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HYRULE ATLASTHE FAN ARCHIVE
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2004 · Game Boy Advance

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap

A cracked wall becomes a doorway and a puddle becomes a lake. Ezlo's gift changes the scale of Hyrule as you restore a broken blade.

Source & original artwork ↗
Nintendo artwork, archived by Zelda WikiImage source ↗1893 × 1920

Before you set out

Your journey, at your pace.

Original GBA adventure, first released in Japan and Europe in 2004 and North America in 2005.

  • Shrink only at usable portals.
  • Activate Wind Crests as you find them.
  • Use the map to distinguish human and Minish routes.
Begin the walkthrough ↓

From the beginning to the final encounter

A path through the story.

Story routes, puzzle solutions, boss tactics and collection planning. Linked references provide additional room maps and individual collectible locations.

0 / 27 steps completed

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01

The festival and Deepwood Shrine

0 / 3 steps

Recover the Earth Element.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Rescue Ezlo, shrink at the stump and enter the Minish village. Eat the Jabber Nut before trying to understand the villagers, then find the shrine entrance at Minish size.

  2. Use mushroom handles as launchers and rotate the barrel to connect its exits. The Gust Jar clears webs and dust, and propels a lily pad across water.

  3. Against Big Green Chuchu, suck away the base until it loses balance. Move away from the falling body, then attack its exposed head.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Use suction to move lily pads and clear webs.

02

Mount Crenel and Cave of Flames

0 / 3 steps

Recover the Fire Element.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Use ordinary water for the first bean and the mountain's mineral water for the special climbing bean. Buy the Grip Ring, reach Melari and leave the broken blade for repair.

  2. Ride the minecarts and collect the Cane of Pacci. It flips overturned carts and charges holes that launch Link onto higher ledges.

  3. Flip Gleerok's shell with the cane, climb its neck and strike the crystal. Return to safe ground before the lava rises and the neck becomes dangerous.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Pacci flips minecarts and charges holes for jumping.

03

The sword and Castor Wilds

0 / 3 steps

Reach the Wind Ruins.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Collect the repaired White Sword and infuse the two elements at the sanctuary. Charge the sword on marked tiles to create copies for paired switches.

  2. Wake Rem with the Wake-Up Mushroom to obtain the Pegasus Boots. Dash across the swamp without stopping on unsafe ground.

  3. Collect the Bow and golden Kinstones in Castor Wilds. Complete the required statue fusions to open the route into the Wind Ruins.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Use sword copies on paired switches.

04

Fortress of Winds

0 / 3 steps

Find the next lead.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Search the ruin's separate entrances and use sword copies on linked switches. Collect the Mole Mitts to dig through soft walls and uncover concealed passages.

  2. Against Mazaal, shoot a hand's eye and strike the stunned hand. Disable both hands, shrink and enter the head.

  3. Inside, dig to the vulnerable pillar and destroy it, then repeat the cycle. Take the Ocarina of Wind afterwards: the Wind Element is elsewhere.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

The Wind Element is not here; the Ocarina opens fast travel.

05

Books and Temple of Droplets

0 / 3 steps

Recover the Water Element.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Return the three overdue library books. The book quest includes the Power Bracelets and eventually lets you reach Librari for the Flippers.

  2. Enter the lake's Minish portal and navigate the frozen temple. Change the light reaching the ice, then use the Flame Lantern to open previously frozen routes.

  3. Return Big Octorok's rocks with the sword. When it freezes itself, circle behind and light its tail; clear darkness with the lantern when needed.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Retrieve the Power Bracelets during the book quest.

06

Royal Crypt and Cloud Tops

0 / 3 steps

Find the Wind Tribe.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. After infusing the Water Element, follow the Royal Valley route and complete the Royal Crypt. Use sword copies for switches that a single Link cannot hold.

  2. Take King Gustaf's golden Kinstone to Veil Falls and fuse it at the source of the flow. Follow the climb into the clouds.

  3. Explore both cloud layers, defeat the golden enemies and complete all five golden fusions. The cleared whirlwind leads to the Wind Tribe's tower.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Explore above and below each cloud layer.

07

Palace of Winds

0 / 3 steps

Claim the Wind Element.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Collect Roc's Cape and use extended jumps to cross cloud platforms. Watch a moving platform's whole cycle before launching across a long gap.

  2. Alternate outdoor climbs with interior switch rooms. Create the required number of sword copies on the marked tiles before stepping onto multi-switch arrangements.

  3. On the larger Gyorg, match copies to the exposed eyes and strike together. Jump to the smaller Gyorg when needed, strike its eye and jump the sweeping tail.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

The Big Key opens more than one major door.

08

Dark Hyrule Castle

0 / 3 steps

Restore the Four Sword and reach Zelda.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Infuse the last element to restore the Four Sword. Use its power on petrified people and four-copy switches inside Dark Hyrule Castle.

  2. Work through the castle's branches for keys and reconnect the central ascent. Refill hearts and arrange healing before taking the final stairs.

  3. Defeat the three Darknuts before the final bell. Use controlled counters and rear attacks; spending too long circling without attacking can fail the timed sequence.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Prepare healing before the timed final ascent.

09

Vaati's three forms

0 / 3 steps

Break Zelda's curse.

Route and puzzle solutions

  1. Destroy the eyes around Vaati and remove their dark covering with the Gust Jar when needed. Strike the central eye only after the protection is gone.

  2. In the next form, use arrows to reveal the vulnerable eyes, then create sword copies in the matching arrangement and attack together.

  3. For Vaati's Wrath, flip an arm with Pacci, shrink and enter it. Destroy the different eye inside, using the lantern in darkness; finally return the four projectiles together with four Links.

Chapter references

Checkpoints

A useful detail

Do not mistake the first victory for the ending.

Collection field guide

Plan your final discoveries.

Use these routes alongside the edition-specific counters. The references link to individual locations and additional maps.

Kinstones, figurines and hearts

  1. Revisit towns after each major item and fuse available Kinstones. Follow the map animation to the opened reward instead of counting a fusion as a collected chest.

  2. Save Carlov's shells for figures still missing from the collection. Some figures appear only after the ending; finish the collection to access its associated heart reward.

  3. Use the Mitts, Flippers and Cape to revisit previously inaccessible caves and ledges. Track heart pieces separately from the full containers received through special rewards.

Chapter references

Training, bottles and missable help

  1. Visit sword teachers as new equipment becomes available. Learn the eight Tiger Scroll techniques and check the additional training improvements separately.

  2. Complete the mysterious-wall fusions to gather the Gorons and open their cave reward. Return after the ending for the final shield-related exchange.

  3. Help the sick Wind Tribe resident with the Gust Jar during the early visit made possible by a fusion. Delaying until the normal late-game visit can lose the Light Arrows reward.

Chapter references

Beyond the ending

Your route to 100%.

Revisit Hyrule at both sizes and complete fusions before the final figurine sweep.

This is a collection roadmap with editable counters and links to detailed locations. The bar measures completed checklist goals, not a percentage read from your game save.

Includes Virtual Console and Switch Online versions of the original game.

Choose your adventure

Compare editions & modes.

See what changes before choosing your checklist. Each column uses the edition’s own collection targets.

Game Boy Advance

Includes Virtual Console and Switch Online versions of the original game.

One checklist edition is documented here. Ports with the same collection targets share this column; this does not claim that every release is identical.

These are checklist targets, not an overall completion percentage. “Not included” means the goal is absent from that checklist. Hardware-dependent extras and additional runs are listed below.

Explore & collect

Your collectible atlas.

Keep track of individual locations and return to the ones still waiting for you.

No integrated coordinate map is documented for this edition. Use these detailed location references with the checklist below.

  1. Keep a list of fusion partners and revisit towns after each dungeon.
  2. Finish the remote wind-tribe rescue before the later cloud journey.
  3. After the ending, collect the final figurines and remaining heart reward.
0 / 9 collection goals completed

Saved separately for this edition, in this browser.

Finish the main story

Follow the story chapters above, take every boss reward and reach the ending.

Locations & reference ↗

Kinstone fusions

Use Tingle’s remaining-fusion count to identify unfinished partners.

Locations & reference ↗

Optional equipment and upgrades

Obtain Light Arrows, Mirror Shield, Magical Boomerang, Remote Bombs and maximum carrying upgrades.

Locations & reference ↗

Goron quest and map sweep

Finish the Goron chain, open fusion rewards and inspect every shrinking route.

Locations & reference ↗

Check every dungeon

Compare each floor with its map; collect permanent equipment, maps, compasses and remaining treasure before leaving.

Locations & reference ↗
Take your progress with you

One file for all games, editions, map marks, story checklists and the N64 companion. Download it on the old address, then import it on the new one. Nothing is uploaded.

Keep the source close

Sources & further help.

Independent route notes written for this archive. For a specific room, collectible or alternate version, consult these credited references.

Game artwork and characters © Nintendo.
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