The Blood Moon is one of the most important recurring events in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. When the sky turns red and Ganon’s power over Hyrule at midnight, almost all defeated monsters return and numerous weapons, bows and shields lying loose in the world reappear. This will keep you going Lynels, Guardians, Hinoxes, Stone Talus and monster camps can be farmed permanently. However, there is no simple seven-day calendar behind the event or a complete reset of the game world. plants, ore deposits, animals, Treasure Chests and traders follow their own respawn rules. A regular blood moon is based on an internal timer of 168 minutes of active playing time and will then be noted for a coming midnight. On this page we explain the exact time, all respawns, targeted farming after a blood moon, the cooking bonus and the shrine task “The Night of the Blood Moon”.
Blood Moon – the most important data at a glance
| Property | Blood Moon |
|---|---|
| Regular timer | 168 minutes of active play time |
| Corresponds to | 7 normal match days |
| trigger | At midnight |
| First visible signs | Around 10:00 p.m. |
| Red particles | About 11:30 p.m. |
| Monster Respawn | Yes |
| Weapon respawn | Yes, with designated world and enemy weapons |
| Treasure Chests | No |
| plants and ore | Own respawn, independent of the blood moon |
| Cooking Bonus | Guaranteed critical cooking success around 11:30pm – 12:15am |
| Can be enforced by sleeping? | No |
| Can be enforced by killing many enemies? | No |
When does the blood moon come?
The regular blood moon is controlled by an internal timer. This runs during active playing time and reaches the crucial value after 168 minutes or two hours and 48 minutes. This corresponds to seven complete and normal days in Hyrule, because one hour of play corresponds to approximately one real minute. This is why the widespread saying that the blood moon appears “every seven days” arose. Technically, however, it is the running timer that is important and not simply the number of calendar days that pass at the top right of the map.
After the timer reaches its limit, the blood moon does not necessarily appear in the same second. Breath of the Wild checks the status at midnight and schedules the Blood Moon for a subsequent appropriate night. Therefore, depending on when the timer exceeds its limit and whether Link is in a location where a Blood Moon is allowed to occur, the actual interval may be longer than two hours and 48 minutes.
Why sleeping and campfires don’t speed up the blood moon
Sleeping until morning or night several times in a row doesn’t work. When you sleep and wait by the campfire, only the visible time jumps forward. The active playing time, which is crucial for the blood moon, is not accelerated accordingly. The transitions played do not even count towards the normal timer. So you can’t wait until morning seven times and reliably create a blood moon.
However, if a blood moon is already planned for the coming night, skipping the time until night or past midnight can speed up its release. Campfires are useful if you already know that a blood moon is coming today – not to artificially fill the actual timer beforehand.
Trigger blood moon by defeating many enemies?
Even killing a large number of enemies does not speed up a normal blood moon. Whether you defeat hundreds of Bokoblins or ride peacefully through Hyrule during the 168 minutes does not change the regular timer. The fact that a blood moon often occurs after large farming rounds is usually simply because a lot of active playing time has passed. The same applies to Guardians, Lynels, trees or destroyed objects: you cannot reliably force the normal Blood Moon through such actions.
The first blood moon
A regular Blood Moon cannot occur until Link has left the Great Plateau. The internal timer starts earlier, but the actual triggering is only permitted after Link has jumped down into the kingdom of Hyrule with the Paraglider for the first time. You don’t need to have freed a titan, solved a specific shrine or defeated a specific number of enemies. Once the plateau has been left and enough active play time has passed, the normal Blood Moon cycle begins.
How do you recognize an upcoming blood moon?
The night begins completely normally. About off 10:00 p.m If you have a clear view, you can already see an unusually red full moon in the sky. At around 11:30 p.m. the event becomes unmistakable: red and black particles rise from the ground, Ganon’s music starts and the entire environment increasingly takes on a red hue. Shortly before midnight the sky moves noticeably quickly. Finally, at 00:00, the Blood Moon sequence is triggered and Zelda warns Link that the monsters are returning.
