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Discover the many, many secrets of Hyrule in Tears of the Kingdom. Here are 50 weird tidbits and tips you need to know.
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Tears of the Kingdom is a complex world of physics and features with only the bare minimum tutorials. You’ll have to figure out for yourself how to get the most out of the mechanics in the land of Hyrule — and with strange powers like Fuse, Ultrahand and Autobuild, you’re free to experiment in ways that are totally impossible in most games. This is a playground of experimentation, and there’s so much attention to detail, we had to share 50 weird features the game just doesn’t tell you at the start. Everything has to be discovered — NPCs and notes might explain some of these details, but there’s no guarantee you’ll find them even after 100 hours of gameplay.
There’s so much to discover in Tears of the Kingdom, we’re sure that you didn’t know every one of these weird obscure details. We could make a list of 100 weird features easily — there’s just so much, we’re barely scratching the surface. If you want to see what else can be done with Autobuild, how to defeat giant monsters easily, or how to unlock secret new melee techniques, check out the full list below. There are secret locations to share, weird ways to use your powers, and sneaky tricks to complete some of the hardest shrines with zero effort. There’s a lot to cover, so we’re keeping each entry brief — or as brief as possible for this truly incredible latest Legend of Zelda.
More Tears of the Kingdom guides:
All Shrine Locations & Solutions | All Skyview Towers Locations & Solutions | Best Healing Item Location | Rupee Farming Methods | Arrow & Bomb Farming Methods Zonaite Farming Methods | How To Get Cold Protection | How To Respec | How To Unlock Autobuild & Camera | How To Upgrade Armor | Great Fairy Locations | How To Upgrade Horses | Horse God Location | How To Unlock The Dream Home Plot | How To Easily Find Bubbul Gems | How To Unlock Gerudo Secret Club | Gleeok Boss Tips | Giant Horse Location | Hylian Shield Location | Glide Suit Locations | All Purah Pad Upgrades | All Misko’s Treasure Locations | All Divine Beast Mask Locations | Gloom-borne Illness Quest Guide
Features The Game Doesn’t Explain
- Shrines and Lightroots are linked in the Surface / Depths map. Locations of Shrines are mirrored by Lightroots in the Depths — by finding Shrines, you can easily track Lightroots in the Depths, or if you’ve found a Lightroot, you’ll know where to find a hidden Shrine on the Surface.
- Its easier to sneak when it is raining. The noise of the rain will drown out any noise you make. Use Puffshroom to create a cloud of smoke that makes sneaking easier or to escape.
- Drop any fruit or vegetable for a dog, and the dog will eat it. To thank you, the dog will lead you to a spot and dig up a treasure chest.
- Throw a Hylian Pine Cone into a fire to generate a powerful updraft. Attach a Korok Frond to a stick or any weapon to create gusts of wind.
- Hold (ZL), jump and press (A) with a Shield equipped to Shield Surf. This is only viable on snowy surfaces — unless you attach a wheeled Zonai Cart to your Shield with Fuse. Then you can skate forever.
- Carts aren’t the only thing you can attach to Shields. Any Zonai Device can be fused to Shields. Fans will blow enemies away. Rockets and Springs can launch you into the sky. Attach bramble or spikes to damage enemies that attack you.
- You can even Fuse a Minecart onto a Shield. This allows you to grind minecart track rails. That’s all its good for, but you can even swap rails mid-grind.
- To unlock a customizable mech mount, travel to the Faron Region in the southeast. Unlock the Popla Foothills Skyview Tower and glide into the Faron Sky. Inside the Thunderhead Isles — a perpetual lightning storm area — you can find the head of a Mech. Follow the green laser beam to fully construct it.
- You can customize your horse mane by earning Pony Points. For every horse you register or Stable you visit, you’ll earn +1 Pony Point. Earn enough pony points and you’ll be able to customize your horse further with new bridles, saddles and manes.
- A ridiculously giant horse is located in the south of the Faron Grasslands. Follow the road south of Highland Stable to reach the Horse God Bridge. Across the bridge in a box canyon, you’ll find the biggest horse in the game.
- Skeleton Horses can be mounted at the Sanidin Park Ruins. This area is at the base of Satori Mountain, across the river and west of Hyrule Field. You can mount literally anything in this game. Deer. Bears. Goats. You can ride all of them — but unfortunately you can’t keep any of these creatures in a stable.
