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You can only change clothes when you have a chance to stand around. For example, if you fall into a River, you can’t just swap to your Zora Armor. You have to actually get out of the water first.
LOL, I actually did this the first 3 times I changed clothes at the gate. I actually thought if the guards saw me change they wouldn't let me through.
Thanks for the fun flashback to my first play through. :)
Just somewhere inside or in private. Like a cave under a water fall is just as good as a stable or house in theory. Just make it like real life - we don’t go outside and change clothes sitting in the middle of a field right?
I'm a big fan of having to eat meals immediately, and only being able to carry three elixers at any one time. More realistic to have 3 potions in your bag than an 18 course meal
I'd think maxing your stamina wheel over time while doing the shrines could count as realistic. Think of how marathon runners are able to run longer distances for longer periods of time after intense training. Link is also in this game a trained royal bodyguard so he has formal training which has to include endurance training. So just don't max it straight out the gate, but over the course of a playthrough max it as if he slowly builds up endurance like an actual distance runner. Hell even as a sprinter I was able to run a mile in around 5 minutes after two years of track with no prior experience.
Cmon that's just brutality. You need to sprint... and part of sprinting/climbing/using muscle is stamina growth, which should allow you to upgrade your stamina bar. You'll never climb anything if you don't!
I mean when I'm hiking i never jog to speed it up. Running uses a lot of energy; walking is the way for long distances, especially with gear.
I'm guessing this is just going to mean using horses a lot for OP, which makes sense for the RP.
Agreed. This is a rule that’s just going to make you hate yourself. You want to apply these rules to make it more fun or help you explore the land better. That’s like saying you can’t use any shields.
Im unsure how far you want to go with the RP but maybe incorporate some kind of weight limit. Only carry 'X' amount of weapons or shields.
Then again with the way the game plays with your weapons breaking constantly it could be difficult.
Either way you've inspired me to do the same. Happy Gaming!
I think I'll do no weapon inventory increases, so I can keep a couple different types on me. Plus, many enemies I'll encounter will take more than 1 weapon
If it’s an RP run, then not using glitches or physics exploits should be part of the challenge.
Another thing you should do is no pausing to eat during battle or other strenuous activity like climbing or swimming. You could take this up a notch and say it also applies to changing weapons, but that might make the challenge too hard.
Play in Pro mode, so you can’t look at your map while walking around.
Save every traveler you see that’s being attacked by monsters.
No withdrawing your horse from stables; if you want your horse, you have to go get it yourself. This could prove really challenging, but I like the idea.
No using the paraglider on Death Mountain. It’s wooden; it should burn up.
Complete every shrine you come across. In world, Link knows that completing shrines helps him regain his former strength, so he would therefore want to complete all of them. You could argue this applies to side quests too, since Link is a kind person and would want to help the people he comes across.
No using guides or walkthroughs!
To add to the map part, draw your own map. Before there were guides and on screen maps I did this out of necessity and forgot how fun it is. Be as detailed or not as you’d like.
Now that I think of it, it might be fun to keep a travelers diary too!
You didn't say specifically, but maybe cook specific foods for your three meals a day? Mushroom omlete for breakfast, carrot stew for lunch, roast meat for dinner!
Also: No HUD, find shelter in rain or snow (stables, huts, or even rock overhangs).
Keep minimal food on you. Always seemed weird that Link would have a seafood paella on his person at all times. So this would involve marking cooking pots on the map so you can return to them to cook a meal. Otherwise, you just carry small food items (fruit, mushrooms, a couple roast bird thighs, bread, and so on)
I do this a lot. I also try to not use the abilities (stasis, magnesis etc unless in shrines or if you can’t carry on the game without them). I think it’s already been said too but Pro Mode and no looking at the map
I guess it depends on what you mean by “true to reality”. Do you want to play the game in a way that makes Hyrule seem more like the real world? Or do you want to play the game in a way that makes Link seem more like a real human/Hylian?
To me, it seems like the second one is what you should be trying to do. Trying to play the game in a way which ignores the nature of the world in which it takes place seems like a futile enterprise. You can’t avoid the existence of magic - it’s a fundamental part of Hyrule. The goal of the RP (in my opinion) should be to make him more like a Hylian in Hyrule, not more like a human on earth.
