Valoo
| |
| Valoo in The Wind Waker. | |
| Valoo | |
| Species | Dragon |
| Eye color | Black |
| Base | Dragon Roost Island |
| Relatives | Volvagia (possible ancestor) |
| Debut | The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker |
Valoo is a dragon who acts as a sky spirit and appears as a supporting character in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.
Background
Valoo is a large dragon who is known as the "spirit of the skies". He was born on Dragon Roost Island and has protected the Rito tribe who lived there since "long, long ago". Valoo seemed to be connected to Ancient Hyrule in some way, he spoke only in Ancient Hylian, was entrusted with Din's Pearl and was friends with the the King of Red Lions. He was also aware of the threat posed by Ganon. Valoo spent most of his time lounging atop Dragon Roost Island, but he still seemed to be formidable in action and could breathe flames.
The Rito people revered Valoo and established a coming-of-age ritual in which fledglings came to see Valoo. Valoo gave the young Ritos scales from his hide, which caused the Ritos to grow their wings and truly become bird-men. Valoo was always appointed a Rito attendant, who was the only Rito who actually knew Hylian and could truly communicate with Valoo. His previous attendant was the grandmother of Komali, and during The Wind Waker his attendant was Medli, who was actually still an apprentice.
Ganon eventually targeted Valoo by sending Gohma to Dragon Roost Island. From within the volcano, Gohma used its powers to trap Valoo's tail within a sheet of bedrock. Gohma then tortured Valoo through his tail. This left Valoo in perpetual and violent rage, which prevented any of the Ritos from safely approaching him. He was stuck like this until Link arrived at the island and confronted Gohma within the Dragon Roost Cavern. During the battle, Link used his grappling hook to swing from Valoo's tail in order to loosen the bedrock's hold on it, and the slab would eventually fall on Gohma's head. Although Gohma replaced the slab, Valoo was finally freed when Link destroyed Gohma. Valoo thanked Link and acknowledged him as a hero. He also advised Link to "seek the wind god's wind", referring to the wind deity Cyclos.
Valoo later received word that his fellow spirit Jabun had fled from Greatfish Island once he was targeted by Ganon, and he had Quill pass on word to Link. He later traveled to the Forsaken Fortress with Komali and Quill to save Link and Tetra from Ganondorf. After Quill and Komali had pulled Link and Tetra to safety, Valoo unleashed his flame breath into the room at Ganondorf. Valoo talked with the King of Red Lions afterwards. He knew that his means were too simple to have finished off Ganondorf, although it was enough to keep Ganondorf from showing up at the surface for the remainder of the game.
Other Appearances
=Video Games
- In the Super Smash Bros. series, Valoo has appeared as a trophy and sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and as a Support Spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. As a Spirit, Valoo's Support effect was to protect the player character from tripping over during battle. During Spirit battles, Valoo possessed a giant Charizard.
Trivia
- Valoo's name has some similarities with Volvagia, a fellow volcanic dragon. It is uncertain whether the two are related in some way, although it is unlikely as Valoo is benevolent and is based on the Western image of dragons while Volvagia is evil (and does not appear to be intelligent) and resembles the serpentine Eastern depiction of dragons. The Hyrule Historia also implied a connection between the two by stating that Valoo might be a descendant of Volvagia.