Ganon

Ganon, also known as Ganondorf or (misspelled, due to a bad translation) Gannon, is the main villain of the Legend of Zelda series. Chronologically, Ganon's first appearance was in Ocarina of Time, and he has appeared to contest Link in many games since, including the non-Zelda videogame Super Smash Bros. Melee. Ganon also starred in the Legend of Zelda cartoon series.

Backstory

Ganon's backstory has been established in the dialogue of both Ocarina of Time and Four Swords Adventures.

Originally known as "Ganondorf", Ganon is one of the legendary Gerudo males who are born only once every hundred years. By birthright, he rose to lead the Gerudo and assumed the title "King of Thieves". Many details of Ganon's life are unknown - including his age and his lineage - though it is known that the sorceress sisters Koume and Kotake acted as his surrogate mother (and it is widely believed that he came to know about the Triforce through these witches).

He left the desert in order to seek out the keys to the Door of Time. When the guardians of three of the keys refused his requests, Ganon cursed them - infesting the Great Deku Tree with a parasite, resurrecting the dodongos in Dodongo Cavern and blocking the Gorons from their foodsource, and by plaguing the Zora's deity and guardian, Jabu-Jabu. In order to find the final of the keys, the Ocarina of Time, he ingratiated himself with the royal family of Hyrule.

Appearances (in pseudo-chronological order)

Ganon has two forms: his Gerudo form and the form of a goat-hoofed, boar-headed monster. He is named Ganondorf in his Gerudo form and Ganon in his "pig" form. Depending on the game, he may appear in either or both of these forms.

Ocarina of Time

By the time of the events of Ocarina of Time, Ganon was striving to conquer the lands of Hyrule and obtain the Triforce. In order to access the Triforce within the Sacred Realm, Ganon sought the three Spiritual Stones from the Kokiri, Gorons, and Zoras. He cursed the Great Deku Tree and Lord Jabu Jabu, and after unsuccessfully approaching Darunia for the Goron's Ruby, blocked off Dodongo's Cavern. At the same time, he presented allegiance to the King of Hyrule.

Princess Zelda intuitively sensed the evil within Ganon and, along with Link, strove to prevent Ganon from obtaining the Triforce. However, by the time Link had gathered the three Spiritual Stones, Zelda had fled with her Sheikah guardian Impa. When Link opened the Sacred Realm, Ganon followed him and obtained the Triforce of Power.

Link was forced to age seven years in the Sacred Realm before he was deemed capable of wielding the Master Sword and defeating Ganon, and during this time Ganon conquered Hyrule, creating a world of darkness and chaos. Link sought to awake the power of the Sages in order to face Ganon.

Ganon possessed the Triforce of Power, but the Triforce of Wisdom and the Triforce of Courage lay within Princess Zelda and Link respectively. Ganon captured the Princess and used her as bait to lure Link to his castle, resulting in a climatic face-off in which Ganondorf shed his original identity - naming himself "Ganon" and transforming into a giant pig-like monster. Using the Master Sword and the power of the Sages, Link was able to seal Ganon within the Sacred Realm and restore peace to Hyrule.

Twilight Princess

In essence, Ganondorf is the one behind all the events of Twilight Princess. After he was sealed away in the Dark World, the Seven Sages released him to await execution in Arbiter's Grounds, a prison in Gerudo Mesa.

The King of Evil was ritualy chained to a giant rock and impaled by a blade of light, as an act of execution. The Triforce of Power gave him power to survive this execution and break free from the chains. He slew a sage, and while charging at the others, the Twilight Mirror was activated, sending him into the Twilight Realm and reducing him to energy matter.

Posing as a god, Ganondorf gives Zant, the Twilight King, his powers in exchange for freedom from the Twilight Realm. He is the final boss, where you fight him in multiple forms. You battle him, along with a possessed Zelda, in Hyrule Castle. After a close-range duel between Link and Ganon, he is impaled with the Master Sword. He survives the assault, but is killed when Zant dies and destroys Ganondorf's link to the light world, also destroying his life force.

