Daruk

Daruk
Species	Goron
Affiliation	Champions
Hair color	White
Eye color	Blue
Relatives	Yunobo (descendant)
Voiced by	Joe Hernandez Ancient Sage of Fire (ancestor)
Debut	The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Daruk is a Goron who acts as a supporting character in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and a playable fighter in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. He is one of Hyrule's Champions, representing the Goron people, and he pilots Vah Rudania.

Background

Daruk was a powerful Goron warrior who lived with the Gorons on Death Mountain. Like many Goron warriors, he was a brash and confident fighter with a simple outlook on life. He concerned himself mostly with protecting others and seeking out rocks for he and his fellow Gorons to consue. He knew little about matters of larger world, such as the growing threat of Calamity Ganon. He still was a fearsome warrior who wielded the Boulder Breaker, which he used to carve a valley into part of the mountain, and he also had the special ability to produce an energy shield that he called Daruk's Protection. He performed several great feats for his people, such as defeating an Igneus Talus Titan. He still had a softer side, as he had a strong fear of dogs rooted in a time when he was chased by several of them as a child.

One day, Daruk came across a small Hylian being attacked by monsters. Daruk rushed over to help him, only to find that the young warrior, Link, was able to defeat them all on his own. He was so surprised that he let his guard down enough for another monster to nearly get the drop on him, and Link ended up saving him. The two became quick friends, and Daruk appreciated not only the Hylian's fighting skills but his cooking skills as well. Daruk even treated him to some rock roast, which Link apparently enjoyed. He ultimately came to see the Hylian as a sworn brother.

Breath of the Wild

Princess Zelda eventually came to Death Mountain to meet with Daruk. Because of Daruk's prowess, he was chosen to act as one of the Four Champions and to pilot one of the Divine Beasts known as Vah Rudania. Daruk quickly accepted, as even though he was clueless about Calamity Ganon, he was ready to lay his life on the line to protect Hyule. He went on to defeat a group of Bokoblins, only to be frightened by the dog that he ended up protecting. He asked Zelda to keep his secret and then jokingly asked if Calamity Ganon was a dog-like creature. He also offered Zelda some rock roast, but she was less receptive of it than Link was.

When Link was chosen to act as the princess's appointed knight and the Champion of Hyrule, it was Daruk who suggested carrying out a traditional ceremony and witnessed it with the other three Champions. He was disappointed by Zelda's execution of her speech, and Urbosa helped him to recognize Zelda's tense feelings about the situation that Daruk had been oblivious to. Daruk also worked on trying to control Vah Rudania. Out of the four Champions, he struggled the most with trying to pilot his Divine Beast. Daruk went to Link for advice, and Link simply had him spent all day exploring in Vah Rudania. By the end of the day, he felt experienced enough that he was able to properly pilot Vah Rudania and made it into another bragging point of his. Daruk then protected Link from some falling boulders and was troubled by Death Mountain's sudden activity. Afterwards, he saw the Hylian less over time due to Link's duties with Princess Zelda, but he was glad to notice them getting along well. He assumed that the two of them must have bonded over food preferences.

As the Champions came together, one problem remained: Zelda could not unlock her magical abilities that were needed to seal away Calamity Ganon. The four Champions waited at the base of Mount Lanayru while Zelda took part in one last attempt to unlock her powers, but it ended in failure. At this point, Calamity Ganon broke free and began his assault on Hyrule Castle. It was Daruk who called the others to order as they prepared for the assault. The Champions all boarded their respective Divine Beasts, only to see that they were playing into Ganon's hands. At Vah Rudania, Daruk was attacked by Fireblight Ganon, one of Ganon's phantoms, and he was killed in the following battle. This caused the Divine Beast to fall under Ganon's control. However, Daruk's spirit endured and remained within Vah Rudania for the following hundred years. Daruk was remembered as a hero by his people, and a giant statue of him was built by Goron City. It is also known that he had some manner of offspring before dying, as Yunobo was descended from Daruk.

In the present time of Breath of the Wild, Link eventually returned, missing most of his memories due to the revival process he underwent in the Shrine of Resurrection. Once Link boarded Vah Rudania, Daruk's spirit contacted him telepathically and gave him instructions on freeing the beast. After Fireblight Ganon's defeat, Daruk's spirit materialized to Link. He thanked Link for saving him while expressing remorse at having died in battle to begin with. The spirit was then able to take control of Vah Rudania and regained confidence in their chances of defeating Calamity Ganon. He also gave Link the ability of Daruk's Protection, which channeled Daruk's spriit whenever Link used it, and he contacted Link every time the ability was fully recharged. Daruk's spirit brought Vah Rudania up to the top of Death Mountain. While he wondered about the current state of Gorons, he spotted Yunobo, and the two shared a moment of waving to each other. Afterwards, Daruk could use Vah Rudania's ability to help weaken Calamity Ganon during the final battle. Following Ganon's ultimate defeat, the spirits of the four Champions and the king appeared watching over Link and Zelda, and they then disappeared.

In Other Zelda Games

Age of Calamity

In the events of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, a new timeline was formed as a result of Terrako traveling back in time. This resulted in the Champions being gathered at an earlier point, prior to Link gaining the Master Sword. The Champions were recruited in Chapter 2, with Daruk's taking place in a scenario called "Daruk, the Goron Hero". Approached by Zelda, Link and Impa, Daruk readily agreed to act as a Champion. He then teamed up with them to fend off a monster infestation that was keeping them from reaching Vah Rudania, which he then piloted to drive off of the remaining monsters. In the aftermath of the battle, Daruk treated Link to Prime Rock Meat. The Champions were officially sworn in at the end of Chapter 3. Daruk was shown to form a bond with Mipha, when she asked to join him for his training. Daruk agreed to the arrangement and also seemed to understand a hint of Mipha's affections for Link.

In Chapter 5, the Calamity began. As in the original timeline, the four Champions were trapped within their Divine Beasts and forced to fight one of the Blight Ganons. However, Terrako intervened with time once again and generated portals which pulled the Champions' future successors to their aid. Thus, Daruk was saved by Yunobo, who then helped to destroy Fireblight Ganon during the scenario called "Water and Fire". Daruk and Yunobo then piloted Vah Rudania together in order to drive off the remaining attackers. Daruk was proud of Yunobo and helped to boost his confidence.

Together, Hyrule's forces were eventually able to destroy Calamity Ganon and avert the Calamity. Yunobo was then returned to his original time along with the others who had been pulled from the future, and Daruk said his farewell to him.

Other Appearances

Video Games

• In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Daruk appeared as an Advanced-rank Primary Spirit which came with the added effect of increasing the player fighter's weight. If fought against in a Spirit battle, his Spirit would possess Donkey Kong and wield an Ore Club. Daruk was similarly represented in the Spirit battle for the Breath of the Wild version of Zelda, which included representatives of the four Champions.

Trivia

• His name seems to reference Darunia's.
• Daruk has his own diary, which he refers to as a training journal instead. At the end of the diary, he says that what he learned from the process was that writing makes him hungry.
• He refers to Ganon as "bacon-breath" and as a "swirling swine".
• While he does not appear in Tears of the Kingdom, his statue is still present in Goron City. The ancient Sage of Fire also seems to bear a resemblance to him, in addition to having the same voice actor.