Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule

, also known as, is a recurring character in.

Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule was once the king of Hyrule during the Era without a Hero. When the Goddesses unleashed the Great Flood, he chose to remain in Hyrule, which was to be sealed by the Goddesses at the bottom of the sea. He split the Triforce of Wisdom into two parts and instructed the princess of that era to keep one piece and flee to the mountaintops with her servants.

Hundreds of years later, Ganondorf managed to circumvent the Goddesses' seal and reach the surface of the Great Sea. In response, the Goddesses awakened the king from his seal, who assumed the form of a boat, the King of Red Lions. In this new form, Daphnes began searching the Great Sea, looking for a hero to defeat Ganon and the descendant of the royal family. After Link is captured by the Helmaroc King and thrown out to sea, the King of Red Lions rescues him and aids the hero in his quest. Daphnes can speak the ancient Hylian tongue, and often does so on Link's behalf, as the hero cannot understand the language.

After Link fails to defeat Ganondorf in the Forsaken Fortress with the newly-obtained Master Sword, he, along with the King of Red Lions and Tetra, retreat to the underwater vestige of Hyrule. There, the King of Red Lions reveals his identity as the former king of Hyrule and that he magically operates the boat to guide Link. Daphnes also reveals to Tetra that she is the heir to the kingdom of Hyrule by combining the two fragments of the Triforce of Wisdom, the one in his possession with the one in Tetra's necklace, restoring the Triforce of Wisdom which now dwelt within Princess Zelda. He instructs Zelda to remain in Hyrule Castle to avoid detection from Ganondorf while he resumes his form as the King of Red Lions and proceeds to aid Link in his quest for restoring the evil-repelling power of the Master Sword.

Daphnes later appears in person after Ganondorf brings together all three pieces of the Triforce, intervening by using its power to flood what remains of his kingdom, giving Link and Zelda a future. In response to this, Ganondorf attacks Link and Zelda, intending to kill them.

Once Link and Zelda defeat Ganondorf, Daphnes laments to them his regret as he lived bound to the memory of Hyrule, comparing himself to Ganondorf in that regard. He goes on to encourage them to live for the future and not repeat his mistakes, ignoring Zelda's request to come with them and find a land to be the next Hyrule. As the kingdom floods, Link and Zelda are enclosed within bubbles and begin to ascend to the surface; the former attempts to reach out toward the king, who begins to raise his own hand to meet Link's. The king's hand ultimately falls to his side as he presumably drowns, content with the knowledge that Link and Tetra will help create a brighter future for everyone.

The King of Red Lions appears once again when Link is departing from Outset Island with Tetra and her crew; however it is now completely lifeless, as the king himself has died. Daphnes's dream eventually comes true when Link and Tetra discover New Hyrule, the main setting of one of the game's sequels,.

In, Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule appears as a Sticker.


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In, King Daphnes appears as a playable Warrior. He uses the Sail as his primary Weapon, which is associated with the Water HWDE:, and uses it to summon waves to crash into enemies. The Sail also lets King Daphnes momentarily transform into the King of Red Lions. King Daphnes can be unlocked in using a code included in  or by obtaining the Legends Character Pack DLC. In and, he is unlocked after completing the "Reclaiming the Darkness" Scenario in Legend Mode. In, King Daphnes can also be unlocked as a Reward for Battle Victory on the Adventure Battle at square C13 of the Great Sea Map in Adventure Mode.

When defeated in battle as an opponent, King Daphnes may occasionally drop his Robe as a silver Material, or rarely his Crown as a gold Material.

Trivia

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Nomenclature
The King's first name, "Daphnes", is likely a male form of "Daphne" or "Daphné", a Greek name meaning "laurel" or "bay tree".

The name "Nohansen" follows the patronymic naming convention found in Scandinavian (primarily in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland), where the son's surname would take his father's with the addition of "-son". This would mean that his name can be interpreted as "Daphnes, Son of Nohan," implying the name of a king who ruled before him or even one of his ancestors. In the German version of the game, Daphnes' second name is "Johanson," meaning "Son of John" when translated from German.