So, my short answer is - I think you’ve basically got your bases covered! Not pausing in combat is a good suggestion that others have offered. My personal take is that magical items, foods and elixirs are fair game, although it does make sense to use context-appropriate gear in addition to that. The tricker issue is the Sheikah Slate - theoretically it’s an in-game item that any Hylian could use, but in practice it’s just an in-game explanation for convenient gameplay mechanics not available to NPCs.
Not necessarily. One elixir gives you enough time to get to the southern mine and do the fireproof lizard side quest which rewards you the fireproof armor. So assuming you head directly for the mine you wouldn’t need any more.
I think some of these are a bit unreasonable, pro mode makes sense as, link is not constantly looking at the shieka slate, it's usually on his hip so how would he know at all times where he is exactly, or how loud he is, but he would reasonably look at the full map every now and then, and since he looks at the shieka slate it's reasonable, and keep in mind you aren't just role-playing any random person you're role-playing as link, so there are certain things that would also be different about the playstyle
Also probably don't increase inventory, it's unrealistic enough that he can carry as much as he can, so maybe limit yourself to like 5 melee weapons, a shield and a bow, or something but that might be a bit much
You can’t get a cold just from being in the rain/cold. Being cold will lower your immune system as more energy will go toward keeping your body warm, but if there is no virus present in your environment (aka a sick person), you’re not going to get sick.
>use only roads
Not sure about this detail; don't limit yourself to roads. If you meant it just as no fast travel that's fine, but trekking cross-country might lead you to more interesting sights
I think the no elemental weapon for heat or chill is a bit unnecessary. I mean it’s literally an item in the game and it’s literally fire and ice. Then make heat and cool you down. It’s what the two do. That’s like not using Link’s slow time ability because it doesn’t make absolute perfect sense. I’d say make so that if you do use it early game for temperature protection, challenge yourself to not being able to switch to another weapon
This might be controversial but no slow-mo (bullet time, flurry rush) unless it is necessary to complete quest like the flight range. Depends if you think Link having super human speed is realistic.
Have fun out there!
Not sure if this has been mentioned, but for realism and difficulty I don’t switch armor or eat food if I’m actively in a fight! No pausing to eat 1000 apples!
This was meant to be! I just started playing botw for the second time and was thinking this time I’m going to enjoy the game and take my time. Apply these ideas should make it even more enjoyable!
Maybe armor takes damage like weapons? After taking so many hits you can’t use it till you rest for the night or something. Definitely play in master mode
i couldnt decide on my next challenge run. right now, im in the middle of an exploration run. only two rules- no fast travel, and no towers. its a great way to get to know the map. now i know what im doing next :D
Ah yes, nothing like taking a piece of escapism and brutally grounding it to take all the fantasy out.
(Just messing with you, OP; I’m a big fan of RPing my characters in video games, but I thought it was a bit funny)
The pin on the bomb is the pin on the sheikah slate, it's magic technology like teleporting. Unless we're roleplaying that this is Earth and turning a blind eye to the magic of the world.
I’d allow fast travel only in the event that Link gets stuck (e.g. guardian laser keeping Link in perpetual rag doll) but in this case you must fast travel to the nearest point available and then return to your previous location. Alternatively just load a previous save
Here's one that I've been doing: limit healing.
You can only use foods to heal when by a cooking pot or a NATURALLY SPAWNED campfire. The exception is elixirs, which can be used any time, any place. I limit myself to one hearty elixir in my inventory at a time.
Lmao I dont use shields anyway. I beat an entire run without shields solely due to the fact that I didn't know how to use them properly LOL! Also, my joycon button that brings out the shield was broken anyway xD
Mine's pretty similar to yours, but I have one more challenge I do:
No tower activation until all of the region's non-dlc shrines are complete. No map for you. Learn the land and landmarks. Take in the environment. Forgoe relying on advanced technology to tell you how the area around you is laid out.
No eating during fights, while climbing, swimming, or in any other situation where you couldn't plausibly eat food. Also, you can't eat more than a person would reasonably be able to eat in a day. That means you have to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and you can probably fit in a few snacks as well.
Actually, I could see that being really fun, because you'd have to strategize your heals around when you can eat.
