Master Sword

The sacred blade that seals the darkness, waiting for the hero to pull it from its pedestal.

The Master Sword, known in-universe as the "blade of evil's bane" or the "sword that seals the darkness," is a fictional divine magic sword central to Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda series. Introduced in the 1991 title The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, it serves as the signature weapon for protagonist Link and has become a core element of the franchise's iconography. Throughout most games, Link must prove his worthiness by retrieving the blade from its stone pedestal. While design details like the purple and silver hilt or the Triforce engraving vary slightly across titles, the sword remains the only weapon in many entries capable of defeating the main antagonist, Ganon.

Quick Facts

Source

The Legend of Zelda

Company

Nintendo

First

The Legend of Zelda:; A Link to the Past (1991)

Creator

Kensuke Tanabe
Masanao Arimoto
Tsuyoshi Watanabe

Genre

Action-adventure

Owner

Link

Uses

Ultimate weapon capable of defeating Ganon

Traits

Repels evil
Time travel
Emits sword beams

Lore & Background

In the series mythology, the Master Sword originates as the Goddess Sword created by the goddess Hylia in Skyward Sword. It is inhabited by a humanoid spirit named Fi and transforms into the Master Sword after being forged with three Sacred Flames. The blade possesses diverse magical abilities depending on the era: it generates fire and lightning attacks in A Link to the Past, acts as a seal for the Sacred Realm in Ocarina of Time, and is central to the game's time-travel mechanics—though time travel itself is achieved through the Ocarina of Time and the Song of Time, not the sword.

In Breath of the Wild, the sword is unbreakable but must recharge after use; it glows blue and doubles its attack strength near Calamity Ganon's minions. The design typically features a one-handed longsword blade with a blue or purple hilt, green grip, spread-winged handguards, and a yellow gem inlaid in the center.

Reader's Guide

To wield the Master Sword, one must typically pull it from a pedestal after meeting specific criteria, such as collecting pendants or spiritual stones. In Twilight Princess, retrieving the sword breaks Zant's magic that turned Link into a wolf and later opens a path in time within the Sacred Grove. In A Link Between Worlds, the sword is upgraded by blacksmiths using master ore to break the magical barrier on Hyrule Castle. For Breath of the Wild, players must be strong enough to pull it from its pedestal in Great Hyrule Forest; once retrieved, completing "The Trial of the Sword" DLC permanently upgrades the blade to its highest attack level. In Tears of the Kingdom, the sword retains similar characteristics, emitting higher-powered attacks near enemies associated with Ganondorf.

Did You Know?

The scene where Link obtains the Master Sword in A Link to the Past was conceived by screenwriter Kensuke Tanabe—though this claim remains unverified and is not considered confirmed canon.
In Skyward Sword, the premise for creating the origin story of the sword was built around using the Wii MotionPlus accessory to control its movements.
Director Hidemaro Fujibayashi noted that knitting together various elements from previous games to create the origin story resulted in "all sorts of contradictions" with existing timelines.