Knowing when Blood Moons happen in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom can spare you from some quite repetitive encounters. This mechanic was introduced in Breath of the Wild and brought some lore to the Era of the Wilds section of the Zelda timeline. Overall, enemies respawning is somewhat self-explanatory and a well-established mechanic in gaming. However, the concept of a Blood Moon commanded by an evil force that brings enemies back surely sounds appealing and even Zelda-like. When do Blood Moons happen in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom? Collect your heart containers, fuse your weapons, and continue reading to find out.
How Do Tears of the Kingdom Blood Moons Work?
Blood Moons are back in Tears of the Kingdom, and they are as menacing as before. And while you may know exactly the conditions for it to happen, it always comes as a surprise. The red artifacts, the sky changing its colors, the eerie music. All of this announces a Blood Moon is happening. And while things get frightening, thankfully, this doesn’t happen every other day.
In fact, a Blood Moon will happen every 7 in-game days. In terms of real-time, since one real minute is equivalent to 1 in-game hour, you can expect a Blood Moon to happen every 2 hours and 48 minutes, or 168 minutes in total. This countdown does not take any resting time you take at a stable or campfire, nor does it take into account any pause time.
All Blood Moon Effects in TotK
There is a total of three in-game effects that happen when a Blood Moon appears in the sky. First and most importantly, all previously defeated enemies will respawn. This applies to the smallest and weakest Chuchu all the way to the giant Hinox you just defeated.
Second, any ore you just mined and weapon drops will also reappear. You could make notes on ore-heavy places so that when a Blood Moon happens, you’ll be ready for the grind.
Finally, during a Blood Moon, your cooking will receive a great success effect. This includes the following effects: effect level up, heart recovery +3, or effect duration extended by 5 minutes. One of these effects will be applied to your recipe at random.
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While the Blood Moon certainly means trouble for Link, as you can see, for the player, it means some opportunities. Go ahead and visit your ore mines and weapon drops and make some excellent recipes while cooking. Just beware of those Moblins and enemies in general that appear, and you will be just fine.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is available now on Nintendo Switch.
