Every Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Tribe Revealed (So Far)

Summary Hylians play a major role in Zelda games, with pointed ears and a history tied to magic and protecting the Triforce.

Gorons, sentient rock people, live in mountains and are known for their ability to roll down hills like a ball.

The Zora race in Zelda has two distinct styles, Sea Zora and River Zora, each with their own villages and societies.

Nintendo recently released a new trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, which gave players a tour of Hyrule and introduced them to some of the game’s different beings. Hyrule is home to several different fantasy races as well as differing groups of more humanoid characters, some of which are more common than others. For example, the bird-like Rito people have only appeared in three different Zelda titles (four if players count both Wind Waker and its HD Remake). Meanwhile, the Zora have appeared in some form in almost every Zelda game

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Just as Hyrule itself transforms over time, so do its inhabitants. For instance, the residents of Kokiri Forest from Ocarina of Time became Tears of the Kingdom's tree-like Koroks after the world flooded in the events of The Wind Waker. Which groups show up in a given Legend of Zelda title, therefore, often gives some indication of where it takes place in the overall timeline of the series and which branch of the timeline it is on. That means knowing which groups are in Echoes of Wisdom can give players hints at where it takes place in Zelda’s wider narrative.

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5 Most Major Zelda Characters Are Hylians

Hylians Are Mostly Human In Appearance Except For Their Pointed Ears

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Hylians are one of the human races in the Legend of Zelda franchise. Their appearance is largely indistinguishable from humans, save their long, pointed ears. Hylians have appeared in every Legend of Zelda game because both Link and Zelda are Hylians. Hylians originally lived side-by-side with the goddess Hylia, from whom they derived their name. During that time, Hylians were able to more easily tap into the world’s magic and cast spells. Though some Hylians, especially the Royal family, have retained this ability over generations, a majority of Hylians seemingly have no magical abilities.

Shortly before she died defending the Triforce, Hylia sent some of the Hylians to live above the clouds and guard the powerful artifact. Hylia herself would later be reborn as the first Zelda, a cycle that would continue throughout the history of Hyrule. This is why Hylians in the royal bloodline have retained more of their connection to their magical abilities.

Farther down the Legend of Zelda timeline, Hylians are responsible for many of the major settlements in Hyrule. Aside from Hyrule Castle and its surrounding town, Hylians have also settled in a variety of places across the world. Some are recurring locations like Kakariko Village, while others are unique to specific incarnations of Hyrule like Windfall Island from The Wind Waker.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask also confirmed that Hylians don’t just live in the kingdom of Hyrule. In this game, Hylians can be seen living in Termina, a mysterious setting that has little concrete lore. However, it is a distinctly different place from Hyrule. It’s also somewhat unclear if Hylians being in Termina is meant to have strong lore implications or if it is simply the result of Majora’s Mask using the same assets as Ocarina of Time.

In the trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it seems like the main place players will find Hylians is in the Central Plateau. This is the region on the map where Hyrule Castle and Castle Town are located. The trailer also shows Kakariko Village located in the Eldin Volcano region, so it wouldn’t be surprising if players ran into some smaller Hylian villages in Hyrule as well.

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4 Gorons Can Be Found In Hyrule’s Mountains

The Gorons Are Sentient Rock People

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Gorons are a slightly more recent addition to the Legend of Zelda series than Hylians, but they have still appeared in quite a few titles from the series. The Gorons first appeared in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and have been a consistent part of the series ever since. They are a group of rock people who typically have a stout muscular build. Gorons are one of the few Zelda races besides Hylian that players have had a chance to play as, thanks to Majora’s Mask.

Gorons possess some unique abilities. Perhaps the most iconic is their ability to fold in their limbs and roll like a ball down hills. In games like Twilight Princess, this has even made Gorons into a sort of obstacle for players to avoid while trying to climb up Death Mountain. Gorons also can survive in extreme heat, as evidenced by their ability to safely traverse active volcanoes. Though Majora’s Mask showed Gorons living in a frozen region, they seem less suited to the cold than the heat, as one Goron is seen having frozen to death.

Instead of living in settlements like Hylians, Gorons tend to live in mountain ranges. Their homes are usually constructed in caverns, using the natural rock formations to build homes instead of constructing freestanding structures. Several games in the series also show Biggorons - just much larger versions of a typical Goron - living outside, due to their massive size.

