The inclusion of treasure is one of the biggest to the Zelda formula in Skyward Sword and plays a key role in your progression. Link can use the different treasure he finds during Skyward Sword to upgrade his equipment and ammo capacity for the Slingshot, Bombs, and Bow. Treasure makes it so every piece of Link’s kit is viable until the end of the game, but upgrading everything requires a fair bit of grinding.
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You’ll naturally find enough treasure over the course of Skyward Sword to upgrade some of Link’s gear, but nowhere close to all without some exploration. There are over a dozen pieces of treasure in Skyward Sword and you’ll need to fly all over the world to find each one. To find treasure, you’ll need to either defeat enemies and obtain them as a random drop or find them organically in the overworld.
Amber Relic
Amber Relics are the most common treasure in Skyward Sword and appear in every single area. You need a total of 20 Amber Relics to upgrade every item in the game, but just exploring naturally should get you enough. If you’re still shy of 20 by endgame – or just want to upgrade everything early – Amber Relics are most commonly found in Faron Woods. Just walk around the region, grab all the Amber Relics you can see, and then reload the area. Rinse and repeat until you get 20 Amber Relics.
Ancient Flower
Ancient Flowers are a now extinct breed of plant life by the start of Skyward Sword’s story, but the Lanayru region places a heavy emphasis on time travel that’ll allow you to bring some to the present. Ancient Flowers can only be found in the Lanayru Desert or Sand Sea, and exclusively when a Timeshift Stone is activated. Along with needing 7 Ancient Flowers to upgrade all of Link’s items, they’re needed as part of the story to repair Scrapper. It helps to find a few to keep on hand ASAP.
Bird Feather And Blue Bird Feather
Getting a Bird Feather requires a bit more effort than with other treasure. You’ll need to equip the Bug Net and try to catch small birds in the overworld like you would bugs. Catchable birds can only be found in Faron Woods and you’ll need to sneak up on them quietly.
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Position your Net carefully and then catch a bird to get a Feather for your troubles. It’s worth pointing out that blue birds actually reward Link with a rarer Blue Bird Feather. Blue Bird Feathers can also be purchased from the Moonlight Merchant for 200 Rupees. You need a total of 5 Bird Feathers and 5 Blue Bird Feathers to upgrade all of Link’s gear.
Dusk Relic
Dusk Relics are purple variants of Amber Relics that are introduced during your first visit to the Silent Realm. Silent Realms are stealth missions which task Link with avoiding enemies and gathering all the Sacred Tears in a single area. Dusk Relics show up in abundance during these segments, rewarding players who take risks to find extra items.
Dusk Relics can also be purchased at the Moonlight Merchant for 100 Rupees. Considering how many Dusk Relics you can find in a single Silent Realm, though, this isn’t advised. You need a total of 13 Dusk Relics to upgrade everything, so start exploring those Silent Realms.
Eldin Ore
Just like Bird Feathers, Eldin Ore require a bit more effort to collect than just walking into them. Instead of using the Bug Net, though, you’ll need the Digging or Mogma Mitts (both obtained as part of the story and tied to the Eldin region). Dig up any peculiar spots and you’re bound to find some Eldin Ore. You need a total of 6 Eldin Ore to upgrade everything.
Evil Crystal
You only need 4 Evil Crystals to upgrade all of Link’s gear, but it’s easily one of the rarest pieces of treasure in Skyward Sword. Fortunately, there are a couple of different ways to find some. Evil Crystals can be purchased from the Moonlight Merchant for 100 Rupees (but you can’t do that until the home stretch), won as a reward from the bamboo cutting mini-game, or left behind by awakened Goddess Stones.
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Evil Crystals also drop from Cursed Bokoblins, Dark Keese, and Dark Lizalfos, but only very rarely. Evil Crystals can also be found in certain Treasure Chests, but your best bet to find them reliably is the Moonlight Merchant. If you really want to grab them ASAP and don’t care about spending some time, farm Cursed Bokoblin or Dark Keese/Lizalfos once they’re introduced.
