Cfrock
Keep it strong
One of Twilight Princess's more interesting characters, Ashei is a formidable woman with a military background working to defeat the evil taking over in Hyrule. She's a standout character and a connection can be drawn between her and a standout dungeon, Snowpeak Ruins. The dungeon itself is a delapidated old mansion deep in the Snowpeak region of Hyrule. Covered in snow and surrounded by ice, the isolated residence is now home to two friendly yetis. But who lived there before them? Who called the ruins home while they were still intact?
Who lives in a house like this?
Theory - Ashei and her family are the rightful owners of Snowpeak Ruins.
It's fairly clear from the ruinous state of the mansion, as well as the dimensions of things such as doorways and corridors, that the yetis, Yeto and his wife Yeta, are not the original inhabitants. The mansion was built to accomodate humans, or humanoids at the least. Architecturally, the mansion fits in with what we've seen in Castle Town--the grandiose, almost 17th century architecture definitely appears Hylian in origin. Indeed, the only race that seems to build with stone at all are the Hylians. Ordon styles use wood and a natural aesthetic; Gorons build into solid rock with iron; Zoras hollow out caves of, presumably, soft rock. Snowpeak Ruins bears none of the hallmarks of the architecture of any race except the Hylians, so it is fairly safe to say it is a Hylian structure. The interior attests to this as well, being decorated with paint (which is chipping off nearly every wall), framed pictures and artwork, banners, candelabras, and chandeliers.
The best clue as to who exactly lived in the mansion comes from Ashei herself when Link meets her in Telma's Bar for the first time.
Ashei also knows a lot about the mountains of Hyrule.
These quotes make Snowpeak Ruins the most likely place for her to have lived and grown up. Let's make that connection stronger. Ashei clearly has militaristic bacground, as she herself says: "[Her father] taught me the arts of war". She wears a suit of armour and carries a sword with her. Later in the game she is seem using a bow, too. She expresses a low opinion of the soldiers of Hyrule, describing them at one point as: "sorry excuses for Hyrule soldiers". This shows that she believes soldiers should be brave and courageous, like she is herself. This is likely a result of being taught by a knight, her father, who would have instilled a sense of noble purpose in his daughter.
The mansion itself is clearly a military facility of some sort. While being designed as a residence and being equipped for that purpose, Snowpeak Ruins has more armouries than it does bedrooms. The rooms which don't contain bookshelves and picture frames do contain racks of pikes and swords, shields mounted on the walls, and stockpiles of helmets, boots, and cuirasses. There are cannon littered about the place, some placed in defensive positions, such as the top of a central tower or in annexes that have completely frozen over, others in storage areas. A mechanical system is in place to allow cannonballs to be moved around easily between rooms, as well. There is a common thread of militarism present in both the mansion itself and Ashei, with regard to her clothing, effects, and her background.
In addition to this common theme, Ashei's armour shares similar design traits with the decor of the mansion. The decoractive lines that cover her armour are very similar to the curved, somewhat floral patterns seen in the wrought iron frames throughout the mansion. The colour and sheen of her armour is also similar to the colour and sheen on the armour stockpiled in the mansion's storerooms, as well as the ball & chain, indicating that they may be made of the same materials. The plating on her boots and gauntlets is also similar to the plating on the boots and gauntlets found in the storerooms, indicating that a similar design concept was used in their manufacture. Finally, Ashei's armour sports a design on the frontal clasps that is very similar, if not outright identical, to the most common wrought iron design found in the mansion, as these pictures show:
Ashei is also seen wearing a yeti hide cloak while investigating Snowpeak. The cloak is the same colour, and appears to have the same texture, as Yeta's fur. Given that it is also the same shape as Yeta, it is fair to say that the cloak is likley made from an actual female yeti's pelt. This makes sense, given that humans have always taken the fur of animals native to a particular region to use as appropriate clothing. The yetis are never seen outside of Snowpeak--the furthest they go is into the adjoining Zora's Domain to catch fish--which indicates they are native to the region. Her possession of a yeti hide ties Ashei more firmly to Snowpeak. (It might seem strange that Ashei wears a yeti hide but doesn't seem to know one by sight, given how she never describes her own sketch of Yeto as a yeti, but there are explanations for this. 1) Ashei's cloak is made of a female yeti's pelt and Yeto, a male, is drastically different physically, meaning Ashei might recognise only the female of the species. 2) Yeto and Yeta are the only yetis seen or heard of in the entire game, and the Zoras describe him as the "beast-man of the snowy mountain", which suggests yetis are an endangered species, Yeto and Yeta perhaps being the last of their kind. This would be the reason why Ashei does not recognise them despite coming from the region herself. In this case, the cloak is likely an heirloom.)
