Any% (Beginner)

This route is intended for beginners. The fastest route, which can be found here, is somewhere around 10 minutes faster. The fastest run on the beginner route can be found here, and it might be a useful visual reference for following along with this route. That said, that run does not do every possible strategy, and a few minor things in this route were discovered later on.

Runs should start with a blank file in slots 1, 2, and 3.

Ordon

  • Roll to Ordon Spring
  • Ride Epona to Ordon Ranch, getting random rupees from the grass (5 R)
  • Goats 1 (10 Goats)
  • Exit Link's house
    • Store forward and A to jump over the ladder
  • Roll to Ordon Village
  • Climb up the vines and talk to Jaggle
  • Roll across the platforms and grab the blue rupee (10 R)
  • Get the crib with the hawk and deliver it to Uli (Fishing Rod)
  • Jump onto the roof of Rusl's house using the mailbox
  • Grab two yellow rupees on the roof (30 R)
  • Roll to the dock (grab green rupees as needed to get to 30R)
  • Catch a fish
    • Try to aim towards where it looks like there are fish
  • Enter Sera's shop (Milk Bottle)
  • Buy the Slingshot (0 R)
  • Exit Sera's shop
  • Roll to Link's house and enter it
  • Grab the Wooden Sword from the chest
  • Exit Link's house
    • Store forward and A to jump over the ladder
  • Do the slingshot & sword tutorials

  • Ride Epona to Faron Woods
  • Ride Epona to Coro and talk to him (Lantern)
  • Roll to the cave at the northeast corner of the central area of Faron Woods
  • Grab the Small Key from the chest
  • Roll to North Faron
  • Save Talo
  • Goats 2 (20 Goats)
  • Roll to Link's house
  • Roll to Ordon Spring
  • Crawl through the tunnel

  • Dash through the Hyrule Castle sewers
  • Dash across the Hyrule Castle rooftops
  • Leave the tower after watching the Zelda cutscene
  • Dash to Ordon Village
  • Listen to Bo and Jaggle from the grass
  • Midna jump up to Hanch (the hawk guy)
  • Midna jump into the house
  • Bonk the wall to grab the Ordon Shield
  • Dash to Rusl's house
  • Grab the Ordon Sword from the couch
  • Dash to Ordon Spring
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts (Ordon Spring Warp Portal)
  • Dash to the twilight barrier
  • Enter Faron Twilight

Faron Province

  • Dash towards Faron Spring and kill the Shadow Beasts (South Faron Warp Portal)
  • Dash to Faron Spring
  • Talk to Farona (Faron Vessel)
  • Kill the first two bugs in the tunnel (2 tears)
  • Dash to Coro's house and Midna jump inside
  • Kill the two bugs in Coro's house (4 tears)
    • Turn off senses before releasing the Midna charge to skip the cutscene
  • Exit Coro's house
  • Dash to the locked gate and dig under it
  • Kill the bug before Faron Cave (5 tears)

  • Dig to skip most of Faron Cave
  • Kill the bug on the right wall at the start of the mist area (6 tears)
  • Midna jump into the main tree trunk in the middle of the mist area
  • Kill the two bugs in the main tree trunk (8 tears)
  • Midna jump to the southwest corner of the mist area
  • Dig up and kill the two burrowed bugs (10 tears)
  • Dash to North Faron
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts (North Faron Warp Portal)
  • Dash towards Forest Temple
  • Kill the two bugs in front of Forest Temple (12 tears, twilight cleared)

  • Store a backflip to skip some Midna text (hug the wall to walk around the trigger)
  • Roll to Coro and talk to him (Small Key)
  • Roll through Faron Cave
  • Go through the mist area with the monkey (10 R)
    • Push the monkey forward when possible, but not too much or she'll go backwards
    • Use the Slingshot to kill keese and deku babas along the way
  • Retrieve the Lantern and roll to North Faron
  • Roll towards Trill's Shop
  • Kill the bokoblin closest to Trill's shop
  • Refill the lantern (don't pay Trill for the lantern oil)
  • Roll to the Golden Wolf (Ending Blow)
  • Enter Forest Temple

