Blood Moon
Blood Moons,[1] also known as Red Moons,[2] and Nights of the Red Moon,[3] are events in Breath of the Wild.
Overview
Blood Moons occur at midnight on nights when Calamity Ganon's power reaches its peak and escapes from Princess Zelda's control within Hyrule Castle,[4][1] dyeing the night sky and the Moon red with Malice.[3] The effects of this Malice revive any fallen monsters and enemies, returning them to where they once were prior to being slain. In addition to reviving enemies and Overworld Bosses, Ore Deposits are replenished, and Materials ranging from plants and trees, to gear left lying in the field, effectively respawn, allowing Link to collect them again if the ones he took before the Blood Moon broke in the interim period. Mechanically, Blood Moons are a way to refresh Breath of the Wild's long-term memory and appear to purge the game's cache. Consequently, data stored within the game's long-term memory is reset, including the presence or lack thereof of Materials and Weapons. Blood Moons do not affect things handled through short-term memory, such as Creatures, Grass, Trees, and Barrels. Blood Moons also do not affect major bosses such as Master Kohga and the Bosses inside the Divine Beasts. Blood Moons can be initiated by overloading the long-term memory through slaying monsters and enemies, visiting several locations, Sitting past midnight at Campfires and Cooking Pots, sleeping past midnight at Inns, or by playing the game uninterrupted for three real-world hours. Blood Moons can be interrupted by entering specific areas such as Ancient Shrines and Hyrule Castle before midnight, though they will simply appear again the next night. Blood Moons are always represented by a full Moon regardless of which phase the Moon is in.
The effects of the Blood Moon begin around 11:30 PM, though the Blood Moon itself can usually be seen as early as 10:00 PM when the Moon rises into the sky. At 11:30 PM, Malice will rise from the ground, like when Link is aboard a corrupted Divine Beast, around Pools of Malice, or on the grounds of Hyrule Castle. At 11:50 PM, the sky will turn red, and the clouds will begin to fly by very fast. When midnight hits, Princess Zelda will warn Link that a Blood Moon has risen and advise him to take caution.[5] Hino of the Dueling Peaks Stable is the primary source of information on Blood Moons, and can be seen acting strangely during the time period that it affects the overworld. After midnight during a Blood Moon, Hino will start acting oddly.
Cooking from 11:30 PM to 12:15 AM on the night of a Blood Moon night gives Food an effect boost. This time period can be easily identified, as specks of Malice linger in the air for those 45 minutes .
.[6]
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
During the Scenario "All Hyrule, United", a Blood Moon rises following the Divine Beasts bombarding Calamity Ganon with their lasers, reviving all monsters that were slain during the course of the battle, then revived half of the monsters after they were re-killed by the Warriors. After the united forces of Hyrule broke through, the Blood Moon remained in the sky until Calamity Ganon was sealed again.
In the postgame, Blood Moons enhance the enemies of past Scenarios, changing the Scenario icon into a Blood Moon icon, raises the recommended levels by up to sixfold, and colors the sky of the map red. When a Blood Moon rises, it changes the map theme to its "Amid the Calamity" version. Other than doubling the Rupee counts after completing the Scenario battles, including the Divine Beast combat segments, nothing else changes.
Trivia
- An odd exception to the Blood Moon failing to trigger at midnight while in Hyrule Castle is during the first fight against Calamity Ganon. If midnight strikes on a Blood Moon night during this first battle, Calamity Ganon's health will refill to maximum as if neither Link nor the Divine Beasts had done him any damage. Strangely, this exception does not apply to the battle against Dark Beast Ganon.
- The sky turning red at 11:50 PM also occurs when Dark Beast Ganon reveals its core, allowing Link to deal the final blow.
- When the console is using 90% or more of its system memory, a panic Blood Moon can be triggered as part of a garbage collection routine. This allows the console to clean up its system memory and restore performance to an optimal state. This can occur at any time of day and is otherwise no different than a naturally occurring blood moon.[7]
Nomenclature
 Names in Other Regions 
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Language | Name | Meaning | |
 |
Japanese | 赤き月 (Akaki Tsuki) | Red Moon |
 |
FrenchEU | Lune de Sang | Blood Moon |
 |
Russian | Кроволуние (Krovoluniye) | Blood Moon. From кровь (blood) and полнолуние (full moon). |
 |
SpanishLA | Luna Carmesí | Crimson Moon |
Gallery
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The Blood Moon beginning
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The Blood Moon reviving various enemies
See Also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Whenever the clock strikes midnight on unlucky nights, the sky turns blood red. That's the blood moon. When that happens, monsters come back to life, no matter how many times you've defeated them. It's happened for so long now that no one really pays it any mind, but I have no plans to give up on my research." — Hino (Breath of the Wild)
- ↑ "Under a Red Moon
Hyrule Ridge" — Adventure Log (Breath of the Wild) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Creating a Champion, Dark Horse Books, pg. 406
- ↑ "... Link... Link... Be on your guard. Ganon's power grows...it rises to its peak under the hour of the blood moon. By its glow, the aimless spirits of monsters slain in the name of the light return to flesh. Link...please be careful." — Princess Zelda (Breath of the Wild)
- ↑ "The blood moon rises once again. Please be careful, Link..." — Princess Zelda (Breath of the Wild)
- ↑ "Sometimes you'll witness incredible success in your cooking adventures. When this happens, the strength and duration of your cooked food's effects will increase well beyond normal. Using more than the usual number of ingredients is a sure way to boost the effects of your food. But I've also heard rumors that the light of the red moon can have a positive effect on your cooking as well." — Chef Aurie Taamu, Vol. 2 (Breath of the Wild)
- ↑ Template:Cite web