12.1 - To Hyrule Castle
Once you warp out of the throne room and back in front of the Palace of Twilight, Midna will mention that Ganondorf was only using Zant to get back to the World of Light. Midna now knows that is the reason for the barrier erected around Hyrule Castle. At that moment, she says Zelda is in danger and that you need to head back to the Castle as soon as possible.
Warp to Hyrule Castle Town and head to Malo Mart and stock up on any items you need. You'll need it.
Once you head to Hyrule Castle, Midna will appear and the Fused Shadows will merge back into one piece and throw Midna off the side. A monster then appears, wearing the Fused Shadows and jumps to the barrier. It picks up its wrist and lands a powerful blow to the barrier, opening a crack in it, then pulls it apart. Midna then awakes to Link holding her and shows that she destroyed the barrier using the full strength of her ancestors.
Proceed into Hyrule Castle.
12.2 - Hyrule Castle
Get the First Key
Head to the west (Gamecube)/east (Wii) door and fight off the horde of enemies that will attack you. Once the barrier is dispelled, head forward to the next room. In the next room, another horde of enemies will attack you, so dispatch them to continue onward. Open the next gate by pulling on the switch and head to the center of the arena to fight the miniboss.
Miniboss: King Bulbin
No different than fighting him all the way back before Arbiter's Grounds. Use the Back Slice to get to his back end and then proceed to use Jump Attacks and Spin Attacks on him. Avoid his axe and you should defeat him with ease.
Get the Dungeon Map
After defeating King Bulbin he will hand you the first key. He will then speak, saying he only fights for the strongest side and he decides to leave.
Head back to the front gates and then head to the east (Gamecube)/west (Wii) door. Defeat the hordes of monsters and then proceed to the next room. Take out the Bulbin Archers and the Bokoblins here and proceed up the center part of the room then head west (Gamecube)/east (Wii) to find some Boars. Use the Boar to smack into the walls front of you and proceed to the east (Gamecube)/west (Wii) part of the room and up to the north.
Here you will see some windmills here, but you have to hit them in a specific order. To find that order, use the Gale Boomerang to pick up the leaves on the ground and blow them away. Remember the symbol (or look down below) and hit the windmills in that order in order to open the gate. Beyond the gate is a chest containing the Dungeon Map.
Get the Second Key
Head towards the north end of this same room blow away the leaves near the wall and dig to find a hidden area. Here you will find a Graveyard of sorts. Head to the southeast part of this area and read a grave that says a cursed swordsman sleeps before the tree. Use Wolf Link's senses to see ghosts pointing at a boulder on the ground. Blow it up to reveal a switch. Step on the switch and head north to open the gate. Head beyond the gate and open the chest here for 100 rupees.
Now in the same area, head to the torch nearby and light it up. Somehow this stops the rain in the area from falling for a short time so go and run to the west (Gamecube)/east (Wii) side of the room and light the two torches quickly and then bring out the two owl statues. Bring these statues to the south end of the room and align them so you can cross over them. Pull on the switch and open the chest for another Small Key.
Get the Compass:
Head back to the front door and enter inside. Once you head into the central chamber, you will be ambushed by a lot of enemies again. Take care of them and head to the stairs to the east (Gamecube)/west (Wii) and use the Clawshots to Clawshot onto a chandelier above you and then drop to the chest that appeared in order to get the Compass. Now proceed to the center door.
Miniboss: Mighty Darknut
This Darknut is a bit different looking and stronger than the one we fought in the Temple of Time, but not as bad as the ones in the Cave of Ordeals. Remember to Back Slice him then immediately Shield Bash him and then use the Helm Splitter to knock his armor off quickly. Once all of it is off, just Back Slice and slash and stab him to defeat.
The Two Paths
Now after you defeat the Darknut, head towards to platforms. You can cheat your way and not bother with lighting the torches to raise the stairs. To do this, stand on the platform between one of the stairs and the next platform and then blow out the only lit torch with the Gale Boomerang. Open the chest here if you want 50 rupees.
East (Gamecube)/West (Wii) Path: If you choose to take the east (Gamecube)/west (Wii) path to the Big Key, here's what you have to do in the next room. Head in between the unlit torches and strike the painting on the west (Gamecube)/east (Wii) wall to reveal the way to light the torches. (For Gamecube players) Light the torches from the southwest torch, to northeast, to northwest, to southeast. (For Wii players) Light the torches from southeast, to northwest, to northeast, to southwest.
