Rupee

"You got 1 Rupee. It's green! Don't spend it all in one place!"

- Text in The Minish Cap

Rupees are the unit of currency within most of the Zelda universe, within circulation in the lands of Hyrule, Koholint Island, Termina, Labrynna, Holodrum, the Great Sea, and the World of the Ocean King. Rupees are acquired by defeating enemies, by cutting tall grasses or bushes, won in mini-games, given as rewards, and by opening treasure chests. Rupees are used primarily to purchase items in shops or to gain entrance to some mini-games. They have appeared in almost every Zelda game to date, with the exception of the Four Swords series, where Force Gems appear instead, and in The Adventure of Link, where Rupees do not make an appearance at all.

Most titles have quirky ways of obtaining rupees, such as attacking paintings in A Link to the Past or smashing Link into a tree, and many games even allow Link to sell some of the items he has picked up during the adventure, allowing him to obtain more rupees.

Values
With the exception of The Adventure of Link and Four Swords Adventures, Rupees are included in all The Legend of Zelda titles. The value of a Rupee is denoted by its color, but the value of each color is inconsistent throughout the games. Generally, the greater the value, the harder they are to obtain, usually requiring more difficult tasks. In Four Swords, The Minish Cap, and Phantom Hourglass, both size and color denote value. Link's Awakening, Oracle of Ages, and Oracle of Seasons specify the Rupee value through text rather than color, because the Game Boy palette was limited; however, in the Oracle games, Link could find a larger rupee by digging with his shovel. The Wallet’s capacity ultimately determines how many rupees one may receive even when finding Huge Rupees. The following lists Rupees by their values by the games they appear in.

The Legend of Zelda
In The Legend of Zelda, along with being used to purchase items, it costs 1 Rupee to fire the bow.
 * Orange Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees

A Link to the Past
There are three types of rupees in A Link to the Past:
 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Green Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Green Rupees (or 4 Blue Rupees)

Link can instantly obtain higher amounts of rupees in certain places, such as 50-Rupee, 100-Rupee, and 300-Rupee amounts:
 * Link can obtain a few 50-rupee amounts:
 * From 2 treasure chests in the part of Hyrule Castle that is underneath the Cemetery
 * From the Treasure Chest-Opening Game in the southern part of Kakariko Village
 * From the Treasure Chest-Opening Game in the Village of Outcasts
 * Link can obtain a few 100-rupee amounts:
 * From a treasure chest in the Eastern Palace
 * From the Treasure Chest-Opening Game in the Village of Outcasts
 * Link can obtain several 300-rupee amounts:
 * From a thief in the secret cave between the Great Swamp & Lake Hylia after bombing it open & defeating the Mini Moldorms
 * From the Treasure Chest-Opening Game that costs 100 Rupees to play and is run by a thief in the Lost Woods
 * From a Dark World thief (in the form of a fox) in the secret cave south of the Bomb Shop (in the Dark World equivalent of the Great Swamp) after bombing it open
 * From a house in the Village of Outcasts
 * From a sealed shed in the Village of Outcasts after bombing it open

Link’s Awakening
In Link's Awakening, all rupees that are found from cutting grass or digging are worth one Rupee, most likely because of the color graphic limitations on the Game Boy. In Link's Awakening DX, all rupees are colored blue, except for some red rupees in the Trendy Game Shop in Mabe Village, which are worth a little more. Green rupees, worth 5 Rupees, make an appearance in one hidden room of the Color Dungeon.

If Link had at least 20 Secret Seashells and exchanges them for a L-2 Sword, then any chests that would contain leftover Secret Seashells will be replaced by 20 Rupees inside. If Link doesn't exchange his 20 Secret Seashells, then the chests will still contain Secret Seashells until then.

Ocarina of Time

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Purple Rupee, worth 50 Rupees
 * Huge Orange Rupee, worth 200 Rupees (Obtained by defeating a Skull Kid as an adult, finding a chest hidden in a secret room in the Fire Temple, and occasionally thrown during the Diving Game as a child in Zora's Domain)
 * Silver Rupee, worth 5 Rupees (Part of certain puzzles)

Majora’s Mask

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Purple Rupee, worth 50 Rupees
 * Silver Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Huge Rupee, worth 200 Rupees

Oracle of Ages & Oracle of Seasons
Higher values are usually specified by in game text. It should be noted that using the shovel, Link can dig up huge Rupees that are worth 100 Rupees. Rupee values double when equipped with the Red Joy Ring or Gold Joy Ring.
 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Red Rupee, worth 5 Rupees

Four Swords

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Big Green Rupee, worth 50 Rupees
 * Big Blue Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Big Red Rupee, worth 200 Rupees
 * Rupee Shards, worthless by themselves, collecting eight Rupee Shards creates a gem worth 500 Rupees
 * Black Rupee, removes a random amount of Rupees from the team’s wallet.

The Wind Waker

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Yellow Rupee, worth 10 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Purple Rupee, worth 50 Rupees
 * Orange Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Silver Rupee, worth 200 Rupees (Very hard to find)

Four Swords Adventures
There are no Rupees found in Four Swords Adventures, however there are Force Gems. These come in similar values, and in some places they can be used as currency.

The Minish Cap

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Big Green Rupee, worth 50 Rupees
 * Big Blue Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Big Red Rupee, worth 200 Rupees

Twilight Princess

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Yellow Rupee, worth 10 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Purple Rupee, worth 50 Rupees
 * Orange Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Silver Rupee, worth 200 Rupees

Phantom Hourglass

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Big Green Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Big Red Rupee, worth 200 Rupees
 * Big Gold Rupee, worth 300 Rupees
 * Rupoor, Rupoors come in five values: 5 Rupoor, 10 Rupoor, 30 Rupoor, 50 Rupoor, and 100 Rupoor, each one takes away the specified number of rupees of the number in its name.

