This is gonna sound bizarre, but I just love lounging at the airport when there’s no stressful agenda. Try and entertain the idea. At your own leisure, you could just hang around and, if you so chose, could hop on any docked plane at any time and travel anywhere your heart desired. Now, I know what you’re thinking: what kind of lunatic would waste their precious time at a travel hub without any concrete plans? Ah, that would be Link, champion of Hyrule.
Since I started playing Tears Of The Kingdom, I’ve been obsessed with the stables for a number of reasons. These quaint transport stations dot the diverse Hyrule landscape and provide more than a few substantial benefits to weary travelers like myself. In fact, I get more of a thrill about finding a stable than a shrine, but that’s another story.
It never fails. Whenever you find yourself in an unfamiliar — or hostile — environment, a warm and hospitable locale looks as inviting as mama’s house. This holds true for Tears of the Kingdom. Once you make the leap from the Great Sky Islands, you find out pretty quickly that Hyrule lacks what the Japanese call omotenashi. Indeed, this place is literally crawling with all manner of baddies, big and small. Even the trees can kill you! Are you kidding me? The last place you want to be is on the road after dark, but given the sheer scope of this beautiful open world, it’s nigh impossible to simply stop moving and take a breath. That is, of course, unless that stop involves a brief (or extended) stay at one of the many stables expertly placed throughout the game.
My first, I’d say, hour in Hyrule was a lonely affair. For some reason, I’d resigned myself to a solo life. Man is born alone, he dies alone, I thought. But then, I spotted plumes of smoke billowing out from a massive wooden horse head that wouldn’t look out of place in a war against the Trojans. I followed the warmth, and soon I heard familiar notes that took me back to Lon Lon Ranch decades ago. You don’t have to be a music theory major to pick out the D, B, A notes first heard in Ocarina Of Time. At that moment, around 2:30 am in the pouring rain, it was as good a place of refuge as I could’ve hoped for.
Now, I know what I said. Blah blah blah, horses are scary and can kill you. Maybe so, but that’s in the wild. Let’s get domesticated here. Have you ever caught the whiff of a horse farm? There’s something comforting in its wild and natural scent. These animals have been raised, saddled and relied on for the past 5,000 years, which means that us bipeds kinda need these quadrupeds, especially to traverse such a massive expanse such as in TotK.
Not only are the stables a safe haven from the weather and dangers of the road, but it’s a great spot to chow down on some grub, strike up a conversation with a colorful NPC local or just see what that maniac Beedle is selling. It also helps that the majority of stables are conveniently located next to fields full of wild spotted mavericks in obvious need of domestication, which is actually easier than you’d think. For me, the best course of action was to stealthily creep up and mount the beast, then immediately begin comforting him/her in earnest. Honestly, if taming a horse were this easy in real life, I’d have already sold my car and have an army of mares at my side.
Once you semi-bond with your steed and lead them to the stable, the proprietor will let you name your beast (Epona, what else?) and then set you up with a Pony Points card. It’s a new addition that works like a loyalty program and one that I took full advantage of. To my delight, it wasn’t hard to rack them up. For every new stable you encounter, you get a point. For every stable bed you sleep in, that’s a point. And while we’re on the subject of lodging, we can’t budge another inch without mentioning…the horse god.
That’s right, the mysterious Malanya from Breath of the Wild is back, but it seems that she’s taken a vested interest in the financial stability and longevity of Hyrule’s stables. Once you’ve accrued seven Pony Points through a variety of methods, you unlock the option to sleep in the exclusive Malanya bed. While this may sound initially quite sexy, the purpose is way more practical. During the night, you receive a message from Malanya herself on her exact whereabouts in Hyrule, and when you wake, you’ll find that you’ve been blessed with three extra temporary hearts and a temporary stamina wheel. At 50 rupees a pop, the Malanya bed option may seem steep, but it’s for a good cause and really helps keep these stables up and running, ya’ know?
I’ve been to Dueling Peaks Stable, and I’ve even been all the way up to Snowfield Stable, but out of all of them, I love New Serenne Stable the most. Maybe it’s because it rose up out of the darkness like an equine beacon of light in my time of need, or maybe because I first met my loyal Epona there. Wait, was that the same stable where that cutie Zumi works? Or was it the giant talking bird? You know, after a while, a warrior’s conquests and travels begin to stick together like an Ultrahand creation. No matter. Another night in Malanya's bed is just what I need.