Design a Boss | Lupus

Part i


Link




Part ii



Link



5th Place:

'Tis one bizarre monstrosity which must be undefeated by unconventional means. Using complex items such as the Cosmos Tear along with your intuition, the battle demands quick and critical thinking to leap through the phases of this boss. The third phase is an intriguing approach of inflicting damage to the foe along with different incarnations of the Hero fighting as one.


Chaos: Anarchist Warrior by Katalyvos| Zelda Universe



Lloyd: "...intriguing concepts."

Vynrah: "Idea of having past/future Links teaming up and highlighting their differences is interesting."

Hylian Dan: "I am impressed by the effort that went into this... a post that shows a lot of thought."


4th Place

This boss is of unpredictable nature, and it promises a thrill. Here we see a mix of comic relief and thought provoking instances. Basically, it is more than a cinema project gone wrong-- much more than fighting a living prop as well. It is a humorous and fun match against the unexpected, and if it were in a Zelda game, it'd surely be one of the most memorable of boss fights. The aftermath of the battle has its very nice and fun bonuses.

Bad Director: John by Sam | Zelda Universe

Lloyd: : "Of all entries trying to be edgy, this one succeeds."

Vynrah: "I really enjoy his humor in the beginning and the eccentric nature of John. Very cute and charming."


Part iii




Link


3rd Place:

Expecting something minimalistic from this particular user, what is presented is an epic idea of a Legend of Zelda boss. While bosses with many phases are tedious, this particular foe would be a very interesting challenge. Using the Cane of Arik and the Temporal pendant for casting lush wind and manipulating time respectively, the player relies on precise motion and aim to take down this boss who also happens to reside in a classic setting although very nicely remodeled.


Storm Cloud Mystic: Fearion by Double A | Zelda Universe

Lloyd: Originally wrote something along the lines of wretched, but the word I may have been looking for was wicked.

Vynrah: This lengthy battle is described with impeccable detail and sounds quite fun, as if it were the sword fight of the century. The pendant idea is interesting and the balance of pros and cons forces the wielder to think before they use it, lest they be left open for extra damage. A great entry that had a ton of effort put into it.




Part iv



Link



2nd Place:

In the many settings and atmospheres of the Legend of Zelda series, the farthest one goes are somewhat large forests. This boss constructed itself in a very lush and dense jungle which only invites the player to primal scream while fighting against no more and no less than a TEMPLE itself. Making use of the hookshot as a vintage item, this concept incorporates the motion of the Wiimote to get to the fun and interesting part of this great fight which is struggling in a tug of war against this structural beast to ultimately conquer its heart and, yes, get your sword back which is initially mugged by the boss's vines.




TEMPLE by River Zora | Zelda Informer

Lloyd: Very glad to see a cool concept represent ZI among the many entries.

Hylian Dan: Creative concept described effectively, conveying a clear idea of how the battle plays out. I like how the different skeleton types are used. The battle features cool and interesting mechanics without going overboard and losing plausibility. Solid entry overall.



Part v




Link



1st Place:

What lies in that silent and dark space? This is a concept that is intriguing since the beginning, and it is a very promising one at that. Upon finding a magnificent object called the Cane of Phantom Sound, players may find that swinging the Wiimote with it emits a sound that is very near you and then quickly runs to the distance of where the Hero stands. With the help of a partner, the beast that resides in that silent and dark space may be thrillingly and enjoyably slayed with a logical and fun strategy. Unlike many concepts, this one succeeds in feasibility-- it is something that definitely works and could possibly resemble one of the unseen challenges of the upcoming ZWii.
Congratulations to this user for submitting the best boss concept in Design a Boss | Lupus.





Blinded Behemoth: Rukkus by Hey! Listen! | Zelda Universe

Lloyd: Like I said, it's an excellent concept of simple fashion, and it's exciting from beginning to end.

Vynrah: Link's battle with Rukkus may not have been the most complex, but all of its components were top notch and very well-described. The battle is challenging without being tedious and both of the items that are introduced are utilized nicely throughout the battle. Hey! Listen! paints a beautiful picture of both his boss and its environment, the atmosphere is simply stunning. It is obvious that a great deal of effort and thought have gone into this entry, I am quite glad to see it get the recognition it deserves.

Hylian Dan: Good entry! Effort is evident in the formatting and art provided, the details create a pretty clear image of the battle he has in mind, and the battle itself sounds entertaining. The mechanics are solid and feasible, for one thing, and the battle doesn’t last an infinitely long time. I like how the final stage has you pulling out the sword so the monster can use its eye, after you’ve been warned about its eye. Nice way to cap off the experience.



CONCLUSION

So concludes this round of Design a Boss. It took a while to get here, but we're here nonetheless. First off, million thanks for all of you that participated. I wanted to organize a real Legend of Zelda event down here at ZU and NS2 as well as spread out to other sites like ZI, and I hope all of you enjoyed your time while participating. Congratulations to the participants with the leading concepts for sharing something really awesome among the many people that participated.
Also, I can't thank Vynrah, Hylian Dan, Feathers McGraw, Nathanial Rumphol-Janc, and Rockerfox enough for helping out with the great task of reviewing each entry to determine the best. Rockerfox, who has been part of this contest for a long time, was unfortunately unable to judge this time due to various reasons, and we immediately understood.
Once again, thanks to everyone who took part of this. One last thing I'd like to mention is that I may take a long break from organizing a Design a Boss, BUT I really hope it has been of much interest to the site and the users who had the opportunity to take part of it. Something I'd love to see is someone else start to run another contest with fresh ideas. If the staff of the site are too busy to care, then hopefully a more dedicated user to the series and the site may have interest in organizing the next boss contest.

Design a Boss | Lupus brought 61 persons to share Legend of Zelda boss ideas and invited new users to join ZU and ZI to take part of it. I hope this event makes itself at home here at ZU and hopefully grow more popular through other Legend of Zelda communities.



List of Entries

Est. 2004
The First and Original Legend of Zelda Boss Concept and Contest Thread


Hello and Welcome to Design a Boss! This is the place where you share your great ideas by designing a boss or boss battle. Five years of brain-storming, sharing, participating, and having fun.


Design a Boss

This thread has spanned to a real storm of great ideas and bizarre concepts of what Legend of Zelda bosses really should be. The thread simply started as time killer and a way to see what others had in mind for future bosses. The thread became hot immediately, and I began a contest to make it a more exciting thread in which more people would participate and add more detail to their concepts. At first intended to see what others wanted in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (back then referred to as LoZ'05,) the thread now has a new meaning: We contemplate the meaning of Boss and the Zelda universe to design dynamic battles and present a possible challenge concept for Legend of Zelda enthusiasts.



Concept

Fighting a Boss is essential in the Legend of Zelda. It is an art and a great accomplishment to slay what lies deep in the dungeon or temple. Once slain, love is spread and virtue is granted. But what makes the fight such a great art? Can you design such a challenge for the hero? And how can the hero succeed?



Rules

-You may submit 1 entry ONLY.
-Entries are posted on this thread.
-An entry may only be submitted to one of the participating sites. Do NOT attempt to submit different entries in the different participating forums. Multiple entries will result in disqualification.
-Please do not flame or spam on this thread. Spam makes it hard to find certain posts.
-Avoid in-depth criticism or harsh comments towards submitted concepts.
-Have fun


Judges

POE-GUY (Nsider 2)/ Lloyd Irving (Zelda Universe)
Rockerfox (Nsider 2)
Hylian Dan (Zelda Universe)
Vynrah (Zelda Universe)
Crab Helmet (Zelda Universe)
Nathan (Zelda Informer)


How we judge

-Originality: If the boss is original, its chances of winning are higher. Do NOT compare your concept to other things that are already out there such as villains from a movie, a boss from another game, etc.

-Detail and Description: The boss battle needs to be clear. If we can get an good picture in our mind on how you are fighting or seeing a boss, then it gets a high score on detail. Try to make your entry a neat one, too.

-Effort: We've been basing ourselves on "effort" for the past contests. Effort involves presentation, detail, and other things. It does NOT mean you need to submit a concept that took hours to make.

-Grammar: We try to disregard grammatical mistakes here and there, but if it gets overwhelming, the chances of winning may be low.


Prizes

1st Place: (1) Nintendo DSi†. Detailed boss concept illustration. Custom signature. (1) Secret Prize.
2nd Place: Game of choice (Limited to PS3, Wii, Xbox360). Custom signature.
3rd Place: Game of choice (Limited to PS3, Wii, Xbox360). Custom signature.

Other prizes TBA

The deadline for Design a Boss | Lupus was January 30, 2010.





________________________________________________

†. Many participants live outside of the U.S and may have a different format of consoles in their region. The Nintendo DSi and home console software will be awarded in the appropriate region format.

-Example and FAQ-


Design a Boss Concept Example


The following is an example of a boss concept written by Rockerfox.

Originally Posted by Rockerfox

Now this is just a quick example, showing the basic structure that makes reviewing the bosses easier, as well as conveying all the important information. I'm not saying you should follow this model exactly, and that this is the specific amount of detail that we would like, but it's about what I usually give good marks to.

----- α -----


● Doran Dhole ●

Description:

-A large four legged beast thought to be extinct to many living in Hyrule. The Dhole as it is commonly referred to, is generally described as four feet long, black, and quite muscular compared to its brethren. Although sources frequently differ on the size of the beast, they all describe as having short black hair and piercing blue eyes, which shine through the darkness. The Dhole boasts 3 inch, fully retractable claws that can shred its prey to pieces within mere seconds. Because of the beast's muscle structure it can close in quickly on prey, making encounters with Dhole deadly.

Background information:

-One of the most astounding things about the Dhole is its reputation as a trickster in Hylian culture. Legends about the Dhole say that it can change its shape, often appearing to passerby persons as a weary or injured traveler, in need of desperate help. It is a devious beast that has no qualms about murder.

Boss encounter:

-Link encounters the Dhole towards the end of his adventure while wandering through the Eastern canyons past the haunted wasteland of Hyrule. He has accidentally found himself within a sandstorm when the Dhole appears to him in the distance, taking the form of a man. Upon seeing the man, Link rushes over only to find that the man is gone; with no sign that there was a person there to begin with. He shrugs it off as an illusion and continues on forwards through the storm until he hears the cry of what sounds like a dying man. He searched frantically, but again found nothing, until he caught sight of a man walking towards him at a brisk pace. Right before his eyes, the shadow of the man in the storm began to transform, falling to his hands, his face elongated and link now caught sight of the piercing blue eyes of the Dhole as it leapt out of the storm, knocking him onto his back.

Battle:

The Dhole has three primary attacks

The Lunge and Latch:

-Its first attack is a vicious lunge that can take the Dhole across a distance of 10 feet, which upon making contact takes off two hearts. After the lunge, the Dhole can then latch on to its enemy and segues into one of its other primary attacks.

Somersault Kick:

-The Dhole can detach from its enemy and perform a somersault kick, whereby it extends the claws in its back paws and maims its prey while jumping off of the prey and preparing for its next possible attack. The somersault kick will add another two hearts damage to Link, though when used in combination with the Lunge and Latch will do an extra two hearts damage.

Brutal bite:

-With the Brutal Bite, the Dhole will target a specific area of the body and clamp down on it for a brief period of time, doing a heart per second. This may last up to a total of 5 seconds. Usually this attack is used in conjunction with the Lunge and Latch but can be used alone like the Somersault Kick .

Special abilities:

-When the Dhole is close to death, its eyes will change to black and all of its previous attacks will add another one to two hearts worth of damage. Combined with this, the beast will attack more often and move faster in general.

-One other special ability is for the Dhole to change shape within battle and overpower its prey with whatever shape it chooses to take.

Beating the Dhole:

-Link must make great use of his dodge and parry abilities in this fight, because it is almost impossible to attack the Dhole from the front. Link can also use Deku nuts to briefly stun the Dhole, but this only works on a random basis, making the strategy of simply parrying far better.

Endgame:

-The final stage of the battle has the sandstorm kick up to the point where visibility is minimal at best. Link must watch for the Dhole's silhouette in the distance and fire a light arrow towards the beast. This will blind it, giving Link time to rush in and deliver the final blow, lopping off the Dhole's head.


----- ω -----

Originally Posted by Lloyd Irving

It's worth noting that the above example has one of the more important aspects of a good concept. The boss design is well conceived and written in a way that gets to the point. The concept is well presented with separation of paragraphs that regard the boss's description, it's encounter, battle, etc. The concept is also adorned with different fonts and titles that make it easier and more enjoyable to read. One of the most important things is also coherence when trying to achieve originality, detail, and effort in your design.

