Ocarina of Time Strategy Guide

# The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time — Master Strategy Guide

Part 1: Foundations

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Game Overview

Ocarina of Time launched November 21, 1998, and the action-adventure genre has been chasing it since. Nintendo EAD — directed by Eiji Aonuma and Yoichi Yamada, produced by Shigeru Miyamoto — didn't just translate Zelda into 3D. They invented the vocabulary every 3D action game still uses. Z-targeting alone is arguably the most influential mechanic of the 3D era: lock on, circle-strafe, backflip, and the camera handles itself. Dark Souls, Assassin's Creed, Kingdom Hearts — all descendants.

But OoT isn't a masterpiece because of one mechanic. Every system interlocks. Ocarina songs aren't just buttons — they're keys to the world, unlocking day and night, teleporting you across Hyrule, opening dungeon doors. The time skip from child to adult reshapes Hyrule entirely, turning familiar areas into darker versions of themselves. Dungeons escalate with a steady hand that never feels unfair. Side content — Gold Skulltulas, heart pieces, the Biggoron Sword trading quest, the Mask Shop — rewards exploration without demanding it.

This guide exists because OoT is dense. 100 Gold Skulltulas, 36 Pieces of Heart, 13 ocarina songs, dozens of upgrades, and a trading sequence spanning the entire map. If you want 100% completion — and that's what this guide is built for — you need a roadmap. I've beaten this game more times than I can count, and I'm walking you through every step.

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Story Synopsis

You start as a boy in Kokiri Forest, the only human in a village of eternal children who each have a guardian fairy. Link doesn't — until the Great Deku Tree, ancient guardian of the forest, sends Navi to wake him. The Deku Tree is dying, cursed by Queen Gohma, a parasitic arachnid planted inside him by Ganondorf, king of the Gerudo. Link crawls inside the Deku Tree, defeats Gohma, and receives the Kokiri Emerald — one of three Spiritual Stones. The Deku Tree dies, but not before telling Link to find Princess Zelda at Hyrule Castle.

Zelda is a child too — she's had prophetic dreams about Ganondorf, a dark cloud over Hyrule, and a boy with a fairy. She entrusts Link with a quest: collect the other two Spiritual Stones (the Goron's Ruby from Death Mountain, the Zora's Sapphire from Zora's Domain) to open the Door of Time and prevent Ganondorf from getting the Triforce. Link braves Dodongo's Cavern for the Gorons and Lord Jabu-Jabu's belly for the Zoras, collecting all three stones.

He returns to the castle — and it's burning. Zelda flees on horseback with Impa, Ganondorf in pursuit. She throws the Ocarina of Time into the moat. Link retrieves it, heads to the Temple of Time, places the stones on the altar, plays the Song of Time. The Door of Time opens, revealing the Master Sword. Link pulls it — and everything goes dark.

He wakes seven years later, now an adult, in the Sacred Realm. Rauru, the Sage of Light, explains that Ganondorf touched the Triforce first, splitting it: Ganondorf kept Power, Zelda (now hiding as the cross-dressing Sheik) holds Wisdom, and Link unknowingly carries Courage. Ganondorf has conquered Hyrule. The fields are overrun with monsters, Castle Town is a zombie-infested ruin, and the temples are corrupted.

Link's mission: awaken the seven Sages by clearing five temples as adult Link — Forest, Fire, Water, Shadow, and Spirit. Each is tied to a childhood friend: Saria, Darunia, Ruto, Impa, and Nabooru. Sheik appears throughout to teach warp songs for each temple.

Once all five Sages are awakened, Sheik reveals herself as Princess Zelda, now grown. She gives Link the Light Arrows. Ganondorf captures her immediately, and Link storms Ganon's Castle, a tower rising from the ruins of Hyrule Castle. At the top, Link defeats Ganondorf, the tower collapses, and they flee to the bottom, where Ganondorf rises from the rubble, transforms into the monstrous Ganon, and shatters the Master Sword's blade. Link stuns him with Light Arrows, retrieves the Master Sword, and delivers the final blow. The Sages seal Ganon in the Sacred Realm. Zelda sends Link back in time to his childhood so he can live the years he lost. The last shot is child Link walking away from the Temple of Time — a quiet, bittersweet ending.

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Controls Reference (N64)

Basic Movement

Control Stick: Move Link / navigate menus
A Button: Context-sensitive action — talk, open, grab, climb, dive, roll when running. Hold while pushing a block to push it; hold while pulling the stick back to pull it.
B Button: Sword attack. Tap for horizontal slash, hold + up for vertical slash, hold + forward + B for thrust. While Z-targeting, B does a targeted slash.
C-Left / C-Right / C-Down: Equip/use items mapped to those slots via the Start menu
C-Up: First-person look mode
Start: Pause menu (map, items, equipment, quest status, save)

Z-Targeting

Z Button: Lock onto nearest enemy, NPC, or object. Hold to maintain lock. Press again to switch targets. Toggle between "Hold" and "Switch" modes in options.
While Z-targeting:

- A: Jump attack (double damage, vulnerable recovery)

- B: Targeted slash

- Stick Left/Right: Strafe around target

- Stick Back + A: Backflip (evade)

- Stick Side + A: Side-hop (evade)

- Stick Forward + A: Roll into enemy

Shield & Defense

R Button: Raise shield. While raised, B does a shield bash (jumping poke). Hold R without Z-targeting to crouch and block.

- Deku Shield (wooden): blocks most frontal attacks, burns in fire

- Hylian Shield: fireproof, heavy for child Link (holds it flat)

- Mirror Shield: reflects light and magic, fireproof, adult only

Camera

Z (no target): Re-center camera behind Link

Ocarina

When equipped, C-Buttons play notes: C-Left (A), C-Up (C), C-Right (D), C-Down (E). A Button plays a flat note, B Button plays a sharp note. Hold Z while playing to bend pitch down.

Epona (Horse)

A: Hold to spur Epona (6 carrots, regen over time)
B: Swing sword (Biggoron's or Giant's only)
Stick: Steer. Pull back to slow.
Z: Dismount

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Core Items & Equipment

Swords

| Sword | Location | Notes |

|-------|----------|-------|

| Kokiri Sword | Kokiri Forest (chest in training area) | Child-only starter |

| Master Sword | Temple of Time (pull from pedestal) | Triggers the time skip. Usable by both ages after. |

| Biggoron's Sword | Death Mountain summit (trading quest) | Adult-only, two-handed, unbreakable. Giant's Knife (Goron City) is the breakable intermediate version. |

Shields

| Shield | Location | Notes |

|--------|----------|-------|

| Deku Shield | Shops (40 rupees) | Wooden, burns in fire |

| Hylian Shield | Kakariko Graveyard or shops (80 rupees) | Metal, fireproof |

| Mirror Shield | Spirit Temple (adult, large chest) | Reflects light and magic |

Tunics

| Tunic | Location | Notes |

|-------|----------|-------|

| Kokiri Tunic | Default | Green, no special effect |

| Goron Tunic | Goron City (stop rolling Goron as adult, or buy) | Red, heat resistance — needed for Fire Temple |

| Zora Tunic | Zora's Domain (thaw King Zora as adult, or buy) | Blue, underwater breathing — needed for Water Temple |

Boots

| Boots | Location | Notes |

|-------|----------|-------|

| Kokiri Boots | Default | Standard |

| Iron Boots | Ice Cavern (adult) | Sink in water, needed for Water Temple |

| Hover Boots | Shadow Temple (adult) | Walk over gaps briefly, low traction |

Key Quest Items

Fairy Ocarina: From Saria when you leave Kokiri Forest. Replaced by Ocarina of Time.
Ocarina of Time: Dropped by Zelda as she flees Hyrule Castle. Required for the Door of Time and all warp songs.
Spiritual Stones: Kokiri Emerald (Great Deku Tree), Goron's Ruby (Dodongo's Cavern), Zora's Sapphire (Lord Jabu-Jabu's Belly).
Medallions: Light (Rauru), Forest (Saria), Fire (Darunia), Water (Ruto), Shadow (Impa), Spirit (Nabooru).
Lens of Truth: Bottom of the Well (child, large chest). Reveals invisible enemies, fake walls, hidden platforms. Costs magic.
Magic Meter: Great Fairy on Death Mountain trail (after Dodongo's Cavern).
Din's Fire: Great Fairy at Hyrule Castle (bomb the rock near the exit). Fire circle, costs magic.
Farore's Wind: Great Fairy in Zora's Fountain (adult). Creates a warp point inside dungeons.
Nayru's Love: Great Fairy in Desert Colossus (adult). Temporary invincibility, costs magic.

Ocarina Songs

Warp songs (all from Sheik as adult):

Minuet of Forest → Sacred Forest Meadow
Bolero of Fire → Death Mountain Crater
Serenade of Water → Lake Hylia
Nocturne of Shadow → Kakariko Graveyard
Requiem of Spirit → Desert Colossus

Non-warp songs:

Zelda's Lullaby: From Impa after meeting Zelda. Opens certain doors, calms things.
Sun's Song: Royal Family Tomb in Kakariko Graveyard (child). Changes day/night, stuns ReDeads.
Epona's Song: From Malon at Lon Lon Ranch (child). Summons Epona as adult.
Saria's Song: From Saria in Sacred Forest Meadow (child). Talks to Saria anywhere.
Song of Time: Comes with the Ocarina of Time. Opens the Door of Time, makes blocks appear/disappear.
Song of Storms: From the windmill man in Kakariko (adult). Creates rain, reveals grottos.
Scarecrow's Song: Custom — make up your own at Lake Hylia. Calls Pierre the scarecrow.

Bottles (4 max)

Fill with: fairies (auto-revive), Lon Lon Milk (heals, refillable), Red/Blue/Green Potion, bugs (for soft soil Skulltulas), fish (feed Jabu-Jabu, trading quest), Poe (sell to ghost shop), Blue Fire (thaw frozen things), spring water, Big Poe.

Bottle 1: Win the cucco game at Lon Lon Ranch (child).
Bottles 2–4: Kakariko Potion Shop (adult), Lake Hylia laboratory dive minigame, or collect 10 Big Poes as adult for the ghost shop reward.

Dungeon Items

Slingshot: Dodongo's Cavern (child). Shoots seeds, hits far switches.
Bomb Bag: Dodongo's Cavern (child). Holds bombs. Upgraded via Goron City bowling minigame (adult).
Boomerang: Lord Jabu-Jabu's Belly (child). Stuns/fetches, returns to you. Child-only.
Bombchus: Buy in shops. Wall-climbing bombs. Infinite after buying once.
Megaton Hammer: Fire Temple (adult). Breaks rusted switches, boulders.
Hookshot: Dampé's grave race (Kakariko, adult). Grapples to targets. Upgraded to Longshot in Water Temple (double range).
Fire Arrows: Lake Hylia (adult, shoot the sun at dawn after Water Temple). Ignite at range.
Ice Arrows: Gerudo Training Grounds (adult, optional). Freezes enemies.
Light Arrows: From Zelda (adult, after all five Sages). Required for Ganon.
Magic Beans: Plant in soft soil as child (10 spots, 10→100 rupees). Grow into floating platforms as adult. Required for many heart pieces and Skulltulas.
Giant's Wallet: House of Skulltula (Kakariko), 30+ tokens. Holds 500 rupees.

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Game Progression Roadmap

The high-level path through the entire game. Detailed walkthroughs follow in later sections.

Child Link (Before Time Skip)

1. Kokiri Forest: Get Kokiri Sword and Deku Shield. Enter the Great Deku Tree.

2. Inside the Great Deku Tree: Defeat Queen Gohma. Get Kokiri Emerald.

3. Hyrule Castle Town: Meet Zelda, get Zelda's Lullaby from Impa.

4. Lon Lon Ranch: Learn Epona's Song from Malon (night).

5. Kakariko Village: Get Sun's Song from the Royal Family Tomb.

6. Death Mountain / Goron City: Get Goron's Tunic. Enter Dodongo's Cavern.

7. Dodongo's Cavern: Defeat King Dodongo. Get Goron's Ruby from Darunia. Learn Saria's Song at Sacred Forest Meadow.

8. Zora's Domain → Lord Jabu-Jabu's Belly: Open the waterfall with Zelda's Lullaby, feed Jabu-Jabu a fish, defeat Barinade. Get Zora's Sapphire from Ruto.

9. Return to Hyrule Castle: Cutscene — Zelda flees, Ganondorf appears, you get the Ocarina of Time.

10. Temple of Time: Place stones, play Song of Time, pull the Master Sword. TIME SKIP.

Adult Link (After Time Skip)

11. Sacred Realm: Meet Rauru, get Light Medallion. Exit as adult Link.

12. Sacred Forest Meadow: Sheik teaches Minuet of Forest. Enter Forest Temple.

13. Forest Temple: Defeat Phantom Ganon. Get Forest Medallion from Saria.

14. Death Mountain Crater: Sheik teaches Bolero of Fire. Enter Fire Temple.

15. Fire Temple: Defeat Volvagia. Get Fire Medallion from Darunia.

16. Ice Cavern: Get Iron Boots and Serenade of Water from Sheik.

17. Water Temple (Lake Hylia): Defeat Morpha. Get Water Medallion from Ruto. Shoot the sun at dawn for Fire Arrows.

18. Bottom of the Well (as child — return Master Sword to Temple of Time): Get Lens of Truth.

19. Kakariko (adult): Sheik teaches Nocturne of Shadow (after Water Temple). Enter Shadow Temple.

20. Shadow Temple: Defeat Bongo Bongo. Get Shadow Medallion from Impa.

21. Desert Colossus / Spirit Temple: Sheik teaches Requiem of Spirit. Do half as child (Silver Gauntlets), half as adult. Defeat Twinrova. Get Spirit Medallion from Nabooru.

