Tribes of Skyward Sword: Servants of the Goddess
Posted on September 30 2011 by Nathanial Rumphol-Janc
Okay, so my “Tribes of Skyward Sword” series has so far examined somewhat subliminal connections between some of the key races people wanted to know more about thanks to Skyward Sword‘s prequel status, but with the recent intro sequence leak we now know of a whole bunch of different races that appear during this era of Hyrule’s history. Rather than try to go through each one-by-one, I’m going to try to tackle them all in one giant megapost.
Yes, there are spoilers here for those of you who have been maintaining your stoic composure against recent footage. For the rest of you, enjoy these fun speculative-y bits!
These races all appear to have a close connection to the Goddess at the center of this game’s lore, the one who protects the “absolute power” and seems to have been responsible for Skyloft’s founding. We see them stand alongside her as she raises her sword and harp in defense against the attacks of evil ones. What becomes of them in the coming struggle, we do not know, but it does seem at least that they manage to survive the rule of Ghirahim and his demon legions.
But let’s see what we can tell about each of these tribes individually. Almost all of them are brand-new additions to the series, so this game’s world is sure to be just as fresh as Ocarina of Time‘s was back in its day.
The Gorons
This is the only race whose real history we actually know, so I think it’s fitting that I introduce them first. We’ve seen the Gorons in most Zelda games since Ocarina of Time, so it’s no surprise that they’re back again in Skyward Sword. I find it somewhat intriguing that though the Gorons are traditionally mountain-dwellers, we heard nothing about any Gorons appearing in the Eldin Volcano area – at least not during Game Informer‘s trek through the area.
But…if the Gorons aren’t living on the mountain, then where are they? Perhaps they’ve been coerced down by the coming of the demons? Based on this game’s early timeline placement and connection to Hidemaro Fujibayashi, could we be seeing the event that The Minish Cap reports that caused their numbers to dwindle and forced them out of their mountain home to live in caves? I wonder…
We’ve only seen three Goron specimens so far, but each one says a lot about the race’s status during Skyward Sword. The first was revealed in the San Diego Comic-Con Trailer from mid-summer (you can see the shot above on the right). This Goron wears the traveling pack we’ve come to recognize in the Goron merchants from such games as Wind Waker and Minish Cap – could he be some kind of merchant or forager? He also wears a curious amulet at his waist, what looks to be a small map of sorts (see the “path” coursing along the left edge), with a Triforce emblem visible near the top-left corner.
Based on the Gorons’ close relationship with the Goddess, and in turn the Goddess’s close association with “absolute power,” it seems likely that any knowledge of the Triforce in this game is a remnant of the ancient goddess-centered civilization that dwelt on the surface. We haven’t seen much evidence of such a relationship in Skyloft, but that could be because Skyloft’s purpose is (or seems to be) to protect the absolute power from the clutches of the demons.
The second Goron we’ve seen appeared in the most recent cinematic trailer, released by Nintendo yesterday (at left). He’s not carrying quite as much gear as the previous Goron, but he does have a pickaxe and seems to be hard at work chipping away at a rock wall when Link approaches him. Sounds like the Gorons are miners in this game – just like they were in Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess. Suffice to say that this juxtaposition – a Goron that seems to be a traveling merchant and a Goron that seems to have settled down to mine – makes it really difficult to tell just what’s up with the Gorons this time around.
The third Goron we see is the most minor, but potentially rather telling as well. We see Link fighting an enemy while a Goron walks around in the background. I’m not 100% sure, but it doesn’t look like it’s trying to fight back – if anything, it seems to me that Link has to save this Goron. We may be seeing the Gorons in an era before they really developed a warrior culture. Could Link’s heroic efforts be the inspiration for their courage in later generations?
The Forest Tribe
The second tribe (technically the first we’ve seen, but whatever) is the strange forest-y creatures spotted in the wooded area. Some have described them as penguins, others as beavers – I personally think the comparisons are futile, really. All we really know about them is that they’re quite chubby (some of them are bigger than Link!), quite adorable, and that they have pouches on their backs that they seem to be able to grow plants out of.
If I had to guess, I’d say they’re some kind of seed-based creature. They live in the forest, and many of the larger ones we see seem rooted to the ground – I’m assuming size equates to maturity based on the fact that the absolute biggest one sports a rad mustache – so mayhaps they’re all destined to one day sprout from the ground to grow into larger plants.
Now, that brings up an interesting possibility – if this race will one day turn into trees, does that mean they’d become Deku Tree like creatures? Could these be the offspring of the Deku Tree, thus perhaps the predecessors or “siblings” of the Kokiri? Might Link’s actions in Skyward Sword help them to fulfill their purpose? And here’s another intriguing thought – what if the elder of this race actually becomes the Deku Tree?
Perhaps I’m getting a little ahead of myself – we don’t exactly know enough about this race to say for sure whether they even really are seeds. That’s just the most prevailing impression I’m getting so far.
