The Great Fairies are among the most important contact points in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, because only with their help can you improve most of the armor and Link’s defense significantly increase. There are four Great Fairies in total: Cotura, Mija, Kaysa and Tera. Each freed fairy unlocks a further level of improvement, so that your equipment can ultimately be strengthened up to four stars. In addition, many complete armor sets with two stars or more receive a powerful set bonus – for example immunity to freezing, faster movement at night or reduced stamina consumption when climbing.
The fairies require Rupees when they first open their sources, but after that the actual armor improvements in Breath of the Wild do not cost any additional Rupees, but only the required materials. In this guide we will show you all four Locations, explain the costs of the fairy sources and list the most important materials for all upgradeable armor sets. You can find the Locations of the armor itself in our big guide to all armor in Breath of the Wild.
How do the Great Fairies work?
When you first visit a fairy spring, all you see is a huge closed flower bud. Approach her and the Great Fairy trapped inside asks Link for a ruby donation so she can regain her lost power. It doesn’t matter which fairy you visit first: The price depends solely on how many Great Fairies you have already freed. Your first fairy therefore always costs 100 Rupees, even if you first travel to the other end Hyrule’s to Tera.
| Freed Fairies | Cost of the next source | Maximum improvement |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Great Fairy | 100 Rupees | ★ |
| 2. Great Fairy | 500 Rupees | ★★ |
| 3. Great Fairy | 1.000 Rupees | ★★★ |
| 4. Great Fairy | 10.000 Rupees | ★★★★ |
| Total | 11.600 Rupees | Maximum level |
Once multiple sources have been opened,everyone already freed Great Fairy Upgrade your clothing to the currently unlocked maximum level. So you don’t have to travel to a specific sister for three stars. If you have freed all four fairies, Cotura, for example, can also bring a piece of armor with Kakariko Village to four stars.
All four Great Fairies at a glance
| Great Fairy | Region | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Cotura | Necluda | Forest northeast of Kakariko Village |
| Mija | Akkala | East of Lake Akkala, south of Tarrey Town |
| Kaysa | Tabantha | Snipe Hill south of Tabanta Tower |
| Tera | Gerudo | Gerudo giant fossil in the extreme southwest of the desert |
Find Cotura – Great Fairy at Kakariko Village
Cotura is usually the first Great Fairy that Link encounters. Its source is northeast of Kakariko Village in a small forest. From the village, follow the path up to the Ta’loh Naeg Shrine and then continue into the forest. The huge closed flower bud stands there, hard to miss, between the trees and flowers. As part of the task surrounding Pikango, you will be sent in this direction anyway, which is why Cotura can be unlocked very early in the game.
This first investment of just 100 Rupees is extremely worthwhile. For example, just a single level of improvement increases many pieces of armor from three to five defense points. Princess gentians and other valuable plants also grow around the spring.
Find Mija – Great Fairy in Akkala
Mija is located in Akkala region, south of Tarrey Town and east of Lake Akkala. You can reach it particularly easily via the Dah Hesho Shrine on the hill near the Kaepora Pass. From there look east or northeast down into the valley below; You can see Mija’s big bud between the autumn-colored trees.
If you follow our full route through Akkala, the visit can be easily combined with the construction of Tarrey Town and other tasks in the region.
Find Kaysa – Great Fairy at Tabanta Tower
Kaysa lives on Snipe Hill in the Tabanta Borderland. The easiest way starts at Tabanta Tower: Climb as high as possible and glide with the Paraglider south or southwest to the large rocky hill. Caesar’s spring lies in a depression on its northwest side.
Of the four springs, this is the furthest away from a directly adjacent shrine, but can be easily reached from the Tabanta Tower. Anyone who is on the way to the Rito village and Vah Medoh anyway can unlock Kaysa without any major detours.
Find
Tera – Great Fairy in the Gerudo Desert
Tera waits in the far southwest of Gerudo Desert at the massive Gerudo giant fossil. The area is well beyond Gerudo Town and is partially obscured by a sandstorm on the first visit. The Hawa Koth Shrine is also located at the giant fossil, so you can return directly to Tera at any time after it has been activated.
Since you need a total of 11,600 Rupees to fully build all four fairies, Tera becomes the last unlocked sister for many players. However, it doesn’t have to be that way: if you visit her first, Tera only charges 100 Rupees.
