Let’s be real. You’ve probably spent hours squinting at your Switch screen, cross-referencing a grainy screenshot on your phone, trying to figure out why your loading screen says 119 when you could swear you’ve cleared every inch of Hyrule. It’s a specific kind of madness. Tracking down every single icon on a breath of the wild shrine map isn't just about completionism; it’s about finally getting that classic green tunic and feeling like the hero the legends actually talk about.
The world is huge. Link is small. And some of these shrines are tucked away in places that honestly feel a bit mean.
The Problem With Most Online Maps
Most people just Google a map and hope for the best. The issue is that Hyrule isn't flat. You’ve got layers of verticality that a 2D image just can’t capture properly. If you’re looking for a shrine in the Hebra Mountains, a dot on a map doesn't tell you if it's on top of the peak or buried inside a cave system that you can only enter from a mile away.
I've seen players circle the same cliff for twenty minutes because their sensor is beeping like crazy, but they’re standing 300 feet above the actual entrance. It’s frustrating. Truly.
You need to understand the regions. The game breaks down into 15 Sheikah Tower regions, and if you aren't checking your count against those specific areas, you're going to get overwhelmed. Central Hyrule is easy. The edges? That’s where things get weird.
Why Your Breath of the Wild Shrine Map Feels Incomplete
Hidden shrines are the bane of every player's existence. Not all of them just sit there glowing orange. A massive chunk of the 120 base-game shrines (not counting the DLC ones) are hidden behind "Shrine Quests."
If you haven't talked to a specific NPC or read a certain weathered diary, the shrine won't even exist in the physical world yet. You could walk right over the spot and your Sheikah Sensor won't make a peep.
The Ones Everyone Misses
There are a few notorious ones. The "Fragmented Monument" quest in the Faron region requires you to find pieces of a stone tablet scattered around a beach. If you miss one tiny shard hidden in the palm trees, the shrine stays underground.
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Then there’s the "Under a Red Moon" quest. This is arguably the most annoying one in the entire game. You have to stand on a specific pedestal, naked, during a Blood Moon. If you aren't looking at a breath of the wild shrine map that specifically marks quest triggers versus physical locations, you’ll be staring at empty fields for days.
Honestly, the "Twin Memories" shrines on Dueling Peaks are also a common sticking point. They’re a pair. You need the solution from one to solve the other. If you find one and forget the other exists, your map looks finished in that area, but your count stays stuck.
Regional Breakdowns That Actually Help
Let's look at the density.
The Akkala region is relatively straightforward, but the Lomei Labyrinth Island is a time-sink. You see the square on the map. You go to the square. But getting to the center is a different story.
In Gerudo, it’s all about the sandstorms. Some shrines don't show up on your mini-map because the sandstorm jams your tech. You have to navigate by physical landmarks—statues pointing their swords in specific directions. If you're looking at a static map, you won't realize that the shrine is actually inside a giant skeleton or buried under a pile of crackable rocks in a canyon.
Hebra is the worst for verticality. There are shrines hidden behind "snowball bowling" mechanics and others tucked into the very bottom of the forgotten temple.
The DLC Factor
If you bought the Expansion Pass, your total count goes up. The Champions' Ballad adds 16 more shrines. This messes with people. They see a map online that shows 136 shrines and they panic because their "completed" game only has 120.
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Always check if the map you're using distinguishes between the "Trials of the Sword" and the standard 120. It matters.
Mastering the Sheikah Sensor +
You've got to upgrade your sensor. Seriously. Take the three ancient screws to Purah at the Hateno Lab.
Once you can track specific items, you might think you don't need the sensor for shrines anymore. Wrong. Use it in conjunction with a high-quality breath of the wild shrine map to triangulate. If the map says there’s a shrine in a forest, but your sensor is quiet, look for a cave entrance nearby.
Pro tip: Many shrines in the late game are "Blessing" shrines. The challenge isn't inside the shrine; it's getting to it. If you see a weirdly shaped rock formation or a pedestal that looks out of place, that’s your target.
Common Mistakes When Reading Maps
- The Color Gradient: On your in-game map, a shrine icon that is orange in the middle means you found it but didn't finish it. If it's blue, you're good. If it's not there at all, well, obviously you've got work to do.
- Missing the "Shrine Quests" count: Check your adventure log. There are 42 official shrine quests. If you haven't finished all 42, your map literally cannot be complete.
- Teleportation Errors: Sometimes we warp away before grabbing the Spirit Orb. The map will show the icon because you activated the pedestal, but it won't count toward your total until you talk to the monk inside.
Beyond the 120
So, you found them all. What now?
The reward is the Armor of the Wild. It’s the classic green gear. But honestly, the real reward is the fast travel network. Having a fully filled breath of the wild shrine map means you can zip to any corner of the world in seconds. It changes how you play the endgame. You stop running and start hunting.
You start noticing the tiny details in the landscape that Nintendo's designers spent years crafting. The way a certain mountain peak aligns with the sun, or how a circle of lily pads always seems to hide something.
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Actionable Steps to Finish Your Map
Stop wandering aimlessly. It doesn't work.
First, go to your loading screen and look at the shrine icon. Note the number. If it’s under 120, open your in-game map and compare it to a high-resolution regional map. Don’t try to look at the whole world at once; do it tower by tower.
Start with the Ridgeland and Tabantha regions. They have some of the most complex "hidden" entrances involving paragliding into holes in the ground.
Second, check your "Completed Quests" list against a master list of the 42 Shrine Quests. Most "missing" shrines are actually just unstarted quests. Look for Kass—the accordion-playing bird. He is the key to about a dozen of these. If you see him, talk to him. Listen to the whole song. It’s not just flavor text; the lyrics are the instructions.
Third, look for the "Brother's Roast" in Goron City or the "Seven Heroines" in the Gerudo Desert. These are multi-step puzzles that won't show up on a basic dot-map.
Finally, check the edges of the map. There are shrines tucked into the very corners of the world—places like Eventide Island or the far reaches of the Akkala Sea. These require you to physically travel to the edge of the playable area.
Once you hit 120, head to the Forgotten Temple in the canyon at the border of Hebra and Central Hyrule. Your prize is waiting behind the oldest Goddess Statue in the land. No more searching. Just the satisfaction of a completely blue map.
Next Steps for Completionists
- Cross-Reference Regions: Open your map and count the shrines in the Hebra region specifically. There should be 13. If you have 12, you're missing the one hidden behind the breakable ice wall at the base of the mountain.
- Check the Adventure Log: If your "Shrine Quests" count isn't 42/42, you have found the reason for your missing icons. Seek out NPCs with red exclamation points over their heads in the major stables.
- Vertical Investigation: For any "missing" icon in a mountainous area, look for wind currents or suspicious piles of rocks that can be destroyed with Remote Bombs. Many shrines are tucked into tunnels that aren't visible from the air.