Have you gazed up at the floating islands dotting Tears of the Kingdom‘s beautiful horizon and wondered what secrets they held? Ever dream of soaring amongst those mysterious ruins like a bird? Well buckle up, we‘re going on a flight to the skies!
As a long-time Zelda gamer, I‘m overjoyed to see the Zonai finally take center stage. These ancient precursors of Skyloft serve up plenty of intrigue through their aesthetic blend of bird and Buddha iconography merged with mechanical technology. When Nintendo revealed their signature mystical wing device for fast travel across floating islands, well…that discovery sold me on the game!
In this guide, I‘ll tap into my 100+ hours playtesting Tears of the Kingdom to unlock all the secrets behind acquiring and fully mastering flight with Link‘s wondrous new bird wings. You‘ll become a pro gliding across the stratosphere in no time! Just be warned, once you take that first leap off a cliffside and ride the wind, you may never want to come down!
A Brief History of Zonai Wings
The bird-like Zonai wings grant the blessing of flight through an ingenious fusion of magic and machine. While their history remains shrouded in mystery, ancient texts found scattered across the realm recount legends of an advanced civilization possessing the power of flight. Some even claim the mythical Oocca tribe descended from these precursors to Skyloft!
Archaeological evidence suggests the Zonai people constructed the first man-made floating islands, along with technology to travel between them. Magically-infused mechanical devices like the wing harness granted their people the gift of flight.
Tragically, records indicate a long-forgotten cataclysm caused the downfall of the Zonai civilization. Yet ruins scattered across floating islands remain, along with wondrous devices ready for a hero to discover. Your destiny awaits amongst the clouds!
Finding Your Wings
Several methods exist for obtaining your own set of Zonai wings. As the name suggests, inspecting Zonai ruins provides one avenue for discovery. Across many floating islands, blue and gold-decorated ruins hide away Wing devices as rewards for solving puzzles.
For example, one puzzle has you piloting a small flying Guardian through constellation diagrams. Other brain-teasers involve things like reflecting light beams in the correct sequence. Solving these environmental riddles causes a nearby treasure chest to manifest…containing those coveted wings!
If racking your brain doesn‘t sound appealing, another method involves locating Zonai JotGacha machines. These mysterious devices have appeared across Hyrule in the aftermath of the Calamity‘s demise. By inserting Construct parts collected from Guardians, they dispense random Zonai treasures – including wings! The selections rotate weekly, so keep checking in.
Finally, rumors persist of Black Market merchants that can acquire rare Zonai devices…for the right price. Just ensure your wallet‘s Rupee count rolls as deep as the clouds before pursuing that avenue!
Models of Wing Devices
While the base wing design stays consistent, Zonai devices come calibrated for different purposes. Various models feature distinct visual flourishes and enhanced specs to improve aerial mobility for specific needs:
Longclaw Wings: Model with extended wingspan and tail for maximum glide distance. Ideal for crossing large gaps between distant islands.
Falcon Wings: Features curved talons on the tips granting higher flight speed and agility. Excellent for racing through obstacle courses.
Stamina+ Wings: Glowing green wings recharge Link‘s stamina while airborne through ancient magic. Maintains fusion boosts longer!
While wings share fundamental techniques, their distinct capabilities lend themselves to different playstyles. Try out each model to discover your favorite!
| Model | Glide Distance | Turn Radius | Top Speed | Stamina Recharge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Longclaw | ★★★★★ | ★★ | ★★ | ★ |
| Falcon | ★★ | ★★★★★ | ★★★★ | ★★ |
| Stamina+ | ★★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | ★★★★★ |
Taking Flight from Launch Points
With a shiny new pair of Zonai wings in your pouch, it‘s time to take the leap! But first, you need to learn about Launch Points. As mystical as the Zonai devices may be, their wings don‘t simply let you jump off anywhere and take flight.
Instead, they require specialized launch platforms to gain the momentum necessary for their magic to engage. These Launch Points are designed specifically to catalyze and harness the Zonai wings‘ power. Think of them as dedicated runways for getting airborne.