Forest Temple

  • Roll towards the vines
  • Kill the walltulas with the slingshot
  • Climb the vines and enter the next room
  • Light the torches with the lantern to raise the stairs
    • Rollstab the skulltula to stun it, then do a jumpspin to kill it (if the rollstab fails, wait for it to start to attack, then do a jumpspin)
  • Exit to the north and watch the bridge cutscene in the next room
  • Go back into the torch room and use the east exit
  • Roll to the north door and go outside
  • Roll through the outdoor area and enter the room to the north
  • Grab the Small Key from the chest

  • Roll back to the room with a bunch of water
  • Go through the east exit (jump past the hanging Skulltula)
  • Roll across the bridge and bonk the totem pole twice
  • Kill the bokoblins to save the second monkey (check for dropped rupees)
  • Roll back to the torch room and use the west exit
  • Roll up the stairs and exit to the north
  • Early Boomerang
  • Ook (Gale Boomerang)
  • Savewarp

Getting to Eldin Vessel

  • Roll to Hyrule Field
  • Roll towards the Eldin twilight barrier (to the east)
  • Enter Eldin Twilight
  • Dash to the gorge and kill the Shadow Beasts (Kakariko Gorge Warp Portal)
    • Do not store a jump attack during the portal cutscene. This is HD, not SD.

  • Warp to South Faron (during the forced warp)
  • Dash to Hyrule Field
  • Dash towards the Lanayru gate (to the west)
  • Eponaless Gate Clip
  • Dash towards the bridge area
  • Climb onto the box and jump down to Lake Hylia

  • Dash to Fyer and talk to him
  • Dash towards the Kargarok and fight it
    • Dash into the corner to have the Kargarok start flying around earlier
    • After the first hit, backflip higher on the hill and jump attack again to skip a cycle
  • Faster Kargarok Flight

  • Store a jump attack after finishing the Kargarok flight to skip some Midna text
  • Dash to Zora's Domain
  • Climb the frozen waterfall
    • Wait for the icicles during the Midna jumps
    • Hold backwards after jumping past the second icicle to avoid slipping off the ledge
  • Enter the throne room at the top of the waterfall
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts (Zora's Domain Warp Portal)

  • Warp to North Faron
  • Warp the bridge to Kakariko Gorge
    • Store a jump attack to skip some Midna text after the cutscene
  • Dash to Kakariko Village
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts (Kakariko Village Warp Portal)

Eldin Province

  • Talk to Eldin (Eldin Vessel)
  • Midna jump up to the top of the sanctuary and enter it from the roof
  • Light the torches on the wall
  • Jump down into the basement
  • Kill the three bugs in the basement (3 tears)
  • Warp to Kakariko Village
  • Dash up the ramp and enter Elde Inn
  • Jump down and kill the Elde Inn bug (4 tears)

  • Exit Elde Inn and dash to the top of the abandoned house
  • Kill the bug in the abandoned house (5 tears)
  • Midna jump out of the abandoned house
  • Dash to Barnes' shop and enter through the window
  • Go upstairs and kill the bug (6 tears)
  • Exit Barnes' shop
  • Enter the bomb house, light the fireplace, and exit (bonk the wall for rupees)
  • Grab the three tears from the bomb house ruins (9 tears)

  • Dash to Death Mountain Trail (to the northeast)
  • Dash up Death Mountain Trail and kill the bug by the howling stone (10 tears)
    • Quick climb up one of the ledges on the way up
  • Dash to the top of Death Mountain Trail
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts (Death Mountain Warp Portal)
  • Kill the bug on the wall with a jump attack from the nearby ledge (11 tears)
    • Move quickly to make the first steam cycle
  • Dash to the hot spring area and kill the hot spring bug (12 tears, twilight cleared)
  • Roll to Death Mountain Trail (to the northeast)
  • Climb the grate and hit the Goron Trigger (Faster Goron)
  • Roll back to Kakariko Village
  • Roll towards Elde Inn to trigger the Epona cutscene
    • Having the Fishing Rod out here causes a fun audio glitch
  • Tame Epona

