The Hateno Ancient Tech Lab is located on a hill on the northeastern end of Hateno Village, overlooking the Necluda Sea. It is a three-story tower, with the main Lab taking up the first floor. The second floor consists of Symin's room, while Purah's Room is located on the third floor. The remains of a Guardian Stalker are strapped down to the roof. Several Signs leading to the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab warn against visitors and suggest caution.[4][5][6][7] The Lab is one of two successors to the Ancient Research Institute, the other being the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab.
Over the years, three research assistants are known to have resided at the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab with Purah. The first is Nanna, who describes Purah as having a strange personality.[12] The next known assistant is Jerrin, who was later sent to the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab by Impa.[17] Finally, Purah's current assistant is Symin, and while he struggles with the disorganized state that Purah keeps the Lab in, he is still honored to work with her.[18][19]
Sometime prior to Link's arrival at the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab, Purah began development of an anti-aging Basic Rune.[20] Her goal was to reverse the aging process, bringing older warriors out of retirement to fight Calamity Ganon upon his return.[21] Purah tested the Basic Rune on her, and over time, she regressed to the age of six.[22][23] Once she developed an age-boosting Basic Rune to reverse its effects, though, she discovered that the Furnace's Blue Flame had been extinguished, thereby deactivating her Guidance Stone.[24] Symin attempted to retrieve the Blue Flame from the Ancient Furnace, but a combination of his clumsiness and Rain caused him to fail.[25] When Purah herself tried to go, she was seen by Karin.[26][27] As a result of this, Purah has not left the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab, and the residents of Hateno Village have not seen her.[28]
As part of the "Locked Mementos" Main Quest, Impa sends Link to the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab to repair his Sheikah Slate.[29] When Link first speaks to Purah, she points him towards Symin, who she claims is the director.[30] However, Symin reveals that Purah is actually the Lab's director, despite her youthful appearance.[31] Before repairing the Sheikah Slate, Purah asks Link to retrieve the Blue Flame from the Ancient Furnace, which will reactivate her Guidance Stone and allow her to restore the missing Basic Runes.[32] When he does this, the Travel Gate outside of the Lab will activate, allowing Link to Warp to it.[33] Afterwards, Purah will use the Guidance Stone to repair the Camera, Hyrule Compendium, and Album.[34][35] After discovering that there are old Pictures in the Album, Purah sends Link back to Impa to learn about them.[36] She also mentions wanting Link to bring either her or Robbie Ancient Materials, which begins the "Slated for Upgrades" and "Robbie's Research" Side Quests.[37]
Link upgrading his Sheikah Slate
During "Slated for Upgrades," Purah explains that she will power up Link's Basic Runes in exchanged for Ancient Materials.[38] It costs three Ancient Screws to upgrade the Sheikah Sensor,[39] three Ancient Shafts to upgrade the Remote Bombs,[40] and three Ancient Cores to upgrade Stasis.[41] Once Link provides the necessary Ancient Materials, Purah will use the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab's Guidance Stone to enhance a Basic Rune of his choice.[42][43][44]
After Link upgrades his Sheikah Sensor, Symin will ask to see it.[45] When Link approaches him, he will suggest testing it out for themselves.[46] To do this, he tells Link to take a Picture of a Sunshroom, which can be found behind the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab.[47] Afterwards, the "Sunshroom Sensing" Side Quest will begin. Once Link has returned with the Picture, Symin explains that he can use the Sheikah Sensor to sense Sunshrooms, since one has been registered in his Hyrule Compendium.[48] To learn more, he suggests reading the Sheikah Sensor Notes nearby.[49] Next, Symin tasks Link with finding three Sunshrooms using the Sheikah Sensor.[50] When Link brings the Sunshrooms to Symin, he will give him three Hearty Truffles as a reward.[51]
↑Robbie says that he can equip your Purah Pad with a sensor that can detect specific things. He wants you to come to the Purah Pad Research Lab near Hateno Village.
You'll find it at the edge of the East Necluda region in southeast Hyrule. There he'll set up the sensor to detect shrines. — Adventure Log (Tears of the Kingdom)
↑- Hateno Ancient Tech Lab - If the flame is blue, the furnace is hot! DO NOT TOUCH! — Sign (Breath of the Wild)
↑We found large amounts of ancient energy in the Necluda and Akkala regions. We could continue our research. — Robbie's Memoirs (Breath of the Wild)
↑Just as we had in Hyrule Castle, we could again set ourselves to finding some way to seal Calamity Ganon away. We decided who would go where in the only fair way: rock, paper, scissors. I set out for Akkala soon after. — Robbie's Memoirs (Breath of the Wild)
↑I was all set to go to Akkala, but first I decided to go with Dr. Purah to the ancient energy source in Necluda. ...Actually, that implies I had any choice. Dr. Purah laid on a pretty heavy guilt trip when I suggested her going alone. "In a world as dangerous as ours, are you seriously asking me to travel alone?" She's so darned pushy... Anyway, Dr. Purah promised Lady Impa that they'd meet again someday, then she and I set out from Kakariko Village... But not before loading a cart with the Guidance Stone Dr. Purah had been using at Hyrule Castle. — Robbie's Memoirs (Breath of the Wild)
↑Lost in my thoughts, I didn't notice that Dr. Purah had slipped away. I knew Hateno Village wasn't much farther along the road, and that the Calamity had barely touched that area... So I felt safe letting her continue on her own. We parted ways without even saying good-bye, I suppose. — Robbie's Memoirs (Breath of the Wild)
↑ 12.012.1[Your mentor?] My mentor used to work closely with Princess Zelda in her research of that Sheikah Slate. Go to the research facility in Hateno Village, located to the far east of here. However... Um... Just know that this mentor of mine is...a bit odd. — Nanna (Breath of the Wild)
