BOTW Dragon Farming & Spawn Time Guide

There are three Dragon deities that fly in the skies above Hyrule in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and as Hylia’s chosen champion, Link can harvest their parts for upgrades and stat boosts to aid him on his quest. The Dragons, Dinraal, Nayrda, and Farosh, each drop four different parts: Scales, Claws, Fangs, and Horns. Despite the Dragons’ overwhelming presence in BOTW, farming them is actually quite simple, and they are not antagonistic towards Link as they glide over the land, seemingly unaware of his presence.

Each Dragon in BOTW is associated with one of three sacred Springs. Praying at each of the Springs causes the Dragons to spawn regularly, making them easier to track down and farm since they appear at the same place and the same time every day.

BOTW’s Naydra is the only Dragon who is infected with Calamity when players first encounter it, leaving it up to Link to free it of its blight before it can be found flying over Hyrule.

Dragon Spawn Times

Before setting up to farm Breath of the Wild’s Dragons, players should be sure to stock up on plenty of wood to make campfires and bring something to ignite them, whether that is Flint, Fire Arrows, or a Flame weapon. The Dragons in BOTW typically spawn in the morning and fly close to the ground shortly after, giving Link an opportunity to get close enough to hit them.

• Farosh spawns at 5 AM.
• Dinraal spawns at 5 AM.
• Naydra spawns at 5 AM (but players should wait to farm Nydra until 6 – 7 AM)

When Dragons are nearby, the minimalist Breath of the Wild background music will change, and gusts of wind will blow up around them, which makes it easy for Link to glide in and take aim. However, each Dragon will also spawn elemental orbs that can hit Link and knock him out of the air if he gets too close. Additionally, camping directly on the Dragon’s spawn point or too close to their path can prevent them from spawning there, so players should be sure to find a more strategic location that they can easily glide from when the Dragon arrives.

Players can only receive one Dragon part per day from each Dragon, so they’ll have to sleep or wait by a fire until the next day before taking another shot at the Dragon they’re farming.

In order to get Dragon parts from Dinraal, Naydra, and Farosh in Breath of the Wild, Link must get close enough to shoot the Dragon with an arrow, knocking loose whichever part he hits. Players can aim for the horn, foot, or mouth to get a Shard of Horn, Claw, or Fang, and, if they strike anywhere else on the Dragon’s body, they’ll get a Scale. Once the Dragon has been hit, the part will glow and fall to the ground where players can easily collect it.

Best Farosh Farming Location

Farosh is the easiest Dragon to farm in Breath of the Wild since he spawns above Lake Floria just west of the Lakeside Stable and descends over the waterfall, making the whole area an easy place to camp. Link can even stay at the stable’s inn or sit by the fire there until morning, and there’s a convenient cooking pot so players can cook up meals and elixirs as they farm. Farosh spawns here at 5 a.m., so players can simply head over to the bridge once Link wakes up and wait until Farosh gets close enough to shoot.

Players can catch the updraft around Farosh with Breath of the Wild’s paraglider to get even closer to the part of the Dragon they’re aiming for, though Farosh’s lightning orbs can easily hit them if they get too close. The Thunder Helm, Rubber Set, or upgraded Desert Voe Set can help players avoid taking damage from Farosh’s lightning as they boost Link’s resistance to electricity, and players can also cook up electric-resistant foods and elixirs for the same effect.

Once the Dragon part falls into the lake below, players can simply swim over to collect it before heading back up to the stable and sleeping until morning. There are a ton of BOTW treasure chests hidden in the lake for players to collect while they’re swimming here as well.

Best Dinraal Farming Location

One of the easiest places to farm Breath of the Wild’s Dragon parts from Dinraal is near Hebra Tower, which players can simply teleport to in order to set up camp. Dinraal will pass through the Tanagar Canyon just southeast of the tower between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m., making it easy for players to aim a shot from above. After waiting for morning, Link can glide down to the cliffs above the canyon and wait for Dinraal to fly down.

This area is very cold, so it’s a good idea to bring cold-resistant armor like the Snowquill Set or the Warm Doublet to keep Link from freezing. Fireproof elixirs also come in handy when farming Dinraal since they can help Link avoid taking damage from the Dragon’s fire. Once they’ve shot Dinraal with an arrow and collected their Dragon part, players can simply teleport back to Hebra Tower and camp until the next morning.

Dinraal can also be farmed in the East Deplian Badlands in the northernmost part of Breath of the Wild’s Eldin region. The Dragon spawns at 5 a.m. here, which is a bit earlier than its spawn time at Hebra Tower. There are plenty of cliffs and precipices in this area for Link to camp on that are easy to climb and make farming fairly quick.

Best Naydra Farming Location

Once players have freed Naydra from the Calamity as part of Breath of the Wild’s “Spring of Wisdom” Shrine Quest, the Dragon will spawn on top of Mount Lanayru every morning at 5 a.m. and descend into the ravine at Lanayru Promenade from the east. Players can camp on the northern cliffs of Lanayru Bluff and wait for the Dragon to come within range between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m.

This location can take a bit more time to reach than the other Dragon farming areas, but, if players have the Zora Armor, it’s easy to scale the waterfall at Lanayru Promenade and travel east toward Mount Lanayru to set up camp. Equipping the Snowquill Set can help Link avoid freezing from Naydra’s icy elemental orbs once it gets close. Unfortunately, there isn’t any easy way to get back to camp without climbing, which makes it take longer to farm Naydra in BOTW than the other Dragons.

Why Dragon Farming Is Useful

Dragon parts can be used for various armor upgrades in Breath of the Wild, and they can also be cooked into food and elixirs to increase the duration of their effects. The Champion’s Tunic, Barbarian Set, Wild Set, and Fierce Deity Set all require several parts from each Dragon to fully upgrade, so players will have to do a bit of farming to unlock the set bonuses for any of these armor sets.

BOTW’s Dragon parts are one of the few monster parts that can be cooked into food, since the game usually treats them as a spice when cooking. However, this also means that they cannot be used as the base for an elixir, so players will have to include another monster part as well. Dragon parts can also be sold to earn more Rupees in BOTW or exchanged for Mon. See the chart below for all of their benefits, sale price, and trade price:

• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

  Franchise: The Legend of Zelda

  Platform: Nintendo Switch

  Released: 2017-03-03

  Developer: Nintendo EPD

  Publisher: Nintendo

  Genre: Action-Adventure, Open-World, RPG

  ESRB: E10+

  Summary: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is an open-world, action-adventure RPG from Nintendo’s EPD development team. Recently waking from a hundred-year slumber in a mysterious chamber, Link awakens with no memory of how he got there. Through a disembodied voice, he is told he must stop Calamity Ganon from destroying Hyrule – and to do so, he must regain his memories and gain the power to do so. Link will travel throughout Hyrule to re-awaken the four slumbering Divine Beasts to help approach the darkness-covered castle and retrieve the Master Sword. With the help of four guardian friends and tribes across the land, Link will battle the forces of darkness and save his friend, princess Zelda.

  Expansion Packs : The Master Trials, The Champion’s Ballad

  Prequel: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

  Sequel: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom