Beach Blanket Bokoblins

Here it is folks, my last entry. Maybe just for now, maybe forever. I really did love writing this blog, but it just became so time consuming and taxing, having to replay everything I've already done and take all the screenshots. I haven't even played this game in over a year, except to take screenshots for this blog! Still, this was a fun writing project, and I will use the skills I learned here as I pursue other projects. But, I'm not done writing about video games yet! I just need to broaden my focus. So, I hope you will enjoy reading my new blog, about video games and pop culture: The Woebegone Golem. New posts start January 7th!

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I eventually give up on solving the mystery of the three trees. I will be back though! The hills I’ve been following don’t go on much further, so I glide back down to the main path once I near Dueling Peaks. When I reach the stable proper, I nab a few more things for my camera - animals, a few ingredients - before warping back to Hateno Village - specifically the Tech Lab. Before I head back to Kakariko, there’s a few more things to finish up around here.

Hateno Ancient Tech Lab

That's a lot of water. 

I chose here and not further into town because the things that need taking care of are all outside of town, and we are going to start by taking care of those sheep rustling monsters. I head down the path from the lab until I reach the point it forks to the left, leading to the beach.

As the path winds down the mountainside, I can see Hateno Beach and Bar below me. I see what looks like an enemy encampment - looks like that is where the sheep rustlers are based - and far off in the center of the bay, the orange glow of a shrine. I pull out my scope just to be sure. Yep! There are a few other oddities in the bay. I see a strange rock formation with a large flock of birds hovering above, and even more outcroppings along the coastline that will require exploring.

The path turns to the left, running north for a short while until it reaches a small pond with a waterfalls, surrounded by trees. In the center of the pond is a lilypad ring, which also means a Korok. I backtrack a little, there’s a short cliff I can climb to reach above the waterfall so I can dive in. Well, hover over and drop in. Korok Seed please!

Hateno Beach

I continue following the winding path down the mountain until I am let out at the beach. Hateno Bay stretches wide before me, a bokoblin encampment to the left, the shrine and strange rock formation to the right. Along the coastline I see what appears to be a Lizafos? But it’s tan. The same color as the sand. Since they all seem to resemble chameleons in this game...it must be hiding? Or trying to hide. I ignore it for now, breaking to the left towards the camp.

I find another new ingredient/critter scurrying across the beach - Crabs! I find two main varieties, there’s the red Ironshell Crab, which raises defense, and the blue Razorclaw Crab, which raises attack. Though living, I think they count as seafood similar to fish, and so should be cooked with food instead of potion ingredients.

That's a lot of 'blins

As I near the camp, I can see that it’s a busy one. Really busy. I move from the beach into the grass, giving the blin’s a wide berth so that that they don’t see me as I approach. There’s a set of hills nearby I can hide behind that are close enough that I can make out the details of the camp’s inhabitants.

I count a total of EIGHT bokoblins or all colors, including a a couple of new and presumably more powerful Black Bokoblins, the real ones. There’s also a Blue Moblin in attendance, but he’s the only one. I can see two sheep being kept in some sort of pen, which I assume are Koyin’s. Surprised they’re smart enough to build something like that, frankly.

This isn’t going to be an easy fight. There’s a ton of enemies, some very high level, and little to no cover for me to take once I get in there. It’s late in the afternoon, night will fall soon, so I decide to wait and use that to my advantage. Most of them should fall asleep, hopefully giving me at least a little bit of an advantage.

A few in-game hours after he sun goes down, all but two of the blin’s are asleep. The two who are awake aren't even acting like lookouts, they're just dancing around a campfire. I know I won’t be able to sneak up and murder all of them in their sleep, so let’s just start with the biggest guy: the mobilin.

Headshot!

I sneak close to the sleeping Moblin, waiting for the Sneakstrike command to pop up. After I land the blow, I continue to attack him with my club, reducing him to black ash and moblin parts. Unfortunately, in the commotion I also woke up and alerted all the remaining bokoblins. Retreat!

I move back so that I’m not in the middle of the group, doing my best to attack them from a distance as they approach. They have their own archers though, and I take a few arrows in the side when I’m trying to focus on the nasty black fucker in front of me. This is not an easy or pretty fight. I’m surrounded by 3 bokoblins, one black and two blue, and there’s one or two more still in the fort trying to hit me with arrows. I try to focus on the weaker enemies and using weapons that can fling them away, get some distance between us. I nearly lose it and end up having to eat some of my prepared food when I get close to death, but I manage to take out the bokoblins accosting me on foot.

Apologies to the palm trees destroyed as collateral damage.

That just leaves two more bokoblins, one heading towards me on foot with a spear, and a much weaker red one firing arrows at me from the fort. Still dodging arrows, I take out the last blue bokoblin and run up the ramp and knock out the last one. As his body disintegrates into monster parts, the nearby chest is unlocked - holding inside a Ruby. I also get the notification that my quest log has been updated. The sheep are free to go!

Before I go back to town to complete the quest, I want to finish exploring down here. This is as far east as I seem to be able to go, and I can see on the map a few nearby areas that warrant some investigating. It starts raining as I finish exploring the strip of land I’m on, though I don’t find much else beyond more crabs until I head towards the southern end. There, what do I find but a yellow Korok flower! I touch it, and watch as it jumped from the shore to a nearby rock in the water. It continues to bounce around rocks along the shoreline until finally, the white flower appears on the largest rock, netting me another Korok Seed.

Deepback Bay

Heading around the coastline, I see a boat docked on the beach. That’s convenient. As I head towards it, I am attacked not once, but twice by a trio of enemies. The first is a set of giant blue Chus, which I am happy are not any of the elemental variety. The second appears to be a trio of small Stone Taluses. Tali? I dunno, but they're called Pebblits and I use my sledgehammer to reduce them to rubble. When I'm finished, I continue to the raft and hop aboard and use my korok leaf to blow me across the bay. I wish I had a more exciting story to tell you, but I don’t. I exit Deepback Bay almost as fast as I entered it.