22. All Sages Awakened: Sheik reveals she's Zelda. Get Light Arrows. Zelda is captured.

23. Ganon's Castle: Navigate six element rooms. Defeat Ganondorf at the top, escape the collapse, fight Ganon with Light Arrows + Master Sword.

24. Ending: Zelda sends Link back in time. Roll credits.

Side Quests (Throughout)

Gold Skulltulas: 100 total. Many require child Link (soft soil + bugs). Stone of Agony at 20 tokens (House of Skulltula) gives rumble hints on hidden grottos.
Pieces of Heart: 36 total (4 = 1 Heart Container). Some only appear at one age — check everywhere as both.
Biggoron's Sword Trading Quest: Adult-only. Starts with Pocket Cucco in Kakariko. ~10 trades across Hyrule. Ends at Biggoron on Death Mountain summit.
Gerudo Training Grounds: Adult, optional. Reward: Ice Arrows.
Magic Beans: Plant at all 10 spots as child. Collect as adult.
Magic Meter Upgrades: Great Fairy near Death Mountain Crater (adult, Hammer the rocks) for double magic.

That's the skeleton. Next sections break down every dungeon, boss strategy, heart piece, and Gold Skulltula with exact instructions.

# Part 2: Child Link Dungeons

The three child dungeons in Ocarina of Time are where you learn the fundamentals of OoT's combat, puzzle-solving, and boss design — yet every one of them hides secrets that even veterans miss. If you're going for 100% completion, you need to treat these early dungeons seriously: every Golden Skulltula here is locked behind a time-gated window later in the game, so grab them all on your first visit when possible.

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2.1 — Inside the Deku Tree

Dungeon Item: Slingshot Boss Reward: Kokiri Emerald, Heart Container Golden Skulltulas: 3 Boss: Queen Gohma

Map Overview

The Deku Tree is a tight vertical dungeon. You enter at the base, climb a central room up to a 3rd-floor chamber, then descend through a set of puzzles in the back corridor to the basement, which leads to the boss arena. Most of the dungeon is this central vertical shaft with a few side rooms.

Walkthrough

#### First Floor — Main Room

As you enter, watch the cutscene with the Deku Tree's plight. The main room has:

A webbed floor you can't break yet.
A series of platforms and ladders up the walls.
Three Skullwalltulas (the bigger Skulltulas on walls) that you must defeat before climbing the vines to the right side.

Puzzle: Climb up the wall directly ahead (the ladder was broken; you climb the vines). Before climbing, kill the three Skullwalltulas by hitting them with a jump-slash or by waiting for them to turn their back (their soft underside faces you) and slashing. Never grab the vine directly in front of a Skullwalltula — it will knock you off. Golden Skulltula #1: Once on the higher vines, look back toward the entrance on the south wall. There's a Skulltula on the wall to your left as you face the entrance from the upper platform. Walk to the edge, Z-target, and jump-slash to knock it down. Collect the token.

#### Second Floor — Slingshot Chamber

Climb to the top of the main room and enter the doorway. This is the Slingshot Room:

The Slingshot is in a chest, but the door behind you bars shut.
Puzzle: Use the Slingshot to hit the eye switch above the now-locked door. You can also hit the ladder switch on the far wall to drop a ladder (you'll want this ladder for an easy return trip).

Golden Skulltula #2: Before leaving this chamber, look at the wall opposite the entrance. A Skulltula is crawling in a small alcove. Z-target it and shoot it with the Slingshot, then jump to it and grab the token. Many players miss this one because it's not obvious from the entry angle — you have to walk to the right corner of the room.

#### Third Floor — The Crawling Corridor

Exit the Slingshot room and continue up. You reach a hallway with boulders rolling back and forth.

Puzzle: Time your run to avoid the boulder (it has a predictable left-right pattern). Duck into the alcoves on the side when the boulder passes.
After the corridor, you reach a room with a single Deku Baba. Kill it for Deku Sticks.

#### The Web Floor — Dropping In

You're now on the upper ledge of the main room, looking down at the webbed floor. To break the web:

Puzzle: Light a Deku Stick on the nearby torch, then hold the lit stick and drop down to the web floor. The web burns away, revealing a hole to the basement.

Tip: You can also just jump onto the web while holding a lit stick — the fall animation doesn't extinguish it.

#### Basement — The Three Torch Room

Drop into the basement. This room has:

A shallow pool of water.
Three unlit torches and one already lit.
A locked door that requires a Small Key.

Small Key: Look for a crate against the wall — break it, and the key is inside. (Actually: the key is in a chest submerged in the water in the far corner — dive into the shallow water near the wall to find a chest with the Small Key.) Puzzle: Light all three torches (using a lit Deku Stick from the burning torch) to open the barred door. Use the Slingshot to relight your stick if you go too fast and extinguish it. Golden Skulltula #3: In this same basement, walk to the small side platform against the wall. A Skulltula is hidden behind a crate — break the crate and collect the token. If you miss this and exit to the boss, you can still come back as a child.

#### The Compressed Room — Pillars

Through the door, you enter a room with elevated pillars and a pool of water below. There are Deku Scrubs here:

A Mad Scrub shoots nuts at you. Shield their attack to reflect it back, then close in and defeat them with your sword.
Puzzle: The room has a barred exit. You must defeat all three Mad Scrubs (two on the ground, one on a pillar) to open the door. Use the Slingshot to hit the elevated one, or climb up to it.

This room connects back to the boss door. The Boss Door has eyes on it — that's the Deku Tree boss design.

Queen Gohma — Boss Strategy

Phase 1 — The Ceiling:

Queen Gohma starts on the ceiling with her eye closed. She will periodically open her single eye (the eye turns red and glows). When the eye is open:

Z-target her and throw a Deku Nut (or use a Slingshot shot to the eye) to stun her.
She drops to the floor, exposing her unprotected body.

Phase 2 — Ground Combat:

Once she's stunned on the floor:

Run in and jump-slash her eye repeatedly. A jump-slash with the Kokiri Sword deals significant damage.
After 3-4 hits, she recovers and retreats to the ceiling.
She may also charge at you horizontally — dodge by rolling sideways.
She periodically lays eggs that hatch into Gohma Larvae. Kill the larvae quickly with a single sword slash each — they only take one hit.

Timing pattern: Her eye opens about every 4-5 seconds when she's on the ceiling. Watch the eye glow carefully — the stun window is generous but she'll strike if you hesitate too long. The full fight takes about 30-45 seconds with Deku Nuts and jump slashes. Reward: Kokiri Emerald + Heart Container. Exit via the blue warp.

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2.2 — Dodongo's Cavern

Dungeon Item: Bomb Bag (from the Big Bomb Flower) Boss Reward: Goron's Ruby, Heart Container Golden Skulltulas: 2 Boss: King Dodongo

Map Overview

Dodongo's Cavern is a roughly U-shaped dungeon. You enter at the bottom, climb up the left side, cross the top, descend the right side, and reach the boss at the far end. The central hub is a large room with a bomb flower platform and a wall of Bomb Flowers blocking the way forward.

Walkthrough

#### Entrance — The Bomb Flower Wall

Enter the cavern and you immediately face a wall of rocks blocking the path. To your left is a Bomb Flower.

Puzzle: Pick up the Bomb Flower, walk to the rock wall, and throw it. The wall explodes, opening the path to the main room.
If you wait too long, the Bomb Flower explodes in your hands — pick it up at the right moment (when it's about to bloom).

#### Main Room — The Hub

The main room has:

A central platform with a Bomb Flower on top.
Beamos (the eye-statue that fires lasers) on several ledges.
A pit of lava below.

Puzzle: Pick up the Bomb Flower on the central platform and throw it up onto the ledge to break the rock blocking the staircase. Alternatively, you can climb the vines on the wall to the upper level. Enemy: Fire Keese (lit bats) fly around. Kill them with the Slingshot before they knock you into lava.

#### Left Side — The Slingshot Puzzle Room

Climb up the left staircase. There's a room with:

A Lizalfos mini-boss encounter (two Lizalfos).
Lizalfos Strategy: Z-target, block their sword strikes with your shield, then counter with jump slashes. They jump around the room — chase them with Z-target locked.

After the Lizalfos, you enter a room with a switch puzzle:

Puzzle: Hit the eye switch with the Slingshot to light the torches. Use a lit Deku Stick to light the other torches to open the door.

Golden Skulltula #1: In the room with the torches, look up at the ceiling. A Skulltula is hanging from the ceiling above the lava pit. Shoot it with the Slingshot, then collect the token by jumping to it or using the hookshot if you're adult Link later. As a child, you can collect it by timing a jump from the platform edge.

#### Top Section — The Blade Traps

Cross the top of the cavern. There are spinning blade traps (guillotines) over narrow walkways:

Puzzle: Time your runs to pass under the blade when it's up. Roll through for speed.
There's a room with Fire Keese and a Bomb Flower. Use the Bomb Flower to break the wall and reveal a shortcut back to the main room.

#### Right Side — The Big Bomb Flower Chamber

Descend the right side. You reach a large chamber with:

A Fire Lizalfos guarding a Bomb Flower.
A wall of rock that must be destroyed.

Puzzle: Pick up a Bomb Flower and throw it at the rock wall to reveal the path to the boss area. Big Bomb Flower / Bomb Bag: Before going through, there's a large Bomb Flower on a pedestal in the main room (reachable from the top). Bomb the cracked walls in the central room to reveal the Bomb Bag chest — this is your permanent bomb source. Get it before the boss; it's essential. Golden Skulltula #2: In the Big Bomb Flower chamber, there's a Skulltula on the wall near the ceiling. Shoot it with the Slingshot, then use the nearby vines to climb up and collect the token.

#### Boss Door — King Dodongo's Lair

The boss door is at the far end of the right-side descent. Enter to face King Dodongo.

King Dodongo — Boss Strategy

King Dodongo is a giant skeletal Dodongo who circles a lava pit. He has two attacks:

Attack 1 — Fire Breath:

When you get close to his face, he inhales deeply (a clear telegraph — the room rumbles and his mouth opens wide). After about 2 seconds, he exhales a wide cone of fire that deals heavy damage.

Counter: Roll sideways to escape the fire cone. Don't try to shield it — the fire penetrates.

Attack 2 — Rolling Attack:

When you're far from him, he curls into a ball and rolls around the arena.

Counter: Stand against the wall (in a corner is safest). He'll bounce off the wall and eventually stop. Don't try to outrun him — sidestep at the last moment or hide in the corner.

How to Damage Him:

The central platform has Bomb Flowers on the edges.
When King Dodongo inhales (preparing fire breath), pick up a Bomb Flower and throw it into his open mouth.
He swallows the bomb, it explodes inside him, and he's stunned.
Run in and slash his face/eye repeatedly.
After 3-4 hits he recovers and starts rolling again.
Repeat: wait for inhale → bomb in mouth → slash → repeat.

Timing: The inhale telegraph lasts ~2.5 seconds. You have plenty of time to grab a Bomb Flower and throw it. The bombs respawn, so don't worry about running out. Reward: Goron's Ruby + Heart Container. Exit via the blue warp.

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2.3 — Inside Jabu-Jabu's Belly

Dungeon Item: Boomerang Boss Reward: Zora's Sapphire, Heart Container Golden Skulltulas: 2 Boss: Barinade Escort: Princess Ruto

Map Overview

Jabu-Jabu's Belly is unique — the entire dungeon is organic. Walls "breathe," floors are fleshy, and doors are guarded by Jelly Drops and Bubbles. The layout is a central vertical chamber (Jabu-Jabu's throat) with rooms branching off. The trick: you must find Princess Ruto and escort her to the deepest room, where she'll let you use the Boomerang to defeat Barinade.

Walkthrough

#### Entrance — The Belly

After offering a fish to Lord Jabu-Jabu (drop a fish in front of him — catch one in the nearby pool with a bottle), you're swallowed. You enter a fleshy corridor.

First Room: A Jelly Drop blocks the path. Kill it with your sword (hit it when it's not pulsing — it explodes if you hit it during its pulse). Or just Slingshot it from a distance. Puzzle — The Vacuum/Path Forward: The first branching room has a Bari (the larger jellyfish) and some Jelly Drops. The path forward is through a "membrane" door — these open automatically when you approach, but only after you clear the enemies in the room.

#### The Big Room — Finding Ruto

You enter a large central room with multiple exits and a pool of water in the center. Princess Ruto is here, sitting on a ledge.

Talk to Ruto. She refuses to move at first. Talk to her again; she'll fall into the water below.
Follow her down (drop into the pool). Talk to her again. She'll reluctantly agree to be escorted.
Puzzle: Pick Ruto up (you can carry her like a crate). Carry her through the rooms.

Golden Skulltula #1: In the main room, look up at the ceiling near the entrance. A Skulltula hangs from the ceiling. Shoot it with the Slingshot, then collect the token by climbing the vines on the wall and walking across the platform. If you're carrying Ruto, put her down first.

#### Escort Path — The Lower Rooms

With Ruto in your arms:

Go through the left door. The room has Bubbles (flying skulls) and Jelly Drops.
Puzzle: There's a switch on the floor that opens a door, but it only stays open while you're standing on it. Put Ruto on the switch — she's heavy enough to keep it pressed. Go through the door, clear enemies, then come back for her.

Tip: Always clear enemies before carrying Ruto. She's vulnerable and you can't defend while carrying her.

#### The Boomerang Room

After a few rooms, you reach a chamber with a switch puzzle and a chest containing the Boomerang. This is your dungeon item.

Puzzle: To reach the chest, you must hit a switch through a small gap — the Boomerang is needed to hit the switch, but the Boomerang is in the chest. The solution: use the Slingshot to hit the switch from an angle, which lowers a platform. Then walk across and open the chest for the Boomerang.

Boomerang Use: The Boomerang is essential for this dungeon. It can hit switches around corners, stun enemies, and kill Bari (the larger jellyfish) from a safe distance. It also targets the Parasitic Tentacles that block doors.