The Mogmas
Aside from the Gorons, the Mogmas are the only showcased race in Skyward Sword that we really know anything about. They’re mole-like creatures that live in the vicinity of Eldin Volcano and spend most of their time burrowed underground. They seem friendly enough, and even help Link by giving him tools and hints that allow him to track down the key to the Earth Temple.
Given that we know there are Digging Gloves in this game (that look curiously like the Mole Mitts from Minish Cap, I might add), the Mogma immediately made me suspect a Minish Cap connection. I’m not quite sure what that connection might mean, but they definitely seem to be a retroactive introduction of the creators of the Mole Mitts.
Aside from that, even though we’ve seen these guys extensively – there’s not really much to say about them. They seem to keep to themselves. They love jazz, apparently. Oh! They do seem to have held their ground and stuck around at Eldin Volcano despite the monster attacks. That’s probably because of their ability to hide underground, though. So maybe while the Gorons had to flee, they managed to stay behind and protect the Earth Temple. I guess we’ll just have to see, won’t we?
The Aquatic Tribe
Skyward Sword is getting a race of aquatic creatures – but by all appearances, they aren’t the Zoras (at least not in any form we’ve known them to take). They’re some kind of octopus-like tribe, with long snouts like those of Octoroks. We only got a rough sense of what they look like in the intro sequence, and it was difficult to make out, enough so that many on our forums dubbed them some kind of umbrella creature.
But in the recent trailer we got a good look at them! (Goddess, they’re hideous.) They do seem to be the only “friendly” water race this time around, however…which of course begs the question of what’s up with the Zoras in this game. Do they even exist yet? Why aren’t they allied with the Goddess? Is there any hope for their appearance in Skyward Sword?
Honestly, I think the only hope lies in the possibility that they might not be good guys at all this time around. I mean, originally the Zoras were an evil race of fireball spitting river demons, so maybe we’ll see those origins expressed in their actual, in-universe origins as well. Of course, I really was hoping to see what the Twilight Princess style Zoras would look like in the Skyward Sword art style – the pastel textures would have been a nice fit for their already fairly smooth and slick appearances – but maybe, just maybe, if they do appear as bad guys, it’ll be in that form.
But hey – at least an aquatic tribe confirms an aquatic region, right? Oh boy another Water Temple! (And no, I’m not being sarcastic – I love water dungeons.)
The Technological Tribe
The last tribe is the most mysterious. We haven’t seen any of its members directly, but we have seen some of their culture and architecture. they’re a very technologically advanced people – and based on their appearances, they may be mechanical themselves. Just take a look at the statues lining the track in this shot from the E3 2011 trailer:
I made some comments about this race in one of my previous “Tribes of Skyward Sword” articles, entitled “The Shadow Folk”:
There’s a short scene a few seconds later showing Link riding into what appear to be a very technologically advanced temple. Now, what other mechanical marvels have we seen or heard about in Hyrule?
“The ancestors of the Hylians created the temple… Signs of their civilization—ancient, but very sophisticated—are everywhere.”
– Rusl, Twilight Princess
“Yes, according to legend, Hyrule was made by the Hylians, who, as we all know, are the closest race to the gods. But also according to legend, long ago there was a race even closer to the gods, and some say THESE creatures made the Hylians. When they created the people of Hylia, they simultaneously created a new capital, a city that floated in the heavens. They dwelt there…and some scholars believe that this race lives there still, somewhere in the great sky.”
– Shad, Twilight Princess
That’s right, I’m thinking of the Oocca, who were first introduced in Twilight Princess. Several of the elements seen on the surface world seem to fit: the highly sophisticated ancient technology everywhere, the bird- and egg-shaped structures adorning the Sky Temple, and the fact that what we see in Skyward Sword predates the Hylian civilization we know from Ocarina of Time and other games. (Oh yeah, and that whole “civilization in the sky” thing.)
Now, I know what you’re thinking: the figure we saw in the intro scene looks nothing like an Oocca. And you’re right – it really doesn’t. But if the Oocca are capable of mechanical marvels, who’s to say they couldn’t have created these “creatures”? After all, the Oocca’s main power as enshrined in the Temple of Time in Twilight Princess‘s time is the power to make statues come to life. Moreover, if this race really is mechanical, how do we know they aren’t mechanical bodies crafted and used by the Oocca? I think they may be more closely tied to the weird Sky People than we know.
If you’ve got any additional thoughts or observations to share regarding these five tribes of Skyward Sword, leave them in a comment! I’d love to hear your feedback and discuss this subject, since new races are shaping up to be one of Skyward Sword‘s biggest additions to the series’ mythology.
The Skyward Sword Speculation Series is a column that focuses on speculated possibilities for Skyward Sword‘s gameplay and storyline. The idea came from a general speculation article we published in the wake of E3 2010, and I’m bringing it back in the wake of E3 and Comic Con 2011! While I try to make my guesses based on confirmed or suggested facts, bear in mind that they are still just that – guesses – and may or may not prove to be true, or even at all accurate. I’ll be dealing with all kinds of other possibilities in future articles, so stay tuned for upcoming installments!
You can check out the full lineup of Skyward Sword articles at our Skyward Sword Article Archive.