Ashei and the mansion share a common theme as well as a common aesthetic based on colours and patterns. She informs us that she lived in the mountains and she backs this up with her knowledge and ability to adapt to the terrain, as well as her possession of a yeti hide. The mansion is Hylian in origin and appears to be the only place a human could possibly live in the region. The evidence strongly suggests that Ashei's home was, indeed, the mansion of Snowpeak Ruins.
Associated speculation
Now we move into areas which are not as clear. An investigation of Snowpeak Ruins raises several interesting questions, questions which don't have any evident answers. However, that shouldn't deter us from asking them and forming a speculative hypothesis because speculation is fun, pure and simple.
One thing really caught my attention while looking into this and it was something Ashei said about her father.
Thinking in this way, some of the evidence found in the mansion becomes, perhaps, a little more sinister. If this man was not a real knight then why does he live in a fortress that is full to the brim with arms, armour, and artillery? There's enough equipment stored in the building to supply a small army and the supply of food that has apparently sustained the two yetis for a long time is equally as suspect in this new light. One of the mansion's more interesting rooms is the one in which the bedroom key is eventually found. The room is designed like a chapel: a long rectangular rooms with two aisles of pews leading to a domed annex at the far end. A household of two (I'll come to that in a moment) has no need of an actual chapel and so this suggests that the mansion was built to accomodate a large number of residents. Is the mansion really a barracks, not a private household?
In regards to my "houseold of two" comment. (Not important, hence spoiler tags to hide.)
The other thing which struck me as suspect was the design of the armour stored in the mansion, particularly the cuirasses and helmets. All of them are far too big for a regular human. Perhaps some of th fatter Hylians could wear them but an army won't be made up of fat people. The armour is very similar to that worn by the lizalfos who weilds the ball & chain. In fact, that lizalfos hides in one of the suits arranged for decoration. Humans are too small, Gorons would be too big, but this lizalfos, larger than the standard variety, is just right. Was the armour, all of it, made for these creatures? It doesn't seem to have been made for any other race. Why is there so much of it, then? If it is equipment for an army then is it possible this army was to be an army of lizalfos?
The lizalfos themselves clearly didn't make it because almost ever rack and shelf containing it, and the weapons, is encased in a thick wall of ice which must have formed over a long time only once the mansion had been abandoned and left to fall to ruin. This means the weapons were there when Hylians were living there (i.e. Ashei and her father). So what's going on? Why would a 'knight' make armour for and weapons for a small army of monsters?
Perhaps it goes back to the "knight in his own right" business. Perhaps Ashei's father had been slighted by the Hylian royal family in being rebuffed, or even never considered, for knighthood. Perhaps he, like Ganondorf in a way, harboured resentment towards Hyrule and sought to do something about it. This gives a slightly more sinister taint to Ashei's upbringing, too.
Her armour is unique to her, even having pink-ish colouring on the patterns. Clearly made for her, specifically, and coupled with her being taught how to be a soldier and, since she learnt from a knight, a leader to some extent, Ashei may have been groomed, essentially, to be an officer in an army raised to attack Hyrule.
Of course, all of this section is highly speculative. You can either take it as fantasy that Ashei's father was, more or less, a bad guy, or you can take it as hidden truth. Either way, she's still pretty fit.
Who lives in a house like this?
Theory - Ashei and her family are the rightful owners of Snowpeak Ruins.
It's fairly clear from the ruinous state of the mansion, as well as the dimensions of things such as doorways and corridors, that the yetis, Yeto and his wife Yeta, are not the original inhabitants. The mansion was built to accomodate humans, or humanoids at the least. Architecturally, the mansion fits in with what we've seen in Castle Town--the grandiose, almost 17th century architecture definitely appears Hylian in origin. Indeed, the only race that seems to build with stone at all are the Hylians. Ordon styles use wood and a natural aesthetic; Gorons build into solid rock with iron; Zoras hollow out caves of, presumably, soft rock. Snowpeak Ruins bears none of the hallmarks of the architecture of any race except the Hylians, so it is fairly safe to say it is a Hylian structure. The interior attests to this as well, being decorated with paint (which is chipping off nearly every wall), framed pictures and artwork, banners, candelabras, and chandeliers.
