We can rebuild it
Lurelin Village has a bit of a pirate problem when you first arrive in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. And even after you’ve cleared out the ruffians, it will take a little extra work to get everything back to normal. This is where Link, Bolson, and the Lurelin Village Restoration Project come in.
The restoration project bears some similarities to an old RPG trope of rebuilding a town over time, with an eventual pay-off for gradual investment. In Tears of the Kingdom, the pay-off is definitely worth it, and the investment isn’t as tough as you’d think.
How to start the Lurelin Village Restoration Project
Bolson will be ready and waiting to kick off the revitalization project as soon as you’ve cleared Lurelin of pirates, through the Ruffian-Infested Village side adventure. With the Bokoblins and pals gone, Lurelin is ready for its villagers to return, but its buildings will need repairs.
To start off, Bolson will task Link with gathering two resources: 15 logs, specifically not pine tree logs, and 20 Hylian Rice. Let’s start with the latter.
First off, these logs are not the lumber crossbars you might see in Hudson Construction plots across Hyrule. No, you need lumber from a tree. Which means chopping it down, but keeping it whole and not hitting it too much, turning it into wood piles.
While I started off attempting a well-managed production, even getting a horse and wagon for carrying it all, this was the end result:
It doesn’t have to look pretty, it just has to work. A giant Ultrahanded clump of lumber is just as good as a fancy carriage. To harvest it, there’s a good spot outside the entrance of Lurelin Village you can use, but be careful. There are those “living tree” enemies around. Not only can they mess your day up, they can also turn your logs into wood bundles if they hit them. The exact spot is below, marked by the blue ping:
Acquiring the Hylian Rice is much easier. You can chop grass for a chance for it to drop, or buy them in bundles of five apiece at the Hateno General Store. You can refresh the stock by fast-travelling somewhere else, using a fire to wait a day, and returning. It costs money, but saves on time and sanity, so I wholeheartedly recommend this route.
Once you bring both back to Bolson, get ready to put some elbow grease into restoring this coastal town.
How to restore the stores and homes in Lurelin Village
With the foundation building materials gathered, Bolson will enlist your help with finishing each building’s repairs. There are five in total: three stores and two houses. This includes the spa/inn, the restaurant, the Lucky Treasure Shop, the village head’s house, and the fisher’s house.
Luckily, the process is pretty simple. For the inn, you’ll need to remove all the debris that’s floating on the inside of the submerged building. Use Ultrahand to fish the pieces out, and you can get some of the sunken pieces out through Attach. Just plunge a log in, attach it, and tug out.
For every other building, you’ll be doing one specific puzzle: placing a central pillar log. Bolson will have you chop down a palm tree, grab the log, and establish it in the center of the building.
It seems simple at first, but does get a bit finicky as you move through the various buildings. Make sure to get a stiff, upright palm tree without many curves, and use height to your advantage. I frequently toed my way up the scaffolding to get a good vantage point for Ultrahanding the log into place.
Once it’s through the rings, you’ll get a congratulatory scene with the corresponding residents moving back in.
Rewards for finishing the Lurelin Village Restoration Project
Repeat this for all the buildings, and you’ll have finished the Lurelin Village Restoration Project. Like I said before, it’s a worthwhile endeavor. Here’s some of the rewards you get for finishing the project; inn stays and meals are one thing, but even just a constant source of fish and access to the Lucky Treasure Shop are worth it by themselves. Plus, you get a heartwarming scene with the whole village thanking Link.
With Lurelin Village restored, you can open up a new hub on the coast for resources, and bring a little normalcy back to Hyrule. Plus, you can now start other side quests like A Way To Trade, Washed Away for even more free resources. Lurelin Village is a valuable hub for free stuff in Tears of the Kingdom, and really, who doesn’t like free stuff?
Published: Jun 6, 2023 09:00 am