Ganondorf


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 * "He was the leader of a band of thieves who invaded Hyrule in the hopes of establishing dominion over the Sacred Realm. He was known as a demon thief, an evil-magic wielder renowned for his ruthlessness..."
 * —Ancient Sage

Ganondorf (ガノンドロフ Ganondorofu) known as the "Great King of Evil" or the "Dark Lord", is the primary antagonist of a majority of the games in the Legend of Zelda series. Ganondorf was born a member of the Gerudo; as the only male member to be born in a hundred years, Ganondorf is made either the King of the Gerudo or the Guardian of the Desert, depending on the game. Gifted with powerful magic, Ganondorf often seeks the omniscient Triforce to grant his wish of conquering the entire world. He frequently wields the Triforce of Power, and stages coups against the Royal Family of Hyrule to take the Hyrulean Throne by force. In the English-localized game manual of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past his full name is stated to be Ganondorf Dragmire, and his alias before his incursion into the Sacred Realm is stated to have been Mandrag Ganon, meaning "Ganon of the Enchanted Thieves."

The Triforce of Power that Ganondorf often holds grants him near-immortality; the only weapons that can truly defeat him are the Master Sword, Silver Arrows, and Light Arrows. In addition to granting him power, the Triforce of Power allows Ganondorf to transform into his more powerful beast form, Ganon, reminiscent of a boar or a hog. During events of the ending of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the timeline of The Legend of Zelda series is severed into two separate timelines. Thus the Ganondorf from Ocarina of Time has two different future incarnations, each eventually meeting their end at the hands of different Links, leaving uncertain futures for both Ganondorf's. In addition to the character from Ocarina of Time and his two paralell future selves, Ganondorf or his monstrous Ganon form appear several more times throughout the series. It is not confirmed which, if any, of these incarnations are connected to the previous being, and the Ganondorf in The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures is given a different backstory, leading to the idea that there may be multiple Ganondorfs much like many other characters in the Legend of Zelda series who have multiple incarnations.