#sheikah tribe

[drawnbyshelly]

Linktober 2024

Day 9 & 10: Race/Mystery 🔎

[darlingseraa]

GUYS I CAN'T BE THE ONLY ONE TO HAVE NOTICED, RIGHT ???

Ok so, I had this epiphany the other day and wanted to share it, but like, I forgor because if I don't do something I think of immediately in the moment, then I forget to do it. BUT, here we are.

I'm just gonna mark this down as a huge spoiler for The Legend of Zelda : Tears of the Kingdom, so if y'all don't want to be spoiled on some (albeit small) details from the game's canon, please do move on lol.

Okay so, as I was rewatching the cutscenes in Tears of the Kingdom the other day, I noticed that both Rauru and Mineru have this tear-shaped white mark on the bridge of their nose. Quite innocent, right? Maybe just a Zonai trait?

But then– then I realized they also have a third eye. On their foreheads.

Now, what really baffles me is, if you look closely at these screenshots (I believe Rauru's is taken from the official Collector's Edition Artbook, and Mineru's is straight from the game itself), then you'll also realize that both Rauru and Mineru's third eye have exactly three lashes.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, hear me out.

You know what other "race" in Hyrule displays these traits or make use of that sort of symbolism?

Yeah.

The Sheikah.

They're also the only "race" in Hyrule that doesn't appear in the flashbacks where we see all the Sages.

Now, it can and will certainly be argued that the Sheikah are not a seperate race from the Hylians and yeah, I completely agree with that (it's even stated in game in the profiles of the Sheikah characters, like Paya or Impa, that they are "Hylian (Sheikah)"). In a sense, even if they are the same race, they still belong to a different people or culture than the rest of the Hylian characters, and can therefore be considered "seperate". It was the case in Ocarina of Time where the Six Sages included both a Hylian (Zelda herself) and a Sheikah (Impa, as the Sage of Shadows, I believe).

So why not include a Sage who was part of the Sheikah tribe, like Nintendo did in Ocarina of Time?

Sure, I'm going off a super subtle detail here, but I have a theory and I will die on this hill if I must : I think the Zonai were actually the ancestors of the Sheikah tribe (and of the Royal Family of Hyrule, as Sonia mentions a "blood connection" between her and Zelda, as well as the fact that she sensed both her power over Time and Rauru's power over Light within Zelda).

Now, as I said, this theory of mine is based off a few small details, as well as off of the absence of the Sheikah in the distant past of Tears of the Kingdom. However, even if Nintendo haven't done this on purpose and the marks on Rauru and Mineru's noses are only meant to be decorative, I still think there's something there that we're just not seeing.

Either the Zonai are meant to be part of the Sheikah tribe's ancestry (which would, in turn, explain why the tribe has always been close to the Royal Family as they share common ancestors in both Hylians and Zonai), or the Sheikah were just like "Oh hey, that's a really cool idea for a logo. Wanna make that our tribe's symbol??" and their leader at the time was like "Yeah, let's go boooiiiiis" and that's that.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Sorry for the long post! I just absolutely had to share. I can't be the only one to have seen this detail, right???

[ginneke]

In the era of the first Calamity, the King of Hyrule, who feared the technology of the Sheikah Tribe, gave the order for it to be buried.

It is recorded that some Sheikah refused to give up their technology. They rebelled, where their brethren capitulated; they went to ground, and became the Yiga.

But just how accurate are those records? Victors may write history, but their stories aren’t the only ones that can be told…

It is reveal day, at long last! I can finally share the fic I wrote for the @sheikahzine, “Eyes of Hyrule”: --splinter--, a tale of the Sheikah Tribe’s schism and the birth of the Yiga.

(Also featuring a bonus chapter with 2k of meta and marginalia!)

[sokkas-first-fangirl]

I have a question based on something you said in response to a comment from the latest chapter of Luminous. Hypothetically, if Irma’s Sheikah heritage was uncovered (say in an Age of Calamity timeline) would her biological family have been discovered? Would it by chance be this universe’s version of Lianna and her ilk?

