Skulltula

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Skulltulas are recurring Enemies in The Legend of Zelda series.(OoTOcarina of Time | MMMajora's Mask | TPTwilight Princess | PHPhantom Hourglass | STSpirit Tracks | SSSkyward Sword | LCTLink's Crossbow Training | SSBBSuper Smash Bros. Brawl | NLNintendo Land | CoHCadence of Hyrule)[2][3][4][5][name references needed] They are giant spiders with an abdomen that resembles a human skull.

Characteristics

Ocarina of Time

In their debut appearance and Majora's Mask, Skulltulas are black spiders with two rows of red eyes that are capable of glowing, tan, pincer-like fangs, an abdomen whose topside is the shape of a white skull with raised eyebrows and a brown, segmented underside, and yellow-and-black banded legs.

Skulltulas hang from the ceiling and ambush Link by dropping down to attack him. If Link comes too close to them, they will spin around quickly, injuring him and tossing him backwards. Their hard, skull-shaped exoskeletons can deflect many attacks, causing them to swing side-to-side if struck on their front. Link will also be injured if he makes contact with the Skulltula while it is swinging. They are however far from intelligent, and often leave their defenses open by exposing their soft underbellies when they briefly turn. They can be instantly killed regardless of which direction they face if shot by an Arrow or the Hookshot. Some Skulltulas may be invisible and can only be revealed with the Lens of Truth, one example being in an underground passage covered by a boulder in Zora's Fountain.

If Link is climbing a Vine and enters the radius of a Skulltula, it will drop to his position and remain aligned with his vertical position even if he moves.

Majora's Mask

Tatl's Commenthide ▲
Tatl says:

What?! You don't even know about the Skulltula? It's protected by a hard shell, but its stomach is soft!

Skulltulas in Majora's Mask behave the same way as they do in Ocarina of Time, suspending themselves from the ceiling and swooping down to ambush Link when he draws near. Their underbellies remain their primary weakpoint, and they can still be killed with projectiles such as Arrows, but they are immune to the Hookshot. In some locations, Skulltulas are invisible, requiring the use of the Lens of Truth to be seen.

Twilight Princess

In Twilight Princess, Skulltulas have a primarily black body with green eyes, tan fangs, prominent pedipalps, black legs with red joints, a red underbelly, and a white skull pattern that varies depending on the type of Skulltula.

There are two varieties of Skulltula in the game; one that moves on the ground and another that hangs from a strand of webbing and is exclusive to the Forest Temple. Apart from their behavior, both varieties can be distinguished from each other by their patterns, with the hanging variant bearing a more abstract skull design with additional yellow markings on both its head and abdomen while the ground variant has a more realistic skull pattern and blue-gray patterning on its head. They are somewhat more intelligent than their previous incarnations, as they will actively block Link's frontal attacks and do not expose their underbellies. Link however can counterattack it when it rears back to attack; Link can slash back or dodge its bite attack and hit it while it recovers. Other strategies, such as using a Spin Attack followed by an Ending Blow, using a Shield Attack to knock the arachnid off balance, or use a Back Slice to circumvent its defenses entirely while attacking its abdomen, are also efficient.

Phantom Hourglass



Skulltulas in Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks are depicted with a simplified version of their designs from Ocarina of Time. Appearing exclusively on the Ghost Ship, they will descend from the ceiling to ambush Link. They can be defeated using the Sword or other weapons.

The Cubus Sisters are deathly afraid of Skulltulas; if one appears while Link is escorting one of the Sisters, they will cower and unleash a scream that will alert nearby Reaplings to Link's position. After defeating the Skulltula, Link must talk to the frightened Sister in order to proceed.

Spirit Tracks

In Spirit Tracks, Skulltulas appear exclusively in the Frightening Forest while riding the Spirit Train. As Link and Zelda navigate through the forest, Skulltulas may descend from the trees in an attempt to damage the Spirit Train. They can be defeated with a single shot of the Cannon, though they may also be scared away with the whistle.

A stronger, less-easily frightened variant of Skulltula, the Red Skulltula, is also found in the same location.

Skyward Sword

Fi's Commentshide ▲
Fi says:

Target lock: Skulltula

This giant species of spider inhabits the deepest areas of forests. It attacks with highly adhesive webbing in order to prevent its prey from escaping.

It has a tough outer carapace, but its stomach may be vulnerable to attack.

I am currently conducting additional analysis into its movement patterns.

show more...

I have observed that it has a tendency to move with its back toward its prey to prevent its weak point from being exposed.

Therefore, you must find a way to flip the beast over to access its weak point.

Its lone weak point is the center of its abdomen, but it is surrounded by tough chitin. This leads me to conclude that a fatal blow will be most effective.

