King Rauru (TotK) is a character introduced in Tears of the Kingdom, as the tritagonist. He founded the kingdom depicted in the Era of the Wilds as its first King of Hyrule with his Hylian wife, Queen Sonia.[1] He also serves as the overarching protagonist of the "Era of The Wilds" saga.
Biography[]
Tears of the Kingdom[]
King Rauru was a Zonai, whose ancestors came down from the heavens a long time ago and were said to be descendants of gods. With the power of the Secret Stones, which possessed immense power, he became a great leader and met Sonia, his future wife. After some time Rauru would give Sonia a Secret Stone and together founded an unspecified iteration of the kingdom of Hyrule. It is possible that Hyrule may have been destroyed once before the mentioned founding.[2]
Some years passed, and both Rauru and Sonia stumbled upon Princess Zelda, who had traveled back in time, unconscious in the forest. When Zelda woke up, she presented herself as the daughter of King Rhoam of Hyrule, which confused the two as they were the first king and queen. After some time, when Zelda realized she had traveled to an era so back in time it had become legend, the King didn't believe her story right away, but when he saw the secret stone that Zelda was wielding, he ended up believing her story. When Rauru saw the hurry in which Zelda was, he said maybe his sister, Mineru, could help them, since she knew far more than anyone about the Zonai.
When Zelda went with Rauru and Sonia to the castle, Rauru and Zelda visited Mineru to ask her of a way to return Zelda back to her era. At first, Mineru said to Zelda that her Secret Stone only amplifies her power, which means that if she doesn't know how to go back home, she won't be able to return. However, after that she mentions a forbidden spell called "draconification", which goes like this: "To swallow a secret stone is to become an immortal dragon, one blessed with eternal life". Rauru asked her if she thought that could give them a solution, to which Mineru nodded but then added another part of the spell: "To become an immortal dragon is to lose oneself", which is why it is forbidden. Rauru sighed and saw that Zelda was disappointed, he tried to cheer her up by suggesting she learn more about her power practicing with Sonia.
At some point, his kingdom drew conflict with the desert-dwelling group known as the Gerudo. The Gerudo, led by the sole male member known as Ganondorf, attempted to send a Molduga swarm against Hyrule in an attempt at conquest. This required both Rauru and Sonia to step into the front lines and use their respective Secret Stones. However, unexpectedly, Zelda's Secret Stone generated even more power, empowering all three enough to send a beam of light that obliterated the entire swarm, forcing Ganondorf to change his strategy to one of subterfuge especially after deducing Rauru had a Secret Stone on him. Ganondorf then arrived to apologize on behalf of the Gerudo for repeatedly not answering various requests to join Hyrule and indicated he wishes to serve it faithfully. Although Rauru secretly realized he was being insincere, he nevertheless permitted him to join due to believing this will allow him to keep a closer eye on him, which ultimately proved to be a mistake after Ganondorf not only stole Sonia's Secret Stone, but murdered her in the process.
Following Rauru's imprisoning of Ganondorf underground, his people constructed Hyrule Castle atop the Demon King to keep him sealed, the castle remained intact and undestroyed for ages until it is damaged for the first time during the Great Calamity 100 years prior to the Era of the Wilds.[3][4] Largely because of the damage caused by Calamity Ganon's destructive acts during that time, Rauru's body weakened to the extent that it decomposed until only his arm remained, and by consequence, the seal on Ganondorf himself weakened as well.[5]
Appearance[]
King Rauru is a very tall Zonai with dark green-ish skin, and he wears clothing featuring Zonai imagery. He has floor-length white hair. His ears are exceptionally long, which is significant because it is said that races such as the Hylians developed long, pointed ears to receive messages from the gods. He has a third eye on his forehead, which opens when he uses his incredibly powerful magic.[6][7]
Personality[]
Rauru is kind, modest and benevolent and speaks in a way to show kindness and empathy to everyone he meets. His kind nature allowed him to be accepted as King and heavily respected, almost worshiped, by the Hylians who believed he was a descendant of the Gods. According to several testimonies, he treated Sonia in high regard to the point that Sonia would return the favor by acting on her own accord to prove she didn't need the new King to serve her and they should serve as equals, which is what convinced her to marry him in the first place. He seems to look up to his sister, Mineru as he points out she has high knowledge of the Zonai people and shows deep concern for her constructs working so tirelessly to maintain the land, likely lamenting not knowing her fate.
Rauru shows signs of tactical intelligence as well, as despite the obvious facade Ganondorf places before Rauru, Rauru confidently admits that he is only allowing this to happen so he can keep a closer eye on Ganondorf and be better prepared to stop him if he shows signs of betrayal. This however backfires as Ganondorf is able to take advantage of the Royal family putting their guard down by knowing that Rauru didn't trust him and giving them an easy win so he could steal Sonia's stone. Rauru was filled with so much remorse for his over confidence costing his wife that he turned vengeful and brought the sages together in hopes of subduing Ganondorf before he could harm anyone else, but when the battle ended near fatally for everyone, Rauru took it upon himself to sacrifice his life and seal Ganondorf, once again atoning for being blind to Ganondorf's power and warning Ganondorf that he will be taken down for his actions.