- On Satori Mountain, look for a shrine on the east mountain face. At this shrine, you’ll find an abundance of apple trees. This area can be harvested every few in-game days for 150+ apples per run. Use the shrine to fast-travel back for infinite healing.
- Get infinite arrows by revisiting two shrines in the Tabantha Region — Makurukis Shrine near Tabantha Bridge Stable at Hyrule Ridge and Taunhiy Shrine on the sky island directly above. Both of these are ‘Archery’ training shrines. Every few days, the arrows will restock. Revisit both for x20 + x20 arrows for a total of x40 arrows.
- After completing one Regional Phenomenon, return to Lookout Landing and enter the Emergency Shelter. One of the walls will be busted open — crouch and enter to find a unique statue that allows you to respect Hearts or Stamina for 20 Rupees each.
- Complete the Election Quest in Hateno Village to unlock the ability to repurchase lost unique armor sets. Any armor set that can’t be purchased anywhere else will be available at the Hateno Village Armor Shop.
- Bargainer Statues in the Depths will sell unique weapons back to you. Any weapon that is one-of-a-kind can be re-purchased at a Bargainer Statue. The first Bargainer Statue is located at Lookout Landing. They trade in Poes — a resource only located in the Depths.
Secrets, Hidden Chests & Strange Locations
- Go to Hyrule Castle to acquire unique gear. In the Throne Room (Sanctum), light the two braziers near the throne with a torch to reveal a hidden chest that contains the Champion’s Leathers. These are an updated version of Link’s iconic gear from Breath of the Wild.
- Also in Hyrule Castle, drop down to the Docks area and light the brazier to find the Hylian Shield. This is the best shield in the game — don’t waste it.
- To complete the Lomei Labyrinths, you need to activate the Zonai Terminal in the center of the Surface maze, then travel to the Sky maze and activate four terminals. After using the fifth terminal, you’ll be prompted to dive down to the Surface and into the Depths. Down in the Depths, you’ll need to defeat a Flux Construct miniboss. Defeat it at all three locations to unlock a Gannon-themed armor set.
- The Yiga Headquarters can be infiltrated by acquiring three pieces of Yiga Armor. When worn, Yiga Clan members won’t attack Link. You can find the Yiga Clan bases at three locations: Akkala Ancient Tech Lab, Crenel Hills Cave (on Crenel Hills) and Whistling Hill Cave. At each location, you’ll find one piece of the Yiga Clan Set. At the Yiga Clan HQ, you’ll be able to learn a unique melee attack that only activates when you don’t have a weapon equipped. Learn more here.
Autobuild Tricks That Blew Our Minds
- Autobuild is unlocked by travelling to the Great Abandoned Central Mine underneath the Temple of Time in the Great Plateau — a large landmass on the southwest corner of Central Hyrule. Travel to the Depths and use the Construct to permanently unlock Autobuild.
- Autobuild is more than just an easy way to construct preloaded vehicles. You can also generate new vehicles with no resources at all. Doing this costs a small amount of Zonaite.
- Any useful material can be generated with Autobuild, just like Zonai Devices. Like anything else, it costs Zonaite to create. All you have to do is fuse two regular dropped items together, then it will appear in your Autobuild History.
- Fuse Bomb+Bomb for an infinite supply of bombs. Fuse Puffshroom+Dazzlefruit for a perfect deadly concoction that will confuse and stun enemies before a fight. Fuse Fire Fruit+Fire Fruit to instantly generate a blazing fire.
- And here’s one last tip. When using Ultrahand, press (ZR) to instantly reorient what you’re holding. It will automatically level itself with the ground. Who knew?
Weapon Tips & Tricks
- Almost every weapon on the Surface map is decayed. To find pristine weapons with bonus properties, you’ll need to explore the Depths. Ghostly stone pedestals are where you’ll find perfect Hylian Weapons that make much stronger bases for fusion.
- Spin left D-Pad to instantly perform a spin-attack. This is a much faster method than holding down attack to charge.
- If you Fuse one Weapon onto another Weapon (Weapon+Weapon) you’ll gain an extremely long-range weapon. The Fused Weapon will always break first, allowing you to Fuse your Base Weapon again. Rinse and repeat forever!