Hino reveals the next blood moon
If you want to know if there will be a blood moon next night, visit Hino at the Dueling Peaks Stable. The man is intensively concerned with the different phases of the moon. Talk to him during the day and ask about today’s moon. If a blood moon is scheduled for that night, Hino reacts significantly differently than to a normal moon phase and announces that something special is about to happen. This makes Hino the most reliable way to detect a planned blood moon early.
You will reach the Dueling Peaks stable shortly after Great Plateau on the way to Kakariko Village. Further information about all travel stations can be found on our page All stables – Locations, dealers and special features.
What happens during a blood moon?
The decisive moment is midnight. Once the sequence plays, the game resets the respawn markers of a large number of enemies and weapons. Defeated monsters respawn in their original positions and appropriate weapons can be collected again. The revived enemies then remain in the world as normal. They don’t disappear in the morning. The Blood Moon is simply the time of respawn – not a time-limited monster phase.
Which enemies respawn?
| opponent | Respawn by blood moon? |
|---|---|
| Bokoblins | Yes |
| Moblins | Yes |
| Lizalfos | Yes |
| Lynels | Yes |
| Guardian Runner | Yes |
| Guardian Flyer | Yes |
| Guardian Turrets | Yes |
| Active Guardian Wrecks | Yes |
| Nano Guardian in Tests of Strength | Yes |
| Hinoxe | Yes |
| Stalnoxe | Yes |
| Stone Talus and Igneo Talus | Yes |
| Frost Taluss | Yes |
| Molduga’s | Yes |
| Ganon’s Curses | No |
| Master Kohga | No |
| Other unique story enemies | No |
With this you can fight practically all normal monsters and the large overworld enemies that appear freely in Hyrule again and again. This is particularly important for Lynels, Guardians, Hinoxes, Stone Talus and Molduga because their weapons and materials are required for armor upgrades, Rupees and the full game completion. An overworld boss that has already been defeated will continue to be counted as defeated for the corresponding Kilton Award after it respawns; the renewed existence of the enemy does not take away your progress.
Guardians respawn after a Blood Moon
Active Great Guardians are also part of the Blood Moon System. Once you have eliminated all runners on the Hyrule Field or in Tarrin Swamp, you can visit the same areas again after the next blood moon and collect ancient screws, springs, gears, axles and reactor cores again. This makes Guardian Walkers, Flyers and Guns a permanently renewable source of Ancient Giant Cores. The same applies to many Nano Guardians in the tests of strength. You can find out everything about their different material tables in our guide Guardians – all types, Locations and Ancient Materials.
Searchable destroyed guards are something else
An important detail concerns the many completely destroyed guards, who are now just metal wreckage on the ground. If you examine such wrecks and take an Ancient Component from them, it will become a search condition not simply reset by the blood moon. They do not belong to the same respawn category as active Guardian enemies. If you want to specifically farm ancient materials, you should focus primarily on active guardians.
Farm
Lynels after the blood moon
Lynels are among the most valuable opponents for repeated rounds of Blood Moon. After each regular respawn, they stand back at their respective locations and carry their weapons, bows and shields again. Lynel horns, hooves and hearts can also be collected indefinitely. However, keep in mind Breath of the Wild’s hidden progression system: many Lynels evolve into stronger variants as the game progresses. A Lynel that is respawned later can therefore be stronger than the one you defeated there at the beginning of the adventure.
Stone Talus after the Blood Moon – fast Rupees
Stone Talus, Igneo Talus and Frost Taluss are also fully renewable. After the Blood Moon, they reappear in their fixed positions and once again carry ore deposits on their bodies. This makes them one of the best repeatable sources of gems. Anyone who marks several known Stone Talus locations can complete a fixed round after each blood moon, defeat the opponents and sell amber, opals, topazes, rhodonites, sapphires and occasionally diamonds.