↑I imagine you've never seen so many books in one place. Pretty incredible, isn't it? We've gathered all of Hyrule's known literature on ancient civilizations here. — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑I would have been lost in my work even then... But around that time, a young woman named Jerrin arrived. She'd first trained with Dr. Purah, then Lady Impa had sent her to aid me. She quickly proved herself quite capable. — Robbie's Memoirs (Breath of the Wild)
↑I have the utmost respect for Ms. Purah and all she's accomplished. I'm honored to be her assistant. — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑Date: ??? Work has finally begun on my anti-aging rune. If all goes to plan, I believe it will effectively reverse the aging process. This technology will enable us to make retired warriors young again, thereby strengthening the Hyrulean army. When Calamity Ganon inevitably returns, we'll be ready. Our offense will be solid, and our defense impenetrable. The need for this tech pains me, but I truly hope to use it to attain everlasting peace for all. — Purah's Diary (Breath of the Wild)
↑Date: ??? The beta version of my anti-aging rune is complete. I have already added it to the Sheikah Slate I made for myself. Since I am to be the test subject of this experiment, Symin booted up the rune and directed its rays at my body. After 20 seconds of exposure, I felt extreme fatigue and broke into a fever, forcing us to cease the experiment. Unable to stay awake, I went to bed immediately. Tomorrow I will try to figure out what went awry. — Purah's Diary (Breath of the Wild)
↑Anti-Aging Experimental Trial Day 7 This morning's exam results indicated that I am still age 6, same as yesterday. Perhaps my age-reversal has stopped. — Purah's Diary (Breath of the Wild)
↑As luck would have it, today I also finished developing the beta version of an age-boosting rune! ♪ If successful, this should be able to reverse the effects of the anti-aging rune. I hope it will, anyway. All I need to do is increase the output and expose myself to its rays...However, when I tried to add this feature to the Sheikah Slate I made, I found that the Guidance Stone had stopped! What's more, the blue flame in the furnace outside has gone out! — Purah's Diary (Breath of the Wild)
↑I sent Symin to the ancient furnace, but he was too clumsy and it was raining and nothing went to plan. — Purah's Diary (Breath of the Wild)
↑So I had to go down there to help, but a girl in the village saw me. What a mess I've made... — Purah's Diary (Breath of the Wild)
↑There's a girl staying up at the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab. I saw her come outside! She was right over there! It's true! — Karin (Breath of the Wild)
↑Can old-woman Purah not get around on her own anymore? Is she making the youth carry things around for her? I haven't seen Purah lately... I wonder if those rumors are true... — Leop (Breath of the Wild)
↑...It seems to me that your Sheikah Slate is not yet complete. The device Princess Zelda left you is your guide and also your memory. Now, let's see... Someone at the research lab in Hateno Village might be able to help you... — Impa (Breath of the Wild)
↑The director is in the back. A terribly busy person, that one. Please try to keep it brief. — Purah (Breath of the Wild)
↑Oh, that's right... I haven't introduced our director. Ms. Purah happens to be right over there... As the Hateno Ancient Tech Labdirector, Ms. Purah is the world's foremost authority on ancient Hyrule culture. — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑Let me explain what this errand details. You know the unlit furnace on the wall just outside this laboratory? Could you please bring the blue flame from the ancient furnace in town? Oh, and also use it to light our furnace? This sweet little Guidance Stone will start working once you do that, allowing us to restore your missing runes! — Purah (Breath of the Wild)
↑Hateno Ancient Tech Lab is now set as a travel gate. — N/A (Breath of the Wild)
↑Hokay then, Sheikah Slate repair... underway! Guidance Stone lock removed! Now...let's do this thing! — Purah (Breath of the Wild)
↑Hmmm... Ah, it's not just a pretty girl in these images. Yes, there are also some old landscape photos stored in the album. I knew Princess Zelda had made frequent use of the Camera feature, but this... Hey, Linky! It dawns on me that you were Princess Zelda's appointed knight, which means... there's a strong possibility that you accompanied her to all of the places where these pictures were taken. Oh...right. The "lost memory" thing could prove troublesome. But don't lose hope! It just means these pictures could be the missing piece to help restore your lost memories! If my hunch is correct, I suggest you check in with Impa. She knows more about Princess Zelda than even I do! — Purah (Breath of the Wild)
↑Oh, yeah! There's just one more thing I need from you! You don't have to worry about this until after you see Impa, but I want you to bring me back some ancient materials! Bring them either to me or to Robbie at the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab. As if my joy weren't enough, if you bring us ancient materials, we'll give you something good as a reward. — Purah (Breath of the Wild)
↑[Something good?] Aha! I'm glad you asked! If you bring me some ancient materials, I'll power up your runes! — Purah (Breath of the Wild)
↑You've acquired the Sheikah Sensor +! That should really come in handy. With that, you can sense things that you've captured with your Camera. Explaining won't do it justice—why not learn by trying? Let's give it a shot, so to speak. — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑Let's see here. First, go take a picture of a sunshroom with the Camera. There is one behind the lab. — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑It seems like you got a picture of a sunshroom! Excellent. Next, open your Hyrule Compendium and tune the sensor to your picture of the sunshroom. The Sheikah Sensor + will then be able to sense sunshrooms! — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑The detailed instructions are written down in the book on the desk there. You should read them. — Symin (Breath of the Wild)
↑This seems like a nice opportunity to ask if you'd mind bringing me three sunshrooms. You can find sunshrooms growing in Retsam Forest, I believe... The Sheikah Sensor + should make it a snap! — Symin (Breath of the Wild)