Walkthrough: Level 3: The Key Cavern

[Dark Link]

[shadow=dimgray,left,300]THE KEY CAVERN[/shadow]

OBJECTIVES
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-Return Bowwow to its owner
-Buy a shovel and bombs
-Get some Bananas
-Recover 5 Golden Leaves
-Obtain the Slime Key


GOPONGA SWAMP
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When you exit the level, head left. Go to Mr. Write’s house (screen A-4). Walking a screen up, you’ll see a cave. Enter that cave and get both chests inside. Exit the cave and head down towards the Mysterious Forest, specifically, the screen where you got the Sleepy Mushroom.


MYSTERIOUS FOREST
“”“”“”“”“”“”“”“”“<br>Enter the cave on the screen where you got the mushroom and push the stones to make a path to the right. Go right and backtrack left. The stones will reset, giving you access to the Heart Piece. After acquiring it, continue right and down. Exit the cave and go a screen left and a screen down. Open the chest here for a Secret Seashell. After emptying the chest, walk on your way back to the forest’s entrance. Exit down to Mabe Village.


MABE VILLAGE
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First, go to Madame MeowMeow’s house to return Bowwow. After getting your reward (what will Marin think?), go to the Shop and buy a shovel with your hard-earned money. Buy bombs, too, you’ll need them. Make sure you have your Trade Sequence up to date, you’ll need the bananas. Read the Trading Section for info on how to get them. After you have all of the goods listed above, walk to the far right side of town and lift the rocks blocking the path.


UKUKU PRAIRIE
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Go a screen right and you’ll see a strange hole with lights circling it. This is a warp hole, one of 4 on Koholint Island. You can’t warp anywhere until you find another, so go down 2 screens, right a screen, and down a screen. Enter the house and talk to Richard. He’ll tell you that he and his frogs had to run...err...jump away to their villa from an attack by deranged guards. Accept his quest and exit his house.

Go right a screen and up 2 screens. That water is the gateway to level 3. You’ll find out more about that later, so for now, go right a screen and up 2 screens. Talk to Grandpa Ulrira in the telephone booth if you like, but to continue the quest, go right a screen and up a screen. This is Kanalet Castle, Richard’s home. You’ll see that the drawbridge is up, leaving no path to enter. If you have visited the Photographer, walk up to the drawbridge for a rare picture. If not, I suggest you visit him.

Anyway, continue right 2 screens and talk to the monkey, Kiki. Kiki will call upon his friends to build a bridge for you after giving him bananas. Once monkey will leave a stick behind. Grab it and head up 3 screens. Yet another telephone booth, leaving the unanswered question, “Where are Koholint’s telephone lines?” Go left and slash at the bush.


KANALET CASTLE
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Inside the cave under the bush will be Goombas and spikes. Jump over all of them and exit the cave. You will be inside to castle. Go left a screen and down a screen, defeating both Darknuts on your way. See the crow on the tree? It won’t budge until you chuck a stone at it. Slash at it after it tries to fly off. You’ll get Gold Leaf #1. Go down a screen and right 2 screens, vanquishing all foes on the way. Continue up and fight with the Bomb Trooper for possession of Gold Leaf #2. After it’s gone, go to the main castle entrance, a screen down and left of where the Bomb Trooper was.

Enter the castle and head left. Kill all of the enemies here (except the Anti-Faerie) to get Gold Leaf #3. Fight your way up and right. Stand on the switch to open the drawbridge. Go up the small staircase and go left. Walk upstairs and place a bomb near the left wall decoration you see. A Darknut Warrior will pop out. Fight it for Gold Leaf #4. After collecting it, head right a screen, down a screen, and left a screen. Exit the castle.

You’ll emerge on a screen with 2 castle entrances. Go to the right one and enter. Pick up a pot and throw it at the door. If you need bombs or hearts, you can find one of each in the collection of pots. Go up when you’re ready and defeat the Ball and Chain Trooper. After he’s done, you’ll have a happy Sub-Screen full of 5 Gold Leaves! Exit the castle and go back to Richard’s Villa.


UKUKU PRAIRIE (revisited)
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Enter Richard’s Villa and give him the Gold Leaves. He’ll allow you to push a crate aside. Underneath will be a staircase. Go down it and make your way up to the staircase (there’s a chest here with a Secret Seashell, too). Go up it and exit the cave. You’ll emerge in a field of bushes. Slash your way through them to find a path, or pull at them for an easier way to get through. If they don’t budge, there’s a pit under it. Make your way to the end where you’ll find an owl statue.