#### The Parasitic Tentacles

Several doors are blocked by Parasitic Tentacles — purple fleshy growths hanging from the ceiling.

Puzzle: Z-target the tentacle and throw the Boomerang at it. One hit kills a tentacle. Do this for every blocked door.

Golden Skulltula #2: In the room just before the tentacle corridor, look behind a fleshy pillar. A Skulltula is hidden there. Walk around the pillar to find it and collect the token.

#### The Switch Room — Dropping Ruto

In the deepest room, there's a large switch on the floor. Drop Ruto on the switch to open the path forward.

Puzzle: After Ruto is on the switch, the floor opens and Ruto falls through. You must follow her down.

#### The Boss Door

After falling through, you're in a lower chamber. The boss door is nearby, but it's blocked by a Parasitic Tentacle. Kill it with the Boomerang, then enter.

Barinade — Boss Strategy

Barinade is a giant jellyfish/anemone hybrid. The fight has three phases.

Phase 1 — The Outer Shell:

Barinade is surrounded by a ring of Bari (smaller jellyfish) that rotate around it.

Strategy: Throw the Boomerang at the outer Bari to detach them. The Boomerang can hit multiple Bari in one throw.
After all the outer Bari are detached, Barinade's core is exposed.

Phase 2 — The Core:

Barinade's central body now pulses and shoots electricity in radial patterns.

Strategy: Throw the Boomerang at the central body to stun it. When stunned, run in and slash with your sword.
Counter: Barinade periodically launches electric projectiles. Roll sideways to dodge. When the room goes dark briefly, prepare for a radial electric burst — back off and wait it out.

Phase 3 — The Recovery:

After taking enough damage, Barinade regenerates some Bari around itself.

Strategy: Repeat the Boomerang to detach Bari, then Boomerang the core, then slash. It takes about 3-4 cycles to kill Barinade.

Timing: The Boomerang returns to you automatically — you don't need to catch it manually, but it's faster if you do. The key timing window is after stunning Barinade's core — you have about 3 seconds to get in close and land 2-3 slashes before it recovers. Reward: Zora's Sapphire + Heart Container. Exit via the blue warp — and you'll be treated to the iconic cutscene with Ruto.

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2.4 — Golden Skulltula Summary

| Dungeon | Skulltulas | Location |

|---|---|---|

| Deku Tree | 3 | (1) Main room wall near entrance, (2) Slingshot room alcove, (3) Basement behind crate |

| Dodongo's Cavern | 2 | (1) Ceiling above lava pit, (2) Big Bomb Flower chamber wall |

| Jabu-Jabu's Belly | 2 | (1) Main room ceiling near entrance, (2) Behind pillar in tentacle corridor |

Tip for 100%: All these Golden Skulltulas can be collected as child Link during your first visit. If you leave and return as adult Link, the dungeon enemies change slightly (some get tougher) but the Skulltula locations remain accessible. Still, getting them now saves a trip back.

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2.5 — Child Dungeon Items Recap

Slingshot (Deku Tree) — required for eye switches and Skulltula collection throughout all three dungeons.
Bomb Bag (Dodongo's Cavern) — your permanent bomb source; essential for world exploration and adult dungeons.
Boomerang (Jabu-Jabu's Belly) — stuns enemies, hits switches around corners, retrieves items; stays useful even as adult Link for certain enemies.

Master these three dungeons and you've learned every core mechanic OoT throws at you for the rest of the game: Z-target combat, item-based puzzle solving, bomb timing, escort mechanics, and multi-phase boss fights. The adult dungeons build directly on these foundations.

# Section 3: Adult Link Dungeons

The five adult dungeons are the heart of Ocarina of Time — sprawling, intricate, and each built around a unique central mechanic. This section covers every room, every key, every Skulltula, and every boss pattern with the specificity a 100% run demands. Load the right tunics, stock fairies, and let's go.

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Forest Temple

Sacred Grove → Forest Temple. Enter as Adult Link after learning the Minuet of Forest from Sheik in the Sacred Forest Meadow. The dungeon's signature mechanic is the twisted/straight hallway toggle, which rearranges rooms you've already cleared.

Map Overview

A vertical/looping layout centered on an elevator shaft in the main hub. Four Poe sisters hold four flames; extinguishing all four opens the lower basement to Phantom Ganon. The temple rewards the Fairy Bow and the Forest Medallion.

Key Items

Fairy Bow (main dungeon item) — required to kill the Poe sisters and progress.
Small Keys: 5 total. Locked doors are mostly clustered around the twisted-hallway wings.
Boss Key — found in the twisted hallway section after re-orienting a hallway.
Forest Medallion — boss reward.

Room-by-Room Walkthrough

Entrance → Main Hall: Push the block forward, climb the vines on the right wall, and drop onto the ledge above the main room. Kill the two Wolfos in the tree courtyard for a Small Key; open the locked door on the upper-left. First Twisted Hallway: In the room past the door, kill all enemies (Stalfos) to make a chest spawn with Small Key #2. Shoot the eye switch in the next room to twist the hallway, creating a climbable wall of blocks you can navigate to the upper exit. Block Puzzle Room (red/blue): Push the colored blocks onto their matching colored floor switches. This unlocks the door to the Fairy Bow chest. Don't leave without it — you can't kill Poes without it. Poe Sister Meg (the purple Poe): Found in the lower courtyard with the blue flame. Hit her with arrows when she splits into four copies — the real one spins; the fakes just hover. One hit drops her, three rounds kills her. Flame #1 out. Poe Sister Joelle (blue): Map room area. Use Din's Fire or arrows. Flame #2. Poe Sister Beth (green): In the twisting staircase room. Flame #3. Poe Sister Amy (orange): The last Poe appears in the hub once three flames are out. She fires energy rings — side-step and return three arrow hits. Flame #4 out → elevator activates. Twisted Hallway Final Puzzle: After all four flames are out, return to the twisted hallway. Shoot the eye switch again to untwist the hallway. The untwisted version lets you walk to a previously-unreachable ledge containing the Boss Key chest.

Skulltulas (Gold)

1. Wall in first twisted hallway — use Longshot/Hookshot at night vision on the skull.

2. Courtyard wall (left side) — visible climbing the vines.

3. In the falling-ceiling room — crawl under and Hookshot it.

4. Basement corridor before Phantom Ganon — on the wall.

5. Check the map room wall — high up, Hookshot range.

(Use the Skulltula icon on your map to verify; Gold Skulltulas only appear as adult Link and at night isn't required — they're always visible in-dungeon.)

Mini-Boss

No traditional mini-boss besides the Poes. The four Poe sisters function as the gauntlet.

Boss: Phantom Ganon

Phase 1 — Paintings: Phantom Ganon rides into the arena through one of four wall paintings (the room's outer walls each have multiple frames). The trick: he phases through paintings — a fake Phantom Ganon appears, then retreats, and the real one emerges. Watch for the one that turns around and rides back into the painting — that's the fake. The one who keeps coming is real. Hit him with an arrow as he exits the painting to knock him off his horse. Phase 2 — Ground Combat: He floats and throws energy balls at you. Reflect them back with your sword (spin attack timing — press B as the orb reaches you). Volley back and forth 3–5 times; eventually he misses and takes damage. Repeat three times. Safe damage window: After reflecting his energy ball and he staggers, you can land one jump-slash combo before he recovers. Don't get greedy. Reward: Forest Medallion, Phantom Ganon warps away (sets up Ganon's Tower later).

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Fire Temple

Death Mountain Crater → Fire Temple. Requires Goron Tunic (get free from Darunia's son by lighting torches, or buy from Goron shop). The dungeon revolves around Goron rescue (free 10 Gorons for keys) and lava platforming.

Map Overview

Lava-filled cavernous temple, mostly horizontal with vertical lava-platform climbs. Central chamber leads to multiple side paths. Boss room is reached via the top floor after freeing all Gorons and lowering Volvagia's platform.

Key Items

Megaton Hammer (main dungeon item) — breaks rusted switches, destroys fake walls, smashes Volvagia.
Small Keys: 8 total. Each freed Goron gives a chest — most contain keys.
Boss Key — in the room above the maze.
Fire Medallion — boss reward.

Goron Rescue Paths

Each Goron is locked in a cell. Hit the rusty switch with the Megaton Hammer (or bomb the door, or use the Goron's Bracelet as child — irrelevant as adult). Free all 10:

1. Cell 1 — left of entrance hall. Bomb the cracked wall.

2. Cell 2 — lava room right side, across the broken bridge. Longshot the torch slug.

3. Cell 3 — through the boulder maze room, lower path.

4. Cell 4 — upper maze room, after Hammer-bashing the rusted switch.

5. Cell 5 — across the lava platforming section (use the moving lava platforms — timing is everything).

6. Cell 6 — behind the flame wall you douse by lighting torches in the right order.

7. Cell 7 — top floor, after the Megaton Hammer room.

8. Cell 8 — boulder corridor near boss key area.

9. Cell 9 — shortcut corridor from boss key back to entrance.

10. Cell 10 — final one, near the elevator to Volvagia.

Each Goron chest = Small Key or ammo/rupees. You need them all for 100% but only specific keys for progression.

Lava Platforming Section

The central lava room has moving platforms over lava. Wear Goron Tunic (timer ~6 minutes in lava without it, ~30 seconds without it). Use the Longshot to cross gaps. The platforms move on timers — watch the pattern, then jump. The Megaton Hammer breaks the rusted switch that raises the central platform shortcut.

Megaton Hammer Acquisition

In the room with the Flame Wall (after freeing a Goron who tells you about it), Hammer the rusted switch repeatedly. The chest appears. Equip it — it does heavy damage and is the only way to kill Volvagia efficiently.

Skulltulas (Gold)

1. Lava room wall (lower ledge) — Hookshot.

2. Boulder maze room — high wall, Longshot at night isn't needed; just spot it.

3. Behind a fake wall in the lava platforming room — Hammer the wall, then Hookshot the Skulltula.

4. On a pillar in the central lava room.

5. Near the boss key room, upper ledge.

Mini-Boss: Flare Dancer

A flaming creature that jumps around. Use Megaton Hammer or bombs to knock its flame armor off, then slash the core. It re-ignites — repeat 3 times. Drops the path forward.

Boss: Volvagia

Volvagia pops out of lava holes (there are 9 holes in the arena, she uses 3 at a time). The Megaton Hammer is mandatory — swords barely scratch her.

Pattern:

1. She surfaces from a hole. Smash her head with the Megaton Hammer while she's up. Hit twice if you can, then retreat.

2. She dives. Watch which hole glows — that's where she'll resurface.

3. Sometimes she flies up and rains fire rocks. Run in a wide circle; rocks have gaps.

4. Sometimes she flies across the arena breathing a fire wall along the floor. Get to the sides or behind a stalactite.

Safe damage window: The 1–2 seconds after she surfaces, before she starts her own attack. Hammer smash, dodge, repeat. ~8 hammer hits kills her. Reward: Fire Medallion, Darunia as Sage.

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Water Temple

Lake Hylia → Water Temple (need Iron Boots from Ice Cavern, Zora Tunic recommended). The most notorious temple in the game — and for good reason: three water levels, one central room, a maze of rooms hidden behind the water level.

Map Overview

Central hub is a large pillar room with a Triforce symbol on the wall. Three water levels (low/mid/high) are controlled by playing Zelda's Lullaby on the Triforce plaque in different rooms. The boss room is under the central pillar, only accessible at the lowest water level after getting the Longshot and all keys.

Key Items

Longshot (main dungeon item) — upgraded Hookshot, found after Dark Link mini-boss.
Small Keys: 6 total. Two are notoriously missable.
Boss Key — behind a gate in the central pillar at mid water level.
Water Medallion — boss reward.

Water Level Puzzles — The Critical Path

1. Enter at high water level (default after first visit). Drop into the central pillar room from the top floor.

2. Lower to mid: Play Zelda's Lullaby at the Triforce plaque in the east wing (reach via the gated corridor with torches). Water drops to mid.

3. Lower to low: Play Zelda's Lullaby at the Triforce plaque in the central pillar's bottom (access the pillar interior by bombing the cracked floor at mid level — drop down).

4. At low water, the bottom floor is exposed. Longshot the eye switch in the central pillar to access the boss key area.

Every Small Key Location

1. Key #1: Mid water level, east wing room with the rolling boulder — bomb the cracked wall, find a chest.

2. Key #2: Low water, in the room under the central pillar, behind a gate opened by the underwater switch.

3. Key #3: Defeat the spike enemies in the lower east room — chest appears.

4. Key #4: High water level, north room — use the Longshot on the torch to pull yourself across, then open the chest.

5. Key #5: The "hidden key" — at low water, in the southernmost underwater tunnel (wear Iron Boots to walk on the floor), bomb the cracked wall in the tunnel.

6. Key #6: The other missable one — behind the locked door in the central pillar's mid-level interior. You get this by Hookshotting the diamond switch in the central pillar.

Boss Key: After getting the Longshot and all keys, return to central pillar at low water. The boss key chest is at the bottom of the central shaft, guarded by a Like Like.

Dark Link Strategy (Mini-Boss)

Dark Link appears in the room with the shallow water and the tree — after you collect the Longshot. He mirrors your moves and counters every sword attack.

Strategies:

Din's Fire: Hits him even when he dodges melee. Spam this for safe kills.
Mega Spin Attack: Hold B for a charged spin; release when he approaches. He can't dodge the AoE consistently.
Hookshot cheese: Hookshot does no damage to him, but it stuns briefly. Follow with jump slashes.
Megaton Hammer: He doesn't mirror it well — the slow swing timing confuses his AI.
Avoid: Standard combos — he'll counter-hit you.

Safe damage window: Right after his own attack whiffs. Don't attack into his counter. Patience wins.

