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| “ | My harbinger… show me the future. Ah… yes… The future as it will and must be. I will not allow anyone to alter its course. | „ |
| ~ Astor forseeing the Great Calamity. |
| “ | My, you really are slow. Despite our best efforts, the enemy has only grown stronger. To succeed... we must adjust our strategy. Finally, the two of you can actually be of some use — for once in your lives! | „ |
| ~ Astor betraying the Yiga Clan. |
| “ | So, here you all are… All of you despicable pests! I will crush you beneath my heel… That is… MY FATE! | „ |
| ~ Astor unleashing Harbinger Ganon upon Zelda's forces. |
Astor, also known as the Prophet of Doom, is the secondary antagonist of the 2020 hack and slash game Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.
He is a mysterious seer in alliance with the Yiga Clan, who plans to kill Princess Zelda and bring forth Calamity Ganon in order to take over Hyrule.
He was voiced by Jonathan Lipow.
Appearance[]
Astor has gray skin, brown hair, and yellow eyes. He wears a purple cloak with golden outlines on the hood, cape, and belt. He has a circlet on his head resembling a Malice eye. He uses a Malice-infected crystal orb as his weapon.
Personality[]
Underneath his calm demeanor, Astor is a sociopathic sadist who believes himself to be superior to all the other forces of Hyrule. Despite his loyalty to Calamity Ganon, Astor only sees him and his Malice as a tool to make the whole world bow down to him as a god. While allied with the Yiga Clan, he sees them more as dimwitted pawns than actual teammates. After ripping out the souls of a group of footsoldiers for him to take control of the Blight Ganons, he taunts the Yiga for finally having some use to him as blood sacrifices.
Biography[]
Little is known about Astor's origins, other than he grew up in a Hyrule village as a fortune teller. One day, he found a miniature Guardian possessed by the Malice of Calamity Ganon. From the Guardian, Astor learned of the future through a vision it shared, showing Calamity Ganon unleashing the Great Calamity across all of Hyrule. Impressed by the vision foretold to him, Astor joined a cult worshiping Ganon as a god of death that will bring doom to all of Hyrule.
From the Malice leaking from the Guardian, the members of the cult were killed one by one, although Astor showed no concern for his fellow cultists whilst watching Ganon's power in awe. Eventually, he was the only survivor, fueling his belief that he was chosen by Ganon to serve as his messiah. As the pawn of the Harbinger Ganon, Astor allied himself with the Yiga Clan to ensure the future events came true. His goal was to not only bring Ganon back, but also to dispose of all who pose a threat to Ganon's revival according to the prophecy.
In the Yiga Clan Hideout, following the Clan's failed attempt to impersonate Urbosa to seize Zelda, Astor shows Master Kohga and Sooga the future through the Guardian, referring to it as a harbinger, by resonating with it and his magic orb. The image shows Calamity Ganon reforming to spread the Great Calamity. He declares he will not let anything interfere with Ganon's revival. Astor eventually encounters the heroes when they walk through the Lost Woods to reach Deku Forest and seek wisdom from the Great Deku Tree. Astor ambushes them with Malice clones of the Champions called Hollows that defeat Link and were very close to killing Zelda. Fortunately, Link resonates with the nearby Master Sword, and uses it to defeat the Hollows and Astor, forcing him to retreat when he saw that he doesn't stand a chance against the warrior possessing the Blade of Evil's Bane.
Back in the Yiga Hideout, Astor observes Zelda repairing the Sheikah Towers. He learns that since the Hyruleans found a way to resonate with the towers using the Sheikah Slate, they would be able to discover the Yiga Clan's hideout and warns Kohga. Kohga asks him what they should do to intercept, to which Astor replies that Ganon will guide them. Using his orb and the harbinger to see another glimpse into the future, Astor tells them that the Harbinger contains the essence of Ganon within it, and boasts that by using it, the whole world will bow to him. Sooga warns him that Ganon is simply a force that cannot be controlled, but Astor ignores his advice.
Eventually, the hideout is exposed and the Yiga are forced to retreat. While Master Kohga and Sooga ponder what else to do by a desert cliff, Astor appears behind them. They are angry that he was not there to assist them. Astor replies that it was simply fate they would eventually be discovered. Sooga lifts the seer by the neck, threatening him that the Yiga could no longer oversee his failures, but is forced to let him go as Astor warns them that making an enemy out of him will also make an enemy of Ganon. He informs them the Yiga Clan must work with him if they seek to accomplish their goal in the name of Ganon.