Lanayru Transition

  • Ride Epona to Eldin Field (to the north)
  • LJA to skip the Postman
  • Ride Epona to the other side of Eldin Bridge
  • Fyrus Skip
  • Store a jump attack to skip some Midna text (LJA off of the nearby Keese)
  • Warp to Death Mountain
  • Wait for the meteor to fall and warp it to Zora's Domain

  • Store a jump attack to skip some Midna Text
  • Dash towards the exit and watch the Rutela cutscene
  • Store another jump attack to skip the Midna Text again
  • Dash to the exit
  • Jump down the waterfall and swim into the loading zone

Lanayru Twilight

  • Enter Lanayru Spring and talk to Lanayru (Lanayru Vessel)
  • Exit Lanayru Spring and dash to the west
  • Kill the bug after the first bridge (1 tears)
  • Continue to dash to the west
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts (Lake Hylia Warp Portal)
  • Dash towards the ladder (to the west) and kill the nearby bug (2 tears)

  • Warp to Zora's Domain
  • Bonk the eastern wall and Midna charge the bug (3 tears)
  • Exit the throne room and drop down the waterfall
  • Swim to the lilypads and kill the lilypad bug (4 tears)
  • Swim to the east and dash up the ramp
  • Kill the bug on the cliff (5 tears)
  • Swim to Upper Zora's River (to the south)
  • Swim to Iza (to the east) and talk to her
  • Kill the bug that appears (6 tears)

  • Swim to North Hyrule Field (to the southwest, through tunnel with torches)
  • Swim to the stairs and dash to West Castle Town Field (to the southwest)
  • Dash towards Castle Town and kill the Shadow Beasts (Castle Town Warp Portal)
  • Dash to Castle Town
  • Dash cancel through Castle Town towards Telma's Bar (south, then east)
  • Kill the bug outside Telma's Bar (7 tears)

  • Warp to Lake Hylia
  • Dash to the howling grass and howl (UDUD)
  • Kill the three bugs during the Kargarok Flight (10 tears)
  • Bonk into the wall and say no to trying again
  • Kill the bug by where you respawn (11 tears)
  • Swim to the floating platforms (to the west)
    • Make sure not to have the camera in freecam when starting the cutscene (freecam messes up the start of the Boss Bug fight)
  • Boss Bug (12 tears, twilight cleared)

Zora Armor

  • Exit Lanayru Spring and roll to Fyer
    • Use the Boomerang to grab the red rupee above Fyer to get to 10R if necessary
  • Pay Fyer to use the cannon (0 R)
  • Exit Falbi's house (sidehop over the ladder)
  • Roll to the horse call grass and call Epona
  • Ride Epona to Castle Town
    • Do not skip the Postman because he'd talk to you later anyways
  • Roll through Castle Town to Telma's Bar (south, then east)

  • King Bulblin 2 Skip
  • Ride Epona to the first gate
  • Open the gate and kill the Bulblin Riders to the southeast
  • Catch back up to the wagon and kill the Kargarok with the Boomerang
  • Leave the wagon behind, ride Epona through Kakariko Gorge, and open the gate
  • LJA over the Midna (and KB1) triggers to enter Kakariko Village
  • Roll to the Graveyard (to the southeast)
  • Follow Rutela through the Graveyard
  • Crawl halfway through the tunnel, then start going backwards (Rutela tunnel warp)
  • Swim over to Rutela (Zora Armor)

  • Roll back to Kakariko Village and ride Epona out into Kakariko Gorge
    • Epona is chilling out near the southwest exit of Kakariko Village
  • Ride Epona back to Ordon Village (southwest to Faron, then south to Ordon Village)
  • Epona Slide into the Bo trigger (equip the Zora Armor while doing this)
  • Fight Bo and grab the Iron Boots from the chest
    • Slapping Bo from the initial position is optimal
    • Store a ZL-target after each round of sumo wrestling to save time

  • Exit Bo's house and ride Epona back to South Hyrule Field (to the north)
  • Ride Epona to Falbi's house via Bridge of Hylia (to the northwest) and enter it
    • Collect the Rare Chu Jelly on the bridge if a gold chu drops from the ceiling when riding Epona over Lake Hylia (RNG)
    • Epona Slide down the stairs to Falbi's house
  • Slash into the wall to clip out of bounds and fall down into Lake Hylia
  • Swim towards Lakebed Temple
  • Pillar clip with Zora Armor
    • Do not go too far back into the loading zone or the game will crash

