Guardian Stalker

Guardian Stalker
Artwork of a Guardian Stalker
First appearance	Breath of the Wild (2017)
Location(s)	Great Plateau Hyrule Field West Necluda
Attack method	Energy Beams
Life rating	1,500
Effective weapon(s)	Guardian and Ancient weapons sets
Spoils	Ancient Gear Ancient Screw Ancient Shaft Ancient Spring Ancient Core Giant Ancient Core

Guardian Stalkers are enemies in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. They are the most common variation of the Guardian enemy. They were originally programmed to protect Hyrule from Calamity Ganon, but were instead taken control of by the beast and used against Hyrule. These Guardians look like massive spiders infused with Sheikah technology, similar to their Sheikah Slates. They have a single eye, and are capable of firing a massive laser from this eye, capable of killing almost anything in a single hit.

Combat

Guardian Stalkers usually patrol around a certain area, watching for invaders. When a Guardian spots a living creature, it will begin crawling towards it, charging it's laser, and then firing. They repeat this process until the target has been eliminated.

Certain weapons are extremely effective against Guardians, known as the "Guardian" or "Ancient" weapons. Guardian Swords, Guardian Spears, and Ancient Battle Axes can cut off a stunned Guardian Stalker's legs, leaving it stationary. A Guardian can be stunned by being shot in the eye with any type of arrow; Ancient Arrows in particular can destroy Guardians in a single hit if they strike the eye. A shield can deflect a Guardian Stalker's laser back at it by correctly timing a parry. Daruk's Protection will deflect the laser back with no timing needed.

Development

• According to Eiji Aonuma, the main director of Breath of the Wild, the Guardian Stalkers were based on the Octoroks from the original The Legend of Zelda. Since Link's sprite is roughly the same size as that of the Octoroks, Aonuma saw the Octoroks as massive compared to Link. They had originally planned to create a giant octopus enemy for Breath of the Wild, but decided that was too disgusting. They eventually settled on the Guardian Stalkers, which were actually the first technology designed for the game. This drastically changed the direction of the game, giving rise to other technology, such as the Sheikah Slate and the Divine Beasts.
• The Guardian Stalker was the first enemy designed for Breath of the Wild.