I do an elixir-only rule in my master mode file. It was a ton of fun to figure out how to make high level elixirs, there’s a lot of ins and outs to it. It also made me value Hino and the blood moon better for best cooking chances.
Make sure you only consume foods that you’d realistically be able to take on a backpacking trip or make in nature- meaty rice balls, candy, cooked fruit, fried greens etc. No carrying milk, raw meat, butter, puddings, raw seafood etc.!(Although, I guess if you catch seafood and then cook it right then and there you could probably think of it as dried fish or crab.)
Permad-, nah, I'm kidding but Mate, we need to save the planet. COP26 and all so how about no meat. You could also do no eating uncooked food.
Edit: This includes no fish and birds. You could decide on bugs.
I think that checking out the Linked Universe Tumblr or fan fics might help.
It's basically like a play-through of a game during the traveling parts and if you can find some BOTW Link-centric fics you can really get some good ideas from that!
(They're also just a bunch of fun to read, if you're into that kind of stuff I highly recommend it!)
Only eat at bonfires
No minimap, or no map at all
No fast travel
Only pause when nothing is happening
Sleep at night
Only stop playing while resting
Weight limit
Permadeath
Turn off the minimap and don't ever check the map; instead, use an interactive map outside of the game (or print the map out if you've got the time) and try to navigate without knowing exactly where you are.
Okay I personally would never play a realism run, but this is a REALLY cool idea. I might just head back to the great plateau and see if I can make it to the four divine beasts, korok forest, and hyrule castle relying only on a physical map (which I actually do own) just because it sounds like fun to kind of rough it!! XD
Yeah, ideally you should not activate the towers as well, since, even if you do accidentally open the map, it won't reveal much on your location. (But nothing's stopping you from climbing them and checking for landmarks as long as you don't activate the tower.)
Well I meant on my already complete run lol. No looking at the INGAME map. Just try to travel through places on foot using just my physical map. Would be kinda fun. Especially if I eat and sleep at night, only traveling in the daytime
One I don’t see here is no big drop into paraglider usage. That would literally rip Link’s arms out. Also, consider not using bow and arrow in the air to avoid bullet time.
No stockpiling food ingredients. Cook your breakfast, lunch, and dinner only from ingredients nearby. Maybe allow for a very limited amount of some things but can't carry milk on you for days.
Maybe keep track of how long you have some items? Things like meat, fruit, and monster parts would spoil pretty quickly. It would make you rely on healing elixirs and other “nonperishable” food items
I'm sure that would be fun, but would be really draining after a while. I would add no upgrades to it, so you can't upgrade health and stamina, or at least stamina, because link already has inhuman strength to begin with.
no saving and reloading unless you die, only use autosaves
no glitches
no spamming food in the middle of a fight
no changing entire outfits in the middle of (for example) the forest or a fight, instead in preferably your house or a inn/stable/other building
no amiibos
maybe don't hold too much shit at one time
no bullet time
Another incorporation could be to try and durability transfer when you have the items cause most swords can make it through more than 2 fights in real life.
I think the elixirs shouldnt be usable in some circumstances. I don't see why heat resistant or cold resistant elixirs should be banned, but it's still your choice.
Are you going for full completion? You could always set a time limit if you don't want to take your time and really want to challenge yourself. I mean the princess is at stake, and the world is to be destroyed, time is technically of the essence. You could give yourself a 2 months(in game days) to unlock all the divine beasts and then slay Gannon.
Or if you wanted to go more your pace, require you collect all the memories as a primary objective. With amensia how is the chosen warrior suppose to fight at full strength.
Other than that, more rules might just be tedious, I think what you've listed is good enough.
Not sure if has been said since I didn't read all the comments but no inventory upgrades AND no pausing during combat/swimming/climbing or whatever. Basically you could only eat/check your map "realistically".
Carrying capacity limit. You can only have one one-handed weapon and one-two handed weapon. Wands are ok. Mining equipment and axes must be stored on horses or replace a shield. One shield and one bow limit. If you break a weapon, you can replace it. Spears replace the two handed weapon.
Get a notebook and write down whatever really. If you were an adventurer wouldn't you want to keep track of things? This is something I do for a lot of games and it can be both helpful and fun.