Boss: Morpha

A morphing water creature with a core nucleus. The arena is a square pool with four raised platforms in the corners.

Pattern:

1. Morpha forms a water tentacle that extends toward you and whips. Stay on a corner platform.

2. When the nucleus exposes itself (poking out of the water mass), Longshot it to pull the nucleus to you.

3. Slash the nucleus with your sword (3-4 hits per pull), then it returns to the water.

4. Repeat — Morpha speeds up as it takes damage and may form multiple tentacles.

Safe damage window: The instant the nucleus is pulled free — it can't attack you while away from the water body. Slash away, then re-Longshot when it resurfaces. Tip: Never stand in the water. Tentacles grab and drown you. Corner platforms only. Reward: Water Medallion, Ruto as Sage.

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Shadow Temple

Graveyard → Shadow Temple (need Lens of Truth, Hover Boots from Bottom of the Well as child). The temple of invisible paths, invisible enemies, and the Lens of Truth.

Map Overview

Vertical descent — you go down, deeper and deeper. Every room hides something invisible. Hover Boots and Lens of Truth are constant-use items.

Key Items

Lens of Truth — from Bottom of the Well (child). Mandatory; many enemies and platforms are invisible.
Hover Boots — main dungeon item reward, found mid-temple. Lets you cross gaps with invisible floors.
Small Keys: 5–6 (some are behind invisible walls).
Boss Key — near the bottom, after the Invisible Scythe mini-boss.
Shadow Medallion — boss reward.

Invisible Enemies & Truth Lens Usage

Invisible Floormasters: Always have Lens active in rooms with Floormasters. They grab you and drag you back — kill them before they split.
Invisible Skulltulas: Hang on invisible walls. Lens + Hookshot.
Invisible Platforms: Cross gaps by Hover Boots + Lens to see the floor. Without Lens, you fall into the void.
Fake Walls: Lens reveals which walls are solid. The real path is often the one that doesn't look like a wall through the Lens.

Room-by-Room Critical Path

1. Entry: Burn the torches (Din's Fire or Fire Arrows) to open the invisible door. Drop down.

2. First Invisible Path: Use Lens + Hover Boots to cross. Don't trust the visible floor — it has gaps.

3. Skulltula corridor: Kill the invisible Skulltulas with Hookshot, then Longshot the chest for a key.

4. The Boat Room: Ride the boat. Stalfos attack mid-ride — kill them all or the boat sinks. Don't fall off (instant void).

5. After Boat: Bomb the cracked wall on the right. The path forward is through there.

6. Invisible Scythe corridor: The scythe-wielding Phantom (mini-boss). Use Lens to see it; stun with Hookshot, then slash.

7. Hover Boots room: Defeat the Phantom to spawn the Hover Boots chest. Equip them.

8. Boss Key Room: Bomb the floor in the right corner — drop down to the chest.

Skulltulas (Gold)

1. First invisible path wall — Hookshot range.

2. Skulltula corridor — visible with Lens, Hookshot.

3. Boat ride — on the wall during the ride; Longshot it.

4. After the boat, on the ceiling of the landing room.

5. Deep temple, on the invisible floor section — Lens + Hookshot.

Mini-Boss: Invisible Phantom (Scythe)

Uses the Lens to fight — invisible until you Lens it. Stun with Hookshot, slash the core, repeat. ~5 hits.

Boss: Bongo Bongo

A giant shadow hand-pair on a drum arena. The drum itself moves — you bounce with it.

Pattern:

1. Bongo Bongo's hands slam the drum, creating shockwaves. Stay in the air (jump) when they slam.

2. One hand turns flat — this is the telegraph for the "shadow attack." The eye on the back of the hand glows.

3. Shoot the eye with an arrow (both hands, or just the attacking one — hit the eye when it opens). The hand staggers.

4. After both hands are stunned, the central eye opens. Shoot the central eye, then rush in with your sword (jump slash + combo) while it's exposed.

5. The hands re-activate. Repeat.

Safe damage window: The 2–3 seconds after hitting the central eye. Jump-slash combo, then retreat before the hands recover. Lens Tip: Have Lens active — Bongo Bongo is partially invisible. Without Lens, the central eye is harder to target. Reward: Shadow Medallion, Impa as Sage.

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Spirit Temple

Desert Colossus → Spirit Temple. Unique among dungeons: you complete it in two halves — one as Child Link, one as Adult Link. Re-enter via the Spirit Temple entrance to switch ages via a warp at the temple's start.

Map Overview

A symmetric central chamber with a statue holding two raised hands (child-side left, adult-side right). You must do both halves to free the path to Twinrova in the basement.

Child Link Section

Entrance (Child): Crawl through the small passage on the right of the entrance — adult Link can't fit.

1. First Room: Kill the Armos statues (bomb them from behind when they activate). Get Small Key #1 from chest.

2. Kotake/Koume room: Use the Boomerang (child weapon) to hit the switches across the gap. Get the Map and a key.

3. Lizalfos Room: Defeat the Lizalfos with sword + Deku Nuts to stun. Get the Compass.

4. Sliding Block Room: Push the block onto the switch — the door opens to the adult side shortcut.

Child Mini-Boss: Iron Knuckle (first fight)

Iron Knuckles are heavy-armored axe wielders. As child Link, this fight is tough:

Bait the overhead slam — when he swings, sidestep and slash his back (his back is unarmored).
3 hits to break his armor — once broken, he's faster but takes more damage.
Don't get greedy — one hit = ~3 hearts of damage.

Kill for Small Key #2.

Adult Link Section

Entrance (Adult): Use the long entrance hall. Longshot the symbol over the door.

1. Boulder Room: Use Hover Boots to avoid lava, Longshot the eye switch to stop the boulder.

2. Sun Block Room: Use Mirror Shield to reflect light onto the sun faces — doors open. Get the Silver Gauntlets upgrade if you haven't already (from the child-side shortcut).

3. Beamos Room: Bomb the Beamos, get a key.

4. Iron Knuckle Room (second fight): Same tactics — sidestep slam, slash back. Get Small Key.

5. Light Bridge Room: Reflect light onto the large sun face to raise the central bridge to the boss area.

Adult Mini-Boss: Iron Knuckle (third fight) — same pattern, drops the final key.

Skulltulas (Gold)

1. Child side entrance wall — Boomerang/Hookshot.

2. Adult side, boulder room upper ledge.

3. Adult side, sun block room behind an invisible wall (Lens of Truth).

4. Central statue, upper hand platform — Longshot range.

5. Basement corridor before Twinrova.

Key Items

Silver Gauntlets (child reward) — required for adult to push heavy blocks elsewhere in the game (and in this temple).
Mirror Shield (adult main item) — reflects light, required for Twinrova.
Spirit Medallion — boss reward.

Boss: Twinrova (Kotake & Koume)

Two old hags — Kotake (ice) and Koume (fire). They fight separately first, then fuse.

Phase 1 — Separate:

Each casts either ice or fire beams at you. Use the Mirror Shield to absorb the beams. The shield charges — after 3 same-element hits, the shield auto-reflects back at that sister.
You can also just dodge the beams and wait for them to fuse.
They fly around the arena — moveable platform with grates; watch your footing.

Phase 2 — Fused Twinrova:

After ~30 seconds of solo combat, they fuse into a giant woman with a wand.
She alternates ice and fire attacks. Absorb 3 of one element with the Mirror Shield, then the shield reflects it back at her — this is the only way to damage her.
When she staggers from the reflected shot, jump-slash combo her while she's down.

Safe damage window: Right after she's hit by the reflected beam — she's stunned for ~3 seconds. Get your combo in, then retreat and recharge your shield. Tip: Don't absorb mixed elements — it resets the charge. Commit to one element per charge. Reward: Spirit Medallion, Nabooru as Sage.

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Adult Dungeon Summary

|---|---|---|---|

With all five Medallions collected, the path to Ganon's Castle opens. Save after each dungeon — the bosses hit hard, and you'll want to replay cleanly for the 100% run. Stock fairies in bottles before every boss; the Shadow and Spirit bosses especially punish careless play. Onward to the final stretch.

# Boss Strategies

Welcome to the big leagues. Ocarina of Time's bosses are iconic, and each one teaches you a different lesson about the game's combat system. This section covers every boss in the game — all eight main bosses, the infamous Dark Link mini-boss, and both forms of the final encounter — with frame-level detail on their attack patterns, safe damage windows, and strategies ranging from first-timer-friendly to speedrun-optimized.

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Queen Gohma

Location: Inside the Deku Tree Recommended Equipment: Kokiri Sword, Deku Shield, Deku Nuts

Phase 1 — The Ceiling Lurk

Queen Gohma starts the fight perched on the ceiling, eye glowing red. She'll periodically drop Gohma Larvae that hatch into small spiders you must kill individually. While on the ceiling, she's invulnerable — you need to get her down.

Attack patterns:

Egg Drop: She raises her abdomen and drops a clutch of eggs. Each egg hatches into two larvae after ~2 seconds. Kill larvae with a single sword slash or Deku Nut stun. Don't let them swarm — they deal chip damage fast.
Eye Flash: Her eye turns red before attacking. This is your telegraph for everything she does.

Getting Her Down

The classic method: look up at her with C-Up or Z-targeting, wait for her eye to flash red, and fire a Deku Seed from the Fairy Slingshot directly into it. The eye must be open (red) for the stun to register. A successful hit drops her to the floor, stunned for roughly 4 seconds.

Speedrun trick: You can skip the ceiling phase entirely. The moment the fight starts, immediately toss a Deku Nut — the splash hitbox catches her on the ceiling and stuns her instantly, dropping her to the floor without needing the slingshot. This saves several seconds.

Phase 2 — Ground Combat

Once on the floor, Gohma alternates between lunging claw swipes and curling into a defensive shell. When her eye is red, she's vulnerable to stun again — another Deku Nut or slingshot hit opens a damage window.

Safe damage window: After any stun, she lies flat for ~4 seconds. Get in 3–4 jump slashes (each dealing 2x sword damage) before she recovers. Jump slash (press B while pressing forward + A in the air) outdamages regular slashes significantly. Speedrun strategy: Nut → jump slash x3 → re-stun with nut → jump slash x3. With optimal execution, Queen Gohma dies in under 10 seconds. The Any% route uses exactly 4 Deku Nuts for this fight. First-timer tip: Keep your Deku Shield up during her lunge attacks. If she curls into her shell, back off — hitting the shell does zero damage and bounces you. Wait for the eye to flash, then stun.

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King Dodongo

Location: Dodongo's Cavern Recommended Equipment: Goron's Bracelet (required), bombs, Kokiri Sword

Phase 1 — The Lava Arena

King Dodongo rolls around the perimeter of a lava pit. He alternates between rolling circuits and stopping to breathe fire. Your goal is to throw bombs into his mouth when he pauses to inhale before a fire blast.

Attack patterns:

Rolling Circuit: He curls into a ball and rolls the perimeter. Stand against the wall in a gap between the lava pits. The roll has a wide hitbox but is predictable — he follows the track exactly.
Fire Breath: After stopping, he rears back, opens his mouth, and inhales for ~1.5 seconds before exhaling a fire stream that sweeps the arena. The inhale is your bomb window.
Lava Roar / Slam: Occasionally stomps and roars. Low damage but knockback.

The Bomb Strategy

Pick up a bomb from the arena corners (they respawn). When King Dodongo stops and opens his mouth to inhale, throw the bomb directly into his open maw. The timing is generous — you have roughly 90 frames (1.5 seconds) from mouth-open to fire-breath. A successful feed stuns him and drops him to the ground.

Safe damage window: After a bomb stun, he flops onto his stomach for ~5 seconds. Slash his eye/face. Jump slashes deal maximum damage. Speedrun trick — Damage Boost: Stand in the fire breath path and take a hit during the inhale animation. The knockback launches you forward — you can land a bomb throw during the recovery frames. Risky but faster. Speedrun trick — Skip bombs entirely: You can damage King Dodongo during his rolling phase by standing where he turns and hitting him with a jump slash as he passes. Frame-perfect, but it eliminates the bomb-feeding cycle.

Phase 2 — Final Lava Dive

After three bomb feeds, King Dodongo rolls one last circuit and dives into the lava pit, dying in a cutscene. No additional combat needed.

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Barinade

Location: Inside Jabu-Jabu's Belly Recommended Equipment: Boomerang (required), Kokiri Sword, Deku Shield

Phase 1 — Tentacle Severing

Barinade is surrounded by rotating tentacles called Bari that orbit its central body. You must sever all tentacles with the Boomerang before the central body is exposed.

Attack patterns:

Bari Orbit: The tentacles rotate around Barinade at a fixed speed. Touching them deals electrical damage.
Electric Pulse: Barinade periodically discharges electricity through all attached Bari. Stay back during the pulse — the range is moderate.
Stinger Spit: Barinade fires small jellyfish projectiles in a spread. Dodge by sidestepping or blocking with the Deku Shield.

Strategy: Z-target a Bari, throw the Boomerang. The Boomerang auto-corrects slightly, but timing matters — throw when the target Bari is on the near side of the orbit. Each successful hit severs one tentacle. Repeat until all are gone.

Phase 2 — Core Exposure

With tentacles severed, Barinade's central body is vulnerable. It spins rapidly and bounces around the arena walls.

Attack patterns:

Body Slam: Barinade charges directly at you along the floor. Sidestep with sidehops (A + left/right while Z-targeting).
Electric Floor Pulse: Spreads electricity along the ground in waves. Jump or stay airborne with a jump slash to avoid.

