The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Gamecube)
| Set Difficulty | 6-7 |
| Approximate time to master | 40-50 Hours |
| Minimum numbers of playthroughs needed | 1-2 |
| Number of missable achievements | 56 |
| Does difficulty affect achievements? | N/A |
| Hardest achievement of the set | Heart of Gold (50) |
| Set Developers | AlexGatao, WilHiteWarrior, pinguupinguu, SporyTike |
| Guide Author | QuinnWasTaken |
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is a game that almost everyone knows so I won't be getting too descriptive with what the game is. This guide however will be only focusing on the missable achievements and the rough order of acquisition - Including why and when you miss them completely. If you spot anything out of place or have advice for any of the specific achievements please let me know!
You will have to do two playthroughs: One 100% one where you do all the quests and find all collectibles, and another 3 Heart Challenge run. I'd recommend doing the 100% playthrough first and getting all boss and dungeon challenges out of the way, so you can focus on the 3 heart run when you do it and are familiar with the various mechanics of the game if it's your first playthrough.
It's the start of the game! A lot of these are based on dialogue with the various NPCs at the start of the game. Take your time, save sporadically. Shouldn't take longer then an hour to get all of these and finish this "prologue" section
Buzz Off! (2) Watch as Hanch stupidly gets himself stung
This one is pretty simple, The game through dialogue leads you to throwing an eagle at the nest to get rid of it and access the rupees it blocks off. However if you ignore it, when you come back after rescuing Talo and the monkey he'll be throwing rocks at the hive. Just talk to him and step away, The achievement and a cutscene will trigger.
*This one becomes missable after story events occur (Twilight) or if you knock down the hive.
Smiling Politely (1) Smash pumpkins until Jaggle gets fed up with you
This is accessible as soon as you start the game (Might have to wait until the kids tell you about the slingshot?). Just throw the four pumpkings near the raised area Jaggle is at the start.
*This becomes missable as soon as Jaggle moves from that area
Link Is the GOAT! (2) Stop the goats from escaping twice
This can only be done twice during specific areas of the story to my knowledge. Each of the two goat escapes occurs when you talk with the mayor after doing the 1st and 2nd goat herdings. 1st Herding is right at the start and the 2nd is right after rescuing Talo.
*This becomes unavailable if you skip either of the conversations with the mayor. If you miss a goat, just talk to the mayor again and you can retry it.
Doing Anything for Money (2) Get the yellow Rupee above Rusl's house before obtaining the Gale Boomerang
Rusl's house is where you obtain the fishing rod after getting the cradle. You can jump onto the the sign from the raised platform around the house. Then if you angle yourself properly you can jump and grab the ledge of the roof and pull yourself up. There's 20 rupees waiting there for you!
*This becomes missable as soon as you pick up the Gale Boomerang
I'm Just Winging It (3) Bring Trill the Bird an uninvited guest, then send them away
This is the only missable Trill achievement. When the kids chase down the monkey and you're trying to find Talo, right after opening up the gate enter and you can kill the two bokoblins in the first area. Just don't kill the one next to Trill's shop, instead get his attention and bait him into the area. You'll get a dialogue about "punishing evildoers", after which you can kill it and you'll get the achievement.
*The enemies on this map don't respawn so this is the only time you can get this.
You Herd Me! (10) Finish the Goat Herding mini-game in under 1 minute
After saving Talo, you have your first proper shot at the Goat Herding mini-game. Just get them all in the shed in under a minute. Keep in mind that they will move away from you and Epona and if you yell at them, they will dash in whatever direction you're facing.
Don't be worried if you don't get it since I don't think this is actually missable? Opinions on whenever this is missable are mixed. It seems you can only do this mini-game once each in-game day. I personally got the cheevo with the heart piece that the mini-game offers after you return to Ordon during the next part of the game.
Thankfully this part of the game relaxes on missables a little (After the deluge of them in the prologue)
What Happened Here? (4) Listen to all the stories from the ghosts in Dark Hyrule Castle in a single session
There are five ghosts spread about Twilight Hyrule Castle, use your senses as Wolf Link and interact with each of them.
- 1st is right outside of the cell area after which Midna joins you.
- 2nd is right past the spikes you raise the water level to avoid.
