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InBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdom, the Yiga Clan is a nefarious yet comical group of assassins. Though their hideout is located in the Gerudo region, they can be found throughout Hyrule, searching for the chosen hero so that they can murder him.
While the Yiga Clan members and their leader, Master Kohga, often come across as humorous with their love of Mighty Bananas, their history and actions are much darker than you might imagine. During Link’s time, they appear to align with Calamity Ganon and Ganondorf, hinting at their twisted past and what they’re capable of.
Who Are The Yiga Clan?
Residing in the isolated Karusa Valley in the Gerudo region, the Yiga Clan is made up ofassassins led by Master Kohga.
Because of their conflict with Hyrule’s king in the past,the Yiga Clan shows contempt for the kingdom of Hyrule, especially its princess and chosen hero.
Yiga Clan membersuse magic to disguise themselves as unassuming travelersto catch Link unaware, using their teleportation abilities and specialty weapons, such as the Vicious Sickle.
While the Yiga Clan does seem to side with Calamity Ganon and Ganondorf because of their shared goal of eliminating Link,they’re more loyal to Master Kohga.
The Origins Of The Yiga Clan
The Yiga Clan was first named 100 years ago; according to Creating a Champion, the group took this name “when the first signs of Calamity Ganon’s revival began to appear.”
Prior to this, they were still acting as a group, but were not named in Hyrule’s history. The Yiga Clan’s origins are in factthe same as that of the Sheikah.
10,000 years ago, the Sheikah served under the Royal Family of Hyrule, whichsometimes included “assassinations and executions.”
The Sheikah’s technology was so powerful that it was used tocreate the Divine Beastsand other items, like the Sheikah Slate, that helped Hyrule to prosper and protect the land from Calamity Ganon, alongside the hero and the princess.
Why Did The Yiga Split From The Sheikah?
The people of Hyrule, and the King,grew to fear the Sheikah because of their technology, which was far more advanced than the Royal Family’s sacred power.
The King of Hyrulebecame paranoid that the Sheikah would turn on him and the kingdom, so he decided toprohibit the Sheikah from further research, greatly punishing those who would go against his order.
This caused the Sheikah to split into two different factions:the Sheikah who fled to Kakariko and decided to live peacefully, and the Yiga Clan, who continued their initial role as assassinswhile rejecting the King and his kingdom.
Symbolizing their disconnect from the rest of the Sheikah,the Yiga adopted an upside-down Sheikah symbolas their motif.
A section of the tapestry inside Impa’s house in Kakariko Villagedepicts the Sheikah splitting into two separate groups, showing the King ordering soldiers to chase the Sheikah people out of the kingdom.
The top Sheikah fled towards Hylia, while the bottom eventually became the Yiga Clan,forsaking their connection to Hylia.
The edge of the tapestry isdecorated with the Sheikah eye, which suggests it may have beencreated by the Sheikah.
The Yiga Clan In Breath Of The Wild
In Breath of the Wild, the Yiga Clan has their established hideout in Karusa Valley, though they are alsosearching Hyrule for the chosen hero, disguising themselves as travelers.
Link infiltrates the Yiga Clan Hideout upon learning that the group hasstolen the Gerudo’s Thunder Helm heirloom.
After sneaking past the guards, Link fights Master Kohga; upon defeat,Master Kohga falls down the giant crater. Link retrieves the Thunderhelm and returns it to the Gerudo.
Master Kohga usesspecial abilities that have been passed down in the Yiga Clan, likely from ancient Sheikah technology.
In The Stolen Heirloom side quest, you learn more vicious side of the Yiga Clan through Dorian, who lives in Kakariko Village but used to be a member of the clan. Dorian wasoriginally a spy within the village, tasked with discovering the location of the hero.
Dorian fell in love with a woman in the village, whom he married and had children with. The Yiga Clan discovered Dorian’s betrayal andkilled his wife in retaliation. Fearing for the lives of his children,Dorian continued to offer the Yiga Clan information.
The Yiga Clan In Tears Of The Kingdom
Though their master seemingly fell to his demise in Breath of the Wild,the Yiga Clan continued their activities.
Surprisingly, Master Kohga was able to survive the fall, and in Tears of the Kingdom,he can be found in the Depths, making use of Zonai technology to attack Link.
The Yiga Clan members still disguise themselvesas travelers to ambush Link; however, they haveemployed some new methods, including setting traps using bananas and pretending to be a prophetic chicken.
Members of the Yiga Clan have also spread out across Hyrule with several more bases. Heading to each one and defeating the Yiga there will net Linkthe Yiga armor set, which tricks the Yiga into thinking he is one of themwhen he wears the full set.
After obtaining the set, Link can enter the Yiga Clan hideout and pretend to be one of its members. Thinking he is a new recruit, they offer toteach Link some of their secret techniquesfor completing Blademaster challenges.
The Yiga Clanstill holds a grudge against Hyrule more than 10,000 years laterand its members are willing to ally themselves with anyone who shares the same goal of disposing of Link and Zelda and destroying the kingdom.
The Yiga Clan’sassassin techniques aren’t a far cry from the Sheikah’s original purpose 10,000 years agowhen they were assigned to dispatch enemies of the King, except they now target innocent civilians and the Royal Family themselves.
Next:The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom - Who Are The Zonai?
