How to Get the Master Sword in Tears of the Kingdom

Requirements for Getting the Master Sword

In Breath of the Wild and previous Zelda games, pulling the Master Sword required a certain number of heart containers. This time around, your ability to pull the sword relies on your stamina stat (for reasons that will become clear shortly). You’ll need at least two full rings of stamina to successfully retrieve the Master Sword, which adds up to about 20 Shrines’ worth of Lights of Blessing.

When to Get the Master Sword in Tears of the Kingdom

Technically, the open narrative of TotK means that you can pull the Master Sword as soon as you have the necessary stamina requirements. With that being said, the Master Sword is a major part of the game’s story — this is Zelda, after all — and you’ll eventually be prompted to seek it out by some of the game’s significant NPCs.

I strongly recommend waiting to retrieve the sword until you get the prompt. This does mean you won’t get the sword until nearly the end of the game, but trust me when I say that it’s worth it. I pulled it a few quests too early, and the combat benefits weren’t really worth the way it made the final stretch of the game feel a little rushed and lackluster.

With all of this in mind, the best time to get the Master Sword in Tears of the Kingdom is after you get the “Trail of the Master Sword” quest, and after you’ve collected all eleven geoglyphs. Make sure not to collect the twelfth quest-locked dragon tear, as holding off on this one will actually make pulling the Master Sword easier when the time comes.

How to Get the Master Sword in Tears of the Kingdom

Now, let’s get into how to actually get the Master Sword. The following sections contain major story spoilers for Tears of the Kingdom, so proceed at your own caution!

Recruit the Fifth Sage

After defeating Phantom Ganon in Hyrule Castle, you’ll return to Lookout Landing with the news that Princess Zelda is still missing. Purah will hypothesize that there’s still one final sage to add to your side. She’ll give you the “Find the Fifth Sage” quest, which unlocks the final temple and awakens the Sage of Spirit — Rauru’s sister, Mineru.

Mineru will reveal that, per Princess Zelda’s request, she suspended her soul in order to direct you to the restored Master Sword. She’ll show you her own memory of the princess, which takes place shortly after the events of Tear of the Dragon #11, but will confess that she doesn’t actually know where the Master Sword currently is. She’ll instruct you to speak with the Great Deku Tree, which begins the “Trail of the Master Sword” quest.

Help the Great Deku Tree

Unfortunately, speaking with the Great Deku Tree is easier said than done, as the Lost Woods aren’t exactly accessible at the moment. Koroks now have a new dialogue line that tells you something’s wrong with Korok Forest, and any attempts to enter the woods through regular means result in a near-immediate respawn at the edges of the forest. The Koroks believe the answer lies in the Depths, so head down the Minshi Woods Chasm just outside and follow the path of trees to Korok Grove. From here, you’ll be able to Ascend into the clearing where the Master Sword rested in Breath of the Wild.

You’ll be greeted with a harrowing sight — silent, lifeless Koroks and an incoherent Great Deku Tree complaining of stomach problems. The sword is nowhere to be found, so you’ll need to fix things if you want answers. Head into the part of the tree where the inn and store are located, and you’ll discover another chasm inside. Jump down and dispatch the Gloom Hands and Phantom Ganon residing there, then head back up into the newly restored clearing.

Speaking to the now-cured Great Deku Tree will trigger another memory, and he’ll tell you that he can sense the presence of the Master Sword in Hyrule. He’ll mark its location on your map, though he’ll note that it appears to be moving. 

If you’ve completed all the geoglyphs by this point, you’ll have a pretty good inkling as to why — the marker actually shows the current location of the Light Dragon. If you haven’t collected all the geoglyphs yet, you should do it now! Completing them all and triggering the final, quest-locked Tear will make retrieving the sword much easier.

Find the Light Dragon

Now it’s time to track down the Light Dragon. The easiest way is to fast travel over to Rist Peninsula in eastern Akkala (the spiral-shaped beach on the map) and complete the twelfth Tear of the Dragon. I personally recommend doing this at night for the greatest effect, since there are some cool glowing effects involved.

When the cutscene is over, Link will open his eyes to see the Light Dragon flying by at a much lower altitude than usual. This makes it easy to quickly Autobuild a Zonai device or pop over to the nearby Ulri Mountain Skyview Tower and fly over to meet it.

If you’ve already completed the final Tear, just check your map for the Light Dragon’s current location and fast travel to the nearest Skyview Tower or sky island Shrine. Speaking to the Great Deku Tree triggers a change in the dragon’s flight pattern, lowering its default altitude by quite a bit and making it about as accessible as the other three dragons.

Once it’s within range, glide over and land on its back. The Light Dragon doesn’t have any unique weather effects or elemental defenses, so you won’t need any special gear to keep yourself safe. Once you’ve landed, head up toward the dragon’s head, picking up loose shards from its spikes. They won’t do you any good when it comes to upgrading the Champion’s Tunic, but they’re great for adding healing properties to your gear and elixirs, and don’t count against the dragon’s collectible cooldown.

Pull the Sword

Once you reach the Light Dragon’s head, you’ll find the Master Sword embedded in the fur of its forehead. Follow the onscreen prompts to pull it — the dragon will try to shake you off, but as long as you meet the aforementioned stamina requirements, you’ll outlast its attempts. Eventually, it’ll calm down and boost above the cloud cover, triggering a cutscene and one final memory from Princess Zelda.

What to Do after Pulling the Master Sword

When the cutscene is over, the Light Dragon will drop you off at the Garden of Time on the Great Sky Island, near where you sent the Master Sword back in time at the start of the game. This moment completes the “Trail of the Master Sword” quest, leaving you with only the final endgame tasks — defeating Ganondorf and finding Princess Zelda.