Users may want to emphasize the supposed game-play that the boss is based on or stress some of the procedures of using the Wiimote or the Nintendo DS touchscreen. At least keep in mind that the current systems featuring the nearest Legend of Zelda titles are the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS.
Here are other good concepts to consider. The following are the winners of the Design a Boss NSii Debut contest:

1. Father of the Voodoo: Vudurah by man_with_thooo [ZU]
2. B.A.W.C.: Big, Angry, Wayward Cucco by Sakume [ZU]
3. Spectral Organist: Discordia by Crab Helmet [ZU]

FAQ
(Most of these questions were only intended to be asked.)


Q: The longer, the better, right?


A: NO. We really don't want a Harry Potter Book to be submitted. This thread and contest is to come up with new ideas and have fun while competing. If you really MUST or want to submit a long written concept, you are more than welcome. Shortening sentences and paragraphs is never a bad idea, though.


Q: When's the deadline?


A: The deadline for Design a Boss | Lupus is January 10, 2010. Judging and announcement takes a week.

Q: How many concepts may I submit?


A: ONLY ONE (1).


Q: How do I higher my chances of winning?


A: There are many ways. A really good one is by EDITING your entries before they are judged.

Q: What sites are participating?

A: Currently, Nsider2 and Zelda Universe are the participating sites of Design a Boss | Lupus. It is very likely that there will be one more participating site later.


Q: What if I have more questions?

A: Don't hesitate to ask more. Post your concerns on the thread or send me a PM if you want to avoid possible spam-- there's a lot more space for the FAQ

****, I was hoping I could make two entries like last time. Ah, well, more time to write and focus on just one.

1 Entry only? ****. Oh well, I guess I'll have to randomly edit mine to make it sexier.

Malevolent Machine

~Sanguimaxim~



Origins:

At the beginning of time, the three Golden Goddesses, Din, Nayru, and Farore, created all of existence. Din, with her mighty fiery hands shaped and created the earth. Nayru, with her great wisdom created the laws of the land. And finally, Farore created all living beings that would uphold the law. The only beings possible of this were the Oocca. For these godlike lifeforms were the only ones that could because, in the Goddesses eyes, they were perfection (other than themselves of course). The great deities then each left a triangle of infinite possibilities. These three holy triangles became known as the Triforce. The Oocca were given two tasks, the first task was creating the lifeforms that were necessary for the balance of life. And the other, to protect the Holy Triforce and the Sacred Realm.

The Oocca, with their seemingly infinite magic and technological prowess, created three objects. The first was the Temple of Time, a magical sanctuary that housed the Triforce and later, the Master Sword. The second was the Dominion Rod, a royal scepter that could breathe life into statues.

The final creation was Sanguimaxim, a human-like robot whose purpose was to moderate the land of Hyrule. In ancient tales of lore, it was said to be taller than the clouds, heavier than a mountain, more powerful than a crashing tsunami, faster than lightning, wiser than any sage, and it had a more powerful will and unshakable spirit than the goddesses. Most commonfolk believed these legends to be myths.

How wrong they were.

There was a mutiny in Hyrule Castle by a group of rebels who tried setting all of Castle Town ablaze. Sanguimaxim crashed down to destroy the terrorists, it succeeded in stopping them but it killed tens, if not hundreds of innocent people in it's destructive wake. It was at this moment that it found joy. Joy in the pain of others. The sheer happiness of looking into crying eyes of innocent children, staring into their soul and seeing their misery and suffering. Seeing tears of blood flow from innocent bystanders made him feel superior. All Sanguimaxim knew was that he liked this feeling, he did not stop to ponder how a non-living thing could feel, or the consequences of his rash actions. He was seduced by the taste of blood.

But while he slew many people, he noticed something. Injustice. People stole from each other, lied to their closest friends, and a number of things that are far too horrible to name. The Holy Moderator had chosen his verdict. The land of Hyrule was to exist no more. But before he could lay waste and decimation to the land, the Oocca came down from the sky to dismantle him. They took Sanguimaxim's power, wisdom, courage, will, and magic and shaped these five essences into orbs. The Oocca used these orbs as beacons of light for their Royal Hall located in Archaeix, the Ooccan capital city. A powerful magic was then used by the Oocca to make every living thing in Hyrule (including themselves) forget the incident with Sanguimaxim and his existence. This magic worked like a charm and everyone forgot about it.

Or so they thought.

The Game:

In this (hypothetical) game there is another country next to Hyrule in the west that was conquered by Ganondorf. It is called Dralia and its inhabitants are called the Drail. They are an evil tribe that look like this. Before the game, the Drail use their mind control powers to dominate the minds of the Oocca, the Sheikah, and the Gerudo. Then, at the beginning of the game, all four races attack Hyrule. The Oocca destroy the villages and steal the legendary Master Sword, which is the only sword that can kill Ganondorf. The Gerudo attack and nearly destroy Hyrule Castle and Castle Town. And the Sheikah break into the Temple of Time and allow the Drail to enter and control the Sacred Realm. When the Drail enter the Sacred Realm, like usual, the Triforce of Courage goes to Link, the Triforce of Wisdom goes to Zelda, and Ganondorf gains the Triforce of Power. There is also a very heavy emphasis on the use of magic for this game.

The Hero's Quest:

While Link was in Death Mountain Fortress, he received the tornado bolas, slayed the boss running amok, and freed the Goron warrior princess, Fyrra. After Link frees her she says

"Thank you my sweet goro-hero. Tee hee hee! Now I can fight the Drail with my lover, Biggoron. But first, have you heard of the Master Sword? Probably not, as you're not royalty. Anyway, the Master Sword is the only sword capable of killing true evil. But not just any fool can use this weapon, only important heroes can use it. Someone like............ Me! Anyways, when the Oocca attacked, they stole it from it's resting place. I need it so I can slay that wretched Ganondorf. Anywho, I need you, goro-hero, to get it from the Ooccan capital city in the sky, Archaeix. So yeah, I don't know how you can get there, but good luck!"

After much searching, Link finds a ranch with a Pegasus that takes him up to Archaeix. Upon arrival, he meets an Oocca named Coocoo. When they talk, Coocoo says, "Are you the messenger? The messenger to the sky? Thank the goddesses, we have someone to liberate us! You see, I am the last sane Oocca, the rest of my kin are merely mindless slaves to the Drail. They are controlling the others through the five beacons of light in our Royal Hall. I need you to get to all of them and warp each one to the Clock Tower. Once all five are there, I will use a powerful spell to collapse the Clock Tower, destroying the orbs. Got that?...... Good. Now, the Royal Hall is located just past the general store over there. Am I forgetting anything........... Oh yes!! I will grant you the warp spell. This spell warps most objects to a nearby place." The 'get item' music plays and you now can use the warp spell. Coocoo then tells you to hurry to the Royal Hall while he hides in the Clock Tower. And with that, Coocoo spins around and around going faster and faster until he disappears.

There are many buildings in Archaeix, but when you go inside one of them, there is nothing inside. After you get about a block away from the Hall, there is a cutscene where several Kargarocs fly in with Oocca riding on their backs. These Oocca's eyes are completely black and their mouths are replaced by a gaping black hole. These Oocca will attack you with magic, similar to the kind that Zant from Twilight Princess fires. The Kargarocs attack normally. Then, an Oocca appears on the top of each building between you and the Hall. You have to defeat all the Oocca in order to be able to enter the Hall. To defeat the Kargaroc riders, just slash at them normally. For the ones on the roofs, you have to use your tornado bolas (works exactly like the boomerang, except you can also bring stunned enemies to you and tie multiple enemies together) to bring the possessed Oocca near you, then slash at them several times.

The Dungeon:

When you enter the Royal Hall, there is a large room similar to the Library of Congress Reading Room. When Link steps into the room, he looks around and spots a giant Moblin troll. Link must then defeat the troll by striking his tail to knock him down and attacking the nose when he is on the ground. After a long, tiring battle, the troll is finally defeated and Link notices that the creature left behind the Gravity Boots. These boots allow him to walk on walls and ceilings, alter the flow and strength of gravity (for example Link could walk on the ceiling and have gravity move stuff to his right, so he could push an enemy down a pit or something), and alter his weight and speed. To do these things requires magic power.

After this grotesque monster has been slain, there are five doors which Link can choose to take. Through each of these doors is a series of puzzles in which the hero must use the Warp Spell, the tornado bolas, and the Gravity Boots to move weights onto switches which open up fans which blow him up to the next rooms where he fights more enemies and moves more objects around to gain entrance to the top of the respective tower. Once there, an Oocca in a war machine (similar to this) attacks Link. The first time you defeat one of these five menacing monstrosities, you get a new weapon, the Magi Cannon.

This device allows you to bombard enemies with huge blasts of magic or bazooka firepower (similar to the kind that The Group uses). The cannon has multiple magic attacks such as fire, thunder, wind, energy, etc. which you can harness to do different things (for example, the wind attack allows you to knock enemies back, thunder paralyzes and electrocutes enemies, ice freezes stuff, etc.). However, it only starts off with bazooka, fire, ice, and thunder. All the other ammunitions are unlockable by buying them in a shop, finding them in a chest, etc.

All around the dungeon are pictures and hieroglyphics depicting a large being and people bowing down to it. Then it seems that the large entity attacks them with no motive. Afterward, it appears that something came down from the sky and... The rest is too fuzzy and scratched-out to read.

After Link completes his task of transporting all of the orbs to the Clock Tower, a massive thunderstorm comes out of nowhere. A menacing laugh is then heard. The hero then has to race back to the Clock Tower before time runs out.The creepy laughing and thunder claps get louder and louder as he reaches the massive Clock.

Once inside, Link must work his way through a labyrinth full of gears while fighting off hordes of enemies such as Kargarocs and Blade Traps. When he finally reaches the top of the Clock Tower, he is all alone. Then Coocoo appears and says "thank you kind sir for bringing me the orbs. You are one of the nicest people I have ever met. And one of the stupidest." It is at this point that Coocoo casts a spell that pins link to the ground. With this opportunity, Coocoo transforms into a Drail. The Drail that was once Coocoo says, "It is I, thhhhe hhhhhhhheroic Drailian general, Tsirogoth, hhhehhhehhehhhe, I am certainly not some dumb Oocca. Anyways, thhhhhhank you. You hhhhhhhave given me thhhhe orbs thhhhhat can reanimate Sanguimaxim." Then Tsirogoth summons four more Drail and gives each one an orb. The first Drail says "power, gives one thhhhhhhe ability to live". The next says "wisdom, gives one thhhhhhhe intelligence to live". The third says,"courage, gives one thhhhhhhhe bravery to live." The fourth says "will, gives one thhhhhhhhhhhe need to live". And finally, Tsirogoth says,"magic, breathhhhhhes life into us all". The orbs then rise into the sky and magically fade out. Then, an enormous rumbling sound occurs, the Wiimote vibrates like crazy, and Sanguimaxim rises up from the Royal Hall. Little chunks of the Royal Hall can be seen falling down to Hyrule below. "Hhhhhhhhhhhhhehhhhhhhhhhhhehhhhehhhehehhe, dare not incur Sanguimaxim's divine wrathhhh, or else the consequences shhhhhhall be severe and merciless, and your life shhhhhhhhhhall become an evanescent wisp. Abandon all hhhhhhope, so-called hhhhero, your destiny is to be the first sacrifice to most powerful god alive," Tsirogoth crackles. "Now, witness Hhhhyrule's final judgment day!!!! Kehhhehhehhhhe"

It should be noted that Sanguimaxim is about the height of the Clock Tower.

After all of that, there is a cutscene where Link breaks free of Tsirogoth's spell just as Sanguimaxim bellows, "foolish whelps, the lot of you. Have you not fathomed what a god with the power of a thousand suns could wreak to this despicable world? Armageddon, damnation, extermination, they do not even begin to describe the fate you oafs, along with the rest of this pitiful world, shall suffer. This shall be the last time you mortals shall ever see the sun. He then smacks Link, the Drail, and the upper half of the Clock Tower high up in the air.

Phase One: Freefall

The first phase of this boss battle is a sword duel with the five Drail. The only places to stand on are spinning chunks of rock and debris in freefall. Seeing as how you're up in the sky during a thunderstorm, the clouds can sometimes interfere with your sight, and the only source of lighting is the bright flashes of lightning. It should be noted that after each fight, you regain several hearts.

The first Drail you fight has much higher attack power than the other Drail. He is also blood red.

Attacks
Sword Slash: A simple sword attack that deals 3 hearts damage.
Flame Breath: The Drail sucks in air for a moment and breathes a large amount of fire, this attack deals 2 and 1/2 hearts.
Mind Control: The Drail casts a spell that follows you. When it hits you, you lose control of Link for about 20 seconds while a very stupid AI takes over. It should be noted that the Drail is completely vulnerable to attacks while the spell is chasing you.

