You’re deep in the Depths, the air is thick with gloom, and all you want is that final Schema Stone. Then it happens. You trigger the cutscene for the final boss fight in the "Master Kohga of the Yiga Clan" questline, and suddenly, you’re trapped. It feels like Master Kohga has been talking for twenty minutes. Most players call this the TotK never ending lecture because, honestly, the dialogue loop feels like it’s never going to let you actually play the game.
It’s frustrating. You’ve navigated the dark, fought off Frox, and spent way too many Brightbloom seeds just to get to the Great Abandoned Central Mine (or the subsequent locations like the Hebra Mine). By the time you reach the final confrontation at the Eldin Canyon Mine, Kohga’s grandiose posturing and the Yiga Clan’s bizarre obsession with "The Magnificent One" can make your eyes glaze over.
But there is a logic to the madness.
The TotK never ending lecture isn't just a meme or a bug. It’s a series of scripted interactions that gate some of the most powerful Autobuild abilities in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. If you’re Mash-B-ing through the dialogue and still feel like you’re getting nowhere, you probably missed a specific trigger or a side-quest requirement that keeps the Yiga boss in his circular logic loop.
Why the Yiga Boss Won’t Shut Up
The Yiga Clan in Tears of the Kingdom serves as the primary comic relief, but they also guard the Depths' most valuable resource: Zonaite processing and Schema Stones. When people talk about the "never ending lecture," they are usually referring to the repetitive nature of the four-stage boss fight against Master Kohga.
He talks. A lot.
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Each time you beat him at a different mine, he gives a long-winded speech about his plans, his glory, and his inevitable victory. Because the quest spans the entire map—from the Great Abandoned Central Mine to the Abandoned Gerudo Mine, the Abandoned Lanayru Mine, and finally the Abandoned Hebra Mine—it feels like one continuous, exhausting conversation.
If you feel like the dialogue is literally looping, check your quest log. You cannot finish the "Master Kohga of the Yiga Clan" quest until you have unlocked the Autobuild ability. Many players stumble into a Yiga hideout or a mine before they’ve actually talked to Josha or Robbie back at Lookout Landing. If you haven’t followed the "A Mystery in the Depths" questline to its formal start, Kohga’s presence in the world can feel disconnected and his dialogue repetitive because the game hasn’t "registered" your progress toward the finale.
Breaking the Cycle: How to Speed Up the Quest
To get past the chatter and get to the fighting, you need to be efficient. Kohga isn't a hard boss, but he is a tedious one.
In the first encounter, he’s on a literal car. Just shoot him with an arrow. It’s that simple. Don’t wait for him to finish his grandstanding. In the second encounter at the Abandoned Gerudo Mine, he’s on a boat. Again, arrows are your best friend. The game wants you to use your own Ultrahand creations to fight him, but honestly? A 3x Lynel Bow makes the TotK never ending lecture end a lot faster.
The third fight happens at the Abandoned Lanayru Mine. This one is the "flight" stage. Kohga is in the air. If you don't have a wing or a hover bike ready, you’re going to be stuck listening to him laugh while you scramble around in the dark.
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Expert Tip: Use Keese Wings. Fusing Keese Wings to your arrows gives them incredible range, allowing you to knock Kohga out of his vehicles from across the arena before he can even finish his next scripted line of dialogue.
The Final Showdown at the Hebra Mine
The fourth and final stage is where most people hit a wall. To get to the Abandoned Hebra Mine, you can’t just walk there through the Depths. The area is walled off by massive rock columns that reach from the floor to the ceiling.
You have to find the specific chasm. Look for the Rito Village chasm.
Once you’re there, the lecture reaches its peak. Kohga will go on about his "Ultimate Weapon." This is the Gleeok-inspired construct. It looks intimidating, but the strategy remains the same: hit the pilot. Once you knock him out of the seat, the dialogue finally shifts from "I am invincible" to "I am blasting off again."
What You Actually Get for Listening
Is the TotK never ending lecture worth the headache? Mostly, yes.
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By following this quest to its conclusion, you unlock the Majoras Mask (if you detour to the Floating Coliseum nearby) and, more importantly, a huge cache of Large Crystallized Charges. Each stage of the Kohga fight rewards you with 100 Crystallized Charges. That’s an entire extra battery cell per encounter.
You also get the Schema Stones for:
- The Fanplane
- The Bolt Boat
- The Beam Cycle
- The Hovercraft
While many players prefer to use "illegal" builds like the two-fan hover bike, these official schemas are actually quite useful for specific terrain traversal in the Depths where battery efficiency matters more than raw speed.
The Narrative Purpose (Yes, There Is One)
Nintendo’s writers aren't stupid. The "never ending" feel of the Yiga dialogue is a callback to the "over-the-top" villain tropes of 80s anime. Kohga is meant to be a parody of a mastermind. By making his dialogue feel exhaustive, the game builds a contrast between the silent, stoic Link and the loud, incompetent Yiga leader.
It also serves as a mechanical buffer. The Depths are meant to be explored slowly. If you could just sprint through the Kohga quest in ten minutes, you’d miss the dozens of Bargainer Statues and Lightroots scattered between the mines. The lecture forces a change of pace. It’s annoying, sure, but it’s intentional world-building.
Actionable Steps to Finish the Questline Now
If you are currently stuck in a loop or just want to get the quest over with, follow this exact sequence:
- Talk to Josha: Go to Lookout Landing. If she hasn’t given you the "A Mystery in the Depths" quest, Kohga won't progress correctly.
- Follow the Statues: In the Depths, the statues point toward the next mine. Don't wander aimlessly. Follow the direction the statues are facing.
- Stock up on Arrows: Every Kohga phase is solved by a well-placed arrow to the head.
- The Hebra Shortcut: Don't try to fly to the Hebra Mine from the Central Mine. Teleport to Rito Village and find the hole in the ground near the cliffside.
- Claim your rewards: Once Kohga is defeated for the fourth time, speak to the Steward Construct at the mine to get your final Schema Stone and the Diamond reward.
The Yiga Clan might be annoying, and the dialogue might feel like it’s never going to end, but finishing this quest is the single fastest way to max out your Energy Wells and gain total mastery over the Depths. Stop mashing the buttons and just aim for the head.