Listen, I love the Master Sword as much as the next Hylian, but in 2026, I have officially stopped pretending it's the only way to beat Ganondorf. A player named Recent-Marsupial-65 discovered something far more unhinged: trap the Demon King in a tiny fence, then pummel him with spinning electric spikes until he dies. I tried it. I laughed. I may have cried a little. Not for him, obviously.

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The whole thing works because Tears of the Kingdom's physics and AI are held together by chewing gum and prayers. If you drop a pre-built pen on Ganondorf's head, something in his brain snaps. He forgets how to move. He forgets how to attack. He just stands there, a captive audience to your worst impulses. It's beautiful.

The Blueprint: Auto-Build, Carry, Drop, Repeat

Here's the recipe for disaster, as perfected by RM65 and then butchered by me:

  1. Build a pen using stakes, motors, thunder emitters, big wheels, and spikes. Save it to your auto-build menu. Congratulations, you now have a portable war crime.

  2. Venture below Hyrule Castle toward Ganondorf's boss arena. Before you trigger the cutscene and fight, place the pen down and carry it in with you. Yes, you can carry a whole cage. No, it doesn't make sense. That's TotK.

  3. Lift the pen and drop it on top of Ganondorf. This is where trial and error becomes your best friend. The timing is finicky. Sometimes he dodges. Sometimes you trap yourself. Sometimes the physics engine decides to have a stroke.

  4. Once he's trapped, his AI breaks. He becomes incapable of moving or attacking. You then repeat the process for his second, more aggressive phase. He gets angrier, but he's still stuck. It's like watching a toddler throw a tantrum inside a playpen.

Step What I Did Result
1 Auto-built a cage of doom Saved to favorites
2 Carried it into the boss arena Ganondorf looked confused
3 Dropped it on his head AI broke instantly
4 Added a spinning mace Health bar melted

The Menu of Misery

Once Ganondorf is penned in, the real fun begins. You can build big spiked maces that spin on a podium level with his head. Every rotation chips away at his health. Two maces? Even faster. There might be a speedrunning strategy here, but trapping him takes so much luck that I wouldn't bet my Rupees on it.

Other options include:

  • ⚡ Point a laser at his head and grab a snack while you wait.

  • 🏹 Shoot him with a bow a bunch. Classic, but boring.

  • 🔌 Electrify the cage itself. Shock therapy.

  • 🌀 Turn the pen into a maze. Why? Because you can.

  • 🕺 Stand face-to-face and dance naked in front of him. Emotional damage.

  • 💧 Spray him with water. It won't actually hurt him, but it's hilarious.

  • 📦 Fill the room with random junk until your Switch crashes. Chaotic evil.

  • 🧍 Bring a Hudson cardboard cutout to taunt him. He hates it.

  • 🧨 Set up a ramp to roll explosives toward his head. Boom.

  • 🗡️ Attach a slow-moving sword to a wheel and slice him bit by bit. Death by a thousand cuts.

My personal favorite is the water spray. You're not damaging him. You're just aggressively hydrating the apocalypse. It's the pettiest thing I've ever done in a Zelda game, and I've thrown chickens off cliffs.

My Own Attempt (and Why You Should Try It)

I spent an hour trying to drop the cage. First attempt: missed. Second: he kicked me into the abyss. Third: I trapped myself and had to reload. Fourth: success. Then I built a mace. Then I built another mace. Then I sat back and watched his health chip away while I ate a sandwich. In 2026, with all the new games coming out, this is still peak comedy.

It's not efficient. It's not elegant. It's not what Hylia intended. But it's art. And honestly, after years of fighting Ganondorf the normal way, trapping him in a tiny box and tickling him to death with electricity feels like the ultimate power fantasy. Who needs the Master Sword when you have Zonai engineering and a complete disregard for boss fight etiquette?

So if you're still struggling to take down Ganondorf, remember: you don't need the Master Sword. You need a fence, some Zonai junk, and a dream. Also maybe a second mace. And a Hudson cutout. And a naked dance. Okay, you need a lot of things. But mostly patience. And a tolerance for your Switch begging for mercy.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go electrify a cage. For science.