This is video #09 in my playthrough of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Link has gotten through all six Palaces and placed all the Crystals. Now, it is time to head to the final dungeon and get the Triforce of Courage. Link starts just outside the graveyard west of New Kasuto and south of Nabooru. Heading south through the graveyard, he passes through a fixed encounter area with turquoise Moas and rock-throwing Lizardmen. Just get through here as fast as possible. The mountain pass is littered with fixed encounters, and random encounters will appear, as well. Off the path, there is a hidden encounter area with a P Bag (time 1:42). After passing through several fixed encounter areas and a couple of caverns, Link finally arrives at the Great Palace (time 5:45). Cool final dungeon music here. The barrier in front of the palace would remain in place if Link had not cleared the prior palaces, and it would be lethal. This level is simply huge, but much of it can be safely ignored. At the bottom of the first lift, Link heads left and defeats one of this dungeon's signature enemies, a Firebird. To the west, there is a platform over a floor with Bots. Right after the first pillar, there is a fake floor in the platform, so be careful. Link takes the next elevator downstairs. He heads east and crosses a bridge over a lava pond. In the big room to the east, another Firebird awaits. Link takes the elevator after the Firebird down another level. In the room below, there are a couple of interesting arrangements of breakable blocks to get through. There are flying gargoyle heads to avoid while doing this, as well. To the east, Link will encounter one of the nastiest new enemies in this place, a Birdknight. It is similar to Ironknuckles, but it can jump quite high. Past the Birdknight, there are some breakable blocks to get rid of. Link rides the next elevator as far down as it can go. To the east, there is another Firebird to burn up. The next corridor is guarded by fire-spitting Ropes and gargoyle heads. Past them, Link rides the elevator down. The room below has a couple more arrangements of blocks. In between them, there is a blue Birdknight waiting. It can be made much easier by not tunneling through the bottom blocks. From the fourth block from the bottom, Link can easily nail the Birdknight when it jumps. There is a collapsing bridge with a fire-spitting Rope to the east, followed by a solid bridge with a Bubble underneath it. Past it, Link takes the elevator down a level. There is a curtained hall here with a giant Skull Bubble followed by a Firebird. The room beyond features another Skull Bubble and a blue Birdknight. The way down is through some more breakable blocks. The next level down on the elevator, there is a false wall that Link can walk through to the west. Sneaky! There is a Birdknight statue to the west that Link can slash to get either a Birdknight or a red magic decanter. Pray for the latter. Another level down on the elevator, Link can find some goodies to the left and right. To the west, past some Bots, there is a missing Link. To the east, among some breakable blocks, there is a Fairy waiting to restore Link's health. Down at the bottom of the elevator shaft, Link heads west past a Firebird. Some breakable blocks block off a false floor that Link must go down. As Link heads east, a Big Bot tries to drop in on him (time 13:20). Aah! It will split into several Bots if Link strikes it. The next room features a crumbling bridge spanning a lava pit. In the middle of the lava pit, however, there is a narrow pit leading to the level below (time 13:38). Link must fall down this pit to reach the area with the final bosses. Before actually challenging the final bosses, Link can break some blocks to the west to find either a Birdknight or a red magic decanter. The latter will help a great deal in the final fight. To the east, Link will encounter the first of the two final bosses, the Thunderbird (time 14:14). When it appears, it is red and invulnerable. It floats up and down, spraying the battlefield with fireballs. The Jump and Shield spells will help out here, but what Link absolutely must use is Thunder. This turns it blue and makes it show its face. After that, Link has to jump up and slash it in the face. To avoid a good deal of damage, Link can stand at the right end of the room. When the enemy reaches its low point, Link can jump with an Upper Stab and try to slash it in the face. When the Thunderbird is defeated, Link gets a useless Key and heads east. In the room to the east, Link will encounter the final boss of the game (time 15:26). The little gnome guarding the Triforce of Courage has a final trial: he conjures up Dark Link to challenge the pointy-eared hero. Description continued in the comments below.

• published: 02 Sep 2014
• views: 222