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Orca is a character in The Wind Waker.[2] An elderly man, he was once a master swordsman.[3] He teaches Link the way of the sword, though he himself now wields a spear. He gives Link his first weapon, the Hero's Sword.[4][5] Later in the game, Link can practice against Orca in an endurance mini-game. Orca gives Link a Piece of Heart if he can hit Orca 500 times before Orca knocks him down three times. When Link obtains 10 Knight's Crests, Orca teaches him the Hurricane Spin.
Biography[]
| Orca (Figurine from The Wind Waker) | |
|---|---|
 Orca | Birthplace: Outset Island Talent: Swordplay In his younger days, Orca had hoped to be a swordsman, but after he suffered a serious injury that ended that dream. He soon returned to Outset and became a fisherman. On a ledge on one wall of his house is a memento from his days of training with a blade. Orca is a lifelong bachelor. |
Orca lives on Outset Island on the ground floor of a house he shares with his older brother Sturgeon and great-niece Sue-Belle.[6] Orca does not get along well with his older brother, who considers Orca a "hooligan" for preferring martial arts to book study.[6][7] Orca has a calm disposition and thinks his brother is high-strung.[8]
Sword Training[]
At the beginning of The Wind Waker, Orca offers to teach Link basic sword techniques using the Hero's Sword. However, he refuses to give Link a sword for fear of upsetting Link's Grandma.[9] He refuses no matter how many times Link completes the tutorial and continues to insist Link must practice more.[10] Orca is unaware of Tetra's fall into the Fairy Woods when Link returns for practice, but the swordsman senses a change that prompts him to give Link the Hero's Sword.[11]
Upon Link's return to Outset Island later in the game, Orca remarks that he has changed.[12] Orca asks Link to show him how much his skills have improved.[13] If Link accepts, a mini-game begins in which Link must strike Orca as many times as he can before Orca strikes him three times.[14] Before starting, Orca taunts Link, stating that his skill level is only that of a page.[15]
If Link hits Orca 100 times before being hit three, Orca declares him to be a knight,[16] and gives him a Purple Rupee. 300 hits convinces Orca to give Link an Orange Rupee and increase his rank to "swordsman".[17] For 500 hits, he gives Link a Piece of Heart.
At 1000 hits, Orca loses count and ends the battle. He gives the young hero a Silver Rupee and calls him Master Link from then on.[18] He remarks that his arm feels numb, and asks Link if his left index finger is numb too.[19] This is a fourth-wall-breaking reference to the prolonged holding of the L-Target that is required if the Targeting Mode is left to the default "Hold".
If struck outside a training context, Orca automatically blocks the strike with his spear. He expresses annoyance when Link strikes him three times,[20] and again more pointedly after five times.[21] On the sixth strike, he yells at Link to stop and knocks him down.[22]
Secret Technique[]
In their youth, Orca and Sturgeon longed to learn the Hurricane Spin. They spent several years collecting the requisite Knight's Crests, but grew old before they could gather the ten needed to learn the secret technique.[23][24]
After Link departs from Outset Island,[when?] Orca sends him a Letter with instructions to bring back Knight's Crests.[25] When Link presents 10 Knight Crests to Orca, he teaches Link the Hurricane Spin technique that he and Sturgeon were never able to master. Orca drops his spear and cries tears of joy at having his long-held dream come true.[26] Orca will then say that there is no longer anything left for him to teach Link,[27] and expresses his certainty that Link will be successful in his quest to save Aryll and bring her home to Outset Island.[28]
The first time Link shows Orca Knight's Crests, Orca drops his spear. If Link has less than 10, he is then able to attack Orca while he is without his spear. Orca will still block the attack, defending himself with only his hands and legs.
Nomenclature[]
Orca is named after the Killer whale. His brother, Sturgeon, is also named after an aquatic animal. In Japan, Orca is named 赤シャチ (Red Orca), in contrast with his brother's name 青ジイ (Blue Old Man).
 Names in Other Regions 
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Language | Name | Meaning | |
 |
Japanese | 赤シャチ (Aka Shachi) | Red Orca |
 |
FrenchEU | Orco | From the French orque, meaning "orca." |
 |
German | Vadder Orca | Pa Orca |
 |
Italian | Sensei Ken | |
 |
SpanishEU | Viejo Orca | Old man Orca |
Gallery[]
Link and Orca bowing to each other before sparring
Orca's image on the Sliding Puzzle
References
- ↑ "In his younger days, Orca had hoped to be a swordsman, but after he suffered a serious injury that ended that dream. He soon returned to Outset and became a fisherman." — Figurine (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "''Orca''" (Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 258(TWW))
- ↑ "On the island due east of here lives an old man who was once a master swordsman." — Fishman (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Ah. Have you come for some serious instruction in the way of the sword?" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "You may have it, Link. I give it freely. Take the blade with you..." — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "The hooligan I'm referring to is my younger and much less intelligent brother, who lives just downstairs... " — Sturgeon (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "He hates studying. All day, every day, the lout just exercises and practices with his weapons. Does he exercise his brain? No! The brain's a muscle, too! ...I think. Anyway, the only thing he DOES study is the art of fighting." — Sturgeon (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Ah! My brother upstairs is very high-strung. His is the way of knowledge. He locks himself in his room and studies all day." — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Good! That is enough! It is as I foresaw! One day, you shall become a master of the sword! But it is still too soon to give you a sword to carry around with you. I'm afraid I cannot give you one yet. If I did give you one, I am certain your grandmother would be quite upset with me...and I do not need that!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Very good! That is enough!! But...it is still too soon for me to give you a sword to carry around with you. You must come practice more, young one!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "I sense a certain anxiousness in the sword you hold...an eagerness that goes far beyond the mere desire to be wielded on the fields of battle... I do not know what has happened... But I have faith in you. Somehow, I doubt you will misuse that sword... You may have it, [player_name]. I give it freely. Take the blade with you..." — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Hmm... I do not know what you have been doing on your journey, but you seem a little more daring these days. That look in your eye is not the one you left here with." — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Very good! Show me just how much you've improved your sword skills!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Keep coming at me until I hit you three times!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "If I must say so, your skills with the sword are still at the level of a page!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "I guess it was wrong of me to treat you like you were still a lowly page. You are a page no more! Now you are a knight!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "It was wrong of me to treat you like a child. From now on, you have my respect. I shall call you swordsman!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Impressive, Link! I lost count of how many times you struck me! You have learned all I have to teach, Master Link!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Ah. How...pleasant. My arm feels numb. Master, is your left index finger not numb, as well?" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "What are you doing!?" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Hey! Link!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Ah! Stop! Desist!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Any courageous soul who gathers ten of these crests can learn a powerful new sword technique!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Both my brother and I dreamt of learning this technique in our youth. We worked so hard to collect the crests... But it took many long years and adventures beyond count before we even approached finding ten of them, and we both grew old..." — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "If you wish to be a true swordsman...find some Knight's Crests! And return to me!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "At last, you have made our long-held dream come true! Oh, the joyful tears... They won't stop...I thought my tears had dried up long ago." — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "There is nothing left for me to teach you!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "I am certain now that you will save your sister, Aryll, and bring her home to Outset!" — Orca (The Wind Waker)