| NOTE: This page is only about his Adult timeline self, as his Fallen timeline and Twilight Princess versions were voted Pure Evil. |
| “ | Pathetic little fool! Do you realize who you are dealing with!? I am Ganondorf! And soon, I will rule this world! | „ |
| ~ Ganondorf taunting Link in Ocarina of Time. |
| “ | It's been a while, boy. You have done well to sneak into my fortress and wriggle you way all the way up here. I suppose the least I can do is commend you for your reckless courage. My name is Ganondorf… And I am the master of the Forsaken Fortress. | „ |
| ~ Ganondorf revealing himself to Link in The Wind Waker. |
Ganondorf Dragmire (also known simply as Ganon in his demon form) is the main antagonist of the 2002 action-adventure game The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.
He is primarily the ruler of the Gerudo, holder of the Triforce of Power, and arch-nemesis of both Link and Princess Zelda. He is also the reincarnation of the original Demon King, Demise, who cursed himself and his foes with eternal reincarnation, thus dooming him to villainy.
He was once the Gerudo leader known as the King of Thieves, before coming into possession of the Triforce of Power, one of three pieces of the Triforce able to grant the user's wishes. Ganondorf constantly attempts to steal the Triforce pieces of Wisdom and Courage, held by Zelda and Link, to obtain the power of the Golden Goddesses and take over the Kingdom of Hyrule.
He has been voiced by Takashi Nagasako.
His Evil Ranking[]
His Villainous Deeds[]
In General[]
- Despite being affected by Demise's curse, he still has a clear moral agency as he had redeeming qualities, most blatantly honor. In the adult timeline, he seeks to amend for the damage he brought to Hyrule and even shows restraint in killing Link and Tetra. This proves that he isn't a complete slave to the curse.
- It also wouldn't matter how his Ganon form corrupts him, even in the circumstances of what happened in the Fallen Timeline, as he brought his own corruption to himself, as shown with what happened to his skin in comparison to most of the Gerudo people.
Ocarina of Time[]
- When denied the Spiritual Stones, he blocks off Dodongo's cavern and infects The Deku Tree and Lord Jabu-Jabu with Gohma and Barinade, respectively, causing the former's death.
- He fakes fealty to the King of Hyrule.
- When Link obtains the Master Sword, he enters the Sacred Realm, steals the Triforce of Power, and destroys Hyrule Castle Town, forcing its residents to move to Kakariko Village.
- He sics Phantom Ganon against Link in the Forest Temple.
- He revives Volvagia and threatens to feed the Gorons to it to set a point to anyone who might oppose him.
- He likely infected the Water Temple with Morpha, causing Zora's Domain to freeze.
- He revives Bongo Bongo and allows it to retreat to the Shadow Temple, causing parts of Kakariko Village to catch fire.
- He kidnaps Zelda and challenges Link to rescue her.
- After being defeated by Link, he attempts to kill him and Zelda by destroying his castle, giving the pair 3 minutes to escape.
- When they successfully escape, he transforms into Ganon in one final attempt to kill Link.
The Wind Waker[]
- In the game's prologue, it is shown that he invaded Hyrule and attempted to take the Triforce. Since no hero appeared to stop him, this forced the gods to flood Hyrule to stop his rampage.
- Sends the Helmaroc King to kidnap various girls with pointed ears in the hopes of finding the Triforce of Wisdom.
- Kills Laruto and Fado with Jallhalla and Molgera respectively to drain the Master Sword of its power.
- He later brags to Link about having done it before attempting to kill him, only failing due to Tetra's intervention.
- Kidnaps Tetra when Link attempts to reunite with her and sics 2 Mighty Darknuts on him.
- Punches Link and knocks him out and later attempts to kill him and Tetra.
- He sends Phantom Ganon after Link in the Forsaken Fortress, and later in a maze in his tower.
- When Link confronts him in his tower, he sics Puppet Ganon against him, and later attempts to kill him and Tetra out of spite when King Daphnes wishes for them to have a future.
Why Doesn't He Stand Out?[]
- While his mass murder helps him pass the baseline, he fails the heinous standards to Malladus, who did worse than him by attempting to commit omnicide with less resources.
- Ganondorf's resources don't help anything, as he has access to the Triforce of Power, which is one of the most powerful artifacts in the entire Zelda universe and in The Wind Waker, had the complete Triforce, showing he had the potential to do worse.
- He has a genuinely tragic backstory as he had spent a lot of his life suffering in the harsh Gerudo Desert.
- In Ocarina of Time, he has a Pet the Dog moment where he goes out of his way to replenish Link's health and magic just before their battle out of no pragmatic reason.
- He does care for his people, as he became jealous of the green fields of Hyrule and wanted a better life for them and himself.
- He is a well-intentioned extremist as he wishes to provide a proper home for his people via restoring Hyrule.
- He is honorable:
- He genuinely respects Link's courage, calling him "the hero of time, reborn".
- He spares Link's life when the boy is brought to him by the Helmaroc King in a genuine act of mercy, and commends him for his courage after Link defeats his minion.
- He refrains from killing Tetra, only resorting to slapping her and knocking her out.
- After punching Link, he assures the boy that he won't kill him and just needs the Triforce of Courage, and even attempts to free himself from the cycle that binds him, Link, and Zelda together.
- His death is portrayed sympathetically, as he smiles and says the wind is blowing before closing his eyes and turning to stone.
Trivia[]
- The most accurate Ganon to be defeated by Link's Hero of Time incarnation is most likely this one, as Ganon from the Fallen Timeline was not defeated by Link's aforementioned incarnation, and in Twilight Princess, he never fought that incarnation.
External Links[]
- Ganondorf on the Villains Wiki
- Ganondorf on the Zelda Wiki
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 Villainous Benchmarks
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Vaati | Interlopers | Twinrova | Ganondorf | Phantom Ganon | Bellum | Princess Hilda | Master Kohga | Colgera | Marbled Gohma | Mucktorok | Queen Gibdo See Also |