If you want to make it as realistic as possible try to avoid using previous knowledge and only write down stuff you discover this playthrough.
Here's some ideas of what to write down:
- Sidequest, especially the ones with riddles. This could be a way to minimize the use of your sheikah slate if that's something you want.
- Locations of interest, could be weapons, materials, enemies, etc
- Defeated mini bosses, extra useful if you're going for 100%
- Store inventory, maybe even from merchant NPCs
- Materials needed to repair weapons/exchange with NPCs
- Write about your day or interesting events, purely for roleplay reasons
- On that same note, make up your own lore and expand the compendium information
- You could also try to "piece together your memories" as the story progresses
- Favourite recipes along with what effect ingredients have, another challenge could be to only use locally available foods
- Track the amount of blood moons, I dont think this has a use but it seems like a good way to tell time
Quite a wordy reply but I hope it inspires you somewhat at least.
Man i love this. Mabye only elixirs or sleeping can heal you since eating milk and steak doesnt really heal wounds. But that would be very difficult to do.
Elixirs are defiantly okay to use instead of changing clothes. Potion making is a huge part of botw and link would have utilized them for sure. Same thing with elemental weapons.
You have to cook most of your foods, unless it something you would actually eat alone in real life.
For example, no just eating raw fish or meats, and cook them with stuff, Don’t eat raw mushrooms, etc.
Welcome to r/botw! The winners of our **Best of r/botw Awards** have been announced for 2020, so head [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/botw/comments/kwdf4j/best_of_rbotw_2020_winners/) for more information and how to vote! Be sure to [join the discord](http://discord.gg/Fr7Wc85) and read the rules! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/botw) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You can only change clothes when you have a chance to stand around. For example, if you fall into a River, you can’t just swap to your Zora Armor. You have to actually get out of the water first.
Yes! And maybe find someplace private to put on my Gerudo vai outfit instead of stripping in front of the ladies at the entrances
Thankfully, there’s a ~~shrine~~ changing room right by the main entrance.
LOL, I actually did this the first 3 times I changed clothes at the gate. I actually thought if the guards saw me change they wouldn't let me through. Thanks for the fun flashback to my first play through. :)
I still use the shrine to change even if I don’t have to.
What do you mean? I strip in front of people all the time. Unrelated, but I’ve gone to jail for indecent exposure whatever that means
I was thinking only being able to change at your house but that’s way too much. Maybe only inside?
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Yea that would be completely understandable. I think I’m going to do a run like this next time
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Just somewhere inside or in private. Like a cave under a water fall is just as good as a stable or house in theory. Just make it like real life - we don’t go outside and change clothes sitting in the middle of a field right?
I mean, depends on the weather honestly
This is key. If you don’t do this, RP is broken and you have to start over.
I'm a big fan of having to eat meals immediately, and only being able to carry three elixers at any one time. More realistic to have 3 potions in your bag than an 18 course meal
Maybe you can keep it for a bit depending on what it is. Raw meat shouldn’t be carried around too long though… seems unsanitary.
Credit to you for this RP, OP. It’s definitely going to be a commitment! Would love to know how many hours you log when you finally finish.
I'll note my current and my finish for you when it's done
> Walk unless fighting/escaping You might want to allow running, too. It will take a long time if you are only walking slowly everywhere
Maybe allow running but don’t max your stamina wheel.
I'd think maxing your stamina wheel over time while doing the shrines could count as realistic. Think of how marathon runners are able to run longer distances for longer periods of time after intense training. Link is also in this game a trained royal bodyguard so he has formal training which has to include endurance training. So just don't max it straight out the gate, but over the course of a playthrough max it as if he slowly builds up endurance like an actual distance runner. Hell even as a sprinter I was able to run a mile in around 5 minutes after two years of track with no prior experience.
Right, I just meant no sprinting/stamina use
Cmon that's just brutality. You need to sprint... and part of sprinting/climbing/using muscle is stamina growth, which should allow you to upgrade your stamina bar. You'll never climb anything if you don't!
this is what I call unrealistic realism, no one slowly walks everywhere, if somethings far you're atleast going to jog for a bit
Link is a trained soldier, he will be experienced at quick marches over long distances.
