You’ve seen them. Huge. Bleached. Silent.
If you’ve spent any time wandering the corners of Hyrule, you’ve stumbled across the breath of the wild leviathan skeletons. They aren't just background decoration. They’re a puzzle that Nintendo basically hands to you with a wink and no instructions. You find these massive ribcages in the most inhospitable places—the freezing peaks of Hebra, the scorching sands of the Gerudo Desert, and a misty corner of Eldin.
Honestly, it's one of the best examples of environmental storytelling in modern gaming. The game doesn't give you a cutscene explaining where they came from. Instead, it gives you a side quest called "Leviathan Bones" where three brothers argue about how these giants died. Was it a drought? An ice age? A volcanic eruption?
The truth is probably way weirder.
The Three Great Skeletons and Where to Find Them
Finding the breath of the wild leviathan remains is a rite of passage for any completionist. Most players stumble upon the Gerudo Great Skeleton first because it’s parked right next to a Great Fairy Fountain and a Shrine. It’s impossible to miss if you’re hunting for upgrades. The desert heat has preserved it perfectly.
Then there’s the Hebra Great Skeleton. This one is a pain. You have to roll a giant snowball down a hill to smash open a stone door hidden behind a pond. It’s cold, it’s tucked away in a cave, and it feels like a secret the world forgot.
Finally, you’ve got the Eldin Great Skeleton. It sits in the northernmost reaches of the map, right on the edge of the world. It looks like it just laid down and gave up.
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Each location tells a different story. The desert skeleton is surrounded by life—the Fairy Fountain—while the Hebra one is entombed in ice. Why are they so far apart? Why are they all different species?
Are These the Gods of Wind Waker?
This is where the deep lore nerds (myself included) start losing their minds. If you look closely at the skull of the breath of the wild leviathan in the desert, it looks suspiciously like Levias from Skyward Sword. You remember him—the massive, whale-like spirit who was possessed by a parasite.
The Hebra skeleton? That one has these weird, paddle-like fins. People swear it’s the Wind Fish from Link’s Awakening. And the Eldin one? It bears a striking resemblance to Oshus from Phantom Hourglass.
Think about that for a second.
If these skeletons are actually those characters, it means the world of Breath of the Wild is built on the literal corpses of ancient deities. It’s a bit dark. Nintendo has a habit of doing this—taking beloved figures from past games and turning them into geological landmarks. It grounds the world. It makes Hyrule feel thousands of years old, which it is.
The brothers in the quest don't know this. They're just scientists. They look at the bones and see extinction events.
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One brother thinks they died because the water vanished. Another thinks it was a sudden freeze. The third is convinced it was a volcanic blast. They’re all right, in a way. The world changed, and the giants couldn't keep up.
The Mystery of the Fourth Skeleton
Wait. There’s a fourth one.
Most people forget about the skeleton in the North Necluda region, tucked away in a place called Bitter Dairy Creek. It’s much smaller. It’s not part of the official quest.
Why is it there?
Some fans think it’s a juvenile. Others think it’s a different species entirely. But the existence of a smaller breath of the wild leviathan suggests these weren't just one-off gods. They were a species. A massive, roaming race of sky-whales or sea-creatures that once ruled the horizon.
It makes the world feel empty. In a good way. You’re walking through a graveyard of giants.
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How to Complete the Leviathan Bones Quest Easily
If you’re actually trying to knock this quest out of your log, don’t overthink it. You don't need to bring the brothers to the bones. You just need pictures.
- Get a decent camera. Use the Sheikah Slate’s camera rune. Make sure the entire skull is in the frame. If the red exclamation mark doesn't show up, zoom out.
- Hebra is the hardest. Don’t go in without cold resistance. Use the snowball trick at the heavy doors near To Quomo Shrine.
- The Desert is a trek. Grab a sand seal. It’s way faster than walking, and you’ll avoid the Moldugas if you’re careful.
- Eldin is just a climb. It’s near the Deplian Badlands. Watch out for Lynels in the area.
Once you show the photos to Akrah, Oskum, and Nikov at Serenne Stable, they’ll give you 300 rupees. Honestly? The reward is kind of a letdown. The real prize is the lore. You’re left standing there realizing that the world you’re saving is just the latest layer on a very old, very dead cake.
Why This Matters for the Zelda Timeline
Nintendo is famously vague about where Breath of the Wild sits. They say it’s at the "end" of all timelines. The breath of the wild leviathan skeletons are the physical proof of that.
By including remains that look like characters from the Child Timeline, the Adult Timeline, and the Downfall Timeline, they’re basically saying: "Everything happened. All of it."
It’s a convergence. These bones are the anchors that hold the messy history of Zelda together. They’re the only things that survived the passage of ten thousand years. Well, them and a very sleepy Link.
Next time you’re standing under the ribs of the Hebra giant, don’t just take the photo and leave. Look at the scale. Imagine that thing flying through the clouds or swimming through an ocean that covered the mountains. It changes how you see the map. You aren't just in a kingdom; you're in a fossil.
Actionable Next Steps
- Visit the Hebra Skeleton at Night: The lighting is eerie and lets you see the fossil's details better against the glowing ice.
- Check the Compendium: Take pictures of the bones for your personal record; they provide small lore snippets that are easy to miss.
- Look Up: When at the Eldin skeleton, look toward the horizon. It’s positioned perfectly to show you just how much the world has changed since that creature was alive.
- Compare the Skulls: Use the Pro HUD mode to get a clean look at the head shapes of all three. You’ll notice the distinct biological differences that suggest they aren't the same species at all.