PART 2 WILL BE PREMIERING THIS SUNDAY! It's around 85 minutes and will begin at 3pm EST. See you there!

Ridiculously high quality, even by your standards

“Did you finish designing those three mazes?” “Yeah let me send the file over” “Bruh you flipped the design upside down” “Nobodies gonna notice just leave it alone”

I think a new video comparing the theories in this video to what the Zonai ended up being in Tears of the Kingdom would be pretty neat

Suddenly, my head goes to the way Link wears blue throughout breath of the wild. True, it was because it was gifted to him as Zelda’s knight and the Hylian champion... But also, technically this means that throughout that entire game he’s wearing the color of Nayru, of wisdom. Link, as the hero of courage, has traditionally always worn green, the color of Farore. Could it be that the reason this is not the case is because he has yet to ascend to the role he was meant for. BOTW focussed on Zelda’s power because it was so obvious that She didn’t have it yet. Link meanwhile, definitely had the mastersword and, unlike most other Links in the games once they start on their adventure, was expected to follow the interpretations of the people around him of what power and actions were needed to fulfil his role. In a way, he was as limited from growing into his own role as Zelda. BOTW is the story of how Zelda managed to gain access and use her powers to stop the country from being destroyed, waiting for Link to rescue her. But through that entire adventure, link only gained memories of who he was as an individual connected to Zelda and the part of the triforce that should belong to link (and appear on his hand) is also never shown. My guess is that during the next instalment, Link is going to grow beyond the role of Zelda’s knight, beyond the blue that he wears right now, and become the hero he was meant to be, as an entity seperate from her and equal to her. I really can’t wait. ^^

*When you have archaeologists and historians for a simulated world.*

It was a pleasure to make renders for the opening shots! ;)

Having just discovered Zelda at the age of 63, I am simply overwhelmed. Well done.

I believe the Zonau (Zonai) Tribe was split into 3 parts. The owl, which represents the triforce of wisdom. The dragon, which represents the triforce of courage. And the boar, which represents the trifprce of power. Since Ganon had followers of the Zonau tribe, I believe that the followers were from the boar group. This explains why the boar statues were cast aside, which means that the owl and dragon group worshipped goddess Hylia, and the boar group didn't.

KZfaq: "We are focking done with these Zonai Theory Videos" NintendoBlackCrisis: "Hello There"

This is like the Avengers: Infinity War of Zelda theories

And then the entire lomei labryinth section became dated because it turns out the zonai made those too, but we were missing the other 2/3rds of them.

The wait for part 2 will soon be over! It's now being worked on and should release some time in late May/early June. I thank you for your patience and will follow up with a link to the video once it's released!

I didn't even realize two minutes had passed by by the time you started talking. The level of quality you've poured into this gorgeous video is unrivaled. I look forward to part 2 with great anticipation, as does everyone else. Phenomenal work sir. Legend

Me: *sees it is 43 minutes* oh neat *Sees it is part One* OOOOHH

It always felt appropriate to use lynel gear when wearing the barbarian armor.

Dude guessed the entire tears of the kingdom plot line 3 years before it even released.

I can tell that this is a big project just by how the intro was handled

When I clicked this, I didn't expect it to be a movie

I love that given the tears of the kingdom trailers, we now know the reason why the zonai engravings on the labyrinths are upside down. It’s because they are. They fully fell from the sky and landed upside down. It makes sense how one is in the middle of the ocean, why the “entrances” are in weird spots, even those pillars in the “basement” of akkala. It’s genius, hidden in plain sight. It’s why so many monuments are broken and laying on their side, why so many have broken bits. We thought it was just time. But it’s time and how far they fell. I love it.

