Barrel

Barrels are recurring objects in. Like Pots, they usually reveal pickups such as Rupees, Hearts, Arrows, and Bombs when broken. Depending on the game, Barrels may also have particular purposes or roles. In, , , and , an explosive variation of the barrel also exists.

Majora's Mask
Barrels make their debut in, where they appear exclusively within the Pirates' Fortress and the Great Bay Temple. Appearing as large kegs, barrels in Majora's Mask cannot be lifted, although they can be broken with Bombs, by rolling into them, or by punching them in Goron form. A Stray Fairy in the Great Bay Temple can be found inside a Barrel. Barrels, being made of wood, can also be latched onto with the Hookshot.

The Wind Waker
In, Barrels are smaller and can be lifted and thrown by Link. As in Majora's Mask, they can be broken to reveal pickups. Since they can be picked up, barrels can be placed on floor switches to activate them. Barrels are found all across the Great Sea, namely in the Forsaken Fortress, inside Dungeons, Submarines (which resemble floating Barrels themselves), and other indoor areas.

As Link travels to the Forsaken Fortress for the first time with Tetra's Pirate Crew, he is placed inside a Barrel and catapulted into to the fortress. The Barrel shatters against the wall of the fortress, causing Link to lose his Sword and drop down into the interior of the stronghold. Barrels become an essential element of Link's first visit to the Forsaken Fortress. As he lost his Sword getting into the fortress, he cannot attack Moblins roaming the fortress. He must instead use stealth, hiding under open-bottomed Barrels to avoid detection from Moblins. As long as Link stands still under a Barrel, Moblins will not detect him. Once the Moblin puts his back to Link, he can again start walking under the Barrel, although he must keep a distance between himself and the Moblin. Hiding under a Barrel also allows Link to evade detection from searchlights as well. Link can also use a Barrel to obtain a Piece of Heart found in a Treasure Chest inside a jail cell. He must use a Barrel in order to press a floor switch that opens the cell.



When Link meets Tingle at the Town Jail on Windfall Island, he must open the jail cell by activating a floor switch hidden behind some Barrels. Later on, when Tetra's Pirate Crew weighs anchor on Windfall Island to collect Bombs, Link will find that the hull of Tetra's Ship has been filled with Barrels containing Bombs.

Barrels also appear floating on the Great Sea, either on their side or upright. Barrels on their side can simply be sailed over, while upright Barrels must either be avoided or jumped over to avoid smashing into them and being thrown off the King of Red Lions. While sailing, Link will sometimes encounter two Barrels adorned with flags. Passing through these two Barrels triggers a mini-game where Barrels, placed on their side, begin to appear with Rupees above them. The value of the Rupee increases as Link collects them. The mini-game ends when Link misses a Barrel or approaches an island. A similar mini-game can be played at the Boating Course. This mini-game is a timed race in which Link must gather as many Rupees as possible found on Barrels that are either on their side or upright. Barrels also serve as targets for the Barrel Shoot mini-game on Spectacle Island.

The Minish Cap
In, Barrels only appear in areas where Link is in Minish-form, thus appearing to be large structures. There are only two Barrels in the entire game. The first is a house in the Minish Village that contains the Jabber Nut and Pico Blooms. The second serves as the central hub and main puzzle of the Deepwood Shrine. Walking up or down causes the Barrel to roll, revealing different exits that allow access to different areas of the dungeon. Some exits are blocked by spiderwebs that can be removed using the Gust Jar. To use the Barrel, Link must first burn the vines holding it in place by lighting a switch-activated torch.

Twilight Princess
Barrels in appear much as they do in, but can now simply be broken by a swing of the Sword. As always, barrels yield Hearts, Rupees, and other pickups.

In an optional sidequest, Link must carry a Barrel of Hot Springwater from Gor Liggs across the Eldin Province to the Goron outside the entrance of Hyrule Castle Town who runs a Hot Springwater shop in the town. While transporting the Barrel, Link must avoid enemies that will attempt to destroyed it. He must also avoid dropping the Barrel in cold water, which will turn the springwater cold. The Barrel of springwater will also go cold if Link takes too long to bring it to the Goron.

Phantom Hourglass
In, Barrels in the World of the Ocean King play a similar role to the ones of The Wind Waker. Regular Barrels can be found on various islands and can be broken for pickups by lifting and throwing them. Also, the bridge of the Vintage Ship, called the Barrel Shack, is shaped like a Barrel.

Spirit Tracks
In, Barrels can be found floating on the waters of the Ocean Realm. Like the rocks of the other realms, these barrels can be destroyed using the Cannon for Hearts and Rupees. Ocean Rabbits will hide behind these Barrels. Destroying them prompts the rabbit-catching mini-game.

Skyward Sword
Barrels appear in SS undefined as well. They can be destroyed with the Sword to reveal pickups.

Link's Crossbow Training
In, Barrels appear as background objects in several stages. They can be shot at for a minor amount of points. In both the Skull Shooting and Fruit Balloons stages, one particular Barrel holds an Orange Rupee worth 1000 points. Link must destroy the Barrel to reveal the Rupee. Barrels take three shots to destroy. Link receives one point for each hit and 5 for destroying it, for a total of 7 points per Barrel.

Explosive Barrel
First appearing as an usable item called the Powder Keg in Majora's Mask, Explosive Barrels are kegs filled with explosive powder which will detonate on contact or after a certain amount of time thanks to a fuse. Explosive Barrels can be distinguished by a skull and crossbones on their front, or by a white X painted on them. With the exception of The Minish Cap, Explosive Barrels appear in all the same games as regular barrels.

In Majora's Mask, Powder Kegs, which can only be used by Goron Link, are used to blow up large boulders. Powder Kegs are triggered by a fuse, but can be detonated from afar by piercing them with an Arrow.



After Majora's Mask, Explosive Barrels appear only as objects. In The Wind Waker, they appear floating on the Great Sea near the Forsaken Fortress. Similar to Bombs, Explosive Barrels flash red with increasing rapidness as its fuse burns out, giving an indication as to when the Barrel is about to explode. If in close proximity of an Explosive Barrel when in detonates, Link will be thrown off his boat, or simply damaged in. Direct collision with the Barrel will also cause it to explode. Explosive Barrels also appear as obstacles on the World of the Ocean King in Phantom Hourglass. They can be detonated from a distance using the Cannon.

In Twilight Princess, Explosive Barrels appear in an outside room of the Goron Mines. In this room, several Bulblin Archers will shoot at Link with fire-tipped Arrows, which may detonate the Barrels scattered across the room. Exploding Barrels also appear in certain stages in Link's Crossbow Training, such as in the Hidden Village Bulblin shootout in Stage 5. These Barrels can be used to Link's advantage, as detonating them will defeat any nearby Bulblin.

Exploding barrels in Spirit Tracks can be found inside a cave during the Three Trials in the Sand Realm. They must be use in order to damage the Rocktite. Exploding a Barrel with the Cannon while the Rocktite is nearby forces its eye open, leaving it vulnerable to direct attacks.