In the next room you will fight two Dynalfols. Dispatch them and head for the door leading back to the central room. Step on the switch to make an easy way back up to the next level. Now head for the door that just opened to get to the Big Key.
West (Gamecube)/East (Wii) Path: If you chose to go the west (Gamecube)/east (Wii) path, the next room is guarded by two Lizardfols. Defeat them and then knock the painting on the east (Gamecube)/west (Wii) side of the room and hit the switch to open the door.
In the next room, you will have to fight two Mighty Darknuts at the same time. Take your time and Back Slice, Shield Bash, and Helm Splitter them just like any other Darknuts you've fought before. If you have a lot of difficulty with them, place Bombs near them and let the Bombs explode their armor off. After, you can head to the door leading to the central chamber and open a chest for 50 rupees. You can then step on a switch to reveal a chest containing 200 rupees.
Now go and head to the door that opened after defeating the Darknuts to get to the Big Key.
Get the Big Key
Once you are outside again, if you head to towards the southeast part of this level, you will come face-to-face with an Aerialfos. Treat it the same way as the ones you fought in the City in the Sky and in the Cave of Ordeals. When this one pulls its shield in front of it, pull it towards you with the Clawshot, then slash at it like crazy. Once defeated, you will gain entryway to a Small Key.
Head towards the southwest part of this level and a cutscene will happen. A bunch of Lziardfols will come to attack you while a bunch of Bulbins fire arrows at you. When one of the arrows tries to kill you, it is blocked by something. Soon after, the Lizardfols are blown up and the Bulbins are sniped. You'll notice a hawk flying about it and it returns to its owner, Rusl! The rest of The Resistance is with him too; Auru has a cannon over his shoulder, Ashei has a bow in her hand, and Shad's just there. They continue into the castle, but its not sure what they are doing as you don't see them for the rest of the game.
Now go and open the Big Key and head for Ganondorf at the top of the castle!
To Ganondorf
Head to the central door on 3F and head inside. Immediately as you enter the room, turn into Wolf Link and use your senses to navigate the room. Once you cross to the other side, use jump to get to the north part of the room. Defeat the Lizardfols in your way and then use the Clawshots on the next part to get to the northwest part of 4F. Defeat the Lizardfols here and then time yourself and use the Spinner to get to the south end of 4F.
Before the boss door is a Darknut you have to defeat. Take care of it like the earlier ones and then head to the southeast (Gamecube)/southwest (Wii) door and open it with the last Small Key you have. This is the treasurey room, so you can open chests for Rupees or Bombs and Arrows.
Head back to the boss door to fight Ganondorf!
Before the Fight with Ganondorf
Once you enter the throne room, Link and Midna notice Princess Zelda held up high in the center of the Triforce, unconscious. Link attempts to save her, but Midna stops him, as he notices a man sitting on the throne. The man smiles and says: "Welcome to my castle..." to which Midna says: "So you're...Ganondorf."
Ganondorf stands up and smirks at the two beings before him. Midna says she was dying to meet him and Ganondorf simply states that Midna's people have long amused him for their use of "petty magic" and to be "only cast aside". He says that despite how pathetic they were, their negative emotions were his nourishment and without them he wouldn't have returned back to the World of Light.
He says that the Twili were indeed strong, but they lacked the absolute power that those who were chosen by the gods wielded. He then shows his Triforce of Power to Midna and says that whoever wielded such power would make a suitable king for the entire world. Midna laughs at him saying he was full of conceit, then says she would risk everything to deny him.
Ganondorf then laughs, saying: "Shadow has been moved by light, it seems... How amusing." Ganondorf then uses the Twilight magic he has learned and disappears and Midna tries to protect Zelda, only for Ganondorf to possess her. He pushes Midna aside with a force of energy, leaving Link alone.
"Both of you, faithless fools who would dare to take up arms against the king of light and shadow. So you choose. And so you shall feel my wrath!"
Boss: Ganon's Puppet Zelda
In this battle, Ganon will use Princess Zelda's body as a means to attack Link. He will often charge at Link with his rapier and then also make a Triforce mark on the ground in which you need to avoid both. Focus on him when he uses an energy ball to attack you and reflect it back with your sword (or for kicks, an empty bottle). When you do this, he will take damage. Repeat this step three times in order to defeat him.