The Wind Waker

Ganondorf makes his appearance fairly early in this game. A giant bird, the Helmaroc King is kidnapping young girls with pointy ears. This leads Link to Ganon's fortress, where Ganondorf has Link thrown out the window. Later, it is revealed that his powers were sealed by the Master Sword, and that by pulling it, Link unleashed those powers.

Link and Ganondorf square off atop Ganon's Tower (towering over nearby Hyrule Castle), where Link deals the final blow by stabbing the Master Sword into Ganondorf's head, turning him into stone. He is then left atop the tower under the Great Sea, the Master Sword still implanted into his head.

The Legend of Zelda

A long, long time ago the World was in an age of Chaos. In the middle of this chaos, in a little kingdom in the land of Hyrule, a legend was being banded down from generation to generation, the legend of the 'Triforce'; golden triangles possessing mystical powers.

One day, an evil army attacked this peaceful little kingdom and stole the Triforce of Power. This army was led by Gannon, the powerful Prince of Darkness who sought to plunge the World into fear and darkness under his rule. Fearing his wicked rule, Zelda, the princess of this kingdom, split up the Triforce of Wisdom into eight fragments and hid them throughout the realm to save the last remaining Triforce from the cluthes of the evil Ganon. At the same time, she commanded her most trustworthy nursemaid, Impa, to secretly escape into the land and go find a man with enough courage to destroy the evil Gannon. Upon heraing this, Ganon grew angry, imprisoned the princess, and sent out a party in search of Impa. - taken from ZeldaUniverse

So begins the first tale of Ganon's quest to conquer Hyrule. In this tale, he possesses the Triforce of Power, and seeks the Triforce of Wisdom as well. Imprisoning Zelda, he has made his stronghold in Death Mountain, and awaits Link to come and bring him the Triforce of Courage.

The Adventure of Link

While never truly appearing as himself, Ganon does eventually appear. It has been prophecised that, were Link to be sacrificed, and his blood sprinkled upon the ashes of Ganon, Ganon would return to life. In the end, Ganon is revived, but in the form of Link's shadow. Essentially Dark Link, Ganon then proceeds to attempt to destroy in turn the one who destroyed him.

A Link to the Past

Possessing the entire Triforce, Ganon has become the undisputed ruler of the Dark World. Seeking to return to his old plans, Ganon seeped back into Hyrule through the cracks in the seal. Taking on physical form, he took on the name of Agahnim, and slowly ingraciated himself into a position of power within the court of Hyrule, before staging a coup de'etat against the Royal Family. Eventually, after having picked off his minions and alter-ego, Link comes face to face with the King of Evil, who now wields the united might of the whole Triforce. In the end, Ganon is defeated by the power of the Silver Arrows, and loses the completed Triforce to Link.

Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons

Ganon, in pig form, makes an appearance only in the linked game. Complete Ages/Seasons, then transfer your data to the other, and he becomes the true Final Boss.

The witches Kotake and Koume (known as Twinrova) create a plot to resurrect Ganon and bring him back from his eternal imprisonment so he may once again rule Hyrule, and eventually the world. The process for resurrecting Ganon required that they light three flames, the flame of destruction, the flame of sorrow, and the flame of despair.

In Oracle of seasons, the main 'chief' who seems to be behind the cause of fluctuating seasons in Holodrum is a new face joining the ranks of evil. He is known as Onox, general of darkness. When Link defeats him, the land returns to normal and the seasons come in their appropriate order and time. However, the destruction that Onox had caused was enough to light the flame of destruction.

In Oracle of ages, another new villian known as Veran, sorceress of shadows, brings chaos to the land of Labrynna by causing mischief in the past, thus hurting or affecting people of the present time. Link also manages to defeat Veran, but not before the emotional trauma her actions bring to Labrynna light the flame of sorrow.

