Item and Equipment Upgrades

Your sword changes five times after the Practice Sword, and each change is a story event, so you cannot miss them. None costs Rupees or materials; the only choice you make is when to come back to Skyloft and look at what the new blade can do.

You pick up this wooden training blade from the chest in the back room of the Sparring Hall at the very start of the game. Eagus makes an exception and lets you carry it outside, and it is replaced as soon as you draw the Goddess Sword.

After the Wing Ceremony you are led to the Chamber of the Sword inside the Statue of the Goddess and pull the Goddess Sword from its pedestal. Fi lives in the blade and talks to you through the rest of the game; this is also the sword you aim with motion controls and charge for Skyward Strikes.

Farore’s Flame, at the end of the Ancient Cistern, tempers the sword into the Goddess Longsword. It does twice the damage of the Goddess Sword and has a longer reach.

Nayru’s Flame, the reward for clearing the Sandship, turns the Longsword into the Goddess White Sword. It widens what Fi can dowse for, so you can search for up to seven kinds of target at a time instead of three.

Din’s Flame, in the sacred flame chamber you reach once the Fire Sanctuary is finished, completes the three-flame tempering. The Master Sword hits four times as hard as the Goddess Sword, reaches further and repels evil, and it is the blade that opens the Gate of Time.

Zelda blesses the Master Sword at the Sealed Temple in the past, after you pass through the Gate of Time during the True Master Sword and Levias chapter, and the blade gains a glowing white edge and a wider guard. This is the only sword that can hurt Demise, and its Skyward Strikes hit harder.

There are three shield lines, each with three levels, plus the Hylian Shield. The wooden line is cheap but burns, the iron line cannot burn but is weak to electricity, and the sacred line is fragile in the short run but mends itself over time. Every upgrade is done at the Scrap Shop, and a broken shield can be mended there too. A Revitalizing Potion also refills the shield gauge and fires on its own just before a shield would break.

Instructor Owlan hands you a Wooden Shield early in the game. It is the weakest shield: light and quick, but it breaks easily and catches fire, though electricity does not hurt it. If you lose it, the Gear Shop in the Bazaar sells another for 50 Rupees.

Take the Wooden Shield to Gondo for 30 Rupees and 2 Amber Relics, 1 Monster Claw, 1 Jelly Blob. It takes more hits before it breaks.

The Banded Shield becomes the Braced Shield for 50 Rupees and 3 Amber Relics, 2 Monster Claws, 2 Tumbleweeds, 1 Ornamental Skull. It is the toughest wooden shield.

The Gear Shop begins selling the Iron Shield for 100 Rupees once you have cleared the Skyview Temple. It cannot burn but electric attacks hurt it badly, so keep a wooden or sacred shield in mind for electric enemies.

Upgrade the Iron Shield for 50 Rupees and 2 Eldin Ore, 2 Monster Claws, 2 Ornamental Skulls.

The Reinforced Shield becomes the Fortified Shield for 100 Rupees and 3 Eldin Ore, 3 Monster Claws, 3 Tumbleweeds, 1 Blue Bird Feather. It is the sturdiest iron shield.

After you have beaten The Imprisoned for the first time, the Gear Shop stocks the Sacred Shield for 500 Rupees. Its gauge is short, so it takes damage quickly, but it slowly repairs itself, resists fire and curses, and is not hurt by electricity.

Upgrade the Sacred Shield for 100 Rupees and 1 Dusk Relic, 2 Bird Feathers, 3 Ornamental Skulls.

The Divine Shield becomes the Goddess Shield for 150 Rupees and 4 Dusk Relics, 3 Bird Feathers, 3 Monster Horns, 1 Blue Bird Feather. It is the best of the sacred shields.

The Hylian Shield is not sold and cannot be upgraded. You win it in the Thunder Dragon’s Lightning Round, the boss-rush challenge in Lanayru Gorge, by defeating eight bosses (Mini-Games). It never breaks and nothing damages it.

The Kikwi elder Bucha gives you the Slingshot in Faron Woods, a little before the Skyview Temple. Gondo turns it into the Scattershot for 50 Rupees and 2 Dusk Relics, 2 Amber Relics, 3 Jelly Blobs. Hold the fire button to charge it and a single seed spreads over a wide area.

The Beetle is the item from the Skyview Temple, and it can be improved three times. A robot in Lanayru Desert upgrades it to the Hook Beetle for free during the story; the Hook Beetle can carry bombs and other small things and drop them on targets.

Beedle sells the Bug Net at his Airshop for 50 Rupees. The Big Bug Net costs 100 Rupees and 3 Tumbleweeds, 2 Ancient Flowers, 1 Evil Crystal and has twice the size, which makes bugs and birds much easier to catch.