Genuinely, thank you for this question, because I'm having so much fun rambling about Irma and her Sheikah heritage ✨

Now, let's get into it!

Even if Irma's Sheikah heritage was discovered pre-Calamity, figuring out who her bio family is would be a harder task. After all, there's no real evidence of who they were. Pre-Calamity there'd be a bit of a witch-hunt among the more devout (and/or fanatical) Sheikah to find them and demand answers, even if Irma herself doesn't actually want to find them. (Although, with that revelation, some members of the tribe might begin to put gossip and dates together, maybe begin to notice certain physical traits, and begin to piece together who her family was.) It's unlikely they would have come forward at all, unless Link was already proclaimed as Hylia's Chosen Hero.

If it's Age of Calamity/Pre-Calamity (in which case, everyone involved with Irma is obviously alive, Irma herself is alive and Link knows his mother) then there's a chance they'd take the risk to try and lay a claim on Link (and mostly just him) for the status boost. In which case, they'd try to claim they didn't know about Irma and her abandonment, and they'd be forced to try and play nice with Irma. (And she's not buying it)

Some members of the family would want to keep quiet no matter what for fear of backlash and the reaction of the tribe. In this 'verse, the Sheikah are sworn to guide and protect Hylia's Chosen, just as they are with the Blood of the Goddess. Who wants to admit that their family abandoned Link's mother? Who wants to admit that, if not for them, Link could have been raised among the Sheikah? The tribe's pride and joy would have skyrocketed if Hylia's Chosen was considered "one of them." It would have been a huge symbol of hope for them. (Which would be even more pressure on Link, sorry to Link and his anxiety)

Others would want to take the risk, chasing after that clout and status. (Which would backfire terribly)

It wouldn't be Lianna, but they'd certainly be similar people to her. Even if they didn't know about Irma's abandonment, I see her Sheikah relatives being terrible snobs; proud, narrow-minded and unfortunately, passing that terrible mindset down through the generations until someone manages to break that cycle of abuse. There's good people among the family, but they're pressured into keeping silent and doing what's "best for the family." Even if they didn't know about Irma's abandonment, they're not people that Irma would want to associate with or have anywhere near her children.

The survivors and descendants a lot more likely to come forward post-Calamity, when everything about Irma's birth is even more muddled than it already was and Link's memories of her are so few. They'd still be in for a nasty surprise, because Link wouldn't be happy to find them. He'd be absolutely furious. Link loved (and still loves) Irma so much; even though these descendants wouldn't have anything to do with Irma's abandonment (and a lot of the original family members would have died in the Calamity), he'd have no patience for them. And if/when they tried to pull the "family" card, he'd be so insulted. He's already got a family, thanks very much and child abandoners do not make the cut.

Now, if they were genuinely oblivious about Irma's existence, that would be another matter. Then Link would at least give them the time of day and Irma would be curious about them. Then certain members of the tribe wouldn't be out for blood and there'd be a lot more sympathy and a sense of tragedy.

But honestly? They were responsible for her abandonment.

*plays "The Ballad of Lucy Gray Baird" on repeat and thinks about Irma* Anyway, I love her a normal amount, can't you tell?

[ladyrijus]

you know, i've always found it interesting that white hair is significantly tied to the sheikah. personally, i like to think of it as an indicator of faith to hylia as her chosen guardians, their hair as white as her wings.

but here's the catch: if there is even an inkling of doubt in the integrity of the goddess in a sheikah's mind, it stains their angelic hair black, either flowing down from the roots or seeping up from the tips. the speed of the process varies, depending on how often or how strongly a sheikah's faith quivers.

however, it is slow in most cases, because doubt buds in the form of questions the elders don't like to answer. they are servants of the goddess hylia first before they are anything else, why question her intentions? but for some sheikah, that alone isn't enough to maintain their faith.

many bearers of the corrupted hair try to cut it off or hide it underneath their amigasa hat... but there comes a time where they can't. when that happens, they mysteriously disappear from kakariko, their faces forgotten.