Malanya is not a Great Fairy for armor
Southeast of the plateau stable is another large bud, which at first glance looks like the fifth fairy spring. However, Malanya, the horse god lives there. It does not improve armor, but can revive deceased registered horses. Activation costs 1,000 Rupees. We explain more about this in our guide to horses, Epona, Malanya and the antique horse equipment.
Improve armor – defense values and stars
Most normal armor sets follow a similar pattern. For example, a piece of armor with three points of basic defense rises above 5, 8 and 12 to a maximum of 20 points. Particularly robust sets such as soldier, antique and wilderness armor, on the other hand, start at four points and reach the end 28 points per part. The completely improved warrior’s robe is an exception as a single top and even achieves it 32 defense points.
You can only improve armor pieces that are intended for this purpose. For example, Winter Jerkin, Gerudo Women’s Clothing, Kilton’s Monster Masks, Dark Set, and most DLC armor do not have enhancement levels.
Set bonuses from two stars
Many three-piece armor sets only reach their full potential after all three pieces have been upgraded to at least two stars. If you then wear the full set, a set bonus is activated in addition to the normal effect. For example, you can no longer be frozen, use less stamina when climbing or cause more damage with ancient weapons.
| Set | Bonus from ★★ |
|---|---|
| Ninja set | Night Tempo ↑ |
| climbing set | Climbing jumps use less stamina |
| Barbarian Set | Charge attacks consume less stamina |
| Anti-fire set | Fireproof |
| Rito set | Freezing prevents |
| Desert Set | electrical protection |
| insulation set | Shock effect prevents |
| Zora set | Swimming sprint uses less stamina |
| light set | Stal Camouflage and Bone Weapon Attack ↑ |
| Antique set | Ancient weapons cause significantly more damage |
| Wilderness Set | Master Sword Beams ↑ |
Upgrade materials of the main armor sets
In the following tables, the materials are given for each piece of armor. If a set consists of three parts and each part uses the same materials, you will need the specified amount three times to bring the entire set to the same level.
Hylia set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 5 Bokoblin Horns |
| ★★ | 8 | 8 Bokoblin Horns, 5 Bokoblin Tusks |
| ★★★ | 12 | 10 Bokoblin Tusks, 5 Bokoblin Hearts |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 15 Bokoblin Hearts, 15 Amber |
Ninja set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 4 | 3 slow bells |
| ★★ | 6 | 5 creeping bells, 5 creeping worms |
| ★★★ | 9 | 8 creepers, 5 creeping snails |
| ★★★★ | 16 | 10 creeping trout, 5 princess gentians |
climbing set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 3 Keese Wings, 3 Spurlings |
| ★★ | 8 | 5 electric batwing wings, 5 track lizards |
| ★★★ | 12 | 5 Ice Batwings, 10 Trail Toads |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 5 Fire Keese Wings, 15 Trailing Violet |
Barbarian Set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 1 Lynel Horn |
| ★★ | 8 | 3 Lynel horns, 2 Lynel hooves |
| ★★★ | 12 | 4 Lynel hooves, 1 Lynel heart |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 2 Lynel Hearts + 1 Horn Shard |
For the final stage, the Barbarian Mask requires an Dinraal Horn Shard, the Barbarian Clothes requires a Farosh Horn Shard and the Barbarian Pants requires a Naydra Horn Shard. You can find the best farming routes in our guide to Dinraal, Naydra and Farosh.