In Skyward Sword, Skulltulas bear a primarily brown, shiny exoskeleton with gold claws and markings on their legs, and a spiked ridge lining their abdomens. They have yellow eyes found above a single red eye, a pair of curved, red fangs, and a more abstract skull design with beige markings and a pair of raised eyespots. Their underside is red, with their abdomen additionally containing a purple, glowing core partially covered by brown, rib-like protrusions on its underside. This core acts as their weakpoint.

In combat, Skulltulas will jump and hold onto Link if he is nearby and proceed to bite him until he breaks free. They can also constrict Link by shooting silk from their mouths. While they are grounded, Link can swing upwards if they are on the ground or swing horizontally if they are hanging on threads to flip them over and attack their cores. He may also use the Beetle to cut away any threads or webs they are hanging on to ground them.

Echoes of Wisdom

Main articles: Crawltula and Strandtula


While Skulltulas do not directly appear in Echoes of Wisdom, two variants known as Crawltulas and Strandtulas appear throughout Hyrule. Strandtulas dangle from strands of silk in a similar manner to Skulltulas, while Crawltulas move on the ground and can climb on vertical surfaces.

Other Appearances

Link's Crossbow Training

The following section is not part of the Zelda canon and should not be taken as such.


In Link's Crossbow Training, Skulltulas appear in the "Skulltula Forest: Ranger" Stage. They crawl on walls and hang on tree branches. Skulltulas attempt to attack Link when close by and can be taken out with two shots of the Crossbow, or one shot with an Exploding Arrow.

Ocarina of Time (Himekawa)

The following section is not part of the Zelda canon and should not be taken as such.

A Skulltula has a brief appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Himekawa), crawling on a wall of the Forest Temple while Link and Mido are exploring it.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

The following section is not part of the Zelda canon and should not be taken as such.

Skulltulas appear as Stickers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.


Sticker Artwork from Effect in The Subspace Emissary Usable by

Skulltula
Ocarina of Time [Arm] - Attack +7 All

Nintendo Land

The following section is not part of the Zelda canon and should not be taken as such.

Skulltulas appear as enemies in Battle Quest of Nintendo Land, first appearing in Level 4: Road to the Goron Mines. They act the same way as in Skyward Sword, and can be freely slain on their underbellies, since they do not have their crystal weak points. If they latch onto a player, that player will only have 6 seconds to shake them off until they take damage.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

The following section is not part of the Zelda canon and should not be taken as such.

Skulltulas appear as a Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

# Trophy Appears in Description How to unlock
226 N/A Ocarina of Time

Ocarina of Time 3D
These spidery foes from The Legend of Zelda series have skull-like abdomens. In Ocarina of Time, there are 100 Gold Skulltulas to be found in Hyrule's towns and dungeons. Link can collect tokens by defeating them, and a man in Kakariko Village's House of Skulltula will happily trade rewards for the tokens. RandomCan be obtained in Classic Mode, in All-Star Mode, in Trophy Rush, in Smash Run, or purchased from the Trophy Shop
Skulltula

Cadence of Hyrule

The following section has content which has neither been confirmed nor denied as canonical by Nintendo.

Skulltulas appear as Enemies in Cadence of Hyrule. They can be found in Dungeons, where they shoot balls on webs that immobilize the current character. The immobilizing webs have 3 Hearts, allowing trapped characters to escape by attempting to move for 3 beats. Three varieties of Skulltula exist: standard, white Skulltulas, Brown Skulltulas, and Black Skulltulas.

Nomenclature

Skulltula is a portmanteau of "skull" and "tarantula."

Names in Other Regions
LanguageNamesMeanings
Japan
Japanese
スタルチュラ (Sutaruchura) (SSSkyward Sword)[8]Staltula
The Italian Republic
Italian
Aracnula (MMMajora's Mask | MM3DMajora's Mask 3D)[6][7]Portmanteu of aracne (arachne) and tarantula
This table was generated using translation pages.
To request an addition, please contact a staff member with a reference.

Gallery

See Also

References

  1. "Ah, it's a Gold Skulltula."Hyrule Warriors Direct , YouTube, published August 4, 2014.
  2. Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 203 (OoTOcarina of Time | OoT3DOcarina of Time 3D | MMMajora's Mask | MM3DMajora's Mask 3D | TPTwilight Princess | TPHDTwilight Princess HD | PHPhantom Hourglass | STSpirit Tracks | SSSkyward Sword)
  3. Target lock: Skulltula — Fi (Skyward Sword HD)
  4. Skulltula (Cadence of Hyrule v1.0.0, Nintendo Switch (United States of America))
  5. Skulltula Forest: Ranger
    Move using the Control Stick, and defeat the 18 Skulltulas.
    — Stage Select (Link's Crossbow Training)
  6. Enciclopedia di Hyrule, Magazzini Salani, pg. 203
  7. Questa è un'aracnula! — Tatl (Majora's Mask 3D, Italian version)
  8. Hyrule Encyclopedia, Tokuma Shoten Publishing Co., Ltd., pg. 179