Mapla Point

On this new coastline I find more crabs, and I stock up. They seem like they count as fish for food, rather than a potion ingredient, so I can see making a lot of useful recipes out of them. I round the corner to Mapla Point proper, seeing a large shallow pool of water nestled among the rocky hills.

I should have gotten three different seeds for this one.

In front of that shallow pool, however, is a very obvious Korok puzzle: a ring of stones. This one, however, is missing not one but three. I have to do a little hunting - the stones aren’t in obvious places, and there are also exactly three of them. The three empty spots are all on different sides of the circle, so I use that as a hint, exploring in each direction of the hole. Doesn’t take too long before my new Korok buddy shows up and gives me another Korok Seed.

From the stone circle, I find a second Korok puzzle - another yellow flower to chase. This one starts on the right side of the point, atop a rocky hill. From there, it leads me up the east end of the rocky hills surrounding the pool, before finally giving up my 45th Korok Seed.

And from there, I spot yet another Korok puzzle - this time a pinwheel on top of a rocky outcropping just north of where I am. It stands at the center of the pool making up Mapla Point. It’s not a far climb from where the white flower and Korok lead me to. Once there and with ym bow out, three balloons appear and begin to rotate around me. Not nearly as annoying as the last one of these I did. Only takes me three shots and bam, 46th Korok Seed.

From my spot atop Mapla Point, I look out into the ocean to the east. I see islands in the distance, though I suspect that I would hit na invisible wall long before I made it there. Slightly more to the south appears to be an island I could actually swim too, however. Probably a few fun things to discover there in the future.

Maybe she's mad that I killed her babies earlier?

I look down into the pool of water, which is filled with any number of rocks and boulders. And what do you know, another Korok puzzle. This one is a simple lilypad circle in the water, so after angling myself, I leap from the outcropping and pull out my glider. Then I am myself to be sitting above the circle, and drop the glider. Fall, splash, Korok Seed!

Well, that was quite the Korok hunting expedition. I swim towards shallow water so I can exit the pool, ready to move south now. Then I wander too close to one of the giant boulders down here.

Oh goddamnit. Another fucking Talus.

---

Heart Containers: 5
Shrines Completed: 11
Koroks Found: 41
Sheep: No longer rustled
Deepback Bay: Not very deep
Mapla Point: A good place for Koroks and ROCK MONSTERS

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Well Now I Have to Take Pictures of Everything - Screenshot Roundup 71

In Which I Am a Backtracking Shutterbug

I walk into the lab after warping in, moving to Symin in the back. I hand over the three sunshrooms as requested, and in return he gives me 3 Hearty Truffles. He asks if I liked using the Sheikah Sensor+, and then also let’s me know he has something else he wants to talk to me about, when I have a chance.

Wait, is she making rocker hands?

No time like the present, my dude! He says he’s found another way to help my search for stuff with the Sensor. He again goes over how I can use pictures to blahblahblah. Then he asks me to put my Slate back on the Guidance Stone. Even Purah is in the dark about what he’s about to do, but wants to see it anyway so she allows it. (Snap!)

Rather than a rune or an upgrade, a picture is added to my Hyrule Compendium - this one is for Mighty Bananas, something I haven’t found in the wild yet (heh). Apparently, Symin discovered that it’s possible to recover pictures that were in the compendium in the past. Which they will be happy to do for me...for a nominal fee. I mean, that’s cool but I think I’ll enjoy taking these pictures myself. In fact… It probably wouldn’t hurt to fill in what I can right now, right? Then It’ll be easier to keep updated as I go along.

Time for a quick trip back to the Great Plateau! It won’t take too long, just enough to grab shots of the enemies and items that I can, then I’ll make the walk down to Dueling Peaks Stable, and then I’ll warp back here. Anything on the Kakariko-Hateno path I can grab on my way back to Impa. Actually that reminds me, I have another side quest I can complete now, I should be able to find a Traveler’s Sword somewhere on the plateau.

---

Back back back again...

The Great Plateau

I don’t find a single Traveler’s Sword on the plateau. Not a single one. Did the ones i found earlier all come from chests? I scour the plateau, hitting all of the Bokoblin camps I can remember, but none of them are carrying one. Sigh.

I work quickly though, cataloging things as I search. I learnt hat while you can add enemies, you cannot add the parts they drop. The same is true for animals. But the Compendium lists what each creature can drop, so you essentially are still able to hunt down anything you need, you just have to find the thing to kill for it first.

I also learn, entirely by accident, that you can take selfies! You can even have Link make a number of different poses using the left thumb stick. And even more when you hit the ZL button, for a total of nine. I screw around a little with it, taking pictures of my equipment for the Compendium while having Link make any number of ridiculous poses.

Once I’m finished there, I make my way down the path through the East Post and Outpost Ruins. I take pictures of the Moblins and a few other ingredients and items I couldn’t find on the plateau. Bugs and other critters prove particularly difficult, since the camera requires you to be fairly close for the picture to register, even with the zoom.

In an attempt to capture some of these creatures on camera, I wandered a bit far from the path, ending up southeast of Outpost Ruins on a small hill. A hill with a boulder on it that I don’t think twice about… until it starts moving, revealing itself to be a Talus. That makes three. This one looks different from the last two though - instead of a normal Ore Deposit weak point, this one appears to have a Luminous Stone Deposit sticking out of it’s back. It also has the subtitle (Luminous) after it’s name, if that wasn’t clear. Didn’t realize these could have subtypes!

Oww.

Before the fight gets going, I snap a picture of it for my compendium - it registers different to the one on the plateau that I snapped a picture of not too long ago. Similar to the different colored bokoblins and moblins, they are considered different creatures. Incidentally, I also learned that the bokoblins I’ve been referring to as black are in fact blue.

