Linebeck

Linebeck
Species	Hylian
Relatives	Linebeck Jr. (son) Linebeck III (grandson)
Debut	The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Linebeck is a one of the main characters from The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. He is a treasure hunter that roams the sea on his small steamboat.

Background

Early Life

Although he considered himself a man of adventure and took on a risk-filled occupation, Linebeck was always something of a coward and preferred to reap rewards while exposing himself to minimal danger. During one of his many voyages, he lost control of his ship and ended up crashing into a monster that was attacking a vessel owned by the pirate Jolene. The two ended up sailing together for a time, but it soon became obvious to Linebeck that they were very different. Although Jolene was rather smitten with Linebeck, he disliked putting himself into open danger and was embarrassed that she was stronger than he was. So he left her company, but not without taking some of her treasure with him. This earned him Jolene's ire, and he spent much of his seafaring days avoiding her.

Phantom Hourglass

Linkebeck had started hearing stories about a Ghost Ship and decided it must be full of treasure. He tried to get information from an old man, Oshus, on Mercay Island. He was turned down, but soon after a young boy named Link washed on shore. Link's friend, Tetra, had been taken by the Ghost Ship and so he was resolved to find it. The boy was advised to go look for Linebeck for help, and so he departed with a fairy named Ciela. By then, Linebeck had already wandered into the Temple of the Ocean King and become trapped in a circle of spikes. Link found him in the temple and, following Linebeck's instructions (who claimed to have had hurt his foot), he was able to free the sailor from what could have been his demise. Linebeck proceeded to send Link further into the temple so that he could find a sea chart that would help them get to the Ghost Ship.

Afterwards, Linebeck grudgingly agreed to work with Link, only because Link had no interest in the treasure that Linebeck was after. However, it soon became obvious to Ciela that Linebeck was a coward with no interest in doing any of the hard work himself. Each time they arrived on an island, Linebeck sent Link out to find information on the Ghost Ship while finding an excuse to stay behind, like working on the ship. Throughout their adventures, they were also constantly dogged by Jolene. Whenever she boarded their ship, Linebeck would hide in a crate while Link did the fighting.

When they finally found the Ghost Ship, Link found Tetra encased in stone form and that there was no treasure. Linebeck was ready to break off their partnership, but when Oshus revealed himself to be the Ocean King, he promised to grant Linebeck one wish in exchange for helping Link on his quest. Reinvigorated by this, Linebeck stuck with Link for the rest of the quest. Gradually, he became less concerned with the treasure and more about defeating the evil Bellum that had cursed Oshus.

When they at last Link drove Bellum from the Temple of the Ocean God, Linebeck piloted the ship to pursue the demon who had taken to fleeing on the Ghost Ship. With Link manning the cannon, they were able to disable the Ghost Ship. While he and Link went aboard the remains of the Ghost Ship, Bellum launched an attack that sunk Linebeck's ship, with Oshus still on it. Bellum then turned to seize Link, causing him to drop the Phantom Sword in the process. While Link struggled to get free, Linebeck took up the Phantom Sword while trembling in fear and managed to stab one of Bellum's tentacles. This made Bellum release Link and Tetra, but he grabbed proceeded to grab Linebeck instead.

While Linebeck was pulled away, he tossed the sword back to Link. Once Bellum had covered all of Linebeck, it enhanced him with a giant suit of armor and took control of him. Completely under Bellum's control, he engaged Link in battle. Ciela attempted to freeze time so Link could strike Bellum's eye, but one of the tentacles ended up seizing her. She was able to still charge up Link's Phantom Sword so he could freeze time by himself, and eventually Link was able to free Linebeck of his possession while Bellum was destroyed.

In the aftermath, Linebeck apologized for attacking, even though he was not in control of himself at the time. He proceeded to lament the loss of his boat (as well as Oshus), but was soon greeted by the sight of the Ocean King in his true form, which resembled that that of a giant white whale. The Ocean King made good on his promise and asked Linebeck what he desired. To the surprise of everyone else, Linebeck asked if he could have his old boat back, a request which the Ocean King granted. Oshus proceeded to send Link and Tetra back to the beginning of their adventure, on board the Ghost Ship next to Tetra's pirate ship.

While Tetra tried to explain what had happened and how it was not a dream, Link looked over the deck and spotted Linebeck's boat sailing away into the distance.

Later Life

His grave was seen in Spirit Tracks, set about a hundred years after the foundation of the new Hyrule. It was shown that Linebeck's legacy was succeeded by his son Linebeck Jr. (and later his grandson Linebeck III) and the company Linebeck Trading. Shortly before his death, he hid a Regal Ring in a nearby cave and gave his son a letter with instructions in the form of a riddle, so that he could use the ring for money in hard times. Linebeck's tombstone read, "Here lies the great captain Linebeck".

Linebeck III

Linebeck's grandson was the president of Linebeck Trading during Spirit Tracks. He resembled his grandfather in both looks and personality, with the main distinguishing point being a hat that he wore. Linebeck III collected antiquities from all over the world, so his business naturally suffered when the bridge was broken. He then met the young Link and tasked him with bringing the bridge builder he knew over to fix it. Once Link returned with the bridge worker, it turned out that Linebeck owed him five thousand rupees for the bridge repair combined with the work he did on his house earlier.

Linebeck quickly shifted the debt to the young Link, but he offered to help him by giving him his grandfather's letter. He said that the Regal Ring should cover the price if Link could decipher his grandfather's clues to find it, which Linebeck III had been unable to accomplish. Link did so, at which point Lineback planned to sell it for eight thousand rupees so that he could keep more for himself. However, the bridge builder overheard this and accepted the ring itself as payment.

Afterwards, Linebeck III opened up shop to Link, where he would buy the various treasures Link had acquired over his journey, or Link could trade them for train parts. Linebeck would also sell Link replacement shields if he needed them, with this business likely being aided by the Like Likes lurking in the nearby caves.

Other Appearances

Video Games

• In the Super Smash Bros. series, Linebeck has been represented by a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, a trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and a Master Spirit in the Adventure Mode of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. When fought in a Spirit battle, Linebeck's Spirit would possess Luigi and fight alongside Toon Link in a battle where all fighter's buoyancy was reduced. After defeating him, Linebeck's Spirit ran explorations of the Jungle at an adjacent location.

Other Media

• Linkbeck appears in the Phantom Hourglass manga adaptation, which expands on the backstory by having him betray an entire crew in the past, and also changes some details for the adaptation. He is abducted by and possessed by Bellum while at sea after reconciling with Jolene, after which Link confronts him at the Temple of the Ocean King. He takes control of himself and attempts to kill himself to save Link, but Link is then able to destroy Bellum's hold over him. Linebeck and Tetra than work together in operating the boat during the final battle against Bellum. As his boat is not destroyed, Linebeck's wish is left ambiguous at the end with the rest of the ending being shown similarly to the game.

Trivia

• One of the many outfits appearing in Tri Force Heroes is Linebeck's Outfit. It is identical to Linebeck's clothes (and even adds his nose and mustache for Link) and comes with an ability to see the contents of treasure chests before opening them.
• In Breath of the Wild, a small island in the Lanayru Wetlands of Hyrule is named Lineback Island in reference to him.
• In Hyrule Warriors, one of the alternate outfits for Daphnes Nohansen is based on Linebeck's clothes, and his clothing also appears as Fairy Clothing, referred to as the Captain's Jacket and Trousers.