Ok, here's some hot takes: The labyrinths: per my art history studies, you get that deviating style when the dominant culture shifts quickly. This would suggest that these are late-Zonai/early-Sheikah designs, built around a significant cultural exchange. Perhaps a remaining Zonai artist was the designer, but the workers and commissioners Sheikah. Perhaps a Sheikah artist studied under a Zonai master for a time. The impressive scale suggests that the Sheikah were definitely booming at the time, but this is definitely a blended style. The Owl, Dragon, and Boar: it's likely that the Zonai regarded the three facets equally. However, later cultures, like Sheikah and Hylians, would have found the Boar, referencing Gannon, upsetting. These sculptures would have been more neglected, perhaps actively defaced by the Sheikah as they slowly co-opted Zonai structures for themselves. *extra hot*: the Zonai could have been a Lynel society. They certainly fit the bill for a warrior-race. They use magic arrows, so they have some magical skill. There are so few, but they are... proud, refined... in a way other enemies aren't. It's easy for me, at least, to imagine them being the lost descendants of a mighty warrior people. And the Barbarian armor could have been designed as a gift for a Sheikah or Hylian (perhaps even the Hero in the tapestry) who had proven himself to them, and was accepted as one of them, thust the inexact recreation of mane, horns, and stripes.

NintendoBlackCrisis: here's a 43 minute video about the zonai and their symbols. Nintendo: we just wanted to make animal statues Edit: Oh boy 🤦‍♂️

A year later, I want to ask: have you considered that ganon obtained the power of the zonai markings through some kind of trickery, as opposed to them willingly, following him? He is, among his many titles, often a thief. It would make more sense as to why they laid the statues of the boar low, if the bearer of power betrayed them.

I really like the theory that ganandorf became a litch using the zonai. They were loyal, but him basically wiping out a large portion of their population all at once to fuel his transformation was seen as a betrayal. And the remaining survivors desecrated his boat statues.

Maybe the reason only 5 Owls stand surrounding the Boar instead of 6 is in reference to how the Sage of Water from Twilight Princess was killed.

Hm... If they worshipped Ganondorf/Ganon in the events of OoT, perhaps those boar statues in the ground were neglected once the tribe found out about what he did. And the pillars surrounding the boar's head do depict his sealing.

I want to interject here... that depending on how long a civilization lasts, their art also changes and develops. So the whole concept that the Sheikah making fake ruins can be tossed aside with that as well. Repurposing, sure that's a possibility, but honestly we can see how art changes the longer a civilization is around and not that the Sheikah made fakes. We see it when the Mesopotamian people became the Persian peoples. The Shrines always looked so out of place, as if they were brand new things that were put in something old. It's possible that the Sword Trials and the Designs the Sheikah use were based off their research into the Zonai and not that they made fake ruins. However, I pose that it's more like this: you can be part of the same tribe, but have different sections and colonies. Perhaps the changes in style were for different parts of the tribe. They're all Zonai, but perhaps the tribe fractured and became different societies. You can see examples of that in differing art and religious practices for the same gods between the different regions of Egypt. Northern Egypt did not have the same practices as Southern Egypt. So maybe the Tick swirl is for Faron Woods, but the swirl with the lines is specifically for the part of the tribe that settled there, and Vices Versa. If you want to think of it this way, there could have ben 3 separate tribes of Zonai people. One for the Dragon. One for the Boar and followers of Ganon (if that's a theory that holds up), and one for the Owl. They could have developed their own distinct swirl. The tribes under the Dragon and the Owl probably got along quite well while the boar tribe did not.

I wonder what his reaction was when he realized totk was abt the zonai

Nintendo is like: YOU’RE SPOILING OUR WHOLE PLOT!

33:07 I believe this more likely represents Ganondorf’s botched execution before Twilight Princess, since the boar is buried fairly deep into the ground (representing being sent to the twilight realm), and the one broken pillar represents the Sage of Water killed by Ganondorf

21:52 This particular view of the Zonai dragon head with the remains of red pigment on it indicating that they were once painted or gilded also contrasts the mazes - parts of those mazes are in nearly perfect condition, and the underground parts completely protected from weathering elements - yet there is no paint, pigment, or gilding on any of the surfaces. It would seem that the Zonai ruins were weathered and stripped to bare stone before their style was replicated by the Sheika making the mazes - leaving some critical flaws that reveal them to be reconstructions and not originals.

