from the ground to consume the captured meal. This enemy is considered one of the scariest in the Legend of Zelda world by many fans.

Strategy
The Dead Hand under the Kakariko Well can be overcome by intentionally letting oneself be grabbed by the hands, then breaking free and slashing the Dead Hand in the face when it appears. The hands can also be destroyed, and although they regenerate after about 20 seconds, destroying enough of them inevitably forces the Dead Hand to emerge, giving Link an opportunity to strike without leaving himself vulnerable. Once the Dead Hand has been defeated, Link is rewarded with the Lens of Truth.

The same strategy can be used for the Dead Hand in the Shadow Temple (multiple Dead Hands in Master Quest), but there is an easier method in which Link can use the Lens of Truth, acquired from the well, to look on the ground for the "shadow" of the Dead Hand moving about underground, and place a bomb on top of it. Once the bomb explodes, Dead Hand proceeds to come out to attack Link. It should be noted that the wave of earth created by a Dead Hand's emergence or burrowing can injure Link. If Dead Hand is unsuccessful in retaining Link with one of its "hands", it will bury itself again. Upon the monster's defeat, Link acquires the sacred Hover Boots as a reward.

Trivia

 * In the room where Dead Hand lurks at the Bottom of the Well, there is an invisible chest containing 200 Rupees that can be revealed with the Lens of Truth.
 * Because of its appearance at the Bottom of the Well, Dead Hand is the only miniboss to be recognized when it's found in the Shadow Temple. The other minibosses are met for the first time in dungeons.