Palace of Winds

Not to be confused with Vaati's Palace.

The Palace of Winds is a recurring dungeon in The Legend of Zelda series.^[1]^{[note 1]}

Four Swords Adventures[]

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It is portrayed as an immense floating building or set of buildings that floats in the sky high above Hyrule's surface. Though it first featured as a base of operations for the wind sorcerer Vaati, its origins were later revealed to have been nobler prior to its occupation by the evil sorcerer. Any wishing to visit the palace must find a means of reaching the heavens where the palace floats high above the clouds; a structure known as the Tower of Winds has served as the road to the palace on more than one occasion. The palace usually plays a prominent role in the events of each game, serving either as a major dungeon to be explored to reach the game's end or as the final dungeon of the game.

The history of the Palace of Winds was revealed in The Minish Cap, where the palace was guarded by the Wind Tribe who placed the Wind Element inside the palace to protect it from evil. The locale first appeared in Four Swords as the abode of Vaati, a wind sorcerer that had terrorized Hyrule long before the events of the game. This background was preserved for the palace in its second appearance a short time later, in Four Swords Adventures, where it once again serves as Vaati's stronghold and serves as the final dungeon of the game.

The Palace of Winds is the third and final stage in the Realm of the Heavens, the eighth level of the game. As is implied by the name of the level it is located in and following in the footsteps of the game's predecessor, the palace floats in the sky high above Hyrule's surface and once again serves as Vaati's dwelling. In the opening of the game, Princess Zelda and the other six Shrine Maidens that act as Hyrule's sages seek to check the seal on Vaati's prison at the Four Sword Sanctuary after dark clouds blanket the skies of Hyrule. However, the maidens and Zelda are soon after kidnapped by Shadow Link, who draws Link to the Four Sword Sanctuary and tricks him into withdrawing the Four Sword from its pedestal, causing Link to split into four colored versions of himself and releasing Vaati in the process. The four Links then go on a quest to find the Shrine Maidens and recover the four Royal Jewels that can restore the road to the Realm of the Heavens, the Tower of Winds.

After succeeding in rescuing the Shrine Maidens and recovering the four Royal Jewels from across Hyrule, the four Links ascend the restored Tower of Winds and free Princess Zelda from the clutches of Frostare before finding the roof and entering the Realm of the Heavens. There they battle the fiercest of foes they've encountered yet and put an end to Shadow Link by recovering the Dark Mirror in the Dark Cloud. From there they reach the Palace of Winds, which heavily resembles its previous incarnation in Four Swords. Here they ascend the palace and do battle with Vaati, seemingly ultimately vanquishing him for good. However, with Vaati dead, his power is no longer present to sustain the Palace of Winds, causing it to begin to collapse. Though they succeed in escaping the collapsing palace with Zelda and try to make their way down the similarly collapsing Tower of Winds, the true evil behind Vaati's release and the evil plaguing Hyrule, Ganon, charges after them out of the ruin of the Palace of Winds, forcing a confrontation amongst the remains of the Tower of Winds with the heroes, who ultimately seal him away within the Four Sword with the aid of the Shrine Maidens.

Items Obtained in this Area

Minor Enemies[]

The Minish Cap[]

Entrance to the Palace[]

After Link learns of the Palace of Winds' location from Gustaf, he must venture to the Cloud Tops and speak to the leader of the Wind Tribe, Siroc, who grants him passage into the Palace of Winds.^[3]

Themes and Navigation[]

As its name suggests, the Palace of Winds is a wind-themed Dungeon that is centered around using the Roc's Cape to navigate. As a floating Dungeon in the sky, the Palace of Winds has many places where Link may fall into pits. Similar to Vaati's Palace, the Palace of Winds has many horizontal gratings that Link may jump onto. There are also many small cloud platforms that he can use to ascend to higher ground.

Within the Palace of Winds are various fans which can either impede or aid in Link's progress. The Sub-Boss of the Palace is a Red Darknut, and the Boss is the Gyorg Pair. Once the Gyorg Pair have been defeated, Link receives a Heart Container and the Wind Element, allowing him to completely reforge the White Sword into the legendary Four Sword.

Minor Enemies and Traps[]

Nomenclature[]

Names in Other Regions
Language		Name	Meaning
	Japanese	風の宮殿 (Kaze no Kyūden)	Palace of Winds
	French^EU	Palais du Vent	Palace of the Wind
	German	Palast der Winde	Palace of the Wind
	Italian	Palazzo dei Venti	Palace of the Wind
	Spanish^EU	Palacio de los Vientos	Palace of Winds

Gallery[]

Artwork of Link confronting a Red Darknut in the Palace of Winds from The Minish Cap

Notes

↑ The Palace of Winds was referred to as the Palace of the Winds on Zelda.com's encyclopedia.^[2] However, as this contradicts the name given in Encyclopedia, it is not considered Canon.

References

↑ Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 267 ^(FSA) & 272 ^(TMC)
↑ "Palace of the Winds
Link explored the Palace of the Winds during his quest to thwart Vaati, a demented wind mage infamous for capturing young maidens." — The Great Hyrule Encyclopedia, Zelda.com (archive), retrieved January 24, 2022.
↑ "The Wind Element that you seek lies deep in the Palace of the Winds above me. [...] Surface dwellers are not permitted to enter our palace, but you are special. You may continue to the roof." — Siroc (The Minish Cap)

Dungeons in The Legend of Zelda series

The Legend of Zelda

Level 1 · Level 2 · Level 3 · Level 4 · Level 5 · Level 6 · Level 7 · Level 8 · Level 9

Dungeons	Dark Palace · Desert Palace · Eastern Palace · Great Palace · Ice Palace · Island Palace · Maze Island Palace · Midoro Palace · Palace of Darkness · Palace of Twilight · Palace of Winds · Palace of the Four Sword · Palace on the Sea · Parapa Palace · Swamp Palace · Three-Eye Rock Palace
Locations	Ambi's Palace · Deku Palace · Dodomai Palace · Fanadi's Palace · King Zora's Palace · Midoro Palace · Palace on the Sea · Parapa Palace · Reesong Palace · Royal Palace · Three-Eye Rock Palace
Other	Palace Noir · Palace of Twilight (Hyrule Warriors) · Vaati's Palace

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