You get the Bow inside the Sandship. Iron Bow: Bow to Iron Bow: 50 Rupees, 3 Tumbleweeds, 1 Evil Crystal, 3 Monster Claws, 2 Eldin Ore; it shoots harder and farther. Sacred Bow: Iron Bow to Sacred Bow: 100 Rupees, 5 Tumbleweeds, 2 Evil Crystals, 3 Lizard Tails, 1 Goddess Plume; it is the strongest bow in the game.

A Mogma in Eldin Volcano gives you the Digging Mitts on the way to the Earth Temple. They dig through soft earth. The upgraded Mogma Mitts come from Silva, a captive Mogma you free inside the Fire Sanctuary and let you tunnel through to new areas. There is no cost.

Luv sells it for 20 Rupees, and it restores eight hearts.

It costs 50 Rupees and makes your stamina gauge deplete more slowly. Stamina Potion+ (20 Rupees): 3 Volcanic Ladybugs, 2 Sky Stag Beetles, 2 Gerudo Dragonflies, 1 Faron Grasshopper. Your stamina does not drain at all for three minutes.

It costs 20 Rupees and slows how fast you lose air underwater. Air Potion+ (20 Rupees): 2 Sky Stag Beetles, 2 Skyloft Mantises, 2 Lanayru Ants. You lose no air for three minutes.

It costs 30 Rupees at the potion shop, restores four hearts and refills the gauge of your equipped shield; it also triggers by itself when a shield is about to break.

It costs 200 Rupees and halves the damage you take for a short time. Guardian Potion+ (40 Rupees): 1 Faron Grasshopper, 2 Eldin Rollers, 3 Blessed Butterflies, 3 Starry Fireflies. You take no damage at all for three minutes, which makes it the best potion for the hardest fights.

The Slingshot comes with a small satchel of Deku Seeds. A Small Seed Satchel adds 10 more and costs 100 Rupees at the Gear Shop once you own the Slingshot, or you can open the Goddess Chest that appears when you strike the Goddess Cube near the Volcano Entry bird statue in Eldin (see Goddess Cubes). Medium Seed Satchel: Small Seed Satchel to Medium Seed Satchel: 50 Rupees, 4 Amber Relics, 3 Monster Claws, 3 Ornamental Skulls; it adds 20 seeds. Large Seed Satchel: Medium Seed Satchel to Large Seed Satchel: 100 Rupees, 5 Amber Relics, 3 Monster Claws, 1 Golden Skull, 1 Blue Bird Feather; it adds 30 seeds.

The Earth Temple gives you a Bomb Bag that holds 10 bombs. A Small Bomb Bag adds 5 and costs 150 Rupees at the Gear Shop once the Bomb Bag is yours; the Goddess Chest on top of the Isle of Songs also holds one, and it opens after you strike the Goddess Cube outside the Fire Sanctuary. Medium Bomb Bag: Small Bomb Bag to Medium Bomb Bag: 50 Rupees, 1 Lizard Tail, 3 Ornamental Skulls, 1 Blue Bird Feather; it adds 10 bombs. Large Bomb Bag: Medium Bomb Bag to Large Bomb Bag: 100 Rupees, 3 Lizard Tails, 4 Jelly Blobs, 2 Hornet Larvae, 1 Golden Skull; it adds 15 bombs.

The Bow comes with a quiver that holds 20 arrows. A Small Quiver adds 5 and costs 150 Rupees at the Gear Shop once you have the Bow; another one waits in a Goddess Chest after you strike the Goddess Cube near the Life Tree in Lanayru Gorge. Medium Quiver: Small Quiver to Medium Quiver: 50 Rupees, 3 Monster Horns, 3 Dusk Relics, 5 Amber Relics; it adds 10 arrows. Large Quiver: Medium Quiver to Large Quiver: 100 Rupees, 2 Monster Horns, 3 Dusk Relics, 1 Golden Skull, 1 Goddess Plume; it adds 15 arrows.

You start with a Small Wallet that holds 300 Rupees. Batreaux turns in your Gratitude Crystals for bigger wallets (Gratitude Crystals): a Medium Wallet (500 Rupees) for 5 crystals, a Big Wallet (1,000) for 30, a Giant Wallet (5,000) for 50, and a Tycoon Wallet (9,000) for all 80.

The pouch holds four items to begin with, and shields, medals, bottles, bags and wallets all use its slots. Four more slots exist: one is in a Goddess Chest on Pumpkin Landing, opened by striking the Goddess Cube in the Deep Woods beside Gorko, and Beedle sells the other three for 300, 600 and 1,200 Rupees, in that order.