Hinoxes and Stalnoxes also respawn
The same applies to Hinoxe and Stalnoxe. Already defeated specimens awaken or reappear after the next blood moon. This allows you to collect Hinox teeth, toenails and hearts as often as you like. The weapons that many Hinoxes carry on their necklaces are also available again after a respawn. If you have already defeated a Hinox once for Kilton’s medal, this progress is retained.
Which weapons respawn after a blood moon?
Many weapons, bows and shields freely placed in the overworld are also renewed during the blood moon. The same applies to equipment worn by recurring enemies. For example, if you know a fixed Location of a king’s two-handed sword, flaming sword or strong bow, you can visit it again after a later blood moon and collect the weapon again. This is particularly useful because Breath of the Wild doesn’t have a normal repair feature for broken gear.
Marks good weapon locations with a symbol on the map. Once a Blood Moon has occurred, you can systematically revisit your favorite locations. Weapons that are already in Link’s inventory or hanging on the weapon racks in his house will of course not be duplicated.
Weapons in Treasure Chests do not respawn
The location of a weapon is crucial. If a sword is lying face up on the ground, leaning against a wall, or belongs to a regular recurring enemy, it may become available again after a blood moon. On the other hand, if the same weapon is in a normal Treasure Chest, the chest once opened remains open. The blood moon does not refill them. This also applies to particularly valuable one-time chest rewards such as the Hylian Shield in the Hyrule Castle dungeon.
Respawn Treasure Chests?
Normal already opened Treasure Chests are not reset by a blood moon . This means you cannot loot a Shrine Chest, Monster Lair Chest, or Special World Chest again after each Blood Moon. The fact that enemies in a camp respawn does not automatically mean that the fixed Treasure Chest that has been opened will also be closed again. Exceptions only exist in special game situations and do not change this general rule.
Do plants, fruits and mushrooms respawn?
Plants, mushrooms, fruits and many other materials do not depend on the blood moon. You own one own random respawn system. To put it simply, a material that has already been collected has a small chance per real minute of becoming available again as long as Link is not in the same area of the map. This is why an apple tree or a place where maxi beets were found may be filled again at some point, even though there has been no blood moon at all since then.
The frequently cited probability is approximately one percent per minute outside the respective map area. This does not mean that a material is guaranteed to be back after 100 minutes. Each point in time is rolled independently. Anyone who farms certain plants should therefore explore other regions and return later instead of waiting for a blood moon right next to them.
Do ore deposits respawn during the blood moon?
ore deposits are also not linked to the blood moon. If you have smashed a normal or rare piece of ore, its return is regulated using the same independent respawn principle. A blood moon may coincide with the reappearance of an ore deposit, but is not the cause of it. For gemstones, recurring Stone Talus are therefore more predictable: the opponent himself is actually attached to the blood moon and carries his ore deposits again after his return.
Do animals and insects respawn?
Wild animals, fish, insects and other creatures are also generated independently of the blood moon. They appear dynamically based on the area, time of day, weather, and other conditions. That’s why you don’t have to wait for a blood moon for deer, wild boars, beetles or dragonflies. Leave the area, allow enough time to pass and return later.
Do merchant goods respawn during the blood moon?
Traders are also not bound to the blood moon. Your inventory has its own replenishment rules. A blood moon is therefore generally not required for Beedle or for normal village shops. Additional conditions apply, especially with arrows: Multiple dealers will not restock a type of arrow if Link already has a larger supply of it. The fact that a store offers goods again after a blood moon is often just a temporal overlap and not a direct effect of the red moon.