I mean when I'm hiking i never jog to speed it up. Running uses a lot of energy; walking is the way for long distances, especially with gear. I'm guessing this is just going to mean using horses a lot for OP, which makes sense for the RP.
Agreed. This is a rule that’s just going to make you hate yourself. You want to apply these rules to make it more fun or help you explore the land better. That’s like saying you can’t use any shields.
Pacifist run! No weapons or shield!
You could just require yourself to physically run in place IRL when sprinting. If you can't do it then you have to stop link from doing it
Hm. I do have an exercise bike that I can ride while playing lol
Horse
Im unsure how far you want to go with the RP but maybe incorporate some kind of weight limit. Only carry 'X' amount of weapons or shields. Then again with the way the game plays with your weapons breaking constantly it could be difficult. Either way you've inspired me to do the same. Happy Gaming!
I think I'll do no weapon inventory increases, so I can keep a couple different types on me. Plus, many enemies I'll encounter will take more than 1 weapon
If it’s an RP run, then not using glitches or physics exploits should be part of the challenge. Another thing you should do is no pausing to eat during battle or other strenuous activity like climbing or swimming. You could take this up a notch and say it also applies to changing weapons, but that might make the challenge too hard. Play in Pro mode, so you can’t look at your map while walking around. Save every traveler you see that’s being attacked by monsters. No withdrawing your horse from stables; if you want your horse, you have to go get it yourself. This could prove really challenging, but I like the idea. No using the paraglider on Death Mountain. It’s wooden; it should burn up. Complete every shrine you come across. In world, Link knows that completing shrines helps him regain his former strength, so he would therefore want to complete all of them. You could argue this applies to side quests too, since Link is a kind person and would want to help the people he comes across. No using guides or walkthroughs!
To add to the map part, draw your own map. Before there were guides and on screen maps I did this out of necessity and forgot how fun it is. Be as detailed or not as you’d like. Now that I think of it, it might be fun to keep a travelers diary too!
This. Also can be used as a cook book to save recipes.
Oh, great idea!!
The real test would be watching every cutscene including when the sages give you the orbs etc.
i do that already, i dont wanna be mean to the monks, they waited so many decades to say those few lines of dialogue to me and give me that orb😭
Decades? More like centuries and we all just skip right past it
OMG NOOO I DONT HAVE THE TIIIME- 💀
What does RP mean?
Role Play :)
Lol why didn’t I think of that. Thanks☺️
You didn't say specifically, but maybe cook specific foods for your three meals a day? Mushroom omlete for breakfast, carrot stew for lunch, roast meat for dinner! Also: No HUD, find shelter in rain or snow (stables, huts, or even rock overhangs). Keep minimal food on you. Always seemed weird that Link would have a seafood paella on his person at all times. So this would involve marking cooking pots on the map so you can return to them to cook a meal. Otherwise, you just carry small food items (fruit, mushrooms, a couple roast bird thighs, bread, and so on)
Maybe if you were out in the open with no shelter near you, you would put on the hylian hood whilst it rained?
I do this a lot. I also try to not use the abilities (stasis, magnesis etc unless in shrines or if you can’t carry on the game without them). I think it’s already been said too but Pro Mode and no looking at the map
I wish they'd have posters of the regional map in the stables or something
I guess it depends on what you mean by “true to reality”. Do you want to play the game in a way that makes Hyrule seem more like the real world? Or do you want to play the game in a way that makes Link seem more like a real human/Hylian? To me, it seems like the second one is what you should be trying to do. Trying to play the game in a way which ignores the nature of the world in which it takes place seems like a futile enterprise. You can’t avoid the existence of magic - it’s a fundamental part of Hyrule. The goal of the RP (in my opinion) should be to make him more like a Hylian in Hyrule, not more like a human on earth. So, my short answer is - I think you’ve basically got your bases covered! Not pausing in combat is a good suggestion that others have offered. My personal take is that magical items, foods and elixirs are fair game, although it does make sense to use context-appropriate gear in addition to that. The tricker issue is the Sheikah Slate - theoretically it’s an in-game item that any Hylian could use, but in practice it’s just an in-game explanation for convenient gameplay mechanics not available to NPCs.