Goddess Plume
The Goddess Plume is another extremely rare piece of treasure, but you only need 3 to upgrade all of Link’s equipment. There’s a rare chance of Goddess Plumes randomly replacing Amber or Dusk Relics, but don’t count on this for grinding. The easiest ways to grab Goddess Plumes are by winning the bamboo cutting mini-game, clearing out all the Rupees in Thrill Digger, or purchasing them from the Moonlight Merchant for 200 Rupees.
Golden Skull
Golden Skulls are another rare treasure, but they’re at least easier to find than Evil Crystals or Goddess Plumes. Golden Skulls are a very rare drop from Bokoblins, can be purchased from the Moonlight Merchant for 200 Rupees, won from the bamboo cutting mini-game, or found inside of the Earth Temple (only one, though). You need a total of 4 Golden Skulls for Link’s upgrades.
Hornet Larvae
Hornet Larvae can be obtained in Faron Woods by knocking down any Deku Hornet hives. Just keep your eyes peeled for trees in the Deep Woods and you’re bound to find a few beehives. Fortunately, Hornet Larvae aren’t too hard to find and you only need 4 to upgrade all of Link’s equipment.
Jelly Blob
You need a total of 8 Jolly Blobs to upgrade all of Link’s gear, but there are a number of different ways to obtain the treasure. Jelly Blobs are dropped by Arachas, Chu-Chus, Deku Babas, and Quadro Babas. Jelly Blobs can also be found by exploring Faron Woods or Skyview Temple. Jelly Blobs aren’t that rare of a drop, so it doesn’t hurt to grind out 8 early on.
Lizard Tail
Lizard Tails aren’t exactly rare, but they’re limited enough in availability where it can be a challenge to find all 7 needed to upgrade Link’s equipment if you don’t know what you’re doing. Lizard Tails are exclusively dropped by Lizalfos and Dark Lizalfos. You’ll need to grind the Earth Temple, Shipyard, Pirate Stronghold, or Fire Sanctuary to find them. If you have the patience for it, just grind out all 7 at the Earth Temple. That said, you could naturally find all 7 in a normal playthrough if you’re lucky enough.
Monster Claw
You need a whopping 18 Monster Claws to upgrade all of Link’s gear, so get ready to grind. Monster Claws are most regularly dropped by all Keese variants, so it’s best to just farm them out. Head to either Faron Woods, Skyview Temple, Eldin Volcano, the Earth Temple, or Lanayru Desert and kill every Keese in sight.
Monster Horn
Monster Horns are dropped by Bokoblin Leaders and can be purchased from the Moonlight Merchant for 100 Rupees. You only need 8 Monster Horns to upgrade Link’s equipment and Bokblin Leaders are a common enough enemy where you’ll naturally find a few over the course of your playthrough. Either grind out Bokoblins or wait until the Moonlight Merchant opens up to buy the rest of the Monster Horns you need.
Ornamental Skull
Ornamental Skulls are an exclusive drop from Bokoblins and the regular variant of Golden Skulls. You need a total of 12 Ornamental Skulls to upgrade all of Link’s gear, but that’s really not a lot when all is said and done. Bokoblins are one of the most common enemy types in Skyward Sword, but they do get phased out past the early-game. Stick to Faron Woods, Skyview Temple, and Eldin Volcano to grind out your skulls.
Tumbleweed
Tumbleweeds are exclusively found in Lanayru Desert and you need a total of 13, so get ready to start hunting. Tumbleweeds roll around the ground and must be caught with the Bug Net. You’ll need to run after them and keep the Net tilted towards the ground to capture one. Tumbleweeds will spawn randomly, so just keep exploring the Desert until you find all 13. It’s very unlikely you’ll find all the Tumbleweed you need in a natural playthrough, so keep that in mind.
Next: Skyward Sword Complete Guide And Walkthrough