anti-fire set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 1 Fire Lizard, 3 Moblin Horns |
| ★★ | 8 | 3 Fire Lizards, 4 Moblin Tusks |
| ★★★ | 12 | 3 Firefighters, 3 Moblin Hearts |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 5 firefighting wings, 2 Hinox hearts |
Rito set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 3 Red Slime Jelly |
| ★★ | 8 | 5 Red Slime Jelly, 3 Ember Herb |
| ★★★ | 12 | 8 Fire Batwings, 5 Embers |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 10 red echsalfos tails, 5 rhodonite |
Desert Set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 3 White Slime Jelly |
| ★★ | 8 | 5 White Slime Jelly, 3 Ice Keese Wings |
| ★★★ | 12 | 8 Ice Batwings, 3 Blue Lizard Tails |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 10 blue echsalfos tails, 5 sapphires |
insulation set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 3 Yellow Slime Jelly |
| ★★ | 8 | 5 Yellow Slime Jelly, 5 Shiver Fruits |
| ★★★ | 12 | 5 tremors, 5 yellow echsalfos tails |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 10 yellow echsalfos tails, 10 topazes |
Zora set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 3 echsalfos horns |
| ★★ | 8 | 5 Lizard Spurs, 5 Hyrule Perch |
| ★★★ | 12 | 5 echsalfos tails, 5 maxi perches |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 10 Lizalfos Tails, 15 Opals |
light set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 5 Luminous Stones, 3 Bokoblin Hearts |
| ★★ | 8 | 8 Luminous Stones, 3 Moblin Hearts |
| ★★★ | 12 | 10 luminous stones, 2 Molduga hearts |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 20 luminous stones, 1 Lynel heart |
Antique set
| stage | Defense | Material per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 7 | 5 antique screws, 5 antique springs |
| ★★ | 12 | 15 Antique Springs, 10 Antique Gears |
| ★★★ | 18 | 15 Ancient Shafts, 5 Ancient Cores |
| ★★★★ | 28 | 2 Giant Ancient Core Pieces, 1 Star Shard |
The fully upgraded Antique set achieves a total of 84 defense points . From two stars onwards, the set bonus also significantly strengthens ancient and guardian weapons, making this armor one of the strongest combinations in the game, especially against guardians.
Improve Wilderness Set – Materials of all three dragons
You will only receive the Wilderness Set after completing all 120 regular shrines. Each of the three pieces of armor uses the materials of a different dragon for its improvements: the Wilderness Hat requires Farosh, the Wilderness Robe requires Naydra, and the Wilderness Pants require Dinraal.
| stage | Defense | Additional materials per part |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 7 | 10 acorns + 2 scales of the respective dragon |
| ★★ | 12 | 5 Stamina Honey + 2 Claws |
| ★★★ | 18 | 5 endurance beetles + 2 teeth |
| ★★★★ | 28 | 1 Star Shard + 2 Horn Shards |
| Armor part | Required dragon |
|---|---|
| Wilderness cap | Farosh |
| Wilderness Robe | Naydra |
| wilderness trousers | Dinraal |
Warrior’s robe Improve defense to 32
The warrior’s robe is not a complete armor set, but has the highest maximum defense value of a single normal top. You get it from Impa after you find your first souvenir photo; You can find out more about this in our guide to the memories in Breath of the Wild.
| stage | Defense | material |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 8 | 3 Princess Gentians |
| ★★ | 14 | 3 Princess Gentians, 2 Farosh Horn Shards |
| ★★★ | 22 | 3 Princess Gentians, 2 Naydra Horn Shards |
| ★★★★ | 32 | 10 Princess Gentians, 2 Dinraal Horn Shards |
The warrior’s robe is one of the strongest individual pieces of armor, but not generally “the best armor” in the game: as a complete three-piece combination, the antique, soldier and wilderness sets achieve a higher overall defense and sometimes have additional advantages.
Sand boots improve
| stage | Defense | material |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 5 Molduga fins, 10 track lizards |
| ★★ | 8 | 10 Molduga Fins, 10 Spur Carrots |
| ★★★ | 12 | 2 Molduga Hearts, 15 Spurtlings |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 4 Molduga Hearts, 15 Spur Violets |
snow boots improve
| stage | Defense | material |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | 5 | 5 Octorok Tentacles, 10 Track Lizards |
| ★★ | 8 | 5 Octorok Balloons, 10 Sprint Carrots |
| ★★★ | 12 | 5 Octorok Eyes, 15 Spurlings |
| ★★★★ | 20 | 2 Naydra Scales, 15 Spur Violets |
Gerudo Jewelry Improve
The six pieces of jewelry from Gerudo Town can also be upgraded to the Great Fairies. They are not part of a set, but are great for combining a specific elemental protection with other armor.
| Jewelry | basic value → maximum | Main materials |
|---|---|---|
| Amber earrings | 4 → 28 | Amber and Flint |
| Opal earrings | 3 → 20 | opals and flint |
| Topaz earrings | 3 → 18 | topazes, flint, star chips |
| Rhodonite headband | 3 → 20 | Rhodonite, Flint, Star Shard |
| Sapphire headband | 3 → 20 | Sapphires, Flint, Star Shards |
| Diamond Browband | 4 → 28 | Diamonds, Flint, Star Shard |
Amber earrings in particular are interesting because, when fully improved, they achieve the same 28 defense points as the strongest helmets in the base game and require comparatively easy-to-obtain materials.
