Moblin

Moblin
Artwork of a Moblin in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening for the Nintendo Switch
First appearance	The Legend of Zelda (1986)
Latest appearance	The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (2023)
Notable member(s) Great Moblin (in Ocarina of Time) Moe Monster Lady Nilbom the Tailor
Variant(s) Big Moblin Boarblin Cursed Moblin Electric Moblin Fire Moblin Horriblin Ice Moblin Moblin Chief Quick Moblin Secret Molblin Skull Moblin Stalmoblin
Relative(s) Bokoblin Bulblin Miniblin
Comparable Goriya Oinker Sky Shield Soldier Spear Soldier Sword Guard Taros

Moblins, originally translated as Molblins, are common enemies that usually wield spears and live in forests, though they occasionally use other weapons and can be found in other environments. In fixed-camera games, they are commonly among the weakest and most common of humanoid enemies, though in free-camera games, this role often goes instead to the related Bokoblins, with Moblins being depicted as stronger. Generally, they resemble bulldogs or pigs, with the latter being more common in later games. They are commonly characterized as being greedy and unintelligent.

History

The Legend of Zelda series

The Legend of Zelda

In The Legend of Zelda, Molblins appear in large amounts in forested areas from the edges of the screen, and throw an endless amount of spears that resemble Link's arrows. The spears can be blocked by Link's shields. Molblins resemble bulldogs and appear in two colors, being orange and teal. Along with Zolas, they are notably the only entities that use the overworld's "teal, red, and black" palette outside of flashing from being damaged. In the Satellaview remake, BS Zelda no Densetsu, they are now red and blue. Secret Molblins appear in certain hidden caves and will bribe Link with varying amounts of Rupies while telling him to keep it a secret from everybody.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

In Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, Molblins appear primarily in western forest areas, and come in three colors. Orange Molblins often charge forward in endless amounts, jabbing their spears at a high angle. When they do this, they do not give experience points upon defeat. In fact, in Western releases, being hit by this type of Moblin takes away experience points. Other Molblins appear in limited amounts and giving experience points upon defeat, coming in orange, red, and blue. Each of these types pursue Link slowly and deliberately, turning if he goes around one and stopping when right up to him, and attack with their spears in various ways that can be countered with the Magical Shield and are telegraphed by them swinging the spear back before attacking. Orange Molblins of this type throw an endless volley of spears at a high angle, red Molblins jab at either a high or low angle, and blue ones jab from a low angle or throw from a high angle. The red and blue ones may change which angle they are going to attack from in preparation depending on how Link moves the shield.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Moblins are redesigned to resemble pigs, likely to connect to Ganon. They only appear in the Dark World, and act as an analogue to the soldiers that throw spears. They have brown skin, and only appear with indigo clothes.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, Moblins are found primarily in the Mysterious Woods. They resemble bulldogs again, and can either throw spears or wield a sword and shield, acting like the sword soldiers from A Link to the Past. Later, a group of Moblins led by a Moblin Chief steal the BowWow from Madame MeowMeow. Additionally, the mountainous regions are home to a variant called Pig Warrior, which is based off their appearance in A Link to the Past. They share the same behaviors, but are slightly stronger. Additionally, Darknuts and Shrouded Stalfos also use these behaviors. In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, they are all given the blue palette.

In the Nintendo Switch remake, all Moblins resemble pigs, with the forest ones resembling furry, pointy-eared feral pigs, and the Pig Warriors (now identified as Boarblins) looking like the Moblins in A Link Between Worlds. Normal Moblins also make pig squeals when attacked. Moblins and the others that share their behaviors can now be seen pulling out their spears before throwing them. The sword-using ones have been changed drastically: their shields are much bigger and they actively use them for defense, making successful attacks difficult. Hitting against the shield causes them to halt their movement, so Link may be able to run around to behind them, and hitting it enough sometimes makes them drop their guard temporarily, allowing them to be attacked easily.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Moblins (also referred to as Moriblins) only appear in the Sacred Forest Meadow in the future. They resemble brown bulldogs with gold-colored armor, though their noises sound more like pigs or bulls. They are quite large, but only have a single hit point. Navi also lacks commentary on them, and in fact cannot even target them, as the Z button is used for looking around corners during that section. They slowly walk back and forth through the maze-like area, occasionally turning to check behind them. They charge into Link with their spears and shove him all the way to the end of their patrol area if they see him, only relaxing and returning to their patrol if he has left their line-of-sight for long enough, which is marked by them clanging their spears back upright. They can only see him if he is on the line they walk; if he is off it, they will not notice him, even if they face him while turning around. At the end, a large Moblin with a club will be fought. In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, Moblins' models are refined an especially large amount to more closely resemble their artwork, giving them smaller eyes and noses and more prominent snouts and wrinkles.