Safe damage window: After the Boomerang hits the core, Barinade is stunned for ~3 seconds. Slash freely, preferably with jump slashes. Speedrun strategy: The Boomerang is finicky in this fight. Speedrunners buffer the Boomerang throw (hold the button, release on frame-perfect timing) to hit Bari in one rotation. For the core phase, throw Boomerang → stun → jump slash ×2 → repeat. 3 cycles kills him. First-timer tip: Keep moving. Barinade is the most punishing early boss if you stand still — the electric pulses and stinger spread will chip you to death. Circle strafing with Z-target locked is your friend.

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Phantom Ganon

Location: Forest Temple Recommended Equipment: Fairy Bow, Kokiri Sword (or Master Sword)

Phase 1 — The Painting Hunt

Phantom Ganon hides in one of six paintings around the arena. He rides his horse and emerges from a painting to charge across the room. You must shoot him with an arrow while he's partially out of the frame.

The Tell: One painting will show Phantom Ganon riding toward the "front" (toward you). The other five show him turning away. Shoot the one coming toward you. If you shoot the wrong painting, a fake Phantom Ganon emerges and the real one attacks you with a lightning bolt — dodge with a sidehop. Timing: You have roughly 2 seconds from painting-identification to the shot. Aim with the bow, fire when his upper body is visible. A hit drops him off his horse into Phase 2. Speedrun trick — Arrow cancel: You can fire arrows faster by pressing B (sword) immediately after releasing an arrow. This cancels the bow's recovery animation, letting you nock another arrow sooner.

Phase 2 — Ground Duel

Phantom Ganon floats, hovers, and trades energy bolts with you. This is a classic "tennis" phase — he launches a slow-moving energy ball, and you hit it back with your sword.

Attack patterns:

Energy Ball Volley: He fires a single slow projectile. Hit it back with any sword swing. After 2-3 volleys, the ball will hit him and stun him for ~3 seconds.
Ground Pound: He slams down, creating a shockwave. Jump or sidehop to avoid the expanding ring.
Fake Out: Sometimes he fakes an energy ball, pauses, then fires. Don't swing early.

Safe damage window: After a successful volley-return stun, Phantom Ganon collapses. Hit him with jump slashes — 3-4 will end the fight. Speedrun trick — Jump slash reflect: Instead of standing and swinging at the energy ball, jump slash toward it. The forward momentum moves you closer to Phantom Ganon, so when he's stunned, you're already in melee range. Saves positioning time. First-timer tip: The energy ball timing is forgiving — swing when it's about 2-3 character lengths from you. Don't panic-swing. The fake-out is the only thing that will hit you if you're patient.

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Volvagia

Location: Fire Temple Recommended Equipment: Megaton Hammer (required), Goron Tunic, Hylian Shield

Phase 1 — Whack-a-Mole

Volvagia flies between lava vents in the arena floor, popping up from random holes. When she emerges, her head is vulnerable for ~2 seconds. Hit her with the Megatron Hammer.

Attack patterns:

Flaming Hair Sweep: After emerging, Volvagia whips her mane across the platform in a wide arc. Back off or jump to the adjacent platform. This is her most common attack during Phase 1.
Rock Rain: She flies up and rains boulders down. The shadow telegraphs landing spots — keep moving. Each rock deals significant damage.
Fire Breath: A horizontal sweep of fire. Crouch with your shield raised (Hylian Shield blocks it while crouching). Alternatively, jump to a different platform.

Safe damage window: Hammer hit stuns her for ~3 seconds. Follow with one more hammer hit or a jump slash, then retreat.

Phase 2 — Flight Barrage

After ~3 hammer hits, Volvagia takes to the air permanently and rains fire rocks. The platforms sink and rise in lava. You must hit her with the hammer when she swoops low — but this is risky.

Speedrun strategy: Skip Phase 2 entirely by killing her in Phase 1. With optimal hammer hits, 3 cycles in Phase 1 kills her before she enters flight. Each cycle: wait for emergence → hammer hit → jump slash follow-up → retreat. First-timer tip: Wear the Goron Tunic — without it, the ambient heat drains your health. Use the Hylian Shield's crouch-block for the fire breath. Don't chase her during Rock Rain — just survive and wait for her to return to a vent. Glitch — Hammer Extend: The Megaton Hammer's hitbox is larger than its visual suggests. You can hit Volvagia from slightly farther away than you'd expect, giving you more time to retreat before her mane sweep.

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Morpha

Location: Water Temple Recommended Equipment: Master Sword, Longshot (required)

Phase 1 — Nucleus Hunt

Morpha is a giant amoeba. Its vulnerable nucleus rises out of the water periodically. You must pull the nucleus out with the Longshot, then slash it on dry land.

Attack patterns:

Tentacle Grab: Morpha forms water tentacles that grab you, lift you, and slam you. This is her most dangerous attack — a grab means 1-2 hearts of damage and repositioning.
Water Toss: After grabbing, she can throw you across the room.
Multi-Nucleus: As the fight progresses, Morpha splits into multiple nuclei — up to 3 simultaneously in later phases. Each must be pulled out and slashed.

Strategy

Z-target the nucleus when it rises. Fire the Longshot to yank it onto the platform. The nucleus flops for ~3 seconds — slash with jump slashes. If multiple nuclei are out, prioritize the closest.

Safe damage window: Nucleus on land = free hits. It can't attack while out of water. Speedrun trick — Corner Lock: Stand in the far corner of the arena (near the entrance). Morpha's tentacles can't reach certain corners due to pathfinding limits. From this position, you can Longshot the nucleus and slash it with minimal risk. This trivializes the fight. First-timer tip: Keep moving around the platform perimeter. Morpha's tentacles spawn from the water's edge — if you're in the center of the platform, they have to reach farther. Never stand still near the water's edge. Glitch — Longshot Pull Cancel: If you Longshot the nucleus and immediately jump slash, you cancel the pull-in animation and hit the nucleus mid-air for bonus damage.

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Dark Link

Location: Water Temple (mini-boss) Recommended Equipment: Master Sword, Megaton Hammer (cheese strategy), Din's Fire

Dark Link mirrors your movements and is one of the most notorious fights in the game. He counters your sword with his own, often blocking and retaliating instantly.

Phase 1 — The Mirror Duel

Dark Link starts passive but becomes aggressive as you attack. He stands on the water's surface in a foggy room.

Attack patterns:

Sword Counter: Every slash you make, Dark Link can block and counter with a stab. He has i-frames on his block.
Jump Slash Trade: If you jump slash, he can jump slash simultaneously — you trade hits. He often wins the trade.
Shield Bash: He bashes with his shield, staggering you briefly.
Thrust Counter: He counters thrusts with a hop-back stab.

Strategies

For first-timers — The Hammer Cheese: The Megaton Hammer has a slow swing that Dark Link can't reliably block or counter. Spam hammer hits and he'll go down in ~15 hits. He can still hit you between swings, but the trade is favorable. For first-timers — Din's Fire: Cast Din's Fire repeatedly. Dark Link has no answer for the AoE fire blast. It chips him for 1-2 hearts per cast. 5-6 casts kill him. Speedrun strategy — Thrust Spam: Dark Link's AI has a flaw: it can't counter repeated thrusts (forward + B) if you're at the right range. Stand just outside his sword range and thrust — he whiffs the counter, you hit him. This is frame-tight but fast. Speedrun glitch — Broken Deku Stick: If you break a Deku Stick mid-fight (let it break on a wall), the broken stub deals full stick damage but Dark Link's AI doesn't register it as a sword weapon. He can't block it properly. Kill him with a broken stick for style points. The "No Items" Challenge: If you fight Dark Link with only the Master Sword, learn his counter timing. He blocks your horizontal slash, then stabs — dodge the stab with a sidehop, then punish. It's a rhythm fight once you learn the pattern.

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Bongo Bongo

Location: Shadow Temple Recommended Equipment: Fairy Bow (or Hookshot), Master Sword, Hover Boots (optional)

Phase 1 — The Hands

Bongo Bongo is a disembodied pair of hands and a head, fought on a giant drum. The drum's bouncing can throw off your aim if you're not careful.

Attack patterns:

Hand Slam: Both hands slam the drum, creating a shockwave. Jump or hover over the shockwave.
Hand Swipe: A hand swipes horizontally across the arena. Crouch-block with Hylian Shield or sidehop under it.
Hand Grab: A hand grabs you, squeezes for damage, then throws you. Mash buttons to escape faster.
Shadow Volley: The hands cast shadow projectiles. Dodge by sidestepping.

Stunning the Hands

Shoot each hand with an arrow (or hit with the Hookshot). Each hit stuns that hand for ~5 seconds. Once both hands are stunned simultaneously, Bongo Bongo's head — the eye in the center — exposes itself.

Phase 2 — The Eye

When both hands are stunned, the central head/eye rises. It opens for ~3 seconds. Slash the eye with jump slashes.

Safe damage window: Eye is exposed only when both hands are stunned. You have roughly 3 seconds — get 2-3 jump slashes in. Speedrun strategy — Bow Stun Lock: Fire arrows at each hand in quick succession. The window for both-stunned is tight, so use the arrow cancel (B-cancel) to fire faster. Once the eye opens, jump slash ×3. If you're fast, you can one-cycle Bongo Bongo. First-timer tip: Wear Hover Boots to avoid the drum-bounce knockback. The bouncing makes aiming arrows difficult — wait for the bounce apex (when you're at the top of the bounce) to fire. The game briefly slows your vertical movement at the apex, giving you a stable aim window. Glitch — Hookshot Eye Clip: If you Hookshot Bongo Bongo's eye when it's exposed, you can clip into his hitbox and deal multiple damage instances in one pull. Frame-perfect, but it shaves cycles.

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Twinrova (Koume & Kotake)

Location: Spirit Temple Recommended Equipment: Mirror Shield (required), Master Sword

Phase 1 — The Twin Sorceresses

Koume (fire witch, red) and Kotake (ice witch, blue) fly around the arena and shoot elemental beams at you. You must absorb their attacks with the Mirror Shield and reflect them back at the opposite sister.

Attack patterns:

Fire Beam (Koume): A stream of fire. If you're not blocking, it deals heavy damage and sets you on fire (DoT).
Ice Beam (Kotake): A stream of ice. Unblocked, it freezes you solid for ~2 seconds — you're completely vulnerable during freeze.
Twin Beam: Both fire simultaneously. You can only block one at a time, so you must position to face the one you're absorbing.
Flyby: They swoop low occasionally. Avoid by sidestepping.

The Mirror Shield Mechanic

Your Mirror Shield absorbs elemental energy. After absorbing 3 hits of the same element, the shield is "charged" and releases a burst automatically. To defeat Phase 1, absorb one element (e.g., fire from Koume) and aim the charge at the other sister (Kotake). The opposite-element hit stuns them.

Strategy: Face Koume, absorb 3 fire beams, then aim at Kotake and release. This downs Kotake. Repeat for Koume with ice beams absorbed from Kotake. Safe damage window: After a successful reflected hit, the downed witch is stunned for ~4 seconds on the platform. Slash freely — but the other witch is still active, so watch for incoming beams.

Phase 2 — Twinrova Fusion

After both sisters are downed, they fuse into Twinrova — a single entity that alternates between fire and ice attacks. The shield-charge mechanic persists: absorb 3 of one element, then reflect at Twinrova.

Attack patterns:

Elemental Sweep: Twinrova sweeps the arena with fire or ice. Block with the shield to absorb.
Bomb Barrage: Twinrova drops elemental bombs. Dodge by running — the explosions have AoE.
Wand Slam: Melee hit if you get too close. Back off.

Safe damage window: After reflecting a charged shield burst at Twinrova, she collapses for ~5 seconds. Get in jump slashes. Speedrun strategy — Pre-charge: Absorb 2 of an element before the phase transition, so you only need 1 more after fusion. This saves a cycle. With optimal play, Twinrova dies in 2 reflected hits. First-timer tip: The biggest danger is getting frozen by Kotake's ice beam while Koume's fire is incoming. Always prioritize blocking ice — fire DoT is manageable, but freeze locks get you killed. Position yourself so only one witch is in your line of sight at a time. Glitch — Shield Overflow: If you absorb a 4th hit of the same element (instead of reflecting at 3), the shield releases automatically but the damage instance is higher. Speedrunners use this for a guaranteed 1-cycle if timed right.

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Ganondorf

Location: Ganon's Castle (tower top) Recommended Equipment: Master Sword (or Biggoron's Sword), Fairy Bow, Light Arrows (required for kill), Empty bottles (for Fairy refill)

Phase 1 — The Tennis Match

Ganondorf hovers in the center of the arena, surrounded by a radiant barrier. He fires energy balls at you in a tennis-volley pattern, identical to Phantom Ganon but faster and more aggressive.

Attack patterns:

Energy Ball Volley: He fires a single fast energy ball. Hit it back with your sword. After 3-5 volleys, the ball hits him and he collapses.
Five-Way Spread: Occasionally fires five energy balls in a fan. One bounce-hit reflects all five if timed right.
Ground Pound: Slams down, creating a shockwave. Jump or sidehop over it.
Shadow Storm: Phase 2 transition — the room goes dark, Ganondorf hovers higher, and the energy balls come faster.

Strategy — Tennis

Stand near the center platform edge. When Ganondorf fires an energy ball, swing your sword as it approaches (same timing as Phantom Ganon — roughly 2-3 character lengths away). The ball reflects back. After a few volleys, he collapses and the barrier drops.

Safe damage window: After the energy ball hits him, Ganondorf drops to the platform, stunned for ~3 seconds. Rush in with jump slashes. Phase 2 — Light Arrow Finish

After enough tennis-volley stuns, Ganondorf will charge a massive attack. You must hit him with a Light Arrow to break his charge. This is the killing blow sequence.