This fight seems more difficult to my tumbles with the last two taluses. I don’t know if it has higher defense or HP, but it’s health bar seems to be going down much slower than them. His weak point is also placed in something of an odd location, directly on the center of it’s back, and I end up relying on my bombs more than I do arrows to know it over. But, when it’s knocked to the ground I can nail him head on with a sledgehammer pretty easily.

It’s a more difficult fight then I care to admit to - he actually even killed me once, forcing me to start the battle over upon reloading - but I eventually manage to take him down in a nice explosion of Luminous Stones, Flint, and even a Diamond! I mark my map with a skull to mark the location of the Talus for future reference.

With THAT adventure down, I should get moving again...right after I explore that building I now see just a little further southeast of here, on a place called Scout’s Hill.

Scout’s Hill

This game really needs a photo mode. So creepy/beautiful.

There’s not much, just a solitary building/ruin, but it seems like it was important enough to label in fairly large letters on the map… oh well. It’s nice up here, peaceful. I would be very, very curious to see a version of this Hyrule with all the buildings still in tact. It would be a very different game. I also find a lone rock in the middle of the ruin. Korok!

There’s nothing else here for me to do, I suppose. I could hang out with my Korok buddy? Nah. I pull out my scope and scan the horizon for anything interesting. There’s plenty to the south and west, but for now I’m sticking to portions of the map that are uncovered - I’ve got enough to do as it is.

I see a few things across the river that could be interesting, but nothing that wouldn’t require some off-the-path climbing. So instead, I glide towards Proxim bridge, following down the Hylia River, name so because it seems to empty into Lake Hylia to the south. I can’t quite make the distance to the bridge and land on a beach just south of it - and right next to another Korok puzzle. It’s a Magnesis puzzle, so I switch runes and make the two sets of blocks match and get my Korok Seed.

...I could crush you so easily...

I climb up the beach hills, intending to walk my way back around to the path. Purely out of habit, looking for bugs or critters hiding under rocks, I grab one just up the first hill. And it reveals another Korok. This brings my Korok Seed total to 40!

After that little surprise, I notice a small Bokoblin camp on another beach just below me ahead. Been a little while since I’ve seen one of these I haven’t already slaughtered! They’re all red boys, so it’s not a difficult or long fight - and bokoblins still can’t swim, so with a few well placed swings, they are all quickly down for the count. I open a nearby chest to obtain an Opal, which I am happy to replenish my gemstone stores with.

This was intensely satisfying.

Standing on this small peninsula the bokoblins made camp on, I can see...something under Proxim Bridge. And even looking at the map, I looks like there’s a sandbar, or at least shallow enough water for me to stand under one of the awnings. Should be able to swim there from here…

It’s another Korok. Damn dudes, that’s like, four of them in a row. Now if I could just locate Hestu to spend them…

Hills of Baumer

Rather then continue on the path I’ve already traveled, I decide to follow along the hilltops to the south. I had already been up here once, avoiding the boulder traps as I navigated up the large fallen logs. This time I just climb up the old fashioned way. I can see a huge swamp to the south, just littered with burnt out buildings. It’s very tempting to explore down there...but I hold off.

...Jesus Christ is that another Korok? I see an orange pinwheel on one of the hills rocky peaks. As I approach and pull out my bow, three balloon targets burst into existence, and immediately begin to move about in a confusing pattern. Never easy with these guys. I waste about half a dozen arrows, lost to the swamp below, but I nail all three balloons and get my 5th Korok Seed in a row, bringing me to a total of 41.

WHAT THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH YOU!?

I continue along the hilltops further, passing by the Korok I found over here earlier, happily chilling in his spot on the giant logs. A few more hilltops over and I find another oddity. Three trees, all lined up perfectly. Two of the trees hold only a single apple, while the third holds many. Even the two trees that have the single apple have them in the exact same location. Hmm. This has to be a puzzle, right?

But what? First, I try picking all the apples. Nope. Maybe the apples make some kind of arrow that I just can’t see from this angle? I try firing off arrows in the direction it would be pointing, nothing. Oh! Maybe I have to throw a boomerang around all three trees? Nope, nothing, and I almost lost my boomerang too. Finally, I try cutting the trees down, starting with the one that held the most apples. And still nothing happens.

Sigh.

I hate Koroks.

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Heart Containers: 5
Shrines Completed: 11
Koroks Found: 41
Symin: Sunshroomed
Traveler’s Swords: Lost to the ether
Korok Puzzles: Frustrating as all hell

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Sunshrooms & Grasshoppers is a Good Name for an Indie Band

Alright, it’s upgrade time! First up is the Sheikah Sensor. I tell Purah that I have the three Ancient Screws she requires, and after giving her a hearty “SNAP!” she unlocks the Guidance Stone in the lab. After inserting the Slate, I receive the first upgrade: the Sheikah Sensor+. What this does is allow me to change the sensor to help me locate any item in the Hyrule Compendium...although that’s empty right now so I’m not sure how useful it is just yet.

Never gets old.

After the upgrade is complete, Symin speaks up, interested in seeing the upgrade himself. Purah asks me to show him once I have a chance. First, let’s take care of the second upgrade: Remote Bombs+! After handing over three Ancient Shafts and another “SNAP!” I insert the Slate into the Guidance Stone again. With this upgrade, my bombs are now stronger and recharge faster.

The final upgrade requires three Ancient Cores and I don’t have any of those. Purah said I can collect parts from the broken down Guardians, but I suspect those I might have to get from the still active ones, as I haven’t found a single one otherwise. Yaaaay. But I bet that Stasis upgrade is worth it. I’ll be back, tiny woman!