- Holding a weapon fused with a Fire Element will keep Link warm in snowy weather, while holding a weapon fused with an Ice Element will keep him cool in hot weather.
- Any weapon with a Fire Element fusion (Ruby, Fire-Breath Lizalfos Tails, etc) will melt ice blocks. You don’t even need to attack. Just stand near an ice block.
- Ancient Blades are a unique fusion that will kill most enemies in a single hit. The Ancient Blade will break in a single use, so they’re ideal for arrows. Enemies killed with Ancient Blades do not drop loot, so use them sparingly.
- Ancient Blades can be traded for after finishing the Spirit Temple quest. At the bottom of the Spirit Temple, a Construct will trade Ancient Blades for x50 Zoanite.
- Different monster parts will create different weapons. Lizalfos Horns make katanas. Boss Bokoblin Horns make large axes. Bokoblin Horns make spear tips. Sold Construct Horns make swords, while Horriblin HOrns make giant Hammers. Lizalfos Tails make whips! Experiment to see every type of weapon you can create by fusing parts.
Collectibles & Finding Them Easier
- To find Koroks easier, reach the area underground of the Korok Forest. In the Depths, there’s an area called the Forest Coliseum. Defeat the Black Hinox to earn the Korok Mask reward. This mask will shake when Koroks are nearby.
- To find Bubbul Gems easier, offer fruit at the small altar at any Cherry Tree. The pink trees always have a small bowl. Drop apples into the bowl, and a creature will appear — all caves containing a Bubbulfrog will glow with a blue pillar light.
- Complete the quests for Josha in Lookout Landing to unlock the Camera and Autobuild functions. After completing these quests, talk to Robbie (at Lookout Landing) and he’ll travel to the old lab in Hateno Village. Visit him and he’ll give you a Shrine Detector function to your Purah Pad.
Monsters & How To Beat Them
- Use a 2-Handed Weapon fused to a Rock deals double damage to any Talus. This also breaks ore deposits in a single swing.
- Enemies that throw explosives, rocks or other objects can be damaged with Recall. Send giant boulders flying back at a Talus!
- Ascend works on all large monsters. You can instantly climb a Battle Talus using this technique.
- The Lynel Bow fires three arrows at the same time. Add Keese Eyes to give arrows a homing power. Combining Lynel Bow with Keese Arrows makes defeating the three-headed Gleeoks much easier. The arrows will always auto-target their heads.
- Flux Constructs can be defeated by using Ultrahand. Grab and remove the large blocks until the structure completely collapses, stunning the monster.
- The best way to defeat Gloom Hands is with bomb arrows. Defeating a Gloom Hand will also lead to a Phantom Gannon world boss battle. Very good practice before facing the real Gannon.
- Enemies wielding wooden weapons will burn and drop their weapons. Enemies carrying metal weapons can be shocked — they’ll take extreme damage and instantly drop their weapon.
Weird Tricks & Everything Else
- Talk to the owner of the Armor Shop in Hateno Village. She’ll customize your Hylian Adventurer Hood — she can lower it or leave it raised. This is the only NPC in the game that will do this and she’ll only offer if you’re wearing the hood.
- Whistle isn’t just for your horse. Whistling also calls your summoned Sage companions back to you during a battle.
- The Zonai Device Pot isn’t just a pot — when building, it can serve as a ball joint.
- Bomb Arrows will activate circle targets. If you need to activate a shrine with a rolling ball, try using a Bomb Arrow instead.
- If you wear one of the hidden Divine Beast Helms, the summoned Sage will wear their Ancient Mask. This only works when wearing the mask matching each species.
- You can still use a Gloom Sword without taking Gloom damage. Drop the Gloom Sword and fuse it onto any other weapon. You’ll get the damage boost without infecting yourself.
- You can dye Link’s hair at Hateno Village. The Dye Shop normally only dyes outfit colors — but any outfit with Link’s hair exposed can be dyed to change his hair color.
And that’s 50 (!?) weird features, secret items, hidden methods and fun little things you can do in Tears of the Kingdom. What did we miss? There’s a lot left to discuss. Like what’s stated above, we could easily write up 50 more tips.