Speedrun strategy — Light Arrow Skip: You don't actually need Light Arrows to beat Ganondorf — just enough tennis volleys. But Light Arrows stun him longer, giving bigger damage windows. For Any%, speedrunners use the "No Light Arrow" route: pure tennis, jump slashes only. The fight takes ~40 seconds with optimal volleys. Speedrun trick — Jump Slash Volley: Jump slash into the energy ball instead of standing. The forward momentum puts you closer to Ganondorf, so when he's stunned, you're already in melee range for jump slashes. Shaves positioning time every cycle. First-timer tip: Keep your shield up between volleys. If you miss a reflect, the energy ball hits you for 1-2 hearts. Empty bottles with fairies — if you die, the fairy auto-revives. Bring 4 fairies. This is the game's final skill check before the last boss; take your time on the volley timing. Glitch — Bow Cancel Volley: Fire an arrow immediately after reflecting an energy ball. The arrow can hit Ganondorf for bonus damage during his stun, on top of your sword hits.

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Ganon (Final Beast Form)

Location: Collapse of Ganon's Castle Recommended Equipment: Master Sword (recovered mid-fight), Megaton Hammer (if sword isn't recovered yet), Light Arrows (for stun)

The Setup

The fight begins immediately after Ganondorf's defeat, with the castle collapsing. After the collapse cutscene, Ganondorf rises from the rubble as the beast Ganon. Your Master Sword is knocked away — you start with whatever secondary weapon you have.

Phase 1 — Beast Ganon Unleashed

Ganon is a massive boar-like beast wielding twin cleavers. He's slow but hits like a truck. The arena is a ruined field with fire borders.

Attack patterns:

Twin Cleaver Swing: Ganon swings both blades horizontally. This is his most common attack. Roll between his legs to avoid — his swings miss the center hitbox.
Cleaver Throw: He throws one or both cleavers like boomerangs. They return, so dodge twice. Sidehop perpendicular to the throw.
Charge Rush: He lowers his head and charges. Run perpendicular and roll to dodge.
Fire Blast: Rarely, he exhales fire in a cone. Back off.

Strategy — Tail Whacking

Ganon's weak point is his tail. You must get behind him and hit the tail. The challenge is getting past his frontal attacks.

Method 1 — Roll Between Legs: The classic strategy. Roll toward Ganon and pass between his legs. His cleaver swings miss the center. Once behind, Z-target the tail and slash with the Megaton Hammer or your current weapon. The tail takes 1-2 hits before Ganon repositions. Method 2 — Light Arrow Stun: Shoot Ganon in the face with a Light Arrow. He reels back, stunned for ~3 seconds. Run behind and hit the tail. This is the reliable method for first-timers. Method 3 — Longshot Pull: Hookshot/Longshot his tail to yank yourself behind him. Fast but frame-tight.

Phase 2 — Sword Recovery

After enough tail hits, Zelda (Navi in some versions) tells you to retrieve your Master Sword. A cutscene plays, and you regain the blade. Now your damage output doubles.

Phase 3 — Final Beast Ganon

Same patterns as Phase 1, but now the Master Sword makes tail hits lethal. Use Light Arrows to stun, then slash the tail with the Master Sword. 3-4 tail hits with the Master Sword ends the fight.

Safe damage window: Light Arrow stun = ~3 seconds. Roll-behind = ~2 seconds before he turns. Master Sword tail hit = 1 hit per pass. Speedrun strategy — No Light Arrow: Speedrunners skip Light Arrows and use pure roll-between-legs with the Megaton Hammer (or Biggoron's Sword if they have it). Each tail hit is frame-tight but the fight clears in ~20 seconds. The roll-between-legs technique is consistent once you learn Ganon's cleaver timing. Speedrun glitch — Hammer Spin: The Megaton Hammer's charged spin attack has a 360° hitbox that can clip Ganon's tail even from the side. Spin near his flank and the hitbox wraps around to the tail. This bypasses the need to get directly behind him. First-timer tip: Bring Light Arrows and 4 fairies. This fight is a stamina check more than a skill check — Ganon's attacks chunk 2-3 hearts each. If you run out of Light Arrows, the roll-between-legs method works but requires practice. Don't panic when he throws cleavers — they're slow and telegraphed. Sidehop, don't backwalk. The Final Hit: After the last tail hit, a cutscene triggers where Zelda uses her power to hold Ganon, and Link delivers the final blow with the Master Sword. No input needed — just enjoy the ending.

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Quick Reference: Boss Cheat Sheet

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Closing Notes

Every boss in Ocarina of Time has a "cheese" strategy and a "skill" strategy. The cheese methods (hammer for Dark Link, corner for Morpha, Light Arrows for Ganon) get you through the game. The skill methods (thrust spam, roll-between-legs, no-Longshot Morpha) are what speedrunners use for sub-20-minute runs.

The most important universal tip: jump slash always outdamages ground slash. Every boss in this game takes 2x damage from jump slashes (press B while pressing forward + A in the air). If you take one thing from this section, make it that. The jump slash is the single highest-damage melee option in the game, and it's available from the Kokiri Sword onward.

Now go save Hyrule.

Collectibles and Secrets

This section is for true completionists — every Skulltula token, every Piece of Heart, every bottle, every spell, every secret the developers tucked into Hyrule. A huge chunk of Ocarina of Time's best content is entirely optional. Let's dig in.

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Gold Skulltulas: All 100 Locations

Gold Skulltulas are hidden spiders that appear at night (or in dungeons, where they show up anytime). Kill them, collect the token. Bring 10 to the House of Skulltula in Kakariko to start earning rewards — at 50 you get a Piece of Heart. All 100 nets the cursed family member's infinite-rupee reward.

#### Kokiri Forest & Lost Woods (10)

1. Know-It-All Brothers' house back wall (night, roll into wall). 2. Twins' house back wall (night). 3. Fence near Kokiri Shop (night). 4. Lost Woods maze area near Goron City shortcut wall (night). 5. Tree stump near the two Business Scrubs (night). 6. Wall near the Skull Kid area (night). 7. Sacred Forest Meadow entrance wall (night). 8. Deku Tree — three Deku Scrub room (before Queen Gohma). 9. Deku Tree — basement torch room ceiling. 10. Deku Tree — below the floor cobweb (break it), near the torch.

#### Castle Town & Hyrule Castle (4)

11. Guardhouse wall by the castle gate (night). 12. Wall near where you meet Talon (night). 13. Secret grotto behind the vines. 14. Tree near the Hyrule Field exit (night).

#### Kakariko Village & Graveyard (7)

15. House wall near the village entrance (night). 16. Back of the Skulltula House (night). 17. Wall near the Death Mountain gate (night). 18. Impa's house roof, use Hookshot (night). 19. Royal Family Tomb wall (night). 20. Wall near the Sun's Song grave (night). 21. See Bottom of the Well in dungeon section.

#### Death Mountain (5)

22. Wall near Dodongo's Cavern entrance (night). 23. Wall above the first Goron (night). 24. Death Mountain Crater wall near Fire Temple entrance. 25. Goron City lower level wall (night). 26. Cow grotto wall.

#### Zora's Area (3)

27. Zora's River bridge wall (night). 28. Zora's Domain shop wall, after opening the Zora's Fountain passage (night). 29. Zora's Fountain wall near Lord Jabu-Jabu (night).

#### Lake Hylia (3)

30. Lakeside Laboratory wall (night). 31. Fishing Hole entrance island (night). 32. Underwater grotto (Iron Boots), behind a breakable rock.

#### Gerudo & Desert (6)

33. Gerudo Valley bridge wall (night). 34. Gerudo Valley carpenter's tent wall (night). 35. Fortress training ground wall (night). 36. Fortress upper area wall (night). 37. Haunted Wasteland carpet merchant route wall (night). 38. Desert Colossus Spirit Temple entrance wall (night).

#### Lon Lon Ranch (4)

39. Stable back wall (night). 40. Silo wall (night). 41. Ranch entrance tree (night). 42. Talon's house wall (night).

#### Hyrule Field (5)

43. Grotto near Lake Hylia entrance, wall. 44. Grotto near Gerudo Valley entrance (night). 45. Tree by Kakariko entrance (night). 46. Business Scrub grotto, wall. 47. Tree near Lon Lon Ranch entrance (night).

#### Dungeons

Dodongo's Cavern (5): 48. Dodongo statue room wall. 49. Fire-breathing Lizalfos room wall. 50. Lower area near bomb flowers. 51. Moving platforms room, ceiling. 52. Boss room ante-chamber wall. Inside Jabu-Jabu's Belly (4): 53. Jellyfish/switch room wall. 54. Rotating tentacle platforms wall. 55. Near the cow room (Adult), wall. 56. Room before Barinade, wall. Forest Temple (5): 57. First Stalfos room wall. 58. Rotating ceiling room wall. 59. Floormaster room wall. 60. Blue Bubble room wall. 61. Room before Phantom Ganon, wall. Fire Temple (5): 62. Lava entrance wall. 63. Rolling boulder room wall. 64. Flame maze ceiling. 65. Like Like room wall. 66. Area near Volvagia's door, wall. Ice Cavern (3): 67. Spinning ice blade room wall. 68. White Wolfos room wall. 69. Final room before Blue Fire, wall. Bottom of the Well (3): 70. Invisible wall room, ceiling. 71. Like Like room wall. 72. Basement area wall. Shadow Temple (5): 73. First spike room wall. 74. Falling blade room wall. 75. Boat area wall. 76. Invisible platform room, ceiling. 77. Area before Bongo Bongo, wall. Spirit Temple — Child (4): 78. First Anubis room wall. 79. Lizalfos room wall. 80. Beamos room wall. 81. Child-side Iron Knuckle room wall. Spirit Temple — Adult (4): 82. Silver Gauntlets path room wall. 83. Rolling boulder room wall. 84. Beamos/Anubis room ceiling. 85. Area before Twinrova, wall. Ganon's Castle (6 — one per trial): 86. Forest Trial wall. 87. Fire Trial wall. 88. Water Trial wall. 89. Shadow Trial wall. 90. Spirit Trial wall. 91. Light Trial wall.

#### Final Nine (92–100, all Adult)

92. Kakariko windmill wall (night). 93. Death Mountain Trail wall near Biggoron (night). 94. Goron City rock room wall. 95. Zora's Fountain underwater grotto (Iron Boots). 96. Lake Hylia laboratory roof via Hookshot (night). 97. Gerudo Valley waterfall wall (night). 98. Desert Colossus Fairy Fountain wall (night). 99. Sacred Forest Meadow Fairy Fountain wall (night). 100. Hyrule Castle ruins wall where the castle stood (night).

Reward schedule: 10 = Adult's Wallet; 20 = Stone of Agony (rumble for hidden grottos); 30 = Giant's Wallet (500 rupees); 40 = Bombchu; 50 = Piece of Heart. Beyond 50, escalating rupee rewards.

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Pieces of Heart: All 36 Locations

Four Pieces make a full Heart Container. Here's every one:

Kokiri / Lost Woods: 1. Win the Lost Woods target-shooting minigame with the Business Scrubs three times (Child). 2. Play Saria's Song for the Skull Kid in the Lost Woods (Child). 3. Sacred Forest Meadow grotto near the Fairy Fountain (Adult). Castle Town / Hyrule Castle: 4. Hit the picture in the castle window with the Slingshot (Child). 5. Win the Castle Town Treasure Chest Game (Child). 6. Score a prize in Castle Town Bombchu Bowling (Child/Adult). 7. Defeat the Tektites in the Hyrule Field grotto near Lon Lon Ranch (Child). Kakariko: 8. Roof of Impa's house via Hookshot (Adult). 9. Dig in the soft-soil grave with plants (Child). 10. Play Sun's Song at the Royal Family Tomb to spawn a chest (Child). 11. Bottom of the Well invisible-wall maze room (Lens of Truth). Death Mountain: 12. Boulder maze grotto on the Trail, defeat all enemies (Child). 13. Crater hidden grotto near Fire Temple entrance (Adult, Megaton Hammer the rock). 14. Light all Goron City lower-level torches to open the shop, buy it for 200 rupees (Child). Zora's area: 15. Zora's River ledge near the waterfall, fly in with a Cucco (Child). 16. Thaw frozen Zoras with Blue Fire, unfreeze shopkeeper's storage (Adult). 17. Zora's Fountain submerged grotto under ice (Adult, Iron Boots). 18. Ice Cavern spinning ice blade room (Adult). Lake Hylia: 19. Win Fishing, catch a 7+ lb fish (Child). 20. Win Fishing, catch a 13+ lb fish (Adult). 21. Underwater grotto after draining the water (Adult). 22. Shoot the sun with a Fire Arrow at dawn from the lab island (Adult, post-Fire Arrows). Gerudo: 23. Ledge behind Gerudo Valley waterfall (Adult — Longshot or cucco). 24. Horseback Archery, score 1000 points (Adult, need Epona). 25. Free all four carpenters from the Gerudo guards (Adult). 26. Haunted Wasteland hidden grotto near the end of the ghost guide path. Lon Lon Ranch: 27. Storage room, push the blocks to reach it (Adult). Hyrule Field grottos: 28. Near Lake Hylia entrance tree, defeat the Peahats (Adult). 29. Near Gerudo Valley entrance, catch the Big Poe (Child). Shooting Galleries: 30. Castle Town, perfect score (Child). 31. Castle Town, perfect score (Adult). 32. Kakariko, perfect score (Adult). 33. Lost Woods, perfect score (Child). Final three: 34. Treasure Chest Game (same as #5). 35. Ganon's Castle Light Trial, behind a breakable wall (Adult). 36. Desert Colossus Great Fairy Fountain near the Spirit Temple (Adult).

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Bottles: All 4 and What to Put in Them

#### Bottle Locations

1. Lon Lon Ranch (Child) — Win Talon's Super Cucco game (find his three special cuccos in the ranch shed). Reward: a bottle of Lon Lon Milk; drink it and keep the empty bottle.

2. Kakariko Village (Child) — Return all seven of the Cucco Lady's cuccos to their pen.

3. Lake Hylia (Child) — Dive to the bottom of the laboratory's pool (needs the Silver Scale from the Zora diving minigame); the professor rewards you.