To defeat this Drail, wait until he sucks in air, after he misses a sword slash, or when he's vulnerable during the mind control to attack. Otherwise, he will block most of your attacks.

The second Drail has a much smarter AI and a wider range of attacks. He is also a deep sea blue.

Attacks
Sword Slash: A simple horizontal sword attack that deals 1 heart damage.
Uppercut: A sword slash aimed upwards. Deals 1 and 1/2 hearts damage.
Freeze Ray: Sucks in air for a moment and unleashes a beam of freezing ice at you. Deals 1 heart damage and freezes.
Water Blast: This attack is just water blasted at you. It does no damage, but can knock you off of where you are standing.
Mind Control: The Drail casts a spell that follows you. When it hits you, you lose control of Link for about 20 seconds while a very stupid AI takes over. It should be noted that the Drail is completely vulnerable to attacks while the spell is chasing you.

For this fight, don't attack until you have an opening. If you rush in, he will block your attacks and use this opportunity to strike at you.

The third Drail attacks much more often than the others. This one is green in color.

Attacks
Horizontal Slash: A simple horizontal sword attack that deals 1 heart damage.
Vertical Slash: A simple vertical sword attack that deals 1and 1/4 hearts damage.
Combo Rush: A four hit sword combo. Each hit deals 1/2 a heart.

To defeat this Drail, just block when he attacks. Then attack, he doesn't block.

Ah, the penultimate Drail. This one is pure white and has a different method of attack.

Attacks
Counter: Redirects your attack back at you. Deals 1 heart damage.

To defeat this Drail, don't attack. It will be redirected back at you. You have to use the Warp Spell to move the piece of he debris he is standing on out from under him.

Now Tsirogoth wants to battle you. He has the strength of the first Drail, the AI of the second, the viciousness of the third, and the deflection powers of the fourth. Tsirogoth is black as the night sky.

Attacks
Sword Slash: Slashes at you with his sword. It deals 2 hearts damage.
Energy Bomb: Tsirogoth launches a bomb of energy in a "kamehameha" fashion. Deals 3 hearts damage.

This fight is tricky, as he has the strong points of each Drail before him. When he is either readying his Energy Bomb or just ending his Sword Slash, shoot him with the Magi Cannon. He will be stunned. You can use this opportunity to get a hit on him. Once you've gotten about 5-10 hits on him, he will almost get knocked over the edge. While he is trying to regain his balance, you have to use the Warp Spell to knock him over. There will be a cutscene where you have to rapidly tap the "A" button as fast as you possibly can to try and knock Tsirogoth off balance while he to push you off you back with his magic. If you lose, you get knocked over the edge and you have to start this fight all over again. If you win, he loses his balance and falls to his death. As he plummets he utters "Deathhhhh and damnation to you, Hhhero".

After you defeat Tsirogoth, you land right outside of the Clock Tower and look to find nearly all of Archaeix in ruins.

Phase Two: The Pendulum

Once you get inside the tower, there are huge swarms of enemies. These are mainly Blade Traps, Kargarocs, Keese, Peahats, and Lizalfos. Just like before, you have to make your way through a labyrinth of gears while fending off enemies. Eventually, you get to a point where there are no more gears to climb, and there is a large pendulum overhead. The only way to reach the pendulum is by using the gravity boots. You will see out of a large opening in the wall that the boss is standing right there. Once you have the gravity set so you can't fall off the pendulum, the fight begins.

Attacks
Laser Strike: Two red beams fire out of Sanguimaxim's eyes, similar to a Beamos. Deals 1/2 heart per second.
Cannon Blast: Fires a large blast of energy that can knock you off the pendulum if you block with your shield. The only way to dodge is backflip or dodge roll. Deals 2 hearts.
Wire Strangle: Lots of wires fire out of Sanguimaxim's hand and attempt to squeeze you. 1/2 heart per second.
Magic Surge: Fires about 5-10 of magical attacks, all in quick succession. Each hit deals 1 heart.

This is a somewhat difficult fight because the boss is aggressive and there are still enemies attacking you. What you have to do, is shoot at Sanguimaxim until he gets dazed. Once he's dazed, you have to alter the flow of gravity so that the Pendulum hits him. After you repeat this two more times, there is a cutscene where the boss falls off of the city, taking Link with him.

Phase 3: Chase

As Link is falling, the Pegasus from before comes to save him. Now, you have to chase Sanguimaxim down. This is similar to horseback battles in TP, except with a twist. Instead of just running on a flat surface, you can go in any direction.

Attacks
Squeeze: If you are close enough to Sanguimaxim, he will try and grab you with his hand. Deals 2 hearts.
Lightning: Since the thunderstorm is still raging, it is possible to get hit by lighting. Deals 1 heart if it hits.
Cannon Explosion: Sanguimaxim summons a giant sphere of energy. It then explodes, sending smaller spheres of energy in every direction. Deals 1 and 1/2 damage if it hits.
Laser Twirl: The boss fires laser beams in random directions out of his eyes while spinning around. Deals 1 and 1/2 hearts on contact.
Debris Smash: Summons debris from out of nowhere and fires it all at you. Deals 1 heart per hit.

To defeat Sanguimaxim here, you must use your Tornado Bolas to smash the debris he summons into him, revealing a switch on his body. Then, shoot it with the Magi Cannon. Once you destroy all of the switches, his whole body, excluding his head, explodes and falls to Hyrule Field below.

Phase 4: Finale

Now, Link's Pegasus flies him down to the ground where the boss' head still remains. Just as Link gets off the magical horse, it flies off, presumably back to it's ranch. As Link tries to get a closer look at the head, the ground rumbles as the head rises from the ground, ready for a final stand.

Attacks
Eruption: Red lasers fire from his eyes, aiming towards the ground. The ground breaks open, spewing a spout of fire and lava. Deals 2 and 1/2 hearts if it hits.
Shock Wave: Summons a ball of electricity that fires 5 shock waves at the hero. The only way to dodge is backflip over them or roll under them. Deals 1 heart on contact.
Laser Beam: Blue lasers shoot from Sanguimaxim's eyes, following Link. Deals 1/2 a heart per second.
Magic Hands: Summons a hand made of pure magic that tries to slam Link into the ground. Deals 3 hearts.

To defeat Sanguimaxim once and for all, you use your Tornado Bolas to slam his magical hands into his head when he summons them. This stuns him. While he is dazed, you have to go under his floating head and shoot one of the five orbs that can be seen from a small opening. Once you repeat this process and destroy all five orbs, Sanguimaxim's head falls to the ground.

After the Battle

"Is... is this what it feels like? Is this... pain? Suffering? No wonder I was locked up. I'm... I'm a monster. I deserve to die. When I thought I was helping Hyrule... I... was destroying it. I'm no better than... them. No, I'm worse than them.

How... how quickly love... turns into hate. Passion into insanity. Power into corruption. Good... into evil. Please, Link, can I ask you one favor before my last whispers of life are silenced? Make sure everyone forgets about this again, please? I... cannot go through eternity knowing that people think I'm a murderer. I've suffered enough. Good....... bye.............. Link"

Then, Sanguimaxim's head withers away into dust, leaving a Heart Container behind. The Oocca then come down from the sky, tell Link Sanguimaxim's story, give him the Master Sword, and fulfill Sanguimaxim's final wish...

Notes of little Interest

I doubt anyone is interested, but I figured I might as well talk about my entry.

For the music, I thought this music, would work well for the Drail sword fight. This song would be fitting for the second phase. But only up to the 1:20-1:21 mark. Everything after that is boring. this works nicely for the "chase" part of the battle. For the finale, this song seems like it would work. And finally, for the dungeon music, I was thinking something similar to this would suit nicely.

Around the time that the other Design a Boss contest ended and Zelda Informer released an article entitled "The Oocca: Engineers of Hyrule" (most of the inspiration came from this) I started writing this entry. Once I got up to the actual boss battle, I got bored and forgot about it for a while. Then, I saw that we were getting another contest and decided to finish it.This entry was originally going to star the Fierce Deity, but I decided last second not to have him in. Hopefully, it was a good move. I chose to do a boss battle where you help out the Oocca because as of now, there is only one where you do, and I thought that seeing chickens with war machines would be fun. The idea for the Magi Cannon came to me when I was playing some FPS's and I thought that it would be cool to implement this in Zelda, instead of standing in one place and aiming.

As for Sanguimaxim, I went with the somewhat cliched "robot with feelings" sort of story, but with a deadly twist. The name came from Latin, sangui meaning blood, and maxim meaning large. So Sanguimaxim basically means lots of blood. As for the other names, Fyrra sounded like a cool name for a Goron, and I decided to make it a Goron princess as a little joke. Archaeo means ancient in Greek, as in Archaeology, and I thought that Archaeix sounded like a cool name for a city. Drail just sounded like a cool name for an evil tribe . Coocoo sounds like an Ooccan version of cuckoo and is a bit of a hint as to him being Tsirogoth.

Now, seeing as how I can only write a moderately short entry and not an entire fanfic, it was hard to give the characters personality. I tried to give Fyrra sort of a cliched spoiled little girl sort of feeling. With Coocoo I tried to give him a sense of wonder, and that he really looked up to the Hero. With the Drail, I obviously gave them a sort of spirit feeling, seeing as they put a lot of emphasis on h's. I was going to also give them large emphasis on s's, but decided not to go for it because it would be harder to read and bore the reader.

The boss battle was actually kind of hard to do. I was having a dream and the "freefall" part of the battle came to me, and I came to it. The "clock" part of the battle was slightly similar to how I was originally going to do the whole battle. I originally was going to have it where you just stand on the pendulum and shoot at the boss until he dies. The "chase" part came to me when I was replaying the Ganondorf horseback battle on Twilight Princess and thought "damn, it would be awesome if this was in the sky". The "finale" part was originally going to have Sanguimaxim stuck in the ground, but then the chase portion wouldn't have made sense and the fight would be very similar to the one with Stallord.

Please enjoy reading and judging my entry. I know I had a great time writing it.

Stormcloud Mystic
FEARION

An age-old tale once told by a crazy old vagrant wearing a black robe in the streets of Hyrule Castle Town:

Not many people have heard of the Kakariko exile, Arik, who guided a group of his fellow exiles through the sandstorms of the Haunted Wasteland, protecting them from the wrath of the harsh Gerudo Desert. In doing so, he led them to a new life, free of the political burdens of life under the strict Kakariko Shaman (NOT Renado). Using some unknown power, Arik created a sort of “safe zone” deep within the Haunted Wasteland, where the sandstorms would never blow. The source of his power, the Cane of Arik, was handed down to his son Ares, the man who won the friendship and trust of the Gerudo. Ares handed the Cane of Arik down to his son Arion, the third, and last, leader of the Spirit Nomads.

One day, a group of Nomad traders on their way to trade with the friendly Gerudo found a strange old man in a black robe dying in the desert, apparently assaulted by some desert beast. Immediately, they brought him back to the Nomad settlement, where some miracle occurred, and the man began recovering at an unnatural pace. This man's name was Nimbus.

When he was well enough to walk, he presented himself to Arion. He spoke of a “great cataclysm” that would occur if the Nomads did not leave the desert. However, Arion did not believe him. He was firmly convinced that, the farther away they were from Kakariko and the ruthless Shaman (still not Renado), the safer they were. The stranger continued with his oddly vague warnings but remained unheard.

Some time later, a group of Gerudo scouts from the other end of the desert found a strange old man in a black robe dying in the desert. Quickly they took him back to the Gerudo Fortress and asked him what happened. The old man spoke in riddles about some “great cataclysm” that occurred because the Nomads wouldn’t leave the desert. He appeared to be warning the Gerudo of it as well. The old man was named Nimbus.

Not satisfied with his story, the Gerudo sent a band of skilled Gerudo warriors to the Nomad settlement in order to confirm his words. They found a ruined settlement littered with charred corpses and scorch marks.

In sorrow, the Gerudo erected a large shrine in the Desert dedicated to the Spirit Nomads, on top of where the Nomad settlement once stood. In worship, they built the shrine in the image of the Desert Goddess, the deity worshipped by both Nomad and Gerudo. In tribute, they named it the Spirit Temple. To this day, the Spirit Temple remains as the collective grave of the Spirit Nomads, housing their troubled spirits in the shadows of the Desert Colossus.

In the sadness of the occasion, the old man just disappeared. The man known only as Nimbus. Over the decades, this story was forgotten and so too were the Nomads.

Present:

Link is on a quest to find the three sacred spells Din’s Fire, Farore’s Wind and Nayru’s Love. Already, Link has retrieved the Fire Arrows to gain entrance into the Fire Temple in order to acquire Din’s Fire. He used Din’s Fire to dispel the magic blizzard that Ganondorf unleashed onto Hyrule Castle Town. Now, Zelda tells Link that he requires something called the “Cane of Arik” (Arik-Cane, Hurricane, geddit?) to enter Farore’s Shrine in order to acquire Farore’s Wind, to dispel the toxic mist around Hyrule Castle. She also tells you that the Cane is somewhere in the Desert. So Link decides to ask the Gerudo.

