Hyrule Guard

Hyrule Guard
Artwork of a Hyrule Guard from A Link to the Past
First appearance	A Link to the Past (1992)
Appearances	A Link to the Past Four Swords Adventures A Link Between Worlds
Weapon(s)	Sword Bombs Spear Bow
Effective weapon(s)	Sword Hero's Bow Hookshot
Spoils	Heart Rupees (Hyrule Warriors) Soldier's Uniforms Hylian Captain Gauntlets Holy Hylian Shields

Hyrule Guards are recurring enemies in the Legend of Zelda series. They are Hyrulean Soldiers, often brainwashed by the antagonists, who are hostile towards Link.

Appearances

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

Hyrule Guards are Hyrulean Soldiers being controlled by Agahnim. They patrol many areas of Hyrule, particularly Hyrule Castle, and will attack Link on sight. If they spot link, a brief grunting sound can be heard when they rush at Link. There are many different varieties of Hyrule Guards; they appear to have a simple ranking system that can be discerned by the color of their armor. The colors are, oddly enough, the same colors of Link's assorted tunics. The non-possessed soldiers which appear very early in the game have yellow armor. Hyrule Guards appear to wear plate armor.

Soldier

Soldiers are among the first enemies Link encounters in the game. They come in three colors; green, blue, and red. The green and blue attack with weak swords and shields; they are not powerful, but they can deflect some attacks from the front. The red ones, which attack with spears, are a bit stronger and can be dangerous earlier in the game. All kinds move slowly until they see Link, at which point they rush towards him. Red ones tend to rush toward Link the moment he moves into an area where they are present, especially after Agahnim has been defeated for the first time, when they are more common.

A very closely related weaker soldier appears only inside Hyrule Castle. They wield daggers and flimsy shields. Rather than deliberately attacking Link they just walk in straight lines, and can be defeated easily.

A green soldier wielding a spear appears if one of the townsfolk of Kakariko Village calls for the guards. This soldier continues to rush towards Link until he is defeated or Link leaves the screen, but he is no stronger than any other green soldier.

Archer

Archers wield crossbows with arrows that can be shot at long distances. They come in blue and green varieties. Blue archers are often found together with other Hyrule Guards. When Link enters their range, they run backwards, pausing only to shoot. Green archers are found exclusively in the marshes south of Link's House, where they hide in the grass and snipe at Link. Both kinds frequently drop arrows when defeated.

Knight

Knights come in blue and red forms. Blue knights are only found in Hyrule Castle Tower. Although they attack with swords and shields similar to weaker Soldiers, they are more dextrous and hold their weapons differently.

Red Knights are found in a variety of locations. They are found in the grounds of Hyrule Castle and inside the Hyrule Castle Tower. Some of them wield tridents and fight the same way blue archers do, hurling their weapon at Link and then backing off to shoot again. Others hide in the grass, coming out to throw a weapon and quickly dive back into hiding again. A third kind stands up on the castle walls, throwing bombs down at Link. They can be defeated if their bombs are thrown back onto them.

Their horned helmets are identical to those worn by Ball & Chain Troopers.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

Hyrule Guards come in many of the same varieties as A Link to the Past. A stronger mini-boss version called the Chief Soldier also appears, and a weaker soldier, wearing blue armor and wielding short swords, often appears in large numbers.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

Hyrule Guard appears once again as opponents for Link. In this game, the soldiers are created as Portraits by Yuga all around Hyrule, rather than being brainwashed Hyrulean Soldiers as they were in A Link to the Past. They most often come in green, blue, and red varieties, and each may wield daggers, swords, or lances. Some blue guards wield bows, and some red guards throw javelins. Each of these varieties tend to drop Rupees corresponding to their own color. Some grey guards instead throw bombs at Link, and a few are outfitted to be Ball & Chain Troopers. Strangely, they have two different Lorule counterparts, those being Moblins and Lorule Guards.

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/Legends

Several Hyrulean Soldiers from Hyrule Warriors

While normally ally units, Hyrulean Soldiers are hostile in some missions of Hyrule Warriors and Hyrule Warriors Legends. However, in the case of Cia's Tale story scenarios and Ganondorf's playable story scenarios, the Hyrulean Forces act as the enemy faction opposing the playable villains' faction.

In Sealed Ambition, a group of soldiers is brainwashed into betraying the Hyrulean Forces by Ghirahim, possibly a reference to the Hyrule Guard that were brainwashed by Agahnim in A Link to the Past. These traitorous Hyrulean Soldiers are referred as Turncoat Soldiers .

Additionally, there is a Dark shadowy variant of Hylian Captain called Dark Hylian Captain that appear as enemies in Adventure Mode.

Subseries warning: Subseries information ends here.

Gallery

Dark Hylian Captain from Hyrule Warriors

See also

• Chief Soldier
• Hyrulean Soldiers
• Lorule Guard
• Taurus