Editing Ganon

|first_appearance=''[[The Legend of Zelda (video game)|The Legend of Zelda]]''

|latest_appearance=''[[Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda]]''

|other_forms=[[Agahnim]]<br>[[Calamity Ganon]] ([[malice]])<br>[[Magician]] (manga adaptation)<br>[[Ganondorf]]<br>[[Yuga Ganon]]

|counterparts=[[The Imprisoned]]

'''Ganon''', sometimes spelled '''Gannon''' in the intros of earlier titles, is a demonic boar creature and the main antagonist of the ''[[The Legend of Zelda (series)|The Legend of Zelda]]'' franchise, along with his alternative form of the [[Gerudo]] [[Ganondorf]]. He is the King of Evil and holder of the [[Triforce of Power]]. Ganon has repeatedly sought the whole [[Triforce]] and threatened balance in [[Hyrule]], sometimes shown transforming from the basic form of Ganondorf, and other times being depicted as Ganon throughout the game. Ganon's size, design, and overall intelligence varies drastically, sometimes sharing Ganondorf's calculating mind, and sometimes being a mindless force of destruction. In all appearances, however, his primary motivation is an unending desire for an increasing amount of power.

Ganon is the final boss and fought inside Level-9, Death Mountain. He awaits inside one of the "eyes" of the dungeon's skull-shaped map. When confronted, Ganon warps around the room while invisible, shooting fireballs. Link must strike Ganon with the [[sword]] repeatedly (taking only four hits with the [[Magical Sword]]), causing him to become brown and petrified. While Ganon is in this state, he is vulnerable to a [[Silver Arrow]] attack, which defeats him. If Link is not quick enough, Ganon flashes and returns to his initial blue form, and all of his health is restored which effectively restarts the battle. Upon being hit by a Silver Arrow, Ganon crumbles into a pile of ashes and relinquishes the Triforce of Power. Link then rescues Princess Zelda.

In the backstory of ''[[Zelda II: The Adventure of Link]]'', following after the events of ''The Legend of Zelda'', Ganon's minions attempt to revive Ganon. He can be resurrected when Link's blood is sprinkled on his ashes. Ganon's minions seek Link to restore Ganon.

While Ganon is part of the main storyline, he does not physically appear in the game itself. When Link loses all his health, the player gets a [[Game Over]], and Ganon is resurrected. In the original Japanese [[Famicom Disk System]] release, this is accompanied by a black screen and a roar, while in overseas versions a silhouette of Ganon is shown, accompanied by an audio clip of an evil laugh from Ganon.

Some time prior to the game, Ganon, formerly Ganondorf, was sealed within the [[Sacred Realm]] by the seven [[sages]] due to his obtaining the Triforce. However, his power corrupts it, twisting it into the sinister [[Dark World]], changing its inhabitants into twisted reflections of their souls, and filling the land with evil monsters. He still plots to take over the Light World, and uses his alter-ego of the wizard [[Agahnim]] to open the gateways between fully. After Agahnim is defeated in [[Ganon's Tower]], he turns into a bat and flies to the [[pyramid]], before then becoming Ganon.

Ganon does not directly appear in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening]]''. However, one of the forms the [[Shadow Nightmares]] take is a silhouetted version of him, likely based on Link's own experience. It is capable of most of the attacks he can do in ''A Link to the Past''.

Ganon appears at the end of the game, after Link and Zelda escape the crumbling [[Ganon's Castle]]. Ganondorf rises from the rubble and allows the power of the Triforce of Power to consume him completely, transforming him into Ganon, before he knocks away the Master Sword. Here, he is depicted much taller and leaner than previously, and is green with large tusks. He also wields two giant swords capable of destroying pillars and other remaining pieces of the castle. His weak point is his glowing, crystalline tail. He can be stunned by hitting him in the face with [[Light Arrow]]s, allowing Link to circle behind and hit his tail. Any other sort of arrow will simply make him shake his head confusedly. Link is also capable of rolling between his legs, also making his look around in confusion. After enough hits, he will be stunned, and Link can retrieve the Master Sword. After several more hits, Zelda uses her power to hold him in place, allowing Link to strike the finishing blow to the head.

