Great Sea (The Legend of Zelda series)
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The Great Sea is the fictional setting of the video game The Wind Waker of The Legend of Zelda series.
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[edit] Physical Geography
By the time of The Wind Waker, Hyrule is beneath the ocean, and only a collection of mountaintops are visible above the water. These form the islands of the archipelago known as the Great Sea.
There are many and varied islands, the largest of which are Outset Island, Dragon Roost Island, Windfall Island, Greatfish Isle, Forest Haven and the Forsaken Fortress. These major islands are obvious references to places in the Hyrule of Ocarina of Time and bear similarities to these places in location, culture, inhabitants, etc. There are large expanses of empty ocean between each island, but not much else. Underneath the ocean, however, part of Hyrule is still intact.
[edit] Human Geography
As Hyrule is imprisoned beneath the ocean, there is no activity on the sea bed.
Above the ocean however, local commerce has improved considerably. Most of the food is gathered from fishing and small farms. There is also a large trade boom with the Gorons, who seemed to have moved off elsewhere.
There is only one major town on the Great Sea, on Windfall Island. However, a large pirate base did exist in the extreme north-west, up until recently. A large tower is erected someway throughout the game in the center of the ocean, but barring that, there is not much else, except the small settlement on Outset. There may have once been a similar settlement on Greatfish Island, but if so it was destroyed before Link ever visited.
[edit] Races and governments
The governments of this time are not very powerful nor large, usually limited to nothing larger than local governments consisting of a village mayor or elder. Part of the reason is that there are very few people in the post-flood world, but there are still many diverse races living in and around the Great Sea.
[edit] Koroks
The Koroks live on a small island with the Great Deku Tree, who is generally believed to have been the Deku Sprout in Ocarina of Time. Under the orders of the Great Deku Tree, the Koroks move throughout the archipelago, planting forests in the hope that it will allow the expansion of the mountaintops to create one large island, combining all the current ones. The Koroks are descended from the Kokiri. The Great Deku Tree claims their appearance changed to adapt to living on the Great Sea.
[edit] Humans and Hylians
Normal humans are now much more common, differentiated from true Hylians by the fact that they do not have pointy elf-like ears. They work and live in small merchant vessels around the ocean, but are mainly based in Windfall Island, where they enjoy trade with the other races around the Great Sea.
[edit] Gorons
The Gorons now live in some unspecified place on or near the Great Sea area and trade with the Hyruleans. On Greatfish Island, there is a trader who is clearly a Goron dressed up ready to trade with people. The Gorons near extinction is due to Hyrule being flooded, as their prime nourishment source, rocks, are no longer in abundance as most of Hyrule lies under water and the islands made of rock are small and far apart.
[edit] Hyrule Royal Family
The Hyrule Royal Family still exists, but has no influence whatsoever on day-to-day affairs, as Princess Zelda is unaware of who she is, and the ancient King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule generally stays at the bottom of the ocean, though he can possess a boat known as the King of Red Lions to conduct business above the waves. It is unknown whether this is a form of telekinesis or if the King is able to transfer his essence to and from the boat itself. Regardless of how he inhabits the King of Red Lions, Daphnes is chained to Hyrule. The King of Hyrule and Princess Zelda do, however, still hold the parts of the Triforce of Wisdom.
[edit] Rito
A strange race of avians, apparently descended from the Zora, the Rito, have developed a strong culture on Dragon Roost Island. They mainly serve as the postmen of the Great Sea, but are fairly populous. They have a strong relationship with the Humans. They are merely beaked humanoid beings until they are given scales by the Wind Spirit Valoo. Once a Rito receives a scale from Valoo, he or she grows wings.
[edit] Pirates
Several pirate groups have sprung up around the Great Sea. They did have a large base in the north-west of the Great Sea before this was taken from them by Ganon. They plunder the ocean in search of treasure, of which there is certainly an abundance. One group of pirates is led by a young girl named Tetra. She has some knowledge of the ancient past of Hyrule and is searching a way to recover these ancient and valuable relics.
[edit] Fishmen
Strange creatures which live in the ocean and draw maps. They like Beedle's All-Purpose Bait.
[edit] Ganon
Ganon seems to have somehow broken free from the seal which the sages placed on him during the events of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (or possibly The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess). The opening cinematic suggests he is responsible for the destruction that forced the gods to flood Hyrule. He still has control of the Triforce of Power, and is actively seeking the other two pieces, with a large army of Moblins and other minions. He has taken over the Forsaken Fortress, and is scouring the Great Sea for Princess Zelda.
It is said that Ganon is the last Gerudo in the land.
[edit] Islands
These islands are in order as they appear on the map:
| Forsaken Fortress | Star Island | Northern Fairy Island | Gale Isle | Crescent Moon Island | Seven-Star Isles | Overlook Island |
| Four-Eye Reef | Mother & Child Isles | Spectacle Island | Windfall Island | Pawprint Island | Dragon Roost Island | Flight Control Platform |
| Western Fairy Island | Rock Spire Island | Tingle Island | Northern Triangle Island | Eastern Fairy Island | Fire Mountain | Star Belt Archipelago |
| Three-Eye Reef | Greatfish Isle | Cyclops Reef | Six-Eye Reef | Tower of the Gods | Eastern Triangle Island | Thorned Fairy Island |
| Needle Rock Isle | Islet of Steel | Stone Watcher Island | Southern Triangle Island | Private Oasis | Bomb Island | Bird's Peak Rock |
| Diamond Steppe Island | Five-Eye Reef | Shark Island | Southern Fairy Island | Ice Ring Isle | Forest Haven | Cliff Plateau Isles |
| Horseshoe Island | Outset Island | Headstone Island | Two-Eye Reef | Angular Island | Boating Course | Five-Star Isles |
[edit] Forsaken Fortress
The fortress, primarily, serves as an enemy stronghold for most of the duration of the game. The master of the island, and also the main antagonist, is none other than Ganondorf. It is heavily guarded from all points of entry, with many shipwrecks surrounding the area as ominous warnings to those that venture near. It is unclear whether these boats were simply passing by or attempting to breach the fortress' walls. Floating explosives are placed quite a distance away from the island as a method to either destroy or deterr incoming vessels from its territory. If one were to manage to get past this frontline defence, the citadel's search beams would pose as a serious problem if one were to infiltrate the fortress. Wall-mounted cannons openly fire at anything that moves that's caught in the search lights, and are most likely the cause of the sinking of the many surrounding wrecks. Inside the walls of the fortress are many of Ganondorf's minions, including Bobokins, Moblins, thieving rats, and most of all The Monstrous Helmaroc King, who keeps close watch of the island from its roost when it is not on searching duties. Phantom Ganon also makes an appearance here.
Aside from its role as Ganondorf's base of operations, the Forsaken Fortress also protects a holding cell situated deep within the premises. It is here that two girls from Windfall Island, Maggie and Mila, and Link's younger sister, Aryll, are held for being suspected of being descendants of Princess Zelda.
Due to the presence of the eye and teardrop symbol, it is implied the Fortress may have once belonged to the legendary Sheikah, suggesting their extinction after Ocarina of Time wasn't as final as it was thought.
[edit] References
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Places in The Legend of Zelda series
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| Great Sea · Koholint Island · Sacred Realm · Termina | ||
| Hyrule | ||
| Death Mountain · Ganon's Castle · Gerudo Valley Hyrule Castle · Kakariko Village · Lake Hylia · Lon Lon Ranch Lost Woods · Spectacle Rock |
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| Ocarina of Time places | ||
