Whether you’re a completionist or simply need supplies, in The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, you are going to fight some challenging enemies. You don’t even have to be on a quest to meet some difficult foes.
Out in the wilderness and down deep in the depths, there are dozens of non-boss enemies lurking and ready for a fight. You’ll need to attack these enemies to be able to beat the game, but don’t take these fights lightly. Some of these enemies will drain your hearts and send you to the game over screen if you’re not careful. Here are the most difficult non-boss enemies you will come across in Hyrule.
10 Red Maned Lynel
These centaur-like creatures are wildly difficult for multiple reasons. They typically have large health pools, display a wide variety of attacks, and use weapons, each one just as devastating as the last. These Red Maned Lynel’s require a patient approach.
You have to be very clever with your killer constructs as constructs don’t typically work because the Red Maned Lynel’s roar breaks them. However, with a decent shield and decent sword defeating the red mane varieties just require good blocking and patience.
9 Big Frox
Unlike their smaller counterpart, the Big Frox creates quite the battle for Link. They are massive in size but not entirely immobile as they jump great distances to close the gap in battle. They come with a ridiculous amount of defense so harming them requires a little know-how.
Their signature move is to suck Link in and chew him up a bit, however, this is also their weakness with a little intuition and some timely explosives. Try not to let their size intimidate you.
8 Stalnox
The Stalnox is the Stal counterpart to the Linox. This skeleton poses a few challenges that the Linox does not. Often found in peculiar places like a cave for instance limiting Link’s ability to run and fight.
Secondly, they hit with massive power, so unknowing players might find themselves redoing this battle the first time with a little more prep the second time. Lastly, when down to its final hit points, they become invulnerable and must be struck in a very eye-popping fashion.
7 Yiga Blademaster
Although not overly imposing, the Yiga Blademaster is a tricky enemy usually accompanied by his fast and teleporting foot soldier. Their combined attack patterns can become very annoying. Order of operations will matter a lot when trying to take on the Yiga Blademaster.
His attacks are not difficult to dodge but pack a punch when they land. Take out the foot soldiers first because it will make attacking the Yiga Blademaster easier without their combined efforts.
6 Silver Variant Moblins
Not a new enemy to the Zelda franchise, but they apparently did not take too kindly to all of Link’s shenanigans in Breath of the Wild, as they have hit the gym and stepped up their game.
The Silver Varient Moblins have slow movement and predictable attack patterns, but these attributes don’t take away from their high resistance and health. They pack enough punch to make this a fight to take seriously.
5 Blue Maned Lynels
Like their Red Maned friends, the Blue Maned Lynel centaurs are difficult to deal with, and if you want to upgrade your favorite barbarian armor, you will be dealing with them a lot.
They come with even more health than Red Maned Lynels and add a few tricks to their already powerful move set. The aspect that sets Blue above Red is that even a decent shield will not last long in this fight, we recommend having Link’s trusty Hylian Shield to survive this battle.
4 Electric Lizalfos
These lizards can be dealt with relative ease, but if they catch you with limited arrows, or in right (or wrong) weather conditions, you might want to run. They retain their ridiculous speed (seriously, it’s creepy to watch them skitter). They jump around just as much and can attack from range or close up.
However, none of that is new to the franchise. What is new is the horn attack that they have picked up, and when the weather is rainy, their electricity becomes hard to deal with, making Link drop his equipped gear constantly. Who doesn’t like fighting fast-moving, jumping electric lizards while not being able to keep a grip on your weapon?
3 Gloom Lynels
Any of the Colored Mane Lynels will become even more difficult with a helpful covering of gloom! With all the traits of their counterparts, Gloom Lynels make it so you cannot heal in fights without the right supplies, so if you have been traversing the depths for a while, and haven’t made a supply run to the surface, you could find yourself in for a long (or quick) fight.
Plus what’s worse than fighting one Gloom Lynel? How about five back-to-back? If you are a glutton for punishment, the depths are just the place for you.
2 Gloom Hands
If you played the game and have encountered this five-headed (handed?) enemy, you were waiting for it to be mentioned, and are probably even arguing why is it not number one. Gloom hands have one attack. They have moderate health. They move fast, but not lizard-fast. So why are they so difficult?
That one attack renders you immobilized while it chokes your hearts away for the duration of the fight. The five health bars can be tedious to work through because they regenerate hands if they are not all killed quickly enough, and they don’t pull that cheesy action movie trope where the good guy is outnumbered five to one, but the bad guys all stand and watch while they attack one at a time. Better dodge and weave because they will choke you will while you’re dealing with their buddy.
1 White Maned Lynels
The White Maned Lynels are head and shoulder above the rest of the competition. Highest health of the Lynel family, hardest hits, and widest attack pool. There are just not a lot of strategies to take him on besides block and slash.
However, only one shield is standing up to him long enough for your multiple weapons to widely his health down. Yes, it will take multiple weapons, unless you have a full-energy master sword. A fully upgraded barbarian armor, 28 hearts, and a defense-up dish is still getting three shot by this king of the plains.