The madlad called it. Every damn bit. When you released this video two years ago, I bet Nintendo was pleasantly surprised to see someone touch on it and slightly spoil a game that wasn't even finished! Seeing the lore unfold before tears of the kingdom, has been incredible and downright historic. Forever impressed.

archeologist: "what is this?" other archeologist: "I-it can't be!!" archeologist: "what is it?" other archeologist: "A SWIRL!!" archeologist: "OH SWEET HYLIA!!"

Absolutely stunning man. Wow... I really felt I was looking at a documentary produced by an entire team of researchers, editors, animators etc. Instead, this guy is just doing this stuff mostly all by himself. So much respect. Cheers bud! Cannot wait for part 2.

It’s interesting to me that the Zonai are called “savage”. By association, they are linked with Courage. Link has a connection to the Fierce Deity, right? Are these not all just hyperbolic terms for courageousness? Considering how evidently advanced the Zonai were, I think savage is a play on understanding of the word. They are a bit uncivilised. They were barbarians, yes. But they were fierce and courageous. Given that Link’s family are all unknown, and given their connection to the attribute of Courage, I wouldn’t be surprised if Link had a divine form as a dragon deity of the Zonai.

new gameplay footage was shown today and you were right. the zonai are coming omfg

Man I'm gonna laugh so hard when botw 2 releases and thr zonai aren't even mentioned exept in passing.

Something I found interesting: at 27:40, take a look at the neck of Garini’s shirt. You may notice that his shirt has a very familiar swirling design, with a very unique tick at the end of the swirl...

Theory: The Zonai’s sudden and mysterious disappearance could’ve been they lived in Faron and then they “disappeared” by sailing the Necluda Sea swiftly. They were gone for several years in lands unknown and their now unrecognizable group came back to Hyrule and settled in Lurelin.

This made me realize something. If you take a coin and bury it underground, later on a bunch of random people are gonna dig that up and it will be an ancient relic from "2021" lol

just a reminder, technology existed thousands of years before skyward sword: remember those ancient robots?

It's finally time... part 1 of the Zonai series is complete! This project has been a WIP on and off for the last several months, and I'm excited to release it after all the waiting. Special thanks to RwanLink for providing the opening shots (his channel is in the desc). Part 2 will focus on the tribe's possible influence on past games, and I ask that you be patient as I get it started. I hope to release it in the next 3-4 months. Thanks for reading this, and have a great weekend!

Ok but the Zelda orchestra at the beginning gave me HUGE nostalgia, I played that CD on repeat to help me sleep when I was younger or just to bop too 👏

Rewatching this now that totk is out. Damn you were close!

First couple seconds in already is fantastic can’t wait to see part 2

This is the one game series where it's history and monuments genuinely feel real and mysterious; it really feels like the historical mysteries we haven't unlocked yet in our own world

Well now that Tears of the Kingdom is out, we know that the Zonai labyrinths _were_ made by the Zonai, and not the shiekah....

Going on the labyrinth theory, what if they were these “castles” that were made by the zonai, but the Sheikah deconstructed them and rebuilt them to make a labyrinth out of the castle walls and ruins n stuff

I think it's interesting how the mazes are so heavily guarded by the flying guardians

You just HAD to hit that 10 minute mark didn’t you Edit: Changed my name so now the argument in the replies make no sense😂😂

TOTK really decided to prove everything here wrong 😭

Rewatching this now that we know for an absolute fact the Zonai are involved in TotK

“The Zonai existed long before hyrule’s kingdom” “The citadel was built to repel the zonai from entering hyrule” (implying it was built by the current royal bloodline)

When it's 43 minutes long, and has a 3 minute intro crediting everyone who worked on it, you know it's a good video. And this is only part 1.... :D

ok but why did nintendo say they were savages or a barbaric tribe. it doesn’t match up with totk i wish they planned it better

Love the video and I am a big fan, however I will respectfully disagree on the real vs. fake Zonai swirl thing. My reasoning is that there are multiple versions of other symbols (specifically the Sheikah symbol) that appear and yet they are not discounted as fake. For example, look at the little frog statues near Impa’s house (and elsewhere in the world), the Sheikah eye on them is clearly different and yet still clearly a Sheikah eye. Same goes for the symbol on the doors of the Kakariko houses, they are stylized and sharper versions of the Sheikah eye. Personally, I think the differences in Zonai swirls could just represent different uses. The ones with the tick could be for religious sites, the ones with the rays could be for their castles/large cities (as Masterworks describes them, I think), and the simplified ones on Lurelin houses could be for residential areas, just as an example. Those are just my thoughts though. Keep up the great work and I can’t wait to see part 2!

