Few enemies in Tears of the Kingdom inspire as much dread as the Gloom Hands-shadowy masses that drag even seasoned heroes into panic. Their grip drains more than health; it steals your footing and your strategy. Here’s how to break free from their grasp and turn terror into triumph.
The so-called Gloom Hands (also known as “red hands” by players, and officially known as Gloom Spawn by the game) will charge at you with their deceptively fast speed and grab ahold of you, destroying your hearts in the process.
The Gloom Hands are frightening at first – as seen in the Lost Woods and the Korok Forest of gloom – but if you come prepared, you’ll quickly learn that there is nothing to be afraid of. Here’s how to beat them.
How to beat Gloom Hands in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Climb high ground quickly to evade Gloom Hands grabs, bunching them for ranged attacks with Bomb Flowers fused to a multi-shot bow. Fire ice arrows or Sapphire blasts next to freeze and shatter multiple hands before they regenerate. Finish survivors rapidly to summon Phantom Ganon, then defeat it with melee flurry rushes.
Gloom Hands are exactly what they sound like – dark red hands covered in gloom. They are scattered all over Hyrule, but you’ll generally only know you’re going to fight them when it’s too late to turn back.
Heading into battle, we recommend you prepare a few items to take them down. Here are some of the best weapons and items to use against Gloom Hands:
- Bomb flowers
- Elemental Chuchu jellies
- Elemental Like stones
- Elemental Keese eyeballs
- Magic rods
As soon as the Gloom Hands begin to creep out of their hole, prepare your weapon of choice. We’ve found that it takes around six bomb flower arrows to defeat all of the hands, but if some are still alive after that, use any of the weapons listed above to take them out. Once you’ve taken them down, a Phantom Ganon will spawn in their place. If you’re up for the challenge, put up your shield and get ready to block!
Tips and tricks to defeat Gloom Hands
Climb high ground quickly to evade Gloom Hands, as they cannot reach elevated spots, allowing safe ranged attacks with bomb flower arrows for area damage. Target eyes with triple-shot bows fused to shock fruits or fire fruits to stun and burn multiple hands simultaneously, preventing respawns. Stock ice weapons or arrows beforehand to freeze them solid, halting regeneration entirely before Phantom Ganon appears.
Gloom Hands can be tricky to beat even if you come prepared. Here are a few extra tips and tricks to take down the nasty hands found in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
- Climb to higher ground – Gloom Hands won’t follow you to higher elevation, so you can escape their reach and rain fire from above.
- Equip gloom resistance armor – The Depths Armor’s set bonus will make you more resistant to gloom attacks, negating some of the damage you take when you’re grabbed by the hands.
- Shake your analog sticks as fast as possible – If you get grabbed by the Gloom Hands, chaotically wiggle your sticks to avoid losing hearts. If you’re fast enough, none of your hearts will break and you’ll break free of the grasp without taking damage.
- Cook sundelion dishes – Sundelions are commonly found on Sky Islands, and they will replenish your gloom-inflicted hearts. If you do lose a few of your hearts, replenish them with a sunny dish.
- Make gloom resistancedishes or elixirs – Gloom resistance dishes and elixirs can be made using dark clumps, which can be gained from Bargainer statues for 10 poes each or as a drop from Phantom Ganons.
- Quickly kill all five of the Gloom Hands – If you don’t quickly eliminate all five Gloom Hands, they’ll begin to respawn, and they respawn fast. Make sure to not leave any stragglers behind because one hand will soon turn into five.
- Run away if you’re not prepared – You can always leave and come back if you don’t think you’re ready to take on the challenge. Remember that there is a Phantom Ganon waiting for you after the Gloom Hands, so if you don’t think you can take on both, there is no shame in fleeing!
Gloom Hands locations
Gloom Hands can appear in several areas across Hyrule, usually in dark, corrupted zones affected by gloom. They often spawn near ruined settlements, deep caves, and certain surface or underground regions where the ground is covered in a red, pulsing substance. Common locations include the depths beneath Hyrule Field, Lanayru Wetlands, and the areas surrounding Typhlo Ruins. Players may also encounter them near major bosses or story-related points where gloom concentration is high.
Gloom Hands can appear across Hyrule, and they can be quite the jump scare for the unprepared. They’ll spawn in set locations, so you can either avoid them entirely or hunt them down. Here are all of the Gloom Hands locations we’ve found so far:
- Lindor’s Brow Cave – Hyrule Ridge
- Great Deku Tree Chasm – Great Hyrule Forest
- Mekar Island – Great Hyrule Forest
- Hollow tree stumps at Crenel Hills – Hyrule Field
- Hyrule Castle Docks – Hyrule Field
- Kolomo Garrison Ruins – Hyrule Field
- Tree clump northeast of Eastern Abbey – Great Plateau
- Mount Lanayru – Mount Lanayru
- Ordorac Quarry – Akkala Highlands
- Akkala Citadel Ruins – Akkala Highlands
Best weapons for one-shotting Gloom Hands
No single weapon truly one-shots all five Gloom Hands in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, as they require simultaneous damage to prevent regeneration. However, specific fused arrows or setups can eliminate them in one volley from a safe distance.
Top Arrow Fusions
Fuse Bomb Flowers to a multi-shot bow (like a 3-shot bow) for an explosive AoE volley that detonates on all hands at once, often killing them instantly if aimed at eyes. Muddle Buds fused to arrows cause self-destruction confusion on hit, potentially wiping the group with one eye-shot. Eyeball (Keese or similar) fusions on triple bows deliver piercing crit damage to palms for near-instant kills.
Strong Alternatives
Ancient Blades (carried over from Breath of the Wild) one-shot single targets but waste drops and don’t hit multiples efficiently. Dazzlefruit arrows blind and stun for follow-ups, though not always one-shot reliable. Equip from high ground, stock 10+ materials, and pair with gloom-resistant Depths armor.
Which arrows or ammo deal guaranteed one-shot damage to Gloom Hands
No arrows or ammo in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom deliver truly guaranteed one-shot damage to all five Gloom Hands simultaneously, as their regeneration mechanic requires hitting every hand at once with sufficient AoE or multi-hit damage. Late-game setups with high-damage fusions come closest to reliable one-volley kills from safety.
Closest to Guaranteed Options
Multi-shot bows (e.g., 3-shot Lynel or Dragonbone Bows) fused with Bomb Flowers create explosive volleys that reliably wipe all hands if aimed at clustered palms or eyes from high ground-often in one perfectly timed shot. Savage Lynel Bows fused with Topaz (for electric AoE) or eyeballs stun and overkill the group in a single multi-arrow discharge, exceeding max heart damage thresholds per reports. Muddle Bud arrows on triple bows induce self-hits for chaotic group destruction, nearly always succeeding on eye crits.
Reliability Factors
Success demands full hearts (boosting Demon King’s Bow if dropped), attack buffs, and precise palm-eye targeting to maximize crit multipliers. No basic arrow guarantees it without fusion; stock 10+ materials and test from unreachable ledges.
