You’ve spent dozens of hours in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild getting your teeth kicked in by Lynels and laser-beamed by Guardians. Then you finally infiltrate the Yiga Clan Hideout. You've dodged those terrifying Blademasters who can one-shot you into oblivion, and you’re expecting a final boss that’ll make Calamity Ganon look like a Keese. Instead, you get Master Kohga. Honestly, the first time I saw him do his little dance, I thought I’d stumbled into the wrong game. Learning how to beat Master Kohga BOTW isn't about having the best gear or the fastest reflexes; it's about realizing that the leader of the world's deadliest assassin cult is a total klutz who is his own worst enemy.
He's sitting there in the back of the Yiga Hideout, past the bottomless pit, looking like he’s had a few too many Mighty Bananas. If you're looking for a serious, high-stakes duel, you're going to be disappointed. But if you want one of the most mechanically unique fights in the game, you're in for a treat. This fight is a puzzle. It’s a physics playground. Most importantly, it's a test of how well you can use your Sheikah Slate tools under a tiny bit of pressure.
Phase One: Gravity Is Not Your Friend
The fight starts simple. Kohga summons a blue barrier around himself. He’s basically invincible while that thing is up, so don't even bother wasting your Savage Lynel Bow arrows or your Master Sword durability. He’ll hover over the pit and conjure a massive boulder above his head.
Here is the trick.
He holds that rock for a few seconds before tossing it. While he's posing and gloating, his shield drops. That is your window. You just need to tap him with a single arrow—literally any arrow, even a wooden one—and he’ll lose his concentration. The boulder, which was previously floating thanks to his "magnificent" psychic powers, succumbs to gravity. It falls right on his head.
It’s hilarious. He’ll get stuck in the ground, legs flailing, and that’s when you run over and give him everything you’ve got. Don't get greedy, though. After a few hits, he’ll teleport away and reset. This phase is basically a tutorial for the rest of the fight. If you run out of arrows, you can actually throw weapons at him, but arrows are way more reliable. Just wait for the shield to drop, aim for the mask, and let gravity do the heavy lifting.
Phase Two: Double the Rocks, Double the Ego
Once you’ve shaved off about a third of his health, Kohga gets "serious." He moves to the center of the pit and starts rotating two boulders around himself. This is where people usually start overthinking things. They try to time their shots perfectly to weave between the rotating rocks.
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Don't do that. It's a waste of energy.
The trick to how to beat Master Kohga BOTW in this phase is watching the rotation. He’ll spin those boulders faster and faster. Eventually, one of the rocks will be positioned directly over his head. That is your moment. Shoot him again. Just like before, the rock he’s currently controlling will drop straight down and crush him.
He’ll bounce over to the solid ground, giving you another chance to wail on him. I've found that using a triple-shot bow like a Great Eagle Bow makes this almost trivial because the spread ensures you hit him even if your aim is slightly off. If you're struggling with the timing, try to stand as still as possible. Moving around actually makes the lead-time on your arrows harder to calculate. Stay calm, watch the rhythm of the spin, and wait for that rock to reach the 12 o'clock position.
Using Magnesis for the Grand Finale
Phase three is the only part where the game actually expects you to remember you have a Sheikah Slate. Kohga realizes that rocks aren't working, so he pulls out a massive, spiked iron ball. It’s covered in metal, which should be a massive red flag for anyone who has spent more than five minutes in Hyrule.
He tries to use his psychic powers to roll this thing toward you. It’s big, it’s heavy, and it hurts. But because it’s metal, your Magnesis Rune is the ultimate counter.
- Pull out your Magnesis tool immediately.
- Wait for him to conjure the spiked ball.
- Grab it with the magnetic beam.
- Litteraly just bash him with it.
You don't even have to throw it. Just hovering the ball near him while he’s trying to maintain his own psychic grip causes a "magnetic tug-of-war" that he’s destined to lose. If you hit him with his own spiked ball, he gets buried in the sand again. This is the final stretch. Keep repeating this until his health bar hits zero.
A lot of players try to use Stasis+ here, and while you can freeze the ball, it’s much harder to get the positioning right. Magnesis is the intended solution, and it’s by far the most satisfying way to end the fight. You’re essentially taking his "ultimate weapon" and using it to bonk him on the head like a cartoon character.
Why People Actually Struggle with Kohga
Believe it or not, people do fail this fight. Usually, it’s because of the environment. The pit in the middle of the arena is a bottomless abyss. If you fall in, you take damage and reset. If Kohga falls in... well, that’s actually how the fight ends.
The biggest mistake is staying too close to the edge. Kohga’s teleportation can be unpredictable, and if he appears right behind you and knocks you back, you’re going for a swim. Keep your back to the walls of the arena. This gives you a clear view of the entire pit and makes it much easier to track where he teleports next.
Also, check your inventory before you go in. While the fight provides everything you need (mostly his own incompetence), having a handful of arrows makes the first two phases much faster. If you’ve been using your arrows to snipe Yiga Footsoldiers in the hideout, you might find yourself empty-handed. If that happens, remember that you can throw your melee weapons. It’s risky, but throwing a rusted broadsword at a cult leader’s face is a very "Link" thing to do.
The Aftermath and the Thunder Helm
Once you've depleted his health, Kohga tries one last desperate move that involves a giant spiked ball and a very unfortunate lack of spatial awareness. He ends up knocking himself into the pit, effectively ending the Yiga threat—at least for a while.
Don't forget to grab the chest that appears. It contains the Thunder Helm, which is arguably one of the best utility items in the game. It makes you completely immune to lightning, which turns those annoying thunderstorms from a death sentence into a minor visual inconvenience. You’ll need to return it to Riju in Gerudo Town to progress the Vah Naboris questline, but eventually, you can get it back by completing all the side quests in the city.
Beating Master Kohga is a rite of passage. It’s the moment the game reminds you that even in a world filled with ancient machines and soul-consuming malice, there’s still room for a bit of slapstick comedy.
Actionable Next Steps
- Stock up on 10-15 basic arrows before entering the boss arena; you don't need bomb or ancient arrows for this.
- Equip the Magnesis Rune as soon as the third phase starts so you aren't fumbling with the D-pad while a spiked ball is flying at your face.
- Position yourself near the arena walls to avoid being knocked into the center pit during his teleportation shifts.
- Wait for the physical shield to drop before firing; hitting the blue barrier does zero damage and just wastes your resources.
- Head straight to Gerudo Town after the fight to hand over the Thunder Helm and trigger the next stage of the Divine Beast Vah Naboris quest.