Which armor cannot be upgraded?
Not every clothing can be reinforced with Cotura, Mija, Kaysa or Tera. If an item does not appear in any of the Great Fairies improvement menus, it has no stars. This particularly affects the following armor:
- Old shirt and old trousers
- Winter doublet
- Gerudo women’s set
- Thunder Helmet
- Bokoblin, Moblin, Lizalfos and Lynel Mask from Kilton
- Dark Set
- Majora’s Mask and Korok Mask
- Midna’s Helmet
- Tingle set
- Phantom Set
- Phantom Ganon Set
- Bodyguard Set
- Zantos helmet and Ravios cap
- Island Lobster Shirt
- Nintendo Switch Shirt
- Salvage Set from Xenoblade Chronicles 2
These armors permanently retain their original defense value. Some of them have strong special effects or a set bonus right from the start.
amiibo armor at the Great Fairies
Several amiibo-exclusive armor can also be upgraded to four stars. These include the Origin, Time, Shadow, Wind, and Sky sets, as well as the Grim Deity set. The classic hero armor in particular is extremely expensive to improve because each level requires star shards.
| Set | main material |
|---|---|
| Original set | Rhodonite + Star Shard |
| Time set | Amber + Star Shard |
| Shadow Set | Topazes + Star Chips |
| wind set | Opals + Star Chips |
| Sky Set | Sapphires + Star Shards |
| Grim Deity Set | Hinox, Lynel and Dragon materials |
The five classic hero sets receive a bonus to the beams of the master sword from two stars onwards. The Grim Deity Set, on the other hand, works similarly to the Barbarian Armor: each piece increases Link’s attack power, while the full enhanced set reduces the stamina consumption of charged attacks.
Little fairies at the fairy springs collect
Small fairies often float around the springs of the Great Fairies. Carefully sneak up on them and use A to collect them before they fly away. If you have at least one fairy in your inventory and Link’s hearts drop to zero, she will automatically be used and save him from death. It is therefore worth taking some fairies with you, especially before Lynels, difficult shrines, the test of the sword or the fight against Ganon.
The ninja set or sneaky dishes are extremely helpful when collecting, as the little fairies quickly fly away if Link runs towards them too loudly.
Which Great Fairy should you unlock first?
For normal gameplay, Cotura at Kakariko Village is clearly the most practical first choice. You get to Kakariko Village very early anyway and only have to pay 100 Rupees to free her. You should also unlock the second fairy for 500 Rupees as early as possible, because only with two Great Fairies can armor be brought to two stars and numerous set bonuses can be activated.
The third fairy for 1,000 Rupees is worth it in the second half of the game at the latest. The fourth source, on the other hand, costs 10,000 Rupees and initially represents a significant financial outlay. It is still a must for our complete Breath of the Wild Walkthrough, because all upgradeable pieces of armor can only achieve their maximum defense with all four fairies.
Great Fairies for 100% – Checklist
| Target | Cost / Result |
|---|---|
| 1. Great Fairy free | 100 Rupees – Armor up to ★ |
| 2. Great Fairy free | 500 Rupees – Armor up to ★★ and set bonuses |
| 3. Great Fairy free | 1,000 Rupees – Armor up to ★★★ |
| 4. Great Fairy free | 10,000 Rupees – Armor up to ★★★★ |
| Find Cotura | Kakariko Village |
| Find Mija | Akkala |
| Kaysa find | Tabantha |
| Find Tera | Gerudo Great Skeleton |
| All important armor on ★★ | Unlock Set Bonuses |
| All upgradeable armor to ★★★★ | Optional maximum 100% score |
Found all four Great Fairies – what happens next?
Once you have freed Cotura, Mija, Kaysa and Tera, all four improvement levels are permanently available to you. Now only your material supply decides how much you can upgrade your armor. The highest levels primarily require Lynel Hearts, Hinox Hearts, Molduga Materials, Star Shards, Giant Ancient Core Pieces and Parts of the Three Dragons. So don’t sell these items too quickly.
You can find particularly valuable materials via our guides Ingredients and materials as well as to Dinraal, Naydra and Farosh. You can then use our overview to find out which pieces of armor you are still missing all armor in Breath of the Wild compare.