With that done for now, I step over to Symin to show him the Sheikah Sensor+. As mentioned when I made the you're, he says that i can use it combination with the Camera rune to track down items. An what better way to learn this then through a side quest?

 Sunshroom Sensing

Well that's just begging to be explored.

Symin wants me to take a picture of a Sunshroom and show it to him. There should be one just behind the lab outside. I step out the back door, bringing me to what looks like a small wheat field these two must use to grow their food. A pitchfork stands against the building nearby. I also notice a winding staircase tucked away behind the now-lit furnace, leading up. The sunshroom isn’t going anywhere, so let’s see what’s upstairs.

On the way up, I take note of several oddities along the way. A lot of cute little world building pieces, telling the story of the tech lab without actually telling you the story. The first thing I notice is the decorated statue placed above the doorway. I didn’t give it much thought before, but now I see that they’ve decorated it, adding glasses that looks like Purah’s and an umbrella. Cute.

Next up is a LARGE telescope. I can’t look through it or interact with it, though there is a comically small ladder I can use without even needing to hit a button. It looks as though it’s pointed west, towards the Great Plateau. Perhaps watching the Shrine of Resurrection for signs of life?

Further up the stairs and I reach a bedroom. know it is a bedroom, because there is a bed. However, there isn’t anything else in here except papers and books. Could belong to either of them. Just a little further up and I’m at the top. There’s a deck and another door, surrounded by what else but guardian parts. In fact, on the roof of a building is an entire decayed guardian, covered in moss.

Of course you haunt me even here.

I ignore the door for now - I’m climbing up that dead guardian first. It’s a little awkward, the angle of the roof over the walls makes it hard to find a way to climb up. I have to move around to the side of the building before I can find a decent spot Link can grip. Once I’m climbing up the actual guardian I can see my urge to ascend was the right one: there is a Korok hiding at the top of this building, the leaf cloud shimmering in the wind. I finish the climb and interact with the cloud, releasing another Korok, bringing my Korok Seed total to 37.

I hop back down to the deck and enter the door. It’s another bedroom! Messier than the last one, with a small desk at the center, and a book I can read. It’s Purah’s Diary, and as she told me downstairs, it contains the story of how she came to look like a child. It’s hard to nail down exact dates, but it seems to be at least a few years old, written over the course of 7 days. Purah was working on an anti-aging rune, believing that by making making everyone younger, they would have a strong enough defense for when Ganon inevitably returns again.

At first it seemed like it hadn’t worked, causing Purah to suddenly become fatigued and feverish, nearly passing out until the next day. Turns out she did get the rune working, at first appearing to go from age 120 (holy crap how old do Sheikah get How old is Impa?!) to her 50s on day 2. And then to her 30s by day 3. Apparently that was around the age Purah was when she first began her research into the Great Calamity, and when she first began working on expanding the functionality of the Sheikah Slate and it’s runes, preparing them for Link’s awakening (heh) from the Slumber of Restoration.

...But it didn’t stop there. On day 4 she hit her 20s. Day 5 her teens. And then finally by day 6, she looked like she was 6 years old, where she seems to have remained. And it wasn’t just her looks that were affected, her emotional state also seems to match her age, and of course, she gets to deal with all those pesky hormones again. Poor girl.

It's only weird to be doing this if you forget she's not
really a little girl.

There are some other interesting details here too. For one, Purah seems to have created a lot of the Sheikah Slate upgrades herself, and she kept working until the blue flame went out. There were a couple of attempts at getting it relit, but between rain and people in the village, they ran into problems. Also, Link was apparently the youngest knight ever to be appointed to the Imperial Guard. Purah seems to have been rather protective of Link. I guess they would have been around the same age at the time of the Calamity. Wait how old is Impa exactly!?

That’s all there is to do here, so let’s take a picture of that sunshroom now. I head back down the stairs, this time going around to the back of the lab. I spot it, an orange mushroom, against the back wall. I pull out my new Camera rune and snap a quick picture. After saving it, I see the slot for Sunshroom in the Hyrule Compendium is now filled in with the photo I took. Nifty. The quest is updated, now directing me back to Symin.

I head back inside and talk to Symin, who asks to see my slate. He sees that I took the picture, and now tells me that I can go into the compendium and tune the Sheikah Sensor to it, allowing me to track sunshrooms, or anything else I take pictures of. I flip through the pages of the compendium, only having filled in the one item it is totally empty. I can see sections for animals, monsters, equipment, and treasure.

My completionist ass is torn between loving that I get to fill this out to hating that I have to fill this out.

I both love and hate you for this, Symin.

Quest isn’t done yet though, Symin would like me to retrieve Three Sunshrooms for him. I grabbed the one I took a picture of outside already, so that’s one down. He tells me I should be able to find more in Restam Forest, which thankfully is right below the lab to the north. I go ahead and tune the Sheikah Sensor to sunshrooms, though I doubt I will have many problems. Brb, Symin.

I head out the front door this time, walking in the direction of the farm and Restam Forest, which lie just beyond the cliffs leading up to the lab. I float down on my paraglider, landing in the center of the forest I had just been hunting deer in earlier. The sensor immediately picks up on nearby sunshrooms. Though to be perfectly honest, there are enough mushrooms and other ingredients in the forest that it’s a little useless. Every tree seems to have something at its base. I very quickly locate the two sunshrooms needed, and turn off the sensor.

Welp, don’t need anything else so after I gather a few more ingredients, I start the walk back to the lab. As I walk along the edge of lake Sumac, I can see some bugs hopping around the grass. Oh crap, that’s right. I still need to find a few more grasshoppers for Manny!

This would be handier if I remembered to use it.

