Link falls into a hole in the Skeleton Forest northwest of the Village of Outcasts in the Dark World and finds himself in the Skull Woods dungeon.

Wallmaster Warning

In this dungeon, some rooms have Wallmasters hiding on the ceiling. If you see a shadow on the floor, move out of the way, because a Wallmaster will soon drop down from the ceiling onto that spot. If it grabs you, it will drag you back to where you entered the dungeon. You can kill them when they are on screen, but they will keep coming back.

Starting Room

The room where you arrive the dungeon will depend on which entrance you went through in Skeleton Forest. Please check the list below and click the link that describes the room that you started in.

• A room with a blue Hardhat Beetle and two blue Baris
• A room with several Gibdos (mummies) and four Bumpers
• A room with a big treasure chest
• A room with a Helmasaur, where you are surrounded by skulls
• A room with two Gibdos (mummies) and two blue Baris

Starting from the Hardhat Beetle and Two Blue Baris Room (hhb2bb)

Get the Compass (hhb2bb)

From the room with two blue Baris and a Hardhat Beetle, go south while dodging or killing the Hardhat Beetles, and avoid the spinning Guruguru Bar to the south. Go through the southeast door, then go north and open the chest to get the Compass. The positions of the holes in the floor will change.

If you don't have the Map and you want to get it, skip to Get a Key. If you already have the Map, or you don't want to get it, go north and lift the skull so you can go through the door in the north wall. Be careful to avoid the Wallmaster in this room, and open the chest to get a key, then go through the locked door in the east wall. If you don't have the Big Key, go south to go outside, then go to the Get the Big Key section on this page. If you already have the Big Key, go south to go outside, then skip to Get the Fire Rod.

Get a Key (hhb2bb)

Go through the southeast door, then make your way to the middle of the room, where there is a chest. Be careful of the Wallmaster that falls from the ceiling in this room, and lift the three skulls that are blocking the path to the chest. Avoid the Wallmaster and open the chest to get a key.

Get the Map (hhb2bb)

Go northeast and through the locked door there. Go north and step on the southernmost star switches to change the positions of the holes in the floor. Open the chest to get the Map.

Go west and you will be in the room with the big chest. You don't have the Big Key to open it, so for now, go south to go outside. Then go to the Get the Big Key section on this page.

Starting from the Gibdos and Four Bumpers Room (g4b)

Get a Key (g4b)

If you start in a room with four blue Bumpers and several Gibdos, you will see a chest in the middle of the room. Be careful of the Wallmaster that falls from the ceiling in this room, and lift the three skulls that are blocking the path to the chest. Avoid the Wallmaster and open the chest to get a key.

Get the Map (g4b)

Go northeast and through the locked door there. Go north and step on the southernmost star switches to change the positions of the holes in the floor. Open the chest to get the Map.

Get a Second Key (g4b)

Go west and you will be in the room with the big chest. Go south to go outside. If you want the Compass, go southwest and fall into the hole there, then follow the directions in Get the Compass. If you don't want the compass, go to the Get the Big Key section on this page.

Get the Compass (g4b)

Go south and open the chest to get the Compass. The positions of the holes in the floor will change.

Go north, lifting the skull if necessary, and go through the north door. Then go through the east door, and finally, go south to go outside. Then go to the Get the Big Key section on this page.

Starting from the Room with the Big Chest (bc)

Get the Map (bc)

If you start in the room with the Big Chest, go east through the door. Go north and step on the southernmost star switches to change the positions of the holes in the floor. Open the chest to get the Map.

Then go west to the room with the big chest, and go south to go back outside, then go to the Get the Big Key section on this page.

Starting from the Room with a Helmasaur (h)

Get the Map (h)

If you start in a room with a Helmasaur, where you are surrounded by skulls, lift a skull, then go south across the star switches until you can go to the right and open the chest. You will get the Map.

Then go west to the room with the big chest, and go south to go outside, then go to the Get the Big Key section on this page.

Get the Big Key

To the northwest of some of the entrances to Skull Woods dungeon, there are two ribcages side by side. If you go north through the first ribcage, then south through the ribcage on the left, you reach an open skull. If you go into it, you will be in a room that has two Gibdos (mummies), two Baris, and two statues.

Push the Switch

Kill the Gibdos and Baris in this room while watching out for the Wallmaster. After the Gibdos and Baris are gone, push the rightmost statue down until it is in line with the square block on the left, then push the statue to the left until it is up against that square block. Make sure that the Wallmaster isn't about to appear, and go north and lift the skull to reveal a switch. Then wait again to make sure that the Wallmaster isn't about to appear, and pull the statue up until it is on the switch. Go north through the door.

Don't lift the skull in this room, because it hides a Rabbit Beam. Open the chest to get the Big Key. If your Magic Meter is empty, bomb the east wall, go through the hole, lift the skull, and take the large magic jar to refill your Magic Meter.