Swirl = Zonai Saved you all 43 minutes

The Labyrinths could still have been repurposed by the Sheikah. The Shrines actually look out of place. The labyrinths might have housed something else before. So this does in no way contradict the theory, that the Zonai disappeared before the shrines. Also, while the Zonai were discribed as savage, the structures in the Faron area tell a different story. It is actually safe to assume, they were a rival to the Sheikah and wiped out by them. History is always written by the victors. The Empires in human history always branded outsiders, Barbarians. Another possible theories, are: a) The Zonai had something to do with Hylia's decline after the first Calamity. b) They were destroyed in the first calamity (the shrines were likely not all built a once, but over time). c) Link might be of Zonai origin, he carries the Triforce of Courage, whereas the Princess of Hylia the triforce of Wisdom. d) The Zonai might be a proto-race which had something to do with the TriForce's creation.

I believe the Zonai are Ancient Shiekah. If this is the case it would explain almost everything. They disappeared suddenly because they renamed themselves after some event (Probably the Boar group betraying the others and following Ganondorf). It explains why the Labyrinths resemble Zonai ruins but may not have been made by them. It explains why the towers resemble the Shiekah towers. It explains the differing swirls. It even explains why the Barbarian gear gives attack up. The Shiekah liked Mighty Bananas 10,000 years ago, but changed to other foods after the Great Calamity in order to distance themselves from the Yiga. The Barbarian gear and Mighty Bananas both give attack+. Honestly I think this is the best explanation of the Zonai possible, they're just ancient Shiekah, who themselves are ancient by the time of BotW.

You NEED to make a remastered version of this with the release of ToTK

On the topic of the zonai towers, just looking at them makes me feel like they should be holding something up. I can’t think of what, but the flat area at the top just doesn’t sit well with me.

The Palmorae Ruins near Lurelin Village involve a monument written in, presumably, a Zonai language, which tells you to kneel on the platforms to open the shrine. So the ruins can't possibly date from before the Sheikah began building shrines - and these ruins are super worn, unlike the labyrinths. So the Zonai and the Sheikah must have been working together since very early on. Also, the text on the monument seems the same as the green text in the BotW2 trailer. So the magic keeping Ganondorf in place must, presumably, be Zonai magic - and maybe also it's Zonai magic keeping the Sheikah monks in their shrines, since they vanish into green sparkles when Link completes the challenges. I wonder if the monks are even real live monks and not magical replicas put there by the Zonai. A further point: when you complete the Thyphlo Ruins challenge, Link writes in the Sheikah Slate "Someone built this challenge within the Thyphlo Ruins", so it's clear that the game designers want you to know that the Sheikah repurposed Zonai sites in order to train the Hero.

I can only imagine how much work went into this video, and it shows. Thank you so much for this! I appreciate your work and just subscribed to your channel

I love just how the Zelda lore became deeper and deeper throughout the years. In the past, it was Hyrule Kingdom that was a mystery (since it was always in ruins by the game's start), then it was the Sheikah (usually 100-1000 years before the advent of Hyrule Kingdom) and now it's Zonai that could predate them all by thousands more years. And who knows if there may be tribes even more ancient than the Zonai!

When you started talking about the swirl that really reminded me of academic debate around archeology. Like thia sounds exactly like the controversies that arise around ancient cultures in the real world and their extent. Ancient cultures are often categorized based on how they made tools, what kind of tools they made and which decorations they made but that also can spark controversy since simple shapes will of course appear in many places and period. It's just kinda funny to me just how this has become so similar to real world academic debate and I actually aplaud you for that since it shows a level of critical thinking you usually don't find when talking about games.