- 3rd is right by the pull thingy you use to lower the water level afterwards (To the left of the 2nd)
- 4th is in the cave you walk through after Midna teases you and goes through some iron bars
- 5th is on the rooftop right after escaping through the tower.
These only appear in this part of the game. You get to revisit this section much later but it's no longer in twilight so there's no spirits. Make sure to talk to each since I don't think there's a way to backtrack after you lower the water level (for the 1st spirit), or back down the tower when you get to the rooftops (After you leave the tower).
Spank the Monkey (10) Defeat Ook, the boss monkey without taking damage and only allowing him to throw his boomerang 2 times
The first of the boss achievements. A quick tip for all of them is to warp out of the dungeon, save, and then warp back. This way you can reset and won't have to redo the whole dungeon. General advice is, if you're about to enter a large circular room, it's probably a boss fight of some kind.
All in all this one is pretty easy. Roll into the pillar Ook is standing on and jump attack him repeatedly, each time you knock him down you can get in 4 hits.
Don't Spit at Dinner Time (5) Defeat Diababa without taking damage and without letting her spit poison
I found this one harder then Ook. The goal is to one cycle Diababa. When she properly emerges from the water then Ook, now that he's cured of monkey madness, will help via throwing bombs down. Throw the boomerang at him so the bomb comes to you. When it arrives, put it down and then quickly use the boomerang to tag it and Diababa. Go and hit her a bunch, Jump Attacks as always do most damage, When she rises Ook should be back with the 2nd bomb and just repeat this.
If you miss the one cycle, you can throw the boomerang at her and it will distract her from spitting acid. There's some precise timing there.
In this part of the game the number of missables goes up but a lot of them are able to be retried so long as you don't progress the story.
No One Could Tame That Horse! (5) Calm down Epona without being thrown off
Talking of achievements that you can retry... here's one you can't! After freeing Kakariko village from Twilight and getting rejected by Gorons, save immediately upon entering Kakariko village again. This will be your reset point. Simply walk forward and the cutscene of Epona running into town will play. The QTE isn't impossible but might take a few tries.
Ordon't Worry (5) Set everyone's minds at ease in Ordon Village
This one requires you to talk to everyone in the village about how the kids are in Kakariko. Sera, Jaggle, Uli, Fado, Pergie and Hanch all need to be spoken to.
- Sera will be in her shop.
- Hanch will be up where Jaggle was at the start of the game
- Jaggle will be outside of his house while his wife is inside
- Uli is in her house
- Fado will be up on the farm (You can talk to him again. With Epona on the map, you can do the Goat Herder mini-game again)
*It seems to become missable when you first enter Lanayru province.
This Does Not Bo'd Well (10) Defeat Mayor Bo in the second Sumo Wrestlin' match without being grabbed
This one you can reset by just letting the mayor throw you out. Generally you want to avoid slaps and instead push or dodge. I don't really have wrestling advice so good luck!
*You can't re-fight the mayor after beating him once.
This Fight is Boaring (10) Chase down King Bulblin in the Eldin Province in under 60 seconds
Save right before entering Kakariko because you're in for a double whammy, Two different challenges one after another.
My best advice is to stick close the King Bulblin and just keep hitting him. If you fail to get it, don't restart since you have a shot at earning the next achievement (Which I found way harder).
A Bridge Too Far (10) Defeat King Bulblin at the Bridge of Eldin in only two passes without being knocked off
The strategy here for me was to stick to one side and sprint to the side while hitting him. After enough tries you'll get the timing down. After this fight you get a pretty cool cutscene and can start on your journey into the mines!
Just Roll With It (5) Successfully toss all 7 rolling Gorons during your ascent up Death Mountain
This one you can redo! But it's probably still faster to save at the bottom and just make your way up. If you leave heading towards Kakariko Village and re-enter the path to Death Mountain you can retry this one. Remember to always have your Iron Boots on hand and it shouldn't be a challenge. You'll encounter 5 on the way to Death Mountain and the last 2 one after another on the way up top.
*This becomes missable after reaching the Goron Mines entrance.
You Want Sumo This? (10) Defeat Gor Coron in Sumo Wrestlin' without being grabbed
Just like the last wrestling achievement. You can quickly retry it by letting yourself get thrown out. It's harder than wrestling with the mayor of course. Make sure to equip your iron boots before starting to wrestle!