Moblins in this game have an unused behavior. Moblins that are roughly adult Link's size who actively search for Link instead of patrolling a single area or being stuck in place exist within the game's coding. If spawned, they can be blocked with the shield, though this carries the risk of them pushing Link into a corner inescapably due to how the knockback works.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons/Ages

In The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages, both Moblins and Pig Warriors (now themselves simply called Moblins) appear in red and blue. The latter are now led by the Great Moblin. In both games, Link can use the Moblin Ring to look like a Moblin.

In the former game, a golden Moblin can be found as part of a quest, and boomerang-wielding red Moblins can be found in the Gnarled Root Dungeon as a stand-in for Goriyas, while normal ones are common in the Woods of Winter and appear in the dungeon accessible from it, Snake's Remains.

In the latter game, boomerang-wielding ones appear in the Spirit's Grave and normal ones are common in the Fairies' Woods and the Deku Forest, which are the same place in different time periods. They later appear prominently throughout appear in the Crown Dungeon, which is the only area in the duology to have sword-using versions of doglike Moblins.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords

In The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, Moblins use their design from the development of The Wind Waker, being large brown pigs with large mouths and small legs. They can wield either spears or bows'. Spear-wielding Moblins charge forwards when they see a Link, with bow-wielding Moblins being a closer analogue to the previous 2D behavior.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

In The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Moblins are top-heavy pigs with big smiles and beady eyes. They are depicted as a medium-strength enemies, with their previous role as a typical weak enemy for the most part given to the smaller Bokoblin. They come in two colors, being brown and teal, possibly referencing their colors in the first game. The brown ones carry lanterns, which they can throw to cause a temporary huge blaze of fire. They wield large spears, now specifically called Moblin Spears, which they can swing or thrust. When not attacking, they often hold their spears horizontally to guard against Link's own attacks. If they lose their spears, they will continue to attack with their fists. They are incapable of using other weapons. They also carry Skull Necklaces around their necks, which can be stolen with the Grappling Hook. If an unsuspecting Moblin is attacked from behind, it will comically run around while clutching its rear in pain.

Brown Moblins primarily appear in the Forsaken Fortress, where they constantly look and sniff for intruders. On Link's first visit, he has lost his sword and as such is defenseless, so being discovered by one will cause him to automatically be thrown in a jail cell. He can sneak past by hiding in barrels. When they are sniffing, they are more aware of Link's movements, and will jolt when they become suspicious of his presence. One Moblin, Moe, made friends with one of the girls captured there, Maggie, and provided her with enough Skull Necklaces that her formerly-destitute father made a fortune selling them.

While initially encountered as guards in the Forsaken Fortress, Moblins are not directly fought until Dragon Roost Cavern, where a Kargaroc airlifts a teal one to the top of the mountain after Link defeats two green Bokoblins, with all three acting as the dungeon's mid-boss. A similar encounter occurs in the Forbidden Woods, where two are dropped in at one point. After this, however, they typically appear already present, with teal ones appearing in the sunken Hyrule Castle and both types appearing in the Forest of Fairies depending on the time of day, the first room of the Earth Temple, and various secret caves and submarines.