[doomed-era]

ok so I found this after doing some research last night

URBOSA???

URBOSA GIRL THATS

(im aware that the yiga survive aoc just fyi)

[unironicallycringe]

Haven't the Sheikah always been considered Hylian?

No, they haven't - at least not according to my memory of older games or the wikis I just checked to verify!

The only time I can find where they've been cited as such is specifically from the TotK distinction, which is why it feels so weird for the game to retcon it across the board. In prior games and canon, Sheikah were considered a separate human people/tribe similar to the distinction between Hylian and Gerudo. (The term "human" used to be a separate distinction waaaay back in the day too, but then it seems to have gotten rolled into an umbrella term by around Skyward Sword.) To make matters even MORE confusing, there's always also been the term "Hyrulean" - this has historically referred to all citizens of the country of Hyrule, not just the Hylian ones. So in that regard, while Sheikah were not Hylians, Sheikah were Hyruleans. However, TotK seems to merge these two terms now as well(?)

I don't have a huge problem with changing all that wording normally! It's whatever, sometimes you mess with your worldbuilding for whatever reason. I think it's primarily an eyebrow-raise because the change comes with the additional knowledge that the Sheikah were recently subject to a canon genocide. So it's a weird choice to retcon their race into a subrace without acknowledging it in-universe. One could say "yeah, they're a subrace now, on account of the whole genocide thing" but I .... don't think Nintendo is trying to make that point, else it would have (or should have) been stated.

Thanks for your ask!

(also i'm worried about all the Sheikah/Hylian asks being posed on anon, so I apologize if I've intimidated anyone. I know the Scotland/UK ask really threw me off, so I reacted jokingly to it without ever "answering" it, but I promise I'm not weird about discussion asks unless the asks themselves are Weird)

[ananinidraws]

A re-redesign of the Zelda OCs, with a few new ones added in! More info on them are, once again, on my Art Fight page (i just don’t wanna copy paste paragrafs of info into here, that’d take forever shjbdsjfdnv)

[onefey]

going feral ripping things apart thinking about zonai twili connections and how that plays into my personal headcanons

[its--ali]

Hm. HM.

[statboosts]

it holds back its story too. the story tortures itself to remind us that this isn't the first time we've met these characters but does basically nothing to advance any relationships. Having an ancient time travel plot where Ganondorf is the primary antagonist in both time periods kind of makes breath of the wild feel oddly pointless; like Calamity Ganon was just a step in the process of killing Ganondorf when Calamity Ganon is presented as the curses final form, the momentum of the curse just dragging his hatred into the future when his mind and will are rotted away

I've basically come to the conclusion that Tears of the Kingdom is a hugely impressive piece of technical work that's held back at every turn by the fact that it's a Breath of the Wild sequel. You can see the clear outlines of the game it's trying to be, but in order to actually engage with that game you constantly have to dig through this heavy cruft of mechanics that worked great in the context of Breath of the Wild, but have mutated into annoying distractions in the context of Tears of the Kingdom. Ironically, for all the complaints about TotK playing fast and loose with BotW's narrative, from a mechanical standpoint its problem is that it's too faithful to its predecessor.

[lozchic]

My interpretations of SS Sheikah since it effects the Ancestor’s general outlook and philosophy. 

In SS era, there’s two sectors of the Sheikah tribe. Those known as monks tasked with being the “messengers of Hylia”, ones who claim they see visions of Hylia and guide the tribe through their actions. The other sector who are “the life blood” of the tribe. This sector praises Hylia like the monks. But ultimately each of them are tasked with different duties, from gathering food, guarding their homes, to simply crafts and storytelling. They all have a very strong sense of the importance of welcoming each other and aiding each other in every day life. 

Their philosophy is strongly embedded in unity. To the Sheikah, there is no weak link among them. Even if someone does not have physical prowess or does not have a calling in life, everyone is made to feel welcome overall and are loved.

