ReDead

ReDead
First appearance	The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Latest appearance	Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda
Relative(s) Gibdo Redead Knight
Comparable Stalfos Zombie

ReDeads are zombie-like enemies that debut in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. They have paralyzing screams, which they use to capture people in order to bite their necks. They are generally fairly slow, but highly durable. They commonly wear masks, and have been likened to clay dolls. Their name is a play on the term "undead."

History

The Legend of Zelda series

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

File:ReDead OoT artwork.jpg

Artwork from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

ReDeads appear in various decayed areas in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, such as the Royal Family's Tomb, the Bottom of the Well, and the Shadow Temple. When Link is near them, a constant groaning sound can be heard. They typically wait either crouched down or standing up, both with their heads pointed down. In this state, most projectile weapons will not affect them whatsoever. However, they can be temporarily frozen with the Sun's Song, though this only lasts a little while and is immediately broken when they are attacked. When Link gets close to one, it will look towards him and scream, temporarily paralyzing him, and slowly walk to him. If it reached him, it will grab him behind the back and start biting his neck while twitching. Link can break free of its grip by attempting to perform different actions repeatedly. They take a large amount of hits to defeat. After they are defeated, the corpse remains on the field for a while, during which any other nearby ReDeads will slowly walk over to it before crouching around it. The screaming and biting behavior is shared in this game by the stronger Gibdos.

In the future version of Hyrule Castle Town, several ReDeads can be found in the town square. However, Link is not stunned by their screeches here. Another is found in the escape from Ganon's Tower on a narrow bridge, and since the Ocarina of Time is not usable in this situation, Link is forced to be stunned in order to pass it. In their artwork, their masks are a plain tan with carved white teeth over their mouth holes, but in-game their masks use the same texture as their bodies and the teeth are not present, somewhat resembling the Spooky Mask. In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, both ReDeads and the Spooky Mask are remodeled to more closely resemble their respective artwork, and as such, the similarity is lessened.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

In The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, ReDeads are found in Ikana Canyon to the east, and for the most part act like the ones in Ocarina of Time. They are unable to latch onto Deku Link or Goron Link due to their respective sizes. Notably, some are found in Ikana Castle, and are said to have been royal dancers in life there. Wearing the Gibdo Mask, the Garo Mask, or Captain's Hat will cause these ReDeads to dance in various ways, such as pirouettes or Cossack dancing. They will continue even if attacked. Other ReDeads with the same behavior can be found on an optional ledge in the Stone Tower. Additionally in this game, Gibdos will become ReDeads if burnt, though due to the Gibdo Mask still needing to be used to communicate with them (and their different history in-universe), they do not dance. In The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D, the same design changes as before are applied, and some alternate dances for them are additionally used.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

In The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, ReDeads are found primarily in the Earth Temple, and are also found in the Savage Labyrinth and in the tunnels under the Private Oasis. Their design has changed drastically, though their behavior is mostly the same. They are now blue-skinned and lack masks, have mummified skin going all the way around their spin and leg bones, have large earrings, and have mouths capable of widening extreme amounts. They initially appear waiting, like in Ocarina of Time, sometimes appearing from within sarcophagi. If hit with an arrow, they will not take damage, but will briefly glance at Link with a blank, lifeless look. The Hookshot does not stun them, and will in fact bring Link right to them. When he gets close to on, it will scream with a vaguely elephant-like sound while its mouth opens and its eyes glow red. Instead of biting Link's neck, it will appear to start trying to eat Link's entire head. Once defeated, they disappear fairly quickly in this game.

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes

In The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes, ReDeads appear in the Ruins area. In this game, they seem to actually be formed of clay, initially appearing as a mobile brown blob. After a while, half of the ReDead's body will form from the blob, resembling its Ocarina of Time design with a mask colored like their The Wind Waker design and a prominent chin. If attacked with a sword, it will revert to its blob form before it can be hit and move away. However, other weapons, such as arrows, the Gripshot, or the Gust Jar will stun them. When one gets close enough to a Link, it will scream, while a large circle appears around it, signalling who will be affected. If a Link is frozen, it will attempt to grab and bite him, allowing another Link to attack and stun it. When they are stunned, their entire bodies come out from the blob, showing them to be quite tall. After a few attacks while stunned, it will come to, and the process will need repeating.

Super Smash Bros. series

Super Smash Bros. Melee

A ReDead in the Underground Maze of Super Smash Bros. Melee

ReDeads appear in the Underground Labyrinth area in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and can rarely be found simply by breaking open crates. They resemble their model from Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, but with some minor polygon differences due to the more powerful system. In this game, they wander slowly forward, but may charge upon seeing a fighter. If a fighter gets too close, they may attempt to briefly bite their neck from the front while paralyzing them for the duration, and notably not screaming. Their trophy in the game asserts that the ones in Castle Town are not actually undead townsfolk, but dark magic twisted into humanoid shape, with the townsfolk escaping safely. While this is not stated in Ocarina of Time itself, this detail is likely taken from the large amount of former Castle Town residents can be seen in the celebration at Lon Lon Ranch in the ending. However, in other areas of Ocarina of Time, ReDeads are unambiguously stated to be "living dead."

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

ReDeads appear in the Smash Run mode of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, now resembling their Ocarina of Time 3D design. This time, their trophy simply says they look like clay figures, but makes no further assertions about their origin. The trophy also appears in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, though they do not appear otherwise.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, ReDeads make a minor appearance as a spirit. Their ability is to lower a fighter's jumping height.

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, ReDeads appear as somewhat uncommon enemmies. They resemble their appearance from the original Nintendo 64 version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. In this game, they remain in place for several beats and then move a space closer to the player character, and can grab the character to keep them in place. Unlike other games, they do not scream or stun.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	リーデット Rīdetto リーデッド Rīdeddo	ReDeat (Ocarina of Time / Ocarina of Time 3D) ReDead (Majora's Mask / Majora's Mask 3D)