Ganon Conflicts

New worlds come and go, plot elements and unique items fade into the past, and it seems as if there is always a new Link popping up. Little is constant in the Legend of Zelda, but Ganon has displayed himself to have lasting power above all else. The various attempts Ganon makes to conquer Hyrule are immensely difficult to co-ordinate. In fact, the interpretation of these events (which dictates a theorists placement of the five storyline "arcs") is the only major difference between individual theories, and by far the area of greatest focus in timeline debate.

Timeline Conflicts
A theorist's opinions on the placement of the 2D games will largely be based on his/her interpretations of smaller issues concerning the nature of Hyrule, Legend, and Ganon himself. Most of these issues are quite polarizing, and a theorist will find a heated argument regardless of which interpretation he chooses to make.

The Imprisoning War
Though it has been demonstrated that the team of designers behind Ocarina intended to recreate the Imprisoning War of A Link to the Past, the degree to which they accomplished this goal has always been a matter of debate. OOT is in no way a perfect match to the events described in AlttP (this is ascribable to the nature of Legends, and their tendency to change over time) and later released games (including tWW, FSA, and TP) can be considered to "interrupt" the OOT-AlttP connection. Opinions on the issue include:


 * OOT never was the IW, the two accounts are far too dissimilar. Nintendo tried and failed. It is a separate event.
 * OOT was once the IW, but recent developments have changed that. It is a separate event.
 * OOT is the IW, but only in part. FSA completes the storyline.*
 * OOT is the IW, but only in part. A second series of events, not shown in game, completes the storyline.
 * OOT is the Imprisoning War. That will never change.**

Note: *This theory is detailed below

Note: **In some timelines that assert this point, an underlying principle is that the Sacred Realm was sealed in OoT, and the seal was broken in ALttP. Ganon's presence(s) inside or out of the realm in between the two titles is deemed irrelevant to this progression, citing the example in tWW in which Ganon escapes the seal of the gods without "breaking" the seal.

The Flood
After the gods sent the flood of tWW's back story and the Triforce induced deluge that is Daphnes' final wish, Hyrule was fully and completely buried beneath the waves of the Great Sea. The King had wished Hyrule gone forever, in hopes that his people would move onto a new land, but at the same time the Deku tree has envisioned a Hyrule raised from the depths and set in motion a plan to acheive that aim (Sending Koroks to plant trees in different places around the Great Sea in hope that one day the islands will merge together to form one great land again). Waiting on Phantom Hourglass, theorists can not truly know the fate of Hyrule. However, some of the most common theories include:


 * Hyrule does not unflood. tWW is the final game in the Adult Timeline.
 * The true Hyrule does not unflood. Link and Zelda find a new land which they name "Hyrule"
 * Hyrule is raised from the waves, likely by the Deku Tree, and a number of games follow.

FSA and AlttP
Curiously enough, the Imprisoning War is never referred to by name within the context of ALttP itself. While it has been generally accepted that the introduction of ALttP, which mentions the key events that surround the Seal War--1) the door to the Golden Land being discovered and opened; 2) evil power flowing from the Golden Land; 3) the door to the Golden Land being sealed--the references to the "war with the demons" (pure translation from the Japanese version) make no mention of the Golden Land, Triforce, or Ganon at all. They do, however, reference Seven Sages, magic portals to the Dark World, and the extermination of the Knights of Hyrule. There is some degree of contrast to be had, here, because the Seal War story mentions only one doorway to the Sacred Realm-turned-Dark World, while the in-game story mentions multiple magic portals.

It is remotely possible that, since FSA includes these three elements--seven Maidens who can serve the purpose of sealing, portals to [a] Dark World, and the extermination of the Knights of Hyrule--FSA can actually assume the role of the "great war against evil". Of course, how it is that Ganon makes his way from the Four Sword seal into the Golden Land to prepare for ALttP is a matter in question, but in a pre-ALttP placement of FSA, this is inevitable. It is important to note that those who believe that FSA represents the demon war do not believe that there was any additional war or sages' seal necessary for Ganon to be stuck in the Sacred Realm in ALttP, because the game itself says that after he rediscovered the Sacred Realm, he couldn't get back to the Light World.

Storyline Conflicts
There are a number of secondary debates concerning Ganon, which, though generally unrelated to the Timeline as a whole, are common subjects of discussion among timeline theorists.

Ganon vs. Ganondorf
The closest a canonical source has come to defining the difference between "Ganondorf" and "Ganon" has been to specify Ganondorf a "thief" and Ganon a "Demon King". Yet in both OOT and TP a figure called Ganondorf accused of being a demon lords over a large castle... which he stole. The distinction has hardly been helpful. It is clear that the subject's Gerudo kinsmen raised him as "Ganondorf" and are often unaware of the alternate. It should also be noted that the subject's pig-like beast form has always been referred to as Ganon. Interpretations include:


 * The names are interchangeable. There is no important difference.
 * "Ganondorf" becomes "Ganon" when using the Triforce of Power.
 * "Ganondorf" the man channels the dark spirit "Ganon" with whom he shares a consciousness.
 * Ganon's "Pig Form" is his state independent from Ganondorf. This theory lacks canonical evidence except for a quote by Princess Zelda in FSA in which she refers to Ganon as the "ancient Demon reborn."

Note that "'Ganondorf' is a man while 'Ganon' is a beast" is not a valid interpretation, as the term Ganon has been used numerously to refer to both man and beast.