That’s no ordinary owl statue. Inside the soil underneath it is the Slime Key! Dig it up and make your way back to Richard’s Villa. Exit his house and go up a screen, left a screen, and up a screen. Unlock the level and walk around to the water I mentioned earlier. Jump from island to island to get to the level. Enter it!

[Dark Link]

THE KEY CAVERN
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From the start, pick up a pot and throw it against the upper door to break it open. Go up and defeat all of the enemies on this screen. A chest will appear containing a small key. Take it and go the upper right path. Defeat the 4 Gels that pop up and the doors will open. The chest has a Gel, so you don’t have to get it. Continue up. Ignore the enemies and go up yet again. Quickly go down the stairs so you don’t have to confront the Gels. You’ll resurface in a room with 4 locked doors on each side. Quickly charge up your sword for a Whirling Blade Technique (WBT) to destroy the Gels that pop up.

Unlock the upper door. Inside will be 2 Stalfos and a crystal switch. Defeat the enemies and a small key will drop. Hit the crystal switch and go down and back up the stairs. Get the chest here (Stone Beak) and go down 2 screens. Defeat the 4 Gels and go right. Get the chest in this room for a map. Go back left and up to the staircase. Go back down the stairs (geez, Link gets lots of exercise!). WBT the Gels and go back to the crystal switch room. Hit the switch again and go back down a screen. Unlock the right door this time. Ignore the Pairodd and go to the staircase.

You’ll be on an upraised platform. Walk around the perimeter of this platform to scare out Gels. Defeat all of them and a small key will fall. Grab it and go up. There will be 2 Stalfos and a load of pots. Head left and go up. Defeat the Dodongo Snakes by walking up to them and placing a bomb in front of their mouths. After one eats 3 bombs, it’ll explode. When both are vanquished, the door to the right will open.

Go right. Push the block farthest to the right down and push the block closest to the two blocks above the crystals left. Open the chest and you’ll get the Pegasus Boots. Walk back to the Mini-Boss’ room. Enter the Warp Hole and you’ll be back at the level’s entrance. Walk right and dash into the Vacuum with your Pegasus Boots before it shoves you off into a pit. Get the chest behind it for a small key. Go back left and up.

Go to the upper left this time and dash through the crystals. Defeat the Mini-Gel and go up. Push the block to the right and go down. Defeat the Stalfos and a chest will appear. Inside will be 200 rupees. Grab it and Save and Quit (or walk back to the level’s entrance). From the entrance, go into the warp hole. Go down when you emerge in the Mini-Boss’ room. Walk left and dash into the Telekeets, defeating the Gels that pop along the way.

Grab the small key that falls. Continue up and defeat all of the enemies and a chest will appear out of reach. Go up again and go to the upraised platform. Walk down and get the chest (Stone Beak). Move down and to the right. Continue right and hit the wall until you find a place where it sounds different. Place a bomb there and a new doorway will appear. Go into it and equip the Pegasus Boots and Roc’s Feather. Run and jump over the 3-sprite-long pit. Go up and jump over the pit. Open the chest for the Nightmare Key.

Leap off the upraised platform and go up a screen. Defeat all of the enemies in this room (the easiest way to defeat the countdown Bombites is to hit them away when the begin to flash). The doors will open, so walk left. Get the chest and poke the wall with your sword until you hear a different sound when you hit it. Place a bomb there and a doorway will appear. Continue into it and defeat all of the Bombites in the room. Grab the key and pick up the pots to get a faerie.

Save and Quit. When you restart, warp to the Mini-Bosses’ room. Go down and unlock the block on the screen. Walk up and unlock the block on this screen. Continue right and (you guessed it) unlock the block on this screen. For the last time, go down and unlock the block to access the staircase leading to the boss. Go down the stairs. Dash into the giant block and it’ll fall. Jump down onto it and walk to the right. This part can be tricky, so hopefully you have a lot of hearts. Equip the Pegasus Boots and Roc’s Feather. Run and jump to the ladder. If you fall into the spikes, try to make your way to the right and grab the ladder. Go up the ladder and exit the cave.

You’ll find yourself in a room full of crystals. Dash into the Pairodd. When all of them are destroyed, go left. Defeat all of the Keese in this room for a small key. This key serves for exploration of the dungeon, so pocket it. Unlock the Nightmare Door and dash into the wall to make the Slime Eye fall. Repeatedly hit it until the two eyes are hanging on by a thread. Dash into the thread and they’ll be separated. For the easiest way to defeat them, use the WBT on the eyeballs. When you hit one, it flies up and it’s shadow will be seen. Jump when it lands or you’ll be stunned for a short while. After both are gone, grab the heart container and claim the Sea Lily Bell!

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