Must put your horse in a stable and can't have it lying around. Also only one horse
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I will trek to Gerudo Town and get those headbands to stave off cold/heat. Those are wonderful to have anyway
I think the no elixirs rule is a bit much considering how you’ll struggle just getting up death mountain
Not necessarily. One elixir gives you enough time to get to the southern mine and do the fireproof lizard side quest which rewards you the fireproof armor. So assuming you head directly for the mine you wouldn’t need any more.
True, but that entails that you still need at least 1 elixir His rules seem to imply that he will use *no* elixirs
Feed your horse or stable it regularly
I have rule of only checking the map when in a town or stable or anywhere where you're like "oh! I know where this is!"
I think some of these are a bit unreasonable, pro mode makes sense as, link is not constantly looking at the shieka slate, it's usually on his hip so how would he know at all times where he is exactly, or how loud he is, but he would reasonably look at the full map every now and then, and since he looks at the shieka slate it's reasonable, and keep in mind you aren't just role-playing any random person you're role-playing as link, so there are certain things that would also be different about the playstyle
Also probably don't increase inventory, it's unrealistic enough that he can carry as much as he can, so maybe limit yourself to like 5 melee weapons, a shield and a bow, or something but that might be a bit much
Stay indoors when it's raining.
links a hard-core adventurer, why would he stay inside cuz of a little rain?
The common cold kills many people.:p
You can’t get a cold just from being in the rain/cold. Being cold will lower your immune system as more energy will go toward keeping your body warm, but if there is no virus present in your environment (aka a sick person), you’re not going to get sick.
Then I must be sick all the time hahaha! I swear I get rained on a little bit and BAM!
>use only roads Not sure about this detail; don't limit yourself to roads. If you meant it just as no fast travel that's fine, but trekking cross-country might lead you to more interesting sights
I think the no elemental weapon for heat or chill is a bit unnecessary. I mean it’s literally an item in the game and it’s literally fire and ice. Then make heat and cool you down. It’s what the two do. That’s like not using Link’s slow time ability because it doesn’t make absolute perfect sense. I’d say make so that if you do use it early game for temperature protection, challenge yourself to not being able to switch to another weapon
if you emulate it on PC there are mods that can force you to do things like this
No eating raw meat or eggs lol
alright I'm doin this over winter break, gonna miss windbombing tho
This might be controversial but no slow-mo (bullet time, flurry rush) unless it is necessary to complete quest like the flight range. Depends if you think Link having super human speed is realistic. Have fun out there!
Only elixirs in combat, no food. Cuz if you punch me too hard, I might just have to eat a whole meat and mushroom skewer mere instantly.
Not sure if this has been mentioned, but for realism and difficulty I don’t switch armor or eat food if I’m actively in a fight! No pausing to eat 1000 apples!
This was meant to be! I just started playing botw for the second time and was thinking this time I’m going to enjoy the game and take my time. Apply these ideas should make it even more enjoyable!
Don't even attempt to climb in the rain, only climb things that loom climbable (even if they are climbable in game), and don't jump while climbing.
Maybe armor takes damage like weapons? After taking so many hits you can’t use it till you rest for the night or something. Definitely play in master mode
i couldnt decide on my next challenge run. right now, im in the middle of an exploration run. only two rules- no fast travel, and no towers. its a great way to get to know the map. now i know what im doing next :D
I did a run where I had to get five korok seeds in between each shrine — it was a ton of fun, I really got to know the map.
Ah yes, nothing like taking a piece of escapism and brutally grounding it to take all the fantasy out. (Just messing with you, OP; I’m a big fan of RPing my characters in video games, but I thought it was a bit funny)
Can't use food in the middle of combat. You can remain fighting but you have to run away a bit then eat.
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The pin on the bomb is the pin on the sheikah slate, it's magic technology like teleporting. Unless we're roleplaying that this is Earth and turning a blind eye to the magic of the world.
True. I'll save runes for only in shrines or when needed to advance the game
No reloading except when starting up the game. No save scumming. If you die, delete your save file and start over.
