Triforce: Difference between revisions

The {{Term/Store|Triforce||Series}},<ref>{{Cite Book|quote= |book= E |publisher= |page= 13 {{Exp Game|Series}}}}</ref> also known as the '''Golden Power''',{{Exp Game|ALttP}}<ref>{{Cite|My son really liked to play the flute, but he went to search for the Golden Power and never returned.|Man in Tavern|ALttP}}</ref> the '''Power of the Chosen One''',{{Exp Game|TP}}<ref>{{Cite|It was a sign that the {{Color|TPHD Red|powers of the chosen one}} rest within you...and that they are awakening.|Faron (Spirit)|TPHD}}</ref> the '''Absolute Power''',{{Exp Game|TP}}<ref>{{Cite|The kind of {{Color|TPHD Red|absolute power}} that those chosen by the gods wield.|Ganondorf|TPHD}}</ref> and the '''Ultimate Power''',{{Exp Game|SS}}<ref name="Ultimate Power">{{Cite|{{Color|SS Black|One dark, fateful day, the earth cracked wide and malevolent forces rushed forth from the fissure. They mounted a brutal assault upon the surface people, driving the land into deep despair... They burnt forests to ash, choked the land's sweet springs, and murdered without hesitation. They did all this in their lust to take the {{Color|SS Red|ultimate power}} protected by Her Grace, the goddess.}}|Fi|SS}}</ref> is a sacred golden relic left behind by the [[Golden Goddesses]], [[Din (Goddess)|Din]], [[Nayru (Goddess)|Nayru]], and [[Farore (Goddess)|Farore]], once they finished creating the realm, which came to be known as [[Hyrule]].<ref name="ALttP Manual 3">{{Cite manual|quote= |game= ALttP|page= 3}}</ref><ref name="E 70">{{Cite Book|quote= |book= HH |publisher= |page= 70}}</ref> The Goddess [[Hylia]] was tasked with the protection of this world and the Triforce.<ref name="E 70"/><ref>{{Cite Book|quote= |book= E |publisher= |page= 12}}</ref> After Hylia ceases to exist as a goddess, the Triforce is protected by the [[Royal Family of Hyrule]], the [[sages]], and the [[Sheikah]].<ref>{{Cite Book|quote= |book= E |publisher= |page= 15}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Book|quote= |book= E |publisher= |page= 44}}</ref>

Although the Triforce of Courage seemingly did not exist in the original {{TLoZ|-}} despite official artwork showing it, it was introduced in {{TAoL}}. Here, it is revealed that a previous [[King of Hyrule|King of Hyrule]], fearing the misuse of the Triforce, sealed the Triforce of Courage away in the [[Great Palace]], where only a hero worthy of its power would be able to obtain it after proving himself.<ref name=Quote3>{{Cite manual|quote= |game= TAoL|page= 9-10}}</ref> Link endured the trials of the Great Palace, including defeating his [[Dark Link|own shadow]], and recovered the Triforce of Courage. Uniting it with the Triforce of Wisdom and Power to become the complete Triforce, he was able to break the spell cast on the sleeping Princess Zelda. {{OoT|-}} reveals that after Ganondorf touched the Triforce in the Sacred Realm, the Triforce split into three pieces, with the Triforce of Courage being imparted to Link.<ref>{{Cite|The one who holds the Triforce of Courage is... You, Link!|Sheik|OoT}}</ref> After Ganon is sealed inside the Evil Realm, Link, still the bearer of the Triforce of Courage, embarks on another journey and leaves the land of Hyrule, as seen in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask|Majora's Mask]]''. This causes him to be separated from "the elements that made him a hero," causing the Triforce of Courage to be split into pieces and be hidden throughout the kingdom.<ref name=Quote12>{{Cite|Once, long ago, he defeated Ganon and brought peace to the Kingdom of Hyrule... A piece of the Triforce was given to the Hero of Time and he kept it safe, much as Zelda kept hers. That sacred piece is known as the Triforce of Courage. When the Hero of Time was called to embark on another journey and left the land of Hyrule, he was separated from the elements that made him a hero. It is said that at that time, the Triforce of Courage was split into eight shards and hidden throughout the land.|King of Red Lions|TWW}}</ref> This leads to the events in {{TWW|-}}, where Link must retrieve the eight {{Plural|TWWHD|Triforce Shard}} of the Triforce of Courage from the bottom of the [[Great Sea|ocean]].<ref name=Quote11>{{Cite|If you are able to collect all of them, they will fuse together and complete the piece of the Triforce, once again opening the passage through the waves to Hyrule. Even I do not know where they rest, but this much I do know: they lie hidden somewhere in this Great Sea.|King of Red Lions|TWW}}</ref>