When only the flame of despair remains unlit, the Twinrova sisters capture princess Zelda, causing the people to lose hope, and lighting the final flame.

And it is here where Ganon finally comes in. Despite all the flames being lit, Link shortens the time the Twinrova sisters had to completely sacrifice Zelda for the summoning ritual. They are forced to use themselves as a sacrifice to awaken Ganon. Fortunately, sacrificing themselves instead of Zelda only brought forth a mindless, raging Ganon, who Link is able to defeat and return proper peace and order to the land.

Four Swords Adventures

Ganon appears as the final boss in Four Swords Adventures. He fights in the same way as he did in A Link to the Past, despite the fact that he is much larger, as is his trident. The four Link's unite their strength to do away with the evil king just as they did with Vaati, only this time they also required the assistance of princess Zelda to deal the final blow to Ganon.

Phillips CD-i Games

These suck and never happened.

Super Smash Bros

Ganondorf is an unlockable character in Super Smash Bros. Melee. It is not known whether he will return in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Strategy

Ocarina of Time

The battle against Ganondorf is not that difficult though he might cause some damage if you're not careful. Navi won't assist you this time so there won't be any Z/L-Targeting on Ganondorf. Just as the battle begins Ganondorf will start his attack by hovering over the middle of the room, and hitting the floor with a shockwave, causing not only some blocks to fall (creating a "pit" around the main pillar that serves as the battlefield center) but hurting you as well if you're not quick enough to move further away. If you get hit by it and/or fall by accident into the pit, don't panic. You'll end up again in a floor previous to the stairs that led you to Ganon's room which has some jars that may contain magic jars, arrows or hearts. Supply yourself if the need arises and use the "steps" on the central pillar to get back to the fight (it's best to use the Longshot on the top "steps" to get back quicker, since Ganondorf will do another shockwave once you're on the top that will surely throw you back down again if you're not fast enough to avoid it).

Ganondorf will attack you with his shockwave if you get near and two magic attacks if you're far. Also he will protect himself with his cape if you try to hit him with any type of arrow. The way to defeat Ganondorf, however, is pretty much the same as it was with Phantom Ganon. Once after the first attack he'll assault you by throwing a magic ball that you just have to be quick to reflect at him until it hits him then shoot him with a light arrow to leave him numb on the floor, then get near him and use the Master Sword on him (this is the only time were you get the chance to Z/L-Target him). After some blows, Ganondorf will execute his second magic attack, which consists in gathering magic into one big sphere and then releasing it into several magic balls that you can only counter by doing a spin attack (fully charged). Otherwise, you can use a Light Arrow to numb him and leave him open for another attack. Repeat it until you defeat him (a way to know how near are you from defeating him is to watch his cape, the more it looks torn the less life he has).

After you beat him, the castle will start to crumble and Link and Zelda will escape. When the castle sinks into the ground, only a pile of rocks are left. With the last of his strength he bursts through the rocks and transforms into the giant Ganon: A pig like monster with two MASSIVE Swords. He may look scarier, but he's actually quite a lot easier to beat, and there are two ways to do it. The first way is to run up to it and roll through it's legs(make sure you put anything in your hand away, otherwise it won't let you roll). This will give you a couple of seconds to hit his tail with the Megaton Hammer(if you haven't got the Biggorons Sword) and then leg it because he'll hit you as he turns round. The second way is to use a Light Arrow on it's head and going round him to his tail. This way is slower but gives you more time to hit him.