Throughout both games, [[Twinrova]] attempts to revive him by sowing discord across [[Holodrum]] and [[Labrynna]] through [[General Onox]] and [[Veran]] tampering with the powers of the oracles [[Din (oracle)|Din]] and [[Nayru (oracle)|Nayru]], causing magical flames to light. However, the last stage of the plan, sacrificing Princess Zelda's pure soul, was thwarted by Link, so they sacrifice themselves instead. This revives him, but renders him simply a mindless destructive beast bent on destroying absolutely everything. He is capable of most of his basic moves from ''A Link to the Past''. However, likely as another result of his improper resurrection as well as lack of the Triforce of Power, he is much weaker than normal, able to be defeated without any sacred weapons. After he is attacked enough, he briefly regains his mind before dying again.

In ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess]]'', Ganondorf becomes Dark Beast Ganon after [[Midna]] removes him from Zelda's body after fighting [[Possessed Zelda]]. Here, he is a quadruped with no anthropomorphic qualities, and several of his boar-like traits are combined with lion-like traits. He charges around and warps between various portals he conjures. [[Wolf Link]] must meet him head-on, allowing Midna to use her hair to throw him, and allowing Link to attack his underside, which still has the wound from the [[Sages' Sword]]. After he is defeated, Zelda summons the power of the four [[Spirits of Light]] to create the Light Arrows, and a horseback battle with Ganondorf commences.

Ganon initially appears in silhouette in a nightmare Link has in the beginning of the game. He is also shown in several pictures in Hyrule Castle, retelling the backstory and events of ''A Link to the Past''. It is revealed that rather than dying, Ganon had been "sealed away in darkness," with the Triforce of Power following. Later, Ganon is restored by the [[Lorule]]an sorcerer [[Yuga]] (himself indicated to be Ganondorf's counterpart) after the latter captures the seven Sages. However, he is then fused with Yuga into [[Yuga Ganon]], with the latter taking control, and then trapped by [[Princess Hilda]]. It is somewhat indicated that before and while he is battled at the end, Ganon starts to take control of or at least have a greater influence on the fusion.

Some amount of centuries before the game, Ganon fully became one with his hatred and became pure physical [[malice]], taking a giant ghastly form known as [[Calamity Ganon]], which is treated as more of a sentient natural disaster than a sapient villain. Eventually, Calamity Ganon manages to lay waste to Hyrule by turning their various ancient automated weapons against them. At the end of the game, once Calamity Ganon is defeated, it becomes '''Dark Beast Ganon''', an enormous boar-shaped mass of malice, before making one last ditch effort to destroy the remains of Hyrule. In this state, Ganon shoots powerful burning lasers from its mouth. Link must use the [[Bow of Light]] that Zelda entrusts him while riding on [[white horse|the descendent of her horse]] to shoot the spots of light that Zelda creates on Ganon's body to damage it. Once it has taken enough damage, a split forms on the top of its head, which opens and closes to reveal the core of its being, represented as a large cluster of malice eyes. Link must use the updraft caused by Ganon's lasers' fire to rise far enough to shoot into the core, defeating it in one shot. Once this happens, Zelda is ejected from its mouth, and Ganon assumes its ghostly boar shape, before Zelda uses her sealing power to shrink Ganon and its malice into nothingness.

===''The Legend of Zelda'' animated series===

Ganon appears initially as a somewhat-generic cloaked sorcerer, but later is depicted as a beige pig sorcerer. He is capable of summoning monsters from a magical jar.

 

Ganon appears as Ganondorf's Final Smash from ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'' onwards. After he transforms, he charges across the screen. Initially, the "Dark Beast" Ganon design from ''Twilight Princess'' was used, but in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', the design from ''Ocarina of Time'' is used. Ganon also appears as a boss in the latter. Much like in ''Ocarina of Time'', his tail is his weak point. However, he is much more nimble, able to quickly leap around the player, and has many heavily-damaging attacks.

In ''[[Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda]]'', Ganon appears as the final boss. In the present, [[Octavo]] used the extreme methods of the [[Golden Lute]] in order to gain power ahead of Ganon's arrival; however, thanks to the actions of [[Cadence]], Link, and/or Zelda, he is defeated in the future. Ganon rules over Hyrule Castle and has statues of himself replacing the goddess statues. He freezes one or two of the heroes before the battle, and plays his organ to summon evil power and enemies. He will also stop playing in order to fight himself. At the end of the battle, Cadence, Link, and Zelda get into place to use the Triforce to defeat him.

|JapM=Ganon (rendered as "Gannon" in early games)

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