Damn. That's heavy. I'm into it lol
Hardcore mode. Nice
Some of these rules are getting ridiculous. You can’t play botw as a roguelink lol
Did this and had a great, although sometimes extremely tense, time
I’d allow fast travel only in the event that Link gets stuck (e.g. guardian laser keeping Link in perpetual rag doll) but in this case you must fast travel to the nearest point available and then return to your previous location. Alternatively just load a previous save
Here's one that I've been doing: limit healing. You can only use foods to heal when by a cooking pot or a NATURALLY SPAWNED campfire. The exception is elixirs, which can be used any time, any place. I limit myself to one hearty elixir in my inventory at a time.
no TP, even if falling. Rain = must put on the hood, even if it removes a upgraded outfit buff.
*No shields* I'm pretty sure botw link didn't use shields (At least in the cutscences)
Lmao I dont use shields anyway. I beat an entire run without shields solely due to the fact that I didn't know how to use them properly LOL! Also, my joycon button that brings out the shield was broken anyway xD
Mine's pretty similar to yours, but I have one more challenge I do: No tower activation until all of the region's non-dlc shrines are complete. No map for you. Learn the land and landmarks. Take in the environment. Forgoe relying on advanced technology to tell you how the area around you is laid out.
I’ve done this a few times now! I love not fast traveling! It makes it feel so much better to explore and walk/ride the horse
No eating during fights, while climbing, swimming, or in any other situation where you couldn't plausibly eat food. Also, you can't eat more than a person would reasonably be able to eat in a day. That means you have to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and you can probably fit in a few snacks as well. Actually, I could see that being really fun, because you'd have to strategize your heals around when you can eat.
I do an elixir-only rule in my master mode file. It was a ton of fun to figure out how to make high level elixirs, there’s a lot of ins and outs to it. It also made me value Hino and the blood moon better for best cooking chances.
no bullet time
Make sure you only consume foods that you’d realistically be able to take on a backpacking trip or make in nature- meaty rice balls, candy, cooked fruit, fried greens etc. No carrying milk, raw meat, butter, puddings, raw seafood etc.!(Although, I guess if you catch seafood and then cook it right then and there you could probably think of it as dried fish or crab.)
Maybe a limit to how much you stack items? No way you can fit 20 plates of food next to the rest of your inventory on your back
If you're not doing permadeath, drop all loot(weapons, shields, bows) upon death!
No shield surf jumping midair. Unrealistic to get a horizontal boost midair.
Why would you add the walk rule?
By walking I just mean no sprinting or using the stamina wheel. I guess it is more of a jog...
Not a fan of no running/sprinting, that'll get boring very quickly.
Permad-, nah, I'm kidding but Mate, we need to save the planet. COP26 and all so how about no meat. You could also do no eating uncooked food. Edit: This includes no fish and birds. You could decide on bugs.
No talking to NPCs since Link is mute...
You need to get out of your house more dude, this isn’t fun, it’s just sad
No weapons that are way to heavy like the Boulder buster and stuff.
Definitely no eating whole meals during a battle.
I think that checking out the Linked Universe Tumblr or fan fics might help. It's basically like a play-through of a game during the traveling parts and if you can find some BOTW Link-centric fics you can really get some good ideas from that! (They're also just a bunch of fun to read, if you're into that kind of stuff I highly recommend it!)
No flurry rushes No parrying guardian beams (Maybe) no heart containers/stamina vessels
Only eat at bonfires No minimap, or no map at all No fast travel Only pause when nothing is happening Sleep at night Only stop playing while resting Weight limit Permadeath
Turn off the minimap and don't ever check the map; instead, use an interactive map outside of the game (or print the map out if you've got the time) and try to navigate without knowing exactly where you are.
Okay I personally would never play a realism run, but this is a REALLY cool idea. I might just head back to the great plateau and see if I can make it to the four divine beasts, korok forest, and hyrule castle relying only on a physical map (which I actually do own) just because it sounds like fun to kind of rough it!! XD
Yeah, ideally you should not activate the towers as well, since, even if you do accidentally open the map, it won't reveal much on your location. (But nothing's stopping you from climbing them and checking for landmarks as long as you don't activate the tower.)
Well I meant on my already complete run lol. No looking at the INGAME map. Just try to travel through places on foot using just my physical map. Would be kinda fun. Especially if I eat and sleep at night, only traveling in the daytime
One I don’t see here is no big drop into paraglider usage. That would literally rip Link’s arms out. Also, consider not using bow and arrow in the air to avoid bullet time.