Pre-war to Pre-SS tested that form of unity among them. When Demise attacked everyone on the surface, he ripped a part homes and killed all in his wake. The Shiekah were nomadic before the start of the war but the fear of their way of life being destroyed causes them to abandoned keeping stationary for longer periods and live more hidden. 

After the war ends and Demise is imprisoned, the Monks start claiming several incidents happening in the future. One of them declares that the goddess reborn will descend from the skies and need guidance through a treacherous journey. Another claims that the goddess’ chosen guard and the goddess will face a crisis that could destroy their world.

There’s arguments on how things should be handled but ultimately the monks guide them to choose among them a bodyguard for when the goddess descends from the heavens. Their chosen ends up being Impa, one who excels at the monk’s teachings while having strong capabilities that they feel are needed after what they witnessed from Demise. All the while the monks start preparing how to handle the threat they foresaw happening far later in time. 

Post-SS, the monks go into a stasis after their creations are complete and scattered. And the creation of the new world created from the surface causes the Sheikah to scatter further. They exist more in the shadows, save for the few that agree to aid Impa with this new country. Which later becomes protecting the royal family. 

[redundantz]

Ancient Loz AU Story

10,000 years before the events of BOTW the Princess of Hyrule and the Hero who wields the sword that seals the Darkness first fought off the Calamity. With the help of the Sheikah, Guardians, Champions and the Divine Beasts. However, the hero and her best friend; the Prince of the Gerudo, were now missing. The only one to return from the fight was the Princess… Bloodied and bruised. She emerged from the castle alone. No longer the energetic, and free spirited person she used to be. Now, she is filled with a sole dedication to her Kingdom. But cold, and filled with deep sorrow. She orders the Sheikah to create shrines to train the next hero.They prepare the towers, store the Guardians under the castle till they are needed. Research started on the slate where it can be used for building infrastructure and even battle. Anything to help prepare for another Calamity.

The Gerudo Prince wasn't seen again and the heroes identity was forgotten But, the Royal blood of Hylia lives on….

Link is from a traveling caravan. His family has blood from the ancient Zonai tribe. He travels with a decent size troupe along with his sister, father and grandmother.

He meets Zelda during a festival where he was entering an archery contest in castletown. Zelda, who was disguised as Sheik, was also entering. She beat him at the contest(barely), but was extremely bothered by how good he was.

The festival goes on for about 3 days and at the end there is the sword ceremony where all the people coming of age(18) can attempt to pull the sword. She was presiding over it and witnessed him pull the sword and his whole life change. Not long after they meet officially and Link is appointed as her Knight; She introduces him to Ganondorf, her best friend from childhood.

And the chaos and comrade-ere ensues~

Over 3 years they travel, train, fall in love and wait for the day when the evil is supposed to show itself. With no sign of the great evil, they start to relax a bit. But that is when it strikes. Ganon travelling by himself at this time. Explores a cave in the Gerudo desert and encounters something ominous. Whispers in the dark speak to him and his fears and wants and his distaste for the King of Hyrule…. The voice is familiar, much too familiar, and before he can fight back it consumes him. When he awakes he is alone. He isn't instantly ‘evil’ but over time it twists his thoughts and actions. His closest friends and mother grow concerned. He becomes harsher and radical. Cruel. During a secret meeting with the King, Ganon assassinates him. Zelda happens upon Ganon covered in blood. She thinks he's hurt and is concerned by his behavior the past year. He snaps. He tells her every dark thing he has been thinking, and that he killed her father. In shock, and devastated, she can’t move as Ganon is about to strike her. But Link manages to get to her in time because the master sword was glowing, something he has never seen before but an instinct so old took over him. He races to escape with her. Ganon takes over the castle. But only as a steward because the King and the Princess are nowhere to be found. No one is the wiser to his malevolent plots. Yet. He knows she has to act fast since Zelda and Link escaped.