The Wind Waker

Just when the battle begins Zelda will talk to you, telling you she will take care of the Arrows of Light to cover you. You will see Ganondorf approaching you with his 2 blades. Target him, dodge or shield his blows and wait for the Parry attack (you can't Parry if you're using the shield) to numb him so you can slash him. You can also get away from him at a safe distance, making him follow you until Zelda shoots an arrow to numb him and freely strike him with the Master Sword. After some blows from the Light Arrows, a cinema display will be shown where Ganondorf will knock down Zelda, remaining unconscious for some time. Meanwhile attack Ganondorf with the Parry strategy. The more life you take away from Ganon, the more difficult will be to Parry, until it will be just impossible to. When that happens, Zelda will wake up. Get near her, use the shield and get away from Ganondorf while targeting him and being aligned with Zelda until she fires an arrow. Ganondorf will dodge it but if you were using the shield, the magic will be reflected unto Ganondorf. Otherwise, Zelda will hit you, taking away life from you. If you're not aligned with Zelda, the arrow will be lost. Once Ganondorf's hit, quickly get near him until you can Parry him for the last blow.Thus, the game will come to an end.

Twilight Princess

Because Ganondorf takes over Zelda's body, you must fight her first. He attacks similarly to Phantom Ganon in Ocarina of Time. His first attack will likely be the electricity ball. When he throws it at you with his sword, try to hit it back at him. If he does reflect it, you'll go into a volley. As soon Zelda gets hit by the energy ball, he'll try a new attack, but if any Ocarina of Time fans remember Phantom Ganon it will not be new. He'll try to fly into you with his sword, though, this time it's much more precise. If you survive the previous attack, you'll find an attack that's completely new. He'll make a glowing triangle under your feet. You will have to run out of that glowing triangle quickly! Now repeat this process a few times, and Ganondorf will turn into Ganon. This fight is not as difficult as the last, but difficult none the less. Ganon has only one attack; he will ram into you and stomp on you. It does a lot of damage, but he is easy to get away from. As soon as Ganon teleports, wait for him to reappear, and hit him with an arrow. He'll slide on the floor, and you'll get a chance to attack. His weak spot is that glowing thing on his chest. Now, when you try to hit him with an arrow he'll disappear. So, you'll have to turn into wolf Link, and stop him with Midna's huge hand. When he's tipped over, attack as quickly as you can. Repeat this three times, and victory is yours.

After the cut-scene, you'll see that you're fighting Ganondorf on horseback. When Ganondorf is hit by a Light Arrow, go up and attack him, but don't stay up there for too long, or else he'll slash you off of your horse! Also be sure to avoid the henchmen he summons. Repeat this four times.

This is the most difficult part of the battle. Now you're face to face with the King of Evil. Although his attacks aren't as strong as Ganon's, it's much harder to avoid them. His most-used attack is stabbing you. Once again, this can not be avoided with your sword. The best way to avoid this attack is to do a backflip. One of his other attacks is a slash. This attack has the same amount of strength as the previous one, but it has a larger range. His strongest attack is one that is taken from his favorite arch-rival, Link! He'll kick you, and then he'll do a spin attack, if you get hit by the kick, the spin attack is almost impossible to avoid. But, he'll delay the spin attack if he hits you into the electricity wall with the kick. Most of Link's attacks will have no effect on Ganondorf (with the exception of the Back Slice, which gives you an opening after the ending sword-strike), either because he'll avoid them with his sword, or his armor will protect him. You'll have a chance to hit him when he finishes an attack, and you're behind him. Hit him with a jump attack, and then attack the glowing crack on his chest. Of course, if Ganondorf misses you with his attack, he can jump behind you and try again. Eventually, Ganondorf will jump away from all of your attacks, so you must have perfect timing. Or, as an alternative, you can pull out your fishing rod. Ganondorf will follow the hook with his eyes, thereby dropping his guard, and allowing you to attack. After you hit him about 30 times, you'll have to stab him. Another way to defeat him is back away, and when he charges at you, it will say "chance" at the bottom of the screen. Pressing A will cause you to lock swords with him, and he can be stunned by rapidly tapping A. When stunned, he can be attacked freely. You will eventually have to stab him as before. That marks the end of the battle.

As the game comes to a close, Ganondorf's neck snaps along with that of Zant's, symbolizing both villain's true death.