Spirit Tracks

 * Green Rupee, worth 1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee, worth 5 Rupees
 * Red Rupee, worth 20 Rupees
 * Large Green Rupee, worth 100 Rupees
 * Large Red Rupee, worth 200 Rupees

Link’s Crossbow Training
By breaking certain pots, skulls, and other destructible objects in Link’s Crossbow Training, an Orange Rupee will be released. These Rupees are initially worth 1000 points, but their point value will decrease the longer it stays on-screen. Link must shoot at it quickly to gain the highest amount of points.

Skyward Sword
Rupees will predictably make a return in Skyward Sword.

Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
In Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland, Rupees are the most important part of the game. They act as Tingle's health in addition to being used as currency. Nearly everything in the game requires Rupees, including talking to people. Rupees are also necessary to progress through the game. Tingle must throw Rupees into the Western Pool near his house to cause a tower to grow which will allow him to access other areas of the game. Rupees can be found by defeating monsters, opening chests, or given as rewards for services to people. In the instances where Tingle is rewarded, he must choose the amount of Rupees he expects to receive from the person. If the amount he chooses is too high, the character will become outraged and give him nothing. Tingle must also choose how much he will pay people for information or services. There is no set price on any item, and Tingle must guess how much the other character will want for it. This is done with a sort of cash-register type of interface on the touch screen.

Not all rupees in the game have set values. They are generally the same, but some can vary slightly.
 * Green Rupee-1 Rupee
 * Blue Rupee-5 Rupees
 * Yellow Rupee-10 Rupees
 * Red Rupee-approximately 20 Rupees*
 * Purple Rupee-approximately 50 Rupees*
 * Orange Rupee-approximately 100 Rupees*

* Values may vary.

Super Rupees and Master Rupee
During Tingle’s quest to reach Rupeeland, Tingle obtained the five Super Rupees and eventually the Master Rupee in the Auros Ruins. The Super Rupees have no value, but are said to contain mystical powers. The five Super Rupees are the Metal Rupee, the Aqua Rupee, the Leaf Rupee, the Earth Rupee, and the Magma Rupee.

Rupee Value Summary
* Values can vary

Rupee Thieves
Rupee thieves appear in several games. When they come in contact with Link the will either cause his Rupees to fly out of his wallet onto the ground (like Thieves and Keatons), or will drain or steal the Rupees straight from his wallet (like Rupee Likes and Takkuri).
 * Known Rupee thieves:
 * Rupee Like
 * Thieves (Hylians & Foxes)
 * Takkuri
 * Rupee Wraith
 * Keaton
 * Rats
 * Pickit Plant

Rupee Draining Items
Most items in the Legend of Zelda series can be used either without cost or until a finite supply is exhausted. These few, however will deplete Links rupee supply upon use:
 * The Bow in The Legend of Zelda, where firing an arrow costs one rupee.
 * The Magic Armor in Twilight Princess rapidly depletes rupees while equipped.

Rewards
Link will be rewarded simply for collecting high number of Rupees in the following games:
 * Oracle of Ages, and Oracle of Seasons. After collecting 10,000 Rupees Vasu will give Link the Rupee Ring.
 * The banker in Majora's Mask gives Link the Large Wallet after depositing 200 Rupees and a Piece of Heart after 5,000 have been deposited.
 * Four Swords rewards the Link with the most Rupees with a Medal of Courage.

Trivia

 * In The Legend of Zelda, Rupee was spelt "Rupy". In the manual, it was "Ruby". Probably due to the fact that, in the German versions of the Zelda games, it is called a "Rubin", which means "Ruby".
 * The Rupee is the real-world currency of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Mauritius, the Seychelles, and Maldives, however they resemble paper notes as opposed to the gemstone appearance of the Zelda games. It used to be currency in Bhutan as well.
 * The Silver Rupee’s low value in Ocarina of Time is due to the fact that the Silver Rupee's only purpose in the game was as a puzzle element, and not an actual spending Rupee. These Rupee puzzles can be found in Dodongo's Cavern (only Master Quest), Ice Cavern, Kakariko Well, Shadow Temple, Gerudo's Training Ground, Spirit Temple, and some routes of Ganon’s Castle.
 * In Majora's Mask, there appear to be two differently-colored Huge Rupees: one given to Link by a Deku Scrub, and one earned by killing the Takkuri, although this one is not accompanied by text, so its title as a "Huge Rupee" could be debated.
 * In Majora's Mask, the probability of finding a Red Rupee in grass is high if Link has less than twenty rupees in his wallet.
 * When using the Salvage Arm in Phantom Hourglass, there may be a few valuable Rupees in bubbles. If the back arrow is pressed before reaching the treasure chest and Link chooses to salvage the same spot again, all the Rupee bubbles will be back.
 * Four Swords Adventures is one of two Zelda games, the other being The Adventure of Link, that didn't include Rupees. Instead, it brings about a new collectible called Force Gems. However, Force Gems cannot be used as currency like Rupees, with a few minor exceptions. They are used to return the power to repel evil to the Four Sword.
 * In the CD-i Games, The Faces of Evil and The Wand of Gamelon, Rupees are referred to as "Rubies".
 * In Super Paper Mario, Mario has to collect 1 million Rubees, red crystals that are nearly identical to Rupees.