What does the blood moon really reset?
| Object or enemy | Blood Moon Respawn |
|---|---|
| Normal Monsters | Yes |
| Lynels | Yes |
| Hinoxe / Stalnoxe | Yes |
| Stone Talus / Igneo Talus / Frost Taluss | Yes |
| Molduga’s | Yes |
| Active guards | Yes |
| Many nano guards | Yes |
| Exposed World Weapons | Yes |
| Weapons of recurring enemies | Yes |
| Purified Ooze of Hatred with Eye | Partly yes |
| Normal Treasure Chests | No |
| Shrine Treasure Chests | No |
| Plants and fruits | No – own respawn |
| ore deposit | No – own respawn |
| Animals and Insects | No – dynamic spawns |
| Dealer inventory | No – own system |
| Story bosses | No |
| Korok Puzzle | No |
| Completed tasks | No |
Blood moon during a fight
A blood moon can be particularly unpleasant if you are clearing out a large monster camp. If you have already defeated several enemies before midnight and the Blood Moon sequence is then triggered, the killed monsters can immediately reappear in their original positions. Of course, you won’t get your used arrows, broken weapons and eaten meals back. If you already see the red moon in the sky during a difficult fight, it may make sense not to start the fight until after midnight.
An opponent who is still alive at the time of the regular blood moon and has only been injured does not automatically regain their entire life bar. The normal Blood Moon is a respawn of already defeated enemies and not a global healing spell for every active enemy.
Move Blood Moon
A blood moon that has already been reserved can be postponed to the following night under certain conditions. For example, Link is at midnight within a shrine, the regular Blood Moon sequence cannot take place there. If Link leaves the shrine again, the event remains scheduled for a later, suitable night. The same principle applies to several other areas where normal Blood Moons are blocked.
This mechanic is particularly useful for the shrine quest “Night of the Blood Moon”. If you notice a red moon at 10 p.m. but are too far from the destination, you can enter a nearby shrine and stay there until midnight. You then have significantly more time to travel to the Washa’s Bluff until the next scheduled night.
No regular blood moon in Hyrule Castle
While Link is in the actual area of Hyrule Castle, a regular Blood Moon will not trigger. This merely delays an event that has already been noted. If you leave the castle again, the blood moon can take place on one of the following suitable nights. This is useful if you want to explore the castle for a long time without already defeated enemies being revived by a regular blood moon sequence in the middle of your tour.
More places where the blood moon is suppressed
Normal Blood Moons are also prevented if Link is inside a Shrine or Titan at the critical time. The sequence may also be blocked during certain story sequences, mini-games, in the Yiga Hideout, and during various boss sections. The internal timer or a blood moon that has already been planned does not simply disappear. As soon as Link is back in a suitable area of the overworld, the event can be repeated on a following night.
Under a Red Moon – Shrine Quest
The Blood Moon is required for the shrine task “The Night of the Blood Moon”. You start it at Kass on the Washa’s Bluff in the Ridgeland Tower area. Below its elevated location is an orange ancient platform. During the night of a Blood Moon, Link must stand on this platform without armor. If you fulfill the condition, it turns blue and the Mijah Rokee Shrine rises from the ground.
The quest is one of the few shrines where you are dependent on an event outside of your direct control. You can find the full region in our guide Tower of Hills – Satori Mountain, Thunder Plateau, all shrines and 80 Koroks.
Teleport medallion for the Blood Moon task
Owners of the first DLC pack can make the task much easier. Place the Travel Medallion directly next to the ancient platform on the Washa’s Bluff and then continue playing normally. As soon as you notice the first signs of a blood moon, you teleport directly to the saved point and wait there for the correct time. This means you don’t have to stay in the area and wait for the event to happen. You can get the item under Lomei Labyrinth Island; You can find the walkthrough on our page Teleport medallion – Location and usage.
Blood Moon and Cooking – guaranteed critical successes
The Blood Moon has another extremely useful effect. Between approximately 11:30 p.m. and 12:15 a.m., appropriate dishes and medicine are guaranteed to receive a critical success when cooked. You can recognize it by the different cooking sound. Depending on the recipe, this can increase the amount of heart healed, create additional stamina, extend the duration of the effect, or increase the effect level, among other things.
If you have a cooking pot nearby, you should therefore use the short phase to create valuable attack, defense, stamina or temperature dishes. However, the bonus does not exceed the normal maximum levels of an effect. Dishes with monster extract and certain special recipes follow their own rules.
