Connection Between Hyrule and Termina: Lost Woods and Fairies

[mahimahimz]

hey guys! so i have a question. to get from hyrule to termina and termina to hyrule, you have to go through lost woods. except, if you get lost in lost woods without a fairy you become a skullkid/stalfos. at the beginning of majora's mask, link manages to travel through lost woods without a fairy and isnt turned into a skull kid.. does that mean that it's possible to navigate between hyrule and termina without a fairy and remain as you originally were?

 

[ihateghirahim]

Well, one would suppose Link might know his way around the Lost Woods. He did grow up as a kokiri. I also don't ever recall a fairy being needed to avoid getting lost. Anyway the fact of the matter is that you can go into the Lost Woods for a significant amount of time without turning, thus allowing Link's travel to Termina.

 

[Castle]

Yeah apparently it's only a matter of time ... maybe the triforce protected him, who knows? Perhaps Link is familiar with the region, even though the area he's exploring in the beginning of Majora's Mask is previously unknown to us.

Even though it's considered common knowledge, maybe it's not the Lost Woods? IDK, is it ever explicitly stated?

 

[bspurka]

At the opening scene in MM link is actually passing out or dying. And thats the Tatl comes along (his new fairy escort). Plus he had Epona so traveling through the lost woods would have made it a quicker journey.

 

[Justac00lguy]

One could only imagine that because Link is the hero he cannot turn into a stalfos. Now there isn't no concrete evidence to back this up but every hero has been Hylian, now if Link where to turn into a stalfos this could harm his intentions and power, as stalfos tend to be under the influence of evil in most cases. It could also be the fact that after Link got sent back he would have had the Triforce of Courage which again may have prevented him from making this transformation.

Now say none of this was relevant to Link being turned into a Stalfos. In my opinion I don't think that Link was lost in the woods, seen in the opening scene in Majoras Mask....Link is riding in Epona in what seems to be a straight path and he doesn't seem in any discomfort, which one could associate with someone being lost. Plus since he grew up in the forest and has the ability to communicate with Saria through the Ocarina he may have the knowledge to make it through the lost woods safely.

 

[felipe970421]

I'll explain as best as I can

When you take a wrong turn in the lost woods, you get back to kokiri forest, this is because you have a fairy, if you didn't have it you'd just get lost and eventually die and turn into a monster, Link couldn't enter the woods before getting Navi (a Kokiri states this at the beginning), when he finally got her, he could enter as he pleased

During the start of Majora's Mask, Link ventured onto the woods without a fairy, trusting that he'd find Navi and she'd guide him back home, he was just riding in Epona looking for her when Skullkid (one fo the other creatures that can navigate the woods) ambushed him, this led to Majora's Mask, after the end of the game, Link either dies in the forest and turns into a monster, or returns to Hyrule (I vote the later, however, that is better discussed somewhere else, and before you say it, no, the hero's shade is not a Stalfos, the thing's beefy and adult sized)

 

[earlynovfan]

Perhaps Majora's Mask is just a story in Link's head when he became a Stalfos!? "
Ooooooooohhhhhhh.

But in all seriousness, he probably knew his way around Lost Woods because of all the times he had to travel there in Ocarina of Time.

 

[Satsy]

Unlike other Hylians, Link would have had the blessing/protection of the Deku Tree/sprout. If he didn't have that protection how would he have gone so long through the woods, as a kid and an adult, without turning? I doubt his simply having a fairy would have sufficed all that time. I suspect there was more to it than that.

It's also never explicitly stated anywhere that he's travelling through the lost woods. Nowhere in-game or in publication (manual, HH) does it say he's going through the Lost Woods. It's simply application of Occam's Razor (doesn't necessarily mean its right).

 

[ihateghirahim]

Can someone get the quote on fairies protecting people in the Lost Woods? I can't get it up here currently.

 

[Din Akera]

Something that I believe is important to this conversation that so many people over look is the name of the woods. If you read the title, the wood in MM that Link starts the game in is called 'The Woods of Mystery' not 'The Lost Woods'.

Yes, the music is the same. Yes, there are similarities between them. But I don't believe they are the same wood. The Lost Woods are much tighter with small trees, large fallen logs and very tightly packed tree clusters (that make up structures resembling walls). Whereas The Woods of Mystery are much more open with very large trees spaced away from each other. Now, I will be the first to recognize that these two distinct 'structures' for the woods are largely due to game mechanics and environment building. But I think it also has to be considered when comparing games.

I'm not saying that The Lost Woods and The Woods of Mystery are unrelated entirely. I think it is very possible that they are connected to each other in some way or are at least both boreal forests. But I don't believe they are the same woods. All we know for sure is that Link set out to look for a lost friend. We join up with Link part way through his adventure to find that friend. We don't know for how long he has been wandering already (before we meet up with him). We don't even know that he started in The Lost Woods. Though I think that is logical because if I were looking for a fairy, that's probably where I'd start.