Anyone else appreciate the amount of collaborations in this one video? Thank you so much NBC. Love the intro.

This is an amazing video over the Zonai tribe, which I had never really paid much attention to in the game. Amazing work!

I love the aztec and Mayan themes for this tribe. Reminds me of Odolwa

*There are a few things I want to point out, partially aided by the fact that I just watched Zeltik's theory on the ancient arrows. *1. Perhaps the Zonai were not barbaric or warlike at all- perhaps this is propaganda maintained by the Sheikah. *2. Maybe the Sheikah and Zonai coexisted, but had some sort of clash. We know the Sheikah had (and thanks to Robbie, have) weapons capable of sending foes to oblivion. This could explain their sudden disappearance. *3. Perhaps the Zonai were around at the time of the Calamity, but were subsequently wiped out and erased from history by the Sheikah. *But those are just a few things I've noticed could be possibilities. The Barbarian armor obviously contradicts them not being warlike, slightly- but it's possible they weren't overly aggressive, but simply the best at fighting and at creating equipment for such.

Me: he'll never beat Rinkuto See Rinkuto in the credits: Oh

I truly appreciate the content you and the rest of the network of Zelda KZfaqrs have been putting out. I recently started replaying BotW and have become obsessed with lore and theories so everything I have watched from guys like you, Zeltik, Minster Maze, etc have been truly amazing for me. Please keep up the good work :)

i noticed that some of the residents of lurelin village have the pointed swirl emblem on their clothing. the woman who cooks has them on her shirt, the man who lives with the that woman has it on his collar, and the guy who lives with the village leader had a similar design on his shorts. If you go to the palmorae ruins, you can find Garini, who, you guessed it, has the swirl on his shirt. But my favorite is the little boy that runs around and if you talk to him, he will lead you to the ruins. you may notice that he has a necklace, but upon closer inspection, its pendant is shaped almost exactly like the pointed swirl. There may be other people in the town that have swirls on them, but those are the ones I know. I also noticed that, if you don't count the guy with the leader, (his shorts design didn't really look like the swirls, though the ones on his shirt did) they all belong to the same family, which I think is interesting. This may all be a coincidence, but I thought it was worth noting.

A thought passed through my mind while watching this theory: what if Sheikah were defectors from the Zonai? The upside down carvings on the mazes reminds me of the reversed text in the eight heroine, which made me think of the yiga and the Sheikah. What if, at one point, way back when, the Sheikah were part of the tribe, but eventually split off due to some set of circumstances? Maybe a rift between the old ways of magic and their new ways of technology? Or a distaste for the barbaric and warlike ways of the tribe, instead preferring stealth, tact and wisdom? Or setting we just don't have a clue about. Just a thought, of course. It could explain why they use a symbol similar to but not identical to them Zonai swirl. It could be paying homage to the ancient ways during the transition from Zonai-defectors to their own true independent tribe.

Sweet Hylia Will, you’ve outdone yourself. This was a true masterpiece. I got chills throughout the entire video. Kudos, kudos to you and all the people who helped you on the theories Channel. This was utterly incredible. 👏🏼👏🏼

Five out of six standing pillars... in Twilight Princess, Ganondorf kills the sage of water during his execution. Furthermore, Twilight Princess's sages each stand atop a pillar surrounding the mirror chamber where Ganondorf was executed, and the deceased sage of water's pillar is broken.

Thinking about the end, and the representation of Ganondorf being sealed away, we see one pillar has fallen over. In Twilight Princess, didn’t Ganondorf kill a sage? Could the pillar be knocked down..on purpose? There are many questions to be answered, and I can’t wait to see what BotW 2 holds for us!

Me: Sees first minute Also me: Plays on TV and gets popcorn and ice water

Zonai dragons Statues looks like the statues in Water temple of OoT .

Congratulations. You’ve managed to give me chills with that intro music and scenes. Kudos to everyone who worked on this.

I have only started playing BotW this year, but I have binged watched your videos about the game's theories. Amazing. Makes me want to know more.

