| “ | This item is said to contain the spirit of a hero who once saved Hyrule. That hero's aura will envelop the wearer. | „ |
| ~ In-game description of the Ancient Hero's Aspect |
The Ancient Hero is a minor character in the 2017 action-adventure game The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and its 2023 sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. He was a mysterious warrior depicted in an ancient tapestry battling against Calamity Ganon and was the protector of the Princess of Hyrule 10,000 years ago. He is strongly implied to be an incarnation of Link, preceding the Hero of the Wild.
Biography[]
Past[]
Little is known about the Ancient Hero's past, but it is known that he was the protector of the Princess before and during the Calamity's last recorded attack eons years prior to Breath of the Wild. Working together with the princess, the ancient Champions of the Divine Beasts, and numerous Guardians; the Ancient Hero was successful in sealing away Calamity Ganon for several millennia. But the King of Hyrule grew paranoid of the Sheikah technology and had the Sheikah banished from the land, until they agreed to bury them in the earth. While most of them chose to live simple lives, some of them despised the way the Royal Family treated them and would later swear allegiance to Ganon, becoming the Yiga Clan. It is unknown what the Ancient Hero had been up to after the battle.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild[]
The Ancient Hero is only depicted in a tapestry depicting the war against Calamity Ganon found in Impa's residential home, and she tells the newly revived Link the story of the Ancient Hero and the princess's battle against Calamity Ganon. Kass will also share the song that tells the tale of the ancient Calamity.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom[]
While the Ancient Hero doesn't actually appear physically, he appears in the form of the armor called the Ancient Hero's Aspect and when worn, several characters who know about this hero's legend, will recognize the look as the Ancient Hero who fought in the Calamity. The armor can be found on Great Sky Island in the Temple of Time after completing all the shrines in Hyrule.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- While it is likely that the Ancient Hero was an incarnation of Link, this has not been officially confirmed. This would make them the first known incarnation of Link in the main franchise to not appear either human or Hylian, outside of the Hero of Time's use of masks that allowed him to shape-shift.
- While the Ancient Hero is similar to the typical Zonai, it isn't currently known if he is truly a Zonai or related to them in anyway, as his appearance is noticeably different from Rauru and Mineru, and Ganondorf notes that the rest of the Zonai besides those two no longer exist in the world.
