Divine Beast
The Divine Beasts are 4 titanic mechanical animals built by the Sheikah in order to aid the Appointed Knight and the Goddess in sealing away Calamity Ganon.
Vah Ruta was created in the image of an elephant, Vah Rudania was built in the image of a salamander, Vah Medoh was built in the image of an eagle, and Vah Naboris was built in the image of a camel.
History
10,000 years ago, the Sheikah built the elephant Vah Ruta, the salamander Vah Rudania, the eagle Vah Medoh, and the camel Vah Naboris to combat Calamity Ganon. Piloted by 4 Champions from the Zora, the Gorons, the Rito, and the Gerudo, they paved the way for victory against Ganon. Their duty fulfilled, the Divine Beasts were buried beneath the ground. Their existence passed into legend.
100 years ago, due to rising fears of the return of Calamity Ganon, the Royal Family of Hyrule ordered that the Divine Beasts be unearthed and readied for another battle. This time, Vah Ruta was piloted by the Zora princess Mipha, Vah Rudania was piloted by the Goron Daruk, Vah Medoh was piloted by the Rito Revali, and Vah Naboris was piloted by the Gerudo Urbosa.
Their mission failed, however, when Ganon, wary of the threat that the Divine Beasts posed to him, sent the four Blights to wrest control of each Beast. The Blights succeeded, the pilots of each Divine Beast were killed, and Ganon controlled the Beasts for nearly 100 years.
Ganon used them to bring more strife to Hyrule: Vah Ruta caused an unending rain on Zora's Domain that threatened to flood all of Hyrule, Vah Rudania caused Death Mountain to erupt endlessly, Vah Medoh prevented the Rito from soaring at their prefered altitude, and Vah Naboris caused an unending sandstorm in the Gerudo Desert.
When Link awoke from the Shrine of Resurrection, he set out to free the Divine Beasts from Ganon's control. One by one, he purged them, freeing the spirits of their piots in the process. At Link's confrontation with Calamity Ganon, the Divine Beasts unleashed their power to weaken Ganon, just as they did 10,100 years prior.
Description
Vah Ruta
Vah Ruta resembles an elephant, and its element is water. The trunk is opposable and can spew an infinite amount of water. It can even spray water into its interior, which causes a large waterwheel to turn, allowing access to the upper sections of the Divine Beast. Vah Ruta is also capable of using the Rune Cryonis to protect itself. Its Main Control Unit is located at the Divine Beast's rear. Vah Ruta is named after Ruto, the Sage of Water.[1]
Vah Rudania
Vah Rudania resembles a salamander. Its element is fire. It has four compartments near each of its legs that store Guardian Sentries. Vah Rudania can climb vertically like an actual salamander, and doing this rotates the interior of the Divine Beast by 90 degrees. The Main Control Unit is located on the top deck, in the center of the Beast's back. Its name, Rudania, is an anagram of Darunia, the Sage of Fire.
Vah Medoh
Vah Medoh resembles an eagle. It represents the element of wind. To protect itself, it uses a force shield maintained by four generators - one on each wing, one near its head, and one near its tail. The middle section, the wings, can tilt side to side. This is normally used to help Vah Medoh turn in the air, but it also re-orients the interior of the Divine Beast. The Main Control Unit is located on the top deck, between the Beasts wings. While the other Divine Beasts are named after Sages, the namesake of Vah Medoh is less clear. With its pilot being a Rito, it may be named after Medli, the Rito Sage of Earth.
Vah Naboris
Vah Naboris resembles a camel. Its element is thunder. The "humps" are actually powerful lightning generators, which it uses to protect itself. The interior of the Divine Beast is split into 3 cylinders, each of which can rotate a full 360 degrees. The center cylinder contains the Main Control unit on one side of a platform, and a Sheikah power source on the other side. Vah Naboris is named after Nabooru, the Sage of Spirit.[2]