Darknut

Darknuts are recurring enemies in The Legend of Zelda series, that debuted in the original The Legend of Zelda.

Characteristics
The Darknut resembles a large knight, equipped with heavy armor and a large sword, and a wide shield. Darknuts are notoriously difficult to defeat, and are considered by many fans as the hardest non-boss/non-mini-boss enemy in games in which they appear. These foes share trite similarities to the Iron Knuckle, though there are a few discernible differences, one being the Gothic appearance of Darknut's armor as opposed to the somewhat Eastern appearance of the Iron Knuckle's armor. Apart from that, the two have never appeared in a game together. Additionally, since Ocarina of Time, Iron Knuckles have wielded two-handed axes while Darknuts prefer swords or maces. Early Armos Knights also mimic the behavior of the Darknut.

These enemies, though sometimes denoted in strength by differences in coloration, are all masters of swordfighting, seen most vividly during battles fought with them in The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, where the differences in size between Link and the Darknut in three dimensions further emphasizes this accurate behavior. Darknuts are known to charge at Link, as in Link's Awakening, parry and block his sword strikes, as in The Wind Waker, and even inhibit a highly mobile second form, most notable in Twilight Princess.

Coloration and Weaponry Differences from The Legend of Zelda to Four Swords
In The Legend of Zelda and the Oracle titles, these enemies come in red and blue types, with blue being the stronger of the two. They move slowly and were only a danger when Link came in direct contact with them. Only attacking them from behind or the side will hurt them, and touching them causes Link a lot of damage. However, in The Legend of Zelda, if Link has the Magical Sword, he can defeat a red Darknut with one strike with the sword, regardless of where he strikes it. Also, there is one exception in Oracle of Seasons: a Gold Darknut exists and is twice as powerful as any other Darknut in the game (see: Golden Monsters).

In Link's Awakening and the Oracle titles, the Darknuts vary from carrying a shield and sword to a bow. The Darknuts with a bow are generally less aggressive than Darknuts that carry a sword and shield, as they don't charge Link like the sword-carriers do. Both types are more common in Labrynna than they are in Holodrum. However, only in the Oracle titles can Link use the Magnetic Glove to repel and attract Darknuts, the blue edge having an Northern charge and the red having a Southern charge.

The Redesign of The Wind Waker and The Minish Cap
In its first appearance in a 3D Zelda, the Darknut increases lethality tenfold in The Wind Waker. Wielding a thick-bladed flamberge, and wearing strong armor, they are one of the the most difficult non-boss enemies in the game. The Darknut is also resourceful. If it drops its sword, it can pick up fallen weapons, such as a Moblin's pole arm, or engage in hand-to-hand combat. They also tend to perform the Great Spin attack if they see Link charging said attack. Their martial arts skills are formidable; unarmed Darknuts attack with either a flurry of quick karate chops or a spinning jump kick that can send Link reeling. Underneath their helmet, they resemble a humanoid jackal. Finding a Darknut normally means the presence of the enemy scenario.

Its only weak point is the back, where a seam in its armor leaves it vulnerable. The best way to deal with these powerful enemies is the Parry Attack, which avoids the sword and allows easy removal of the helmet or armor. Depending on where the hit landed, either its body armor or helmet falls off, leaving either their head vulnerable to a boomerang, or their body open to sword hits. Darknut armor can also be destroyed by repeated sword strikes, but this strategy is hazardous.

Darknuts in this game have varying armor, which may denote ranks. The armor colors are silver, gold, black and red. Most Darknuts use round bucklers, although there are some that don't. Highly ranked black and red armored Darknuts sometimes wear differently shaped helmets. It will also be revealed that they have a beard and jackal-like features if Link removes the helmet with a parry technique. Darknuts are also the only enemy to carry Knight's Crests with them. Once the main body armor is off, Link can use the Grappling Hook to steal them. Collecting ten crests and taking them to Orca on Outset Island will earn Link the right to learn the Hurricane Spin.

The first Darknut that is fought serves as a mini-boss in Tower of the Gods, and it guards the Hero's Bow. It should also be mentioned that shooting Light Arrows at a Darknut, even in full armor, will instantly kill the unfortunate Darknut, suggesting that Darknuts are followers, or perhaps even creations of, Ganondorf, seeing as regular, fire, and ice arrows will simply bounce off a Darknut's armor.

