Sword Guard

Sword Guards, also known as Sword Soldiers, are a variety of Guard typically armed with a longer sword and larger shield. They are more aggressive than basic Guards, but are still among the weakest.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Sword-wielding soldiers first appear with many other soldier types in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. They are initially found inside Hyrule Castle, and continue to appear throughout Hyrule, following a set path until noticing Link. Compared to basic soldiers, the sword-wielding ones have a wider stance with larger pauldrons, a longer sword, and a larger shield. They are more aggressive than generic soldiers, as when they detect Link's presence by sight or sound, they will immediately stop what they are doing and chase after him, attempting to stab him with their sword. If Link attempts to attack one with his, they will try to parry. They appear in green and indigo, with the latter being stronger.

Elite Knights make an appearance in the upper levels of Hyrule Castle. They are a shieldless indigo type with the horned helmet design that appears in pairs, with both charging at Link incessantly as soon as he enters the room. Unlike other sword soldiers, they hold their swords from a high angle instead of far out in front of them. After Agahnim sends Link to the pyramid, this type cannot be encountered again due to the castle doors being locked.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
In The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, sword soldiers again appear as a common soldier type, and look like the ones in A Link to the Past, but more detailed. They appear in green, blue, red, and gray, with the gray ones being the strongest. They sometimes appear among normal soldiers assisting a Chief Soldier, which acts like a giant sword soldier with a forward-slashing attack. The gray ones first appear when two assist a Big Dark Stalfos near Kakariko Village. Additionally, a being called a Force Soldier acts like a sword soldier, but resembles a giant Force Gem unless approached.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
In The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, Sword Soldiers appear throughout Hyrule alongside basic soldiers after Hyrule Castle is taken over by Yuga. They act like the ones in A Link to the Past, though they do not react to sound anymore. They appear in green and blue, with the latter having the horned helmet design. Both act the same aside from strength, however. When defeated, they usually give a Rupee the same color as their armor.

In Lorule, certain Moblins act similar to Sword Soldiers, though they wield a machete-like weapon and a much larger shield that is better at blocking Link's attacks. In Lorule Castle, one type of Lorule Soldier acts like Sword Soldiers, but is stronger and with different armor with horns and a grate-like face mask.

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes
In The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes, Sword Soldiers are again divided between green and blue, appearing with the other Soldiers in the Fortress area. Both are quite adept at parrying Link's attacks, so it helps to distract them with one Link while another attacks from behind. The green ones only have a sword, while the blue ones also have a large shield. The shield acts like the Moblins' in A Link Between Worlds, and as such it is most effective to remove it with an item like the Gripshot. In the Sky Realm, the Sky Soldier counterparts to the green and blue Sword Soldiers are the Sky Sword Soldier and the Sky Shield Soldier, respectively.

Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda
In Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda, Sword Guards appear in many colors, though only the red ones are identified as such in English. Green Guards are depicted with a sword and shield, though they keep their swords pointed upwards. The shield blocks all direct attacks from the front. They normally patrol randomly, but upon seeing the player character begin aggressively pursuing. Blue Guards have both a sword-and-shield and a sword-wielding variety, with the latter keeping the sword pointed forwards and thus having more attack range but less defensive capabilities. Red-colored Sword Guards act as a stronger version of the forward-pointing Blue Guards, while Black Guards act as a stronger version of the upward-pointing ones.