Magic wielding races don’t seem to fare well in this series

this is absolutely incredible!! can't wait for part 2. take your time! this is so well done.

oh my god I just realized the Zonai swirl is a question mark

Bro, you are the only person to have read BotW's world design so well that you essentially gave us a better understanding for the new game! much respect man. Amazing videos as always btw

me: oh look its another nbc theory video. Also me:*sees complete cinamatics and a credits reel* holds ma spirit orbs, we doin a marathon.

Could link also be a descendant of the zonai? In the past we’ve seen link come from the “forest area” such as faron woods & kokiri forest. Plus the obvious connection to the triforce of courage in that region it makes sense & if that green magic IS connected to the zonai then all the more reason it would be drawn to link who is a descendant of that magic & if the hero fighting calamity in the painting was indeed wearing the barbarian armor it would make sense that thats where link is from. Great video btw 👌🏼

I absolutely loved this video when I watched it, as I do most of NBC's videos. As I don't really stay up to date on social media or anything, I was wondering if there has been any update on when he's releasing part 2. I know videos like these are very difficult and time consuming to make. I patiently wait for the release of the next part. Thanks NBC for all your amazing videos!

little does he know

This was beautiful. I didn’t realize the “part 1” till like 12 mins in. We’re all super hyped for the next part! I’m so glad to have seen this channel grow so quickly! When I first started watching you, your video quality and number of subscribers seemed kinda screwed. You had around 30k views and only 1.5 thousand subs! The video was incredible, as is most of your content. You’ve helped me so much with so many different things. And now I’m planning to start a theory channel. I already share some on Zelda Theory sub Reddits and there is some good information from the community there if you’re ever stuck on theories. Good luck in the future. I just can’t believe you’ve grown 225 thousands subscribers in just 3 years! You truly are inspiring.

Perhaps the Zonai died in order to lock Ganondorf away? Their connection to Courage could be symbolic of them being the ones courageous enough to give their lives to create enough energy to lock Ganondorf away. That could explain the amount of Luminous Stones present in the BOTW2 trailer, and why the magic involved is green.

Watching this video for the first time after playing some of ToTK, i love hearing the theories, and actually now getting to know if they are true or not.

Going back and watching these videos months later is just raising my hype for botw 2, its still kind of nuts how much info can be stored about the tribe despite it only being mentioned once in the game itself. the quality of the video is insane as well and the amount of info is crazy. I'm gonna go watch more of your videos now and give you more watch hours...mostly because its zelda theories, but also because you deserve the views for this content.

I feel like I'm watching a documentary, your channel is seriously one of the best on youtube.

33:35 or it could have represented the events of Twilight Princess 6 sages try to seal Ganondorf 5 survive Ganondorf kills one of them.

The Barbarian outfit in my opinion has to be one of the coolest looking ones and honestly it feels like it was specifically made for Link. Because just putting it on and then actually looking at how it looks on him makes me wonder if someone from this tribe could've been the Links official trainer to become not only a knight. But a full on hero to the entire Kingdom of Hyrule. BOTW seems to focus way too much on Zelda's side of the story when Link's side of the story should be focused on a lot too. Like, we don't even know who his actual family is. Link certainly was raised by a family just like Zelda. We don't even know who his real parents are either. And something tells me that his parents sadly are already dead just like the four champions.

Loving the use of PMD Explorers ost, while talking about the water dragon of Zonai. Made me smile so hard, ready to finish this first episode to then binge the second!

There's one issue with the Zonai being repelled by the Akkala Citadel. By the time they vanished the Akkala Citadel wasn't even built yet

I’ve been watching so many Zelda theories since middle school, I’m in college now lmfao... And after watching NBC’s videos and then seeing this one, I actually smiled so hard. Its very nice to see the constant improvement in theories and I actually thought “wow i’m so happy for him” just by watching the first two minutes. I see the quality and time that went into this and im so happy you got to do this theory in collaboration with others on this scale :,)

So much research and time from you it's wonderful

Maybe the Zonai used technologies to bring the timelines together. Maybe just like the role of the sheika tribe is to serve the goddess hylia, the zonai are to bring about the end of the “cycle” bringing the end only for it to start again in skyward sword