Stalfos

The Stalfos are skeletal knights that have challenged Link since the original The Legend of Zelda.

In The Legend of Zelda
Stalfos appear only in the first and seventh dungeons and are skeletons carrying swords in both hands. Though they are usually found in large groups, they are easy to defeat and do little damage.

In The Adventure of Link
Stalfos can be found in palaces throughout the game in three varieties: normal, red, and blue. Normal Stalfos are white skeletons with swords and shields and are considerably weaker than red and blue Stalfos, which have more skills and can jump and perform thrusting attacks.

In A Link to the Past


Stalfos returned in A Link to the Past and behaved much the same as before, except that they could jump around to avoid Link and would occasionally throw bones. In some places, their skulls would detach from their bodies and spin around and make a rush at Link.  A larger form known as the Skeleton Warrior appeared in the Ice Palace dungeon. These Stalfos were much larger and tougher, and carried large swords. Link would have to attack them repeatedly, and when they crumbled to bones, he would have to destroy the skull with bombs before the whole Stalfos regenerated. 

In Link's Awakening DX
The Master Stalfos is a large Stalfos that appears in the Catfish's Maw, where he has stolen the Hookshot that was in a treasure chest. Link must defeat him four times by slashing at him with a sword to break him apart, and then laying a bomb in the resulting pile of bones, much like in the other games.

In Ocarina of Time
Stalfos carry around a sword and shield and are a common enemy found in several temples after Link becomes an adult. They can perform sword slashes and overhead jumps and are able to block Link's attacks effectively. They will occasionally come in pairs. If this is the case, it may be that if Link defeats the first one but takes too long to defeat the second one, the first one will be revived, forcing Link to fight both again. Whether or not the remains of the first Stalfos disappear will tell Link if he needs to destroy the second one quickly.

They are encountered in the Forest Temple which they guard one of the keys to keep advancing, and they serve as a mini-boss within Ganon's Tower and are found in the room with the boss key. In addition, Link will have to fight off two of them while attempting to escape from the castle with Princess Zelda. 

In Majora's Mask


Stalfos were rare in Majora's Mask, and the ones which fought like those in Ocarina of Time were Igos du Ikana and his guards. When Link travels to Ikana, he eventually travels into the depths of Ikana Castle, where the skeletal ghost of the King of Ikana sits. He first sends his two guards after Link, who fight like normal Stalfoses except that they will continually regenerate after being struck to the ground. To truly vanquish them, Link must shine light from the Mirror Shield onto their fallen forms. An interesting feature of the guards is that they will dance after link when he played the ocarina through the Bremen Mask. After the two guards are defeated, the king himself attacks. The king is larger and more powerful than the other Stalfos, and he can breathe poison breath onto Link and even detach his head (in which case it will fly around the room and try to bite Link) and make his body invulnerable to attack. Defeating him will free his soul and he teaches Link the Elegy of Emptiness.

Stalchildren appear in Ikana Graveyard at night. They are the fallen soldiers of the Kingdom of Ikana, and they still guard the gravestones. Their captain, Skull Keeta, can be awakened, in which case he will run up the trail of the graveyard to test Link. When Link attacks him, he starts to attack Link himself with either his claws or by jumping high in the air and attempting to land on Link. When Link defeats him, Skull Keeta asks him to bring peaceful rest to his undead soldiers, and Link obtains the Captain's Hat, which make the Stalchildren (and the king, though only for a brief moment; when he realizes Link is not Skull Keeta he says: "I was nearly fooled by what you have done.) harmless and will speak to you when prompted to.

They also appear in the second Golden Skulltula house, in the Great Bay. They are harmless here, and do not attack Link, and give useful information on puzzles if spoken to with the Captain's Hat

In The Wind Waker
Stalfos are large skeletons carrying spiked clubs as opposed to the usual sword and move very slowly. They come out of coffins and the ground and can be defeated with a combination of bombs, the boomerang, and Link's sword. If Link breaks the Stalfos apart but does not destroy it in time, it can reassemble itself. Using the Skull Hammer after breaking it apart will kill it in one hit. <BR><BR>

In The Minish Cap
Stalfos can be found in the Fortress of Winds, Dark Hyrule Castle, and the like. They often disguise themselves as normal skulls, but when Link gets close, they pop out and attack him.

In Twilight Princess
In Twilight Princess, Stalfos take a more surreal appearance. Stalfos are only found in the Arbiter's Grounds, the Cave of Ordeals, and a secret grotto. They wield short swords and either wooden or metal shields. The ones with wooden shields can be disarmed while the ones with metal shields cannot. After they are broken to pieces using Link's regular attacks or hidden skills, they can reassemble themselves; to prevent this, plant a bomb on their remains. The Ball and Chain also works effectively on them once Link acquires it as an item.