Lakebed Temple



  • Go back to the central room (south, then west)
  • Clawshot the vines to the northwest to get to the staircase
  • Clawshot the second floor vines to the northeast from part of the way up the staircase
  • Exit through the second floor east exit
  • Roll through the next room and go through the door
    • Merely entering this room prepares Gate Unloading (for City in the Sky later)
  • Roll back to central room
  • Lakebed Boss Key Skip
  • Morpheel

Midna's Desperate Hour

  • Dash to Castle Town (southwest, then south, then east)
  • Dash Cancel through Castle Town to Telma's Bar (south, then east)
  • Enter Telma's Bar through the door
  • Dash back up the stairs to trigger the Louise cutscene
    • B attack into the cutscene to trigger Louise Glitch
  • Push the box towards Telma's Bar once and jump up to the window
  • Walk across the ropes and exit to the north
  • Kill the poe in front of Jovani

  • Drop through the chest into the Sewers
  • Open the gate and swim down to the skulltulas
  • Burn the webs with the stick
    • Light the torch and relight the stick along the way
    • Kill any keese that get too close (they prevent you from climbing the ledge)
  • Dig into the hole (to the northeast)
  • Hit the first Bulblin Archer into the water
    • He will snipe Link if he is not killed
  • Climb up the tower and go outside to the Hyrule Castle Rooftops
  • Early Wind Cycle
  • Dash to Zelda

Master Sword

  • Warp to North Faron
  • Dash to the north and kill the Puppets
  • Dash to enter Sacred Grove (call Midna to turn the bridge early)
  • Howl at the howling stone inside the grove (MUDMUD)
  • Chase Skull Kid (watch a video to see the path)
  • Defeat Skull Kid in the arena area
    • For each cycle, kill a Puppet, then wait for Skull Kid to blow his horn, then jump attack him
  • Dash to the Master Sword area and howl at the triforce symbol (MUDMUD)
  • Master Sword Puzzle (LDUUURRDDDLU)
  • Dash to the Master Sword and grab it

Desert Province


  • Warp to Lake Hylia
  • Dash up the cliffs to Auru (to the west) and talk to him (Auru's Memo)
  • Dash to Fyer (to the northeast)
  • Show Fyer Auru's Memo and enter the cannon to go to Gerudo Desert
  • Dash to the west and kill some Bulblin Riders to steal a boar
  • Use the boar to break down the fences to the north, then enter Bulblin Camp

  • Bulblin Camp LJA
  • King Bulblin 3
  • Use the boar to break through the fences to Arbiter's Grounds
  • Transform into wolf and dash into Arbiter's Grounds
    • Entering as human is slightly faster, but the movement is harder

Arbiter's Grounds

  • Dash to the north and B attack through the sand to the chain
    • Alternatively, move through the room as human (harder, but faster)
  • Transform into human, clawshot the chain, and pull it
  • Roll to the chest and grab the Small Key (to the northwest)
  • Roll into the next room, light the torches, and enter the Poe Door room (to the north)

  • Watch the Poe cutscene and dash to the room to the west
  • Poe 1 Skip
    • If the moldorms are being annoying, they can be distracted with a bomb
    • If you are on critically low health, Poe 1 Skip is much harder. There is a heart in one of the skulls on the ledge.
  • LJA to the west door
  • Kill the Stalfos with a Bomb (use the Boomerang) and exit to the south
  • Light the front-middle and back-left torches, then enter the room to the west
  • Poe 4
  • Sniff Poe 4 to get the Poe Scent

  • Exit to the north and jump down to the north side of the room using the chandelier
  • Push the large metal box west 4 times
  • Dash back to the Poe Door room (to the east)
  • Dig up and pull the chain on the east side of the room
  • Go down the stairs that appear and enter the door
  • Turn the walls and kill the Redead with a Midna charge and one stab
  • Open the chest to grab a Small Key
  • Clawshot up to Poe 2 room (upstairs to the north)
  • Poe 2 (Midna charge the Poe, then spin attack the Bubbles, then jump attack the Poe)