The best farming rounds after a blood moon
If you want to specifically take advantage of the blood moon, mark yourself beforehand Locations valuable opponents and weapons. For example, immediately after the sequence you can defeat several Stone Talus for gems, then afterwards Lynels Hunt for weapons and monster parts and then dismantle Guardians on the Hyrule Field or in Akkala. Exposed high-quality weapons can be collected directly again on the same route. This way you can use a single blood moon much more efficiently than just clearing out a random monster camp again.
When will the next blood moon come after a blood moon?
After the regular Blood Moon sequence plays successfully, the internal cycle begins again. From this point onwards you have to go back approximately 168 minutes of relevant active playing time come together before a new regular blood moon can be scheduled. Pause menus, loading screens, and skipped campfire hours don’t shorten this time. This is why significantly more than two hours and 48 minutes of real time can pass between two blood moons when playing normally.
Why don’t I get a blood moon?
If no blood moon appears for a long time, this is usually due to the actual playing time counted. Longer stays in menus, frequent fast travel with loading screens, sleeping around a campfire, and other interruptions do not count as normal active play time. In addition, a blood moon that has already been reserved can always be postponed if you spend the midnight in question in a shrine, titans, Hyrule Castle or another restricted area. Continue playing normally in the open overworld for a while and then check with Hino to see if anything special is planned for the coming night.
Can you force a blood moon?
With normal game mechanics, there is no reliable command to trigger immediately. Killing enemies, clearing forests, collecting large amounts of materials, quickly teleporting between locations or repeatedly sleeping does not set the regular timer to the desired value. The most reliable method is simply to continue playing actively. As soon as Hino announces a blood moon, you can use the corresponding night specifically.
What is a Panic Blood Moon?
Very rarely, Breath of the Wild can trigger a so-called panic blood moon or forced blood moon. This is not the normal cycle. The game uses the Blood Moon sequence in certain technical situations when internal resources need to be reloaded. Such a blood moon can therefore appear unusual and does not have to be tied to normal time conditions.
The Panic Blood Moon cannot be effectively forced by defeating a certain number of enemies. It also does not reset the regular Blood Moon timer in the same way and does not have all of the special effects of a normal Blood Moon night. In particular, you should not rely on such an exceptional case for the shrine task or the targeted cooking bonus.
Blood Moon in Master Mode
The Blood Moon basically works the same way in Master Mode as it does in the normal game. Defeated enemies and their corresponding weapons also return there. However, because many monsters start one level higher in master mode and exclusive golden enemies appear later, blood moon farming rounds are particularly productive. A Golden Lynel can be fought again after each Blood Moon and will return its valuable equipment and materials. You can find out more about enemy levels and regeneration in our guide Master Mode – Differences, Golden Opponents and Tips.
Blood Moon does not delete game progress
The Blood Moon does not change completed main or Side Quests, reset shrines, or remove Koroks found. Activated towers, memories, registered horses and important areas that have already been opened are also retained. Likewise, one-time story bosses will not be revived. The event specifically affects repeatable parts of the world, ensuring that enemies and many weapons remain available even after hundreds of hours of play.
Use Blood Moon specifically for farming
The greatest benefit of the Blood Moon is Hyrule’s to keep the most valuable renewable enemies and weapons permanently available. If you want ancient materials, you wait for the guardians to respawn. If you need Lynel hearts or strong bows, visit familiar Lynel locations again. For Rupees Stone Talus are available, while heavy tests of strength again provide nano-guardians and high-quality guardian weapons. You don’t have to leave immediately after a blood moon: the returned enemies will remain there until you defeat them again. This means you can start your farming round at any time later.
The Blood Moon is not a complete reset of Hyrule
The most important rule is therefore: Blood moon means enemy and weapon respawn, not complete world respawn. Chests that have already been opened remain empty, plants and ore deposits follow their own random system, animals are generated dynamically and traders have independent goods rules. If you separate these systems, you can farm in a targeted manner and don’t have to wait unnecessarily for the next red moon. For a complete walkthrough of all regions, enemies and collectibles, you can find more Locations in our Breath of the Wild Walkthrough.