The best clue as to who exactly lived in the mansion comes from Ashei herself when Link meets her in Telma's Bar for the first time.
Ashei never specifies which mountains but, considering that the only region of Hyrule which is ever actually described as mountainous is Snowpeak, it isn't too difficult to draw a conclusion. Most of Hyrule is covered in hills but only Snowpeak contains mountains, and nestled deep within them is a house of Hylian origins.
Ashei also knows a lot about the mountains of Hyrule.
This shows us that Ashei is familiar with Snowpeak itself as well as the other mountains of Hyrule. Her apparent position as the only member of the resistence group prepared to handle the terrain of Snowpeak, seeing as how she and she alone goes there without even so much as an escort or back-up, goes a way towards confirming her claim of having grown up in a mountainous environment. In Hyrule, only Snowpeak provides this environment.
These quotes make Snowpeak Ruins the most likely place for her to have lived and grown up. Let's make that connection stronger. Ashei clearly has militaristic bacground, as she herself says: "[Her father] taught me the arts of war". She wears a suit of armour and carries a sword with her. Later in the game she is seem using a bow, too. She expresses a low opinion of the soldiers of Hyrule, describing them at one point as: "sorry excuses for Hyrule soldiers". This shows that she believes soldiers should be brave and courageous, like she is herself. This is likely a result of being taught by a knight, her father, who would have instilled a sense of noble purpose in his daughter.
The mansion itself is clearly a military facility of some sort. While being designed as a residence and being equipped for that purpose, Snowpeak Ruins has more armouries than it does bedrooms. The rooms which don't contain bookshelves and picture frames do contain racks of pikes and swords, shields mounted on the walls, and stockpiles of helmets, boots, and cuirasses. There are cannon littered about the place, some placed in defensive positions, such as the top of a central tower or in annexes that have completely frozen over, others in storage areas. A mechanical system is in place to allow cannonballs to be moved around easily between rooms, as well. There is a common thread of militarism present in both the mansion itself and Ashei, with regard to her clothing, effects, and her background.
In addition to this common theme, Ashei's armour shares similar design traits with the decor of the mansion. The decoractive lines that cover her armour are very similar to the curved, somewhat floral patterns seen in the wrought iron frames throughout the mansion. The colour and sheen of her armour is also similar to the colour and sheen on the armour stockpiled in the mansion's storerooms, as well as the ball & chain, indicating that they may be made of the same materials. The plating on her boots and gauntlets is also similar to the plating on the boots and gauntlets found in the storerooms, indicating that a similar design concept was used in their manufacture. Finally, Ashei's armour sports a design on the frontal clasps that is very similar, if not outright identical, to the most common wrought iron design found in the mansion, as these pictures show:
Ashei is also seen wearing a yeti hide cloak while investigating Snowpeak. The cloak is the same colour, and appears to have the same texture, as Yeta's fur. Given that it is also the same shape as Yeta, it is fair to say that the cloak is likley made from an actual female yeti's pelt. This makes sense, given that humans have always taken the fur of animals native to a particular region to use as appropriate clothing. The yetis are never seen outside of Snowpeak--the furthest they go is into the adjoining Zora's Domain to catch fish--which indicates they are native to the region. Her possession of a yeti hide ties Ashei more firmly to Snowpeak. (It might seem strange that Ashei wears a yeti hide but doesn't seem to know one by sight, given how she never describes her own sketch of Yeto as a yeti, but there are explanations for this. 1) Ashei's cloak is made of a female yeti's pelt and Yeto, a male, is drastically different physically, meaning Ashei might recognise only the female of the species. 2) Yeto and Yeta are the only yetis seen or heard of in the entire game, and the Zoras describe him as the "beast-man of the snowy mountain", which suggests yetis are an endangered species, Yeto and Yeta perhaps being the last of their kind. This would be the reason why Ashei does not recognise them despite coming from the region herself. In this case, the cloak is likely an heirloom.)
Ashei and the mansion share a common theme as well as a common aesthetic based on colours and patterns. She informs us that she lived in the mountains and she backs this up with her knowledge and ability to adapt to the terrain, as well as her possession of a yeti hide. The mansion is Hylian in origin and appears to be the only place a human could possibly live in the region. The evidence strongly suggests that Ashei's home was, indeed, the mansion of Snowpeak Ruins.
