Gerudo Desert
| Desert of Mystery | |
|---|---|
| Type | Desert |
| Location | Hyrule |
| Debut | The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past |
The Desert of Mystery (also known as the Desert of Doubt or Gerudo Desert) is the name given to a prominent desert area of Hyrule.
Information
Hyrule's deserts are usually depicted as being located in the western area of Hyrule. In some cases, the desert is detached enough that it does not seem to count as part of Hyrule.Throughout the history of Hyrule, it has served as the primary home of the Gerudo Tribe, although they are not seen or mentioned in every appearance of the desert. The Gerudo have operated primarily as thieves (except for their appearance in Four Swords Adventures), and in The Wind Waker it is implied that they were driven to this by the harsh living conditions within the desert. In other cases, the desert is inhabited only by monsters and vultures. The desert is also filled with several different temples that have been shown throughout the series, including a pyramid that was depicted in Four Swords Adventures.
Appearances
In A Link to the Past, the Desert of Mystery was located in Hyrule's southwestern corner. It was a relatively small desert area enclosed by cliffs and primarily filled with vultures, Leevers and Geldman enemies. It was the home of Aginah, and the primary area of interest was the Desert Palace. However, the path to the palace was blocked off until Link made a wish at the pedestal there, and he could only read the ancient Hylian language using the Book of Mudora. This also fulfilled a prophecy which stated that the hero would hold the book in the desert. A nearby cliff also contained a Hylian slab which granted the Bombos Medallion. The desert's counterpart in the Dark World was Misery Mire, which could only be accessed through a Dark World portal on one of the desert's cliffs which could only be accessed by being dropped there by the ocarina bird.
In Ocarina of Time, the overall desert area was unnamed, but there were three different sections. Gerudo Valley was a canyon area at the entrance to the desert where the Gerudos primarily lived. It contained the Gerudo's Fortress, the Gerudo Training Grounds and the Gerudo Horseback Archery Range. There was a gorge dividing the valley from Hyrule. It contained a bridge which the carpenters had to rebuild following its destruction, although in the meantime Link could have Epona leap over the gorge. The second area was the Haunted Wasteland, where a perpetual sandstorm obscured the path forward. The only way to navigate it without being returned to the start was to follow the Phantom Guide. The final area was the Desert Colossus, a large area which was more like the Desert of Mystery and contained the entrance to the Spirit Temple, which seemed to be the Gerudo's worshiping grounds. This was also the only area of the desert which Link could access as a child, by playing the Requiem of Spirit after learning it as a teenager.
In Four Swords Adventures, the Desert of Doubt was located in the southwestern corner and acted as the sixth area. This depiction seemed to be an amalgamated version of the previous versions of the desert. It was inhabited by the Gerudos (who were friendlier and not working as thieves) as well as the strange Zuna Tribe. The harsh desert itself contained most of the same enemies as previous games, and there was a maze element in that Link had to navigate moving against the winds in order to progress through the desert. The desert contained two important structures. One was the Desert Temple, which was identical to the Desert Palace from A Link to the Past. It was constructed to protect the path to the second structure. This other structure was the Pyramid, which was built by the ancestors of Zuna tribe long ago and was made to lock away the Trident of Power. Entering the Desert Temple or the Pyramid was forbidden due to the places being considered sacred and due to the dark power that was contained within the pyramid, but Ganondorf traveled through both during the game and stole the Trident, and the Links also made their way through those area in pursuit of him.
It was shown as the Gerudo Desert in Twilight Princess. It was not counted as one of Hyrule's provinces, and likely due to its detachment it was not among the areas covered in twilight. The Gerudo Desert was located some point to the west of Lake Hylia and could only be reached by being fired to the desert from Fyer's cannon (after which Midna could alternately warp Link there). The desert was devoid of life save for monsters such as the Moldorm as well as a Bulblin encampment. The Gerudo Desert also contained the Arbiter's Grounds, which was an abandoned Hyrulean prison which was haunted by various supernatural creatures. On the roof, the six sages passed judgement on criminals and executed them or exiled them into the Twilight Realm through the Mirror of Twilight which was located there. This version of the desert also housed the Cave of Ordeals, which contained fifty descending floors of all the game's monsters along with a Great Fairy at the bottom.
In A Link Between Worlds, the Desert appeared and was identical to its appearance in A Link to the Past, except that Aginah was no longer there, nor was the Book of Mudora needed. It also had a Lorule counterpart similar to Misery Mire, and Link had to go back and forth between Hyrule and Lorule to save Irene.
Trivia
- The Desert of Mystery and Desert of Doubt both have identical Japanese names (in addition to their English names being virtually synonymous).
- The term "gerudo" seems to be used to generally refer to things related to the desert. In addition to being used for the name of the Gerudo people and the Gerudo Desert, the Japanese names for the Geldmen and Geldarms also contain "gerudo".
- It is likely also the same or part of the same area as the Lanayru Desert seen in Skyward Sword.
- Interestingly, in Twilight Princess Auru refers to the desert as being located "at world's end". It is uncertain what exactly he means by this statement, however.