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"I think if you can free the pieces of my soul from the ghosts that hold them, I'll be free..."
Jovani

Imp Poes are enemies from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Imp Poes are one of the two forms of Poes in the game. They resemble a miniature, ghostly form of the Grim Reaper. Imp Poes wield lanterns and scythes for weapons. If an Imp Poe spots Link, it will immediately approach to attack. However, they are slow and can easily be defeated. Link can only defeat them when he is in wolf form; this is done by knocking them to the ground and ripping out their souls when a "Finish" prompt appears on the screen. This move is similar to Link's Ending Blow, and Link can in fact turn back into a human and use the Ending Blow on the Imp Poe before it recovers. However, it will not have any effect as the soul must be ripped out in order for it to be truly defeated.

Imp Poes can be found outdoors, in caverns, and the three dungeons containing shards of the Mirror of Twilight. The majority of the Imp Poes found outdoors first appear shortly after sunset and disappear again as the sun rises (there are a few exceptions to this; two Imp Poes at Snowpeak are always present, another is hidden behind an Owl Statue in the Temple of Time's entry hall, and one more is hidden within a boulder where the Skull Kid is fought for the first time). Imp Poes that are found in caverns or dungeons can be defeated regardless of whether it is day or not.

Imp Poes must be defeated in order to complete a side quest involving a man named Jovani, who traded his soul for wealth, only to be turned into a solid gold statue by a curse. By collecting 20 Poe Souls, Link is able to weaken the curse on Jovani, while still made of gold he is now able to move again, and Jovani rewards him with a bottle of Great Fairy's Tears. When all 60 Poe Souls have been collected, the curse on Jovani is broken and he reverts back to his original form, and Link receives 200 Rupees as a reward. Later, Jovani's cat, Gengle, will give Link another 200 Rupees every time he visits the house after leaving and reentering Hyrule Castle Town, saying that he and Jovani no longer have any need for the money. Notably this is the same final reward Link gets in Ocarina of Time for collecting all the Gold Skulltula Tokens.

Ghost Lantern from Twilight Princess HD

In Twilight Princess HD, after obtaining 20 Poe Souls, Link can obtain a Ghost Lantern, a special Lantern he can use to help him located the other Imp Poes. Interestingly, the Ghost Lantern has the same design as the Lanterns carried by Imp Poes.

Theory[]

Theory warning: This section contains theoretical information based on the research of one or several other users. It has not been officially verified by Nintendo and its factual accuracy is disputed.

Imp Poes slightly resemble Skull Kid from Twilight Princess, with their small shape, mischievously violent nature, and small lanterns. Also, the Happy Mask Salesman, as well as a number of other characters, refer to the Skull Kid from The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask as an "Imp". These facts could possibly mean Skull Kids are the living counterparts of Imp Poes.

Theory warning: Theories end here.

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