The Moblin design in the game is ultimately what inspired the aesthetic the rest of the game would have.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap

In The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap, Moblins appear with their varieties and graphics from Four Swords (and are now specified as Spear Moblins and Bow Moblins), and color variations from The Wind Waker. However, the colors do not seem to denote any functional difference, though the brown ones seem to be "wild" while the teal ones are affiliated with Vaati. A teal one is initially summoned to battle Link by Vaati after he gains two of the Elements. Brown ones can be found commonly afterwards, with the teal ones reappearing in Dark Hyrule Castle. Their Figurines and the Swordsman's Newsletter claim that Spear Moblins appear in the Minish Woods, but this in fact is not true. The Newsletter also calls Moblins a good source of income, likely due to them having a relatively high probability of dropping red Rupees and green Kinstone shards. There is also a Moblin in disguise as a woman living in Percy's house; this Monster Lady is exposed if the torches in the house are lit. The Moblin will then bribe Link with Rupees to not tell anyone, similar to the Secret Molblins from the first game. Additionally, a red-tinted Moblin is prominently featured in the game's stained-glass-style backstory shown at both the beginning and when the Four Sword is complete.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

An early demo reel for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess shows Link battling what seems to be a Moblin. It is a stout creature with a large toothy mouth and a segmented helmet, both features likely intended as a less comical take on their design in The Wind Waker, as well as a single large crooked horn. Like most depictions, it is shown attacking with a large spear. They are not present in any capacity in the final game, where they are seemingly replaced with the related Bulblins, which wield clubs and arrows. The model itself seems to have been overwritten or altered and repurposed beyond recognition.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

In The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Moblins are depicted as extremely fat red oni-like monsters. They wield spears and giant shields, and tend to swipe or charge with their spears. They are divided between Wooden Shield Moblins and Metal Shield Moblins. Wooden Shield Moblins are the more common of the two. Their shields can be sliced apart with enough sword strikes, though they tend to rotate them to keep covered. Even without the shield, they are quite resilient, with their large bellies shrugging off most blows. Once they are defeated, they slowly start to fall forwards. If Link is in front of them when they do so, he will take damage. These Moblins start appearing in Faron Woods midway through the game, but are wiped out after Faron the water dragon floods the wood to destroy the monsters within. They also appear around the outside of the Lanayru Mining Facility. They later appear late in Ghirahim's horde battle in the past Sealed Grounds.

Metal Shield Moblins are rare mini-bosses. They wear helmets, and their reinforced shields cannot be broken. However, they can be climbed upon, allowing Link to get behind them and attack the Moblin's back.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, Moblins appear in Lorule with the same purpose as in A Link to the Past. They are now orange and stockier, and their spears can hurt other enemies. There is also a shirtless shield-wielding variety, that acts more like Sword Soldiers. Unlike Sword Soldiers, their shields are very large and difficult to hit around. The shield can be more easily bypassed with the Master Sword Lv2 or Master Sword Lv3, and can also be removed with the Hookshot. This type has two strength variations, with the weaker ones having blue loincloths and machete-like swords and the stronger ones having red loincloths and double-pointed spears.

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes

In The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes, Spear Throwing Moblins are fairly common early-game enemies, and look as they do in A Link Between Worlds. Their spears go in a downward arc, so sometimes they stay on high platforms or, more commonly, on top of Totem Armos, requiring a Totem position to attack them. There is also a dark, purple-colored type in the Den of Trials that seems to be physically based off the sword variety from A Link Between Worlds. The spears these ones throw carry curses which cause the Links to be unable to use their gear. The Totem Armos they ride are dark-colored as well.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Moblins are depicted as being tall and lanky with a head resembling a cross between a rhino and an aardvark or wild boar, having a crooked horn like the unused Twilight Princess design. Like most humanoid enemies in the game, they come in red, blue, and black, with silver ones showing up after an extremely large amount of total enemies are defeated. DLC also contains an even stronger golden variety. Moblins have various types of clubs, spears, and bows associated with them, which are sometimes swapped with Bokoblin and Hylian weapons. Due to their height, an unarmed Moblin will prefer to kick Link rather than punch him. If he is out of range, they will throw rocks at him. Black Moblins and stronger may also throw Bokoblins. Ordinary Moblins are likely to be the first new enemy Link encounters after leaving the Great Plateau. Moblins can be fooled using the Moblin Mask, although they will follow Link curiously for some distance. At night, Stalmoblins appear in certain more high-difficulty tier locations, and can also be fooled by the mask. Depending on the color, defeated Moblins can drop horns, fangs, and various internal organs to use to make elixirs. Stalmoblins, however, cannot drop the organs.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Moblins appear in red and blue in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, using their Link's Awakening remake design. Like other enemies, Zelda can make echoes of them to fight alongside her.

Zelda (Game & Watch)

In the Zelda Game & Watch game, Molblins are called Goblins. One must be defeated on each floor to progress, aside from the boss rooms. They can throw spears, which can be blocked by the shield.

