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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The Secrets of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

How to get the Master Sword and the Hylian Shield, where to find the Great Fairy Fountains and Link's lost memories, and more.

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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a massive game full of secrets for the player to find. There are so many possibilities and mysteries that it'll be difficult for a player to come across all of them during this epic adventure. We will therefore answer some of the most frequent questions, but first, a SPOILER WARNING if you're really sensitive to spoilers (and if you are, why the hell are you reading an article with "secrets" on it?).

Where to find the Master Sword
The mythical Master Sword is indeed in the game, but you won't find it just by following the story. To unlock the sword you need to visit the Lost Woods, an area to the right of Hyrule Castle on the game map. This forest is shrouded in a mysterious fog, and to find the right path you must follow the burning torches. This forest is available as soon as you leave the starting area, but catching the sword won't be that simple. To get the sword out effectively you will need to have at least 13 hearts, and we mean red hearts (don't try to cheat with yellow hearts). The Master Sword has 30 damage and it's unbreakable, but it needs to recharged for 15 minutes after it "depletes". Considering that its power doubles against bosses and Ganon, you're better off saving it for special encounters.

Where to find the Hylian Shield
Like the Master Sword, you can also find the Hylian Shield in Breath of the Wild if you know where to look. To find the shield you have to visit the Hyrule Castle, which is available as soon as you leave the first area, but keep an eye on the many dangerous enemies that populate the castle. To enter we suggest that you approach the rear of the castle, which is considerably less patrolled, and search for a small cave with a damaged Guardian nearby. Once inside, walk down the hallway and into the cell on the right. To get the shield you have to defeat a huge Stalnox, but the process is relatively simple; throw an arrow into its eye, and when it falls, hammer it with everything you got. Just repeat the process keeping a comfortable distance from his attacks.

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The Hylian Shield is powerful and long-lasting, but it's not unbreakable. If you use it constantly it'll break, although there is a way to recover it. If you follow the long From the Ground Up quest line (it starts in Hateno Village after you buy the house that's for sale in that village) and build Tarrey Town, you will have access to a vendor named Grante. This seller is unique in that it allows you to purchase any item you already owned during the adventure, including the Hylian shield.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

How to unlock Epona and Wolf Link
To access these items you will need Amiibos. In the case of Epona you will need to use Link's Amiibo from Super Smash Bros., while Wolf Link's Amiibo for Twilight Princess HD allows you summon Wolf Link, and the wolf's health will be determined by the health you had in Twilight Princess HD. As for the other Amiibos, they unlock chests with rare items and a series of other objects, from fish to shields. Note that Amiibos can only be used once a day, however (here's a little tip though - register Epona in the stables to keep her in the game.)

How to unlock the Dark Link set
Do you remember Dark Link? The character itself is not in Breath of the Wild, but you can wear a set of armour in his honour. First you have to find Kilton, a vendor with several monster related items, including the complete set of Dark Link. To find him, visit the lower island on Skull Lake at night. After a short conversation, Kilton informs you that he will be close to the game's cities. When you find him again, you can access a series of items.

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The items that Kilton has available are linked to the number of bosses you have already defeated, and to have the Dark Link suit on sale you first need to defeat the four Divine Beasts. Another detail that should be taken into account is that Kilton doesn't accept Rupees, since he has his own currency - Mons. To win Mons you have to sell bits of monsters to Kilton, and the complete Dark Link suit can be purchased by 4,000 Mons. One last note - the suit increases Link's speed at night, but it cannot be improved on the Fairies, which means its defences will never be relevant.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

How to unlock Link's classic green set
Link is known for his traditional green suit, but where is this suit in Breath of the Wild? Well, there are actually several versions. To unlock the Breath of the Wild version of the suit, called Tunic of the Wild, you need to complete the 120 Shrines in the game. Then there are also versions inspired by other chapters in the saga, like Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, and the classic Zelda. It's speculated that these suits can be found in chests scattered around the world, and dropped by Amiibos. Unfortunately we can't prove this, but the tip remains anyway.

How to shield surf
Considering it's one of the most spectacular moves in the game, you'd expect Nintendo to inform you how to slide down the slopes with Link's shield, but that's not the case. The only way to find out how to do this through the game is by reading a random message on the loading screen, or just by trial and error, but don't worry, we'll teach you young Padawan.

To do the move, press ZL, jump (X), and then press the A button. Link will put the shield under his feet, but to actually slide you need to be on a slope. When you are sliding you can perform some actions, including jumping, gliding, and spinning with the attack button.

Where to find the Great Fairy Fountains
There are four Great Fairy Fountains in Breath of the Wild, and each one allows you to improve Link's gear. When you find them you need to pay Rupees to the fairies, but only once (it's actually 100, 500, 1,000, and 10,000 Rupees). After that you can upgrade the equipment whenever you want, as long as you have the necessary resources. In the pics below you can see the locations of the four Great Fairy Fountains marked with a red marker.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Where to find the Lost Memories
When Link wakes up early in the game, he is suffering from a severe case of amnesia, but at some point in the story he begins to recover some of his memories. The idea is to visit places where Zelda took pictures with the Sheikah Slate. In the images below you can see the locations of the 12 lost memories, highlighted with a red marker.

We hope these little revelations have helped you in your epic adventure into Breath of the Wild, but there are many more secrets to discover (we heard there's an island where you have to survive without gear, and an area covered in a thick black fog... and that's for starters). Explore, have fun and enjoy this fantastic game from Nintendo.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

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