How to Speedrun Tears of the Kingdom Shrines (2025): Smarter Faster Solutions

If you’re here, you want to know how to speedrun your way through The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom shrines with smarter solutions. The direct answer is: skip 90% of the intended puzzle mechanics by abusing Ultrahand, Recall, and Fuse out-of-bounds interactions and physics glitches, use pre-built optimized loadouts to cut shrine clear time from 2-3 minutes per shrine down to 15-30 seconds, and prioritize cheese strats that ignore the puzzle designer’s intent entirely. I’ve got 120+ shrines cleared in under 3 hours total, so these pro tips aren’t theorycraft — they’re what I use to beat 100% shrine runs 2x faster than the average player.

Things I Wish I Knew Earlier When Speedrunning TotK Shrines

I spent my first 50 shrines following the intended path. I built the floating boat the puzzle wanted, I moved the crates to the switch, I solved the riddle like a good little player. That was a mistake. My average clear time was 2 minutes 47 seconds per shrine. After learning these tricks, that average dropped to 28 seconds. The biggest thing I wish I knew earlier is this: Nintendo intentionally builds shrines with multiple solutions, and the \"intended\" solution is almost always the slowest. Every mechanic in your ability kit can be abused to skip the entire puzzle. You don’t need to play by the rules to get the Light of Blessing.

Another thing I wish I knew earlier: you don’t need to hunt for shrine-specific items to cheese most shrines. You can carry everything you need on your loadout from the first hour of the game, and never swap it out for any shrine. That cuts down on menu time, which adds up to 5+ minutes saved across a full 120-shrine run.

See also: How to Unlock All Shrine Quests in TotK in Under 2 Hours (2025 Advanced Guide)

Categorized Shrine Speedrun Tips & Tricks

Below I’ve broken down the most actionable, immediately useful tips by category, with exact numbers and step-by-step execution for every trick.

Combat Shrine Tips

Combat shrines are the easiest to overcomplicate. Most players swap to their best damage weapon and fight the enemy fair and square. That’s slow. The average clear time for a combat shrine playing fair is 1 minute 30 seconds. With these tricks, you can clear 90% of combat shrines in under 10 seconds.

1. Pre-fuse a Rocket Hammer for one-shot kills on all shrine enemies

Why it matters: A Rocket + Puffshroom + Diamond Hammer fused together deals 187 base damage per swing, which is enough to one-shot every single enemy in every combat shrine in TotK. Even the highest HP Silver Lizalfos in late-game combat shrines only have 150 HP. That means one swing, one kill, done.

Step-by-step execution:

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1. Find a Diamond in the Gerudo Highlands ore deposits (you only need one, you can reuse it forever because fusing doesn’t consume the base weapon unless you break it)
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2. Fuse a Puffshroom to the head of the Diamond Hammer (adds 22 extra damage and blinds any enemy that doesn’t die instantly, for free)
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3. Fuse a Rocket to the back of the hammer handle (we don’t use it for damage, we use it for a vertical speed boost to skip arena gates if needed)
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4. Keep this hammer in your first weapon slot permanently. Never use it for anything but shrines, so it never breaks.
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Damage breakdown of the Rocket Puff Diamond Hammer: 60 (Diamond Hammer base) + 105 (Rocket bonus damage) + 22 (Puffshroom bonus) = 187 total damage. That’s 37 over the 150 HP cap for the strongest shrine enemy. Zero overkill needed, just enough to oneshot.

2. Abuse ascend to skip combat arenas entirely

Why it matters: 60% of combat shrines have the exit chest or Light of Blessing platform above the starting arena. You can ascend through the floor straight to the end, skipping every enemy. That cuts your clear time to 3 seconds flat.

Step-by-step execution:

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1. When you spawn into the combat shrine, immediately look up. If you can see the roof of the shrine or the edge of the Light of Blessing platform through the arena walls/ceilings, position Link directly under it.
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2. Pop Ascend and move the reticle up to the platform. Confirm, and you pop straight through. No fight needed.
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3. Collect your Light of Blessing and exit. Done.
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Works on: Taunhiy Shrine, Mayachin Shrine, Ihen-a Shrine, and 22 other combat shrines. That’s almost half of all combat shrines in the game skipped entirely.

3. Use recall on the enemy’s projectile to oneshot them through walls

Why it matters: For combat shrines where the enemy is behind a gate or on a platform you can’t reach immediately, a recalled projectile can kill them before the gate even opens. That saves 30+ seconds waiting for AI to pathfind.

Example: In Kihiro Moh Shrine, the Black Bokoblin fires a cannon shot at you as soon as you spawn. Pop Recall on the cannon ball, walk behind the wall, and release it. It flies back through the wall and oneshots the Bokoblin. You don’t even need to open the gate. Done in 8 seconds.

Exploration/Puzzle Shrine Tips

Puzzle shrines are where you save the most time, because the intended solution is almost always a 2-3 minute construction project. These pro tips let you skip 90% of that construction.

1. Ultrahand position storage: Save a flying vehicle for 1-shot shrine skips

Why it matters: If you save a pre-built 2-wing flying machine with 2 rockets in your Autobuild library, you can spawn it in 2 seconds flat in any shrine that has open space, and fly straight to the exit. That skips every puzzle. The average time saved per puzzle shrine here is 1 minute 45 seconds.

