Pirate Fortress

Before you can enter the Great Bay Temple, you have to recover Lulu's eggs. You must go to the Pirate Fortress to get them. The Fortress is accessible from the Great Bay Coast.

Get More Bottles

As mentioned on the previous page, this part will be much easier if you get more bottles. If you don't have at least four of them, you will have to leave the Pirate Fortress and go back in at least once. Read the Get More Bottles section on the previous page for more information.

Nintendo 3DS Version: Bring a Red Potion

If you are playing the Nintendo 3DS version of Majora's Mask, be sure to bring a red potion with you. This will let you get a helpful item in the fortress.

Reach the Fortress

You can reach the Pirate Fortress from the Great Bay Coast by swimming to the northeast of the coast, going underwater, and breaking the wooden planks under the water.

Get Past the Fortress Lake

When you enter the Pirate Fortress area, you arrive in some water that goes up to a ramp. Walk up the ramp and you will see Gerudo Pirates going around on guard boats. If you have the Stone Mask (the previous page explains how to get the Stone Mask), just put it on and none of the Gerudo Pirates will be able to see you.

If you don't have the Stone Mask, then wait for a gap in the guard boats that are going around on the water, then get into the water as a Zora. There are three treasure chests underwater, each of which contains a red Rupee. Feel free to get those now. Their locations are marked on the Great Bay map, which you can buy from Tingle if you go back to the Great Bay Coast.

When you are ready, swim to the northeast corner of the area and walk up the steep plank of wood. Keep walking up the ramp out of the water, then follow the path until you reach a switch at the end. Become a Goron and do a Ground Pound on that switch. It opens the gate in the southeast part of the area. Get back into the water, turn into a Zora, and swim southeast to the gate that just opened. Go through it.

Reach the Inner Fortress

Swim to the end of the tunnel and then swim into the wooden board to break it. Pull the stone toward you, then go to the left and swim into the wooden plank. Do the same to break the next wooden plank. After that, swim upward and go over the fence. Go down into the open area in the middle where there is a treasure chest. Open the chest to get 20 rupees.

Go back over the fence to reach a stone that you haven't pushed yet. Push it away from you until you can go to the right. Follow the path to reach a place where water is flowing upward. Go in. Press B to sink down so you're walking on the hallway with the spiky things. To avoid the last spiky thing, float up, then swim past. At the end, press A to surface, then go through the door there.

In the next room, if you go straight ahead, past all of the Spike Mines, there is a chest underwater to the right. It contains 20 rupees. Then go up the ramp to go above the water. If you get into the water on the other side and go to the left, you find a chest that contains a blue rupee. Go back above the water, then walk up the stairs and go to the left. As a Goron, break the barrels at the end and you will find a switch. Step on it to open the jail cell downstairs. Roll as a Goron to reach the inside of the cell before the door closes. Get the Piece of Heart inside. Then press the switch in the cell to open the door again.

Go back upstairs and break the barrels to the right. You will see a crystal switch on a distant ledge. Use the Hookshot or an arrow to activate it. A gate opens. Go downstairs and go into the water on the left. Swim through the gate that opened.

Swim past the mines in the next area and go up the ladder at the end. Step on the switch up there to reveal a crystal switch embedded in the wall. Hit it with an arrow and stand on the water to rise up. In the next room, go up the ladder. You can look through the telescope to get an idea of the area. Zoom in at the base of the tower in the middle to see a short cutscene that helps you figure out where you need to go. Stop looking through the telescope, then go back the way you came but don't go down the ladder. Hit the Spike Mines in front of you, then hit the crystal switch in the wall across the way. Go through the door that opened down below.

This is the door that you will end up in front of if the guards catch you. Go to the right from the door and go around and up the ramp. Go though the opening at the end.

Reach the Pirate Leader's Room

This is the area that you saw with the telescope. If you got the Great Bay map from Tingle, you can see where the guards are on the map. If you don't have the Stone Mask, you need to hit the guards around the tower with arrows. When you hit the guards, they will fall to the ground and be stunned temporarily, but eventually they get up and walk around again. Reach the ladder in the middle of the tower. If you are playing Majora's Mask 3D on the Nintendo 3DS, use the Lens of Truth and look behind the crate near the ladder to see an injured soldier. Give him a red potion and he will give you the Stone Mask. Wear it to become invisible to the guards. Now you should start climbing up the ladder of the tower, but if you didn't get the stone mask, watch your map to make sure that there isn't a guard right above you in the tower, then climb the rest of the way up. Then look down the bridge and shoot the guard there. Go past her (you may need to roll or jump backward over her to get past her) and go behind the short pillar. There is a door there. Go in.

Walk forward until a cutscene starts. You see a bee fly to a beehive past some bars. Then you see an interaction between Aveil (the Gerudo Pirate Leader) and her underling. Apparently they lost some of the Zora Eggs when Sea Snakes attacked them. There are now four eggs in the fortress.

Side note: if you're wondering why she calls them "dragon clouds", she is referring to the Ryūjin (dragon god) of Japanese legend. In the original Japanese dialog, she refers to the clouds as the dragon god clouds (竜神雲 or Ryūjinkumo). According to the legend, the Ryūjin controls the seas and lives in a palace under the sea, controlling the tides with magical tide jewels. Sea turtles are among the Ryūjin's servants.

Get the Fortress Treasure

After the cutscene between the pirate leader and her underling, use an arrow to shoot down the beehive that you saw. The pirates will run out of the room when the bees attack. After that, go back out through the door that you entered through (the other end of the hallway just has two jars with arrows in them). Then go to the right to fall down to a door. This is the door to Aveil's room. Since the bees made the leader and the others run away, just go into the room and open the big chest in the middle. You will get the Hookshot.

Get an Egg

Use the hookshot in this room on the wooden plank above the aquarium. Put on the Zora Mask and press B to sink to the bottom. Punch the Shell Blade when it opens its mouth to kill it. Use an empty bottle on the Zora Egg to take it.

Get More Bottles or Drop Off the Egg

If you don't have four bottles, you will have to leave the Pirate Fortress at least once to drop off Zora Eggs in the Marine Research Laboratory or get more bottles. Fortunately, having the hookshot makes it relatively easy to return to the inner fortress. Also, now that you have the hookshot, you can get all of the bottles in the game, so you will only have to return to the Fortress once.

To drop off the eggs, go to the Marine Research Laboratory, which is the round building with a hook on top in the Great Bay. Climb a ladder to stand on top of the big tank, then stand in the middle to drop the egg in (if you don't stand in the middle, it won't work).

Get More Empty Bottles

If you don't have three more empty bottles, you might want to get more bottles now. With the hookshot, you can get all of the remaining bottles in the game.

Here is a quick overview of how to get the bottles that require the hookshot. If you want to know how to get the others, read the Get More Bottles section on the previous page.

Bottles that you can get after obtaining the hookshot:

  1. In Great Bay Coast, go to the southeast area to reach the second part of the coast. Go back to the waterfall in the back and use the hookshot to go to the top of the waterfall. Go into the cave there. Put on the Zora Mask and press B to sink to the bottom of the lake. Talk to the beaver, then win the race to get an empty bottle.
  2. Go to Ikana Canyon (east of Clock Town) and go to the graveyard to the left of the cliff that the guy is sitting on. Find the big skeleton in the back of the graveyard and play Sonata of Awakening to wake it up. Shoot it with arrows then hit it with your sword until you defeat it. Then use the Hookshot to reach the chest, which contains the Captain's Mask. Then on the night of the final day, wear the Captain's Hat and go to Ikana Graveyard. Talk to the three Stalchildren and go into the grave. Help Dampé find the correct dirt piles to dig, then kill the Big Poe and open the chest to get a bottle.

Return to the Pirate Fortress

If you did choose to leave the fortress, then to return to the inner fortress, enter the Pirate Fortress and go to the northeast, walking up the wooden ramp and following the path above the water until you reach the switch that you activated as a Goron. Use the hookshot on the target across the gap, then walk up the ramp to go back to the area where guards are walking around.

Get a Second Egg

Go to the south side of the fortress and use the hookshot to reach the southwest door. Make your way past the guard who is walking around the barrels (she can hear you if you walk too quickly when you go past), then go into the door at the end. When you walk into the room, a green Gerudo comes down from above. You have to fight her. She circles around, and will swing her sword and do jump attacks. Be sure to raise your shield to block her attacks. She can use her two swords to block your attacks. Wait for her to do an attack and hit her before she can defend. If she knocks you out, you get kicked out of the fortress. After you defeat her, go through the door that opened.

Use the hookshot to get up into the aquarium. As Zora link, press B sink to the bottom. Punch the Shell Blade when it opens its shell to kill it. Then use an empty bottle to collect the egg. Then get out of the water and exit the room. The door to the right goes outside.

Get a Third Egg

Go to the north part of the fortress and use the hookshot to get up on the ledge. Face the northwest of the area and use the hookshot to reach the northwest ledge. Go inside. Shoot the pirate when she walks past, then go forward and then left. Go into the door there and go toward the middle of the room. An orange pirate comes down. Defeat her and go through the door that opens. Use the hookshot on the wood above the aquarium to get to the top. Use the hookshot to kill all of the Desbreko fish in the aquarium. Then wear the Zora mask and press B to sink to the bottom. Open the chest to get 20 rupees. Then use a bottle to get the Zora egg. Leave the aquarium and go out of the door to the right.

