Zant


 * This page is about the character. For the boss, see Zant (boss).

Zant (ザント) is the primary antagonist for the majority of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. A Twili, Zant gains mysterious power and usurps the throne of the Twilight Realm. Using his newfound power, he invades Hyrule and plagues it with matter called Twilight.

Zant, in a way, takes evil to a new level, seeing as he disfigured his own people into Shadow Beasts and turned Midna into an imp-like creature. Judging by the fact that he deliberately held her in the light of a light spirit and didn't even seem to mind, he is clearly willing to do anything and everything possible to ensure his rule. Although he is instilled with Ganondorf's evil magic and seems to retain a calm deposition, when confronted by Link later in the game, he takes on a wild and insane persona. Despite this, he proves himself a formidable foe in battle.

Personality
For most of the game, Zant is calm and aloof, standing straight and speaking in a cold, sinister voice. An aspect of this persona is Zant's extreme arrogance, exemplified when he curses Link rather than simply killing him, and later, when he sets Stallord on Link and leaves without waiting to see if the creature is victorious. However, when confronted with the face of defeat, Zant's behavior becomes extremely erratic, and his voice changes to a much higher pitch.

In combat, he fluctuates between his two personae. When on an erratic tangent, his movements, such as hopping up and down and hitting his head against the floor, are awkward and almost comical. The music that accompanies Zant's several stages could itself be seen as reflective of his mental state: the first five tracks are remixes of previous boss or mini-boss music played at increasing speed, culminating in the sixth track, which is a haphazard mix of the first five played much faster. Additionally, the screeches Zant lets out as the battle progresses become higher and higher pitched.

Physical appearance
Zant wears a tall metal helm with unnerving lizard-like facial features, which can be retracted to reveal his face. He also appears to wear a balaclava that covers his neck and head, but not his face, explaining the yellowish color of his head and neck, unusual among the Twili.

Oddly, Zant has a mark on his robe that bears a striking resemblance to the Gerudo symbol. He is seen wearing this in the scene right before he meets Ganondorf, disproving the theory that he wears it because of his allegiance to the King of Evil.

Abilities
Zant possesses a wide array of magical abilities from the start of the game, thanks to Ganondorf. What powers he possessed before, if any, are unknown. He can exist in the Light World without being harmed or requiring the protection of someone's shadow, unlike most Twili. Zant can create portals similar to Midna's, and move between the world of light and the Twilight Realm without the use of the Mirror of Twilight. He can also create Shadow Beasts and phantoms of himself, teleport, and perform telekinesis. Zant's powers appear to be quite potent, as he displays the ability to overcome one of the sacred Light Spirits and humiliate Midna without even raising his arms. He can also corrupt areas of the Light World with Twilight and even seemingly manipulate reality&mdash;creating a giant version of his helmet to combat Link, altering his own size greatly, and apparently duplicating several boss arenas that Link had previously visited.

In battle, Zant can float and even swim freely through air and water. He also seems to possess superhuman strength, as he is able to tilt the arena merely by jumping when impersonating Dangoro's fight, a feat that looked as if it strained even the huge Goron himself. His primary attack comes in the form of purple energy balls that he fires rapidly. Link can strike these with his sword, but they merely explode on contact, making them ultimately unrelated to Dead Man's Volley. Later in the battle, Zant utilizes two cleaver-like blades with which he maniacally flails about, sometimes employing a high-speed, heavily damaging spinning attack. Another of Zant's skills is his dumbfounding flexibility.