Use the Magic Mirror (or let a Wallmaster catch you) to return to the entrance. If you are in a room with a spike trap on the floor, go east to the room with two statues. Go south to go outside.

If you didn't get the Compass and Map, but you DON'T want to get them, go to Get the Fire Rod. If you DO want to get the Map and Compass, go northeast and through the ribcage, then south through the ribcage on the right, then jump into the southwest hole, then skip to Get the Compass and follow the directions until you have the Map and Compass and are back outside.

Get the Fire Rod

You should now be outside in Skeleton Forest and you should now have the Big Key. (If not, read Get the Big Key above.)

Go to the square of bushes near one of the open skulls in the forest. Cut the bushes and fall into the hole in the middle.

Bomb the west wall to open a hole. Go through. If there are holes blocking the way, go east to the previous room and step on the northernmost star switches, then go west through the hole again. Pull the lever on the wall to destroy the south wall. Be careful of the Mini-Moldorms to the south, and go south and open the chest to get the Fire Rod. Then use the Hookshot on one of the statues on the other side of one of the holes, and go south to go outside.

Get a Key and Reach Another Part of the Dungeon

Go northwest and then north through the ribcage, then go south through the ribcage on the left, and go into the open skull. Go west until you reach a room with an exit to the outside. Pick up the northwest skull to get a key, then go south through the exit and you will reach a different part of Skeleton Forest.

Go west and then north through the ribcage. Use the Fire Rod on the face of the insect-like statue to destroy it. Go north and through the door in the statue's mouth.

Get a Key

Go down the stairs, then go as far east as you can go. You will be blocked by a hidden wall. Go north until you can't go farther north, then go east, north, and west until you can't go farther. Watch the Spark that is moving around the wall to the north, and when it is to the left, go north, then east, stand in the upper-right corner to avoid the Spark, then go as far west as you can go, then quickly go as far north as you can go. From here, go west, north, and clockwise to the door in the east wall. Go through.

Go up the stairs, then go south down the raised walkway. Kill the Gibdo in the way. When you reach the south end of the room, drop down from the ledge and go through the southwest door. Open the chest to get a key.

Go to the Dungeon Boss

Go east to the previous room but don't move from the doorway. Wait for the Rabbit Beam to disappear, and kill the two Gibdos. Then go north past the spike Traps and go through the northwest door.

Go counterclockwise until you are stopped by a hidden wall, then go south, then avoid the Spark while you go clockwise, and when you reach the wall south of the Spark, push southward while going west until you go south. Then go counterclockwise, and when you reach the south wall, again push southward while going west until you go south. Go up the stairs to reach the upper level.

Go north up the raised walkway, killing the Mini-Moldorms in the way, and go north through the locked door.

This room has many star switches that change the positions of the holes in the floor, and there are also Wallmasters that periodically drop from the ceiling. Start by stepping onto the star switch at the entrance. Then pick up a skull and step on a star switch to the north. Then go southwest and step on the star switch in the southwest corner of the room. From there, pick up the skull, then go north to the northwest corner and lift a skull. Then go east, and step on the northeastern group of four star switches. Then go to the northeast corner and step on the star switch there. Finally, pick up the skull to the south, and exit the room.

Kill all of the Gibdos in this room before you proceed. Then pick up the two skulls. After that, go to the south end of the room, make sure that the Wallmaster is not about to appear, then use the Fire Rod to light the southeast torch, quickly go north and light the west and east torches, then quickly go north and light the northernmost torch, then quickly run west and through the door before any of the torches go out.

Go west from the doorframe and try to avoid the Rabbit Beam and the Wallmasters while also dodging the Gibdo and Mini-Moldorms. Go to the north wall and cut the vines in the middle to reveal a hidden door. Go through it.

If you have a key, quickly go east through the locked door, killing or avoiding the Helmasaur, Hardhat Beetle, Gibdo, and Mini-Moldorm. If you don't have a key, kill the Gibdo to get one, then go through the east door.

Be careful of Wallmasters in this room. Go east and pick up a skull, then go south past the spike Trap and fall into the hole.

Mothula

The floor will move and randomly change direction throughout the battle, and spike Traps will move across the room. Spike Traps will shake before they start moving, so watch out for that. Mothula will sometimes shoot three large beams: one will go downward, and the other two will go diagonally downward left and right. Your sword does the most damage against Mothula, so hit Mothula with your sword as many times as you can. You can also hit it with fire from the Fire Rod. If you caught the Good Bee, you can release it and it will attack Mothula (other dungeon bosses are immune to the Good Bee). However, the Good Bee will knock Mothula in random directions, which can be difficult to dodge along with the spike Traps.

Afterward, get the Heart Container and the crystal. There will be a cutscene, and your health and magic will be refilled, and you will be sent outside.

Your next destination is the Ice Palace.