Few have ever possessed the Triforce, or any fraction thereof. Usually within the franchise, the Triforce of Power, the Triforce of Wisdom, and the Triforce of Courage, are held by Ganon, Zelda, and Link respectively.<ref name=wisdom>{{Cite|And the other, who holds the Triforce of Wisdom...is the seventh Sage, who is destined to be the leader of them all... It is I, the Princess of Hyrule, Zelda.|Princess Zelda|OoT}}</ref><ref name=sign>{{Cite|It was a sign that the powers of the chosen one rest within you...and that they are awakening. Look at your awakened form... The green tunic that is your garb once belonged to the ancient hero chosen by the gods... His power is yours. His is the true power that slept within you. Your name is [Link]. You are the hero chosen by the gods.|Faron (Spirit)|TP}}</ref><ref name=sage>{{Cite|In all of his fury and might, he was blind to any danger, and thus was he exposed, subdued, and brought to justice. Yet... By some divine prank, he, too, had been blessed with the chosen power of the gods. His abiding hatred and lust for power turned to purest malice...|Sage|TP}}</ref><ref>{{Cite|[Link]... Hero sent by the goddesses...  Like you, I have been granted special powers by the goddesses...|Princess Zelda|TP}}</ref><ref>{{Cite|You have controlled the wind and crossed the seas, and here, near the end of your quest, the power of the gods has been bestowed upon you... Surely, from this moment on, you shall be known as the Hero of Winds...|King of Red Lions|TWW}}</ref><ref name=bloodline>{{Cite|This necklace you wear is part of a sacred treasure called the Triforce of Wisdom, which has been passed down for many ages within the royal family of Hyrule. Your mother passed this down to you and instructed you to treasure it...and to guard it with your life. [...] You are the true heir of the royal family of Hyrule...the last link in the bloodline. You are Princess Zelda.|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|TWW}}</ref><ref name=resonating>{{Cite|My Triforce of Power is resonating! Ha! At long last, I have found you... Princess Zelda!|Ganondorf|TWW}}</ref> However, there have been other Triforce possessors in the past, possessing the Triforce in its entirety. The prologue of {{TAoL|-}} reveals that the [[King of Hyrule|King of Hyrule]] used the Triforce to keep peace in the kingdom.<ref>{{Cite manual|quote= |game= TAoL|page= 6}}</ref> In {{ALttP|-}}, Ganon did acquire the complete Triforce, yet he was trapped within the Sacred Realm by the Seal of the [[Sage]]s, and as such, was unable to fully exploit the Golden Power, and Link ultimately takes the full Triforce to wish peace to Hyrule after defeating him.<ref name="ALttP Manual 5">{{Cite manual|quote= |game= ALttP|page= 5}}</ref><ref name="ALttP Manual 5-6">{{Cite manual|quote= |game= ALttP|page= 5-6}}</ref><ref>{{Cite|The person who rediscovered the Golden Land was Ganondorf the evil thief. Luckily, he couldn't figure out how to return to the Light World...|Maiden|ALttP}}</ref> In {{TWW|-}}, Ganon was able to reform the complete Triforce, yet before he was able to harness its power, the [[Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule]] stepped in before him, claimed the Triforce, and entreated the Goddesses to flood Hyrule and save the realm from Ganon’s evil.<ref>{{Cite|It can only be called fate. ...That here, I would again gather the three with the crests. ...That I should lay my hand on that which grants the wishes of the beholder... That when power, wisdom, and courage come together, the gods would have no choice but to come down...|Ganondorf|TWW}}</ref><ref name=Quote13>{{Cite|He who touches it will have whatever he desires granted... That is what you said, is it not, Ganondorf? Gods of the Triforce! Hear that which I desire! Hope! I desire hope for these children! Give them a future! Wash away this ancient land of Hyrule!|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|TWW}}</ref> In {{TP}}, Ganon possess Zelda's body, as it is unconfirmed whether or not Midna had been given the Triforce of Wisdom. It was possible that during the battle Ganondorf briefly held both the Triforces of Power and Wisdom. In {{SS}}, Link gathered all three pieces of the Triforce in the [[Sky Keep]], a dungeon in [[Skyloft]] placed there by [[Hylia]] to hide the precious relic until the time her chosen hero arose. He then prayed to it for the eradication of [[Demise]].<ref>{{Cite|Master,  I believe at this juncture that a prayer is required. The ultimate goal  we have traveled so far for is now within reach. Focus now, and wish  with all your might for the destruction of Demise.|Fi|SS}}</ref>  