In the present, Rauru appears to be more cheery when he speaks to Link, happy to know the prophecy came true, but throughout the island shows remorse for the state of the land and the constructs tirelessly working for over 10,000+ years as well as questioning his impact on the world as a Zonai. Upon Link finishing his quest, he admits he can't stay in this spectral form for long, wishes Link well, and leaves back to the astral plane. In the end, he wordlessly smiles as he seems to have found a way to revert Zelda back to normal along side Sonia, and based on what Mineru says, they are happily enjoying their afterlife knowing Hyrule is safe once again.
Abilities[]
King Rauru about to unleash the power of the Secret Stone.
Appearances can be misleading, and King Rauru was no exception to this saying. His calm, sage, and peaceful behavior should not hide the fact the Zonai were a force to be reckoned with. Thanks to his unique magical capabilities inherited from his race and the power of his Secret Stone, Rauru was arguably one of the most powerful beings of his time, surpassed only by Ganondorf himself. He notably demonstrated the extent of his power by wiping out a swarm of Molduga attacking his kingdom, and then by withstanding a direct attack from the Demon King before breaking up the fight. Later, he faced Ganondorf once more with the help of his fellow Sages, although their opponent outclassed all of them thanks to the limitless powers he had just gained.
The Zonai overpowers Ganondorf and sacrifices his own life in the process.
Even though he was on his knees, Rauru found enough strength to overpower Ganondorf by combining the godlike power of his Secret Stone with the sheer force of his magical arm, impaling the Demon King and binding him beneath Hyrule Castle. Although this ultimate act would cost him his own life, such an impressive feat is a testament to King Rauru's sheer power and incredible knowledge of ancient magic, allowing him to neutralize Ganondorf for such a large extent of time, even after his own death. Long after his sacrifice, Rauru's spirit would manifest itself to Link thanks to the connection of his magical arm with the young swordsman. This feat demonstrates a certain omniscience, a fact further corroborated by his essence still inhabiting his right arm.
Trivia[]
- King Rauru's medallion resembles the face of Rauru, the Sage of Light from Ocarina of Time. When flipped, it resembles his owl form, Kaepora Gaebora.
- Rauru's secret stone symbol resembles the kanji "光" , which means "light". This makes sense, as King Rauru possesses power over light, which is amplified by his secret stone.
- There is a town in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link that shares his name.
- Oddly, Rauru somehow was able to threaten Ganondorf with Link and Zelda before Zelda found the Secret Stone. The Time travel could explain why he would know when Zelda went to the past to tell him, but the only hint to how they could've known without Zelda is if Sonia was somehow able to see the future and a vision of a boy named Link and Zelda, since when Rauru doesn't recognize Zelda at all, Sonia elbows him knowingly and quickly accepts Zelda as their descendant without needing further proof.
Nomenclature[]
Rauru shares a name with Rauru from Ocarina of Time, although their connection is unclear (other than the fact that they share the title of the Sage of Light).
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Gallery[]
King Rauru in the TotK artbook
King Rauru from game files
King Rauru's arm sealing the Demon King moments before falling
Queen Sonia alongside King Rauru when finding Zelda
Rauru using his light powers to seal Ganondorf, showing a symbol similar to the kanji "光" ("light")
References
- ↑ "What an unexpected answer. We are the king and queen who founded Hyrule, after all. Or at least we were the last time I checked." — King Rauru (Tears of the Kingdom)
- ↑ "あくまで可能性として話すとすれば、ハイラル建国の話があってもその前に一度滅んだ歴史がある可能性もあります。[If I'm just talking about this as a possibility, even if there is a story about the founding of Hyrule, there is a possibility that there is a history where Hyrule was destroyed once before that.]" — Hidemaro Fujibayashi, An interview with the developer of "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" that can still be talked about. A marvelous sequel completed through "play priority", Famitsu.
- ↑ "He was imprisoned beneath Hyrule Castle for ages, but the magic holding him weakened when the castle was damaged during the calamity a century ago, and his power has steadily been growing since. Now he has revived as a threat beyond the knowledge of any." — Character Profiles (Tears of the Kingdom)
- ↑ "Deep beneath this land, our mighty first ruler imprisoned the Demon King. To ensure the king's magic would hold, we erected a castle here to protect this sacred site. Without the castle in place, the site may be disturbed, allowing the Demon King's hatred and rage to be revived. The preservation of this castle is therfore tied to the prosperity of the kingdom." — Gloom's Approach (Tears of the Kingdom)
- ↑ https://nintendoeverything.com/zelda-tears-of-the-kingdom-devs-explain-raurus-seal-shrines-lightroots/
- ↑ "There is a story that the shame that the Gerudo felt over giving birth to the source of Calamity Ganon so long ago opened them up to listening for messages from the goddesses. So, they came to have the same long, pointed ears as the Hylians, which some believe allow them to receive special messages from the divine." — Creating a Champion, Dark Horse Books, pg. 401
- ↑ "It was also said that their long, pointed ears enabled them to hear special messages from the gods." — A Link to the Past manual, pg. 4
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