The Legend of Zelda (A Timeline Study)

US versions of The Legend of Zelda:

Legend of Zelda, The...July 1987 (NES)
Legend of Zelda, The: Collector's Edition...11/17/2003 (GCN)
Classic NES Series: The Legend of Zelda...06/07/2004 (GBA)
Legend of Zelda, The...11/19/2006 (Wii VC)

(release date info from Master Game List / Classic Games List)

The Legend of Zelda tells us 3 stories:

1 - The "age of Chaos"
2 - Ganon's invasion
3 - The in-game events of LoZ

A long, long time ago
the World was in an age of Chaos.

In the midst of this chaos, in a little kingdom in the land of Hyrule, a
legend was being handed down from generation to generation, the
legend of the "Triforce"; golden triangles possessing mystical powers.
-NES Manual

Note that "A long, long time ago" means a long, long time before LoZ.

I think the following quote is what the NES Manual describes as
the legend of the Triforce. Note that both legends are handed down.

OK then, Link...
I'm going to tell you the secret of
the Sacred Realm that has been
passed down by the Royal Family
of Hyrule.
Please keep this a secret from
everyone...
The legend goes like this...
The three goddesses hid the
Triforce containing the power of
the gods somewhere in Hyrule.
The power
to grant the wish of the one who
holds the Triforce in his hands.
If someone with a righteous heart
makes a wish, it will lead Hyrule
to a golden age of prosperity....
If someone with an evil mind has
his wish granted, the world will
be consumed by evil...That is what
has been told....
So, the ancient Sages built
the Temple of Time to protect the
Triforce from evil ones.
That's right... The Temple of Time
is the entrance through which you
can enter the Sacred Realm from
our world.
But the entrance is sealed with
a stone wall called the
Door of Time.
And, in order to open the door,
it is said that you need to collect
three Spiritual Stones.
And another thing you need...is
the treasure that the Royal Family
keeps along with this legend...
The Ocarina of Time!
-Zelda, OoT

This can be used as evidence that OoT comes before LoZ, and also
helps us to place the "age of Chaos", we can now say that it comes in
an era very close to OoT (because the legend is handed down during the
age of Chaos). Quite possibly, the "age of Chaos" ended at the same time
as the "fierce war" described in OoT:

Some time ago, before the King of
Hyrule unified this country, there
was a fierce war in our world.
-Deku Tree, OoT

But with the long peace, no one
has seen a Sheikah around here
for a long time.
-NPC, OoT

Here is an aside:

In the midst of this chaos, in a little kingdom in the land of Hyrule...
-NES Manual

Some use the above quote to reference LoZ Hyrule being only a small
portion of Hyrule, the GBA Manual reads:

Among this chaos, in the tranquil Kingdom of Hyrule...
-GBA Manual

This passage is quite interesting:

One day, an evil army attacked this peaceful little kingdom and stole
the Triceforce of Power. This army was led by Ganon, the powerful Prince of
Darkness who sought to plunge the World into fear and darkness under his rule.
-NES Manual

Ganon is referred to as the "powerful Prince of Darkness", much like his title
in FSA as the "King of Darkness". When it says that he "sought to plunge the
World into fear and darkness" it could be a reference to FSA and/or ALttP,
in which Ganon tries to plunge the world into darkness by making the Light
World into another part of the Dark World.

The GBA manual refers to Ganon by a different title, and has his effort
to plunge the world into darkness clearly being after he takes the Triforce
of Power right before LoZ:

This army was led by Ganon, a powerful warlock bent on reigning over a
dynasty of fear and darkness.
-GBA Manual

Ganon is referred to as a powerful warlock, this is much closer to the
Ganondorf seen in OoT before he gets the Triforce of Power, than it
is to his blue-pig "King of Darkness" form. Also notice how he is only
"bent on" a wicked reign, this version can only be interpreted as a future
reign/current plotting not a reign of darkness from the past.

I suppose you could theorize that Ganondorf is the 'Prince of Darkness',
and Ganon is the 'King of Darkness', but I find the word 'Darkness' to have
specific ties to the FSA Trident.