It appears that none of the Gerudo appear to know anything about the Cane of Arik or the ancient tribe that once held this power, so Aivi (Link’s fairy partner, lol) suggests they go ask the Gerudo Priestess who also happens to be a fortune-teller. She offers a rather odd clue:


In the west a dark cloud grows
Naught but death the dark cloud knows
In the past it brought destruction
With minds twisted in corruption.

The ancient power you pursue
Windy sky and thunder boom
Ye who bear’th the mark of three
The Spirit Temple beckons thee.

Hidden truths and secret lies
In the desert tribe’s demise
Yet all their deaths will be repaid
When dark cloud falls to shining blade.

Link can’t make heads or tails of this prophecy, except for the second verse which tells him that he ought to go to the Spirit Temple. Link hires a Gerudo guide to take him through the Haunted Wasteland for a whole lotta rupees, and even then it’s still a challenge following her.

The Spirit Temple
Upon entering the Spirit Temple, he comes across a very plain rectangular room with almost nothing in it except for a stone statue of a robed warrior holding some sort of metal baton, and some spikes on the walls. There aren’t even any passageways deeper into the Temple.

Out of nowhere, a cloud of black mist appears and engulfs the statue, eventually disappearing into the various cracks on the statue’s surface. The statue glows violet and raises its baton menacingly.

Miniboss: Troubled Spirit Peterro
Attacks by shooting bolts of violet lightning at you. However, he also has the power to conjure gusts of wind which can blow you into the spikes on the walls. He floats around the arena, making him rather annoying to defeat. Use your Iron Boots to withstand the gusts (watching out for the lightning) and spam your sword on him.

The statue of Peterro crumbles into dust, and the black mist which had re-animated it disappears into the walls. A violet-tinged spirit appears in its place, and it looks exactly like the statue...

Peterro: “The old man had warned us of the cataclysm, that dark cloud, but we did not listen... we were too proud to invoke the protection of the Cane of Arik. Warrior, you must find it! I sense that the Gerudo are in danger, the cataclysm will strike them as it struck us. To aid you, I give you my baton. Do not fail or many more may die.”

-Item: Storm Scepter-
*A thin silver cylinder slightly longer than your forearm, with a golfball-sized silver sphere at one end. Set it to B. If you hold B, and the point of view will switch to an over-the-shoulder viewing mode and Link will be holding the Scepter in front of him. With WiiMotion+, you’ll have 1:1 control of the movement of the Baton in this state. Quickly wave the Wiimote in any direction, and Link will wave the baton in the same direction as you do. One second later, there will be a large gust of wind blowing in that direction, swing the Wiimote harder and the gust of wind will be stronger. Press the A button, and a gust of wind will blow in the direction Link is currently facing. Use the analog stick to change the direction Link is facing, release B to go back to normal gameplay mode. The Spirit Temple is full of wind puzzles and enemies that require wind to defeat. It is also worth noting that every gust you generate with this item uses up a small portion of your Magic Power.*

The Spirit of Peterro disappears, revealing some hidden doors in the room. Link progresses through the Spirit Temple, making heavy use of his new Storm Scepter.

Link eventually comes across a hidden room at the bottom of the Temple. In it, there is a statue similar to the one in the first room, except it is a female. And instead of holding a metal baton, there is an odd necklace around her neck. The black mist from earlier appears and re-animates this statue.

Miniboss: Troubled Spirit Fira
Fira is also capable of firing bolts of lightning at you like Peterro, and does so more often than him. However, instead of conjuring gusts of wind, she is able to manipulate time. Sometimes, she’ll either slow you down or speed herself up, in order to attack you with a small dagger concealed in her long robe sleeve. All you have to do is run up to her and attack her with your sword. However, her manipulation of time makes this incredibly annoying.

The statue of Fira crumbles into dust and the black mist disappears into the walls. A violet spirit which looks exactly like Fira’s statue appears.

Fira: “That dark cloud descended upon us and possessed one of our own. That person turned to face us, twisted corruption on his face. He struck us all down with magic lightning. Our leader... Arion. Warrior, you must find the Cane of Arik to prevent the cataclysm, I sense the dark cloud moving toward the Gerudo King, to use his power to destroy the Gerudo. But the King of the Gerudo is far more powerful than Arion, I fear that all of Hyrule is in danger. The path ahead is dangerous... please bring my power with you.”

-Item: Temporal Pendant-
*Set to B. When activated, Link will raise the Pendant in left hand for a second and time will slow down for about ten of the player’s seconds. Useful in battle as well as making fast-paced sections of dungeons easier. However, there are a few major drawbacks to using such a power. First off and obviously, using the Pendant will sap about a third of the smaller magic bar. Secondly and sadly, all damage is doubled while time is slowed down. Thirdly and unfortunately, since Link is holding the Pendant with his left hand, he loses the ability to use the shield while time is slowed. Finally, after time has gone back to normal speed, there is a ten-second cooldown time before you can use the Pendant again. Use at your own risk *

Fira disappears and Link exits the room. He uses his new Temporal Pendant to acquire the Big Key and, eventually, enters the highest chamber in the Spirit Temple.


The Boss Room
Link enters a circular dome which has a diameter about twice as long as Link’s Z-target range. The entire room is made of that same brown clay as the rest of the Desert Colossus/Spirit Temple.

There are bones spread all across the floor. The strange thing is that these bones appear to be far too large for a humanoid figure. Not that any of the bones look like they belong to a human anyway. It would be wise to remember the presence of these bones. Also, there appears to be about ten black iron spheres scattered with the bones. The iron spheres are almost as tall as Link.

However, the most prominent thing in the room is the skeleton slumped on the ground, in the middle. The skeleton is robed in an elegant white robe marked with violet lightning. More interesting is the silver baton that the skeleton is holding. A thin silver cylinder slightly longer than Link’s forearm, with a golfball-sized silver sphere at one end of it. It would look identical to Link’s Storm Scepter, were it not for the small silver bird statue attached to the silver orb. Link picks up the skeleton’s baton and brings it close to his own Storm Sceptre. The two batons, now fused, begin glowing.

~Item: Cane of Arik~
*A thin silver cylinder almost three times as long as your forearm. There is a golfball-sized silver sphere on each end of the Cane. Atop one of the “orbs”, there is a small silver statuette of a bird. The controls are EXACTLY the same as the Storm Scepter (read the note on the Storm Scepter if you forgot), except the gusts generated by the Cane of Arik are FAR, FAR stronger than the gusts generated by the Storm Scepter. Also, the Cane has the ability to protect the user from lightning in a quite peculiar way, as shown later in the boss fight. As normal, every gust of wind generated costs a little magic.*

All of a sudden, a dark mist begins to creep into the room. It glides toward the skeleton, partially engulfing it. The now reanimated skeleton rises menacingly, limping toward Link. Suddenly, he begins hovering. The skeleton’s arms begin crackling with violet electricity. And a sinister voice cries out...

”I am Arion, third leader of the Spirit Nomads. Warrior, you have no business here. Relinquish the Cane of Arik to me at once!!!”
The ten large iron spheres rise and begin to magnetically orbit Arion’s skeleton at varying heights. Stormclouds somehow accumulate in the ceiling as the TV screen reads:

Stormcloud Mystic
FEARION

Phase 1: Thunderstorm

Boss: Stormcloud Mystic Fearion
Attacks:
• Thunderstorm – The stormclouds in the ceiling unleash three bolts of lightning every four seconds, in random places. Aivi will turn red and fly toward the nearest area where the lightning is about to strike. 1 Heart Damage per hit.
• Thundersphere – Fearion throws a bunch of violet "thunderspheres" of electricity upward, which land at random places on the battlefield. As they fall, they gravitate slightly toward you. To dodge them, look for the faint shadows they cast and get out of the way. He will do this a heck of a lot. 1 Heart Damage per hit.
• Meteor Shower – Out of nowhere, Fearion suddenly increases the strength of his “magnetic field”, quickly bringing all the spheres to within a few feet of himself. Then, he magnetically flings them all out in random directions, two by two, straight into the walls. 2 Hearts Damage per hit.
• Magnetic Field – The ten magnetic iron spheres orbiting Fearion may hit you if you’re not careful. 1 Heart Damage.

Items required: Cane of Arik, Sword.

Aivi: “He’s using those iron spheres to knock you around like some kind of rag doll or something. Repay the favor!”

Fearion may be confined to the center of the arena, but he is able to change the height of his levitation, making for a very crude method of “dodging” most of whatever Link throws at him. The ten iron spheres almost as tall as Link quickly orbiting the center of the arena aren’t exactly helping. This Phase requires strategic planning as well as quick reflexes.

If you use the Cane of Arik to create a gust in any direction, all of the iron spheres will be temporarily forced out of their magnetic field, and blown in the direction of the gust. What you must do, is use the gusts generated by Cane of Arik to blow one of the large spheres into Arion, knocking him back a few feet.

You must continue this until he is knocked into the wall and falls, at which point you are free to spam your sword in his face (metaphorically of course. You’re free to spam your sword wherever you’d like on him) for about twenty seconds, after which he will perform the “Lightning” attack which is difficult to dodge. After the attack (whether it missed or not), he’ll go back to levitating above the center and magnetically making the iron spheres orbit him again.

However, this is far more difficult than it sounds. For one, if you decide to create a gust of wind in “this” direction, EVERY iron sphere in the room will be blown in that direction, so you may accidentally knock yourself with one of the spheres. Secondly, Fearion has decent AI, so he may dodge some of the flying orbs. You almost have to “trick” him into getting caught by one of the spheres you’re going to blow into his face. If you want to be cheap, you can create a smaller gust of wind to blow Fearion into the path of one of the orbs, right before it smashes him.

Another thing to note is that, when you successfully smash Fearion into the wall, his magnetic control over the spheres will cease and they will all fall, which will cause 2 Hearts Damage if one hits you. You must dodge all the falling spheres in your way before you can spam your sword at Fearion.

As Fearion loses health, the spheres will orbit him faster, the number of thunderspheres generated by his “Thundersphere” attack will increase and his “Meteor Shower” attack will be used more often. He will also be knocked back less by the iron orbs. You can use the Temporal Pendant to slow down time to make this Phase easier, but all damage is doubled.

Rinse and Repeat until...

*
Fearion falls to the ground, weakened by the Master Sword. He raises his hand and all of a sudden, the large bones scattered across the floor begin levitating and gravitating toward each other, forming the skeleton of a large bird about twice as tall as Link. This new adversary begins flying haphazardly around the room, and then out of nowhere, it flies straight up, completely destroying the clay (seriously, what IS the Spirit Temple made of?) dome ceiling.

Out of the corner of Link’s eye, Fearion is seen performing a rather superhuman jump to join his new pet in the air, levitating far above and slightly to the side of Link. The skeletal bird swoops suddenly down to grab Link in its ancient talons, dropping him directly on the sands of the Haunted Wasteland. A rainstorm begins.

Both aerial enemies face Link, clearly angered. Link sees small violet sparks on Fearion's arms...

Phase 2: Deluge

Boss: Spirit Nomad Fearion
Attacks:
• Thundersphere – Same as in Phase 1, except instead of “gravitating slightly”, the thunderspheres directly home in on you. 1 Heart Damage per hit.
• Lightning – Fearion's skeletal arms crackle with violet electricity. A few seconds later, he unleashes a large bolt of violet lightning which is hard to dodge. 3 Hearts Damage.
• Hurricane – Fearion conjures a large tornado that chases you and, if it catches you, damages you for 2 Hearts. And it disorientates you. Because it’s a tornado and it feels like it.
• Asteroid Belt – The ten iron spheres are back, and they brought ten of their iron twins with them, so now there are twenty iron spheres. Once again, they magnetically orbit Fearion, and Fearion is able to magnetically manipulate them in various ways, for example, forming a large magnetic “whip” out of the spheres, or maybe magnetically “shooting” them toward you one by one. Maybe you might just get hit by one of the spheres as it orbits him, who knows? Varying damage.
• Ancient Blitz – Fearion’s large skeletal pet bird swoops down and attacks Link with its talons, or by diving beak-first, wings spread, directly toward Link, if he is grounded. 1-2 Hearts Damage.

Items required: Cane of Arik, Temporal Pendant, Clawshot, Iron Boots, Sword.

The fact that both of your enemies are far above you makes this a challenging Phase. Also, the thick deluge hindering your sight doesn’t help either. That doesn’t change the fact that the only way to defeat Fearion is to bring him back to the ground, since your arrows are ineffective, and your boomerang doesn’t have enough range.

