How to Increase Maximum Hearts and Stamina

Use 4 Lights of Blessing obtained from shrines to increase Link's maximum hearts and stamina in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (TotK). Read on to learn how to increase hearts and stamina, the maximum health and stamina Link can have, how to respec, as well as which to prioritize.

How to Increase Hearts and Stamina

How to Increase Health and Stamina
Complete Shrines for Lights of Blessing Exchange Lights of Blessing for Hearts or Stamina Complete Temples for Heart Containers Complete A Call from the Depths

Complete Shrines for Lights of Blessing

Clearing shrines will reward Link with 1 Light of Blessing. These shrines will test the hero's strength of the mind and body, and will reward Link once proven to be worthy of the blessing that cleanses evil.

All 152 Shrine Locations

Recommended Shrines to clear in early game

Exchange Four Lights of Blessing at Goddess Statues

Exchanging 4 Lights of Blessing, that you can get by completing shrines, to the Goddess Statues scattered across Hyrule, will give Link the option to choose whether to receive a Heart Container or a Stamina Vessel.

This is the main way to increase the number of Link's hearts or expand his stamina wheel, so it is recommended to complete many shrines so you can get more hearts and a longer stamina gauge.

Heart Containers increase Health

Choosing the Heart Container will increase Link's maximum hearts by 1. This increases Link's red hearts as yellow hearts are temporarily gained from eating specific cooked dishes, and will be lost upon taking damage.

Stamina Vessels increase Stamina

Choosing the Stamina Vessel will extend Link's stamina wheel by 1/5th of the whole wheel. Should the wheel be complete, it will create a new wheel when increasing stamina.

Recommended Goddess Statue Location

Lookout Landing has the most accessible Goddess Statue which can be found just below at the Emergency Shelter, rather than somewhere hidden along the town.

Simply fast travel to Lookout Landing Skyview Tower and talk to Scorpis in the middle of the area to open the Emergency Shelter. Drop down the hole to reach the statue.

Lookout Landing Town Location

Complete Temples for Heart Containers

Completing temples as part of the Main Quests will reward Link with 1 Heart Container each. These serve as rewards for progressing through the main focus of the game, so be sure to pick them up after clearing each temple!

Total Number of Hearts From Temples

You can obtain a total of five additional hearts from clearing all temples in the game; four from the main temples during the Regional Phenomena questline, and one from the secret temple which you will encounter during Guidance From Ages.

All Temple Locations and Dungeon Guides

Complete A Call from the Depths

Completing A Call from the Depths gives you either a Heart Container or a Stamina Vessel at the end of the side adventure.

A Call from the Depths Walkthrough

What is the Max Hearts and Stamina?

40 Hearts and 3 Stamina Wheels

Max Hearts	Max Stamina
40 Hearts	3 Stamina Wheels

Link can have a maximum of 40 hearts! Since Link is starting out his adventure with three hearts, 37 Heart Containers are needed to achieve maximum hearts!

For stamina, Link starts out with one full Stamina Wheel so he will only need a total of 10 Stamina Vessels to add two more stamina wheels, and achieve maximum stamina!

You cannot have the maximum amount of hearts and stamina at the same time

Although these are the maximum amount of hearts and stamina you can obtain, you cannot have 40 Hearts and 3 Stamina Wheels at the same time.

Instead, you will only have a maximum of 38 Hearts and 3 Stamina Wheel or 40 Hearts and 2.6 Stamina Wheel if you swap them at the Horned Statue under the Emergency Shelter.

Should You Prioritize Hearts or Stamina?

Prioritize Stamina Vessels

Even though Link has a new ability called Ascend, which makes climbing easier, we still recommend getting more stamina vessels to have at least 2 stamina wheels to obtain the Master Sword.

Furthermore, having more stamina will help you glide for longer to help you reach Key Locations easier after flying out of Skyview Towers! Overall, this is the better option if you want to progress more quickly.

How to Get Master Sword

Use Cooking for More Hearts

There are many items, such as Hearty Truffles, Hearty Bass, and other materials with Hearty in the name which, when cooked, can allow you to gain hearts beyond your current guage. While these hearts will disappear when you are hit, you can combine several of these items and cook them together for a huge HP boost that you won't easily lose!

List of Cooked Dishes and Recipes

Upgrade Hearts if Combat is Difficult

If you are struggling with combat or dying too frequently, it is okay to upgrade some hearts before upgrading your stamina more.

Although there are other ways to prevent taking as much damage, such as upgrading your armor or cooking with Defense Boosts, having more hearts you can heal at anytime will make the game easier, although travel will be much slower.

List of All Armor

How to Trade Hearts and Stamina

Talk to the Cursed Statue

The Cursed Statue offers the option to purchase one of Link's essences, namely a Heart Container or a Stamina Vessel, for 100 Rupees. Additionally, Link has the freedom to select which essence he desires to obtain for 120 Rupees.

If you wish to enhance Link's stamina at the expense of health, you have the opportunity to sell Heart Containers and acquire Stamina Vessels. Conversely, if you prefer Link to endure battles for longer periods, you can exchange stamina for health by selling Stamina Vessels and acquiring Heart Containers.

How to Swap Hearts for Stamina

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Related Guides

Tips and Tricks
A Beginner's Guide to Tears of the Kingdom

All Tips and Tricks Guides