Big Dark Stalfos

Big Dark Stalfos are bosses and enemies in. They are exceptionally large Stalfos armed with large green swords.

History
Big Dark Stalfos were originally the four Knights of Hyrule, who were defeated by Ganon and transformed into monsters in the Dark World. The Links must face and defeat all four of these monsters to release the Knights from their curse and obtain their Royal Jewels, which are required to enter the Tower of Winds.

Characteristics
Big Dark Stalfos do not exist as a physical form in the Light World, appearing only as a shadow holding a floating sword. While they cannot be harmed in the form of shadows, they can still harm the Links with their lunging strikes. The only way for the four Links to defeat a Big Dark Stalfos is to enter the Dark World using a Moon Gate, wherein the monster will be vulnerable.

The enemies fight much like Chief Soldiers, attacking aggressively with lunging strikes, but are are considerably larger. They often appear alongside regular Stalfos, and each one the Links fight will come with more companions to help him defeat the heroes. Striking the monster from behind or the side, particularly with Spin Attacks, is the most effective way to defeat these bosses.

A much smaller version of these enemies also appear. While otherwise unnamed in the English version of the game, they are known as in the Japanese version, meaning "Stalknuckle". Like the larger variety, they appear as invincible dark shadows wielding swords. Only by entering the Dark World can their true form be seen and fought. The smaller variety appear in the Temple of Darkness. They also later appear in a slightly larger form during the battle with Ganon, when one of the Links is sent to the Dark World by his Trident.

Nomenclature
The Japanese name of the Big Dark Stalfos, both the large and smaller varieties, is a portmanteau of Stalfos and Iron Knuckle.