4. Gerudo Valley (Adult) — Buy from the merchant for 100 rupees, or grab the one in the cracked wall area near the carpenter's camp.

#### What to Put in Bottles

Fairies — Caught at Fairy Fountains or grottos. Auto-revives you on death if equipped — your best emergency item.
Fish — Caught in shallow water or the pond. Used to feed Lord Jabu-Jabu (required to enter his dungeon) or for trades.
Bugs — Caught under rocks and in soft soil. Drop them in soft soil to grow Magic Beans into platforms, or use in the Biggoron trade.
Blue Fire — From the Ice Cavern or Zora's Fountain (Adult). Melts red ice — essential for Ice Cavern, Zora's Domain thaw, and Spirit Temple.
Poe — From defeated Poes at night in Hyrule Field, the Graveyard, or near the ruined castle. Sell to the Poe Collector in the Adult-era guardhouse.
Big Poe — The rare version. Sell five to the Poe Collector for a Piece of Heart (and a backup Bottle if you missed one).
Lon Lon Milk — 5 hearts per drink, two uses.
Ruto's Letter — Story-required; once delivered, the bottle is yours.

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The Mask Trading Sequence

The Happy Mask Shop opens in Castle Town Market after you show Zelda's Letter to the Kakariko gate guard (Child era). Full sequence:

1. Keaton Mask — Buy on loan, sell to the Kakariko gate guard (the one who wanted it) for a markup.

2. Skull Mask — Sell to the Skull Kid in the Lost Woods (play music for him first) at a markup.

3. Spooky Mask — Sell to the boy standing by the graves in the Graveyard during the day.

4. Bunny Hood — Sell to the running man in Hyrule Field (the one who later races you at Lon Lon Ranch). He pays a huge markup — 200+ rupees.

5. Mask of Truth — Free reward after selling all four loaners. Wear it and talk to Gossip Stones to hear hints.

The shop also sells Goron Mask, Zora Mask, and Gerudo Mask — purely cosmetic, fun NPC reactions. The Mask of Truth is the actual prize.

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Biggoron's Sword Trading Sequence

Adult-only. Start with the Pocket Egg from the Cucco Lady in Kakariko. Full chain:

1. Pocket Egg → hatch overnight → Pocket Cucco.

2. Use it to wake Talon in Kakariko, then return the cucco to the lady for Cojiro.

3. Bring Cojiro to the Lost Woods Kokiri girl (Adult) → receive Odd Mushroom.

4. RUSH (3 min): Deliver Odd Mushroom to the Old Hag in the Kakariko Potion Shop → Odd Potion.

5. Bring Odd Potion back to the same Lost Woods spot — a Kokiri takes it, gives you Poacher's Saw.

6. Give the Saw to the carpenter boss in Gerudo Valley → Broken Goron's Sword.

7. Take Broken Sword to Biggoron atop Death Mountain → Prescription Eyedrops.

8. Take Prescription to King Zora in Zora's Domain (Adult, after unfreezing him) → Eyeball Frog.

9. RUSH (4 min): Take Eyeball Frog to the Lakeside Laboratory professor → World's Finest Eyedrops.

10. RUSH (4 min): Deliver Eyedrops to Biggoron atop Death Mountain → Claim Check.

11. Wait 3 days (play Sun's Song six times). Return with the Claim Check → Biggoron's Sword — the strongest sword in the game, but no shield while wielding it.

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All Spells and Songs

#### Spells (Great Fairy rewards)

Din's Fire — Great Fairy at the dead-end boulder near Hyrule Castle (Child). AOE fire; essential for the Shadow Temple entrance and many combat encounters.
Farore's Wind — Great Fairy in Zora's Fountain (Child, bomb the wall at the end of the shallow water path). Creates a dungeon warp point — invaluable for the Water Temple.
Nayru's Love — Great Fairy in the Desert Colossus (Adult). Temporary damage-reducing shield.

#### Songs

From Sheik (Adult era):

Minuet of Forest — Sacred Forest Meadow (warp: Lost Woods)
Bolero of Fire — Death Mountain Crater (warp: Fire Temple)
Serenade of Water — Ice Cavern (warp: Lake Hylia)
Requiem of Spirit — Desert Colossus (warp: Spirit Temple; also lets you cross the Haunted Wasteland as Adult)
Nocturne of Shadow — Kakariko Village (warp: Shadow Temple entrance)
Prelude of Light — Temple of Time (warp: Temple of Time)

Learned elsewhere:

Zelda's Lullaby — From Impa at Hyrule Castle (Child). Opens locked doors, reveals Great Fairies.
Epona's Song — From Malon at Lon Lon Ranch (Child, talk to her multiple times). Calls Epona.
Saria's Song — From Saria in the Sacred Forest Meadow (Child). Talk to Saria anywhere; cheers up Darunia.
Sun's Song — In the Royal Family Tomb, Kakariko Graveyard (Child). Changes day/night; freezes ReDeads and Gibdos.
Song of Time — From Zelda at first meeting. Moves specific blocks; opens the Door of Time.
Song of Storms — From the windmill guy in Kakariko (Adult, after draining the well as Child). Opens grottos, grows beans, douses fire enemies.
Scarecrow's Song — Compose your own 8-note tune with Pierre the scarecrow at Lake Hylia (Child). As Adult, play it in certain spots to summon Pierre as a Hookshot target.

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Hidden Grottos and Secret Areas

Hyrule Field grottos — About a dozen hidden across the field. Check every rock cluster and tree ring. Contents vary: rupees, enemies, Business Scrubs, Skulltulas, even a cow.
Great Fairy Fountains — Death Mountain Trail (magic meter), Death Mountain Crater (Adult, double magic), Hyrule Castle moat dead-end (Din's Fire), Zora's Fountain (Farore's Wind), Desert Colossus (Nayru's Love), outside Ganon's Castle (Adult, defense upgrade).
Cow grottos — Two grottos with milk-giving cows: Hyrule Field near Lon Lon Ranch, and Death Mountain Trail.
Big Poe grotto — Hyrule Field near the castle entrance (Adult). Source of Big Poes for the Poe Collector quest.
Soft soil spots — Ten spots to plant Magic Beans as Child. As Adult, they grow into floating leaf platforms — shortcuts to every dungeon and several collectibles.
Gossip Stones — Throughout Hyrule. Bombs make them rocket, the Megaton Hammer flattens them, the Mask of Truth reveals hints.

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Fishing Minigame Strategies

The Fishing Pond at Lake Hylia is open as Child (for a Piece of Heart) and Adult (for another Piece of Heart plus the Hyrule Loach).

#### Regular Fish — Child (Need 7+ lbs)

1. Pay 20 rupees, grab the rod.

2. The biggest Child-era fish is 9–10 lbs. Look for the one hanging near the center log.

3. Cast so the bobber lands just in front of the fish. When it bites (rumble), hold back and mash reel.

4. Walk backward while reeling — this pulls the fish toward shore faster. Single biggest trick in the pond.

5. If tension maxes out, let the line slack briefly, then resume. Never let the meter redline.

#### Regular Fish — Adult (Need 13+ lbs)

1. Bigger fish spawn now — target the 18–19 pounder.

2. Same technique, longer fights. The big fish usually hangs near the submerged log or the center.

3. Use the sinking lure (see below) for a much easier time.

#### The Hyrule Loach

The Hyrule Loach is the pond's rarest fish, Adult-only:

1. The Loach spawns randomly near the lily pads at the bottom of the pond. Enter and exit the pond until you spot a long, eel-like fish — that's it.

2. It weighs 30+ lbs and fights hard. You need the sinking lure to reliably hook it.

3. Find the sinking lure by walking around the pond after catching at least one fish — it's hidden in the rocks or grass near the center.

4. Cast the sinking lure directly in front of the Loach. When it bites, reel slowly — the Loach doesn't thrash like a bass, but it takes a long time to bring in due to weight.

5. The owner gives you a purple rupee (50), not a Piece of Heart. The Loach is a prestige catch, not a collectible requirement. Bragging rights only.

#### Pro Tips

Walk backward while reeling — the single biggest trick. Pull the fish shoreward faster.
Never redline the tension meter — the fish breaks free. Slack, then reel when the fish tires.
Cast accuracy beats distance. A cast right in front of the fish beats a long cast into open water every time.
The sinking lure is your secret weapon for the biggest catches, including the Loach.

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That's the complete collectibles and secrets guide. All 100 Skulltulas, 36 Pieces of Heart, four bottles, the Biggoron's Sword, every spell and song, and every hidden grotto mapped. Do the Mask Trading Sequence and the Biggoron chain, plant those Magic Beans as Child for Adult shortcuts, and you're set for 100% completion. Happy hunting.

100% Completion Checklist and Advanced Guide

So you've beaten Ganon, watched the credits roll, and you're still hungry for more. Welcome to the 100% club — the place where Ocarina of Time stops being an adventure and becomes an obsession. This final section covers everything you need to track for a true completionist run, plus the advanced knowledge (bottles, equipment, speedrun tech, Master Quest differences, and stubborn FAQs) that separates casual players from the people who can recite every Skulltula spawn on command.

Let's break it down.

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100% Completion Checklist

"100%" in Ocarina of Time is a community-defined concept, not a game-tracked counter. The generally accepted completionist list totals roughly 88 inventory items, upgrades, and side quests. Print this out, tape it to your wall, and check them off.

Equipment

Kokiri Sword (Deku Tree area, 60 rupees from chest in training grounds)
Master Sword (Temple of Time, after collecting all three Spiritual Stones)
Giant's Knife / Biggoron's Sword (complete the adult trading sequence)
Deku Shield (buy in Kokiri shop or find in chests)
Hylian Shield (buy in Kakariko Market / Bazaar)
Mirror Shield (Spirit Temple boss room chest)
Goron Tunic (buy from Goron shop for 200 rupees, or get free from Darunia's son)
Zora Tunic (buy from Zora shop for 300 rupees, or unfreeze King Zora)
Kokiri Boots (starting gear)
Iron Boots (Ice Cavern)
Hover Boots (Shadow Temple)

Inventory Items

Fairy Slingshot (Deku Tree)
Boomerang (Jabu-Jabu's Belly)
Fairy Bow (Forest Temple — fire and ice arrows are separate)
Hookshot (Diku / Dampé's grave)
Longshot (Water Temple boss-key reward area)
Bombs (Doduongo's Cavern — bomb bag from chest)
Bombchus (Spirit Temple / Bottom of the Well shop)
Magic Beans (plant at magic bean salesman, 10 spots)
Megaton Hammer (Fire Temple)
Lens of Truth (Bottom of the Well)
Din's Fire (Great Fairy at Hyrule Castle entrance — child)
Farore's Wind (Great Fairy at Jabu-Jabu's belly area — Zora's Fountain)
Nayru's Love (Great Fairy at Desert Colossus)

Bottles

Bottle #1 — Talon's super cucco game (Lon Lon Ranch, child)
Bottle #2 — Underwater cucco dive at Lake Hylia (child)
Bottle #3 — Princess Ruto's letter (delivered via Jabu-Jabu)
Bottle #4 — Bottom of the Well — collect all 10 Big Poes as adult

Songs

Zelda's Lullaby (Hyrule Castle courtyard)
Epona's Song (Lon Lon Ranch, from Malon)
Saria's Song (Sacred Forest Meadow)
Sun's Song (Kakariko Graveyard — Royal Family Tomb)
Song of Time (Temple of Time, from Sheik / Zelda)
Song of Storms (Kakariko Windmill, from phonograph man)
Minuet of Forest (Adult, Sheik at Sacred Forest Meadow)
Bolero of Fire (Adult, Sheik at Death Mountain Crater)
Serenade of Water (Adult, Sheik at Ice Cavern)
Nocturne of Shadow (Adult, Kakariko after Forest/Fire/Water)
Requiem of Spirit (Adult, Sheik at Desert Colossus)
Prelude of Light (Adult, Sheik at Temple of Time)

Upgrades

Deku Stick capacity upgrade ×2 (Lost Woods games + stage)
Deku Nut capacity upgrade ×2 (Forest Stage + Lost Woods grotto)
Slingshot bullet bag upgrade (Lost Woods target game, child)
Quiver upgrade ×3 (Lake Hylia archery, horseback archery, Gerudo Archery)
Bomb bag upgrade ×2 (Goron City spinning pot, Bombchu Bowling Alley)
Hylian Wallet → Adult's Wallet (Skulltula House, 10 tokens)
Adult's Wallet → Giant's Wallet (Skulltula House, 30 tokens)
Magic meter ×2 (Great Fairy at Death Mountain Crater, Desert Colossus)
Strength upgrade ×3 (Goron Bracelet, Silver Gauntlets, Golden Gauntlets)
Fairy Bow elemental arrows (Fire Arrows, Ice Arrows, Light Arrows)

Quests and Collectibles

100 Gold Skulltula tokens (all 50 spiders across Hyrule)
36 Heart Pieces (all 36 — Heart Container counts are separate)
8 Heart Containers (one per dungeon boss)
13 Ocarina songs (listed above)
4 Magic Bean plantings (all 10 bean spots fully grown by adult era)
10 Big Poes (adult Hyrule Field, for the fourth bottle)
Gerudo Membership Card (rescue the carpenters from Gerudo Fortress)
Horse Epona (won from Ingo, learned Epona's Song)
Biggoron's Sword trading sequence (Pocket Egg → Biggoron's Sword, 11 steps)
Ice Arrows (Gerudo Training Grounds optional reward)
4 Bottles (full set)
Free the Goron from the Fire Temple (Darunia's son — stop him rolling in Goron City)
Get all five Ocarina button notes memorized (the Ocarina memory game in Lost Woods)

Dungeon Completions

Deku Tree (child, Spiritual Stone #1)
Dodongo's Cavern (child, Spiritual Stone #2)
Jabu-Jabu's Belly (child, Spiritual Stone #3)
Forest Temple (adult)
Fire Temple (adult)
Water Temple (adult)
Shadow Temple (adult)
Spirit Temple (adult — both halves)
Bottom of the Well (adult, optional but required for Lens of Truth)
Ice Cavern (adult, optional but required for Iron Boots)
Ganon's Castle (final — all six trials + Ganon fight)

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Bottle Contents Guide

You have four bottles. What goes in them — and when — is one of the small but real strategic decisions in OoT.