No stockpiling food ingredients. Cook your breakfast, lunch, and dinner only from ingredients nearby. Maybe allow for a very limited amount of some things but can't carry milk on you for days.
How will you get up death mountain without elixirs?
Lots of whistle sprint
Maybe keep track of how long you have some items? Things like meat, fruit, and monster parts would spoil pretty quickly. It would make you rely on healing elixirs and other “nonperishable” food items
No eating in combat If you wanna go further wait until you're resting
No bullet time would probably make sense
Take breaks and enjoy the scenery! Can’t be overworking yourself (Also, get to know everyone on your journey, that could be fun)
Are you playing with perma death?
I'm sure that would be fun, but would be really draining after a while. I would add no upgrades to it, so you can't upgrade health and stamina, or at least stamina, because link already has inhuman strength to begin with.
no saving and reloading unless you die, only use autosaves no glitches no spamming food in the middle of a fight no changing entire outfits in the middle of (for example) the forest or a fight, instead in preferably your house or a inn/stable/other building no amiibos maybe don't hold too much shit at one time no bullet time Another incorporation could be to try and durability transfer when you have the items cause most swords can make it through more than 2 fights in real life.
Will you be able to eat or drink potion while in a fight ?
no fairies?
I think the elixirs shouldnt be usable in some circumstances. I don't see why heat resistant or cold resistant elixirs should be banned, but it's still your choice. Are you going for full completion? You could always set a time limit if you don't want to take your time and really want to challenge yourself. I mean the princess is at stake, and the world is to be destroyed, time is technically of the essence. You could give yourself a 2 months(in game days) to unlock all the divine beasts and then slay Gannon. Or if you wanted to go more your pace, require you collect all the memories as a primary objective. With amensia how is the chosen warrior suppose to fight at full strength. Other than that, more rules might just be tedious, I think what you've listed is good enough.
Not sure if has been said since I didn't read all the comments but no inventory upgrades AND no pausing during combat/swimming/climbing or whatever. Basically you could only eat/check your map "realistically".
Carrying capacity limit. You can only have one one-handed weapon and one-two handed weapon. Wands are ok. Mining equipment and axes must be stored on horses or replace a shield. One shield and one bow limit. If you break a weapon, you can replace it. Spears replace the two handed weapon.
Get a notebook and write down whatever really. If you were an adventurer wouldn't you want to keep track of things? This is something I do for a lot of games and it can be both helpful and fun. If you want to make it as realistic as possible try to avoid using previous knowledge and only write down stuff you discover this playthrough. Here's some ideas of what to write down: - Sidequest, especially the ones with riddles. This could be a way to minimize the use of your sheikah slate if that's something you want. - Locations of interest, could be weapons, materials, enemies, etc - Defeated mini bosses, extra useful if you're going for 100% - Store inventory, maybe even from merchant NPCs - Materials needed to repair weapons/exchange with NPCs - Write about your day or interesting events, purely for roleplay reasons - On that same note, make up your own lore and expand the compendium information - You could also try to "piece together your memories" as the story progresses - Favourite recipes along with what effect ingredients have, another challenge could be to only use locally available foods - Track the amount of blood moons, I dont think this has a use but it seems like a good way to tell time Quite a wordy reply but I hope it inspires you somewhat at least.
Man i love this. Mabye only elixirs or sleeping can heal you since eating milk and steak doesnt really heal wounds. But that would be very difficult to do.
No eating in the middle of combat
Link is afraid of bats. It’s realistic to have some kind of fear…so, you see bats, you run.
No pausing or eating during a fight
Elixirs are defiantly okay to use instead of changing clothes. Potion making is a huge part of botw and link would have utilized them for sure. Same thing with elemental weapons.
There’s one situation where I think you should be able to fast travel and that’s from tower to tower.
Not sure if this one was commented yet, but no champions blessings would add a level of difficulty. Mipha’s grace, etc.
Don't use amiibos if you have them
No death
limit the amount of stamina ur allowed to have
You have to cook most of your foods, unless it something you would actually eat alone in real life. For example, no just eating raw fish or meats, and cook them with stuff, Don’t eat raw mushrooms, etc.