I swap into my stealth outfit, and carefully approach the grasshopper. But rather then catch it, I pull out my Camera rune: This way I can find the remaining 3 I need, ha. It takes me a few minutes of wandering around the grass plains around the farm, but I soon have the bugs needed. Woo! Okay, I float down the cliffside, landing in front of Manny and handing over my grasshoppers. He thought I was just messing with him. Well no, *I’m* not messing with you, dude, but… What’s that? You wanna give me a Silver Rupee? Nope, I didn’t say anything.

With that done, I start the long trek back up the mountainside to the tech lab and Symin.

Then I remember I can fast travel there now.

---

Heart Containers: 5
Shrines Completed: 11
Koroks Found: 37
Bombs and Sensor: Upgraded
Sunshrooms and Grasshoppers: Located
Purah & Impa: Apparently Fucking Ancient

Returning... and Then Taking an Indefinite Hiatus

I know the title probably speaks for itself, but I still wanted to explain a bit of what is going on. First off, I have fully recovered from my car accident. It took a lot more out of me then I thought, but I am back to feeling like my old self now. However, in the interim, I was able to work and think about a few other projects, and it lead me to a realization:

I haven't been having much fun writing this blog lately.

Most of that is my own fault. I had the idea for this blog close to when I started the game, but I didn't actually start it until I had already cleared about 1/4 of the map, fully. I haven't actually played this game in over half a year, I've just been replaying stuff I've already done on a second account so I can take screenshots. I'm not even 1/4 of the way caught up to where I actually am in game. It's exhausting at times.

So, I am moving on to greener pastures, so to speak. I will be posting the remaining entries I have for this blog, three, and then I will be launching a new gaming blog, The Woebegone Golem. It'll be more general, allowing me to write about whatever games I played that week, and who knows what other ideas might come to me. This blog will continue to exist, and I may even come back to it one day. I plan to record my Zelda adventures when I pick the game back up, and who knows, maybe one day I'll come back and fill in the gaps!

Thanks for reading, and I hope you'll keep on reading when my new blog launches.

All three of you.

Taking a Break!

For the few of you who actually read this, just wanted to note that due to a car accident, I will be taking a temporary hiatus from this blog until August. See you then!

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I leave the...happy family at the farm as I hike even further up into the mountains. There are seemingly no further points of interest between here and there, save for what appears to be a path down to the beach (and the sheep rustlers). Almost there!

Shouldn't you be in school?

But it turns out I’m still not actually alone. As I near the final bends in the path to the lab, I see two small children, each posted at different spots, looking up at the tech lab. Ah, so this is where a lot of the rumors in town are coming from. Azu and Sefaro, between talking to each other, both tell me of the young girl seen coming in and out of the lab. Does seriously no one ever go up there just to say hi? You’re neighbors! Nosy ass children…

I pass through a field, and I can see the path fork to the southeast, leading to the beach, or north, up a winding cliff to the lab. The beach can wait. As I make my way up the cliff, I take a moment to read the many signs placed on the approach. No solicitors, mind the lanterns, and enter at my own risk. Got it. Also, it’s good to know those tan structures I saw all around town are lanterns.

Hateno Ancient Tech Lab

I finally approach the building itself and see the name pop up on the screen. It only took me what, two months of writing to get to this point? I don’t waste any more time and enter the building.

This place is...nice?

Inside is...a mess. Seriously, a disaster area. Or a college student’s dorm. There are books and papers everywhere, strewn all over the floor, stacked against the walls, falling off tables. It’s giving me anxiety just looking at it.

Other than the hoarder-levels of documents everywhere, I also see what looks like a Sheikah pedestal in one corner of the room. The same kind that granted me the four Runes, unlocks shrines, and fills in my map at the top of the Sheikah Towers. There are also two people in Sheikah robes, presumably hard at work as neither has noticed my entrance.

I approach the first person, a young girl - obviously the young girl who is the talk of the town. Wow, they really weren’t kidding. I thought young just meant like, a teenager and it was a bunch of older dues being weird. But no she looks like she’s ten, tops. Purah, hearing that I wish to speak with the director of the lab, points me to the other individual in the room, standing against the back wall. They are very busy however, and she asks that I keep my talk with him brief. Thanks!

I head back to speak with the lab’s director, Symin. He tells me that they've gathered all of the book in Hyrule that are about ancient civilizations. Then he notices my Sheikah Slate, and asks to see the Runes. He says I’m missing the Basic Runes. I’m totally down with more powers!

He introduces himself, and let's me know he already knows who I am - Impa has already spoken to him. ...How? I know I took a few detours but I still basically went from there to here. Carrier pigeon? Sheikah magic? Whatever. Then he introduces me to the director. Huh? Purah is? The fuck? I turn back around to see a laughing Purah.

I love a good joke...
but you know we're trying to save the world, right?

Okay she’s pretty adorable. But why is she a kid? Symin says it’s her story to tell, so I go and ask. We talk. And there's a lot to talk about. Purah is the person who put me/Link to sleep in the Shrine of Restoration after I was almost killed in Ganon’s attack. She seems surprised by my memory loss, and takes down some notes to that effect.

As for why she looks like a ten year old, all she’ll tell me is that it is the result of a failed experiment and that if I want to know more I can read her journal on the subject. There are more pressing matters at hand: restoring all the functions of my Sheikah Slate so that I can rescue Zelda!

She needs me to run an errand first, of course. I need to bring a Blue Flame up from the Ancient Furnace in town, to light their own furnace up here. I’m guessing this was the glowing blue object I saw earlier in the distance. Once I light the furnace up here, Purah can use the Guidance Stone (Finally know what those are called) to restore my missing runes.

I grab a torch on the floor before heading back outside. I pull out my scope and get my eyes on the furnace. It looks like it's a clear shot from here to there on my glider. I jump from the cliff and begin my descent, the hills and cliffs passing under me. I land right in front of the furnace, just outside of the town's borders near a small pond.