If you hold in-game evidence as superior to Manual evidence, it is
important to note that in the GBA game that his title as the "Prince
of Darkness" has not been changed. ('Prince of Darkness' vs. 'warlock')
The title 'Prince of Darkness' is supported by everything but the GBA
Manual.

*(Note that any and all timeline theories about LoZ derived from the NES
Manual are being interpreted through games released later in the series.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In my timeline, the CT goes like this:
(AoC = age of Chaos)

-Creation
-Peace
-AoC: interlopers
-AoC: original SR seal (ALttP backstory)
-AoC: prolonged wars & legend of Triforce handed down
-AoC ends with unification of Hyrule
-OoT...TP
-TP Ganondorf reborn in FSA with balance
-FSA...ALttP
-ALttP...LoZ

Originally Posted by Cukeman

I find the word 'Darkness' to have
specific ties to the Trident of Power.

I believe it is actually called the "Trident of Darkness". Other than that, I agree with everything.

Although, the question I keep coming back to is: how does Ganon get from ALttP to LoZ?

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

...how does Ganon get from ALttP to LoZ?

I theorize that OoX brings his spirit back into the world, and only his
body is destroyed in OoX (for lack of Silver Arrows)...also note that
OoX Link has a costume & shield like ALttP Link (with the addition of tights)

^ That makes sense. Do you think that I should change my OoX placement?

Also, Ganon having a physical form in LoZ remains unexplained.

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

Also, Ganon having a physical form in LoZ remains unexplained.

True. BTW, I searched a FSA Text Dump & a Game Script & could only
find the word "Trident" I could find neither 'Trident of Power' or 'Trident
of Darkness'...hmmm where do we find the full name of the Trident?

As for your Oracles placement, I would be interested to know what you see
in it to place it after LoZ/AoL, maybe you have some strong support...

Originally Posted by Cukeman

True. BTW, I searched a FSA Text Dump & a Game Script & could only
find the word "Trident" I could find neither 'Trident of Power' or 'Trident
of Darkness'...hmmm where do we find the full name of the Trident?

That is interesting. I just searched it up too and had the same results. I think we're better off calling it "Ganon's Trident" or just "Trident".

As for your Oracles placement, I would be interested to know what you see
in it to place it after LoZ/AoL, maybe you have some strong support...

All I remember thinking about were these things:

1. The Triforce is reunited.
2. The Triforce is in Hyrule.
3. Ganon is dead.

There could be more, but that's all I remember right now.

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

That is interesting. I just searched it up too and had the same results. I think we're better off calling it "Ganon's Trident" or just "Trident".



All I remember thinking about were these things:

1. The Triforce is reunited.
2. The Triforce is in Hyrule.
3. Ganon is dead.

There could be more, but that's all I remember right now.

There's also the fact that the OoX games were meant to be remakes/sequels of LoZ (not sure about AoL). And Link getting the Triforce sign on his hand in a similar way that AoL Link does. Personally, I still place it after LA.

Someone said before that during the ending sequence of ALttP, Link brings the Triforce to Hyrule Castle, but I just watched it and saw no such thing.

Also, I just realized that in OoX, Ganon's spirit is brought back from the Dark World and that's where he died in ALttP. But then again, when Ganon died, the Dark World "vanished".

Originally Posted by Roc Thul

...the OoX games were... remakes... of LoZ...And Link getting the Triforce sign on his hand in a similar way that AoL Link does...

That's true Roc Thul, but if OoX...LoZ, then OoX Link is a new Link,
not LoZ/AoL Link. A second thought that occurs to me is that the King's
spell, making the crest appear on the Hero's hand, would have been fulfilled
in AoL, so would it still exist? Of course OoX Link's crest may have come
from the Triforce itself, perhaps?

Originally Posted by Cukeman

That's true Roc Thul, but if OoX...LoZ, then OoX Link is a new Link,
not LoZ/AoL Link. A second thought that occurs to me is that the King's
spell, making the crest appear on the Hero's hand, would have been fulfilled
in AoL, so would it still exist. Of course OoX Link's crest may have come
from the Triforce itself, perhaps?