CD-i games

Link: The Faces of Evil

In Link: the Faces of Evil, Moblin Spearthrowers, also referred to as spear-throwing Molblin are extremely common enemies, first appearing in Nortinka, a starting location. They either charge at Link, or crouch while throwing spears. They are also capable of entering buildings behind Link to ambush him. The boss Lupay turns Koridians into Moblin minions by replacing their souls with Rubies.

Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon

In Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, Moblin Spearthrowers appear as they do in The Faces of Evil, and are again quite common, initially appearing in Kobitan, a starting location.

Zelda's Adventure

In Zelda's Adventure, Moblins are called Mobilins. They appear in the forest regions, and generally just wander around aimlessly, attacking Princess Zelda if they see her. A talking mushroom jokes about how "slow and stupid" they are, claiming they are "still trying to eat soup with a fork."

Nintendo Land

In the Battle Quest mode of Nintendo Land, hand-crafted representations of Moblins appear as the primary enemies, coming in many colors, such as cyan, tan, pink, and purple, with each getting slightly more powerful. Due to generally being weak, however, they tend to attack in large groups. Most wield clubs, though some toss a single bomb and run away, while others hold still and shoot burning arrows. The club-wielding ones can also carry shields made from wood or metal; much like in Skyward Sword, the player can slice through the former, though both types use their shields to guard from specific angles rather than just from the front. Some with clubs or bombs also wear cooking pots as helmets for further protection, though the archers always wear floppy, wide-brimmed hats. The game also features a giant type called Big Moblins and a thin, ambushing type called Quick Moblins.

Hyrule Warriors series

Hyrule Warriors

In Hyrule Warriors and its remakes, Moblins appear as the Wooden Shield Moblins from Skyward Sword. Metal Shield Moblins are just called "Shield Moblins," despite both having shields. Neither type of shield can be destroyed. They are very powerful, have a large amount of defensive area, and are quite durable. However, they are generally quite slow. They have many attacks. They can swing their spears back and forth over a wide area, throw them a great distance, charge quickly, flop onto their bellies, and spin around rapidly while moving around. The latter two attacks leave them open for powerful attacks to be made against them, and the last one can be canceled out in later rereleases. In the Adventure Mode maps, Moblins are represented by the orange Moblins from The Legend of Zelda, while the Shield Moblins are represented by the teal ones.

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity

In Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Moblins appear based on their appearance in Breath of the Wild, always appearing as captains. They can wield numerous weapons, which they can swing back-and-forth, slam down, spin with, charge with, or throw, depending on what type it is. Red, blue, black, and silver Moblins appear along with Stalmoblins and three new element-based varieties, being Electric Moblins, Fire Moblins, and Ice Moblins. In Divine Beast battles, Moblins throw bomb barrels and often stand on platforms held by Sky Octoroks.

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, Moblins appear as stout pigs, and appear in green, red, black, and purple, just like Bokoblins. When they detect the player character, they throw their spear in the air, which will land on the marked space in the next beat. After this, they will attempt to retrieve the spear, though it can be broken by attacking it, leaving them with no attack but direct contact. In the future Hyrule, masked Moblins called Skull Moblins are introduced.

Profiles and descriptions

The Legend of Zelda

• Instruction booklet: A bulldog-like goblin who lives in the forest. He attacks by throwing spears. A little meaner than Octorok.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

• Instruction booklet: A little devil that lives mainly in the forest. He attacks Link by throwing spears, but he moves slowly.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Moblin.

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  The Legend of Zelda artwork

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  The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker artwork

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  The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX sprite

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	モリブリン Moriburin 鉄盾モリブリン Tetsutate Moriburin	Molblin, from 森 (mori, forest), 銛 (mori, harpoon), and "goblin" Iron Shield Molblin (Hyrule Warriors, Shield Moblin)
Spanish	Molblin Moblin	- -
French	Molblin Moblin	- -
Dutch	Moblin	-
German	Molblin Moblin	- -
Italian	Grublin	From grugno (snout) and "goblin"
Russian	моблин moblin	moblin
Korean	모리블린 Moribeullin	From Japanese name
Chinese	莫力布林 Mòlìbùlín	Transliteration of the Japanese name