Ganon's Mortality
In LoZ and AlttP it was made extremely clear to Link that Ganon could not be killed without the Silver Arrows. In the ten Zelda titles since, no canonical text has disputed this assertion, but the silver arrows have not been seen (though light arrows have) and some feel that tWW and TP suggest Ganon has died twice regardless. This has resulted in many opinions regarding Ganon's mortality:


 * Only the Silver arrows can kill Ganon. Period. Ganon did not die in tWW, TP, or OoX.
 * Only the Silver arrows can kill Ganon. Period. Ganon did not die in tWW or TP. He did in OoX (which is a special case)*
 * The Silver Arrows are needed to kill Ganon in beast form, but not in human form. Ganon died in tWW, and TP, but not OoX.
 * The Silver Arrows are needed to kill Ganon in beast form, but not in human form. Ganon died in tWW, TP, and OoX (which is a special case)*
 * The Light Arrows do everything the silver arrows do. Ganon died in tWW, and TP, but not OoX.
 * The Light Arrows do everything the silver arrows do. Ganon died in tWW, TP, and OoX (which is a special case)*

Note: *It can be argued that because Ganon was only partly revived in OoX, the rules of his mortality had changed.

The Dark World
Ganon often chooses to attack Hyrule from a power base in another world. Though he recently took the opportunity to attack from the Twilight Realm, the Pigman had previously always chosen to work from an alternate realm known as The Dark World. In AlttP and Ocarina of Time, the Dark world was originally the Sacred Realm, which had become perverted by Ganon's malice. In FSA it was a direct mirror of Hyrule and a haven for Ganon's servants. Interpretations concerning the term "Dark World" include;


 * The uses are unrelated. The first Dark World is Ganon's Sacred Realm, the second is the Hylian equivalent of hell, and the third a creation of the Dark Mirror.
 * They are all the Sacred Realm. OoX occurs after AlttP, where Ganon was killed in the SR, and the Dark Mirror, like the Magic Mirror, is a portal to that their world.
 * The Dark world is the personal domain of Ganon. He takes command of a world and extends the Dark world across it, much as Zant expands the Twilight.
 * The Dark Worlds outside of AlttP and OOT are all the same world--"hell", the FSA Dark World, TP's Twilight, and OoX's dark realm. Historically, one could say the reverse--all of these worlds are the Twilight, exploited in different contexts.

Mirrors
Magic mirrors have been both boon and bane to Ganon throughout Hylian History; their ability to facilitate interdimensional travel has allowed Ganon to move his otherworldly forces into Hyrule, while at the same time giving his enemies more options then he would usually prefer. Arguments arrise when the three mirrors (Magic, Dark, and Twilight), at first glance unique to their respective games (AlttP, FSA, and TP), are compared and found to be similar. How many unique mirrors does the series contain?


 * Three. None of the mirrors are the same. Apparent connections are results of Nintendo's tendency to reference past works.
 * Two. The Magic Mirror (AlttP) and the Dark Mirror (FSA), similar in appearance and both paths to the Dark World, are the same object.
 * Two. The Dark Mirror (FSA) and the Twilight Mirror (TP), both prisons for an ancient criminal tribe, are the same object.
 * One. For the reasons suggested above, all three mirrors are the same object.

Gaining the Triforce
One of Twilight Princess' most studied scenes depicts Ganondorf as a prisoner of the Sages, awaiting execution. The plan goes awry when when Ganondorf draws on the Triforce of Power and turns the tables on his captors. Both the Sages and Ganondorf himself express believing that the King of Evil was assisted by Divine Intervention, but fans often express belief that the Hylian deities (who have always seemed to favor Link over his enemies) would not assist Ganon. The problem is, if not granted the Triforce by the Gods, then Ganon must have claimed it before his capture and the sages (having beaten it before) would be better prepared and better able to deal with it. How did Ganon get the Triforce?


 * Divine Intervention. The game says so time and again... Link and Zelda received their pieces in the same way.
 * He took it from the sacred realm. The sages underestimated him!
 * He took it from the sacred realm. Being near the Twilight Mirror reinvigorated him to attack.
 * He took it from the sacred realm. Since he had taken it and it was shattered in OOT, it remained shattered in both timelines (Link had still pulled the Master Sword from the Pedastal of Time at the end of OOT when he returned it to the Temple of Time, thus the Realm had been opened still).  That being said, the three of them still had their pieces of the Triforce in the child timeline, but Link warned Zelda and the King of Ganondorf's treachery when he snuck back into the castle at the end of OOT.  Ganondorf was blind to any danger to his scheme (as the Sages in TP claimed and as Princess Zelda herself said in OOT when they spied on Ganondorf through the courtyard window saying that "He has no idea what we are planning"), and he was captured before he could launch his attack on Hyrule Castle due to surprise.  The King sentenced him to executioin for treason, and the Sages attempted to execute him, unaware that the Triforce had been shattered and that he contained a piece of it.  Meanwhile, in the adult timeline, the Triforce still had to exist in that timeline, and thus the Triforce of Courage shattered when the Hero of Time returned to his original age in OOT.  Zelda and her descendants still retained the Triforce of Wisdom while Ganondorf retained the Triforce of Power.  This lends credence to the possibility that the Link and Zelda in TP are the descendants of the original Link and Zelda in OOT spoken of by Ganondorf at the end of OOT (explaining why Link and Zelda already have the Triforces of Wisdom and Courage in TP and why Link is living in an area that looks very much like it once was the Kokiri Forest and in a house that looks uncannily familiar to the same treehouse that was occupied by the Hero of Time in OOT) while the Link in tWW is actually the Hero of Time reincarnated as Ganondorf himself said.