 

[felipe970421]

Something that I believe is important to this conversation that so many people over look is the name of the woods. If you read the title, the wood in MM that Link starts the game in is called 'The Woods of Mystery' not 'The Lost Woods'.

Yes, the music is the same. Yes, there are similarities between them. But I don't believe they are the same wood. The Lost Woods are much tighter with small trees, large fallen logs and very tightly packed tree clusters (that make up structures resembling walls). Whereas The Woods of Mystery are much more open with very large trees spaced away from each other. Now, I will be the first to recognize that these two distinct 'structures' for the woods are largely due to game mechanics and environment building. But I think it also has to be considered when comparing games.

I'm not saying that The Lost Woods and The Woods of Mystery are unrelated entirely. I think it is very possible that they are connected to each other in some way or are at least both boreal forests. But I don't believe they are the same woods. All we know for sure is that Link set out to look for a lost friend. We join up with Link part way through his adventure to find that friend. We don't know for how long he has been wandering already (before we meet up with him). We don't even know that he started in The Lost Woods. Though I think that is logical because if I were looking for a fairy, that's probably where I'd start.

You are confused, those woods are completely unrelated to the ones we're talking about, we are talking about the woods in the intro

Also, the lost woods are the only forest we know of, and they are Skull Kid's home, so we can assume it's the lost woods

 

[Din Akera]

You are confused, those woods are completely unrelated to the ones we're talking about, we are talking about the woods in the intro
Also, the lost woods are the only forest we know of, and they are Skull Kid's home, so we can assume it's the lost woods

Actually, I think it is quite relevant and very related and I'm well aware of which woods you are referring to. I will look for the game quote; they are referred to as The Woods of Mystery. I was simply drawing a comparison between the woods we see in OoT and the ones we see in MM. Forget about the name difference if that is your issue with my argument. I'm trying to illustrate that they have physical differences and we don't know how long Link has been travelling therefore they might not be the same woods. Who says skull kid can't travel that far too? Plus Skull Kid has supposedly been spending his time in Termina with the giants up until recently. So even if it is a different wood, its not like it is unlikely for him to be there.

My point related to getting between Hyrule and Termina through the lost woods without a fairy and remaining 'normal' is that I don't necessarily believe they are the same wood. Which is an alternate explanation for why Link didn't change into a Stalfos.

 

[DekuPrincess]

Also, the lost woods are the only forest we know of, and they are Skull Kid's home, so we can assume it's the lost woods

How can the Lost Woods of Hyrule be Skull Kid's home when he is tied to the Terminian pantheon by his friendship with the four giants? It is made very clear in MM that Skull Kid is from Termina, not Hyrule. Is it ever stated that Skull Kid lives in the Lost Woods? Based on his connection to the giants I always assumed that he had somehow made it through the portal from Termina to Hyrule and found the Happy Mask Salesman/Link, not that he lived in the Lost Woods.

 

[Locke]

How can the Lost Woods of Hyrule be Skull Kid's home when he is tied to the Terminian pantheon by his friendship with the four giants? It is made very clear in MM that Skull Kid is from Termina, not Hyrule. Is it ever stated that Skull Kid lives in the Lost Woods? Based on his connection to the giants I always assumed that he had somehow made it through the portal from Termina to Hyrule and found the Happy Mask Salesman/Link, not that he lived in the Lost Woods.

His is said to have "returned to the heavens" when the Giants expelled him from Termina. The next place he's seen is in Hyrule. So he must have "returned to Hyrule" (another dimension, a similar concept to "the heavens"), and therefore must have originated from Hyrule. I find this especially easy to believe considering that it's the Lost Woods that provides the background for the existence of Skull Kids (and there are other Skull Kids there), while he's known in Termina simply as "an imp".

 

[Wolf Sage]

Could have sworn that it was Link who taught the Skull Kid Saria's Song in OoT. Not only does the SK hint at this at the end of MM but I thought that it was confirmed at some point (in HH, perhaps?). The real mystery here is how and when did the Skull Kid befriend the Terminian giants. A simple answer to this might have something to do with the labyrinthine qualities of the lost Woods; traveling and crossing over into alternate dimensions within its maze are probably not so much a special ability as it is having the courage and strength to travel deep enough. After all, the LW was shown to link to places other than Kokiri Forest, so why not other dimensions?

With this in mind, it can be assumed that the SK might have been crossing over into Termina on a regular basis during and before the events of OoT. Something of interest that is often overlooked is the emotional state of SK in OoT. He appeared to be distraught over not being on good terms with his friends or something along those lines. Said friends could have been any forest dweller, but it is generally assumed that he was talking about those other SKs. Could he, instead, have been talking about the giants (via retcon)?

The Lost Woods is not only a portal to other regions of Hyrule, but it also appears to be a portal to other dimensions; all it takes is the courage and the gall to search deep enough, or so it seems... <.<