Zelda Breath of the Wild guide: Everything you need to know about shrines

BOTW shrine map and locations

By Dave Tach@dptach Updated Jun 27, 2017, 4:45pm EDT

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s shrines are a familiar new twist on the dungeons that have been winding their way through Nintendo’s storied franchise for decades. In this guide, we’ll teach you about shrines: what they are, what they do, why you should find then and how to do that.

What is a shrine?

In effect, shrines are miniature dungeons filled with puzzles. They dot the Hylian landscape, waiting for you to enter and conquer.

This dungeon’s theme is … pretty self-explanatory

Every dungeon has a theme and is comprised of a puzzle (or a series of puzzles) based on that theme. Inside, your job is to get from the entrance to the man at the end who will grant you an award, using the methods that the theme hints at.

There are also occasionally enemies in spirit shrines, though none we've encountered were terribly difficult.

What’s in them for you?

There are a few reasons to seek out and complete shrines.

First, you’ll get a spirit stone for beating every shrine. You can turn those in for additional heart containers or stamina upgrades. If you want to take more damage before dying or run longer before getting exhausted (and that’s living the dream, isn’t it?), then find and complete shrines.

What else can I get from shrines?

There are other benefits shrine, too: treasure chests. They tend to be optional, so you’re free to ignore them. They tend to be hidden, so you’re likely to miss some of them if you’re not seeking them out. But if you take the time to find and (usually climb up to) open them, you’ll receive substantial rewards. In the shrines surrounding the Great Plateau, you'll tend to find some excellent and powerful weapons that will help you in the early game.

How do I find shrines?

There are more than 100 shrines in Breath of the Wild, it the sheer size of the game makes them somewhat difficult to find.

Beyond just wandering around and stumbling upon them, the easiest way to find shrines is to climb to high ground and survey the surrounding area. Climb high, press the right analog stick to pull out your Sheikah slate and look all around you.

New shrines will glow a shade of yellow (or amber, if you prefer). Shrines you’ve already beaten shrines will appear blue. When you find a new shrine, press A to place a pin, which will mark it on your Minimap and make it much easier to find.

Can I return to a shrine?

Yep! After you place your Shiekah slate in the slot outside of a shrine, the shrine becomes a fast travel location. To be clear: You don't have to beat a shrine for it to become a fast travel location. You just need to interact with it.

Even if you don’t feel like beating a shrine, this is a good reason to visit every one you find. The more shrines you find, the more fast travel locations you’ll have. The more fast travel locations you have, the quicker you can travel around Hyrule.

Tell me that last thing you want to tell me, OK?

Not a problem! Shrines also appear near important locations, too. Every horse stable in Breath of the Wild has a shrine in its vicinity. This is awesome because it lets you fast travel to get a horse whoever you want one. Find a stable, find a shrine.

Shrines: walkthroughs, locations and puzzle solutions

We’ve organized our shrines guide based on geographic locations. Each tower unlocks a portion of Breath of the Wild’s map, and the shrines that appear in those regions appear beneath the region names below.