The Triforce is first revealed as a divine manifestation of the Goddesses' power in {{ALttP}}. Bestowed upon Hyrule upon their departure, it lay hidden in the fabled [[Golden Land]], where it beckoned the people of Hyrule to seek it in hopes that someone worthy of its power would find it.<ref>{{Cite manual|quote= |game= ALttP|page= 3-4}}</ref> Although many tried to find it, none knew of its exact location, not even the Sages, since that knowledge had been lost with time.<ref>{{Cite manual|quote= |game= ALttP|page= 4}}</ref> Eventually, the search for the Triforce ensued a great war until the evil thief Ganondorf and his minions broke the seal into the hidden land.<ref name="ALttP Manual 3"/><ref name="ALttP Manual 5"/> Upon murdering his companions and claiming the Triforce for himself, Ganon used its power to turn the Golden Land into the [[Dark World]].<ref>{{Cite|Ganon's wish was to conquer the world. That wish changed the Golden Land to the Dark World.|Essence of the Triforce|ALttP}}</ref> Raising an army of monsters to assault the land of Hyrule, Ganon was nearly successful in spreading his evil over all the land, but was stopped when the [[Knights of Hyrule]] and the [[Sage|Seven Wise Men]] sealed him in the Dark World.<ref name="ALttP Manual 5-6"/> Still in possession of the Triforce, Ganon used [[Agahnim]] to crack the seal between worlds by teleporting the seven maidens, including Zelda, who were descended from the Wise Men, one by one into the Dark World, sealing them in crystals and creating a portal between the worlds.<ref>{{Cite|Agahnim has seized control of the castle and is now trying to open the seven wise men's seal.|Princess Zelda|ALttP}}</ref><ref>{{Cite|He is trying to open a larger gate between worlds near the castle using our powers.|Maiden|ALttP}}</ref>  

In {{TLoZ}}, the Triforce of Wisdom and Triforce of Power are described as "golden triangles possessing mystical powers" that grant their holders great power.<ref name="TLoZ Manual 3"/> Prior to the events of the game, Ganon attacked the kingdom of Hyrule and stole the Triforce of Power.<ref name="TLoZ Manual 3"/> Fearing Ganon's wicked rule, the Princess Zelda split the Triforce of Wisdom into eight shards and hid them in the dungeons beneath Hyrule.<ref name="TLoZ Manual 3"/><ref name="TLoZ Manual 4">{{Cite manual|quote= |game= TLoZ|page= 4}}</ref> Link must fight his way through the eight dungeons to recover the pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom, and then battle his way through Ganon's stronghold to defeat him and recover the Triforce of Power.<ref name="TLoZ Manual 4"/> The Triforce of Courage was not yet introduced in the original NES game.

The Triforce of Courage is first introduced in {{TAoL}}, debuting the full symbol. In the prologue of the game, it is mentioned that a historic [[King of Hyrule|King of Hyrule]] used the Triforce to keep peace in Hyrule; however, he eventually passed away and, fearing someone would misuse the powers of the Triforce, hid the Triforce of Courage in the [[Great Palace]]. Here, it could only be obtained by one who could fight his way through six other palaces to break the magical seal left by the king.<ref name=Quote3/><ref name="TAoL Manual 11">{{Cite manual|quote= |game= TAoL|page= 11}}</ref> Guarded by a wizened sage, the Triforce could only be recovered by a hero capable of defeating not only the soldiers and monsters set to guard the Great Palace, but also his very shadow. Link overcame these obstacles to achieve the third Triforce, and used the power of the united relic to wake the slumbering Princess Zelda.<ref name="TAoL Manual 11"/>