Skull Woods Walkthrough A Link to the Past
A tangle of disconnected cellars under the Skeleton Forest, reached through eight entrances. Link keeps leaving and re-entering through different skulls and pits.
- World
- Dark World
- Dungeon
- Crystal dungeon 3
- Treasure
Fire Rod- Boss
- Mothula
- Prev / next
- Swamp Palace · Thieves’ Town
At a glance
- Location
- Skeleton Forest, north of the Village of Outcasts (the Dark World’s Lost Woods).
- How to get in
- The dungeon has many entrances — skull mouths and holes in the forest floor. The two near the village are blocked, so start from one farther east. The boss section is entered through the huge bug-shaped skull in the north-west of the forest.
- Bring
Moon Pearl 
Bombs- Big chest
- Fire Rod
- Reward
- Crystal (third maiden) + Heart Container
Skull Woods route, step by step
- Enter through the eastern skull and explore the first cellars.
- Drop through holes in the forest floor to reach other sections.
- Find the Big Key.
- Find the big chest and take the Fire Rod.
- Go back outside and enter the big bug-shaped skull in the north-west.
- Burn Gibdos with the Fire Rod and use it to light the torches on the way to the boss.
- Fight Mothula in the room with the moving floor and Blade Traps.
Key chests
| Contents | Where |
|---|---|
| Fire Rod | Big chest |
Screenshots
Enemies in Skull Woods
Tips
- A Wallmaster that grabs you drags you back to the entrance you came in by.
- Gibdos take many sword hits but burn in one shot from the Fire Rod.
- Upgrade your magic with the Mad Batter first if you plan to use the Fire Rod a lot.
Boss: Mothula
- Weak to
- Sword; Fire Rod
The room is the real threat: the floor moves under you and Blade Traps slide across it. Mothula flies around firing sets of three beams. A Master Sword or Tempered Sword can finish it before it gets many attacks off; the Fire Rod works too but drains magic fast.
FAQ
How do you get to the boss in Skull Woods?
Get the Fire Rod first, then go outside and enter the giant bug-shaped skull in the north-west of the forest. The Fire Rod clears the way inside.
How do you get the big chest in Skull Woods?
Bomb through the wall that seals it off, then open it with the Big Key to get the Fire Rod.
Why do I keep ending up back at the entrance?
A Wallmaster dropped from the ceiling and grabbed you. Keep moving when you see its shadow.
Sources & picture credits
- Skull Woods (Zeldapedia)
- Fire Rod (Zeldapedia)
- Mothula (Zeldapedia)
- Picture: Dungeon_3.png
- Picture: ALTTP_Rabbit_Beam_in_Skull_Woods.png
Guide text is original retrogameindex writing, checked against Zeldapedia. Screenshots, sprites and artwork © Nintendo; local copies archived from Zeldapedia file pages (listed on the image gallery).