Aivi: The only thing high enough to harm him is that gigantic skeletal bird, and there’s no way we’re getting a ride, is there?”

When Fearion charges up his “lightning” attack, ready your Temporal Pendant. Right before he unleashes it, activate the Pendant to slow down time. This also dramatically slows down his “lightning” attack. Raise your metal Cane of Arik to absorb the lightning. When the lightning hits the top end of the Cane, it will flow VERY slowly through the Cane, due to the time-slowing effects of the Temporal Pendant. So basically, the lightning is practically “stored” in your Cane of Arik for about three seconds.

You know how a lightningrod absorbs the lightning through one end and emits it out the other end? Link flips the Cane of Arik so that the other end of the Cane is facing upwards, so the lightning will escape upwards. You have three seconds before the lightning is unleashed toward whatever the Cane is aimed at. You must use WM+ to move the Cane, in order to find a target for the lightning when the three second timer is over. However, if you aim it at Fearion, he will literally redirect it back at you, damaging you for 3 Hearts.

What you need to do is aim the Cane at the skeletal bird flying around randomly. You have to make sure that the Cane is aimed exactly at the bird when the three second timer is up, as the lightning is discharged then and ONLY then. The lightning will strike the bird, stunning it for a while. Use your Clawshot on it.

When you have successfully latched onto the underbelly of the stunned skeletal bird, it will attempt to shake you off, while Link attempts to climb to the top of the bird. Tilt the analog stick in the right direction when prompted to prevent being knocked off the bird and having to start again. This quick-time-event will end with a cutscene of Link slamming the tip of the Master Sword into the base of the skeletal bird’s neck.

NOTE: If you fall off the skeletal bird due to any of Fearion’s attacks, you take 2 Hearts Damage and must re-do the entire process of stunning and latching onto the bird. However, Fearion’s invisible life bar will not be reset.

Once you’re on top of the bird, point your Wiimote straight up, similar to how Link is holding the sword which is embedded in the bird’s neck. This is how you control the movement of the bird: tilt the Wiimote, and Link will similarly tilt the Master Sword to change direction. Hold A to go faster. The analog stick controls the camera. The Z button is used for targeting and centering the camera, as usual. However, the C button now toggles the camera between “close”, “normal” and “keep both enemies on screen.”

A little note, Fearion’s attacks are more likely to miss if you’re flying above him. Unfortunately, he knows this and will attempt to stay above you. However, it’s necessary to be above him in order to strike him at all. This turns Phase 2 into a large race to fly above the other person.

Once you’re directly above him, don your Iron Boots. This will weigh down both Link and the skeletal bird he’s riding, at a rather high speed. If you did things right, you’ll land directly on top of Fearion, pinning him under the skeletal bird and pushing him down to the ground with you.

When you finally make contact with the sandy ground, the impact will decimate your skeletal bird, and it will stun Fearion as well. It will also break Fearion’s magnetic control over the iron spheres, causing them to fall straight down, dodge them. Feel free to spam your sword at Fearion now, you have twenty seconds before he uses his “lightning” attack. Then, he’ll re-animate the broken skeleton of the bird and you’ll have to start again (Fearion’s life isn’t reset).

Rinse and Repeat until...


*
Fearion is writhing on the ground covered in black mist. Out of nowhere, the separate bones of the giant skeletal bird rise from the ground and fly directly toward Link. Link manages to raise his Hylian Shield just before one of the flying bone fragments hits him, but in the process, the shield is knocked out of his hands, far off into the Desert.

A single, unmistakable word is heard, in the voice of Arion:

Arion: “Run...”

All of a sudden the black mist escapes the confines of the writhing skeleton and forms a gigantic cloud, in the process “de-animating” the aforementioned skeleton. A sinister, echoey and anonymous voice is heard:

???: “The foreign Spirit Nomads entered my territory and, in doing so, defiled it greatly. Their dire punishment was total annihilation. The Gerudo have also disrespected my desert, they too shall pay in due time. But you, Warrior, have committed the greatest wrongdoing against me, by engaging me directly in combat. For this, you shall suffer as the Nomads did. You will suffer as the Gerudo will suffer.”

From the cloud of black mist materializes a strange old man in a black robe...

???: “I warned them, I warned them ALL. The Haunted Wasteland, the dark cloud, these are the heart of my power. You will fall to my strength as many others have...”

The figure draws a long, curved sword, seemingly out of nowhere, and approaches Link, grinning evilly.

“... for I am NIMBUS!!!

The cloud of black mist forms a ring twice as wide as Link’s Z-target range. The cloud slowly closes in on Link, as Nimbus raises his sword. A sandstorm begins.

Phase 3: Sandstorm

Boss: Desert Wanderer Nimbus (ZOMGWTF PLOT TWIST)
Attacks:
• Desert Wanderer – Nimbus disappears in a puff of the iconic black mist and instantaneously reappears somewhere else in the arena, to gain the element of surprise (he may appear and attack from behind you, so watch out). No damage.
• Darkwave – Nimbus “dips” his blade into the dark cloud surrounding the arena, coating it with the stuff. Then he swings his blade horizontally/vertically. This sends a horizontal/vertical shockwave, made of the dark cloud, toward Link. To dodge it, roll under a horizontal shockwave and sidestep a vertical one. 2 Hearts Damage.
• Desert Blossom – Nimbus strikes the sand and six Leevers rise out of the sand and charge at you, one-at-a-time, like in OoT. They won’t disappear until you kill them. 1 Heart Damage every time they touch you.
• Mirage – Nimbus jumps out of the arena, through the dark mist cloud surrounding it. He jumps back in, accompanied by seven doppelgangers (“mirages”) who look exactly the same as him, surrounding Link. However, the fake Nimbus’es will each disappear on contact with you, and the real Nimbus will have very small traces of black mist on him from when he entered the dark mist cloud, which are difficult to detect since his robe is also black. All eight Nimbus’es glide toward you two at a time, swinging their blades. If the real Nimbus hits you, he combos you with his sword for FOUR Hearts worth of damage. Before you can do anything to Nimbus, you must use the Cane of Arik to blow off that small bit of dark mist on Nimbus, or else he can damage you (1 Heart) by only touching you.
• Drought – Nimbus concentrates for a few seconds, after which he and his sword both catch aflame. While he is on fire, all damage becomes fire-based and is doubled. To prevent this, hit him with your sword while he’s concentrating. He’ll block the attack, but his concentration will be broken and he will not catch aflame. However, if he manages to activate the “drought” attack, you can get rid of the flames by repeatedly using the Cane of Arik on him to blow them out, which takes quite a while. Watch out for his attacks while he’s on fire though.
• Temporal Shadow – Potentially the most damaging attack in the entire battle, or the least. Nimbus jumps up and "explodes" into 24 “Shadowkeese” (bats made of the iconic dark mist cloud), and a thirty-second timer appears on the bottom of the screen. You must defeat as many Shadowkeese as you can in this time. Every Shadowkeese causes a quarter of a heart of damage every time they touch you. When the thirty-second time limit is up, any Shadowkeese that you have NOT defeated will turn into a small flying dagger made of shadow. They will fly toward you, undodgeable and unblockable, causing Half a Heart of damage each. You can cheat a bit by using the Temporal Pendant, but remember that damage is doubled when using it. Some of the Shadowkeese drop hearts or magic jars.

Items needed: Cane of Arik, Temporal Pendant, Sword

NOTE: I’m going to assume that WM+ gives you AT LEAST directional control of your sword. It can either allow directional control of slashes or 1:1 control for this phase to work, I don’t mind. Also, you have no shield for the rest of the battle haha. I’m also assuming that Link is right handed in this hypothetical Zelda game haha.

Well this is it, the final part of this epic battle, congratulations if you read this far. First off, you'll notice that the sandstorm hinders your vision more so than the Deluge did in Phase 2. However, the more important thing to note is the ring of black mist (i.e. the dark cloud) that is slowly closing in on you. The mist has a peculiar effect on Link. Every second that Link is inside the black mist, his health will he halved. Because of this, you must constantly use the Cane of Arik to blow away the mist, in order to give yourself more room to dodge Nimbus’ attacks... and to survive, of course.

Aivi: “I have no idea how to tackle this one, Link. It looks as if the stronger man will prevail.”

... so prove yourself the stronger man. When Nimbus and his doppelgangers re-enter the arena through the dark mist cloud, look for the real one (who has traces of the aforementioned dark mist cloud on him) and ignore all the fakes. While the fake Nimbus’es are attacking (don’t worry, they’ll disappear on contact with you), repeatedly use your Cane of Arik to blow away the small amount of the “dark cloud” that only the real Nimbus has accumulated on his robes, or else he can hurt you by just touching you.

When the real Nimbus glides forward to attack you, quickly use the Temporal Pendant to slow down time, slowing down Nimbus and his attacks in the process. Right before Nimbus’ blade hits you, quickly swing your Wiimote in a direction that is PERPENDICULAR to the direction that Nimbus is swinging his sword. Due to the presence of WM+, Link will follow your movement by slashing his sword in the same direction as you swung your Wiimote. Both of their swords will collide perpendicularly, and this will cause Nimbus’ sword to be locked with Link’s sword in a similar manner to how Link’s sword was locked with Ganondorf’s sword during the final battle of TP (remember “chance”?).

For a few seconds (the time varies and is random every time the cutscene is initiated), Link and Nimbus will attempt to push the other backward with their swords crossed perpendicularly. Then a Nunchuk icon (the controller peripheral, not the weapon) will appear on the bottom of the screen, prompting you to thrust your Nunchuk forward. You have literally under a second to do so. If you fail to do so in time, Nimbus will knock you back and combo you for FIVE hearts.

However, if you DO manage to thrust the Nunchuk forward in time, Link will similarly thrust his unarmed left hand forward, knocking Nimbus back and leaving him open. Now, you have one second to land a hit with your sword. If you fail to do so, Nimbus will regain his guard and you’ll have to restart the process. If you land a hit, you can wail on him with your sword for half a minute.

As Nimbus loses more and more health, he begins to rely more and more on the “Temporal Shadow” attack and “Desert Wanderer. His “Drought” attack becomes quicker to charge up. He may fake, say, a horizontal “Darkwave” attack, only to do a vertical one, or vice versa, resulting in a botched attempt at dodging this attack. “Desert Blossom” summons eight Leevers instead of six.”

When Nimbus is weakened sufficiently, a small cutscene will play where Nimbus is shown to be almost devoid of energy, significantly weakened and having trouble standing. When the cutscene finishes, he staggers toward you. As soon as he’s within range, he’ll quickly jab his sword forward. Dodge it and counter with a back-slice. He’ll turn around with a quite strong spin attack. Thrust the Nunchuk forward before the attack hits you and hit A to initiate a Helm Splitter attack (like in TP), to knock Nimbus down. Then, finish with a Finishing Blow before Nimbus gets back up. If you happen to mess up, you’ll take 1 or 2 Heart Damage (depending on the attack) and you have to start it again, from the backslice.


Pick up the Heart Container and watch the dark cloud disappear.

************************

Nimbus: “Forget it! I will save my energy by controlling your mind as I controlled that foolish Arion. You will be the one to destroy the Gerudo, as Arion destroyed the Nomads...”

At this, Nimbus throws his sword at Link, knocking the Cane of Arik out of his hands. Nimbus dissolves into a large cloud of black mist, which approaches Link from all around. Link drops his sword, closes his eyes and prepares for the worst.

Out of nowhere, there is a flash of violet light. Link opens his eyes, and sees a spirit which looks oddly like Arion’s skeleton standing in front of him. Link looks around and sees himself encased in a dome-shaped violet barrier, protecting him from the dark cloud. The spirit sees the Triforce mark on Link’s hand.

Arion: “The stranger Nimbus warned me of all this, yet I did not listen to him because of my pride.”

Cracks appear in the barrier.

Arion: “Hero, forgive me, for I am not able to aid you further.”

The barrier shatters. The dark cloud closes in on the duo.

Arion: “I can only hope that the Nomads can forgive me also.”

Arion erupts in a burst of white light, forcing Link to shield his eyes. When he opens them, neither the dark cloud nor Arion are anywhere in sight. Only the blue skies and the warm sun.

On the sand, Link spots his Hylian Shield, and the Cane of Arik. Link picks them both up, looks at the Spirit Temple one last time, and then proceeds to leave the Desert, the Triforce of Courage shining brighter than ever.

His destination? Farore’s Shrine, somewhere in the City in the Sky.




Well, I enjoyed making this entry . I hope you enjoyed reading it. I'd add a couple of "notes of interest", but what occured during the actual process of conceptualizing these ideas is a blurry memory to me. Sorry .

Oh yeah! The music...