  • Go back to the Poe Door Room (south, then west)
    • Manipulate the rat to get hit while spinning the walls
  • Dash to the room to the west
  • Go through the hallway to the north, then up the stairs and through the east door
  • Enter the Ghost Rat room to the east, then go south into Poe 3 Room
    • Don't grab the Small Key chest in the Ghost Rat room
  • Poe 3 Room backwards

  • Go back to the Poe Door room (north, then west) and exit through the Poe Door (to the north)
  • Boss Key Early
    • Get the blue rupee from one of the skulls to the west before to get to 5R if necessary (very rarely, if ever)
  • Transform into Wolf and dash through the Epic Spinner Room to the southeast exit
    • Alternatively, do human movement (harder, but faster)
  • Stalfos With Bombs Timesaver
  • Clawshot over the sand and roll to Death Sword's room (to the south)
  • Death Sword (Spinner)
  • Savewarp

  • Use the spinner to cross the sand in the first room, then roll back to the Boss Key room (to the north)
  • Spin the wall, then use the spinner to get onto the middle platform, then raise the rail with the spinner
  • Ride the rail to the Boss Key door (upstairs to the north)
  • Stallord
  • Use the spinner to exit Arbiter's Grounds

Snowpeak Transition

  • Roll up the stairs and kill the Shadow Beasts (Mirror Chamber Warp Portal)
  • Raise Mirror with the spinner
  • Warp to Zora's Domain
  • Dash outside using the right pathway, jump down the waterfall towards the west, and enter Snowpeak (to the west)
  • Dash to Ashei and transform to human to watch the cutscene (Ashei's Sketch)

  • Warp to Kakariko Village
  • Dash to the Graveyard, crawl through the tunnel (to the north), and swim over to Ralis
  • Transform into human and talk to Ralis (Coral Earring)
  • Warp to Zora's Domain (go behind the tombstone to warp)
  • Dash outside using the left pathway, jump down the waterfall towards the east, and swim over to the ledge
  • Catch a Reekfish and sniff it (Reekfish Scent)
    • Try to aim towards where it looks like there are fish

  • Dash up Snowpeak Mountain and dig into the cave (towards the west)
    • Dash cancel across the ice platforms to cross the water
    • Roughly follow the Reekfish Scent (but you can cut a few corners)
    • Quick climb up several ledges on the way up
  • Clawshot up through the cave

Snowpeak Ruins

City in the Sky

  • Warp to Kakariko Village
  • Silver Rupee with Bombs (300 R)
  • Transform into human, enter the sanctuary, and drop down into the basement
  • Early City in the Sky
  • Dash to Fyer and have him fix the cannon (0 R)
    • If necessary to get to 300R, there is a red rupee above Fyer
  • Clawshot into the cannon to enter City in the Sky

  • Roll to the north exit in the first room
    • It is possible, but quite difficult, to Super Slide out of the water to speed up this room a bit
  • LJA across the voids and go towards the door to the north
  • Approach the door carefully and transform into wolf to open the door from far away
    • Going too far forward before opening the door will cause the fan to start up
  • Exit through the window to the west
  • Use the spinner to extend the bridge
  • Roll to the room to the west, grab the Small Key chest inside, then exit the room to the east
  • Argorok Cutscene Skip
  • Go back into the main room through the window (to the east)
  • Exit the room to the east, use the spinner to extend the bridge, then use the east exit

  • Roll through the fans' wind to exit the room to the east
  • LJA across the void down to Aeralfos's room
    • Because of Gate Unloading, the gate should not be here. If for whatever reason, the gate is there, go through the rooms the way Nintendo intended.
  • Aeralfos One-Cycle (Double Clawshots)
  • Savewarp (equip the Zora Armor)
    • Because of Argorok Cutscene Skip, this savewarp will put Link in the Small Key room on the east side of the dungeon

  • Exit back to the bridge, roll across (no cutscene to skip this time), clawshot to vines and enter window
  • Clawshot up through the fan, go outside, clawshot up to the vines, then LJA over to the door
    • Kai Clip is faster, but harder
    • If you failed to skip the fan trigger, go through the outdoor rooms as Nintendo intended, starting from the east side of the dungeon
  • Grab the Boss Key from the chest
  • Drop down through the fan and exit through the north door
  • Skip Turning On Fans
    • Alternatively, turn on the fans on the way down from the Boss Key (easier, but slower)
  • Fan Tower