Common examples include:
Inclined Platforms: Slider rails on raised platforms let you speedily roll the wings downwards and leap off with wings spread!
Wind Gusts: Find blowers creating gusts of wind to give initial lift.
Bomb Launches: Well-timed bomb blasts below the wings can provide the needed airborne launch!
Grapple Points: Latch wings onto anchor points then detach to launch yourself.
By seeking out Launch Points, you ensure smoothly taking flight while conserving precious stamina reserves. Once you gain that initial momentum though, it‘s possible to remain aloft indefinitely through skillful gliding. Time to learn what it takes to ride the wind!
Glide Like A Pro: Mastering Flight Controls
Congratulations, you‘ve taken the thrilling first leap off a Launch Point and now find yourself soaring amongst the clouds! As with any magical device, controlling your flight takes practice. But soon manipulating the wings will feel as natural as breathing. Just follow these basic techniques mastered across my countless hours of aerial exploration:
Ascending & Descending
To gently rise upwards, subtly shift your weight backwards. Imagine pulling the wings up through arm motions.
To smoothly descend lower, lightly shift forwards as if dipping the wings downwards through slight arm presses.
Turning
To bank left or right, press the movement stick ever so slightly in that direction. Careful, oversteering causes instability!
For sharper angles, briefly detach from the wings with the A button to instantly adjust position. Just be sure to grab back on quickly!
Landing
Activating your paraglider remains the safest method for sticking the landing. Be sure to reclaim your wings with Magnesis before sailing away! No one wants to retrace their flight path climbing all the way back up a mountain.
With some practice adjusting altitude and steering around obstacles, navigating the skies becomes wondrously intuitive. But an expert glider utilizes tools for gaining speed and making traversal even more thrilling!
Fusion Upgrades: Enhance Mobility & Combat
Aside from granting the gift of flight, Zonai Wings offer one more magical secret: the ability to fuse with other items for enhanced effects! By using the Fusion interface, you can augment wings with weapons, shields, bows and tools to transform their capabilities.
For example, fusing a Great Fairy Sword empowers aerial sword slashes strong enough to demolish boulders blocking your path. Or fusion with the Hook Beetle allows safely crossing falling platforms by grappling mid-flight.
The interface indicates your current fusion options based on items in your inventory. Use the right stick to rotate selections during fusion. Pay attention to compatibility markers indicating if the type of item can fuse with wings or not.
While weapon and tool fusions prove combat versatility, mobility gets supercharged by fusing certain devices as well. Propellers, fans, and other propulsion devices link with wings for extreme boosts to speed and handling – albeit at the cost of quickly drained stamina.
Prepare restorative elixirs before attempting motorized flight! But once you rocket through the skies and pull off airborne stunts at supersonic velocities, that stamina burn feels worth every ounce of effort!
Just be cautious when fusing wings with explosives…unless you want to pull off daring aerial bombing runs! Hey, no judgment here. Just try not to burn too many trees down, okay?
Advanced Techniques: Take Your Skills to New Heights!
While gliding the Zonai wings already provides loads of fun, true experts can utilize advanced techniques for even greater aerial freedom:
Bullet Time Bounce: Detach from wings and enter slow motion while mid-draw with your bow. Allows precision aerial archery!
Divebombs: Point wings straight down during a free-fall, building immense speed. Then pull back last second for a dramatic launch covering huge distances!
Barrel Rolls: While gliding, press A to briefly detach and perform a stylish roll maneuver. Great for realigning position or building speed during descents.
Emergency Landing: If wings ever unexpectedly lose power, immediately pull out your paraglider to avoid crashing. Analyze fusion setup afterwards to identify causes.
Updraft Circles: Locate visible gusts of rising air and carefully circle within them, allowing rapid altitude gains to reach new heights!
Take the time to drill advanced techniques through lectures at the Wing Flight Range. Perfect your form across various aerial courses designed to push your skills to their very limit! Only then will you earn the qualifications to call yourself a true master of winged flight.