For Phase 1, I imagined a fast-paced, extended, remake of the Song of Storms, similar to the Brawl remake (without the "Ganon's Theme" and "Serenade of Water"), but with more bass drums and gongs. When you activate the Sunstone and Fearion is vulnerable, cue the choir (like the Bowser Battle in Super Mario Galaxy).

For Phase 2, I imagined an orchestral, extended remix of the Requiem of Spirit, somewhat similar in format to this song. I haven't played the game associated with the song, but it's a pretty epic song.

For Phase 3, think of the Final Battle theme for NSMBWii (the final-final one) and mix it with MM's "Final Hour" and OoT's "Song of Time".

During the cutscene where Arion ultimately saves you from the "dark cloud," there would be a piano remake of the Song of Storms, slow and sad.

Also, please enjoy my sig:

well so far there are more entries here, im guessing it will go like last time where you guys out number ns2.

anyways happy writing everyone. and good luck to the judges here!

Hiya Rocker! Howzit?

I think the length of my entry might scare people away. Do you want me to withdraw my entry for a while?

nah i think it will be fine buddy, remember we said in the rules that length does not matter, as long as it isn't like less then a single paragraph. heck i remember when i won wayyyyyyyy back, my first boss wasn't more then two paragraphs

Mine won't be done for a long time, it might be longer than Double A's, and I've barily started it.

"Among those living in the light, interlopers who excelled at magic appeared. Wielding powerful sorcery, they tried to establish dominion over the Sacred Realm."

-Lanayru
“Twilight Princess”

In the distant past, when the land of Hyrule was still in its infancy, there existed a secluded race who harnessed the powers of shadow magic. Being kind souls, they extended a helping hand to the young race as they grew and developed into a mighty kingdom. All was well between the two races until the once grateful people of Hyrule began to harbor a deep fear and hatred of the race and their dark magic.

As tensions grew between the races, twins bearing magic prowess beyond their years were born to the reclusive tribe. As they grew into teenagers, the tribe’s concern swelled as Hyrule’s authority over the lands and their native people grew. The queen of the shadow tribe watched and grew apprehensive as she learned the Hylians drew their strength from a golden relic they dubbed the 'Triforce'. Despite her suspicions, she found it and the stories of a trio of Goddesses being the originators of this bizarre relic seemed harmless enough. That is until the people of Hyrule began to expand further and seize land belonging to the native races in the names of the Goddessess. Troubled by these developments, the queen had come to the decision quash Hyrule’s influence by using her twin siblings’ powers to complete an ancient spell. She would cast the Triforce into the ‘gap between dimensions,’ sealing its powers, and rendering Hyrule powerless so that she would have the opportunity to set things right.

“What a worthless creation that ghost was! I will banish it to the gap between dimensions!!”

- Ganondorf
“Ocarina of Time”

As her plans were set into motion, the people of Hyrule were quick to seize more land and the Gerudo race was pushed into the unforgiving depths of the desert. However, as the Void was invoked, an unforeseen catastrophe was about to unfold. The spell backfired, breaking open a rift to the Void near the twins. Helpless before its pull, they were drawn into the Void to exist forever in eternal nothingness.

When all seemed lost, a force awoke from the depths of the abyss and migrated into the body of the elder twin, a young woman named Mudora. She felt the calmest, most gentle power fill her as her mind was also filled with knowledge, giving her a disheartening glimpse to a terrible cataclysm that would befall the world.

Little did she know that elsewhere in the Void, her younger brother, Samil, had also drawn a mysterious force to himself. This female entity gave the young teen a horrifying look at the true nature of the world and spoke of restarting the world to create a utopia where all people could live in peace. Samil wanted nothing more than to banish such hatred and ignorance from the world and thus pledged himself to her cause.

As she bestowed him with the great powers she possessed, his body began to absorb the immense sorrow and hatred of all souls that had fallen into the Void. Overwhelmed, the power within him drew deeply upon the souls and integrated them into his own body. Even his sister was not exempt. When his body could handle no more, he lost consciousness and drifted through the darkness.

Invoked by the power of the Triforce, the shadow tribe would recieve dire punishments for their actions. The Goddessess would cast many into a fallen realm and those who managed to escape would try to find mercy by pledging loyalty to Hyrule’s Royal Family, but they would all eventually die out. The legacy of the Sheikah had died out and would vanish into history.

The Story Begins…

Generations pass following the death of Ganon at the hands of the Hero of Hyrule. However, a sign of danger looming in Hyrule’s future made itself known when a new Link and Zelda were born. Just like every other day, Link proceeds towards the castle to meet with the princess, but, when the symbol of the Triforce materialized on the back of his hand one day, he felt something was amiss. It didn’t take long for him to find out as his beloved homeland was soon attacked by a horrid nightmare from the past. Ganon had returned.

Mindless in his actions, Ganon kidnaps the princess and flees. Knowing well what was expected of him, Link travels the lands as the heroes of old had, eventually confronting and defeating Ganon atop his stronghold. But, as he is reunited with Zelda, the Goddesses themselves take form before the young Triforce holders.

The Goddesses strip the young pair of their Triforce pieces before giving them a grave warning. When their cryptic words are spoken, the sky darkens as a horrific being manifests itself before the Golden Goddesses. Chaos, he is called by the trio. With a single glance, he drains Link and Zelda of their strength before berating the Goddesses and conversing with an unseen female entity. Complying with the wishes of the voice, Chaos releases the power of the Void upon the Goddesses and the Triforce, tearing them all to pieces. With a solemn comment about the nature of men, Chaos tears open multiple rifts to the Void over the world, allowing its powers to spill forth. Overcome with shock, Link blacks out.

Link awakens outside a tranquil pond where he meets a white-haired woman clad in white at the water’s edge. Here she reveals Chaos' plan to break down Hyrule's barriers, which separated it from the Sacred Realm. The Void would overtake the world, giving Chaos the influence needed to 'restart' the world. Link is given the Cosmos Tear, a white crystal allowing him to pass through distortions around the world and enter time periods where the other chosen heroes reside.

"Shadow Temple... Here is gathered Hyrule's bloody history of greed and hatred..."

-Skull Painting
“Ocarina of Time”

Traveling to previous eras, Link gains the aid of his predecessors, helps defeat the Chaos Warrior influencing the growth of the Voids, and clashes with Chaos’ surprising right-hand, the Hero of Men. Once he has gathered seven of his predecessors who have faced Ganon or his darkness in accordance with the Triforce’s cycle and defeated Chaos’ soldiers, the lady in white opens a pathway to the Void deep inside the Shadow Temple. Reaching the deepest depths of the Shadow Temple, to the catacombs Bongo Bongo once resided, they instead fall in a black void.

Item: The Cosmos Tear

The new item available to Link is granted to him upon his first encounter with the ‘Woman in White.” In addition to stabilizing Void rifts, after meeting another Link, as only one Chosen Hero can be present at a time, it gives Link the ability to pause time temporarily to switch places with another Link, a function crucial to solving puzzles or defeating certain enemies.

All Links are capable of using the Cosmos Tear by pressing up on the d-pad, but only the Hero of the Cosmos is able to equip it as an item. On the field, Link can reverse damage that the Void has caused to terrain and various other structures. In battle, the Cosmos Tear can be used against creatures powered by the Void and made invincible to all forms of attack. In certain boss fights, if the Void's influence is strong enough you can use the Cosmos Tear to 'Hold' a Link. This will allow the Link already present to remain in battle and hold the action he was performing and allow another Link to appear in battle. (Example: The first Link uses the Clawshot and Iron Boots to hold back a fast enemy while a second Link is summoned to attack it.)

The Void

The realm where Chaos lies in wait, according to the Book of Mudora, resides between Hyrule and the Sacred Realm. Much like the Golden Land, its appearance is different depending on the person who enters. However, it is those touched by the Triforce’s power that see the Void as a bleak and desolate abyss while others see it as a vast paradise covered in flowers.

After traversing the first 'room', you'll pass through a portal into the main room. The path is sealed, but the Book of Mudora will manifest before Link and flip to one of the very last pages. It’ll tell you the order in which you must approach the statues as well as a specific order that must be remembered for later.

“As a youth, the light engulfed me.
I saw the horrors and resigned myself to sleep forevermore in the abyss.
I'll let him protect me, even as our names fade with time.
But, even in sleep, the fell black wind will not leave me.
The pure essence of hate, the hearts of men steep deeply in it. Their hearts filled with fear.
As I see the lands, fading into their last twilight, all will fade, all will be reduced to nothing.
Their hope is miniscule.
The world, not just Hyrule, must know the chaos it has produced in order for the light of cosmos to take hold and let hope begin anew.
But, it inches closer, the Great Cataclysm... she will uphold.”

After the statues are dispelled and the heroes have faced their trials, the barrier will break. Near the end of the dungeon, the Hero of the Cosmos is separated from his group. Alone, he finds himself atop a small piece of land with a statue of him. Touching the statue, he is transported to the Fields of Eternity, where Zelda awaits him. After a short scene with Link meeting Samil, the fields die and Zelda and Samil fade away. As he searches for them, he comes upon his own Chaos Warrior, the Hero of Men.

After his defeat, the heroes are reunited. Passing through the final vortex, they enter a long, oval-shaped room. At the back, Chaos waits in silence upon his throne.

“It's been so long. In this place, which knows no time, I've waited, but for how long? Knowing the truth, but unable to tell. Better yet, how long will you hold onto all the lies fed to you? You've been led this far, slowly learning the truth, but still you cast a blind eye to the very clues left to you.

You bask in the light in the hopes of gaining its truth and love, but all you gain is blindness, to forever live in ignorance. The Triforce, the Goddesses, everything is a fabrication meant to delude the people She chooses.

The 'essence' of the Triforce, She beguiles with lies and uses the cycle of the Triforce to keep Her influence over the people. I've enough will to fight her now that you've broken the ties, but still you refuse to stand down?

You claim my words to be lies? You see this… wretched form before you, do you not? You would continue to hide behind the lies She has fed you? For the sake of all existence, I’ll tear away the veil and force you to see the truths of this world.”


Chaos: Anarchist Warrior


Part 1

Physical Appearance
Chaos is a large, muscular, red-eyed demon. His light-brown skinned body is covered in horns on his shoulders, elbows, knees, and the back of his neck. His long tail is tipped with a poison-laced stinger, he possesses large black wings with tendrils extending from the bases that he can use to his advantage in battle. The one thing that stands out on him is the glowing yellow crystal on his upper chest that looks exactly like the crystal on the hilt of the Master Sword.

Fighting Grounds
The battle against Chaos begins in a long, oval-shaped ‘throne room’. Besides the ‘throne’ and the four pillars situated around the front and back of the room, the arena is rather plain. However, an occasional barrage of fireballs or lava spouts may strike the battlefield, so it would be wise to be on the move.

Required Items
Master Sword

Note 1: The combat for this game would be tweaked from past games and Link will be able to attack slightly faster and be capable of performing various combos. To compensate for Link being quicker and hitting harder, enemies would have higher health, strength, and intelligence than before and come in larger numbers.
Note 2: In addition to the magic bar, Link would have a constantly regenerating blue bar, broken into a maximum of twenty segments, representing defense. Each strike from an enemy will knock a segment off the bar, but it will slowly restore itself back to full. Should the bar be depleted, Link’s defense will be broken and he will receive 50% more damage than usual until the bar completely fills. All boss enemies also have a defense bar which can be broken.

Recommended Hero
Hero of Winds- Due to Chaos’ slow walking speed, the Hero of Wind’s small stature and quick speed make him capable of outmaneuvering Chaos. This speed also helps to make quicker dodges and his small stature enables him to easily evade most projectile attacks.

But, for quicker results…

Hero of Twilight- The Hero of Twilight possesses several hard hitting skills that can deplete Chaos' health, and his defense, more quickly. However, due to the downtime caused by his skills and being slower than his fellow heroes, using the Hero of Twilight is a major gamble if you don’t have quick reflexes and excellent fighting skills. As such, he is recommended only for skilled players.

The Battle

The first phase is a straightforward test of strength and skills between Chaos and Link. As the battle begins, Chaos will slowly lumber towards you, waiting for you to strike. If you are quick with your attacks, he will block and react with a counterattack. Once the background music changes, you will notice Chaos’ actions change. This is because his actions coincide with the nature of the battle's music. In the first phase, the music has a soft, gentle melody that evolves into a somber, vocal version of the ‘Legend of Zelda’ theme with a female singing in Hylian. To reflect this, Chaos has slower movements and relies more on defense. As the music transitions into a dark, pipe organ score with male vocals, Chaos becomes more offensive and has a higher likelihood of rushing at Link. Defending and evading are crucial, so look for signs that prompt upcoming attacks.

