Iron Knuckle
- This page is about the enemy named "Iron Knuckle". For the Boss of the same name, see Iron Knuckle (Boss).
Iron Knuckles are recurring Enemies in The Legend of Zelda series.[1][note 1]
Characteristics
The Adventure of Link
Iron Knuckles are "iron warriors" chosen by the King of Hyrule.[4] They appear throughout many Palaces in Hyrule, including Parapa Palace, Midoro Palace, the Island Palace, and the Three-Eye Rock Palace. Iron Knuckles fight with a Sword and Shield, simultaneously blocking attacks and stabbing their Sword at their opponent. They appear in orange, red, and blue varieties. Red Iron Knuckles are simply more powerful than orange ones, with more health and attack power, but blue Iron Knuckles are capable of throwing knives.[5] Link can defeat Iron Knuckles by hitting them enough times with his Magical Sword. Link can block an Iron Knuckle's Sword with his Magical Shield. Link can perform a Down Thrust on an Iron Knuckle's head to inflict damage. Link can also jump and stab his Sword at the top Iron Knuckle's head with the correct timing to guarantee that the Iron Knuckle will not block the attack.
A blue Iron Knuckle known as Rebonack appears as the Boss of the Island Palace and as mini-bosses in the Three-Eye Rock Palace. Rebonack is also known as "The Guardian Ironknuckle."[6] When Rebonack has taken a certain amount of damage, he will dismount the mechanical horse that he rides and fight as a regular blue Iron Knuckle.
In the original Famicom Disk System version of the game, blue Iron Knuckles' knives flash and disappear when blocked, but in the updated NES version, they do not flash and instead bounce off of Link's Shield.
Other Appearances
Zelda's Adventure
Cadence of Hyrule
Iron Knuckles make appearances as enemies in Cadence of Hyrule where they move to the beat of the music. They move on every fourth beat, crouching on the third beat before jumping onto an adjacent tile, harming any who might be standing in the way. If Cadence, Link, Yves, or Zelda is unfortunate enough to stand directly in front of them, they will attack by punching them with what seems to be brass knuckles on their hands. Their thick armor protects them from most attacks, forcing the heroes to either attack them from behind where they are exposed, or use items that can pierce their armor such as Bombs, Bombchus, arrows fired from the Great Bow, the legendary Fragarach sword, or use any Weapon while the Ring of Piercing is equipped.
See Also
Nomenclature
 Names in Other Regions  | ||
|---|---|---|
| Language | Names | Meanings |
 Japanese | アイアンナック (Aiannakku) (TAoL | OoT)[10][11] | Ironnuc. Portmanteau of アイアン (iron) and タートナック (Tartnuc). |
 FrenchEU | Hache-Viande Orange (TAoL)[12] | Orange Meat-Grinder |
 Italian |
| |
| This table was generated using translation pages. To request an addition, please contact a staff member with a reference. | ||
Gallery
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Artwork of an orange Iron Knuckle from The Adventure of Link
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An Iron Knuckle from Zelda's Adventure
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An Iron Knuckle from Cadence of Hyrule
Notes
- ↑ This enemy was also referred to as Ironknuckle in the manual of The Adventure of Link and Ironack in The Official Nintendo Player's Guide by Nintendo of America.[2][3]
References
- ↑ Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 186 (TAoL | OoT | MM)
- ↑ "Ironknuckle: An iron warrior chosen by the king. A strong enemy who can use a shield and sword. He exists in many forms." (The Adventure of Link manual, pg. 38)
- ↑ "In the First Temple, you will meet your strongest enemy, Ironnack." (The Official Nintendo Player's Guide, Nintendo of America, pg. 47 (TAoL))
- ↑ "An iron warrior chosen by the king. A strong enemy who can use a shield and sword. He exists in many forms." (The Adventure of Link manual, [which page?])
- ↑ "The knives Ironknuckle throws are deadly, and the huge horse he rides makes him invincible to Link's attack. Link can make him dismount by jumping and using Down-thrust. Once afoot, Ironknuckle is vulnerable." (NES Game Atlas Nintendo Player's Guide, Nintendo of America, pg. 69)
- ↑ "THE GUARDIAN IRONKNUCKLE" (NES Game Atlas Nintendo Player's Guide, Nintendo of America, pg. 68)
- ↑ Enciclopedia di Hyrule, Magazzini Salani, pg. 186
- ↑ "Guerriero d'acciaio" — N/A (Ocarina of Time 3D, Italian localization)
- ↑ "Sconfiggi il Guardiano d'acciaio!" (Defeat the Iron Knuckle!) — Level 4 (Zelda II: The Adventure of Link) (NES Remix 2, Italian localization)
- ↑ The Adventure of Link manual, pg. 39
- ↑ Nintendo Official Guidebook—The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Shogakukan, pg. 142
- ↑ Encyclopedia, Les Éditions Soleil, pg. 184