Darknut

Darknut

Artwork from The Legend of Zelda Instruction Booklet

Games	The Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening Oracle of Seasons Oracle of Ages Four Swords The Wind Waker Four Swords Adventures The Minish Cap Twilight Princess Echoes of Wisdom
Location	Link's Awakening Overworld Kanalet Castle The Minish Cap Dark Hyrule Castle Echoes of Wisdom Suthorn Ruins
Threat
Attacks	Link's Awakening Arrow Contact Oracle of Seasons Blue Darknut Arrow Contact Red Darknut Contact Oracle of Ages Blue Darknut Arrow Contact Red Darknut Contact The Wind Waker White Darknut Jab Kick Slash Jump Attack Twilight Princess Unarmored Darknut Sword Swing Armored Darknut Sword Swing Sword Slam Echoes of Wisdom Gray Darknut Axe Swing Blue Darknut Axe Swing
Effective Weapons	Link's Awakening Sword - 2 hits All other weapons - 1 hit Oracle of Seasons Blue Darknut Sword - 5 hits Red Darknut Sword - 3 hits Oracle of Ages Blue Darknut Sword - 5 hits Red Darknut Sword - 3 hits The Wind Waker White Darknut Bombs - 4 hits Arrows - 8 hits Light Arrow - 1 hit Echoes of Wisdom Gray Darknut Sword - 2 hits Arrows - 4 hits Bombs - 1 hit Blue Darknut Sword - 6 hits Arrows - 4 hits Bombs - 2 hits In General Sword

Darknuts are recurring enemies in The Legend of Zelda series. They are humanoid figures who use a sword and shield to attack and defend, respectively, just like Link. Most battles against them are of the classic sword-and-shield variety.

The Legend of Zelda

Main article: Red Darknut

Main article: Blue Darknut

Darknuts appear in The Legend of Zelda in two variations: Red Darknuts and Blue Darknuts. Blue Darknuts take more hits to defeat than red ones. These enemies often appear in groups of three or more, making them tough to defeat in constricted areas. They are commonly found in dungeons. One of the easiest ways to defeat them is with the use of bombs.

Link's Awakening

In Link's Awakening, Darknuts only appear near and inside of Kanalet Castle, and were the ones who chased off Richard. Darknuts here behave very similarly to sword-wielding Soldiers from A Link to the Past, charging at Link while defending their front with the large shield they carry.

Ocarina of Time

Main article: Iron Knuckle

In Ocarina of Time, Darknuts do not appear, but enemies similar to Darknuts can be found in the Spirit Temple and Ganon's Castle, called Iron Knuckles.

Oracle of Seasons & Oracle of Ages

Main article: Golden Darknut

In Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages, like in The Legend of Zelda, Darknuts come in either red or blue, the blue ones being the stronger of the two. Alongside the red and blue varieties is a golden Darknut, which appears only in Oracle of Seasons on the Western Coast during spring. Besides the typical sword-wielding Darknut, there are also Darknuts who throw spears instead, although these Darknuts cannot defend themselves from the front.

Four Swords

Four Swords Darknuts look like yellow-armored knights wielding large spiked balls. They will swing it around while moving towards Link (or Links), and if they are close enough for a certain time, they will launch the ball in a straight line—a very long-ranged attack—and then bring it back close to themselves and stop moving. This is Link's only chance to attack, since the fast moving ball makes it impossible to approach at any other time. They can take a number of hits, and without both Sword Shards can be hard to defeat. They are found within areas that close all exits until Link defeats the enemies that appear—like mini-boss battles of sorts—and a lightning bolt strikes the ground to make them appear. They are very seldom—if ever—fought alone, making them (and the enemies Link fights at the same time) very hard to defeat.

The Wind Waker

Main article: Silver Darknut

In The Wind Waker, Darknuts come in several varieties, which are color-coded according to their strength. Some of the stronger Darknuts have capes. The first Darknut is fought as a mini-boss in Tower of the Gods. All Darknuts have somewhat impregnable armor that can be removed either through repeated damage or through cutting the straps holding the armor in place, as well as by parrying, which lets Link remove either their helmet, or their armor. The unarmored Darknuts can finally be damaged, but they are also much quicker and more nimble, allowing them to evade Link's blows, as well perform new moves. Link can also disarm the foes and pick up their powerful sword, which has a long range, and can break pillars. While disarmed, Darknuts fight with various punches and kicks, although they try to recover their weapon as quickly as possible.

The Minish Cap

Darknuts are some of the toughest enemies Link faces in The Minish Cap. Like in The Wind Waker, they come in a variety of colors. The black versions have the most health and use a 'tornado thrust' attack in which they stab forwards whilst unleashing a powerful rotary energy in their sword. Their sprites are 2D representations of the Darknuts from The Wind Waker and share the same weak point. However, unlike in The Wind Waker, Darknut armor in The Minish Cap cannot be removed or destroyed.