Shifting from the organ to an orchestra, nothing changes until the orchestra becomes faster and fiercer with male and female vocals. In this final state, Chaos favors a quick, wild, and brutal offensive. A violet aura surrounds his body which strengthens the physical attacks used in the previous two phases by a half-heart per hit. Because his attacks come so fast and the downtime between attacks is lessened, you’ll have to put up a good defense, choosing your opportunity to attack wisely. Chaos will occasionally chain together two physical attacks with a special attack. If he does so, this will leave him drained, giving you a window of opportunity to attack. Remember to be vigilant with guarding and evading and with good skills, you’ll defeat Chaos.

Attacks (Phases 1-3)
Tail Swipe (1 heart per hit)- Chaos spins himself around three times, striking at you with his tail. Roll to avoid the attack. Defending will protect you from the first strike, but it will also break your guard, leaving you open to the following blows.
Swipe (1 heart per hit)- Chaos lunges forward and swipes with his claws twice before performing a third, cross-slash with both claws. The attack will leave your warrior stunned. Roll constantly to avoid being hit. With good timing, you can block the cross-slash, stunning Chaos.
*Hellfire: Alpha (1.5 hearts per hit)- Chaos tosses homing fireballs that will dissipate after several seconds. Physical attacks can be used to swat the fireballs back at Chaos to inflict damage.

(Phases 2-3)
Oblivion (4 hearts)- Chaos releases a batch of dark orbs over the battlefield. If touched, Link is trapped and Chaos will shrink then detonate the orb. If an orb is not touched, Chaos will still detonate the orbs and damage Link is he's nearby.
*Hell Combo (1.5 hearts per combo; 5 combos total)- Chaos teleports near Link and strikes him with a multi-hit combo throwing him back. Chaos will teleport near him and hit him with another combo. This attack cannot be blocked, but can be evaded with precise timing. If struck with one combo, it it nearly impossible to escape any other combos.

(Phase 3)
Rend (4 hearts)- Chaos uses an uppercut on Link, throwing him into the sky. Positioning his wings over his head, a red, sword-like aura surrounds them as he waits for Link to land on his wings. Piercing Link, he separates his wings, throwing Link high overhead.
*Hellfire: Omega (1 heart per hit)- Chaos engulfs himself in a cyclone of flames and rains several meteors over the battlefield. You must use Pegasus Boots to outrun the meteors. After the meteors fall, Chaos disperses his cyclone, releasing waves of fire over the battlefield.
*Hellraiser (1.5 hearts per combo and 4 for final strike; 4 combos total)- Chaos’ ultimate attack. Hellraiser is an upgraded version of Hell Combo, set apart by Chaos enveloping his hand and feet in spheres of Shadow energy. He will use multiple attacks, which, while slow, release large waves of energy that spreads in the direction Chaos attacks. After four strikes, Chaos balls himself up as the Shadow spheres envelope him. The Cosmos Tear will generate several small safe zones which you must make use of or be struck.
(*An uninterruptable attack. Chaos cannot be stopped from using the attack once it’s begun. A red aura surrounding Chaos signals the use of such an attack.)

----------

After the final blow, the Cosmos Tear will fully revive any Hero that may have fallen in battle, though any fairies that may have been expended will not be restored. Chaos will become frustrated that the Chosen Heroes still refuse to stand down. He begins to absorb everything, casting himself and the warriors into a bleak and desolate void of darkness. Taking on a new, larger form, several rifts open in the Void as the battle begins anew.


Part 2: Chaos: Envoy of Agony and Seeker of Truth


Physical Appearance
In his second form, Chaos becomes deathly thin and much of his muscle has wasted away. A pit exists where his face would be with a single red eye within it. On the left side of his head is a wing-like growth and a twisted, eyeless head protrudes from the right. The area underneath his ribcage is torn out with the yellow crystal embedded in his spine. Draped around his waist, his wings hang down almost like a dress. Attached at the base of his bound legs is the Seeker of Truth, a head with its eye in its mouth.

When it shields the Envoy of Agony, it grows immensely, its skin whitens, and it grows a pair of golden wings like those seen on the phoenix of the Royal Family's crest. Topping the wings and protruding from beneath the Seeker's head are red feathers.

Fighting Grounds

The battlefield is engulfed by the Void and you fight in a vast darkness of indeterminable size that looks very reminiscent of outer space.

Required Items
Master Sword
Cosmos Tear
Cane of Somaria
Ether, Quake, and Bombos Medallions
Longshot/Hookshot/Clawshot
Iron Boots
Skull Hammer or Ball & Chain

The Battle

As the battle begins, Chaos will wrap himself up in the fetal position as the head surrounding his legs grows and swallows the Envoy of Agony whole. The Seeker of Truth acts as a shield and you must weaken it to release the Envoy. As the battle begins, the Seeker makes himself invisible. Equip the Cosmos Tear on the Hero of the Cosmos and hold out the Wiimote to begin seeking out the Seeker. The telltale sign of his presence is the sound of a garbled female voice. When you get close, the Cosmos Tear will release a burst of light to reveal your target.

The Seeker likes to distance himself from Link, but using the Hero of Winds, or any Link in possession of Pegasus Boots, will help you catch him. When you’re close use the Cane of Somaria to imprison both of his wings in magical blocks. Aim the bow and arrow at the Seeker's eye and he'll immediately shut it. Use the Cosmos Tear to 'hold' this Link and use either the Skull Hammer or Ball & Chain against his eyelid twice to get him to open his mouth. As he howls in pain, you’ll notice either a red or blue glow or black smoke coming from inside his mouth. Use the arrow of the opposing color and pelt the inside of his mouth with arrows until he recovers. Repeat the process again to deplete the remainder of his health.

With his health depleted, the Seeker will try flying away and his wings will emit a glow, preventing you from using the Cane of Somaria. You must now force the Envoy out and to do so, equip the Iron Boots and use a grappling item to hold onto one of his wings. 'Hold' the hero and quickly do the same for the other hero possessing a grappling item. 'Holding' them both, as the Hero of the Cosmos, approach the Seeker and press 'A' to jump up and grab onto him. Climb up, holding 'A' whenever he begins to thrash around to stay held on. Atop his head, turn your Wiimote upside-down and stab it downward to impale stab him in the head and use the Cosmos Tear, shoving it into his head. The other Links will disappear as the Cosmos Tear forces the Envoy into appearing.

Once he's out, he'll fall to his knees, giving you an open shot to attack. Attack relentlessly until he recovers. The Envoy will remain outside his shell for a couple of minutes so use the Cane of Somaria to entrap the Seeker's head. While the Envoy is stalled, a barrier will appear around his stomach. Depending on its color, you will have to use either one of the three magic medallions or either the Skull Hammer or Ball & Chain. If red, violet, or blue, use Ether, Quake, or Bombos respectively and if it's grey, use the Skull Hammer or Ball & Chain. Repeat the process of extracting the crystal and attack with everything you've got until he finally summons the Seeker again to shield him. Repeat the process until you deplete the Envoy’s health and end the battle.

Attacks (Seeker of Truth)
Gore (4 hearts)- The horns atop Chaos' head extend and he'll soar around, trying to impale Link.
Wings of Fire (3 hearts)- The metallic tips of Chaos' wings glow momentarily before releasing fire beams at Link. The beams last for several seconds so you could be hit more than once.
Blood Blades (.5 hearts per hit)- The blood droplets Chaos leaves behind lift off the ground, transforming into blades, and shooting at Link.
Agony Release (1 heart per hit)- Chaos stretches his 'mouth' open, revealing a mass of bunched up eyes. Chaos will spew a mass of eye-headed snakes to attack Link.
Blood of the Sheikah (6 hearts)- Chaos releases a large tear of blood onto the ground which will come alive and lunge after Link. If it grabs onto him, it will surround him in a giant red cyclone. He will be hit for several seconds before the cyclone implodes.
Self-Injury (2 hearts every 7 seconds)- Chaos will split open its eye, releasing a curse upon Link that will repeatedly damage him and inflict a minor amount of damage to Chaos himself. Attack Chaos with any method to break his concentration and lift the curse.

Attacks (Envoy of Agony)
Wing Cleave (1.5 hearts)- Chaos spins around, turning his wings into razor sharp blades.
Almagest (2 hearts per hit)- Chaos generates a multitude of rings in random areas around the battle field and stars and planets travel around the rings.
Supernova (5 hearts)- Chaos emits a small sphere of light that after several seconds, erupts in a giant explosion that shoots shockwaves throughout the Void.
Void Aura (1~6 hearts)- Chaos releases up to eight spheres of energy and will detonate after a certain amount of time. The longer they linger, the more damage they’ll inflict.
Grand Cross (7 hearts)- Shadow bubbles rise up around Link and if he doesn’t flee quickly, a cross-shaped fissure overhead will fire down a beam of energy.

----------

Chaos howls in pain, opening a rift behind the Chosen Heroes. Chaos’ body explodes in a blast of darkness, propelling them into it. On the opposite side of the rift, the band of heroes plummets from the sky into what appears to be the town square of Hyrule Castle Town. What they were laying witness to was a conglomeration of the various castle towns they knew. Darkness spilling forth, a stone pillar rises from the ground and chained to it is a young man, his head covered by a black mass. Speaking with Chaos’ voice, the cries of hundreds of townspeople suddenly echo throughout the town.


Part 3: Chaos (?): The Hero


Physical Description
In his third form, the power of the Void leaves him and a young man is left behind. He is draped only in the tattered remains of robes that cover the lower half of his body. His face is covered in a shadowy mass that conceals who he is. From what can be seen, his hair is blue, his complexion tanned, his eyes are red, and the Sheikah symbol is drawn across his chest and abdomen in blood.

Fighting Grounds
The battle is fought in a dimensionally unstable mash-up of the various Hyrule Castle Towns in Hyrule’s past. It is easily the largest battlefield as the entire city is composed of various districts to be fought in.

Required Items
Master Sword
Bow and Arrow
Pegasus Boots

The Battle

Once this phase begins, you will notice a new gauge named 'Trauma' on the top of the screen. This bar seemingly has no purpose, but will become extremely important later on. You will notice that all Links are present in this battle and all, but the one chosen by the player, are AI-controlled. With your Hero of choice, move past Chaos and enter the designated district and you’ll find the place overrun with townspeople and soldiers.

This is where the gauge comes into play. You must protect seven non-Hylian people in the area and if they are injured severely or killed, your gauge fills up by a certain amount. The same applies to severely injuring or even killing any civilians or soldiers in the area. As it increases, you become distraught and it will begin to affect your movements and vision in addition to increasing the damage you receive from attacks. When using the sword, you run the risk of actually hitting someone, your aim with the bow is hampered, and when using Pegasus Boots, you become more likely to stumble and fall. On-screen, your surroundings will become hazy and things will appear to move about in a blur that worsens the higher the gauge goes. If the bar happens to max out, you will pass out and all the citizens left unprotected will die.

While you are dealing with once section, you will sometime get alerts from other districts if someone is in danger of dying. Use the Cosmos Tear to switch over to the district in question and using your Wiimote, search for the person in danger by listening for their cries. Once they are safe, you can switch back to another Link.

Start off by looking around for people crowding around a victim, a group running around or those about to be hanged or stoned. With crowds, use any non-lethal means, such as shooting an arrow at their feet to get them to back off. This will arouse the suspicion of Hylian soldiers so be on the lookout. Take the victim by the hand and quickly lead them to a safe spot all the while fending off soldiers if need be. This rift is somewhere in the district, generally in alleyways or near the town's gates.

When someone is being chased, use the Pegasus Boots to outrun them and use a sword swing to scare off any would be pursuers. After the first group is gone, your target will head for the safe point. Protect them as they flee until they reach the designated spot.

For those set to be hanged, fire an arrow at the rope and when they’re down, pick them up and quickly rush them to the rift. While carrying the person, you cannot attack, but you can use a charge attack to knock people aside without inflicting any serious harm. The same can be done for those to be stoned if they pass out from fear. Otherwise you can just lead them.

Once a district has been cleared of all targets, Chaos will become unshackled and will try to restore himself by absorbing more power from the Void. The Cosmos Tear will freeze time momentarily in the other areas on the city. Hurry back to the main square and start attacking the Chaos. Depending on how many people you managed to save, Chaos will increase his defense to a certain point. For example, if you only saved one person, you’ll deal hardly any damage to him and if you saved all seven, he will take slightly more damage than usual. After a set period of time or after you’ve dealt a certain amount of damage, Chaos will knock you back and become bound to the pillar once again.

Repeat this process with all other Heroes and if you managed to save at least 5 people in each district, you will have been able to deal enough damage to Chaos to end the fight.

