Island Postal Service
The Island Postal Service is the Mail Delivery service in The Wind Waker.[4]
Features and Overview
Operation
The Island Postal Service is operated by the Rito, whose unique ability to fly makes them the only suitable postmen on the Great Sea. The Postal Service is central to the Rito way of life.[5][6] They value their reputation as deliverymen over their own safety and comfort.[7] Their aerie on Dragon Roost Island doubles as the Mail Center.
Koboli is in charge of sorting mail, whereas Quill and Ilari are responsible for collection and delivery. Ilari is the designated postman for Windfall Island.[8] Namali and Pashli walk around the Mail Center carrying clipboards and claim to be busy,[9] but their occupations are not specified. The only non-Rito staff is the part-timer Baito, who Koboli hires on to do sorting. Link himself can help with the operations of the Island Postal Service in two ways. The first is by playing the Mail Center mini-game. The second is by delivering the Moblin's Letter on Ilari's behalf.[10]
The Island Postal Service has Postboxes installed on 19 Islands of the Great Sea,[verification needed] over a third of all the islands. This includes the three major settlements and all five Fairy Islands, among others. Postboxes are sentient, talking objects that receive incoming and outgoing mail,[11][12] charge postage fees, process Cash-On-Delivery parcels,[13] and reject mail that cannot be delivered through the Island Postal Service.[14][15] They wiggle when they have mail for Link.[11] The Island Postal Service specially delivers Link's mail to the Postbox nearest him.[16][17][note 1]
Uses
Hoskit uses the Island Postal Service to send to his girlfriend the 20 Golden Feathers he receives from Link.[19] When Link forms a Merchant's Oath with a Wandering Merchant, they use the Island Postal Service to ship Decorations to Zunari's Shop.[20] Garrickson abuses the service to send unwanted love letters to an unspecified admirer.[21] He is the only character other than Link to actually be seen using a Postbox.
The only items Link can send in the mail are the Note to Mom and Maggie's Letter. Various characters use the service to send letters and parcels to Link.[which?] Tingle sends Link an unspecified Cash-On-Delivery parcel costing 201 Rupees.[22] When purchased it turns out to be the IN-credible Chart. Baito sends a C.O.D. parcel as well,[23] which strangely contains a Red Rupee. The parcel costs 10 Rupees (half its value).[24]
Pricing
The postage cost at any given Postbox varies according to how far it is from Dragon Roost Island. The postage can be 5, 10, or 20 Rupees.
The Postbox at the Flight Control Platform will state that it is "quite far" from Dragon Roost Island and charge the maximum postage fee of 20 Rupees.[3] This is in spite of the fact that Flight Control Platform is adjacent to Dragon Roost Island. Nearly every other Postbox in the northern half of the Great Sea — from Pawprint Isle to Tingle Island — charges the minimum 5-Rupee postage and states that it is near Dragon Roost Island.[1] This outlier aside, the postage fee is a roughly linear function of distance from Dragon Roost Island.
| Postbox Location | Postage Fee |
|---|---|
| Bird's Peak Rock | 20 Rupees |
| Bomb Island | 10 Rupees |
| Cliff Plateau Isles | 20 Rupees |
| Dragon Roost Island | 5 Rupees |
| Eastern Fairy Island | 5 Rupees |
| Flight Control Platform | 20 Rupees |
| Forest Haven | 10 Rupees |
| Needle Rock Isle | 10 Rupees |
| Northern Fairy Island | 5 Rupees |
| Outset Island | 20 Rupees |
| Pawprint Isle | 5 Rupees |
| Private Oasis | 10 Rupees |
| Southern Fairy Island | 10 Rupees |
| Spectacle Island | 5 Rupees |
| Stone Watcher Island | 10 Rupees |
| Thorned Fairy Island | 20 Rupees |
| Tingle Island | 5 Rupees |
| Western Fairy Island | 10 Rupees |
| Windfall Island | 5 Rupees |
Trivia
- The Island Postal Service has a poster hung on a wall at the Cafe Bar advertising a position at the Mail Center. Presumably this is how Baito learned about the job opening, as the poster describes his part-time package-sorting role.[25]
Gallery
Nomenclature
 Names in Other Regions  | ||
|---|---|---|
| Language | Names | |
| This table was generated using translation pages. To request an addition, please contact a staff member with a reference. | ||
Notes
- ↑ In reality, Link can retrieve his mail from any Postbox at any time. The Rito Chieftain mentions the difficulty with Link moving around a lot, but does not explain how the Island Postal Service manages to address the problem.[18]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "This postbox is near the mail center on Dragon Roost Island.