Step-by-step to build your permanent Autobuild flying skip machine:

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1. Two large Zonai Wings, placed side-by-side in a V-shape (12 degree angle, wider than a straight line for better stability)
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2. Attach one Steering Stick to the center front of the V, 1 block back from the leading edge.
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3. Attach two Rockets, one on each back corner of the V, pointing straight down. This gives you instant lift when you activate them.
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4. Add one Fan to the center back, pointing straight back, for forward thrust.
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5. Take a screenshot and save it to Autobuild. It costs 29 Zonaite to spawn, which is nothing — you’ll have 500+ Zonaite by the time you start speedrunning shrines.
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This machine fits through the entrance of 98% of shrines, can reach any exit platform in 5 seconds or less, and can be despawned immediately after you exit. No building, no adjusting, just spawn, fly, exit.

2. Ascend + Rewind combo to skip vertical puzzles

Why it matters: 30% of all shrines are vertical puzzles where you have to climb or build a elevator to get to the top exit. This combo lets you skip the entire elevator building step. Saves 2+ minutes per vertical shrine.

How it works: Most vertical shrines have a moving platform that goes up and down as part of the intended solution. When the platform is at the bottom, stand under it, pop Recall on it, then immediately pop Ascend. Recall pulls the platform down on top of you while you’re ascending, so you get pushed straight to the top with no waiting. Done in 10 seconds instead of 2 minutes.

Works on every vertical moving platform shrine, including Orochium Shrine, Gatakis Shrine, and Domizuin Shrine.

3. Fuse a rocket to your shield for instant vertical launch

Why it matters: A rocket shield surf launch gives you 35 meters of vertical height in 2 seconds, which is enough to reach most exit platforms without any building at all. It costs one rocket per launch, but rockets respawn infinitely at Sky Islands, so you’ll never run out.

Step-by-step execution:

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1. Fuse a Rocket to your shield (keep this shield in your shield slot permanently, replace the rocket when it’s consumed).
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2. Face the exit platform, jump, shield surf directly into the rocket activation.
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3. You’ll launch straight up, glide the last 5 meters to the platform, collect your reward. Done.
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Comparison vs. building an elevator: Building a basic elevator takes 45 seconds on average, plus 15 seconds to ride it up. This method takes 2 seconds. That’s 58 seconds saved per shrine.

See also: TotK Best Zonai Device Loadouts for Speedruns (2025)

Optimized Speedrun Build/Loadout Tips

Your loadout is everything for shrine speedrunning. Every extra menu swap adds 2-3 seconds, which adds up to 6 minutes of extra time across 120 shrines. Below is my S-tier loadout, with tier rankings for every possible slot.

Tier ranking for common loadout choices:

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• S-Tier: Pre-built Autobuild flying machine. 2-second spawn, fits in any shrine, gets you to the exit faster than any other method. Justification: Cuts clear time by 75% on average for puzzle shrines.
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• A-Tier: Multiple fused rocket weapons. Overkill on durability, adds extra weight, slows down draw time. Justification: Works, but adds unnecessary weight and menu bloat.
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• B-Tier: Master Sword as your primary weapon. Higher damage than needed, higher durability than needed, but you can’t fuse a rocket and Puffshroom to it permanently without losing the custom fusion when it breaks. Justification: Works, but you’ll spend more time refusing than you save on damage.
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• C-Tier: Carrying multiple different weapons for different shrine types. Adds 2-3 seconds of menu swapping per shrine, adds up to 6 minutes of wasted time across a full run. Justification: Unnecessary, one primary weapon works for every combat shrine.
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• D-Tier: Using the Travel Medallion to exit shrines. You have to place it first, which takes time, and the exit statue is already right next to the Light of Blessing. Justification: Slow, unnecessary, wastes a key item slot.
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Why the S-Tier loadout matters: This loadout weighs 35 total units, which is under the 40 unit softcap for movement speed. You move at 100% normal speed, no slowdown, and you have everything you need for every shrine in the game. No menu swapping, no hunting for items, just walk in, cheese, exit.

Economy & Resource Tips for Shrine Speedrunning

You don’t need a lot of resources to speedrun shrines, but you need the right resources in the right quantity. These tips keep you stocked without wasting time farming.

1. Farm 100 rockets in 10 minutes at the Great Sky Island

Why it matters: Rockets are the most used item for shrine skips, and having a full stack means you never have to stop speedrunning to farm mid-run. The Great Sky Island has 12 rockets that respawn every 2 in-game days, so you can farm 100 in 10 minutes real time.

Location: The first 3 shrines on Great Sky Island have rocket dispensers right outside. Rest at the shrine, pull 12 rockets, time skip 2 days, pull another 12, repeat. 8 cycles = 96 rockets, done in 10 minutes.

2. Autobuild costs are negligible if you farm Zonaite once at the start

How much Zonaite do you need for a full 120-shrine run? Your pre-built flying machine costs 29 Zonaite per spawn, and you’ll use it for ~70 shrines. That’s 2030 Zonaite, which is 10 minutes of mining at the Death Mountain lava pools. Mine 2500 Zonaite once at the start of your run, and you’ll never run out. No need to stop mid-run to mine.

Is it worth it to spend 10 minutes mining at the start? Yes. It saves 30+ minutes of stopping to mine mid-run across a full 120-shrine clear.

3. Use the Blood Moon to reset your fused weapon durability for free

Why it matters: Your primary fused hammer will break after ~20 uses. Instead of refusing it manually, just wait for a Blood Moon, rest at a shrine, and your weapon respawns with full durability. That saves 2 minutes of refusing per 20 shrines.

How to force a Blood Moon: Go to Hyrule Castle, kill 15 enemies in 1 minute, rest at the shrine. A Blood Moon will trigger within 30 seconds. Done.

Common Beginner Mistakes That Slow You Down (And How to Fix Them)

These are the 7 most common mistakes I see new shrine speedrunners make, all of which add 10+ minutes of wasted time to a full run. I made all of these myself, so I know how much they cost.

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1. Mistake: Solving the