Boss: Dark Beast Ganon
After you defeat his first phase, Ganondorf will be expelled out of Princess Zelda by Midna's magic. However, it's not for long as Ganondorf collects himself and turns into a large and horrid boar called Ganon.
Use Wolf Link for most of this battle. When he charges at you, target him and hold him down, then toss him to the side. Turn into Human Link and use the Mortal Draw on his wound to damage him greatly, forcing the boar to run around. Watch out around the room as Ganon will charge at you again. Simple repeat the last few steps to defeat this form.
Boss: Ganondorf (Horse Fight)
After defeating Ganon, Link and Midna assume that it is all safe. Suddenly, Midna begins to glow gold and then Zelda's essence returns back to her body. Princess Zelda awakens and smiles and Midna is shocked that Zelda is revived. Princess Zelda tells Midna not to speak and tells her that their hearts were connected as one for a short time. Even if it was brief, Princess Zelda realized how much Midna was in pain.
Suddenly, a fire erupts in the room and Ganondorf is trying to refigure back into his human form. Midna uses the Fused Shadows and then warps Link and Zelda to safety. In her beast form, Midna uses a Trident to spear Ganondorf--
--Princess Zelda and Link then appear out in Hyrule Field. A vicious tremor starts and they look over to Hyrule Castle, which explodes. Link and Zelda both then notice Ganondorf is on his steed and he charges at them with a legion of dead spirits. Princess Zelda prays for help from the Light Spirits who warp them to their dimension and then gives Princess Zelda the Light Arrows. Zelda asks Link for his help one last time and Link agrees.
Now starting the boss battle, target Ganon at all times so Zelda can hit him with Light Arrows. Use Spin Attacks while on your horse to do a lot of damage to Ganondorf. You can also use Spin Attacks on the dead horsemen to prevent them from damaging you. Just keep stunning Ganon with Light Arrows and using Spin Attacks to defeat this part.
Boss: Dark Lord Ganondorf
Ganon isn't dead yet! Once Link gets close to Ganon, a barrier forms around them, making Link fight him alone.
Ganondorf will attack you with a charge the first time, so target him and Jump Attack him to lock swords. Rapidly press the A button to push him back and then slash at him wildly. Use the Back Slice at other times to try and get past his defense. However, the best way to beat him is locking swords and push him away. Keep slashing at him and end his life with the Ending Blow.
(You can also distract him with the Fishing Rod for kicks if you want a few cheap blows.)
The Credits
Even with the Master Sword embedded in him, Ganondorf manages to speak: "Do not think it ends here... The history of light and shadow will be written in blood." Within moments of saying those words, the Triforce of Power leaves his grasp. Seeing his life flash before his eyes, he sees Zant who promptly cracks his neck, and Ganondorf perishes, dying on his feet. Princess Zelda then prays for Ganondorf's spirit to rest in peace—as well prays for all those who have died in the wake of her choice to live.
The Light Spirits appear behind Link and Zelda and Link notices a familiar imp in the field. Link rushes towards the imp and then realizes it is not an imp, but a full grown woman. She stands up and looks at Link and he blushes a bit with her stating: "What? Say something! Am I so beautiful you've no words left?" Link then smiles, happy to be reunited with Midna.
Cue the first set of credits! Don't end your game yet! See the credits to the end!
Now during the middle of the credits, you will see that Link, Zelda, and Midna are back at the Mirror of Twilight at Arbiter's Grounds. Midna will mention that she guesses it is time for them to say farewell as light and shadow cannot mix. But she tells them that to never forget there's another world bound to this one.
Zelda states that "Shadow and light are two sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other." She then realizes why the goddesses left the Mirror of Twilight in this world and that was so that Link, her and Midna could meet.
Midna smiles a bit and says: "Your words are kind, and your heart is true. If all in Hyrule are like you... Then maybe you'll do all right."
Stepping aside, Midna prepares to leave. She says thank you to Link and then says if the mirror remains they could always visit again. However, she starts to cry and pushes her tear into the Mirror of Twilight which proceeds to crack. She steps up the stairs and disappears in a flood of light, returning back to the Twilight Realm before the mirror completely shatters, severing the connection between the Twilight Realm and the World of Light.
Now enjoy the rest of the credits!
At the end of the credits, Link returns the Master Sword to its slumber and says his farewells to the people of Ordon. Ilia sees him off as Link rides Epona out of the forest, continuing his adventure.