Associated speculation
Now we move into areas which are not as clear. An investigation of Snowpeak Ruins raises several interesting questions, questions which don't have any evident answers. However, that shouldn't deter us from asking them and forming a speculative hypothesis because speculation is fun, pure and simple.
One thing really caught my attention while looking into this and it was something Ashei said about her father.
A knight "in his own right"? What exactly does that mean? To me, it suggests that her father wasn't officially a knight of Hyrule. If he was, surely she would have simpy said "who was a knight." The qualifier of "in his own right" makes it sound as though her father either wished to be a knight, or believed himself worthy of being one, and thus dubbed himself, claiming a title that wasn't real, or at least official.
Thinking in this way, some of the evidence found in the mansion becomes, perhaps, a little more sinister. If this man was not a real knight then why does he live in a fortress that is full to the brim with arms, armour, and artillery? There's enough equipment stored in the building to supply a small army and the supply of food that has apparently sustained the two yetis for a long time is equally as suspect in this new light. One of the mansion's more interesting rooms is the one in which the bedroom key is eventually found. The room is designed like a chapel: a long rectangular rooms with two aisles of pews leading to a domed annex at the far end. A household of two (I'll come to that in a moment) has no need of an actual chapel and so this suggests that the mansion was built to accomodate a large number of residents. Is the mansion really a barracks, not a private household?
In regards to my "houseold of two" comment. (Not important, hence spoiler tags to hide.)
This is a conclusion drawn from the following quote of Ashei's:
This quote strongly suggests that this possible false-knight never had a son, otherwise he would have had no reason to raise his daughter in that way. Ashei herself never mentions having any brothers or sisters. If she did have a brother then would she not have said, "He taught me the arts of war, just like he did his son" or, "just like he did my brother"? The implication that there never was a son is held within that quote. Ashei also states:
What this suggests is that Ashei's education was focused entirely on military persuits, most likely sword fighting, marksmanship, scouting, and possibly strategy. She was never taught common courtesy. Considering she is the daughter of a (supposed) knight, a member of nobility, she would typically be expected to be educated on nothing but etiquette and common courtesy. What this suggests is that there was no real female presence in Ashei's early life. In other words, her mother was not around. Whether her mother was dead or whether she was just someone her father got pregnant and then left is unknown, but even with a rigorous military education, a mother, or even an aunt or grandmother, would have still made sure a noble lady was taught basic courtesy at the very least. Seeing as how she wasn't, it seems likely there was no female personality in the house. Both of these quotes can be interpretted to mean that Ashei lived completely alone with her father, although there were perhaps servants and tutors, also.
The other thing which struck me as suspect was the design of the armour stored in the mansion, particularly the cuirasses and helmets. All of them are far too big for a regular human. Perhaps some of th fatter Hylians could wear them but an army won't be made up of fat people. The armour is very similar to that worn by the lizalfos who weilds the ball & chain. In fact, that lizalfos hides in one of the suits arranged for decoration. Humans are too small, Gorons would be too big, but this lizalfos, larger than the standard variety, is just right. Was the armour, all of it, made for these creatures? It doesn't seem to have been made for any other race. Why is there so much of it, then? If it is equipment for an army then is it possible this army was to be an army of lizalfos?
The lizalfos themselves clearly didn't make it because almost ever rack and shelf containing it, and the weapons, is encased in a thick wall of ice which must have formed over a long time only once the mansion had been abandoned and left to fall to ruin. This means the weapons were there when Hylians were living there (i.e. Ashei and her father). So what's going on? Why would a 'knight' make armour for and weapons for a small army of monsters?
Perhaps it goes back to the "knight in his own right" business. Perhaps Ashei's father had been slighted by the Hylian royal family in being rebuffed, or even never considered, for knighthood. Perhaps he, like Ganondorf in a way, harboured resentment towards Hyrule and sought to do something about it. This gives a slightly more sinister taint to Ashei's upbringing, too.
Her armour is unique to her, even having pink-ish colouring on the patterns. Clearly made for her, specifically, and coupled with her being taught how to be a soldier and, since she learnt from a knight, a leader to some extent, Ashei may have been groomed, essentially, to be an officer in an army raised to attack Hyrule.
Of course, all of this section is highly speculative. You can either take it as fantasy that Ashei's father was, more or less, a bad guy, or you can take it as hidden truth. Either way, she's still pretty fit.
