Tarin

Tarin
Artwork for The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening for Nintendo Switch
First appearance	The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (1993)
Latest appearance	The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (2019, Switch remake)
Species	Human
Counterpart(s)	Talon

Tarin is a character that appears in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. He has a daughter named Marin, and the two of them live together in Mabe Village on Koholint Island. Tarin's design is based on that of Mario's, especially his rotund nose and mustache. Tarin wears an orange sleeveless shirt, a yellow scarf, dark green pants, and brown shoes. Tarin loves toadstools, and he always carries around a yellow backpack to store the toadstools that he collects.

History

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

A screenshot from the Nintendo Switch remake where Tarin says that Link will get lost within in the Mysterious Forest

In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, Tarin is first seen at the very beginning, in his own house, where he gives Link his Shield back. Tarin happened to know Link's name beforehand because it was written on the Shield. Tarin does not allow Link to leave unless he takes his Shield back. It is presumed that Tarin found the Shield on the beach, as he informs Link that some more things can be found there.

After Link has retrieved his Sword, he can find Tarin in the Mysterious Forest. Here, Tarin has turned into a raccoon as a side effect from eating a toadstool. If Link tries to obtain the Tail Key in the treasure chest up ahead, Tarin somehow changes the path on Link, sending him back to a southern section of the forest. If Link has Magic Powder, he can sprinkle it on Tarin to turn him back into a human. In doing so, Tarin has no recollection of what happened to him and surmises that it was a dream.

Later, Link encounters Tarin again in Ukuku Prairie, where Tarin tries to bring down a Honeycomb from a tree. If Link has obtained the Stick from the optional trading sequence, he can give it to Tarin, who uses the Stick to knock down the Honeycomb. In doing so, Tarin angers a swarm of bees, and is chased by them off-screen. This allows Link to pick up and obtain the Honeycomb.

Throughout his adventure, Link can often find Tarin sleeping on his bed in his house in Mabe Village.

In the ending, Tarin is shown to be picking mushrooms in the Mysterious Forest, shortly before the dream dissolves and Koholint Island disappears.

In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, if Link and Marin are traveling together and approach the Weathervane in Mabe Village, an optional event occurs where the photographer lines them up to take a picture for The Travels of Link album. Tarin also joins in the photograph, at his insistence. The photograph shows Tarin enthusiastically standing in the front while both Link and Marin appear annoyed at him. In this version, Tarin's racoon sprite is depicted as red, but his model in the Nintendo Switch remake is depicted as brown.

Hyrule Warriors Legends

In Hyrule Warriors Legends, as part of the Link's Awakening Pack DLC, Toon Link's Standard Outfit (Koholint) is a recolor of his Standard Outfit, but with the colors matching Tarin's clothes. Tarin is also mentioned in the Historical Entry for Marin. These features were added into Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition's base game.

Gallery

• 

  The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening sprite

• 

  The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX sprite

• 

  The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Nintendo Switch) profile image from Twitter

Names in other languages

Tarin

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	タリン Tarin	Tarin

Raccoon

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	いたずらタヌキ Itazura Tanuki

Trivia

• Tarin's transformation into a raccoon is likely inspired by Tanooki Mario from Super Mario Bros. 3, although in the game, Mario can only assume this form by using either a Super Leaf or a Tanooki Suit.
• Tarin's love for toadstools is also likely inspired by Mario, who uses various Mushroom power-ups throughout the Mario franchise.