Skulltula

A Skulltula as seen in Ocarina of Time.
Skulltula
Type	Spider
Debut	The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

The Skulltula is a spider-like monster that has acted as a recurring enemy in the The Legend of Zelda series since it was introduced in Ocarina of Time.

Information

The Skulltula is a large and hostile species of spider. It has a tough outer carapace that protects it from attacks and has patterns which make it resemble a skull, hence its name. The Skulltula's soft underbelly acts as its weakpoint. In most appearances, Skulltulas will wait on ceilings until prey draws near and then slide down on a strand of webbing in an attempt to get the enemy by surprise. They typically do not attack otherwise except by spinning around when an enemy is close. To defeat a Skulltula, the player would have either flip the Skulltula around or wait for it to twitch and briefly flip around itself so that its underbelly could be attacked. In some cases, they can be destroyed more easily with projectiles.

Skulltulas have grown more versatile in later games. Twilight Princess introduced Skulltulas that attack on foot but are vulnerable on their heads. Skyward Sword expanded this by having the earthbound Skulltulas chase after Link, try to entrap him with webbing and cling to his body in an attempt to consume him. The Skulltulas had to be flipped over before a fatal blow could be used to finish them off. Skulltulas were also shown sticking to full spider webs. The only way to attack them was to cut through the webs, which would also cause the Skulltula to land on the ground and try to attack Link. Skulltulas have most commonly appeared in forest environments, but they have also been shown to live within desert areas.

Several appearances have had less mature versions of Skulltula that cling to walls and are known as Skullwalltulas or just Walltulas. This version is weaker and can be destroyed with relative ease. Ocarina of Time also had some larger Skulltulas with a longer reach that were known as Big Skulltulas. In some instances within Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, there were invisible Skulltulas that could only be seen using the Lens of Truth.

Gold Skulltula

One prominent variation is the Gold Skulltula. They are tied to curses on certain houses which deform the owners to resemble Skulltulas, so they are also known as Spiders of the Curse. They are rare but are not openly hostile and can be destroyed through nearly any weapon. In many cases, they hide within crates and jars, and they some are also found within soft soil where they can only be lured out with small insects. In order to destroy part of the curse, not only must the Gold Skulltula be destroyed, but the person would have to collect the Gold Skulltula Token left behind, which constitutes its soul.

In Ocarina of Time, there are 100 of them hidden throughout Hyrule. They must all be destroyed to lift the curse on the family living in Kakariko Village's House of Skulltula. Within Termina in Majora's Mask, there were two Spider Houses (at the Swamp and Great Bay) which each had 30 Skulltulas that were tied to a curse on the person living at each respective house. In both games, the Golden Skulltulas were optional objects of a sidequest which yielded valuable prizes.

Appearances

The Skulltulas appeared in Ocarina of Time as a fairly common enemy, and most of their variations appeared in this game as well. They had less of a presence in Majora's Mask. Twilight Princess introduced the version that tried to attack Link on foot by biting at him. There was also a type with behavior closer to the traditional Skulltulas which was known as the Pygmy Skulltula. Phantom Hourglass had Skulltulas within the Ghost Ship which used standard Skulltula tactics. In Spirit Tracks, Skulltulas would try to attack Link's train in areas of the Forest Realm, once more using single strands of webbing. They could be scared by the train's whistle or destroyed with a single cannonball. There was also a stronger, red variety which did not respond to whistles and would be destroyed only by two cannon shots.

In Skyward Sword, the Skulltulas appeared throughout the Skyview Temple as well as a few other areas, and there was a larger emphasis on their webbing. In this game, the Skulltula had to be stroke at a very precise area of its underbelly (which glowed purple) in order to be destroyed.

Other Appearances

Video Games

• In Link's Crossbow Training, Skulltulas appeared as enemies in one level, known as Skulltula Woods.
• In Nintendo Land, Skulltulas appeared as enemies within "The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest".
• Gold Skulltulas appeared in Hyrule Warriors, where they were hidden in various maps and only appeared temporarily after certain conditions were met. They had to be found and destroyed to gain Illustration Pieces, which also helped to unlock other things within the game. There were 100 Gold Skulltulas found in the original game, with over 60 more added through DLC.
• In Cadence of Hyrule, Skulltulas appeared as enemies in some areas. They would descend from the ceiling on a thread and spit out a web ball before rising out of sight. If hit by the web ball, the player character would be trapped in place until the web was destroyed by several attacks. The Skulltula was vulnerable to any attack whenever it was onscreen.

Trivia

• Its name is a simple play on "tarantula" combined with "skull".
• The Skulltula appears as a sticker (using art from Ocarina of Time) in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.