  • Enter Argorok's Room and clawshot up the vines ("Robshot")
  • Argorok
  • Equip the Iron Boots and enter the cannon to exit City in the Sky

Palace of Twilight

  • Mash B to slash and land on the bridge
  • Warp to the Mirror Chamber
  • Watch the cutscene, transform into wolf, and enter the Palace of Twilight

  • Dash to the West Wing
  • Kill the Zant Head, grab the Small Key chest, and clawshot up to the northern door
    • Transform into wolf after dropping from the clawshot target with Iron Boots on
    • In general, kill Zant Heads as wolf by a running B attack followed by a Midna charge
  • Kill the Zant head and grab the Small Key chest
  • Jump attack onto the ledge using the chest, then enter the first Phantom Zant room (to the north)
  • Phantom Zant 1
  • Skip Midna Sol Text
  • Exit the first Phantom Zant room with the Sol
  • Staircase Timesaver 1
  • Exit the West Wing with the Sol

  • Put the first Sol into the pedestal outside
  • LJA to the East Wing
  • Kill the Zant head, grab the Small Key chest, and enter the northern door
  • Roll down, kill the Zant Heads, then clawshot up to the Small Key chest (to the southeast)
    • Let the twilight fog transform Link into wolf automatically
  • LJA to the second Phantom Zant room (to the north)
  • Phantom Zant 2
  • Exit the second Phantom Zant room with the Sol
    • Drop the Sol into the slot by pulling out the Master Sword, then immediately roll to skip part of the stairs
  • Staircase Timesaver 2
  • Exit the East Wing with the Sol
    • Store ZL and A to throw the Sol immediately upon exiting the East Wing, then clawshot it from the platform
  • Put the second Sol into the pedestal outside (Light Sword)


  • Boss Key Shortcut
    • Alternatively, waiting to go up to the Boss Key normally until after killing the Zant Head on the platform to the south is only a few seconds slower
  • Ride the floating platform to the Zant Head to the south, then kill it and void out
    • LJA from the floating platform to the Zant Head to save time
    • Make sure the Zant Head actually dies before voiding out
  • Kill the Zant Heads, grab the small key chest, and enter the northeast door

  • Early Platform
  • Kill the last Zant Head, grab the Small Key chest, and LJA to the northern door
  • Kill the Shadow Beasts and enter the Boss Key door
    • Spin attack as soon as you hear the previous Shadow Beasts die
  • Zant
  • Exit the Palace of Twilight
    • Turn wolf immediately upon spawning in after the save prompt to save time

Hyrule Castle

  • Warp to Castle Town
  • LJA to skip the Postman and enter Castle Town (to the east)
  • Head towards Hyrule Castle (east, then north) and watch the Squidna cutscene
  • Enter Hyrule Castle (to the north)


  • Go inside Hyrule Castle
  • Barrier 3 Skip
  • Clawshot across the chandeliers to enter the northern door upstairs
    • Climb onto the railing in the northeast part of the room upstairs to skip a chandelier
  • Darknut Room
  • Exit through the southeastern door
  • Lantern Puzzle
    • From the entrance: top-right, bottom-left, bottom-right, top-left
    • Although not intended, the following order is faster (the timing is also tighter): bottom-left, top-right, bottom-right, top-left
  • Dynalfos with Bombs

  • Aeralfos with B&C
  • Grab the Small Key chest, then roll to the Boss Key chest (to the west)
    • Rolling perfectly is faster, but transforming into wolf is only slightly slower and allows for easier equips
  • Grab the Boss Key chest after the cutscene
  • Enter Hyrule Castle Tower (to the north)
  • Block Room Shortcut
  • Skip the final Darknut

  • Enter the Boss Key door and roll up the stairs to the final boss fights
  • Ganondorf
    • Use Rare Chu Jelly to two cycle the horseback fight if available
    • Wearing Iron Boots during the finishing blow makes for a funnier credits sequence
Last updated 08/09/2024 – Jacquaid