- This article is about the Ocarina of Time character. For the location from The Adventure of Link, see Mountain Town of Darunia.
- "Has Darunia, the big boss of the Gorons, really lost so much status to be treated like this by his Sworn Brother, the King? Now, I'm REALLY angry!"
- — Darunia
Darunia (ダルニア?) is a character from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. He is the patriarch of the Goron tribe living in Goron City on Death Mountain. A tough ruler, he can often be perceived as rude; however, his responsibilities seem to be much of the cause of this. He is hesitant to accept outside help from Link, but later on accepts him as his "brother" and bequeaths unto him the Goron's Ruby.
Biography[]
Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.
Seeking the Spiritual Stone of Fire, better known as the Goron's Ruby, the Gerudo mystic Ganondorf demanded Darunia hand over the stone to him. Darunia refused and took the Goron Ruby away from its altar in the center of Goron City, and as a result, Ganondorf blocked the entrance to Dodongo's Cavern, the Goron's main supply of food, with a huge boulder and filled the cavern with Dodongos to deter the Gorons from obtaining food from the cave should they be able to dispatch of the boulder. As food was getting more and more scarce, Darunia feared for the survival of his people, and sealed himself and the Goron's Ruby within his throne room.
On a quest to obtain the Spiritual Stones in order to stop Ganondorf, the hero Link manages to open the way to Darunia's throne room by playing "Zelda's Lullaby" on his ocarina. The only ones with knowledge of the song are ones who represent the Royal Family of Hyrule, and upon hearing it, Darunia thought his troubles were at an end. However, upon seeing that a child was all that the Royal Family had sent to his aid, he quickly brushes him off and refuses to help him. However, when Link plays "Saria's Song" for him, he begins dancing happily. Afterwards, he gives Link the Goron's Bracelet to help him in his quest, and tells him that should Link be able to open the way to Dodongo's Cavern and wipe out the Dodongos inside, he will give him the Goron's Ruby. Link successfully manages to complete this task, and the impressed Darunia makes Link his "sworn brother", gifting Link with the Goron's Ruby as a symbol of their newfound connection. Darunia then summons two Gorons, who attempt to give Link a hug, causing him to run.
Shortly thereafter, Link inadvertently allows Ganondorf to touch the Triforce, allowing him to use the power of the Triforce of Power to wreak havoc over Hyrule. Ganondorf revives the ancient dragon Volvagia, a creature that was once vanquished by the Hero of the Gorons wielding a hammer. The evil creatures of the Fire Temple kidnap the Gorons, in order to feed them to Volvagia. Darunia travels to the Fire Temple to stop Volvagia. After waking up from a seven-year long sleep, Link travels to Death Mountain to find Goron City empty. He eventually talks to Darunia's son, Link of the Gorons, who tells him about the situation. Link travels to the Fire Temple, and meets up with Darunia, who tells him that he is going to battle Volvagia, however, he does not have the legendary hammer. Link eventually recovers the Megaton Hammer and encounters Volvagia in the heart of the temple. Link defeats the evil dragon with the hammer, and after the last fragments of the dragon disappears, a bright light appears. Link is transported to the Chamber of Sages, where it is revealed that Darunia has been awakened as the Sage of Fire. The Goron presents Link with the Fire Medallion to aid him in his quest to defeat Ganondorf and save Hyrule.
Spoiler warning: Spoilers end here.
Other appearances[]
Subseries warning: This article or section contains information on a subseries within the Legend of Zelda series and should be considered part of its own separate canon.
Hyrule Warriors[]
- "When Cia opened a doorway to the era of the Hero of Time, a brave warrior stepped through the portal and added his strength to the current battle, just as he had done ages before. As a proud Goron chieftain, Darunia makes his home in Goron City, located in the heart of the volcanic Death Mountain. Like all Gorons, his entire diet consists of rocks. It's Goron tradition to refer to loved ones and trusted allies as "brother," an attribute Darunia has not left behind on his journey through the ages."
- — Darunia, Goron Chief Historical Entry Tutorial Bio
Darunia appears as a playable character in the spinoff game Hyrule Warriors. His main weapon is a Hammer, which enables him to deliver strong blows and cast powerful fire magic. His use of a Hammer as a weapon is likely a reference to his ancestor, the Hero of the Gorons and his Level 3 Hammer is his ancestor's legendary Megaton Hammer. Additionally he has several DLC recolors of his Hyrule Warriors design, which act as alternate costume/skins and are based on similar heroic Goron's that appear in other Zelda titles. One recolor is based on Darmani from Majora's Mask and another is based on Darbus from Twilight Princess. As Goron Chief, he is leader of the Goron Forces in the Era of the Hero of Time. When winning a match, he is seen doing a jig while Saria's Song is playing in the background, referring to how he befriended Link in Ocarina of Time. While dancing, he tosses his hammer and causes it to cause a massive enough quake to have a lava geyser emerge and lift the rock he is standing on.
In the story proper, Darunia is drawn into the conflict when a Gate of Souls opens in his world (the era of the Hero of Time). Manipulated by Wizzro in the disguise of Zelda, he abducts Princess Ruto and readies the Gorons for war. However, Impa and Sheik manage to snap Darunia back to his senses by defeating him in battle, after which he frees Ruto and pledges the Gorons' assistance to the Hyrulean Army.
This was the second time he helped Hyrule in its defenses since the time he aided the Hero of Time.
Material drops[]
- Silver Material - Darunia's Spikes
- Gold Material - Darunia's Bracelet
Dark Darunia[]
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Dark Darunia's dialog box portrait from Hyrule Warriors
In Adventure Mode, Darunia has a Dark shadowy doppelgänger called Dark Darunia which appears as an enemy. Dark Darunia uses the same moveset and drops the same materials as Darunia. Like most Doppelgängers (save for Dark Link), Dark Darunia has no role in the main story.
Hyrule Warriors Legends[]
Darunia returns as a playable character and plays much the same role he did in Hyrule Warriors. Additionally, he appears in Linkle's Tale: Powers Collide defending Lake Hylia and the Water Temple from Volga and the Dark Forces, alongside the Goron Forces, Ruto, and Linkle. When he tries to take on Volga by himself, Linkle and Ruto are forced to rescue him, before joining him in defeating Volga. His Standard Outfit (Great Sea) is a Recolor based on Biggoron from Phantom Hourglass. As part of the Master Wind Waker DLC, his unlockable Standard Outfit (Wind Waker) is The Wind Waker Great Deku Tree Recolor.
Subseries warning: Subseries information ends here.
Gallery[]
.png "Hyrule Warriors Legends Darunia Standard Outfit (TWW Great Deku Tree Recolor - Master Wind Waker DLC).png (374 KB)")
.png "Hyrule Warriors 8-bit Sprites 8-Bit Darunia (Adventure Mode Sprite).png (3 KB)"){kind=icon}
_2.png "Darunia (Hyrule Warriors) 2.png (647 KB)")
.png "Hyrule Warriors Darunia Standard Outfit (Darmani Recolor - Master Quest DLC).png (329 KB)")
.png "Hyrule Warriors Darunia Standard Outfit (Darbus Recolor - Twilight Princess DLC).png (351 KB)")