Piece of Heart

Pieces of Heart are recurring items in the Legend of Zelda series. They are smaller pieces of a full Heart Container. By collecting a certain number of Pieces of Heart, Link can create another Heart Container, thus increasing his overall health meter. The act of obtaining a Piece will also restore his health meter to full capacity.

Pieces of Heart are typically found throughout a game's Overworld and Grottos found there; however, they have also appeared in other areas such as dungeons. Typically, a small puzzle or side quest must be completed to actually obtain the Piece of Heart, which may or may not be already visible; these puzzles can often only be completed with the aid of certain items. Pieces of Heart may also be obtained by playing mini-games or readily available in shops, for a price. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is unique in that it provides a hint function for finding Pieces of Heart.

Physically, Pieces of Heart are very similar to Heart Containers &mdash; both of these items often resemble heart-shaped glass containers with a heart inside; in most games, Pieces of Heart may be distinguished from Heart Containers due to the fact that Pieces of Heart contain smaller encased hearts. In more recent installments of the series, such as The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Pieces of Heart have been replaced by complete Heart Containers outright.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Pieces of Heart appear throughout the Overworld, in both the Light World and the Dark World. Occasionally, they may be found in Treasure Chests or given by other characters as rewards for completing side-quests, but they are usually lying on the ground and are picked up by walking over them. When Link has found four Pieces of Heart, an additional Heart Container will be added to Link's life meter.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
Link's Awakening followed A Link to the Past's footsteps, as it was the second game in the series to feature Pieces of Hearts. Along with Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons, it has the fewest amount of obtainable Pieces of Hearts, having only 12. The pieces themselves are scattered throughout the overworld, as well as in certain caves.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask
Pieces of Heart can be found in each game's Overworld and may be acquired in much the same ways as in A Link to the Past. As before, four pieces are needed to construct a full Heart Container. Majora's Mask has the largest amount of Pieces of Heart in any game in the series, due to the fact that it only has four Dungeons.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons
Pieces of Heart are found in various areas of the Overworld. Four pieces total are needed to create a new Heart Container. Along with Link's Awakening, they have the fewest amount of pieces obtainable, with only 12. These heart pieces are identical in appearance to the ones found in Link's Awakening.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Link often must search for Pieces of Heart with the aid of Treasure Charts in addition to using previous methods. While sailing on the Great Sea, Link can locate a spot marked on a Treasure Chart and use his Grappling Hook to draw a Treasure Chest from the water. The chests may contain a variety of prizes, one of which is a Piece of Heart. Pieces of Heart may be found on land as well, and once again, four pieces will yield a Heart Container. The Wind Waker also features a Piece of Heart in the Forsaken Fortress, making it the first ever dungeon to do so.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Pieces of Heart in The Minish Cap look similar to those of previous installments, and serve the same purpose as well. They are usually found in the Overworld, but some are also found in dungeons, such as the Deepwood Shrine, making it the second game to feature dungeons as a location for receiving them. At least one Piece of Heart is present in every dungeon, the exceptions being the Temple of Droplets and Dark Hyrule Castle. Kinstone fusions typically yield a Piece of Heart as a prize, as well. The Minish Cap is also the first game where the Pieces of Heart are displayed on pedestals, instead of being in chests or on the ground.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
For the first time in the series, five Pieces of Heart are needed to complete a Heart Container rather than four. They may be found anywhere in the game world, including the Overworld and most dungeons. A fortune teller named Fanadi, who can be found in her shop in Hyrule Castle Town, will show Link the general location of a Piece of Heart if he asks her for advice about love.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
A Piece of Heart from Twilight Princess is featured as a sticker. Its sticker gives a +50 bonus to the effects of Heart Containers and can only be applied to Link, Toon Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf.

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