Tetra's Pirates

Tetra's Pirates
From back left to front right, Senza, Gonzo, Nudge, Niko, Mako, Tetra, and Zuko
First appearance	The Wind Waker (2003)
Appears in	The Wind Waker Four Swords Adventures Phantom Hourglass
Founded in	Great Sea
Goals	Committing acts of piracy Sailing the Great Sea Find a new land of their own
Leader	Tetra Tetra's Mother (formerly)
Members	Gonzo Mako Niko Nudge Senza Zuko
Allies	Link Aryll Link's Grandma Quill Prince Komali Beedle Maggie Maggie's Father Mila Mila's Father Spoiler: Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule/King of Red Lions Spoiler: Valoo (Phantom Hourglass) Linebeck Ciela Spoiler: Oshus/Ocean King (Spirit Tracks) New Royal Family of Hyrule Spoiler: Anjean
Enemies	Helmaroc King Ganondorf Pirates of Forsaken Fortress Cannon

"Don't you understand what you're asking? We're pirates! You know... PIRATES! The terror of the seas! What do we get out of bringing some helpless little kid along with us? I'll tell you what we get... a headache."

— Tetra

Tetra's Pirates is a recurring group in the Legend of Zelda series. This group of pirates consists of their leader, Tetra, along with Gonzo, Mako, Niko, Nudge, Senza, and Zuko. While pirates, they are not as bloodthirsty as they first appear, and actually help Link throughout his adventures. Tetra's Mother was the leader of the pirates prior to Tetra herself. Their ship appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as a stage called the Pirate Ship.

Interestingly, on one of the walls of Hyrule Castle in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, there hangs a picture of Princess Zelda with a group of royal subjects, all of whom look very similar to the pirates. It is possible that the pirates' ancestors were servants to Princess Zelda in generations past.

Appearances

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

The painting of the woman found in Tetra's Cabin believed to be her mother and former leader of the crew

Link first encounters the pirates on Outset Island, where he saves Tetra from the Helmaroc King. When his sister Aryll is kidnapped by the Helmaroc King in her place, Tetra agrees to take Link to the Forsaken Fortress, where Aryll is being held, in return for saving her life. After "delivering" Link to the Fortress (by way of catapulting him in a barrel), the pirates are next seen docked on Windfall Island, where they are stealing bombs from Cannon in order to gain entry to Jabun's cavern on Outset Island, which supposedly holds treasure. Tetra decides to let the pirates stay in town for the night, which ends up being a rather long time, as Ganondorf has cast a spell on the Great Sea, causing a never-ending night.

While the pirates are celebrating in the Cafe Bar, Link manages to overhear the pirates' secret password and uses it to gain entry into to the ship, where he meets Niko. After completing a small mini-game, Niko regrettably is left no choice but to present Link with a Bomb Bag, filled with bombs. Despite the pirates' confidence that they would inevitably beat him to it, Link uses the Bombs to find the cavern of Jabun, receiving Nayru's Pearl, which also lifts the curse of never-ending night.

Later, the pirates aid Link in his second attempt to rescue Aryll and the other kidnapped girls. After Link defeats the Helmaroc King and Ganondorf is ousted, the pirates take Mila and Maggie back to Windfall Island in exchange for a reward from their fathers; Aryll remains on the ship for the duration of the game, during which she changes her attire into a maroon dress with a skull design. Near the conclusion of the game, the pirates can be seen with an array of other characters to greet Link and Tetra after they emerge from the sunken Hyrule. Setting sail to find a new land to be called Hyrule, Link and Tetra set sail for unknown destinations together with the pirates on their ship.

Interestingly, in a painting in Hyrule Castle that depicts the Royal Family of Hyrule, all of the people in the painting bear likenesses to the seven pirates.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

Tetra's Pirates appear during the Navi Trackers mini-game in the Japanese release of the game. Link must find all of them hidden in various places to win.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Continuing from where The Wind Waker left off, Link, Tetra and the pirates are first seen sailing the Great Sea, searching for the legendary Ghost Ship. Noticeably, after the events of The Wind Waker, the pirates have begun to refer to her as "Zelda" — as she was revealed to be of royal lineage in that game — which annoys her to no end. They eventually come across a seemingly unmanned ship, which Tetra believes to be nothing more than the ship of a rival group of pirates. As she searches the ship, however, it leaves with her on board. Link is stranded on Mercay Island and begins a quest to rescue her. After the ultimate defeat of Bellum, who controlled the Ghost Ship, Link and Tetra reunite with the pirates.

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Though Tetra's Pirates as a group are defunct by the time of the events depicted in Spirit Tracks, it is revealed that at some point following the events of Phantom Hourglass they ended up in the land where Tetra and her crew would found the Kingdom of New Hyrule. Though the fate of most of the crew is unknown, a retired Niko is shown to be alive and living with a new incarnation of Link in Aboda Village. It is revealed by the Lokomo Sage Anjean that she befriended Tetra when she first came to the land and gave her the Spirit Flute which became an heirloom of the new Royal Family of Hyrule started by Tetra. It is also revealed that Princess Zelda in Spirit Tracks is Tetra's granddaughter and Gonzo is ancestor of the ex-Hyrulean soldier turned Royal Engineer, Alfonzo. Both Tetra and Gonzo (and possibly other members of the crew) are implied to have passed away at some point before the events of Spirit Tracks.

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 Legends

Promotional Render of Toon Link in his Standard Outfit (Wind Waker) his unlockable Niko Recolor from Hyrule Warriors Legends

In the Wind Waker storyline, Tetra becomes separated from her crew after parts of the Great Sea are transported to Hyrule of an alternate timeline. As a result, her crew does not appear. However some of its members are referenced. Tetra's Standard Outfit (Great Sea) is a Niko Recolor. As part of the Master Wind Waker DLC, King Daphnes' Standard Outfit (Wind Waker) is a Gonzo Recolor, while Toon Link's Standard Outfit (Wind Waker) is a Niko Recolor.

Subseries warning: Subseries information ends here.

Theories

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.

Painting of Princess Zelda and her aides found within Hyrule Castle

It is possible that each crew member is a reincarnation and/or descendant of one of the Royal Family of Hyrule's aides. This is supported by the fact that each person seen with Zelda in the painting found in Hyrule Castle has an almost exact resemblance to a member of the crew. Considering that Tetra is Princess Zelda, a descendant of the Royal Family, and that the pirates are all Hylian despite that race being rare on the Great Sea, it is likely that the pirates could be the successors of the individuals in the aforementioned painting.

It is likely that when Tetra's ancestor fled Hyrule during the Great Flood they may have been accompanied by the aided and/or their descendants. They may have continued to guard and serve the descendants of royal family in secret, a tradition that was continued by Tetra's crew who respected her despite her young age, possibly a sense of loyalty inherited from their predecessors. It is also possible that after the foundation of New Hyrule, some of the crew members may have become aides and/or Hyrulean Soldiers in order to continue serving the Tetra and the Royal Family of New Hyrule. Is noted that Alfonzo (Gonzo's descendant) is said to have served the royal family as a soldier as his ancestors had done for generations, a statement that seemingly supports this theory.

Theory warning: Theories end here.