You're standing on top of the Dueling Peaks. It’s freezing. Your stamina bar is flashing red, and the wind is howling loud enough to drown out the piano score. If you look across the massive gorge, you'll see a second shrine sitting on the opposite peak, mocking you. This is the setup for the breath of the wild shee venath shrine, and honestly, it’s one of the coolest—and most frustrating—puzzles Nintendo ever packed into a Zelda game.
Most players stumble into Shee Venath and think they can just brute-force it. They move a few glowing orbs, realize nothing is happening, and then get annoyed. But this isn't a "hit it until it breaks" kind of puzzle. It’s a literal memory test. You can't solve it by looking at what’s in front of you. You have to look at what’s across the canyon.
The Secret to the Twin Memories
The breath of the wild shee venath shrine is inextricably linked to its brother, Shee Vaneer. They call them the "Twin Memories" for a reason. Basically, the solution for the puzzle in Shee Venath is the starting state of the balls in Shee Vaneer, and vice versa. It’s a clever bit of world-building that forces you to use the scope or, more realistically, your phone’s camera to take a literal picture of the floor.
If you go into Shee Venath first, you’re looking at a 5x5 grid. There are five orbs. They are sitting in specific sockets.
Write this down. Or take a screenshot. Seriously.
If you mess up the initial pattern before recording it, you’re going to have to leave the shrine and come back in to reset the "key" for the other side. The game expects you to travel between the two peaks. It’s a test of patience as much as it is a logic puzzle. Most people forget that the Dueling Peaks are a landmark of transition in Hyrule, and these shrines act as the final exam for that region.
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Locating the Shee Venath Shrine
Getting there is half the battle. You’ve got to climb the northern peak of the Dueling Peaks. It’s high up. Like, "bring spicy peppers or you're going to freeze" high up.
If you’re coming from the Great Plateau, you’ve probably seen the Peaks looming on the horizon. Most people follow the road through the middle, but to find the breath of the wild shee venath shrine, you need to scale the north side. There’s a ledge tucked away near the summit. If you reach the very top where the Korok is hiding under a rock, you’ve gone a bit too far, but you’re in the right neighborhood. Just paraglide down slightly to the south-facing cliff side.
Why the Dueling Peaks Matter
There’s a bit of lore tucked into the landscape here. Legends in Hyrule suggest a dragon split the mountain to create the passage. Whether or not you believe the NPCs, the physical split is the mechanical soul of the puzzle. The symmetry is everywhere. The shrines are positioned like mirrors. Even the treasure inside—usually a Serpentine Spear or similar mid-level gear—feels balanced.
Step-by-Step Layout Solution
Let’s get into the weeds. You walk into Shee Venath. You take the elevator up to the viewing platform. Looking down, you see the grid. To open the gate and claim your Spirit Orb, you need to arrange the orbs to match the original state of Shee Vaneer.
Here is the exact coordinate map for the breath of the wild shee venath shrine solution, assuming the far wall (the one with the locked gate) is the "top" of your grid:
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- Row 1 (Closest to the gate): Place the orb in the 2nd socket from the left.
- Row 2: Place the orb in the 4th socket from the left.
- Row 3: Place the orb in the 1st socket from the left.
- Row 4: Place the orb in the 3rd socket from the left.
- Row 5 (Closest to the entrance): Place the orb in the 5th socket from the left.
It sounds simple. It is simple. But if you’re one socket off, the door stays shut. You'll hear that classic Zelda "puzzle solved" chime the second the last orb hits its mark. If you don't hear it, check Row 2 again. That’s usually where people trip up because the perspective from the elevator platform can be a bit wonky.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
The biggest headache? Mixing up the rows.
When you’re looking down from the platform, it’s easy to flip the perspective in your head. Always orient yourself by the locked door. That is your North Star. Some players try to use Stasis to launch the orbs. Don't do that. It’s unnecessary and you’ll likely lose an orb over the edge, forcing a reload.
Another thing: don't ignore the elevator. There is a hidden chest in the breath of the wild shee venath shrine. When the elevator reaches the top, don't just step off onto the platform. Stay on it, or rather, look for the ledge as it ascends. There's a platform you can paraglide to that holds a chest. It’s easy to miss when you’re hyper-focused on the floor pattern.
The "Cheat" Method
If you don't want to paraglide back and forth between the peaks—which, let's be honest, is a drag if you don't have much stamina—just use the solution provided above. The game doesn't "randomize" these. Every single copy of Breath of the Wild ever sold has the exact same solution for these two shrines. You aren't cheating; you're just being efficient. Link has a kingdom to save, after all. He doesn't have all day to play memory games on a mountain top.
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Nuance in Game Design
Nintendo loves these "Twin" puzzles. We saw it in Link to the Past and we see it again here. What makes the Shee Venath experience stand out is how it utilizes the verticality of the world. You aren't just solving a puzzle in a vacuum; you're interacting with the geography of the Dueling Peaks themselves.
It's also a lesson in observation. The game is teaching you that the answer isn't always in the room with you. Sometimes, you have to look at the bigger picture. Or, in this case, the mountain across the way. This philosophy carries over to much harder puzzles later in the game, like the ruins in the Thyphlo Ruins or the Master Sword trials.
Technical Tips for the Climb
If you're tackling this early in the game, the climb is the real boss.
- Stamina Food: Cook up some Endura Carrots or Stamella Mushrooms. You’ll need at least one full extra circle of stamina if you aren't great at finding the "resting ledges" on the cliff face.
- The Climbing Gear: If you’ve already done the Ree Dahee Shrine at the bottom of the canyon, you might have a piece of the Climbing Set. Put it on. Every bit of speed helps.
- Weather Watch: If it starts raining, just stop. Find a cave, build a fire, and wait. You cannot climb the Dueling Peaks in the rain without the Ravio’s Hood (from the DLC) or a massive amount of luck and stamina. You will slip. You will fall. You will get frustrated.
Actionable Next Steps
Once you’ve cleared the breath of the wild shee venath shrine, don't just fast-travel away.
First, make sure you paraglide across to Shee Vaneer and put in the reverse code. You’ve already done the hard work of getting up there; you might as well grab both Spirit Orbs. Second, look for the stone grove nearby. There's often a high-level Ore Deposit or a Korok Seed hiding in the vicinity of these peaks.
Finally, use your height. The Dueling Peaks are one of the best scouting points in the early game. Pull out your scope and pin any other shrines you see in the Necluda region. You can easily spot at least three others from this vantage point. Clear the twins, grab your loot, and then dive off the peak toward Kakariko Village to continue the main quest. You're now two orbs closer to that Heart Container upgrade.