Zelda and Link make it all the way to Kakariko Village and Impa and they are all Informed that the Calamity is upon them. No one can believe it is their Ganondorf who is doing this but it is undeniable. They grieve, but they must act fast. With the help of the Sheikah they gather the guardians, monks and send word to the Races and Champions to prepare for battle. Zelda listens as Link hums an old Zonai Lullaby his mother used to sing to him. And it makes her remember something she read about. A story about there being an ancient Zonai device below the castle that would help defeat the Demon King.

Impa knows the tunnels She can help them sneak in. So they prepare to infiltrate the castle.

Under the castle they find the Zonai Artifacts that were left behind for sealing the great evil.

Ganon's followers saw them enter however and informed him. Knowing this is his chance he stops all pretenses and releases his power. Unleashing a mob of monsters and a cloud of malace into the castle and across Hyrule. But the Champions and Shekah are prepared to meet them.

Looking around for any clue. Trying to think of anything they read or that Link heard from his family that could be used to turn on the sealing jewelry. They don’t know how to activate it, but Ganon is going to be upon them soon as they had to fight through hordes of monsters beforehand.

Out of the dark behind them he emerges.

Zelda and Link manage to avoid the surprise attack. They both go on the defensive. They fight and try to reason with him. They can’t believe this is their friend, their lover. The fight is tough, because they all know each other's moves after training together for years along with the emotional turmoil. Zelda tells Link he needs to figure out how to activate the artifact if they are to succeed. She will hold him off. But by this point they are both exhausted.

Ganon manages to cut Link, spraying blood over the floor and the statue. Link falls to the floor and Ganon towers over him ready to strike him down, but Zelda blasts him away. Ganon turns his attention to her. Annoyed with her meddling and manages to land a blow on her also. Cutting the tip of her right ear off.

The statue lights up from the blood. The blood of a zonai. That  was another part of the Lullaby from Links family Zelda realizes. The Jewelry glows and expands before flying off the wrists of the statue to Link. He is surrounded by a green glowing light that blasts Ganon and Zelda back. The bands constrict around his arms and legs disintegrating the clothing underneath. He screams. Zelda watches on in horror as Link transforms before her. His skin is turning black and his bones and skin stretch until he is 6 ft tall. What did she get him into? This was supposed to help them what was happening… She is living in a nightmare. What else will she have to give up. She cries as she looks at him, feeling his pain and fear. His hair band she had given him falls from his hair. Rolling across the floor towards her. “..Zelda….” He says 

She picks up the hair band and goes to him! But he is not really responding. He is restrained and struggling within himself. His head is filled with the spirits of the Zonai he knows what he must do…he knows this is the last time he will see Zelda and Ganon. To seal the Demon King he must sacrifice himself. He says the last part of the Lullaby to Zelda and she knows. This is it. She kisses him. Though a bit strange now that he's so tall and his lips are cold. Ganon is getting up across the cavern from them, laughing. He mocks them and their weak attempts at thwarting him. One last clash. Zelda manages to get his weapon from him and Link plunges his arm into Ganons chest activating the sealing power. Glowing green. They both freeze in place and all is quiet. Entombed under the castle. The malice and monsters disappear. Zelda cautiously goes up to them. She doesn't touch them lest she break the spell somehow. The only thing she does is grab the hair bangle that fell to the floor in the final fight. It was the one from Ganon’s hair. And she left for the surface.

Alone.

Thanks for Reading! <3

[ezlo-x]

hi I have thoughts to implement to my au maybe sorta I just thought the idea was cool. The Zonai were a Minish Tribe that were established in the Faron region when descending down from the skies

The Zonai were architecturally advanced as their structures and monuments were massive compared to their small size. It was at a point lead to believe that Hylians from a long ago past created those structures that are in the Faron region. Zonai don’t have a third eye in this, only highly respected Zonai would create these headpieces in form of a third eye. It is only a wild coincidence that the Sheikah and Zonai use eye symbols. However the Zonai in my au use more hand symbolism as they connect it more to into their architectural history and skills.

