Website and research by 101Leafy.
A Link to the Past SNES › Boss Fights › Agahnim in Hyrule Castle Tower

Agahnim in Hyrule Castle Tower

For The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past on the Super Nintendo (SNES).

From the official guides

Of the three spells Agahnim uses, two can be knocked back with the sword, but the lightning spell cannot be blocked. When Agahnim appears at the top centre of the room he casts lightning, so move to the upper right or upper left at once. To beat Agahnim you have to turn his own power against him. You won't win by dodging his spells.

ファミコン通信編集部責任編集 ゼルダの伝説 神々のトライフォースのすべてがわかる本 (アスキー, 1992), p. 40, translated by 101Leafy

The high point of the Light World: the showdown with the priest Agahnim. He tries to beat Link with a thick beam and a beam that splits in many directions. Attacking blindly will not win. Remember what you have been told so far.

任天堂公式ガイドブック ゼルダの伝説 神々のトライフォース 上巻 (小学館, 1992), p. 133, translated by 101Leafy

The high point of the first half: the showdown with the priest Agahnim. He uses three kinds of magic: a thick orange spell, a splitting spell, and lightning. With Link's strength as it is, you can barely scratch him. The only way is to turn his own power back on him. Hit back the orange magic balls, and only those, with the sword or the Bug-Catching Net. Keep at it and the light of victory will shine one day.

任天堂公式ガイドブック ゼルダの伝説 神々のトライフォース 下巻 (小学館, 1992), p. 146, translated by 101Leafy

How the fight goes

  1. The sword does not hurt Agahnim. Hit his balls of energy back at him instead: each one takes 16 of his 96 hit points.
  2. From attack 3 on, about half of his balls burst when Link hits them.
  3. A bursting ball that Link hits breaks into 6 sparks that fly apart. A spark hurts Link if it touches him. Only the Red Shield and the Mirror Shield can block them.
  4. One attack in 5 is lightning.
  5. Lightning cannot be sent back.

101Leafy researched the game for how the fight runs and what hurts the boss at each step.

Boss room

Hyrule Castle Tower 7FBoss

Before the fight

Ahah… Link! I have been waiting for you! Heh heh heh… I was hoping I could make Zelda vanish in front of your eyes. Behold! The last moment of Princess Zelda!

Ho ho ho… With this, the seal of the seven wise men is at last broken. It is now only a matter of time before evil power covers this land… After all, the legendary Hero cannot defeat us, the tribe of evil, when we are armed with the Power of Gold. Ho ho ho… Now, I must go!

Oh, so?… You mean to say you would like to be totally destroyed? Well, I can make your wish come true!

Said by: Agahnim

The whole scene: Agahnim

After the fight

Grrrrugh! Well met! Like the true Hero that you are… But I am not ready to admit defeat yet. I will draw you into the Dark World!

Said by: Ganon

The whole scene: Agahnim

Hints

Listen well, Link. Even with the Master Sword, you cannot inflict physical harm on the wizard. You must find a way to return his own evil magic power to him.

The whole scene: Agahnim

What Link wins

Agahnim pulls Link into the Dark World.

Numbers

Hit points96
Damage to Link, Green Mail1 heart
Damage to Link, Blue Mail1 heart
Damage to Link, Red Mail1 heart

Drops

It drops nothing.