Once the Great Calamity arrives, mysterious rifts of time created by Terrako from Princess Zelda's sorrow bring out the future Champions to save the Champions from being killed and the Divine Beasts from falling to the control of the Blight Ganons. Refusing to let the future change, Astor uses his orb to suck out the souls of many Yiga Clan members to revive the Blights, much to Kohga and Sooga's horror. He explains that becoming blood sacrifices would be the best source for the Calamity, and mocks the two that they can actually be useful for once in their lives before sending out a Link Hollow to take care of them.
While Kohga and Sooga were distracted, Astor ambushes Link, Zelda, and Impa as they attempt to retreat to Fort Hateno. He summons the Blights and orders them to finish them off. Link tries to hold the Blights back but was quickly overwhelmed. Before they could kill him, Zelda awakens the Triforce within her hand, weakening the Blights enough for the team to defeat them and make their escape, much to Astor's horror.
Knowing they will return; an increasingly desperate Astor takes control over the Malice infected Hyrule Castle in his final plan to take control of all Hyrule. With a final push, Zelda unifies all remaining forces into rallying together to take back the castle, including a redeemed Master Kohga and the Yiga Clan. Astor sends out Harbinger Ganon to destroy them, boasting that stepping his foot in their face was his fate.
Ultimately, both Harbinger Ganon and Astor were defeated. Enraged that they go against his destiny, Astor demands Ganon to devour them all. However, Ganon, fed up with Astor's constant failures, instead consumes him with Malice, absorbing his powers with the Harbinger to grant himself a physical form, an ironic twist to Sooga's warning. By the end, the heroes successfully defeat Ganon and Zelda seals him away.
Following the mad seer's presumed demise, Robbie took possession of his crystal orb.
Quotes[]
| “ | It seems that, as low as my expectations of you were, I was overly optimistic. Well, no matter. | „ |
| ~ Astor disappointed over Master Kohga failing to defeat the heroes. |
| “ | Measures are being taken. Soon you will each have your own parts to play. | „ |
| ~ Astor |
| “ | This Guardian is possessed by Calamity Ganon, harbinger of destruction. With it, I will bring this world to its knees. | „ |
| ~ Astor revealing his plan to use Calamity Ganon to take over the world. |
| “ | Hm. Fate decides all...even this defeat. As you well know, if you decided to turn against me... you would make an enemy of Calamity Ganon. So you see then. Good. We will need each other's help if we are to achieve our grand purpose. In the name of Calamity Ganon, you and I are bound. Let us turn our eyes to the task before us, yes? | „ |
| ~ Astor warning the Yiga Clan not to turn against him or they will make enemies with Calamity Ganon. |
| “ | Your threat will be cut here, Your Highness. | „ |
| ~ Astor taunting Princess Zelda before summoning the Blight Ganons. |
| “ | How? The great Calamity Ganon...selected me! This humiliation...cannot be my destiny! It cannot be! Hear me, Calamity Ganon! It's time for you to devour these- These... | „ |
| ~ Astor's villainous breakdown and last words before being devoured by Malice. |
| “ | A seer from a certain small village in Hyrule who plotted to revive Calamity Ganon. He was defeated and subsequently absorbed by the Calamity. | „ |
| ~ Astor's in-game description. |
Trivia[]
- Astor bears similarities to the manga incarnations of the Magician and Agahnim as all are followers of Ganon that seek to revive him but end up being killed by him in the end.
- This relationship is also similar to Ghirahim and Demise, as well as Chancellor Cole and Malladus.
- Astor has a similar appearance to Vaati, another Zelda villain. In fact, before Astor's name and full appearance were revealed, some fans speculated that Astor was in fact Vaati.
- Unused audio for some Warriors has them call out Astor's name, similar to how they call out other names when the player swaps Warriors. This may imply he was initially intended to be playable.