Get the Fourth Egg

Go to the north part of the fortress and use the hookshot to get up on the ledge. Face the northwest of the area and use the hookshot to reach the northwest ledge. Then turn around to face the northeast. Use a hookshot on the pillar up there. Hit the guard with an arrow to stun her so you can reach the northwest door. Go in. Stun the guards down below if you want to try to reach the treasure chest, which contains 100 rupees. This room is a pretty good place to get a picture of a Gerudo, which you will need later. Use the hookshot on the wood in the left side to reach the door on the far side.

Get a Picture of a Gerudo Pirate

Important! You will need to have a picture of a Gerudo Pirate in order to complete the next part of the game. Be sure to take a picture of one before you go.

Drop off the Eggs in the Marine Research Laboratory

To drop off the eggs, go to the Marine Research Laboratory, which is the round building with a hook on top in the Great Bay. Climb a ladder to stand on top of the big tank, then stand in the middle to drop the egg in (if you don't stand in the middle, it won't work).

Get the Three Missing Eggs

During the earlier cutscene with Aveil and the other Gerudo Pirate, you found out that they lost three of the Zora Eggs when Sea Snakes attacked. Now you have to go get those three eggs back from the Sea Snakes. The Sea Snake Den is in Pinnacle Rock, but if you try to go there, you will probably get lost in the murky water. To avoid that, you need to get help from a seahorse. You can skip this part if you prefer, but you will miss out on a Piece of Heart. But if you do decide not to get the seahorse, there are instructions below on how to reach the Sea Snake Den without getting lost.

Rescue the Seahorse

The white building in Great Bay Coast is the fisherman's house. Go inside and check on the seahorse in the fishbowl. Give the fisherman the picture of the Gerudo Pirate that you took. (If you didn't take one, you have to go back to the Pirate Fortress and take one.) The fisherman will give you the seahorse in an empty bottle.

Reach the Sea Snake Den

There are two tall rocks north of the Marine Research Laboratory in Great Bay Coast. Go between these two rocks to reach Pinnacle Rock. Sink down to the bottom and open the bottle that has the Seahorse in it. Follow the seahorse until you reach Pinnacle Rock.

How to Reach Pinnacle Rock Without the Seahorse

If you don't want get the seahorse, then here is how to get to the next area:

  1. Walk west past the rectangular sign until you are standing at an arrow-shaped sign.
  2. Walk north to the next sign.
  3. Walk northwest to the next sign.
  4. Walk west to the next sign.
  5. Walk south to the next sign.
  6. Walk west to the next sign.
  7. Walk north to the next sign.
  8. Walk west to Pinnacle Rock.

Get the Eggs from the Deep Pythons

During this part, you have to swim around in the pit to find the Sea Snakes in their lairs. It helps a lot if you understand how to swim properly as a Zora. To swim properly, hold the A button and move the control stick. If you just tap A to swim, you won't be able to change direction. You have to hold the A button down while swimming.

Three of the Sea Snakes are guarding Zora Eggs. First, go to the bottom of the pit and go to the northwest nest. Swim near the Deep Python to make it come out of the nest. Then swim at the neck of the Sea Snake while holding R to use your electric barrier attack. If you are having trouble, read the previous paragraph to make sure you understand the swimming controls. Alternatively, stand on the wall just in front of the Sea Snake nest, then hold the punch button and let go to use your fin boomerangs.

After the Deep Python dies, go into its nest and use an empty bottle on the Zora Egg.

The next Zora Egg is in the southwest lair one level below the top-level lairs.

The final Zora Egg is in the western top-level lair.

If you rescued the Seahorse, kill all of the Sea Snakes in the den and the seahorses will give you a Piece of Heart.

Drop off the Last Eggs and Learn a New Song

Go to the Marine Research Laboratory and drop off these final three eggs. Then go in front of the water tank and look in. The baby zoras will arrange themselves in front of the bars at the back of the aquarium. Use your ocarina, then play the notes that you see. You will learn the New Wave Bossa Nova.

Go to the Next Temple

Go to the Zora Cape by going into the cave in the south wall of the Great Bay Coast. Look for the building in the water that looks like it has a giant fish tail sticking up from it. Go underwater as a Zora and swim to that fishtail island, and swim under the archway at the base of that island. Then swim into the fish mouth beyond the archway.

Inside, turn right and go into the corridor to the right. From there, go to the left. You will be outside. Walk to the left and hit the owl statue with your sword. Then put the Zora Mask on and play the New Wave Bossa Nova. A sea turtle behind the Zora Hall will wake up.

Use your hookshot on a palm tree to climb onto the turtle's back. After a cutscene, you will be in the Great Bay Temple.