BotW Master Sword Location, Heart Requirement and Stats

The Master Sword is optional, but its location, heart check, and unusual energy system make it easy to misunderstand. This guide separates the pull requirement from the later DLC upgrades and gives a reliable route through the Lost Woods.

How many hearts do you need to pull the Master Sword?

You need 13 permanent Heart Containers to pull the Master Sword. Yellow bonus hearts from meals or elixirs do not count. The check happens at the pedestal, so reaching Korok Forest early does not bypass it.

Requirement	Counts?	What it means
Permanent red Heart Containers	Yes	Reach 13 before holding the pull prompt
Temporary yellow hearts	No	Food and elixir bonuses do not satisfy the check
Stamina upgrades	No	Stamina is not part of the BotW pull requirement
Divine Beast completion	Not required	The sword can be obtained without clearing the Divine Beasts

If you are short on permanent hearts, use the BotW shrine map guide to plan more shrine clears, then spend the rewards on Heart Containers.

Where is the Master Sword, and how do you cross the Lost Woods?

The Master Sword rests in Korok Forest, at the center of the Great Hyrule Forest north of Hyrule Castle. Approach by the road into the Lost Woods from the south; the surrounding lake and fog prevent a simple straight-line shortcut.

Part of the route	What to watch
Forest approach	Stay on the road leading north into the Lost Woods
Fixed fires	Follow the next lit stand and the direction of its drifting embers
Portable torch	Pick it up at the last fixed fire and light it
Fog section	Stop, watch the embers, then walk slowly in the direction they drift
Direction changes	Check the flame again instead of assuming the previous heading continues
Clearing	Continue through the opening to Korok Forest and the pedestal before the Great Deku Tree

Dense fog rolling in is the failure warning. Stop and move back toward the last safe point; if it closes around Link, the game returns him to the entrance. You can cross without a torch after memorizing the path, but the ember trail is the intended readable signal.

What are the Master Sword’s attack and durability stats?

Away from Ganon’s influence, the Master Sword has 30 attack and 40 durability. When it awakens and glows blue, its attack becomes 60 and its effective durability becomes 188. The awakened state is a mode of the sword, not a second damage bonus added after the hit.

State	Attack	Durability	When it applies
Normal	30	40	General exploration before full DLC completion
Awakened	60	188	Near Malice or corrupted Guardians, inside Divine Beasts, and in Hyrule Castle
Permanently awakened	60	188	After completing the Final Trials, while the sword has energy

This means an already fully upgraded sword does not rise above 60 attack when you approach Ganon. The DLC makes the awakened values available everywhere; it does not stack another doubling effect.

How do the Ganon and Malice bonuses work?

The blade reacts to Ganon’s power. It glows blue near corrupted Guardians, Blight Ganons, Calamity Ganon, Malice deposits, and in heavily corrupted spaces such as the Divine Beasts and Hyrule Castle. While the glow is active, the sword uses its 60-attack, 188-durability state against whatever Link strikes.

There is no separate enemy category called a “Malice monster” that receives an extra hidden multiplier. Malice is the black-and-red corrupting substance and influence that triggers the sword’s awakened state. Ordinary enemies do not trigger it merely because they are monsters.

Does the Master Sword break, and how long does it recharge?

The Master Sword never disappears like an ordinary broken weapon. Its 40 normal durability, or 188 awakened durability, is an energy budget. When that energy is fully spent, the sword becomes unavailable for 600 seconds, equal to 10 real-time minutes, and then returns.

Situation	Result
Energy remains	The sword stays usable
Energy is low	The game warns that the sword is running low
Energy reaches zero	The sword becomes temporarily unavailable
Recharge completes	The sword returns after 10 real-time minutes

How does Trial of the Sword upgrade the Master Sword?

Trial of the Sword is part of the Expansion Pass DLC. You must already own the Master Sword, reload the overworld so the quest activates, return to its pedestal in Korok Forest, and place the sword back. The trial cannot start while the sword is out of energy.

Progress	Normal attack away from Malice	Awakened attack	Durability behavior
Before the trials	30	60	40 normally; 188 while awakened
Beginning Trials cleared	40	60	40 normally; 188 while awakened
Middle Trials cleared	50	60	40 normally; 188 while awakened
Final Trials cleared	60	60	188 permanently while usable

Nintendo describes the complete challenge as 45 combat rooms. Some floor totals also count rest areas and ending chambers, so this guide uses the official combat-room count. Completion keeps the sword in its full-power state whenever it is usable, but it can still run out of energy and recharge.

For the room-by-room route, continue to the Trial of the Sword guide. The BotW DLC guide explains what else the Expansion Pass contains.

What are the most common Master Sword mistakes?

Most failed attempts come from mixing up the forest route, the heart check, and the DLC upgrade. Treat them as separate systems.

Mistake	Correct answer
Eating for yellow hearts before pulling	Temporary hearts do not count toward the 13-heart requirement
Waiting to enter the forest	You can reach Korok Forest early; only the pedestal checks hearts
Running through the fog	Stop and reread the torch embers whenever the wind direction changes
Waiting for a season or weather change	The route has no seasonal gate, and the area is fixed to clear weather
Assuming the sword is permanently broken	It returns after the 10-minute recharge
Expecting the Ganon bonus to stack after the Final Trials	The completed trial makes the 60-attack awakened state permanent; it does not double again

If you are replaying on newer hardware, the BotW Switch 2 Edition differences page covers the platform upgrade without changing these acquisition rules. New players deciding where this quest fits can also use which Zelda game to play first.

For how the Master Sword compares with every other weapon, see all weapons and weapon durability.