Chronicle Slate

The Bow

The series' oldest ranged answer to a locked door or a flying enemy — and the item elemental arrows have been riding shotgun on since Ocarina of Time.

  1. The Legend of ZeldaDownfall Timeline

    Debut: bought from a shop alongside wooden arrows, with Silver Arrows the mandatory finisher against Ganon.

  2. A Link to the PastDownfall Timeline

    Silver Arrows return as the one thing that can actually hurt beast-form Ganon.

  3. Ocarina of TimeShared Trunk (Before the Split)

    The Fairy Bow, then Fire, Ice, and Light Arrow variants as an adult — the template every later elemental-arrow system copies.

  4. The Wind WakerAdult Timeline

    Hero's Bow, later upgraded with the same Fire/Ice/Light Arrow trio for the endgame gauntlet.

  5. Twilight PrincessChild Timeline

    Hero's Bow, with a Hawkeye zoom upgrade granted by donning the Zora Armor.

  6. Skyward SwordShared Trunk (Before the Split)

    Motion-controlled draw-and-release aiming doubles as one of the game's core Wii MotionPlus tutorials.

  7. Breath of the WildDistant Future (BOTW / TOTK)

    No longer a single named item: dozens of bow types drop as breakable loot, mixed and matched with elemental arrows bought or found.

  8. Tears of the KingdomDistant Future (BOTW / TOTK)

    Same loot-bow economy, plus Fuse — glue a mushroom, a gem, or a monster part to any arrow for a custom effect.