Zelkoa Pond

It’s definitely sheikah. It looks like a set of blue bombs, or even bag, all larger than Link. Made of stone or metal, they are covered in the intricate designs that line the walls of the shrines and towers. At the front of them is a smaller pedestal with a blue flame pouring forth. My target.

...Why didn't they just build the tech lab next to the furnace?

I pull out my torch and light the flame with a whoosh. That was easy enough. I make my way back into town, torch in hand. Starting from the town entrance, I light each torch as I come across them, leaving a trail of flicker blue light in my wake. There are quite a few of the, I wonder if anything happens if I light them all?

Most of the torches are easy to find, out in the open in obvious spots in town. But a few are more tucked away, out on the far edge of a field or across a river I can only get to from a certain angle. The further into town I go, the trickier they are to spot, but I finally think I have them all once I am back on the final ramp up the the tech lab. I light what I believe the be the final torch on the way to the top, finally ending by lighting the lab’s furnace. This activates both the Guidance Stone inside and the Travel Gate outside - I’ve got a second warp in to Hateno.

I didn’t see anything else triggered by the torches - maybe I missed one. I check around, maybe they’re just decoration - so I head inside to speak with Purah. She thanks me and points out the Guidance Stone not that it’s been activated. She instructs me to insert my slate and get the repairs started.

*BWOHM*

The stone informs me that I am missing the Camera, Hyrule Compendium, and some album files. It starts the repair...which is the same thing as when I get a new map or got the original runes, a drop of glowing water hitting the slate. I see the final rune square after Cryonis has been filled in, now known as the camera. Then I see a set of pictures that have already been taken, and then what I presume is the empty compendium.

Once the repairs are complete, Purah is speaking to me again. Going over the new runes, she first walks me through using the Camera, first by taking a picture of herself. Simple enough. I show it to her when I’m done, and she explains to me that the images already in the album must have been taken by Zelda 100 years ago.

She thinks that if I were to go to each of these locations, it might help restore some of my lost memories! She’s sending me back to Impa in Kakariko, she knew Zelda best and will be able to help me further. She also would like me to gather some ancient materials and bring them back, either to her or to Robbie at the Akkala Tech Lab. That’s the second mention of Akkala now, and I’m pretty sure I heard someone mention Robbie in Kakariko.

What's that? You want me to try and destroy giant Hylian
hunting robots for their scraps? Sure no problem.

 Slated for Upgrades

That actually triggers not one but two quests! In the first, I can upgrade my Stasis or Remote Bomb runes, or the Sheikah Sensor that helps me locate shrines. Stasis will cost me three Ancient Cores, Remote Bombs are three Ancient Shafts, and the sensor requires three Ancient Screws. Ha! Except for the Cores, I already have enough to upgrade Stasis and the Bombs.

 Robbie’s Research

This quest is less obvious. I know Robbie is another Sheikah researcher, with a lab based in the Akkala region. I’ve got another quest in that area, that’s where Bolson sent Hudson after they finished work on my house. The map has both quest markers far to the north, so I don’t think I’ll be completing these anytime soon, but at least I’ll be able to take care of them together. For now though, there’s still plenty to do before I even head back to Kakariko.

Let’s see what other messes I can clean up around here.

---

Heart Containers: 5
Shrines Completed: 11
Koroks Found: 36
Children: Nosy
Blue Flame: Flaming?
Purah: TBD

For a Big Farm You Don't Seem to Be Growing Any Crops - Screenshot Roundup 66

WHY WON'T YOU LET ME PET THE DOGS NINTENDO?! - Screenshot Roundup 65

I Think The Lack of Oxygen Is Making You All Crazy

I cross another bridge, leading me under an archway and up a path that winds up into the mountains. I pass a number of houses, buildings, and other villagers along the way. First I meet a young girl name Karin, who tells me again about the young girl she saw coming out of the tech lab. There are a lot of nosy people in this village. Why doesn’t someone just go up there and talk to her?

The face of a woman who desipises her husband.

Most of the houses are empty, though I do find another recipe poster inside one, this one for a poster requiring a Hightail Lizard and a Bokoblin Horn. the windmills turning but what they are milling, I couldn’t tell you. In one home I find a man named Reede, who is...sleeping in the middle of the day. Apparently he works nights somewhere in town. No idea doing what. Further up the mountain I meet Ralera. She moved here from a place called Lurelin Village in the south after she married her husband. Oh! She is married to Reede, and together they watch the windmills. She watches during the day, and he watches at night. That seems...really detrimental to your marriage guys. Like you literally would never see each other. You aren’t sleeping together, literally ever.

What do you need to watch a windmill for anyway? Why does that require sitting on a hill all day and night? Maybe you guys are just trying to avoid your problems. You can’t run from your marital issues, people. After finishing our chat, she also points me in the direction of the tech lab. Don’t really have anywhere else to go, but thanks.

*backs away slowly*

Finally, what seems to be the last building on the mountain climb to the tech lab is a large farm and Hateno Pasture. Sitting on a stool near the entrance is an old man, Tokk, who seems more exasperated than anything when he has to talk to me. Again, he points me to the lab. Thanks Tokk, been a load of fun.

Up ahead I see a woman mumbling to herself about how “They’ll all pay!” Well you seem stable and safe to talk to. Koyin here is referring to the monsters down on Hateno Beach stealing her sheep - she must be the person who wrote on the notice board earlier. She asks for my help directly, triggering yet another side-quest.

 The Sheep Rustlers

Seems to be more direct than a lot of the other side-quests I’ve gotten recently. There’s a spot on the map near the coastline just south of the village that I’ll need to head to. After I get to that fucking lab.

I approach the pasture, which stretches wide in front of me. The entire plain is on a cliff overlooking the rest of the village and the valley. I can see pretty much everything here. Including this odd looking blue-flaming object just outside of the city. Hmm.

