10 Ways Zelda Is More Powerful Than Link

The debate goes on and on. Who is more powerful, Zelda or Link? While we can all agree they’re so much better off as equals, the princess of Hyrule has some tricks up her sleeve even Link can’t pull off. Here are 10 ways that Zelda is more powerful than her knight.

10. Smarter Than Link

Link does the fighting; Zelda does the strategy. Like Ganondorf, she waits for the right time to strike instead of just jumping ahead and pulling out a sword. NPCs are often the ones to give Link hints, and in many games, Zelda does it herself. She even has the ability to lead armies in Twilight Princess and Hyrule Warriors Legends, meaning she possesses both the position and wisdom needed to do this.

9. Disguises Better Than Link

Link’s disguises may be good (i.e. woman disguise in Breath of the Wild, stone mask disguise in Majora’s Mask), but Zelda’s are 100% better. Link’s disguises are often used to fool brainless NPCs, and all of us easily recognize who’s under that mask. Zelda’s, on the other hand, can fully fool us. I mean, who guessed Sheik was actually Zelda? She can even fit into a playful pirate’s personality perfectly in Wind Waker, disguising as Tetra. (Maybe some of us guessed it was Zelda when she got captured, though…)

8. Telepathy

One main ability that Zelda has, and Link doesn’t, is telepathy. All the way back to A Link to the Past, the princess contacts Link to tell him she’s stuck in the dungeon of the castle. Next, in Twilight Princess, she calls the Spirits of Light to save her and Link from Ganondorf, and she continually guides him throughout his journey in Breath of the Wild as she is trapped within Calamity Ganon. Link sadly never has this ability (think about how beneficial it would be if he could call his allies from afar), but Zelda does in quite a few games.

7. A Voice

Okay, this one’s obvious – Zelda has a voice, while Nintendo deliberately created Link as the voiceless protagonist. Zelda is the one who gives the plot emotion. Link is supposed to be the hero, but Zelda contains all the character by speaking some of the series’ best lines out of her innate wisdom. Who can lose sight of “Courage need not be remembered, for it is never forgotten”?

6. Laser Sword

In Hyrule Warriors Legends, Zelda summons a long sword with a glowing pink laser blade, and in the Zelda comic book The Crystal Trap, she wields daggers made of blue light to protect herself. See, Link isn’t the only one with a sword! While fans know Zelda better with the Bow of Light, she certainly is adept in sword fighting, too. Even Link can’t summon swords of light as she can. (He always has to carry one in his inventory, while Zelda creates one out of thin air.)

5. Supply Infinite Light Arrows

The only bow that Link can wield with infinite Light Arrows is Breath of the Wild‘s Bow of Light. And who gives him this precious bow? It’s none other than Princess Zelda, of course, proving she has the ability to supply and create infinite Light Arrows. She is also the only source of Light Arrows in general. Only normal and elemental arrows are obtainable solely by Link, but bows like the Twilight Bow and Bow of Light, all previously used by Zelda, can shoot Light Arrows.

4. Possess Dead Bodies

It’s a shame we only get to see this unique ability of Zelda’s in two games: Spirit Tracks and Hyrule Warriors Legends. As a spirit who guides Link through his journey, she can possess Phantom soldiers after Link defeats them. She then protects Link with the Phantom’s armor and sword. The possession of Phantoms is used again in Hyrule Warriors Legends, so if you’re playing against “Phantom Zelda,” stay on your guard. Her Phantom sword is no joke!

3. Embody the Goddess Hylia

Hylia is one of those characters that’s always talked about in nearly every Zelda game. She rules the three Golden Goddesses, who then went on to create Hyrule and the three elements of the Triforce, and her story was finally explained in Skyward Sword. She held off Ganondorf (Demise) but couldn’t hold him off forever, so she passed on her power to a mortal: Princess Zelda. The princess is now responsible for holding Hylia’s memories and handling all of the supreme goddess’s responsibilities. That’s a big deal that Link isn’t anywhere close to having.

2. Use Her Own Magic

A constant in Zelda games is the fact that Link only can use magic by wielding certain weapons, obtaining powers from people he meets along his journey, or completing dungeons. He never has powers of his own. His skill is master swordsmanship, while Zelda can freely use her own magic that isn’t limited by a Magic Bar or Champion ability cooldowns. From opening sealed doors to firing powerful blasts at her enemies, she can do anything she pleases to take down her greatest foes. Hyrule Warriors Legends only amplified that by allowing Zelda to be destructive and fearsome, for once.

1. Seal Ganon

The main thing we NEVER see Link doing is sealing Ganon away. The Master Sword is supposedly able to “seal the darkness,” but Zelda held her very own magical seal for 100 years in Breath of the Wild. These powers either come from Hylia or the Triforce that is constantly born within her. If it wasn’t for Zelda, Hyrule would be completely annihilated before you knew it, and Link would have to rush to defeat Calamity Ganon the second he woke up. She also looks nothing but cool with a glowing yellow aura surrounding her, right?