The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is one of the most beloved and critically acclaimed games in the series and all gaming. The game was so good that it won the Game of the Year Award from The Game Awards in 2017, the year of its release.
Despite all this love, however, there is one mechanic in Breath of the Wild that not all fans love. This mechanic is that weapons, bows, and shields have durability and eventually break. Now that the much-awaited sequel is here, gamers ask, “Will The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom still have weapon durability?”. Here, we will explore the game’s most controversial feature.
The Simple Answer
Some players love the weapon durability mechanic as it makes the game more challenging. Players who like this mechanic also argue that finding weapons in the game is not hard. However, players who do not like it argue that it makes the game annoying, tiring, and frustrating.
Some new players even say that because of this mechanic, they got discouraged and did not continue with the game. Some say that Tears of the Kingdom would not be a true sequel to Breath of the Wild without this feature.
Meanwhile, some say. Tears of the Kingdom should scrap this mechanic entirely. So, let us find out if Tears of the Kingdom still has weapons durability, shall we?
To immediately get to the answer players are looking for, the simple answer is yes, Tears of the Kingdom still has weapon durability. Weapons and shields in the game still degrade and break after a certain number of hits. In fact, because of a plot point in the game, most weapons that Link will find on the surface of the kingdom of Hyrule are decayed weapons. This means that they will break even faster than before.
Even with that, however, the real answer to whether Tears of the Kingdom still has weapon durability is yes, and it has been improved! The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom still has the weapons and shield durability feature, but players can now improve weapons using a new ability called the Fuse ability!
The Fuse Ability
The Fuse Ability is one of the five new abilities in Tears of the Kingdom. With this ability, Link can combine various items and objects in the game with Link’s various weapons and shields.
Using the Fuse ability, Link can increase a weapon’s and shield’s durability. Think of it as extending the weapon or shield’s maximum health. However, the improvement on the weapon or shield still depends on the actual item or object that is fused and the base durability of the weapon or shield.
An example is fusing weapons with Bokoblin Arm Bones, which are easy to find. The Bokoblin Arm Bone will add at least 20 damage to the base weapon’s damage output but will break after a few hits.
Aside from adding damage outputs and increased weapon durability, fusing certain items to weapons and shields gives different effects. For example, fusing a Ruby into swords will work similarly to Fire Rods.
Attacking using this fused weapon will hurl out fireballs. For shields, an example would be fusing a Zonai Rocket into a shield. When Link readies his fused shield with a rocket, the rocket will fire up and bring Link up a lot of height.
Additionally, it is important to know that Link cannot break fused weapons or shields apart to get its parts. Players can unfuse combined weapons or shields; however, this will cause the attached item to be destroyed. This means that only the base weapon or shield is left. With that in mind, players may think carefully before unfusing items. This is not to waste rare or important items.
Fuse ≠ Repair
Once a weapon, shield, or bow’s durability is almost used up, the text will appear on the screen and say that the item is badly damaged. When looking at the item in Link’s inventory, the badly damaged item will flash red. This means that the weapon, shield, or bow is almost at its breaking point.
It is important to mention that fusing a monster part or any other item to a weapon or shield does not repair the current durability of the weapon or shield. The fused item simply adds to the current durability of the weapon or shield.
Rock Octoroks
There is only one method to repair weapons in Tears of the Kingdom. To do that, Link must find a Rock Octorok. Link can find this enemy in the Eldin Mountains in the northeast of the map of the surface of Hyrule.
To repair a weapon with the help of Rock Octoroks, Link must drop the weapon, shield, or bow that needs repairs as the Rock Octoroks suck in air to attack. The Rock Octorok will suck up the weapon, shield, or bow and start chewing it.
After that, the Rock Octorok will suddenly sparkle and spit out the weapon, shield, or bow it sucked in. Pick up the item, and you will see that the item’s durability is now reset. Also, a new and random effect or buff has been added to it.
It is worth noting that Rock Octoroks will hide underground if Link gets too close to them. Because of that, make sure to keep your distance.
Another thing that is important to mention is that a single Rock Octorok can only repair one weapon, shield, or bow at a time. This means that Link may have to wait for the next Blood Moon for another Rock Octorok to respawn.
Once that happens, Link can make it repair another weapon, shield, or bow. Because of that, players should carefully choose which weapon, shield, or bow to repair. It would also be best to save the game when Link encounters a Rock Octorok.
This is just in case something happens that is not exactly what you are hoping for. This also allows players to reload if they are dissatisfied with the random effect or buff added to the item by the Rock Octorok.
Tips
As mentioned above, the game’s decayed and other metal-based weapons have decreased durability because of Gloom. Because of that, if you want weapons with longer durability, it would be best to avoid them. As an alternative, Link can use Zonaite weapons like Zonaite Swords. Link can then fuse Construct or monster parts on them to improve them.
Additionally, players can fuse a Diamond to weapons to greatly increase a weapon or shield’s durability. Not only that, but it can also add at least 20 points to a weapon damage output. However, as players of the Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom know, Diamonds are rare and valuable items.
Because of that, players may have to think twice before fusing it into a random weapon. Although, if you have a bunch of them, then, by all means, you can go nuts on ‘em.
Conclusion
Zelda fans who love the weapon durability mechanic may find this improvement a new twist on a feature they love. On the other hand, players who dislike the weapon durability feature may find that this improvement can make the mechanic more tolerable and less frustrating.
It surely adds a new flavor to the beloved and much-awaited sequel to Breath of the Wild. Hopefully, with the information above, players now understand the weapon durability system in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom a little more. Now, with more understanding, it is time to explore the skies, surface, and depth of the kingdom of Hyrule!
