You’re exploring a dark cave in Hyrule. Everything is quiet. Suddenly, you hear that high-pitched screech and a flurry of flapping wings. Before you can even pull out your sword, three purple bats have headbutted you into a pit. Everyone who has ever picked up a controller to play a Zelda game has a love-hate relationship with these things.
The Legend of Zelda Keese are basically the "pests" of the franchise. They’ve been around since the very first NES game in 1986. Honestly, they aren't even scary. They’re just... there. Waiting to ruin your day. But if you think they’re just mindless fodder, you’re missing out on some of the coolest mechanics in the newer games like Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.
Why Keese Aren’t Just Regular Bats
Most people look at a Keese and see a bat. That’s fair. But in the Zelda universe, they’re much more like magical sponges. They absorb the environment around them.
In the older titles like Ocarina of Time, if a normal Keese flew through a torch, it would literally ignite and become a Fire Keese. This wasn't just a visual change; if that thing touched you, it would burn your wooden Deku Shield to ash. It was a brutal lesson for new players.
The Elemental Variations
Over the years, we’ve seen four main flavors:
- Standard Keese: Usually blue or black. Weak. Annoying.
- Fire Keese: They love volcanic areas and can destroy your gear.
- Ice Keese: Found in frozen peaks. One touch and you’re a Link-popsickle.
- Electric (Thunder) Keese: These are the absolute worst. They shock you, make you drop your weapons, and usually appear right when you're climbing a cliff.
It’s kind of funny how such a tiny enemy can be more dangerous than a Moblin. You can parry a Moblin. You can’t easily parry a swarm of twenty bats dive-bombing your head at midnight.
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The Evolution of the Keese Swarm
For decades, Keese were solo act enemies. You’d find one or two hanging from a ceiling. But everything changed with the open-air Zelda games.
Now, we have Keese Swarms.
If you’ve spent any time wandering the fields of Hyrule at night, you’ve seen that massive, swirling cloud of black dots. It looks like a localized tornado. That’s actually a "colony" of Keese. They move together as a single entity, and if they catch you in the open, they will chip away at your health faster than a Guardian.
The weirdest thing? If you kill just a few, the entire swarm usually panics and scatters. It’s one of the few times a Zelda enemy shows a survival instinct.
Farming Keese: The Secret to High-End Combat
Here is where the Legend of Zelda Keese goes from being a nuisance to a mandatory resource. In Tears of the Kingdom, the meta for the entire game revolves around Keese Eyeballs.
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Basically, the game allows you to fuse monster parts to your arrows. If you fuse a Keese Eyeball, your arrow becomes a homing missile.
- Regular Eyeballs: Great for hitting fast-moving birds.
- Fire Eyeballs: Home in on enemies and cause an explosion.
- Ice/Electric: Freeze or stun from across the map.
If you’re struggling to beat a Gleeok (those massive three-headed dragons), the "pro" strategy is literally just spamming Keese Eyeballs. The arrows will automatically curve in mid-air to hit the Gleeok's eyes. It makes the hardest bosses in the game feel like a joke.
Best Places to Farm Swarms
You shouldn't just hunt them one by one. That's a waste of time. Instead, wait by cave entrances at dusk (around 9:00 PM in-game time). A massive swarm will usually come flying out.
If you hit that swarm with a single Bomb Arrow or a Multi-Shot Bow, you’ll see dozens of Keese Wings and Eyeballs rain from the sky. It’s the most satisfying loot drop in the game. Places like the Sahasra Slope Cave or the tunnels around Death Mountain are gold mines for this.
The Ones That Got Away
Did you know there are versions of Keese that didn't make the cut for every game? In A Link to the Past, the Dark World had a version called the Chasupa. It was basically a giant eyeball with wings.
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Then you have the Shadow Keese from Twilight Princess. These things lived in the Twilight Realm and had this creepy, distorted design that looked more like a piece of paper than a living creature. They didn't even squeak—they made this weird, metallic clashing sound.
How to Deal With Them Without Losing Your Mind
If you're tired of being harassed while you're just trying to explore, there are a few "lazy" ways to handle them:
- The Spear: Don't use a sword. The range of a spear lets you poke them out of the air before they get close enough to touch you.
- The Boomerang: This is the classic way. In the older 2D games, a boomerang would usually kill a Keese instantly instead of just stunning it.
- The Shield Bash: Especially in Skyward Sword, a well-timed shield bash would knock them to the ground for an easy finish.
It’s easy to dismiss these bats as the "Zubats" of the Zelda world. But from their role in the very first dungeon of the NES original to their status as the most valuable "ammo" in the modern masterpieces, the Legend of Zelda Keese is a staple that isn't going anywhere.
Next time you see a swarm on the horizon, don't run. Get your bomb arrows ready. You’re going to need those eyeballs for the next Lynel you encounter.
Keep a mental map of cave entrances you pass during the day; these are your primary "spawn points" for farming Keese swarms once the sun goes down. Using a travel medallion near a high-traffic cave entrance like the one near Sahasra Slope can save you hours of grinding for elemental wings and homing eyes. Once you have a stack of about 50 Keese Eyeballs, you can effectively bypass the aiming mechanics for most airborne bosses in the game.