What to Catch

Fairy (Blue): The classic. Catch a fairy with an empty bottle and it auto-revives you on death. Ideal for boss fights and tight dungeon sections. Caught at any fairy fountain or by playing Song of Storms near a Gossip Stone.
Blue Fire: Found in Ice Cavern and Ganon's Castle (ice trials). Required to melt red ice blocking chests and key paths. Always carry one bottle of blue fire when you enter Ice Cavern — without it, you'll backtrack.
Bugs: Caught in dirt patches under rocks. Used to plant Magic Bean sprouts (the soft soil spots you can dig into with bugs as an adult). Also used to access certain grottos.
Fish: Caught in shallow water or bought at Zora shop. Used as bait for Lord Jabu-Jabu's entry and for trading-sequence side quests.
Poe: Caught at night from Poe ghosts. Sold to the Poe Collector in Hyrule Castle Town ruins (adult era) — useful for rupees.
Big Poe: Only the 10 Big Poes in Hyrule Field count toward the fourth bottle reward.
Ruto's Letter: The third bottle doubles as Ruto's letter — once delivered to King Zora, it becomes an empty bottle.

Recommended Permanent Loadout (Adult Era)

1. Bottle 1: Fairy (emergency revive for the current dungeon)

2. Bottle 2: Blue Fire (only when in Ice Cavern or Ganon's Castle)

3. Bottle 3: Bugs (for grotto access and bean spots)

4. Bottle 4: Free — flex slot for whatever side quest needs

In practice, casual players keep two fairies and use the other two for whatever dungeon they're in.

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Equipment Upgrades

Shields

Deku Shield — Wooden, child-era shield. Burns in fire. Cheap, replaceable.
Hylian Shield — Metal, doesn't burn. Used by both child (face button too big, can't block everything) and adult. Adult's default shield.
Mirror Shield — Adult-only, found in Spirit Temple. Reflects light and certain magic attacks. Required for Spirit Temple puzzles and the final Ganon fight (deflects some projectiles). Replaces Hylian in the equipment screen.

Rule of thumb: Use Hylian for 95% of the game; switch to Mirror when a puzzle requires it.

Swords

Kokiri Sword — Child starting weapon. Buy from Mido's training ground for 60 rupees.
Master Sword — Pulled from the Pedestal of Time after collecting all three Spiritual Stones. The iconic adult weapon.
Giant's Knife — Bought from Biggoron's brother (Goron City, adult). Breaks on use. Mediocre.
Biggoron's Sword — Two-handed, never breaks, hits harder than Master Sword. The reward for the adult trading sequence (Pocket Egg → Biggoron's Sword). Worth getting — but you can't use a shield while it's equipped.

Tunics

Kokiri Tunic — Default. No special properties.
Goron Tunic — Heat resistance. Required for Death Mountain Crater and Fire Temple. Buy from Goron shop or get free from Darunia's son.
Zora Tunic — Extended underwater breathing. Required for Water Temple. Buy from Zora shop or unfreeze King Zora with blue fire.

Boots

Kokiri Boots — Default. No special properties.
Iron Boots — Sink in water, weigh you down. Found in Ice Cavern. Required for Water Temple and Lord Jabu-Jabu access as adult.
Hover Boots — Brief hover over gaps, immune to certain traps. Found in Shadow Temple.

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Magic Meter Upgrades

Magic Meter (Base) — Granted by the Great Fairy at the top of Death Mountain (after Dodongo's Cavern, child era). One spin attack's worth of meter.
Extended Magic Meter — Two more upgrades:

- Great Fairy at Death Mountain Crater (adult): First extension.

- Great Fairy at Desert Colossus (adult): Second extension.

Three magic tiers in total. All three are required for 100%.

Spell Uses

Din's Fire: Area damage + lights torches simultaneously. Used in Shadow Temple entrance and several puzzles.
Farore's Wind: Place a warp point inside a dungeon. Underrated for Water Temple and Spirit Temple.
Nayru's Love: Damage shield for ~30 seconds. Good for tough minibosses.

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Wallet Upgrades

OoT's wallet is famously stingy.

Hylian Wallet (Default): Holds 99 rupees.
Adult's Wallet: Holds 200 rupees. Reward from the Skulltula House in Kakariko for collecting 10 Gold Skulltula tokens.
Giant's Wallet: Holds 500 rupees. Reward for collecting 30 Gold Skulltula tokens.

You need the Adult's Wallet to buy the Goron Tunic (200 rupees) and the Giant's Wallet to buy the Zora Tunic outright (300 rupees — though you can get it free by unfreezing King Zora with blue fire instead). Prioritize Skulltula collection early; the wallet is the real bottleneck on your rupee economy.

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Speedrun Basics (Beginner-Friendly Glitch Intro)

You don't need to be a speedrunner to appreciate OoT's glitch tech. The game has one of the most broken engines in N64 history, and understanding even the basics is fun. Here are the three foundational glitches, explained simply.

1. Infinite Sword Glitch (ISG)

What it does: Keeps Link's sword "swinging" forever, so anything that touches the blade takes damage continuously. How to do it: Stab with a sword, then interrupt the stab with a shield or another action before the animation finishes (commonly: stab, then immediately pull out the shield). Easier method: do a crouch-stab on something destructible while another attack is queued. Use case: Lets you walk into enemies and kill them. Also the foundation for bombchu hovering and many other tricks.

2. Bombchu Hovering

What it does: Lets Link "hover" in mid-air by exploiting the explosion timing of a bombchu, gaining height or distance. How it does it: Combine ISG (so your sword is always "out") with bombchu timing — drop a bombchu, let it explode, the explosion pushes Link upward, immediately drop another. Repeat. Use case: Skip large portions of dungeons. The most famous is skipping most of the Fire Temple by hovering across the crater.

3. Wrong Warp

What it does: Lets you enter a cutscene-loaded area (like the Temple of Time door) and get warped into an unrelated scene — famously, the credits, or into Ganon's Castle early. How it works: The game's cutscene system has lookup tables. By triggering certain cutscenes in specific frames (often using Farore's Wind placement), you trick the game into loading a different scene index than intended. Use case: The "Any% No IM/WW" route uses wrong warp to skip almost the entire game. Even casual players sometimes use mild variants.

These take practice. If you want to learn, watch runners like Torje or Linkus7 — they have beginner-friendly tutorial videos.

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Master Quest Differences

Master Quest is the "second quest" version of OoT, originally a 64DD expansion (Ura Zelda), later released on GameCube and bundled with the 3DS version. The story is identical; the dungeons change.

What Changes

Dungeon layouts: Room order, door positions, and puzzle flow are reshuffled. Forest Temple, for example, has completely different room connectivity.
Enemy placements: Enemies appear in different rooms, often in tougher combinations. More Iron Knuckles, more Like Likes, more Wallmasters in awkward spots.
Higher enemy density: Rooms that had two enemies now have four.
Trickier puzzles: Puzzles lean harder on obscure mechanics — bombchu timing, block pushing in weird directions, lens-of-truth usage.
Mirror Mode (3DS only): The 3DS version mirrors the entire world left-to-right, which can disorient veteran players.

What Stays the Same

Overworld, story, NPCs, item locations outside dungeons, bosses.
Heart Pieces and Skulltulas (mostly — some dungeon ones move).

Difficulty

Harder. Not brutally so, but it expects you to already know the original. The Iron Knuckle gauntlets and Like-Like ambushes are the worst offenders.

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FAQ

"I'm stuck in the Water Temple. Help."

The Water Temple is the most-maligned dungeon in the game for a reason. Three common pitfalls:

1. You missed a key. The Water Temple has one notorious key that you reach by raising the water to mid-level, going to the central pillar room, and using the Longshot on a skulltula on the far wall. Check the room with the boulder rolling on the floor — there's a hidden path behind the wall you can reach with the Longshot.

2. You forgot you can raise and lower the water. Play Zelda's Lullaby at each of the three triforce pedeons — bottom, middle, top — to control the water level. Most puzzles require a specific level.

3. You're fighting Dark Link without enough hearts. See the next question.

Tip: Use Farore's Wind. Set a warp point at the entrance. If you get turned around, warp back and start fresh.

"How do I beat Dark Link?"

Dark Link is the Water Temple miniboss, and he's a pain. Three working strategies:

1. Megaton Hammer spam: The hammer has a wider hitbox and Dark Link can't block it consistently.

2. Din's Fire: Hits him through his parry. Costs magic but works.

3. Biggoron's Sword: Its longer range out-spaces his mirror of your attacks.

4. Stab from a corner: Back him into a corner and spam the B-button stab — his parry can't always escape terrain.

Avoid using the Master Sword alone — he'll mirror your swings perfectly.

"Best order for adult dungeons?"

The game technically locks Spirit and Shadow behind their respective songs, but you have freedom. The most efficient completionist order:

1. Forest Temple (always first — required to open the rest)

2. Fire Temple (Goron Tunic required, but you can get it now)

3. Water Temple (Iron Boots from Ice Cavern first)

4. Bottom of the Well (Lens of Truth — needed for Shadow Temple)

5. Shadow Temple (Hover Boots)

6. Spirit Temple (Mirror Shield — you'll have everything you need)

7. Ice Cavern is technically optional, but most players do it before Water Temple for the Iron Boots.

"Where's the fourth bottle?"

Catch all 10 Big Poes in Hyrule Field as adult. Use Epona (faster pursuit), bring your bow, and ride down each Poe at night. Sell them to the Poe Collector at the ruined Hyrule Castle Town gate. He'll give you the fourth bottle after the 10th.

"Should I get Biggoron's Sword?"

Yes — for completion and for power. But it's two-handed, so you give up shield access. For most boss fights, Master Sword + Hylian Shield is fine. For minibosses and Dark Link, Biggoron's is a crutch that trivializes them.

"How do I unfreeze King Zora?"

Get blue fire in a bottle from Ice Cavern (or from a shop — the Zora shop sells it cheaply). Pour the blue fire on the red ice encasing King Zora in Zora's Domain. He'll give you the Zora Tunic for free, skipping the 300-rupee wallet requirement.

"What's the difference between the Giant's Knife and Biggoron's Sword?"

The Giant's Knife looks like Biggoron's Sword but breaks after a number of hits. Repairs cost money at the Goron shop. The Biggoron's Sword is the unbreakable version, earned through the adult trading sequence (Pocket Egg through the claim check). Skip the Giant's Knife unless you're desperate — go straight for Biggoron's.

"Can I miss anything permanently?"

A few things:

Skulltulas as a child: Some child-only Skulltulas are unreachable as an adult (and vice versa). The gold Skulltula in the Deku Tree as a child, for example, is harder to reach if you come back as adult. Just get them on your first visit.
Magic Beans: The 10 planting spots must be planted as a child for the bean sprout to grow as an adult. If you skip them, you can still buy the sprout spot from the salesman as an adult, but it's more expensive.
Some pieces of heart: The Lon Lon Ranch horseback archery heart piece is adult-only and annoying — don't skip it.

Otherwise, you can always come back.

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That's the full completionist picture. Ocarina of Time rewards obsessive play — and with this checklist in hand, you have every item, every bottle, every upgrade, and every dungeon marked out. Beat Ganon, plant your beans early, and don't trust the Giant's Knife. Good luck.

Ocarina of Time: Complete Strategy Guide

Part 1: Foundations

Game Overview

Story Synopsis

Controls Reference (N64)

Basic Movement

Z-Targeting

Shield & Defense

Camera

Ocarina

Epona (Horse)

Core Items & Equipment

Swords

Shields

Tunics

Boots

Key Quest Items

Ocarina Songs

Bottles (4 max)

Dungeon Items

Game Progression Roadmap

Child Link (Before Time Skip)

Adult Link (After Time Skip)

Side Quests (Throughout)

2.1 — Inside the Deku Tree

Map Overview

Walkthrough

Queen Gohma — Boss Strategy

2.2 — Dodongo's Cavern

Map Overview

Walkthrough

King Dodongo — Boss Strategy

2.3 — Inside Jabu-Jabu's Belly

Map Overview

Walkthrough

Barinade — Boss Strategy

2.4 — Golden Skulltula Summary

2.5 — Child Dungeon Items Recap

Forest Temple

Map Overview

Key Items

Room-by-Room Walkthrough

Skulltulas (Gold)

Mini-Boss

Boss: Phantom Ganon

Fire Temple

Map Overview

Key Items

Goron Rescue Paths

Lava Platforming Section

Megaton Hammer Acquisition

Skulltulas (Gold)

Mini-Boss: Flare Dancer

Boss: Volvagia

Water Temple

Map Overview

Key Items

Water Level Puzzles — The Critical Path

Every Small Key Location

Dark Link Strategy (Mini-Boss)

Boss: Morpha

Shadow Temple

Map Overview

Key Items

Invisible Enemies & Truth Lens Usage

Room-by-Room Critical Path

Skulltulas (Gold)

Mini-Boss: Invisible Phantom (Scythe)

Boss: Bongo Bongo

Spirit Temple

Map Overview

Child Link Section

Adult Link Section

Skulltulas (Gold)

Key Items

Boss: Twinrova (Kotake & Koume)

Adult Dungeon Summary

Queen Gohma

Phase 1 — The Ceiling Lurk

Getting Her Down