Twilight Princess

Main article: Green Darknut

Link first faces off against a Darknut in the mini-boss battle in the Temple of Time. From there, Link will encounter Darknuts as regular enemies from time to time. When battling one, look for openings in its defense and attack it with the sword. It uses its massive sword to attack, but this can be blocked with the shield. The Back Slice works well against the Darknut but even that will be blocked quite often. The best bet is to hold out a shield and keep side jumping, at which point he can be hit with the sword; the Shield Attack and Helm Splitter if the attacks pop-up. Each time a Darknut is hit, a piece of armor will break off. After several hits, all his armor will be removed and he'll toss away his massive sword and pull out a more traditional blade.

• 

  A Darknut at the start of a battle

• 

  Link defending against an attack

• 

  Link avoiding a Darknut's sword throw

• 

  A Darknut after taking its armor off

In the second phase of the battle, Link can simply wait for him to attack, dodge its strikes, and then slash at him repeatedly with the sword. Alternatively, using the Back Slice attack will cause the Darknut to block. Once it blocks the attack, it will be vulnerable for a few seconds at which point Link can slash at him with his sword.

When facing multiple Darknuts at once, it is recommended to tackle them one at a time. Darknuts also appear in the Hyrule Castle and Cave of Ordeals.

Echoes of Wisdom

"A martial monster in sturdy armor. It is slow and plodding, but its armor makes it utterly immune to blunt-force attacks."

— Echoes of Wisdom in-game description

Link encounters Darknuts while exploring the Suthorn Ruins. They appear in both gray and blue varieties, with the blue being the stronger of the two. They wield an axe, which is their primary method of attacking. Link can use the Hylian Shield to defend against their attack, which will temporarily knock them back and leave them open to damage. Bombs can be used to defeat them, however, a Darknut will jump over a placed bomb that has not yet exploded to continue moving towards Link.

Non-Canon Appearances

The Faces of Evil

Darknuts are tough enemies that patrol Militron and Fortress Centrum. They wield large swords and shields. They have a full body of armor and can be quite difficult to defeat. It takes numerous sword slashes to penetrate the thick armor of the Darknut. Link must keep his distance, and shoot beam attacks towards the Darknut. Alternatively, Link can use a bomb to defeat the Darknut. Even though they are rare and sturdy enemies, they will only leave a single red Rupee as a spoil.

The Wand of Gamelon

Darknuts can be found patrolling the Dodamai Palace and Reesong Palace. They look like and act the same as they did in The Faces of Evil.

See also

• Iron Knuckle

Trivia

• Link is shown battling with a shiny metallic knight resembling a Darknut from The Legend of Zelda in the Ocarina of Time Space World (1995) Tech Demo. In later beta versions, the Darknut model is improved and can be seen wearing gold armor. However, this enemy was never used in the final version of the game.
• A Darknut is named a Tartnuc in some Japanese strategy guides.

Gallery

Main article: Gallery:Darknut

• 

  Roaming Darknut artwork from Million Publications The Legend of Zelda Strategy Guide

• 

  Red Darknut artwork from Million Publications The Legend of Zelda Strategy Guide

• 

  Blue Darknut artwork from Million Publications The Legend of Zelda Strategy Guide

• 

  Artwork from Kadokawa Shoten The Legend of Zelda Strategy Guide

• 

  Red Darknut sprite from The Legend of Zelda

• 

  Blue Darknut sprite from The Legend of Zelda

• 

  Sprite from Link's Awakening

• 

  Red Darknut sprite from Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages

• 

  Blue Darknut sprite from Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages

• 

  Sprite from Four Swords

• 

  Artwork of a Silver Darknut from The Wind Waker

• 

  Darknut (Earth Temple) figurine from The Wind Waker

• 

  Mighty Darknut figurine from The Wind Waker

• 

  Sprite from The Minish Cap

• 

  Sprite from The Minish Cap

• 

  Artwork from Twilight Princess

• 

  A Darknut before a battle in Twilight Princess

• 

  Sprite from The Faces of Evil and The Wand of Gamelon

• 

  A Darknut in Link's Awakening (Switch)

• 

  Darknut trophy with text from Super Smash Bros. Brawl: Randomly obtained.

• 

  Trophy from Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• 

  Link fighting a Gray Darknut in Echoes of Wisdom

References

1. ↑ The Legend of Zelda: Encyclopedia, pg. 173
2. ↑ "A knight who lives in the labyrinths. He has lots of attacking power. He repels Link's attacks from the front with his shield.", The Legend of Zelda Instruction Booklet (US NES Version), pg. 36
3. ↑ "These heavily-armored knights use their massive shields to deflect your attacks.", The Legend of Zelda Instruction Manual (US GBA Version), pg. 27