*sobbing uncontrollably* YOU ARE THE BEST BOY

There are dozens of sheep and cows, and even a couple of dogs to play with! I immediately forget what I’m doing to spend the next few minutes giving them all my attention. A few dropped apples later, and one of them beckons for me to follow, leading to me to another buried chest, this one containing Silver Rupee. Could have used that earlier, boy.

...you’re still a good boy though…

Before I wander too deep around the grounds of the farm here, I talk to the last person here I have yet to speak to, Dantz. He’s in one of the hay stalls, working away at carrying for all these animals. This is probably the biggest farm in the village and the only one with any livestock now that I think about it.

He guesses that I am a wanderer when he speaks to me. To be fair, it’s not as if there are a ton of humans even left in the world so any new face that isn’t a baby is probably not from around these parts. He needs help, the local deer population in nearby Retsam Forest has grown out of control and they need to be culled, and he's willing to pay me. Lucky for him I AM indeed handy with a bow, so I agree to help him. Never turn down a side-quest.

I'm plopped right in the middle of the forest after agreeing. It's not a side-quest at all, it's a mini-game! I have one minute to take out as many deer as I can, and Dantz will pay me for it when I'm done. I'll have to provide my own bow and arrows. Sounds like a deal.

SO MUCH MEAT

Dantz wasn’t kidding, as soon as I have control of the camera again I swivel around and see a ton of deer in the woods around me. The timer is ticking, so I get to it. As soon as I begin moving, the nearby bucks raise their heads, pausing only a moment before taking off.

Should have worn the stealth suit.

The timer is still ticking, so I keep moving, just a little slower now. The deer are rather resilient, taking two hits with an arrow to take down unless I can land a head shot. I could probably just use a stronger bow, but I don’t really feel like breaking any of those so I stick to my Boko Bow.

I only manage to take out 4 on my first attempt, and Dantz rewards me with...a Blue Rupee. ...Yay. I go ahead and give it another shot - apparently I can do this as much as I like. Which in actuality very useful. I may have only gotten a few rupees, but I also managed to collect quite a bit of Raw Prime Meat, which I’m sure will come in handy cooking later.

The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker 2

My skills improve which each successive attempt. I switch into my stealth outfit as well, allowing me get closer to my prey before they notice. I get better with my aim as well, head-shots becoming easier and easier to land. I manage to get a few Red and Purple Rupees from Dantz for my efforts after that, as well as having a nice little stockpile of meat.

Lake Sumac

Before I continue up to the lab, I’m going to finish exploring the grounds of the farm here. Right next to the field, even larger than the field itself, is a large lake, Lake Sumac, with a small island at its center with a single, large tree on it. Right next to the hay stalls and Dantz is a raft, and right next to the raft a Korok Leaf. Don’t mind if I do! I cut the raft loose and use the leaf to blow me over to the island.

The island is...an island. There’s nothing of interest here. On the ground at least. Climbing up into the tree, among it’s branches is a single rock. And under that rock is my next Korok Seed. Thanks dude. I float back down to the ground and to my raft. Only one more stop to make.

Retsam Forest

...you guys have to be lonely sometimes, right?

The regular version of Retsam Forest, at least. It’s located right next to the farm of course, but now I can explore it without a timer. It’s still chock full of deer, but I leave them alone for the most part. Instead I take the opportunity to gather up resources - there are Ironshrooms, Silent Shrooms, and something new, Sunshrooms, which can raise my body temp when it’s too cold out.

I take my time gathering, leaving no stone unturned. Literally, but I don’t find any additional Koroks here. Before I leave, I put a stamp on my map on the forest - this seems like a great place to replenish resources when I need it, particularly the meat from the deer. Cartography!

I don’t bother with the raft to get back to the farm, there’s a strip of forest along Lake Sumac’s edge I can walk along. Between the grumpy old man, the woman screaming about revenge, and the guy paying me to kill a bunch of deer, this place has just been a barrel of laughs.

...let’s get to the fucking Tech Lab already.

---

Heart containers: 5
Shrines Completed: 11
Koroks Found: 36
Windmills: Watched
Sheep: Rustled
Deer Population: Murdered
Dogs: Played With

Everyone in This Town Has Poor Communication Skills - Screenshot Roundup 64

This Seems Like a Very Wasteful Way to Dye Clothing - Screenshot Roundup 63

She's Just Not That Into You or Your Bugs

Now that I’ve washed the taste of that motion-controlled marble maze out of my mouth, It’s time to explore the rest of the town. I see a small farm and house hidden in the north, behind the armor shop - missed it on my first pass. As I approach, I see a small woman, Tamana, standing among some Cuccos and sweeping. I speak to her and she immediately accuses me of trespassing. And then apologies, offers me a free Bird Egg, and asks me to leave. ...okay. Bye.

I move on, this time to the dye shop. I figure I might as well try it out at least once while I’m here, right? I walk in, past Senna, and take a look at the inside of the place. The most unique feature of the shop is probably the two large tubs along the western wall. Above both is wooden platform, with a set of stairs along the left edge leading up. All over the shop I see posters, similar to the one in the general store showing a recipe, except these seem to be color coded rather then for a particular food item.

...this place definitely isn't a cover for a meth lab, right?

I go ahead and speak with the shop owner, Sayge. After a terrible dye pun, he explains the basics of the shop to me. They’ve been around for ages, but after the Calamity (I assume) gathering ingredients became too dangerous, so the shop no longer produces its own dyes. Instead, they have their customer bring in their own ingredients for dyeing. The process is fully reversible, and it only costs 20 rupees. Doesn’t seem unreasonable. Let’s give it a shot!

I switch to the Hylian set except for the head, which I swap for the Climbing Bandana. I speak with Sayge, who brings up a menu of 15 different colors to choose from - significantly more then there are posters in here - but it also shows me a nice preview image of what my clothes will look like. I scroll through the options and end up settling on a light blue. Kind of a cool feature, letting people customize their stuff like this. Can’t recall previous Zelda’s coming anywhere near this level of customization.