Mighty Darknut and the Black Knight
Mighty Darknuts are captains, and are essentially stronger, more heavily armored versions of lower-ranking Darknuts. They have a different appearance than the original, with shining red or black armor and a long red cape with a black tunic underneath. In The Minish Cap, Mighty Darknuts are called Red Dark Nuts and have an extra electrical attack that is capable of sending Link reeling.

It should be noted that although the Nintendo Gallery mentions that only "some" wear capes, only caped Darknuts are considered to be acceptable for a Mighty Darknut figurine. Other Darknut captains can be found in places such as the Savage Labyrinth, the Wind Temple and Ice Ring Isle, but they are not considered a Mighty Darknut unless they are wearing a cape. Caped Darknuts are only found in Hyrule Castle (after Princess Zelda has been captured) and Ganon's Tower.

The Black Knight appears exclusively in the Minish Cap, and only in Dark Hyrule Castle. This foe's endurance and strength exceeds all others, and it recovers from attacks and blocks much quicker than regular Darknuts, but it still features the same moves and attack patterns as the other Darknuts in The Minish Cap. The Black Knight also uses a powerful electricity attack. Link encounters the Black Knight twice, once as the sub-boss of Dark Hyrule Castle, and again, along with two Royal Darknuts, to attempt to stop Link from interrupting Vaati's ritual.

Darknuts in Twilight Princess
In Twilight Princess, Darknuts remain one of the most powerful enemies in the game, becoming even harder than their The Wind Waker counterparts. They still retain some of their characteristics like removable armor and high defense, but now have increased speed and more sword techniques. Its armor has become less bulky and more streamlined like a medieval knight. They still use a large sword and shield. Midna does not know how to beat them, but suggests to Link he try using all of his sword techniques.

Armored Phase
Darknuts come in two phases, the first being armored. The best strategy is for Link to draw it towards him, backflip when they plunge their sword down, and then land a Jump Strike. The Back Slice, Helm Splitter and Mortal Draw are also effective. Bomb Arrows can be used to remove a Darknut's armor from afar (or Bomblings provided Link angles them so as to not hit the Darknut head-on), but the Darknut's shield will soak up any arrows aimed at it directly. Link must instead target the ground immediately next to or behind the Darknut. When Link lands a hit on it, some of its armor strips off, though not as quickly or in as large amounts as in ''The Wind Waker.

Chain Mail Phase
Eventually, when all its armor is off, revealing its under-armor chain mail, it proceeds to jump back and throw its weapon at Link. It then pulls out a smaller sword (a longsword), granting it different attacks, and becomes much more agile, having shed its bulky armor. An unarmored Darknut tends to attack with two cuts in succession, which give Link a split-second opening to counterattack; a thrust; or a kick which can briefly throw Link off balance. The Darknut also becomes far more adept at blocking Link's attacks and can dodge explosions and arrows effortlessly. Jump attacks, jump strikes, and back slices can send a Darknut reeling just long enough to attack.

One Darknut with a different helmet, sword and shield is the mini-boss in the Temple of Time, while others commonly guard items such as keys or new areas. Red and blue variants of the Darknut are also found in the Cave of Ordeals. However, the differently colored equipment does not denote any change in the Darknut's physical attributes.

Link's Crossbow Training
In the spin-off title Link's Crossbow Training, a Darknut appears as the boss of stage 8-3. His appearance is identical to the Temple of Time Darknut in Twilight Princess, but he attacks by unleashing a swarm of bats in addition to sword swings. His shield is invulnerable, so Link must wait until the Darknut attacks to shoot his armor off with the crossbow. The armor appears to be enchanted, as each piece turns into a larger bat that attacks Link after it has been shot off the Darknut. When all of the Darknut's armor is gone, he proceeds to attack with his short-sword, similar to his attacks in Twilight Princess, but he also gains a teleportation move, in which he turns into a swarm of bats in order to move closer to Link and attack. When Link lands several consecutive hits on him, he begins to use this move, only with one or more white bats that are worth 100-300 points. By shooting these white bats, Link can whittle down Darknut's health and defeat him.

Animated series
In the animated series, a Darknut appears in only one episode: "That Sinking Feeling". In this episode, Link and Princess Zelda encounter a Darknut as they are journeying through the Underworld. The Darknut blocks most of Link's sword attacks, and when the Darknut swings his sword at the young hero, Link manages to evade it but falls in the process. Just as the Darknut is about to strike at him, Link kicks the foe's ankle and the Darknut falls, allowing the young hero to deliver the final blow. The Darknut leaves behind a Magic Bracelet, which proves to be useful later on in the battle against Ganon.