The Zonai established their own society in Faron, being the first to create a monarchy way before Hyrule was established to have a kingdom. That is the Zonai tribe of the south region, as a handful of the Zonai started to embark to the upper north side of Hyrule. There were two siblings in hopes to create their own society just like their cousins, Rauru and Mineru. They first settled in the upper north of the Woodland Region now known as the Thyphlo Ruins, until the discovery of the Great Lord Deku Tree in the Deku Woods (this is before the Koroks appeared). Rauru and Mineru decided to focus on the magic of the forest with the help of the Lord Deku Tree. Making Rauru hone the power of light and Mineru the power of spirit.

With these powers they have and their wisdom through experimentation and with Lord Deku Tree's blessing, was the creation of the Moth Fairy. Healing Fairies that transformed into Moth Fairies in their pupa stage. Who absorb the wisdom and story of the Zonai. As the Zonai wanted to keep their traditions alive the moth fairies were there as to archive their stories.

This magic came in handy when a threat of evil emerged in Hyrule as the Master Sword only being a few centuries old. And the incarnate of Light in a need of help to stop this force of evil from consuming Hyrule into darkness. The Zonai with their powers of magic that were obtained through the forest, gifted the Master Sword an enchantment to strengthen the sword and vanish the evil from Hyrule.

As centuries and many millennia passed by and the threat of evil being handled by child of light and courageous hero. Zonai tradition slowly diminished as also the Minish started to expand across Hyrule. The Zonai culture and tradition slowly faded as new cultures and traditions formed reestablishing as the Woodland tribe. People from Hyrule slowly forgetting about the Minish tribe. Leaving only the Moth Fairies to be the only remnants to know the origin of the Minish. The Zonai from the Faron region never really vanished however just like their Woodland cousins they became the Faron tribe as many things changed. However they had it slightly unlucky as not a lot of Moth Fairies know much for their history aside from the origin. Leaving many things behind and to be left a mystery.

The Master Sword's enchantment slowly diminished mostly as the threat of evil came back in long periods of time. In the current stage the Master Sword is weak due to the absence of maintenance and the enchantment is completely gone. The Master Sword has slowly become a rusted sword from a legend that is 10 thousand years old

[askganon]

I actually have several questions:

How come you skin is green while Gerudo's skin in general are just tanned? Is this some kind of side effect from the Triforce? But then, why are the other wielders of it not impacted by this change in skin colour? Or maybe it is some kind of specificity in your family?

Just how long is a Gerudo's lifetime expectancy? Is it the same as Hylians'? And compared to Humans, what difference is there?

Were Gerudos once Hylians, a long, long, long time ago? If so, were the Sheikahs also Hylians, at that period?

I am sorry if my questions bother you, your Highness, I am merely curious and want to understand the world you live in better.

I shall answer what I can.

First, the shades of color for Gerudo range from pale white to nigh pitch black. My olive tone is rare, but does exist among my people. However, I am sure my magics have some form of effect upon my physical form.

Most Gerudo live nigh a century, like most other races. Myself and my surrogates, on the other hand, are obvious outliers.

To my understanding, all non-elementals were once one tribe, who split for one reason or another. I would assumer we Gerudo were no different, save for our reluctance to bow to our lesser.

You questions were welcomed, scholar, for they had more substance to them than the common rabble I hear echoing, and replying, through my halls.

[alfredo-zauce]

I know that I said regional rail themes for Rails of the Realm would come before anything character- or plot-related, but this one had to happen. It had to. I used the electronic instrumentation of Kohga's battle music and the weird bumping claves from the Hideout. Did you expect me to not? We literally have art of Yiga Byrne over at @powdermelonkeg's page!

I'm also an optimist, so in this world we get Byrne living happily among the Sheikah in Kakariko post-redemption, unless Bee says otherwise (I live to serve o7). I made a major key version with more Kakariko-style instrumentation so we could all hold hands and dream of a better world together.

Bonus tag for @spirit-tracks who has been so encouraging ever since the first song. If anyone wants me to make a proper taglist and add them to it, please lmk!