Enduring Resolve: Gerudo Desert

The Hylians’ Response

Ganondorf’s campaign against Hyrule has been devastating, and now that he has the complete Triforce in hand, stopping him is going to require nothing short of a miracle. Fortunately for us, Ganondorf has left the battlefield to his hordes of monsters, so we might just have a shot at turning this battle around. If we can defeat Ghirahim and Zant in their base hidden in the Gerudo Desert, we may have a chance to reach Ganondorf. It’s the only hope we’ve got.

DON’T Defeat Ghirahim

Your first mission is to defeat Ghirahim, who is in the South Oasis Keep. Don’t engage Ghirahim just yet, however; you can clear the rest of the map and secure nearly every other Keep and outpost beforehand. Ignore Ghirahim until he’s the only threat left, then turn your attention to battling him.

Before going after Ghirahim, make sure to claim any enemy Keeps around the map that you have access to and defeat any Captains you find. You should make a point to capture the North Oasis Keep. As we mentioned before, the desert sun is brutal here and the Oasis Keeps actually provide relief from the heat after you capture them, meaning the allies’ health will stop slowly dropping.

When you reach Ghirahim in the South Oasis Keep, use bait tactics to whittle his health down by 30 percent. Something seems off about the way Ghirahim looks; he seems a bit… faded. After you’ve taken 30% of his health, Ghirahim flees. Chase after him and finish him off to complete your objective.

Gold Skulltula Opportunity Try to rack up 1,000 KOs before you confront Ghirahim. You’ll have an easier time of grabbing the Gold Skulltula, which appears right in front of the S. Desert Keep’s west entrance.

Hoodwinked!

As soon as you defeat Ghirahim, Zant traps you in the northeastern corner of the map. To escape, you’ll need to head to the Clifftop Keep and jump off the ledge just outside its west gate. The problem is, the west gate is closed until you capture the Keep, and to make matters worse, one of your allies is surrounded by enemy Captains in the map’s northwestern corner and their morale has dropped. Your ally could be forced off the field with relative ease. Quickly capture the Clifftop Keep and race to your ally’s side to assist them in taking out this new wave of baddies.

Once you escape from Zant’s poorly conceived trap, head toward your ally near the North Oasis Keep. Before you can get there, however, Zant closes the gates, blocking your passage into the northeastern part of the map. You must face off with the Usurper King to reopen the gates.

Baiting works really well against Zant, but a straightforward assault will also get the job done. Zant is pretty slow and can easily be challenged by attacking until he blocks, then backing off for a second until he drops his guard. This can be a tedious way to beat him if your chosen Warrior isn’t particularly powerful, so if you are in that position, stick to Weak Point Smashes instead.

Friends Thought Lost

As soon as you reach your ally, some familiar faces show up to aid you: Princess Ruto, Darunia, Agitha, Midna and Fi all enter the battlefield after they hear Lana’s prayers for help. It’s time to turn this fight around! Defeat all of the enemy Captains in the area, which shouldn’t be a problem with your full team reunited.

Captains appear all over the north and east sides of the map and they immediately hightail it to the Allied Base. Intercept them and defeat any other Captains that are on the field. Prioritize Keep Saboteurs, along with the Rally Captain and Skilled Summoner that later spawn. Switch characters as needed to repel the attack.

Heart Container Opportunity Now that all of the gates on the map are open, you can reach Link’s Heart Container. While playing as Link, head through the S. Desert Keep and move north toward the Clifftop Keep. On your way up to the Clifftop Keep you’ll find a boulder that is concealing a treasure chest. Destroy the boulder, open the chest, and you’ll get the Heart Container for this Scenario.

Our Last Chance!

The real Ghirahim and Zant appear in the Sacred Grounds Keep in the northeast corner of the map. After you’ve cleared out all the Captains on the battlefield, head up to the villains and challenge them directly. Use the same tactics that you used on their doubles to defeat them. Try to focus on one at a time unless you are using a Special Attack, in which case, you’re going to want to group them together to damage them both.

When you defeat the both Ghirahim and Zant, the battle is over. The Hylians have gained a foothold in the battle against Ganondorf. It’s time to challenge the Dark Lord!