Era of Foundation
The Era of FoundationThis name is derived from Japanese text. is an event in Tears of the Kingdom.[1]
Overview
The Era of Foundation is a time period within the Era of Myth in which Hyrule Kingdom was founded in Ancient Hyrule. In Ancient Hyrule, the Hylian priestess Sonia accompanied and offered counsel to the Zonai Rauru.[2] They journeyed together across Ancient Hyrule as Rauru defeated Demons and erected Shrines of Light at the spots where they were defeated in order to prevent their reappearance.[3] Eventually the two married and founded Hyrule Kingdom together as its first king and queen.
The new Kingdom was settled atop the Great Plateau, where the Ancient Hyrule Castle and Temple of Time were built. However, this Kingdom extended beyond the Plateau and came to reign over the various tribes of Hyrule. In addition to Hylians, it also ruled over the Gorons, Rito, and Zora peoples. The Gerudo existed as a sovereign nation, despite repeated invitations for them to join the Kingdom.
At some point, Zelda traveled through Time from the time period around the Era of the Wilds to the Era of Foundation following the establishment of Hyrule Kingdom. She brought back with her a Secret Stone from the future, which amplified her powers of Time and enabled her to unwittingly travel backwards thousands of years. She met Rauru and Sonia north of Lake Kolomo and quickly joined them with the goal of learning to control her powers from her distant ancestor, Sonia.
The king of the Gerudo, Ganondorf coveted the power of the Secret Stones safeguarded by the remaining Zonai of the Kingdom and began an assault on the Great Plateau from the south. By using the combined power of the Secret Stones held by Rauru, Sonia, and the Time-traveling Zelda, they repelled the Molduga sent as infantry in a single counterattack. With his plan to assault Hyrule thwarted, Ganondorf understood that brute strength would not be enough to topple the Kingdom and adopted a different strategy. He met with Rauru at the Ancient Hyrule Castle's Audience Chamber and swore the loyalty of the Gerudo to Hyrule Kingdom as a ploy to infiltrate the Castle and find an opportunity to steal a Secret Stone for himself.
Using a Phantom Ganon disguised as Zelda, Ganondorf tricked Sonia into a false sense of security long enough to launch a surprise attack which resulted in Sonia's death. He stole Sonia's Secret Stone and used its power to transform into Demon King Ganondorf, beginning the Imprisoning War. The War saw the rise of Monsters which attacked anyone who would defy Demon King Ganondorf. The Imprisoning War came to an abrupt end when Rauru decided to sacrifice himself to hold Ganondorf in stasis until a hero named Link could come to face him with the Master Sword.
After receiving the Decayed Master Sword from Link in the future, Zelda began to make preparations to help him on his mission to Destroy Ganondorf. She met with the survivors of the War to warn them of Ganondorf's return in the distant future and request the aid of their people when that time comes. To explain the events of the Era of Foundation, Zelda asked the royal chamberlain to make a record on the Ancient Tablets, which Mineru would send into the Sky for safe-keeping. She also asked Mineru to send the Garden of Time into the Sky to serve as a haven outside of Ganondorf's reach where Link could receive guidance from the Sage of Spirit who housed her soul within the Purah Pad. Zelda then swallowed her Secret Stone, transforming into the Light Dragon which could imbue the power of Light into the broken Master Sword over millennia to repair it.
The Light Dragon shed Dragon's Tears as it took flight, which scattered across the land of Hyrule and formed Geoglyphs. The people in the Era of Foundation were able to view Memories at these Geoglyphs, which they recorded in a newly-constructed chamber at the back of the Forgotten Temple.
Nomenclature
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See Also
References
- ↑ The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Master Works, Ambit Ltd., pg. 220
- ↑
It claims that Sonia was a priestess before marrying Rauru. Despite his status as a Zonai, a people popularly thought to be gods, she would counsel him without any trepidation. Moreover, Rauru headed this counsel.
— Wortsworth (Tears of the Kingdom) - ↑ "The shrines themselves were built before Rauru founded Hyrule – before the Demon King Ganondorf appeared there were still a lot of evil beings, so Rauru and Sonia went around various places to calm things down. Shrines are placed above where a demon was destroyed so it will not reappear. This is why that spiral of light emerges from the shrine. Therefore, bathing in the remaining power of the shrines slightly cleanses Link of the demon magic." —Hidemaro Fujibayashi (Hyrule's Shrines Serve A Secret Peace-Keeping Purpose, Says TOTK Director, published December 19, 2023, retrieved December 19, 2023.)