Attacks
Tendrils (1 heart)- Chaos releases multiple tendrils around him that will swat at Link to keep him at bay. Dispatch them with a spin attack.
Energy Burst (1 heart)- After a set period of being free or after sustaining a certain amount of damage, he will release a burst of energy, throwing Link aside. Just move out of the way as he starts to rise up to avoid being hit.

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The chains and pillar disperse in a burst of black mist and Chaos slumps to the floor, visibly weakened. The mass covering his head slithers away and the Hero of the Cosmos recognizes him as Samil.

“Do you understand my position now? The people of this world are slaves to their own ignorance. How could you possibly think it best to allow the world to continue on like this?”

“Don’t listen to her!” Startled, the heroes look back to find the Hero of Men approaches. “You think you can just brainwash them like you did the Hylians and Samil? The people of this world cause undue suffering upon others, but, for the sake of your ‘utopia’, you’re introducing even more suffering into the world.”

As Samil begins to show visible signs of anger on his face, a golden female figure manifests behind the collapsed young man.

“Hero… Link, you must set them free from their torment. Take my power and drive her from Samil and Mudora.”

Brandishing his swords, the Hero of Men breaks them down into dark energy and sends the darkness into the Master Sword. In an eruption of light, the Master Sword is transformed, the hilt darkened and the blade giving off a violet glow.

Samil and the female figure stammer in disbelief. Link rushes at Samil when the entity suddenly shrieks in anger as she manifests a spherical shield around her puppet. In a violent explosion of her power, she sends Link flying back as the battle begins.


Part 4: Samil: Possessed Savior


Physical Description
In his final form, the mass covering his face lifts. As he absorbs the Links into his body, he gains various articles of black clothing on his body until he wears garments similar to those worn by Link underneath various pieces of armor. He wields a sword in each hand and two phantom arms behind him hold two more swords. The design of his helmet bears a slight resemblance to Majora’s Mask.

Fighting Grounds
The battle begins in the illusionary Hyrule Castle Town and after Samil absorbs all past Links, the illusion fades. The final phase of the battle takes place in the Fields of Eternity, the waterfall surrounded flower fields.

Required Items
Master Sword
Cosmos Tear
Bombos and Ether Medallions
Clawshot

The Battle

Phase 1: Base Form
Samil is confined within his shield, floating over the crater formed by the entity’s eruption. Seven Triforce pieces encircle his barrier and each one must be destroyed before you have a chance to get to Samil. As the battle begins, you will be in control of any random hero, excluding the Hero of the Cosmos. One of the Triforce pieces will glow brighter than the others, signifying which the current hero must attack. However, the crater prevents you from getting close and arrows are ineffective.

Instead, you must use one of his own attacks against him. The attack in question is where Samil sends several stone hands carrying light orbs. When one of the hands attempts to strike, dodge the blow and strike repeatedly with your sword before the hand can move. The hand will crumble and leave the light orb behind. Grab onto it by holding ‘A’ and Samil’s barrier will attempt to reclaim the orb. Remain holding ‘A’ and pull back with the Wiimore and Nunchuk to fight of the barrier’s pull. When the glowing Triforce is about to pass through the path of the light orb, release the button and swing the Wiimote and Nunchuk forward to throw the light orb into the Triforce. Repeat a second time to break the Triforce and a vortex will manifest before the barrier and draw the hero in.

Link will enter free fall down a swirling wormhole and the golden entity will appear beneath him. She will attack by releasing clusters of light orbs that explode near Link. She will pause after several attacks, giving you a chance to attack. You will receive a prompt to hold down the ‘Z’ button, putting you into first person when held. Aim at the golden entity with the Wiimote and press ‘A’ as prompted to and Link will swing his sword, releasing a cluster of dark orbs to inflict slight damage. After several hits, the entity will be stunned, allowing you descend closer to her and attack with your sword. Repeat again until her small health bar is depleted. She will envelope Link and you’ll return to the battle with Samil, now clothed in a new article of clothing, in control of another Link.

Repeat the same process with each Link, taking caution as the number of hands and size of the light orb cluster attack will increase with every Link. With every Link he absorbs, a new article of clothing will appear on his body, including: full body tights, boots, a tunic, a cap, gauntlets, and, finally, armor. When you have gone through all heroes, the barrier will fall and Samil will grow to immense size as two phantom arms manifest behind him, a sword appearing in each of his hands. In control of the Hero of the Cosmos, you will be granted the aid of your allies by gaining all the unique items that the other Links were carrying as well as any fairies they may have managed to retain in their possession.

Phase 2: Knight Samil
Now prepared to end the fighting, the illusion of Hyrule Castle Town fades. Tearing apart fragments of the ground, Link is lifted upon the rings of debris encircling Samil’s body. Every 60 seconds or so, Samil will change the formation of the rings, forcing you to find new ways to get around to damage him. He will sometimes break land fragments around you. Use the Cosmos Tear to restore the broken land.

Samil will take not damage from your attacks as long as he is armored. Clawshot your way to the lower ring of debris around his legs and when your close to his knee, use the Bombos medallion to release a wave of fire at Samil, which will heat up the armor. Avoid Samil’s retaliations and hit him with another blast from Bombos. Follow up with Ether and the icy explosion will crack Samil’s leg armor.

Equip the Iron Boots and Clawshot the broken fragments off until Samil’s leg is exposed. Aim at Samil's leg and strike him the same dark cluster attack used on the entity. When he falls to his knees, Clawshot your way up the platforms and onto his body. His neck will be exposed so attack with everything you've got. He’ll throw you off when he recovers, so repeat the process on his other leg.

After the second attack on him, Samil will generate a barrier to prevent you from reaching the lower rings. Equip the Cosmos Tear and it will begin to glow. Use the Cosmos Tear as an item and suddenly, your entire perspective will change to the inside of Samil’s chest crystal. While in this state, use the Wiimote to adjust your view and search for any light orbs littered across the top ring, attacking with 'A', while avoiding Samil’s attacks by following the button prompts on screen.

The Clawshot will automatically lock on to the closest Clawshot target so you don’t need to worry about manual aim. Once you’ve destroyed all light orbs, you’ll return to Link's perspective and the barrier will fall. Repeat the process of injuring his leg and attacking his head until Samil has only a quarter of his health remaining.

In this last stretch, the yellow crystal will glow brightly and so too will the Cosmos Tear. When you use the Tear, you will be given the option of choosing one of the Chosen Heroes. Upon doing so, a strange symbol will appear on the screen, which you must trace with your Wiimote. The Links must be chosen in a specific order, the very same written in the Book of Mudora.

Chose each hero in order and trace the symbols while making sure Samil doesn’t hit you at any point or else you’ll have to start all over from the first symbol. When you complete a symbol, the Cosmos Tear will change colors and a musical note will resound from the crystal in Samil's chest. This will stun Samil temporarily, so either stay put and complete another symbol or escape to a safe spot. When you have completed all symbols, the Cosmos Tear will shatter and be absorbed into the crystal.

Attacks
Pound (2 hearts)- One of the stone hands will fly over Link, hover momentarily and crash down on top of him.
Rocket Punch (3 hearts)- A stone hand will hover close the the ground and fly around Samil's barrier multiple times.
Light Cluster (2 hearts)- The entity throws out several light orbs that explode when near Link.
Blade Beam: Alpha (2 hearts per hit)- Samil sweeps his blades across the battlefield twice, releasing crescent blades, before performing a cross-slash.
Blade Beam: Omega (3 hearts per hit)- Samil raises his swords overhead and touches the tips together, releasing a burst of energy skyward. Seconds later, energy blades rain down that emit small shockwaves upon hitting the ground..
Shield Attack (8 hearts)- Samil generates an energy shield in front of his body and thrusts is forward. If struck, Link will sustain no damage, but will be knocked back, allowing Samil to strike with his sword.
Mortal Draw (10 hearts)- Samil’s most devastating attack, All four of his weapons will vanish and Samil will raise a single arm into the air. If Link is nearby, Samil will quickly recall his sword and bring it crashing down. The attack is unavoidable if Link remains too close.

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A familiar melody and a faint female voice begins to echo throughout the Void. The Hero of the Cosmos recognizes it as a tune he heard Mudora sing to herself when he went to her era. A brilliant light pours forth from the crystal until it shatters. Samil exhales with relief as his body breaks apart and is drawn into a rift overhead. From the light, two figures emerge. When they set foot on the ground, the light fades and Link is pleased he freed Samil but is likewise surprised to find the same woman who had led him and his companions to this point. Mudora…

Aftermath
“She will mend the Void, cinching together the threads of time and realms themselves to create a new order. Can you hear Her? This is it... She's coming."

-Mudora

From the depths of the fields, Mudora calls forth Zelda and the Hero of Men. Again referring to a mysterious 'Her' again, the entire Void begins to distort as the Sacred Realm's powers slip through the Void and slowly begins to flood Hyrule. Replicating the power of the Cosmos Tear, Mudora pulls them through the distortion and releases them onto the other end. They arrive, surrounded by corpses, in what appears to be a future Hyrule in utter ruins. On the horizon loomed Hyrule Castle, where Mudora states 'She' resides. With their final destination in sight, they set out to face the true 'Chaos'.

Art
The 'Throne Room'
The closest depiction of what the Fields of Eternity would look like would be this.

These are some quick sketches I’ve done to depict Chaos and Samil.
Chaos (1st Form)
Chaos (2nd Form)
Chaos (Seeker of Truth)
Samil
Knight Samil
Samil Colored

Music
I'd imagine the Void to have a orchestrated version of Final Hours from Majora's Mask.

This music inspired the first fight against Chaos. This is similar to what I have in mind for the final stage of the fight.

This, along with the creatures of Silent Hill, helped to inspire the second battle with Chaos.

The inspiration for the third part of the battle. I imagine the music beginning as a depressing melody that slowly intensifies and becomes slightly more urgent as more people are saved or killed. This is also another possibility for this battle.

This music was the inspiration for the final fight with Samil/Chaos.

Final Notes
Again, I decided to submit an idea for a major antagonist, but unlike Benedais, this is a character I’ve spent years working on with a slightly altered background for this submission. While I was only trying for a short entry, Chaos' back-story ended up lengthening my entry quite a bit. The idea for Chaos began back when I first played Ocarina of Time and reached the Shadow Temple. The quote about Hyrule’s past stuck in my mind and I always wondered if there was a possibility the people of Hyrule were not as good as they made themselves out to be. From that idea, I came up with a story about the early Sheikah and Hylians and the mysterious essence of the Triforce manipulating history to make the Hylians its perfect race. Eventually it became a story involving the ‘final’ Chosen Hero attempting to vanquish the darkness and a young Sheikah that fell into the ‘gap between dimensions’ striving to free the world from the control of the Triforce. Eventually this Sheikah took on a devilish form in the eyes of those influenced by the Triforce and became known as Chaos.

And I thought I would end up with one of the longest entries.

Wow. Someone actually thinks its a great entry. Thanks for that, Double A.

Though I'm not too pleased with the length. I'll probably spend some time editing it, so I'm expecting it to be shorter by the contest's end. I can only hope I make it a couple places higher than last time, but I'm not really expecting much.

The list of entries has been updated.

Let's not turn this into the longest entry contest Like Katalyvos said, his entry may be edited several times before the contest ends, and it's likely that the entry will be cropped significantly. Long entries are subject to repeated sentences and irrelevant information. Keep revising your entries until the deadline and make changes when you notice mistakes or prefer to replace sentences with others, etc.

I don't know if someone will open up a discussion thread of the contest later, but I'm thinking it's a good idea if I occasionally provide some tips to make a more appealing entry. Or I could just do it here.

Originally Posted by Lloyd Irving

The list of entries has been updated.

Let's not turn this into the longest entry contest Like Katalyvos said, his entry may be edited several times before the contest ends, and it's likely that the entry will be cropped significantly. Long entries are subject to repeated sentences and irrelevant information. Keep revising your entries until the deadline and make changes when you notice mistakes or prefer to replace sentences with others, etc.

I don't know if someone will open up a discussion thread of the contest later, but I'm thinking it's a good idea if I occasionally provide some tips to make a more appealing entry. Or I could just do it here.

Discussion threads are useless if there are only four entries to discuss.

Originally Posted by Double A

Discussion threads are useless if there are only four entries to discuss.

When this gets more active, I'm sure a discussion thread could be of use like last time. I actually didn't approve of that kind of thread before.

Of course there'll be one. Just not so early.

Just posting to say come Sunday I shall critique the **** out of everything posted so far, specfically Double A's and Katalyvos's. You are both guilty of confusing waffle with content, which is especially surprising for you, Double A, with your supposed minimalist story and background ideals. I'm not picking on either of you as such, but waffle is one of my pet hates.

^At a separate thread or via PM-- I strictly forbid any criticism on this thread

Have you asked Cody to put up an announcement or whatever? Maybe that's why we don't have many entries this time around.