Armored Goron Guard (10) Defeat Dangoro, the armored Goron guard without taking damage and grabbing him no more than 3 times
The Mini-boss of the dungeon and kind of a pain (But still pretty easy). The general strategy here is to equip your Iron Boots, get close to him and start charging a spin slash. He always prepares his attacks so just hit him when he charges up. He'll start rolling, and you want to grab him and yeet him into the lava. Make sure your back is close to lava because if you throw him onto the platform once, you have to restart.
You Can't Fyrus! (10) Defeat Fyrus without taking damage and only firing 3 arrows
Weight Duel (25) Defeat Fyrus without taking damage, equipping the Iron Boots before the fight starts and without taking it off
These two are both for the same boss so I'll be writing them up together. These can be a little tough but should be doable. I'd probably advise trying to do them seperately, since together they're harder.
For the accuracy one, make sure to aim when the boss is standing still (Just don't get hit) and aim at the gem. You can shoot it as soon as it lights up after he stands up.
When you're slowed you should have enough time to roll up to him (It's faster I think) and smack him a bunch. When you can't hit him anymore, roll away to a safe position and aim. You have a moment after he gets up where the gem lights up and is hittable. Before he starts moving, hit it then and then drag him down!
Be careful, the boss does contact damage!
Call Me Halo (10) Show Malo and Talo that you do know how to use a bow by hitting the pole in a single shot and without using the hawkeye
After clearing the Goron Mines, Gorons will come and be friends with the village again. With the help of the Gorons, you can get up to the watchtower where Talo is. If you talk to him you trigger a shooting mini-game. It's a series of 3 progressively harder shots, ending with an extremely hard one aiming at the tower on the watch tower from very far away.
I don't have a lot of advice aside from "get lucky" because that's what happened to me.
*This only becomes missable if you pass the mini-game. It's been reported by Xelrog that you can indeed exit out of the trial after missing and retry it, You just need to climb up all the way to Talo again to restart from the third shot.
In this part of the game there are less missables but a few are much more of a pain. The worst part being the Escort mission right at the start of the human section.
Water under the Bridge (1) Defeat King Bulblin at the Great Bridge of Hylia without letting him reach the north side of the bridge
Here is where bow practice with Fyrus comes in really useful. You just need to hit King Bulblin with your bow twice, During the first shot he's charging straight at you and during the second he'll start weaving. My best advice is to not follow him and keep aiming down center, hitting him when he enters your crosshairs (You can use the hawkeye if you're struggling with your aim).
I'd suggest saving right before the Escort Mission and even if you fail, just continuing with the escort mission since you can always save in another slot and return to this.
Jump on the Bandwagon (25) Get the Zora boy to Kakariko Village without letting the wagon get set on fire
The other harder side of the Escort Mission, And it starts right after the bridge battle. The moment you can control Epona, immediately race ahead. You can ignore all the archers aside from the last two as those are the only ones who can hit the wagon, so charge ahead, stop and shoot them down with your bow. After that you just follow the wagon.
You'll be attacked by birds and more archers on boars. The birds are the worse threat even if they don't set the wagon aflame, as their bombs will push the wagon off-course, making you have to redo this whole section. You can dispose of the birds with your Gale Boomerang. For Boar Archers, you can shoot them down while locked onto them or swinging your sword.
This one took me a couple of resets but it's easier than it seems since, as said before, during the cliffs only the last two archers are a threat and during the chase the Boar Archers' aim is awful. As long as you don't let them get too close to the wagon and dispose of the birds you'll be good!
Adrenaline (25) Defeat the Deku Toad without taking damage and without using bombs
Probably amongst the harder boss achievements in the whole set, The Deku Toad itself is mostly harmless but its spawn tend to travel almost randomly and can be a bit unpredictable.
My general strategy was to charge up a spin slash as soon as I saw she was dropping eggs, and waiting until they get close. Sometimes you can get several, sometimes you can only hit one. Just whatever you do, don't let them ram into you since that'll warrant a reset.
After getting the spin slash off, get out of there and charge up for another while a safe distance away. You can get around 3-4 spin slashes off before the Deku Toad gets involved. You ideally want to avoid that and have the little ones dead before that. After 3 spin slashes, pull out your bow or slingshot and start killing off the remainder while dodging any hits. I managed to lower the number to around 10 with my 3 spin slashes.
Once the babies are dead, the Deku Toad will take to the offensive and jump into the air, slamming wherever you are. just keep rolling away and once she lands, roll to her face and slash away. The fight should be over in 3 cycles.
Where Do You Think You're Going? (1) Try to return to the top of the room during the fight against Morpheel
Right after you start the Morpheel boss fight (Can be done in phase 1), just try swimming out of the room. Midna will scold you and the achievement will pop!
Where Do You Think You're Going? (10) Defeat Morpheel without taking damage
Morpheel is probably amongst easier dungeon bosses to beat. His challenge achievement not requiring anything extra makes it easier. During the first phase, just stay away from the tentacles. Grapple hook the eye when you can and smack him.
During Phase 2, stay above him and out of the way of his mouth. Just grapple onto the eye and start stabbing.
My Heart Will Go On (5) Catch the Piece of Heart while Hena is in the boat with you
After bringing the region out of twilight near the Zora's domain, there's a fishing hole. This fishing hole has around 10 achievements related to it. Only one is truly missable, since you can obtain the heart piece on your own.
On Geno's Side (5) Kill 100 of the Skull Kid's puppets without leaving the Sacred Grove
This one is pretty easy to get. Save on entering the Sacred Woods, trigger the Skull Kid chase and just stand around killing the puppets on fast forward. If you don't do this on your first visit, you can do it on the 2nd chase. This achievement is kind of mutually exclusive with getting to skull kid quickly enough for the other achievements, so upon getting it you can restart and load up at the start of the area.
You've Suffered a Terrible Fate, Haven't You? (10) Chase down the Skull Kid for the first time in under 3 minutes and 40 seconds
Skull Kid is kind of a pain. I noticed that you'll see moving lights through whatever path you're supposed to take, and you can hear him playing if he's in the same room as you. For the last segment, just wait for him to summon puppets and jump on him. Can be kind of a pain since sometimes the elevation will cause you to bounce off.
Statue of Limitations (10) Complete the Sacred Grove puzzle in 12 moves
- Right
- Down
- Up
- Up
- Up
- Left
- Left
- Down
- Down
- Down
- Right
- Up
Big ups to hjzdgf for posting the solution in the comments.
Hostile Takeover (5) Get a huge donation discount and then help buy out Chudley's Fine Goods and Fancy Trinkets Emporium
This achievement is honestly hard to miss. It's only missable because you can pay 1,000, then pay 2,000s to Malo's charity fund thing. If you follow the questline normally and help the bridge Goron, you'll earn the achievement normally.
The Greatest Adventurer of the 9th Century (10) Get the key to the boar pen in the Bulblin Fortress without raising an alert
The trigger icon for this pops up only when you enter the fortress proper. Enter at night, and use the Hawkeye with your bow. Be slow and methodical, check your corners, and always look up at any new towers. You should be fine if you take your time. At the end if you hit the meat, there's a heart piece.
It's Not Easy Being Green (10) Defeat King Bulblin in the Bulblin Fortress without taking damage or using the Magic Armor
Honestly a really easy mini boss fight. Just jump around him and use the back slash technique. I managed to do it on first try so I have faith you can too!
In the Shadows of the Abyss (10) Defeat Death Sword, firing no more than 3 arrows and without taking damage or using the Magic Armor
Use the hookshot, as you don't need to limit your arrows then. Pretty easy aside from that, just fight the boss normally.
What a Bonehead (25) Defeat Stallord without taking damage or using the Magic Armor, or using the sword during the second form
This one will take a few attempts, just be wary of the spinners in phase 1 (I had a few spawn on top of me which was unfortunate).
For phase 2 when you hit him with the spinner, use Bomb Arrows. You'll need at least 20.
Knights Duel (25) Defeat Darkhammer without taking damage or using the Magic Armor and without using the Clawshot
This one was probably the hardest for me initially. You want to roll past him quickly when he approaches you. Do it in two rolls. If you're too slow, he just won't throw the iron ball, just dodge the throw and hit him. If you hug him and roll, after a little bit it seems he just won't throw it as if there's some kind of timer?
Playing on the Ice (25) Defeat Blizzeta without taking damage or using the Magic Armor and using the Ball and Chain no more than 13 times
This one is pretty precise. 13 is exacly the amount of hits the boss needs to be taken out. 7 for phase 1, and 6 for phase 2.
Be careful when the boss spawns the little ice dudes and throws them at you, as when they clip your foot you take damage (Instead of blocking it if it's straight ahead). Take your time and hit the boss when she's close, and be wary of the little dudes. When she slows down, she's going to spawn them and immediately charge at you.
For Phase 2, dodge the ice as per normal and after the 10th lands turn around and break one of the icicles. Now when she tries to pin you in position, move into where the missing icycle would've been and hit her with the iron ball. I found that if you're too far away, you'll hit one of the other icicles and have to reset. Whereas if you're closer, you'll immediately hit her instead of clipping something.
You Hadn't Forgotten About Me? (10) Chase down the Skull Kid for the second time in under 3 minutes and 50 seconds
2nd Chase is honestly easier then the 1st. Follow the lights, and keep in mind he'll be hiding in trickier locations this time (Including high up). During the final phase, you can shoot him from the spot you land whenever he's summoning his dudes. All in all, I found this one easier then the first (thanks to no bonkable ledges).
Duel of the Titans (25) Defeat Darknut without taking damage or using the Magic Armor, equipping the Iron Boots before the fight starts and without taking it off
This miniboss is weirdly easy? As long as you hold block he can't damage you. Just need to dodge the high swings and hit him right after. It's pretty slow but all in all pretty easy? Don't unequip the boots right after the fight though since some people lost out on the achievement when they did that. Wait until it pops, then unequip.
A Crushing Defeat (10) Defeat Armogohma without taking damage or using the Magic Armor and without using the Sword
The Spinner and Bow are your friends. The spinner will let you dodge the laser with ease (The tracking gets funky when you're on it, and I managed to somehow phase through it once without taking damage). The spinner will also help you clear out the baby spiders. You can use the Bow or Slingshot to clear out any remains, and then shoot the boss down and give her a smack.
One of the easier boss challenges, which is kind of a trend in the final few dungeons since they're more about item gimmicks instead of being skill based.
Spider Puree (3) Smash the Armogohma Eye
Just wait by one of the statues and wait for the eye to get closer and give it a smack. You'll miss this achievement if you kill the eye spider in any other way. Also, don't use your sword as the prior achievement is still active.
You're Pretty Good! (10) Defeat the Bulblins in the Hidden Village without being seen
Another stealth mission, much harder then the fortress. Make sure to save at the entrance and do a few scout runs!
Rough Locations:
- 2 are in the first house on the left, one on the ground floor and one up the stairs. The ground floor enemy will run out if he hears any explosions.
- 4 are in the next house, 1 on the balcony up top, 1 on the ground floor, one on the inside balcony, and the final on the roof.
- 3 are in the final house, 2 up on the inside balcony, one's looking through the window, the other looking down. 1 is on the ground floor
- 1 on a tower near Impaz's house
- 5-6 are patrolling the outside of the village (Main road, and beyond)
- 3 are up on the balconies on the right side
- 1 is hidden in a corner on the right side of the village (He has a pretty long sight range even during night)
Apologies if these locations are imprecise. I'm writing them purely based on memory.
You're Grounded (10) Defeat the Aeralfos in the City in the Sky without taking damage or using the Magic Armor
All in all a pretty easy boss fight. Just don't get hit, and hookshot him when he has his shield up. You might have to manual aim if he's too high to L-Target.
Dragon Barbecue (10) Defeat Argorok without taking damage or using the Magic Armor
Bit harder then the last fight but still pretty easy. The main things I'd say to do is be wary of his claws during phase 1. He can hit you on the rare chance you're in the way. And during phase 2, be wary of the fire attack after the 2nd hit. He'll do a 180 rotation, and you can easily hookshot into the fire.
The Deadly Challenge (10) Defeat either Phantom Zant without taking damage or using the Magic Armor and using only the Mortal Draw
I found it significantly easier to do on the 2nd Phantom Zant, He waits around much more and aside from summoning shadow beasts and using projectiles, you can do this easier than with the 1st one.
It's Like Taking Candy from a Child (25) Defeat all of Zant's forms without taking damage or using the Magic Armor
Just like Fyrus, this and the next cheevo are probably best done seperately. Zant goes through 6 different phases each with it's own annoyances:
- Forest Temple: Starting off easy. Equip the boomerang, lock on and yeet. He'll fall in the acid and will be hittable with your sword.
- Goron Mines Mini-Boss Room: My personal bane. The gimmick is that Zant will slam on the platform a lot, making you fall off. Equip your Iron Boots and you'll be good. He has a tendency to teleport around and after he starts shooting projectiles, you have a window to give him a few smacks (Just be wary of losing him, I got shot in the ass more times then I care to count).
- Lakebed Temple: Equip your Iron Boots and Zora Armor while also having quick access to the hookshot. Zant will raise up a series of helmets (one at first) and shoot you with a bunch of lasers. after he's done, you can hookshot him and smack him around. The second time Zant will raise up a series of six helmets all around the central area. He'll pop out of a random one. Yes his gimmick is random teleportation; you'll get sick of it quickly.
- Monke Mode: Personally I found this one to be the 2nd easiest. Just roll into whichever pole he's standing on twice and smack away. Just be careful of standing too close, since the bastard will do contact damage as he falls.
- Snowpeak Ruins: Get the Iron Ball on quick access and run to dodge big Zant. He'll land on the ice and stomp at you slowly. Hit one of his feet, causing him to shrink and be hittable with the sword. Another of the easier phases. I don't think it has ended a single attempt for me yet
- The Final Phase in front of Hyrule Castle: He'll grow swords out of his hands and rotate between attacks where he charges at you swinging wildly and spinning like it's Beyblade. Roll around him and backslash when he's charging, block and wait for him to tire out when he's spinning.
I personally find Phases 2, 3, and 6 the worst. Mortal Draw is supposed to be able to 2 shot Zant in the final phase but I've not tried it yet (I plan to go back to both Zant cheevos after I finish the game).
He Always Did Have an Inflated Opinion of Himself (25) Defeat Zant's last form using only the Mortal Draw while equipped with the Iron Boots
The strategy here is be wary of his teleportation and block a lot. After he gets tired after spinning, quickly walk up to him and Mortal Draw. Doing this twice should lead to the end of the fight and the achievement (I personally haven't earned this one yet but that's what all the comments say).
If Only Link Could Learn That Trick... (25) Defeat King Bulblin in Hyrule Castle using only the Iron Boots without taking damage or using the Magic Armor
This is the last missable achievement in the list (I'm not sure why the other upcoming boss ones aren't marked as missable, perhaps the game loads you before the final boss fight if you load?)
All you need to do is put on the Iron Boots and continuously roll into the King Bulblin. And yeah that's more or less it...
I do like how the game establishes itself as the darkest Zelda game when he speaks to you, implying that yeah, all the Bulblins are to some degree sentient and you murdered hundreds ^_^
These are possible on your first playthrough. I probably would not advise it if you never played the game before, but it is doable. I don't have much advice to provide here since I don't plan on doing it myself for some time.
Shot Through the Heart, And You're to Blame (10) Complete the Goron Mines with only 3 Heart Containers and possessing no more than one bottle
Your Cheatin' Heart Will Tell On You (10) Complete the Lakebed Temple with only 3 Heart Containers and possessing no more than one bottle
Owner of a Lonely Heart (25) Complete the Arbiter's Grounds with only 3 Heart Containers, not possessing the Magic Armor and no more than one bottle
You're Playin' With the Queen of Hearts (25) Complete the Snowpeak Ruins with only 3 Heart Containers, not possessing the Magic Armor and no more than one bottle
Heartbreaker, Dream Maker, Love Taker (25)) Complete the Temple of Time with only 3 Heart Containers, not possessing the Magic Armor and no more than one bottle
Kickstart My Heart (25) Complete the City in the Sky with only 3 Heart Containers, not possessing the Magic Armor and no more than one bottle
Total Eclipse of My Heart (25) Complete the Palace of Twilight with only 3 Heart Containers, not possessing the Magic Armor and no more than one bottle
Cave of Despair (50) Clear the 50th floor of the Cave of Ordeals with 3 Heart Containers and possessing only 1 bottle
Heart of Gold (50) Complete Hyrule Castle with only 3 Heart Containers, not possessing the Magic Armor and no more than one bottle