The Legend of Zelda comic

 * See also: Darknut Prime

In the Legend of Zelda comic, Darknuts mostly resemble their artwork depiction of the original The Legend of Zelda. Like in the games, there are red and blue Darknuts, with the blue Darknut being known as Darknut Prime. Like most of Ganon's minions, these foes are also capable of speech. Although a robed Darknut makes an appearance in He Also Serves, normal Darknuts are first introduced in The Power, where Link and Zelda encounter them upon entering the Underworld. The young hero manages to bury them under a pile of rubble thanks to a bomb's explosion, but the mighty foes recover and start chasing Link again. Eventually, Link is able to easily defeat them with the use of the Triforce of Power.

In Choices, Zelda encounters a Darknut after fleeing from Ganon's grasps, but her life force is nearly gone from having used all her magic to escape and is unable to put up a fight against the  knight. However, the princess refuses to give up, and although she is weak, she manages to win against the Darknut by sending him down a bottomless pit.

The Crystal Trap
In The Crystal Trap, a Darknut will greet Princess Zelda's arrival to the Dark Tower by promptly attacking her upon sight. By shooting an arrow at the Darknut's back, Zelda defeats the foe and climbs up the tower to find that the Darknut was actually protecting the Handprint, one of the three items necessary to free Link from the Crystal.

The Shadow Prince
In The Shadow Prince, one or more Darknuts ambush Princess Zelda, Charles of Moria and Link while they're in the woods, depending on which path Link takes. If the young hero chose to go back to North Castle to get help for the fainting Zelda, he will return only to hear the princess excitedly flatter Charles, saying that, while Link was gone, Charles defeated a Darknut and caused the other two to run away in fear. However, if the young hero agrees to let the Morian knight take Zelda back to North Castle, a Darknut will suddenly appear and charge at Charles, who confidently faces his enemy with having two weapons to choose from: his axe or sword. Although Link tries to help Charles in the fight, he will be unable to draw his sword since it seems to be stuck to the sheath, forcing Zelda to fight with her dagger instead. The Darknut, once defeated by Charles's axe and Zelda's dagger, will leave behind a Red Darknut Arrow.

Later on in the book, after the King of Hyrule calls a Royal Council informing about the latest sightings of monsters appearing in strange places, he mentions that an entire mob of Darknuts were spotted in the Jungle of Favors the night before. Since Darknuts don't usually appear outside of a cave or a castle, the king considers the spotting of the Darknuts in a jungle to be alarming and decides that the Triforce of Wisdom should be immediately delivered to the Fifth Castle of Ancient Hyrule to keep it safe from Ganon.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Darknuts appear as a trophy and sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Theory
Although the Darknuts are very few in Twilight Princess, some believe that the one final Darknut fought before entering the battle with Ganondorf is indeed a Mighty Darknut. Some reasons for this thought is because it has different patterns than the other two fought earlier. Also, his armor is gilded unlike all other Darknuts in the game.

Another Darknut in Twilight Princess believed to be a Mighty Darknut is the first one fought in the Temple of Time. Unlike the other Darknuts in Twilight Princess, this one has a different style helmet (which bears a resemblance to the helmet of the Mighty Darknuts in The Wind Waker), a round shield, a double-edged sword and unique gold and red markings. However, these differences could also be temporal, as the Temple of Time itself (the chamber before the dungeon) is shown obviously to be the Sacred Grove many years in the past, possibly the same era as the Hero of Time.

Trivia

 * These enemies are called "soldiers" in the English version of Link's Awakening, but "Darknuts" in the Japanese version.
 * Shooting Fire or Ice Arrows at a Darknut's back and/or cape in The Wind Waker is amongst the easiest, and most life-preserving ways to eliminate a Darknut.
 * Darknuts in The Minish Cap generally carry their shields with their left hands, but their shield-hand changes when they face east. This may be so players can constantly attack Darknuts from the top instead of having to alternate between top and bottom every time they turn.
 * The Darknut in the Temple of Time in Twilight Princess has a sword that resembles Ganondorf's sword from the SpaceWorld 2000 tech demo and Super Smash Bros. Melee. Also, when its armor is completely removed, the mini-boss theme is extended.
 * Some of the tougher Hylian Soldiers encountered in A Link to the Past retain shields and swords, but not the same level of difficulty.
 * Linebeck bears a striking resemblance to Darknuts in other games after Bellum takes control of him in the final boss battle in Phantom Hourglass.
 * The Japanese name for a Darknut is "Tart Knuckle", implying some relation between Darknuts and Iron Knuckles.