I’m then instructed to select five items from my inventory of the color I have selected. I pick the thing I have the most of - Blue Nightshade - most of which I gathered near Cotera’s fountain. I remember there being a lot of this all around Kakariko, so even if I was running low, gathering more won’t be an issue. Link holds them all in his arms the same way he does when cooking. He’s so awkward and adorable.

Mood.

After confirming my selection, it’s cutscene time! I see link on top of the wooden platform, holding the bundle of Blue Nightshade. And then...the floor gives out, and Link is dropped directly into the tub below. That seems...excessive. But it works! I witness Link standing in is new all-blue duds. Not bad, if I say so myself.

I exit the dye shop in my new duds and head across the first bridge in the center of town. On the way I pass a few buildings, though they are all empty. A couple of homes, a windmill, and what looks like some sort of outdoor kitchen area. I almost take a few utensils to use as weapons, before I notice a woman standing on a dock next to the dye shop. Her name is Clavia, and she has a quest for me.

She points out three trees on a snowy mountain overlooking Hateno. She found a letter in an old book with a riddle: “When the three summit trees become one, turn your back to them and head toward the sea. A trail encased in stone awaits you there.” She knows that whatever the riddle is talking about is east of those trees, near Afromsia Coast. She can’t go there herself - she has a child (choices, honey) - but she knows I can. She says we can split the treasure. Now, I dunno about that, a trial means a shrine, and I don’t think you can divvy up Spirit Orbs. As we finish speaking, I can see that I have a new Shrine Quest!

 Secret of the Cedars

Leaving Clavia, up ahead I can see the Inn, but first to the left of that is a path leading up to a large house on a hill. It’s not immediately obvious what the building is, but it seems larger than the others. There’s even a shed. The home also houses the village’s Goddess Statue in a small alcove outside. Actually, I think I remember Teebo mentioning that the chief of the village had a Goddess Statue outside of his home. I'm still one orb short of an upgrade, so I can't do anything with it for now.The inside is empty, save for another journal. The “Girl’s Journal,” as it is labelled, gives me another recipe! This one is for Pumpkin Stew. You start with a Fortified Pumpkin, then add Tabintha Wheat, Fresh Milk, and Goat Butter.

...Jesus?

Exploring more outside of the house, I notice a figure in a nearby field that overlooks the rest of the village and valley below. His name is Reede, and he is the head of the village, the chief previously mentioned. He looks rather young to be the head of a village, but Link’s techncially over 100 years old so who can really say. He talks about how the village has managed to recover and survive after the Calamity, and let’s me know I am welcome in the village for as long as I would like.

Considering I own a home here now (again), I don’t think I count as a visitor anymore.

I leave Reede in the field and head back down the stairs, turning the corner towards the Inn. I see a man standing outside, next to a stable containing a donkey. Manny is posted here outside of the Inn every day, saying it’s his job to check out anyone suspicious in the village.

Or at least that’s what he implies. In actuality it seems like he’s kind of a creeper, instead standing out here and checking out any women who may walk by. In particular, it seems he has a really strong crush on Prima, who runs the inn. Like, really strong, strong enough to trigger another side quest!

Is this the Hylian version of an Incel?

 A Gift for My Beloved

Manny would like to know what kind of present Prima might enjoy. Not for himself, but for “his buddy’s friend.” Right. Well...why don’t we find out? I leave Manny at his post and head up into the inn.

It’s a nice little inn. Seems to have more amenities than the one in Kakariko had at least. There’s a fully stocked kitchen (I mean, as stocked as a kitchen I can’t actually interact with can be), and even a decked patio area. Sitting outside I speak with a gentleman named Worten, who tells me about various places he’s traveled to. Or tried to travel to, at least, seems like he hasn’t been able to actually get in to any of the places he’s visited. A place that was burning hot, a place he was unwelcome, a place that was too dangerous to get to and one that was too far away. I’m guessing I will be visiting these places one by one. Hopefully I get further then he did.

...We all have big ass ears, you have to know I can hear you.

Back inside, I see Prima standing at the counter. When I speak to her, though, I can only talk about staying at the inn - there’s no option to talk to her about anything else. The hell? After a few attempts to make her say anything different, I went back outside to Manny, thinking I skipped a step in the quest or something. But nope, he has nothing new to say, and the info for the quest hasn’t updated either. I go back inside, this time searching through the inn’s room. Maybe there’s a diary I need to read? But still, nothing.

I walk back down to Prima, frustrated as all hell. And this time, she talks to me!

...Oh. I had to stand behind the counter for her to talk to me about non-work stuff. That’s...very specific. But at least she’s talking to me now. I ask her about what she likes, and after she begins to talk to herself, (does she not know I can hear her? I’m literally right next to her) she decides (lies) to tell me she likes crickets. She just dreams of having a collection of 100 Restless Crickets, Right.

I'm older then you.

I return to Manny with this information. I don’t really care if she’s faking it, this dude’s kind of a creeper so I’m not exactly rushing to get him with the object of his affections. He does at least confess to me that it is in fact him, and not his friend, who wants to woo Prima. And to do so he’s going collect a hundred crickets. Or, as seems much more typical for his “type,” he’s going to ask me to collect them.

He’s only asking me for 10, planning to collecting the remaining 90 himself. It’s not as though the game gives me the option to decline, but I agree. I have a few crickets on me already, 6, so I’ll only need to collect a few more. I should be able to find them around here, having found a few in the grassy plains around the village already. I’ll keep my eyes peeled for now.

---

Heart Containers: 5
Shrines Completed: 11
Koroks Found: 34
Clothes: Dyed
Village Leader: Messianic looking
Prima: Harassed (I'm so so sorry)