I wasn't really implying they're the same Link, but that some people use a post-AoL placement because of similar themes in the games (such as the aforementioned Triforce on hand). However, I think it still fits better after ALttP because of very similar art style (actually, it looks almost exactly the same as GBA ALttP art). After Link in ALttP acquires the Triforce, I'd like to think he brings it back to Hyrule Castle. I mean, what else would he do with it? It's very possible that the OoX Link's crest came from the Triforce, I believe.

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

Someone said before that during the ending sequence of ALttP, Link brings the Triforce to Hyrule Castle, but I just watched it and saw no such thing.

True. It floats away during the credits (back to it's SR resting place I think).
In my theory it is important that the Triforce is whole once more, but it needs
to be brought out of the SR again...

On the other hand, the Triforce obeys the wishes of its master as long as they
live...so perhaps ALttP Link may have been able to place it in Hyrule...I don't
really understand how this could work, it's just a random thought.

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

Also, I just realized that in OoX, Ganon's spirit is brought back from the Dark World and that's where he died in ALttP. But then again, when Ganon died, the Dark World "vanished".

Well, the Dark World & the Sacred Realm are the same place...and I don't
think that the Dark World vanished until ALttP Link wished on the Triforce
the quote just says that the Dark World will vanish:

If you defeat Ganon, this
world will vanish, and the
Triforce will wait
for a new master.

Kind of like how Zora's Domain will thaw, but you don't see it
happen in OoT. But then when ALttP Link wishes on the Triforce the Dark
World immediately vanishes, so it makes little difference.

EDIT:

Another reason to place the Oracles after ALttP rather than LoZ/AoL is the Trident,
which Ganon doesn't seem to have in LoZ...

Wasn't BS Zelda a remake of LoZ? And didn't Ganon have the Trident in that?

I heard he was supposed to have the Trident in LoZ, but they couldn't put it in due to graphical limitations.

Also:

But now, you have totally destroyed Ganon. His Dark World will vanish.

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

Wasn't BS Zelda a remake of LoZ? And didn't Ganon have the Trident in that?

I heard he was supposed to have the Trident in LoZ, but they couldn't put it in due to graphical limitations.

It makes sense to me that LoZ Ganon was meant to have a Trident.

I also want to point out that even if OoX happens after LoZ/AoL
you still need to explain how the Triforce got from ALttP to Hyrule for LoZ...

EDIT:

But now, you have totally destroyed Ganon. His Dark World will vanish.

Again, "will"...

Originally Posted by Beemnorv

Wasn't BS Zelda a remake of LoZ? And didn't Ganon have the Trident in that?

I heard he was supposed to have the Trident in LoZ, but they couldn't put it in due to graphical limitations.

Yeah, it's considered a remake of sorts. It's also possible they simply didn't think of it at the time, but I'd wager (sans BS Zelda) that if we got a true remake of LoZ, then he's probably have the Trident.

Also, a Dark World reference in OoX:

グハハハハ！！ ツインローバさまによって 闇の世界より　しょうかんされし 真のすがた。。。
Guhahahaha!! This is my true form that Twinrova-sama summoned from the Dark World…
Gwah hah hah! I was summoned from the Dark Realm by Twinrova. See my true form!

^that is interesting, but if that is his 'true form' what other form is he referring to?
That's the only form he has in the game...?

Originally Posted by Cukeman

^that is interesting, but if that is his 'true form' what other form is he referring to?
That's the only form he has in the game...?

I believe that is when he transforms into his Dark Dragon form after defeating him in his "normal" form.

Originally Posted by Cukeman

I also want to point out that even if OoX happens after LoZ/AoL
you still need to explain how the Triforce got from ALttP to Hyrule for LoZ...

The same way it got there for OoX, I suppose....

Again, "will"...

Yeah, I was just pointing out that instead of "If you defeat Ganon", it's "Now you have defeated Ganon".

Originally Posted by Roc Thul

I believe that is when he transforms into his Dark Dragon form after defeating him in his "normal" form.

huh? that's Onox, i don't understand...

EDIT: Weren't you quoting Ganon?

Originally Posted by Cukeman

huh? that's Onox, i don't understand...

EDIT: Weren't you quoting Ganon?

Oh, I should have made that more clear. I was quoting Onox right before the Dark Dragon fight.

^ That's what Onox says when you defeat him in his "normal" form. He then becomes this "dragon". Just one of about two references to the Dark World in OoX.