Building Your Timeline

Perhaps the best way to understand the subtleties and conflicts involved in constructing a model of the Zelda Timeline is to attempt the process yourself. The resources provided by this wiki allow an interested new theorist to develop an excellent knowledge base in no time flat.

The Basics
The most effective theorists are those who take the time to learn and enjoy the Zelda Canon before they begin. Prospective theorists should play through to completion any and every Zelda game they can. Information on any other games can be found on the wiki.

With this basic understanding, new theorists should beable to quickly memorize the small amount of jargon used in timeline discussion. For the most part, simply knowing the names' of each game in the series well enough to reconize their abreviations is all that is required.

Though not nesassarily a requirement, new theorists will be taken much more seriously if they are able to understand the definition of Canon and have a general familiarity with the timeline's General conclusions. They may also be interested in SteveT's article; Timeline Theorising 101.

The Arcs
The cornerstone of timeline knowledge is familiarity with the five story arcs and their proofs. Some of these connection should be immediatly obvious, while other may take some explaining.

OOT/MM - tWW/PH

The first "Arc" compirses those games which can be directly linked by their reporesentation of the Hero of Time.
 * Ocarina of Time, as that Hero's first great adventure, begins the arc.
 * Majora's Mask, as his follow up journey, is placed subsequently.
 * The Wind Waker, which further details the fate of the hero of time after he leaves Hyrule.
 * Phantom Hourglass, promoted as a sequel to The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and its hero's second adventure; completes the arc.

TMC - FS/FSA

The second "Arc" comprises those games which can be directly linked by their representation of Vaati and the Foursword. For this reason, it is often refered to as the "Foursword Trilogy". OoS/OoA
 * The Minish Cap, which deatils the forging of the foursword, and the origns of Vaati, begins the tale.
 * Four Swords, in which the sword is used to seal Vaati a second time, occurs much later.
 * Four Swords Adventure, in which Vaati is finally destroyed, completes the arc. Another backstory to Ganon is created in this arc.

The third "Arc" is simply the Oracle Series. Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons stand alone, are not directly connected to any other game.
 * Oracle of Seasons is suggested by the manual to occur first
 * Oracle of Ages would then be the next and final game in the series.

AlttP/LA/(KnS) - LoZ/AoL

The fourth Arc comprises those games which were released prior Ocarina of Time, and can be linked in the manner of most gaming series.
 * AlttP, which was the earliest tale at the time of its release, begins the arc. It details Ganon's origins.
 * LA, its intended continuation, is placed subsequently.
 * (Kodai no Sekiban, a sequel never released in North America, may occur simultaneously with LA, may not be canon)
 * LoZ, which may star the decendents of AlttP's protagonists, occurs centuries later. Ganon is killed.
 * AoL, the conclusion of the LoZ storyline, completes the arc.

TP

The fifth arc contains the latest Zelda title, Twilight Princess, which is, at the moment, too hotly debated to place within any of the other arcs. The game can be reconciled with OOT, tWW, and AlttP with a good understanding of the Ganon Conflicts.

Dealing with Ganon
At this point it is wise to completely ignore the games which do not contain information about Ganon; AoL, LA, MM, FS, TMC, PH, and even LoZ and OoX. The connections between these games and the rest of the series are, at best, minimal, and will not be easy to place standing alone.

We will only look at AlttP, OOT, tWW, FSA, and TP, for it is the placement of these games which dictates the true grit of a timeline.

Start at the begining, with AlttP, OOT, and TWW. In order to place these games in relation to one another, you will need a basic understanding of the debates on the Number of Timelines and the Ganon Conflicts.

You may continue into the placement of FSA (though the wiki has little information to support you) and TP (though it it still under hot debate). Trust your instincts for now.

Thanks to the arc system, you should now beable to use your Ganon theory as a "framework" whcih can be easily used to place most the remaining games.
 * Place (/LA - LoZ/Aol) immediately after AlttP
 * Place (/MM) immediately after OOT
 * Place (FS/) immediately prior to FSA
 * Place (/PH) immediately after tWW

Placing the Handhelds
The only three games not yet placed are, of course; OoS, OoA, and TMC; commonly known as "The Handhelds".

If you understand the basic issues of Oracle Placement then you'll know that it is simply a toss up, the Oracles can be safely placed in atleast two different slots. Choose one, or choose to leave it ambiguous.

TMC can be placed any time prior to FS. Again a theorist can choose to place it firmly or leave it ambiguous, wit little trouble.

Congradulations! You've produced your very own Zelda Timeline.