Hateno Village Extended Guide — Research Lab & All Secrets

Hateno Village is TotK's largest permanent settlement — a farming and research community in East Necluda. It's home to Purah's Research Lab (Purah is now at Lookout Landing but her lab remains), the Dye Shop for armor color customization, a school with event quests, and a dense cluster of side quests. This guide covers every service and secret.

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Location and Access

Location: East Necluda, east Hyrule

Fast travel: Shrine adjacent to the village (Zanmik Shrine)

Access routes:

• East from Kakariko Village (main road)
• From Dueling Peaks Tower → travel east

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Research Lab (Hateno Ancient Tech Lab)

Status in TotK: Purah has moved to Lookout Landing, but the lab remains active.

Lab services:

• Hyrule Compendium terminal (check incomplete entries)
• Research notes on Zonai technology
• Paya (Impa's granddaughter) → new questline in TotK
• New researchers from the Hyrule Survey Team stationed here

Paya's Questline: Paya has taken on a research role in Purah's absence. She has a questline involving:

• Investigating the Ring Ruins above Kakariko Village
• Connecting the Upheaval symbols to ancient Hyrulean history
• Significant story lore about the Sheikah and Zonai connection

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Dye Shop — Armor Customization

Location: On the main street of Hateno Village

What it does: Pays rupees to recolor any armor piece. Every armor set has multiple dye options.

Cost: 20 rupees per dye application (very accessible)

Colors available: Full spectrum — red, blue, green, orange, purple, black, white, yellow, and many shades

Why customize:

• Aesthetic only (no stat changes)
• Matching armor color to preferred visual style
• Making low-tier armor look more appealing at higher upgrades

Dye shop access: Speak to the owner inside the shop → select armor piece → select color → pay 20 rupees → done.

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School Events — The Mayoral Race

One of TotK's most memorable side quest chains in Hateno involves the village school and a political dispute:

Quest trigger: Enter the school area → observe the mayoral election between two candidates (Reede and Medda)

The campaign quest chain:

• Help gather support for one candidate (or observe neutrally)
• Village residents have opinions you can discuss
• Reveals village tensions about traditional farming vs. technology adoption

Resolution: The elected mayor changes which services are available or expanded in the village post-quest. Both outcomes lead to story completion.

Rewards: Side quest points, rupees, materials from residents as thanks.

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Village Side Quests

The Farmer's Market

• Talk to farm vendors → quest to deliver specific ingredients
• Reward: Rupees + high-tier cooking ingredients

Team Hateno Questline

• A group of researchers has arrived to study Hateno's farming methods
• Multiple conversations lead to rewards and lore

House Link (From BotW)

• The house Link purchased in BotW is still there
• Some dialogue and chest rewards for visiting

School Attendance Quest

• Help convince specific children to attend school
• Minor rewards but entertaining dialogue

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Shops and Services

General Store

Stocks:

• Arrows (basic, fire, ice)
• Potions
• Local Hateno produce (Fortified Pumpkin, Hylian Shrooms)

Fortified Pumpkin: Sold here — a key cooking ingredient for defense-boosting meals (Hylian Pumpkin Stew boosts defense significantly).

Armor Shop

Sells the Hylian Set (basic starting armor) at affordable prices. Good backup if you've lost or broken early armor.

Inn

Standard inn service: sleep to advance time, full health restoration.

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Hidden Chests and Koroks

Village Koroks:

• Multiple Korok seeds hidden in the village itself
• Pot with a matching location puzzle (carry pot to exact spot)
• Acorn hidden in a tree on the village outskirts

Cliff-face chests: Climbing the cliffs east of Hateno Village reveals hidden alcoves with chests containing weapons and materials.

Farm chests: Behind farming plots (some require moving a rock or lighting a torch) — quick checks before leaving the area.

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Nearby Points of Interest

East Necluda Shrines

Multiple shrines clustered within 500 meters of Hateno Village:

• Zanmik Shrine (village)
• Sifumim Shrine (east)
• Mayachideg Shrine (south coast)

Clear all three as a cluster — efficient Light of Blessing collection.

Hateno Farm

The large farm east of the village:

• Fortified Pumpkin crop (abundant)
• Multiple Koroks on farm structures
• Rare weapon occasionally found in farm chests

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Quick Tips

• Dye shop is worth 20 rupees — if you're wearing armor you like mechanically but hate aesthetically, the Dye Shop fixes it for the cost of a single arrow. Customize everything.
• Paya's questline for Kakariko connection — completing Paya's research questline is required to fully unlock the Ring Ruins story above Kakariko. Do Paya's quest before heading to the Ring Ruins for full context.
• Fortified Pumpkin from the shop — Hateno General Store stocks Fortified Pumpkins. These cook into defense-boost meals. Stock 10+ before attempting any temple where you need defense rather than hearts.
• The mayoral quest is worth starting early — it's a multi-part quest that requires returning to Hateno multiple times. Start it on your first visit so it resolves naturally as you pass through.
• Check BotW house — if you played Breath of the Wild, visiting Link's old house in Hateno has unique dialogue that acknowledges the previous adventure. Worth a 30-second stop for the emotional callback.

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See also: Hateno Village Guide | Kakariko Village Guide | Necluda Guide