The main Goron settlement in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is located in the Eldin Volcano region of the game. From what has been shown so far, it would seem this settlement will be very similar to previous depictions of Goron homes. The Gorons seem to be living in caverns carved out of the mountain. The trailer also showed some interesting metalwork that may imply the Gorons have made technological advancements.

3 Echoes Of Wisdom Features Two Styles Of Zora From Zelda’s History

Echoes Of Wisdom Features Sea And River Zora

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The Zora have been around since the very first Legend of Zelda game, but they have existed in two very different and separate forms. Earlier versions of the Zora were enemies who would pop out of the water to fight Link. These Zora looked like large frog people with fins coming out of their heads.

In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, players were introduced to a new style of Zora. These were far more humanoid-looking, except for King Zora, who looked like a large fish. These new Zora were friendly and welcomed Link into their domain with open arms. These friendly Zora have continued to appear more frequently since Ocarina of Time, though the series did occasionally revisit the other style of Zora in several later games.

For the first time, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom will include both Zora styles as two distinct groups. The original style of Zora is now known as River Zora, whereas the Ocarina style Zora is called Sea Zora. The two groups have their distinct villages and are separate societies.

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The trailer for Echoes of Wisdom showed that both styles of Zora appear friendly to Zelda. However, they do seem to be in conflict with one another. Though the trailer leaves the reason behind this conflict as a mystery for now, it should be very interesting to see these two groups of Zora interact for the first time.

2 Deku Scrubs Are Echoes Of Wisdom’s Forest Dwellers

Deku Scrubs Haven’t Played A Big Role In Many Zelda Games

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Deku Scrubs are another group of creatures that were first introduced in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Unlike the Gorons or the friendly version of Zora, Deku Scrubs didn’t become a new mainstay of the series following their first appearance. Though they popped up in Majora’s Mask and several proceeding 2D games, they haven’t been seen in a major Zelda title since the N64.

Deku Scrubs are tiny plant creatures with round snouts. They typically appeared as enemies that would pop out of the ground and launch Deku seeds at Link. Some would also offer to trade Link items or information once they had been defeated. There is also a variant known as Business Scrubs, which are Deku Scrubs of a taller stature who run shops.

In more recent Zelda titles, design elements of the Deku Scrubs have seemingly been combined with the Kokiri to create the Koroks, which could explain why Scrubs haven’t been around much. Now, these little plant creatures are making their return in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. All the trailer says about them is that they are found in the Faron Wetlands and that they have a strange taste in snacks.

Though not much information is explicitly shared about the Deku Scrubs in Echoes of Wisdom, the design elements shown in the trailer do give some hints. Their stone statues and wooden walls, along with the swampy region they seem to inhabit, seem to hint they may be inspired by their appearance in Majora’s Mask. That said, they seem slightly less hostile to outsiders than they were in that game.

1 The Gerudo Seem More Welcoming To Zelda

The Gerudo Are A Tribe Of Warrior Women

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The Gerudo are another of Hyrule's human races. Though their initial appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time depicted the Gerudo having more rounded ears than Hylians, recent depictions in Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom have shown Gerudo with more pointed ears. This could be the result of intermarrying with Hylians as the Gerudo are made up almost entirely of women.

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The Gerudo are a race of warrior women who typically live in the Gerudo Desert region of Hyrule. Only a single male Gerudo is born every one hundred years. So far, the only male Gerudo that has appeared in the Legend of Zelda series is Ganondorf, though it hasn’t been confirmed that the male Gerudo child is always the reincarnation of Demise, or if players just haven’t seen any of the others yet.

The Gerudo have typically been seen to be more isolationist, acting unwelcome to all outsiders entering their lands or villages. Though they seem more inclusive in Breath of the Wild, they still do not allow men into their towns. This poses an obstacle for Link in that game but will obviously not be a problem for Zelda in Echoes of Wisdom.

From the new Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom trailer, it’s hard to say what role the Gerudo will play in the story. Zelda is seen briefly walking through one of their villages, as well as encountering a few Gerudo near an oasis in the Gerudo Desert. Like the other groups shown in the trailer, they seem friendly towards Zelda. Their dialogue suggests they are more concerned with the Rifts opening up in the desert.

Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube