The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Walkthrough

Chapter 16: Song of the Hero

Sealed Grounds Revisited Again – The Imprisoned Boss Fight (Third)

If you try warping to Faron Woods, you won’t be able to as you’ll automatically land at the Sealed Grounds. Groose will inform you that the Imprisoned has gone loose again, so you’ll need to fight him… again. Quickly drop down to the bottom of the pit to meet up with him for a final fight. There isn’t much to say as this is practically the same battle as the two last times, the only difference being that the Imprisoned is now a lot quicker. He will move really fast so it’s quite hard to attack his toes. Instead you can use the air drafts to get on top of his head to attack him directly on the stake, or use Groose’s cannon every chance you have to stun the Imprisoned. Eventually the Imprisoned will start flying up, so fire at him with the cannon to stop him. Attack him once more, then Groose will suggest firing you atop the Imprisoned’s head instead. Use the wind drafts to rapidly get to Groose and talk to him. Then get into the catapult and fire yourself on top of the boss’ head. Strike the stake like usual to finally finish him off.

After the fight, go down to seal the Imprisoned for good, then head back up to the temple. The old priestress will inform you of Faron Woods being flooded, so that’s why you can’t access it. Thankfully, Groose can use his cannon to fire you over there, so follow him outside and hop into the catapult to reach the flooded Faron Woods.

Flooded Faron Woods – Gathering the Tadtones

When you land at Faron Woods, it’s completely flooded! Swim to the Kikwi elder and speak with him. Now you’ll need to go see the Water Dragon, who is inside the Great Tree. Swim to the base of the tree and enter it like usual. Inside, just swim back up to the surface at the top of the tree. You will find the Water Dragon here. Obviously, she won’t just hand over her part of the song to you, you’ll need to collect all the Tadtones scattered around Faron Woods to complete the partition first… bummer. The way this works is you need to collect each group of Tadtones at the same time, not individually. All the musical notes of the same color must be collected together. You can use a spin (with the Nunchuk) to gather them all; they will flock to you if you’re close enough. Just swim all around Faron Woods and collect everything you can. When you have collected enough, the Kikwi elder will call you back to him and you will be able to use Dowse to find the rest of the Tadtones. You have to look litterally everywhere as the Tadtones are really small and hard to spot. Check the video for the locations of all the Tadtones. Once you have gathered everything, go back to see the Water Dragon in the Great Tree. She will unflood Faron Woods and return it to normal. Now you’re done with that, so head over to Eldin Volcano next.

Eldin Volcano Revisited – Escaping Eldin Volcano

As you land here, you will get thrown out in a cell. Eldin Volcano has been taken over by the enemy, unfortunately, so finding the Fire Dragon will have to wait. Now you must concentrate on escaping the prison and getting all your equipment and items back, since it was taken away. You cannot do anything for now except avoiding the guards. Thankfully, if you break all the pots around your cell to ge some health back and then try lifting the barrel, a Mogma friend will will pay a visit to you and hand over back the Mogma Mitts. Dig inside the hole in your cell and cross the burrow to reach the exit and escape the prison.

Follow the path until a Mogma shows up and show you a quick look around the area. You can’t really get lost here, as there is always only one path to follow. Wait for the guard nearby to turn around and jump down in the area to the left of him. Then dig inside the hole here and cross the burrow to emerge out in another part of the area. Follow the path and drop down on the left when you arrive at the watchtower. Dig inside the hole in the ground to cross and then climb up the cliff to find a chest containing your Gust Bellows. Then use the Gust Bellows to get rid of the dried lava and keep following the path, which takes up you the cliff where you collected a Heart Piece earlier in the game. Avoid the guards by hiding behind the walls until you reach a hole on the other side. Cross the burrow and exit to find a chest with your Clawshots.

Look around to spot some flying plants in the air and use the Clawshots on them to get across the lava pit. Target the vines on the wall at the end, then go down and jump on the platform on the left which is drifting down the lava stream. Stay on it until you can get off at the bottom of the river. You’ll notice a chest right under the watchtower. Head left behind the wall to hide from the guard and take out your Clawshots. Look on the left for a faraway wall covered with vines. Clawshot over there, then pick up a bomb flower and roll it down towards the watchtower to blow it up. Now you can go and open the chest to get the Whip back.

Walk up to the bridge where you got the bomb flowers and use the Whip on the plant on the other side of the gate to use it as a Clawshots target to go over the gate. Save at the statue, then go right and get another bomb flower at the tip of the path. Bring it to the path blocked with boulders to blow them up and clear the way. Carry another bomb to the next set of boulders, then jump into the big wind draft on the left to reach the area above. Ignore the Mogma on the right and cross the bridge to the left. Follow the path and go left after crossing the fallen watchtower. Jump on one of the platforms drifting down the lava river to head down. Wait for another platform to come down and pick up a bomb flower on the right. Then jump on the platform and throw the bomb at the watchtower on the other side. You can then open the chest to get the Slingshot (or Scattershot) back.

Now go back up the river using the Clawshots on the flyng plants and head left. You’ll see a cutscene showing you the path ahead with a watchtower at the end. To get there you’ll need to bypass some guards. Use the Slingshot to stun them, then run past them until you reach the tower. Use the Slingshot again to shoot the guard atop the watchtower, then quickly dig into the hole to the left of the tower. Cross the burrow and you’ll emerge outside next to a chest. Open it to receive your Bomb Bag. Dig the nearby spot to go up, then throw a bomb at the watchtower from above to destroy it. Now you can jump down and cross back the area with the guards (use the Slingshots on them again).

Return to the spot where a Mogma was talking about treasure a little while back. Go behind him in the extreme heat area and blow up the rocks at the end of the path with a bomb. Then go up the slope on the left and enter the Volcano Summit. Open the small chest for a blue rupee, then get back your Master Sword from the ground. Go into the room to the right and jump on one of the platforms floating over the lava to cross. You can also hit the Goddess Cube on the right while on the platform now that you have your sword. Head up the stairs on the other side, but don’t go through the door ahead. Instead, jump over to the ledge on the left side of the room. Follow it to a passage leading to some buds. Take one with your sword, then run to the next room and throw it in the lava to create a platform so you can cross.

Defeat all the enemies in the room below, then open the chest to get the Adventure Pouch back with all your items. Climb up the cliff on the left and blow up the rock above with a bomb. Now return to the door across the lava in the right room that I told you to ignore just a bit before. Enter this room to find a closed bridge gate. Cut the rope on the right, then use the Beetle to cut the two other ropes on each side of the bridge. The bridge will lower and you can now go ahead to meet the Fire Dragon. He will hand over his part of the song, no test required this time. He will also return Eldin Volcano to normal. Only one part of the song remains, so your next destination should be Lanayru Desert.

Lanayru Desert Revisited – Lanayru Gorge

Land near the Lanayru Caves and go inside. Talk to the Goron inside who has finished digging up the path behind him. Roll a bomb into the hole in the wall to blow up some rubble inside, then crawl in to reach a new area, Lanayru Gorge. To the right of the save statue, you’ll notice a path blocked by boulders over the chasm. Use the Beetle to grab the bomb on a cactus nearby and drop it onto the boulder to blow it up. Then jump across to the locked gate and go left. You should see a shinny object on top of a stone pillar down below in the chasm. Use the Beetle to go get that object, which turns out to be a Small Key. Take it to the door to unlock it and go in.

Use the Clawshots to cross the chasm, then hit the timeshift crystal on the mine cart ahead to reverse time. Speak with the robot and the mine cart will start moving. You’ll need to follow it all the way to reach the Thunder Dragon, getting past the obstacles on your path. Step on the switch to open the door so the mine cart can move forward. Defeat the enemies in the room ahead, then step on the switch to open the next door. Move along the mine cart to cross the chasm, then it will come to a stop as the door is closed. Climb up the vines on the wall to the right to reach the switch and open the door. In the next room, you’ll need to follow the mine cart and climb around using the platforms that appear. Use the Clawshots on the vine-covered walls that you can’t reach and press the switches to open the gates. Keep following and use the clawshots on the targets near the end to reach the next door.

Eventually the mine cart will come to a stop at a metal gate. Use the Whip to lower the lever on the wall on the other side and open the gate. Then avoid the spinning blades and use the Whip on the beams to cross. The mine cart will then come to a stop again at a closed door. What you must do is run up the path to the right, although it is covered in sand, if you dash through it and collect the stamina orbs, you’ll make it to the top, where you’ll find a lever to pull down on the wall. After the door opens, go in the next room and defeat all the enemies on your way. Defeat the two Beamos next to the last door, then pull the lever on the left wall with the Whip. Outside, defeat the Deku Babas ahead, then when the mine cart stops, use the Beetle to go fetch a bomb flower on a little stone pillar to the right and blow up the boulder blocking the cart. The rest of the way will take you to the Thunder Dragon.

Unfortunately, the Thunder Dragon is too sick to give you the rest of the song. If you speak with the robot nearby, he will mention the Fruit of the Tree of Life, which could cure him. Cross the path on the opposite side of the save statue and follow it to a dried up tree. Use the Gust Bellows on the sand pile to the left of the tree to reveal a timeshift crystal and hit it to return the tree and its surroundings to life. The tree is now just a seedling though. Pick up the Life Tree Seedling, then hit the Goddess Cube in the area below. Also look around for Ancient Flowers if you need them. Then go back on the path that brought you here. The little bridge to cross has disappeared, so use the Beetle to go hit the crystal in the mine cart near the Thunder Dragon to make it re-appear.

Now you must fly back to the Sealed Grounds. Enter the Sealed temple and go inside the Time Gate. Plant the tree of life seedling into the hole in the ground in the temple of the past. When you return to the present, the tree will have grown. Roll into it (dash + shake nunchuk) to make the fruit fall and pick up the Life Tree Fruit. Return to Lanayru Gorge and take the fruit to the Thunder Dragon, who will teach you the last part of the Song of the Hero. The song is now complete, so you’re all done here. Fly back to Skyloft for now.

Skyloft Final Visit – The Final Trial

Now you have one final trial to undergo. The gate is located in the plaza, in front of the white tower. Play the harp at the correct spot to start the trial when you are ready. This one is just like the other ones, harder than the first two, but easier than the third one. You should know Skyloft’s layout by now especially since it’s such a small area, so look everywhere for the Tears. Using Light Fruits, you can quickly spot them. Start with the one near the starting point, then near the academy (you’ll need to climb on the roof), around the bazaar, in the village area, near the waterfall cave and up the tower. Check the video if you miss any. Keep the one in the pumpkin field for last since the watchers will spot you, then quickly run back to the entrance to complete the trial once you have all 15 Tears.

You will receive the Stone of Trials, which opens up the final dungeon. Head over to the waterfall cave on the side of Skyloft, you’ve probably already noticed a bird statue there with an eye missing. Approach the statue to place the missing eye and something unexpected will happen. Make the necessary preparations (lots of bottled fairies and potions), then use the Clawshots to access the final dungeon, Sky Keep.