Postage is only 5 Rupees." — Postbox (The Wind Waker) - ↑ "Postage for this parcel is 10 Rupees from this postbox." — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "This postbox is quite far from Dragon Roost Island.
Postage for this parcel is 20 Rupees from here." — Postbox (The Wind Waker) - ↑ "Welcome to the Island Postal Service! What do you have for delivery?" — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "As you can see, we of the Rito tribe are profoundly connected to the sky. We make our livings on the airways." — Rito Chieftain (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "If this continues, the fledglings who are of age will never be able to receive scales from Valoo on Dragon Roost. They will remain wingless, and in time, our very way of life will be threatened." — Rito Chieftain (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "I went to great trouble to go all the way to the Forsaken Fortress, and it was a most frightening ordeal, let me tell you!
...If I don't deliver this letter, then I am a failure of the delivery trade..." — Ilari (The Wind Waker) - ↑ "Occupation: Windfall Island Postman" — Figurine (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "It's a shame that I'm too busy to spend more time with you. You seem to be a nice enough fellow. Sorry." — Pashli (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "I have an idea. That old fool may not permit postmen on his premises... But surely he would allow YOU in the place, would he not? Could you deliver this letter to Maggie in my stead?" — Ilari (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 "We cannot do much to help you, but we can at least do this: if we get any letters or parcels for you, we will deliver them to a postbox near you. If you see any wiggling postboxes, please look inside them." — Rito Chieftain (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Your parcel has hereby been accepted for delivery. Thank you for using the Island Postal Service. We appreciate your business!" — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "This parcel has been sent Cash-On-Delivery." — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Krzzzzt! PAHHHFT! This item cannot be delivered." — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Krzzzzt! PAHHHFT! This letter has no addressee written on it. Please deliver it yourself..." — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "We shall deliver any letters or packages addressed to you to the postbox nearest your location. You may continue your journey knowing this to be true." — Rito Chieftain (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "My co-workers let me in on your little secret, man... All letters addressed to you are specially delivered to the postbox closest to you! No matter what island you happen to be on! That's so cool, man!" — Rito Chieftain (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "By the way, are you using our postboxes? Well, as you might know, since you left the island, all letters and packages addressed to you have been delivered to whatever postbox was nearest you. Of course, the system is not perfect—you tend to move around a lot. So be sure to check any moving postboxes you find in your travels. Do not forget!" — Rito Chieftain (The Wind Waker HD)
- ↑ "I'm going to write a letter right away and send this off!" — Hoskit (The Wind Waker HD, link)
- ↑ "So, from now on I shall honor our merchant's oath by sending shipments of my product to the Windfall Island Shop. How, you ask? Why, my good friend the postman will take it there for me, so it will probably get there before you do. Just go back to Windfall and check for yourself." — Wandering Merchant (The Wind Waker HD)
- ↑ "I am certain the object of this sadly one-sided affection is in quite a quandary over the matter. I am of the mind that I must have a word with the unwanted suitor. However, I must have physical evidence. And thus, your first task is to snap a pictograph of this individual in the act of sending the unwanted letters!" — Lenzo (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Postage due is 201 Rupees. Will you pay?" — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "I'm really sorry I had to send this C.O.D., but I guess that's the price of fame!" — Baito (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "Postage due is 10 Rupees. Will you pay?" — Postbox (The Wind Waker)
- ↑ "
" (Recruiting [for a] part-time job
Assorting packages and the like
Job fees are negotiable) — Cafe Bar (The Wind Waker HD)
