The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom characters are just one aspect of the jam-packed sequel, and while most are familiar faces, there are some new characters that we have not met yet. New players beware, some spoilers lurk in the depths of this guide. But if that doesn’t bother you – read on!
Wanna hunt some monsters? Here’s all the different Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom gleeoks, or the Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom koroks if you fancy a challenge, and what you can nab with each of the Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom amiibo.
Now then, onto our compendium of all the Tears of the Kingdom characters scattered across Hyrule.
Link
The Hylian, Master Sword-wielding man himself, and Zelda’s loyal knight. He’s our protagonist that we can dress up in different absurd Tears of the Kingdom armour, and send flying off sky islands towards the surface at lightning speed.
Zelda
Zelda is the Princess of Hyrule and a key part of Tears of the Kingdom’s story. We meet her in the first few seconds of the game and discover that she’s an inquisitive soul that wants to help her people.
Robbie, Purah, and Josha
Meet the research team! Purah is head of Tears of the Kingdom’s Lookout Landing, Robbie leads development on the Purah Pad and other tech, and Josha takes control of the Depths research. All three are Sheikah and hail from scientific backgrounds – Robbie and Purah even have their own labs in Akkala and Hateno.
Impa
Dear old Impa is the esteemed Shiekah elder that guides Link in Breath of the Wild, and returns in Tears of the Kingdom to send him on a pivotal quest. She now spends her retirement adventuring around Hyrule in a hot air balloon.
Paya
The current chief of Kakariko Village and Impa’s granddaughter is Paya. She’s taken on the responsibilities left by Impa and aims to take care of the village and figure out what the strange ruins falling to the surface are…
Teba and Tulin
As we head back to the Rito Village we meet up with Teba who’s taken over as Village Elder since we last left Hyrule. His son Teba (who shares a voice actor with Genshin Impact’s Bennett) joins us for some missions in Tears of the Kingdom now that he’s a little more grown-up.
Dorephan
We meet King Dorephan in Breath of the Wild, along with his grumpy sidekick Muzu who has it out for Link. He’s back again as leader of the Zora – for a while, at least. In Tears of the Kingdom, he steps down as king and passes the mantle to Sidon.
Sidon
Prince – or should we say, King Sidon of the Zora returns to Tears of the Kingdom to assist Link and look after the Zora people using his powers over water. He’s for sure a fan favorite, and new mechanics in Tears of the Kingdom let us have a summon of him running around with us.
Yona
Sidon’s fiance. Sorry, everyone, he’s taken – and not by Link. Yona is a bright green Zora hailing from a different domain. She’s known Sidon since they were young and now stands by his side as Queen of the Zora. She’s a very helpful individual and a lovely person – but we’re still salty about it.
Yunobo
Yunobo returns as a sort-of ruler of the Goron area – now as president of YunoboCo, an upcoming mining company. He’s had a bit of a makeover and now wears a lot of clothing (for a Goron, at least). Gone are the days of sweet, shy, young Yunobo…
Riju and Buliara
Riju is the young Chief of the Gerudo. She inherited the title at a very young age due to her mother’s sudden passing. Riju wields the power of electricity, like Champion Urbosa before her. She and her sand seal Patricia accompany Link once again like the defeat of the divine beast Vah Naboris.
Often seen right by Riju’s side, Buliara continues her role as the Chief’s bodyguard and as Captain of the Gerudo Guard. She doesn’t mess around and won’t take no for an answer, but thankfully Link is on her good side.
Hudson and Rhondson
The happily wedded couple of Tarrey Town return and have their sights set on a big ol’ expansion of the Hudson building company. They have a young daughter now, too, named Mattison. Both diligently carry out their work in and around Tarrey Town in Akkala.
Tauro
Is it just us that feels like Tauro resembles a Pokémon character? Either way, this investigative dude is the leader of the Zonai Survey Team, currently stationed in Kakariko Village to figure out what the ring ruins are. Tauro is an adventurer and has particular expertise in deciphering Zonai writing.
Penn and Traysi
These two run the Lucky Clover Gazette, Hyrule’s leading paper for all the news and gossip you could ever need. Traysi’s journals helped us out massively in Breath of the Wild while finding hidden secrets, and it’s good to see she’s graduated to a full production, with the new birdy character Penn at her side.
Hestu
Good old dancing Hestu is back and on the hunt for yet more korok seeds. Officially dubbed the ‘Spirited Musician of Korok Forest’, he expands our weapon, bow, and shield stashes in our inventory for the affordable fee of a few seeds.
The Great Deku Tree
The great Deku Tree continues to persevere in the Zelda games, found in his usual spot slap-bang in the middle of the Korok forest. He acts as guardian to both the forest and the Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom koroks, and kept a watchful eye over the Master Sword leading up to Link’s awakening in Breath of the Wild.
King Rauru and Queen Sonia
Rauru, the first king of Hyrule, is an ancient Zonai. The glowing green arm holding the mummified Ganon, which then saves and attaches itself to Link, is his. He guides us through the first sky island and is a major part of the game’s story. Similarly, Queen Sonia of Hyrule is his partner, who also shows up in the memories we find. Zelda vaguely resembles her as the Royal line descends from Rauru and Sonia.
Mineru
The Sister of King Rauru is Mineru, another Zonai with some incredible powers. She’s the Sage of Spirit and possesses the ability to project outside of her body. Her spirit resides in the Purah Pad.
Master Kohga
Yes, he’s back again. The leader of the banana-obsessed Yiga Clan is out to create more hassle for Link as he explores Hyrule. Turns out that dropping him down a huge hole didn’t defeat him after all, and now he’s determined to join the “Magnificent One”…
Ganondorf the Demon King
Here he is, the big bad himself, voiced by none other than Matt Mercer in Tears of the Kingdom. Ganon has a few forms, even in this installation of the Zelda franchise, appearing as a crispy mummy in the depths of Hyrule Castle, a buff Gerudo man in the distant past, and more – though we’ll let you find the rest of them yourself. Ganon is the only male born to the Gerudo in many years, and, as such, became king. Now he’s out to rule Hyrule or destroy it while trying, it seems.
Is Kass in Tears of the Kingdom?
Well, friends, it appears that after our 100-hour-long forays into Hyrule that Kass is not in Tears of the Kingdom… yet. He is mentioned, as seen above when Link speaks to Traysi, but he is nowhere to be found. There is thought that a DLC may contain Kass, given that he is mentioned and left on a sort of cliffhanger.
No matter how far you are in your Zelda journey, we’ve got guides to help. Find all the Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom towers, Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom great fairy locations, and Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom stables with our handy pages.