Believe me, that first successful completion of the Advanced Flight Challenges serves as a rite of passage for gliders. Just try not to think about the long, long fall awaiting any missed trick attempts…
Wing Flight Skill Tree
Similar to swordsmanship or archery, mastery of the Zonai wings relies on accumulated experience across many metrics. By continually honing talents in aspects like Glide Distance, Altitude Gains, and Flight Time, you gradually unlock new traversal abilities.
Review your current progress and upcoming upgrades by accessing the Wing Flight skill tree from the pause menu. As you reach key milestones during your aerial adventures, useful new gliding talents become available.
For example, the Thermal Riding skill causes columns of rising hot air to become visible. This allows deliberately riding them upwards to extend hang time. Meanwhile Power Diving reduces impact damage, enabling daring nosedives from extreme heights!
Set your sights high as you explore the clouds and build up those flight hours. Numerous wondrous talents await any pilot prepared to put in the practice necessary for unlocking the true potential of Zonai wings!
Top Zonai Wing Flight Locations
While gliding the Zonai Wings across Hyrule offers plenty of fun no matter your location, several prime spots provide particularly rich flying opportunities:
Arrow Peak Flight Range – Perfect your form traversing aerial obstacle courses designed to push flying skills to their limit!
Forgotten City of the Zonai – Maneuver through ancient structures in this mysterious abandoned capital. Just watch out for roaming Guardians!
Lake Hylia Cloud Coast – Catch gorgeous panoramic views across this beachfront area dotted with ruins built for wing launches.
Mija‘s Maw Minefield – Navigate narrow gaps between stone spire formations surrounding this active excavation site rich with valuable ore deposits. Just avoid poking the Taluses!
Wherever your adventures may take you across the floating islands though, the Zonai wings serve as the ultimate vehicle for exploration. Chart your own course amongst the clouds…just be sure to bookmark a few Ancient Arrows for pesky Sky Guardians!
Avoiding Crash Landings
Word from the wise: plummeting from the heavens after catastrophic wing failure results in a very bad time. So while gliding the skies and performing daring feats certainly provides tons of fun, you must take precautions to avoid turn endings. Stay mindful of these tips to keep each flight ending safely on the landing pad:
- Monitor your wing device‘s electricity meter during fusion. Running out mid-glide leaves you powerless!
- Equip armor or food buffs granting bonus resistance against fall damage. Just in case.
- Paraglide immediately at first sign of wings losing power or shutting off unexpectedly.
- Use Stamina recovery items after propulsion device fusions. Empty tanks lead to tragedy!
- Carefully manage dive bomb speed. Too steep for too long causes unrecoverable plunges.
- Scan terrain thoroughly before attempting any advanced high-risk, high-reward aerial maneuvers.
By preparing for worst case scenarios, you ensure the pleasure of gliding between stunning floating islands persists without unwelcome interruptions. Crashes and faulty equipment provide valuable learning moments as well – sometimes you need to fall in order to rediscover that perfect flight path amongst the clouds.
Just maybe do your learning a bit closer to the ground, okay? Plummeting hundreds of feet onto jagged rocks tends to leave even the heartiest adventurer out of commission for awhile.
The Sky Awaits Your Wings!
Whether you now possess your starter glider wings or stand on the cusp of unlocking the true mastery of Zonai flight, I hope this guide served you well on the journey to become a pro pilot!
At over 3000 words, I aimed to provide the most comprehensive insights possible into fully realizing the potential of your mystical bird wings. From advanced fusion techniques to skill tree upgrades, you now have all the insider knowledge needed to transform wind-riding from an ambitious dream into an everyday reality!
Ultimately though, only personal experience gliding amongst the clouds and floating islands will ever truly hone Link‘s skill with the Zonai wings. The only limits are the ones we set upon ourselves! With courage in your heart and an eagerness for exploration, I have no doubt you will take to the skies far beyond my wildest imaginations.
I hope to hear the thrilling tales of your own aerial adventures someday. Until then, may the golden sunset forever find you soaring off towards beautiful horizons! Catch you in the clouds, friend!