- Astor can be seen as a much darker reflection of Revali in a variety of ways as they were both ordinary people who want recognition from the world and they saw Calamity Ganon's imminent return as a big opportunity to do so and they are shown to be arrogant and vain, even being condescending towards to some or all of their allies, with Revali's goal being that he feels the need to prove himself to the world and being the main hero who defeats Calamity Ganon to save Hyrule and the world from the beast's tyranny, while Astor wants to be known as the man who unleashed the Calamity that destroyed Hyrule and rules the world with an iron fist and they both play a supporting role to their higher ups, Revali to Link as well as Astor to Calamity Ganon. They also have their major differences:
- Revali is usually a jerk to his friends, and most often to Link in particular, whom he envies for being chosen by the Master Sword which was used to defeat the ancient evil in the distant past. It is worth noting that even though he is stern and harsh at worst, he never mistreats his fellow allies in a cruel manner, and he has shown that despite his vanity, Revali always respects his friends even when he doesn't like some of them, and he views them as his friends rather than his lackeys, and he is eternally loyal and devoted to them in every way. While he initially wasn't happy with his supporting role to Link, whom he regards as a rival rather than a threat to his own greatness, he never tries to actively take Link’s position away from him because he knows his place. He does eventually learn to let go of his obsession with being chosen to face Ganon and appreciate the role that he has, which is done through being saved by Link, his companionship with the other Champions who keep him in line, his capability of facing reality, and the assurance that he is still remembered after a hundred years through Teba and Tulin, even without being the main hero. These scenarios have helped Revali understand compassion, humility, and remain a decent person who keeps his vanity in check without crossing the boundaries too much. Revali is perfectly capable of empathy for others and has shown several moments of kindness and insight and he is well aware of the real world, and he never tries to dismiss or block it out, as conceited as he is, he is very cordial with his friends as well as his people in Rito Village and cares about them enough to protect them with his life. Revali's desire to be the main hero who defeats Ganon is more driven by his insecurity, loneliness, and the need to be loved by those around him, rather than doing things out of pragmatism, desire for power, and serving his own motivations. Even after a hundred years, Revali is still remembered for the noble deeds he brought to his people alongside the other Champions and his sacrifices were not made in vain, and left a big impact on his people, the kingdom, and the world.
- On the other hand, Astor's traits are more exaggerated and malign, he constantly belittles his allies who are members of the Yiga Clan, and he treats them disrespectfully, viewing them as his mere dull-witted pawns that he can use as a means to his ends and dispose of them when he sees this opportunity rather than actual comrades. Despite that Calamity Ganon is at the highest position in his forces, Astor merely sees him as the key tool that he can use to tear down the kingdom of Hyrule and enjoys tormenting his enemies. He is devoid of empathy for others as shown when the lives of his fellow cultists were being snuffed out by Harbinger Ganon during a demonic ritual, he doesn’t show an ounce of horror by what he had just witnessed. He often acts like he determines how Hyrule's fate plays out with no implication that he gives that credit to Ganon whatsoever for showing it to him in the first place. Him being chosen to be its prophet has him filled with delusions of grandeur which makes it known that all he wants is to be remembered as the person who not only predicted the Calamity, but also bought it about to begin with, to the point where he dismissed Sooga's warnings about trying to control Ganon. Because of that, Astor never learned to keep his ego under control as he believed that fate is absolute and does anything to prevent others from changing it. His own unrestrained pride led him to make foolish decisions in and out of the battlefield, thus when things go wrong for him, he resorts to drastic measures such as using the spirits of the Yiga Clan to revive and strengthen the Blight Ganons after they were defeated by Link and the Champions, which caused Kohga, Sooga, and the surviving Yiga soldiers to turn on him and join Hyrule’s side to get revenge on him, and in an extreme case he orders Ganon to kill the heroes out of spite and desperation, which is him trying to usurp Ganon’s higher position for himself by using it as a weapon against the heroes, which leads him to his ultimate fate of being consumed by Ganon’s Malice. Astor’s motives were driven by a lust for absolute power, and to fulfill his selfish desires for world domination. Whether he succeeded or not, Astor, in a twist of irony, ended up being long forgotten by everyone. If Revali allowed himself to become fully possessed by his own obsessions, arrogance, envy, and resentment, without a chance of seeing beyond the peaks of what he truly wanted, he would have ended up like Astor.
- Astor's role as a mysterious fortune teller with prior knowledge of the Calamity means that he could possibly be the fortune teller that warned King Rhoam about Calamity Ganon's return in Breath of the Wild, but there's no definite connection between the two.
External Links[]
- Astor on the Pure Evil Wiki
- Astor on the The Legend of Zelda Wiki
