Hyrulean Soldiers

The Hyrulean Soldiers, also known simply as Guards or Soldiers, are a recurring group in the Legend of Zelda series. The military recruits of Hyrule Castle, they keep order in Hyrule and protect the Royal Family. The Hyrulean Soldiers do not usually assist Link in his quest, and may actually impede him at times, although they are not usually considered foes - the exceptions being the Hyrule Guards from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Four Swords Adventures, which are full-fledged enemies who attack Link on sight.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Hyrulean Soldiers serve Agahnim after he usurps control of Hyrule Castle. They attack Link on sight, and there are several different knight enemies. Guards are met very early in the game and get stronger as the game progresses; however, knights are stronger versions of guards and appear quite late in the game (apart from Grey Knights who appear in the first dungeon).

An Guard manning a cannon has been found on the game's ROM. Despite being fully completed it was not implemented into the game. This idea would later be revisited in Four Swords Adventures.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Hyrulean Soldiers wield spears and wear helmets that covers their eyes. Dozens of guards patrol the grounds and courtyard of Hyrule Castle, and will stop Link from progressing further by throwing him out of the castle when they spot him, fearing that Link will be a threat to the Royal Family of Hyrule Castle.

One is sympathetic towards the boy, though. After several failed attempts to enter the castle, a guard will allow Link to enter for a fee of 10 Rupees, thinking him harmless and telling him to keep it a secret from everyone in all capital letters, referencing the Secret Moblin from The Legend of Zelda. It is more cost-effective, however, to just climb the vine behind Malon.

Three guards can also be found in Kakariko Village. The two Clock Soldiers are located at the entrance of the village and outside Impa's house. They will tell Link the current time when spoken to. The third soldier is located at the Death Mountain Trail Starting Point and buys the Keaton Mask from Link in a side quest.

Though most players might miss it, when Princess Zelda and Impa escape from Ganondorf on horseback, a dying soldier can be found in the Back Alley of Hyrule Castle Town before Link goes to the Temple of Time and draws the Master Sword from the Pedestal of Time. Also easily missed, another soldier can be seen by shooting Link's slingshot at the left window in the Castle Courtyard. He will yell at Link for making trouble and throw a bomb at him. This can only be seen once.

When link awakens seven years later, the guards are nowhere to be seen nor mentioned again due to the kingdom being destroyed and Ganondorfs takeover of hyrule.

Throne Room Knights
Two soldiers clad in heavier, gilded armor can be seen in Hyrule Castle's Throne Room through the window in the courtyard. They are presumably higher-ranked soldiers or knights (possibly members of an elite Royal Guard), and appear to be in charge of protecting the King of Hyrule.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
Hyrulean Soldiers serve as enemies, similarly to the Hyrule Guards from A Link to the Past and come in many of the same varieties. A stronger mini-boss version called the Chief Soldier also appears, and a weaker soldier in blue armor and short swords often appears in large numbers.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
The Hyrulean Soldiers are famous around Hyrule for their cowardice. When Telma states she will take Prince Ralis to Kakariko Village for treatment by Renado, a nearby group of soldiers heartily proclaim that they will escort her, cheering wildly. Humorously, when Telma mentions all the monsters they will encounter, they stop cheering and make a hasty exit.

However, not all of the soldiers are cowardly. During Zant's Invasion of Hyrule, a battalion protects Princess Zelda from Zant's Shadow Beasts. Although they fought gallantly, almost all of them were quickly defeated and killed. Later in the quest, the spirits of the soldiers that tried to protect Zelda appear around Hyrule Castle, although they are only visible in Wolf Link's sense mode. They point to important parts that are required to progress further in Hyrule Castle.

Groups of Hyrulean Soldiers parade around Hyrule Castle Town. If any of them encounter Wolf Link, they will form a circle around him and point their spears at him to protect the citizens, but they tremble violently and whimper, and they will not attack. If Wolf Link performs a Spin Attack, they perform a hasty retreat, leaving behind valuables (such as Rupees, Hearts, and Arrows).

