Skip to main content

Zelda: Skyward Sword - Scaldera boss battle strategy explained

How to defeat a living boulder.

Scaldera is the boss of the Earth Temple in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.

Defeating this boss will rely on your mastery of the Bomb Bag, found in the Earth Temple, and careful use of Link's stamina.

Thankfully, compared to your battle with Ghirahim, Scaldera is actually quite easy to defeat.

Our Scaldera boss strategy will help you defeat this fiery ball, so you can reach the Lanayru Desert and Lanayru Mining Facility.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD trailerWatch on YouTube

If you'd like to learn more, visit our Skyward Sword walkthrough.

Scaldera Earth Temple boss strategy in Zelda: Skyward Sword explained

Before battling Scaldera, the Earth Temple boss in Skyward Sword, make sure your Bomb Bag is full. You can easily do this in the small, circular, area in the opening section of the boss room.

If you run out of bombs during the boss battle itself, then head to the very top of the boss room where you'll find a collection of Bomb Flowers and, if you're not playing on Hero Mode, some Heart Flowers too.

The boss battle against Scaldera is divided into two stages, which you can survive using the following strategies:

Stage One

In the first stage of your battle against Scaldera, it will chase you up the long pathway until it either decides to perform an attack or hits one of the Bomb Flowers. When it hits one of these waiting bombs, Scaldera will roll all the way back down to the bottom of the pathway.

When this occurs Scaldera will, after picking itself up, immediately perform an attack. You'll know when this is occurring because Scaldera will open its mouth and begin to suck in air.

This is your que to toss a bomb into Scaldera's mouth which will destroy some of the rock protecting its eye.

Toss a bomb into Scaldera's mouth.

After the bomb explodes, you'll have a couple of seconds to attack Scaldera's eye. Though, it's important to note that Scaldera's eye will continue to move about its body and may enter an area still protected by rock.

If you miss your bomb throwing opportunity, then Scaldera will send a number of fireballs towards you. Thankfully, these can be easily dodged simply by running out of the way.

Since there are no stamina fruits in this area, defeating Scaldera relies on careful management of Link's stamina. You'll want to sprint slightly to avoid being hit by Scaldera as it runs towards you, but retain enough stamina that you can easily reach it once Scaldera rolls to the bottom of the path.

The easiest way to do this is to take short breaks when sprinting so Link's stamina metre will quickly fill again.

Stage Two

In the battle's second stage, Scaldera will grow long legs which will allow it to walk above you and then roll back down the path towards you.

When this occurs, pay close attention to the direction Scaldera is rolling in, so you can avoid this attack.

Pay attention to where Scaldera rolls!

Aside from this, the rhythm of this battle stays the same - wait until Scaldera begins gathering air, toss a bomb in it's mouth and then attack.

Don't forget - if Link catches fire, you can put the flames out by performing a spin or roll attack!

Victory!

Once Scaldera is defeated, collect the Heart Container and head into the final chamber to complete the Earth Temple. With that done, it's time to head to the Lanayru Desert to explore the Lanayru Mining Facility.