There are a few possible explanations for the soldiers' cowardice. One could be that during Zant's initial attack on Hyrule, most of the Hyrulean Soldiers were either slaughtered or injured to the point that they had to be discharged. This would mean that all of the soldiers that Link encounters would be new recruits, who were more than likely drafted into the military rather than volunteering. Another explanation is Zelda's actions. As the ruler of Hyrule, she was a symbol of courage for her people. When she surrendered to Zant, it must have been a devastating blow to the soldiers' morale. There is also the possibility that due to the long period of peace before Zant's invasion, these soldiers have never faced threats and are unprepared for real war, becoming complacent with Hyrule maintaining order without any real effort from them.

As a result of their cowardice, a group called Resistance was formed by Telma, Auru, Rusl, Shad, and Ashei in order to save Hyrule themselves.

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
Hyrulean Soldiers guard Hyrule Castle in New Hyrule. Some are easily distracted from their duties, while others take their job much more seriously; all of the soldiers carry spears. Soldiers still in training wear the standard Recruit Uniform while fully fledged soldiers wear a modified version with a slightly different hat. Its appearance could be based on the Hero's Clothes/Kokiri Tunic, probably as a tribute to the Hero of Winds and/or to the Hero of Time.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
Hyrulean Soldiers appear in the game. Unlike the artwork used in most other Zelda games, the Hyrulean Soldiers in The Legend of Zelda: a Link Between Worlds, are different, and are clothed in red. They can be found patrolling Hyrule Castle and Kakariko village. When Yuga attacks Hyrule Castle, he transforms some of the soldiers into paintings. The Hyrulean Soldiers are lead by the Captain. Their Lorulean counterparts are the Lorulean Soldiers, though unlike their Hyrulean counterparts most have abandoned the Royal Family of Lorule and become Lorule Guard.

Hyrule Warriors/Hyrule Warriors Legends
Hyrulean Soldiers appear as allied units in Hyrule Warriors. Most wear chain mail and surcoats while Captains wear plate armor. They are equipped with either a spear, mace, bow and arrows or a sword and shield. Some soldiers wield Knight's Swords. In the Skyloft missions, their character models are used to represent the Skyloft Captains as well. At the beginning of the game, Link is a new Hyrulean Forces recruit and briefly wears their uniform's surcoat and chain mail though he forgoes the helmet. Only after the defeat of King Dodongo and the disappearence of Zelda does Link switch to the Hero's Clothes. The Trainee Soldier uniform is one of Link's alternate costumes. New recruits train using weapons made of wood such as Swords, Shields, and Spears.

Unlike past Zelda games, the Hyrulean Soldiers are shown to be far more capable of defending themselves and are even willing to risk their lives for the sake of the Kingdom of Hyrule, though their abilities still pale in comparison to the likes of Link, Impa, and Zelda. In addition to their traditional leaders Princess Zelda and the Sheikah General Impa, throughout the games story they serve under and alongside several others such as The Hero Link, the Sorceress Lana, Twilight Princess Midna, Agitha, Darunia, Princess Ruto, and Fi, along with a few who fall under Ghirahim's spell. They are also shown to be quite loyal to Princess Zelda and her words can easily boost their morale.

Several become enemies when Ghirahim takes control of their minds resulting in mutiny causing them to become Turncoat Soldiers. There are also ghost soldiers which guard the Temple of the Sacred Sword, though unlike their living counterparts their officers do not materials and will only leave behind recovery items. Their is as also summoner class soldiers among their ranks who wield magic rods which they use to summon soldiers (however these units are rare and due to their role only appear as enemy units in Battle of the Triforce and as Ghost Soldiers). They appear as enemies in Cia's Tale portions of Legend Mode due to it centering on villains Cia, Volga, & Wizzro. The also appear as enemies in Adventure Mode. They drop 3 different kinds of materials Soldier's Uniforms, Hyrulian Captain Gauntlets, and Holy Hylian Shields.

There are four main classes of soldier in the game, the rank & file Hyrulian Soldiers, Hyrulian Archers, Hyrulian Captains, and Hyrulian Summoners. Skyloft Captains, Engineer, Turncoat Soldiers, and Turncoat Leader are members of the Hyrulian Captain class the only difference being their name and/or playing a specific role in the games scenario or story.