A brief word of introduction:Shortly after the release of Tears of the Kingdom, I was chatting with a couple of fellow Zelda creators about the beauty that is the NPCs within the game that round out the world and bring a sense of life and normalcy to the various regions you visit. We decided then that it would fun to pay homage to the beloved NPCs, both old and new, from the version of Hyrule from Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. With a bit of refining, we established our concept and gathered a team of wonderful, enthusiastic lovers of these two games to help bring this zine to life.It's our goal through this zine to celebrate as many of the NPCs from BotW and TotK as we can, both the prominent and popular as well as the minor ones who are often overlooked. You can anticipate enjoying examples of not only the Champions from BotW, but the Sages from TotK, as well as the 'Sons from Tarrey Town and many more. You may also look forward to seeing a selection of lesser known characters like Magda (lovingly dubbed by some as 'Flowerblight Ganon'), Sayge, the eccentric dye shop owner, or Cotera, the Great Fairy overlooking Kakariko Village!We look forward to utilizing the combined skills of artists, writers, and alternate creators alike to bring together a compilation of art and stories that will exemplify the wide array of characters these two games have to offer. So, on behalf of the entire Mod Team, we invite you to join us in interacting with these eclectic and diverse Residents of the Wild!MickeyTaco
Co-head, Organization, and Writing Mod

Preorders: June 15th - July 20th
Preorders closed: - July 20th
Preorder bundles sent out: July 31st
Zeldathon dates: Aug. 13th - 20th*

*Standard bundles available

MickeyTaco

Organization/Writing
Pronouns: she/herFavorite NPC:
It's so hard to narrow down my favorites! But I keep going back to Pikango and Beedle. I love the artistic eye that Pikango has, and the talent he has for capturing beautiful vistas (and I imagine creatures) within Hyrule. With Beedle, I genuinely adore his personality! He's quirky and excitable while maintaining a bit of mystery with the 'magic' that allows him to somehow always be at any stable all the time to meet the needs of the Hero and NPCs alike. What secrets is he hiding in that massive beetle-shaped pack he carries? Nobody knows~

Azzylea

Marketing Mod
Pronouns: she/herFavorite NPC:
I really like Ritos ever since my first encounter of them, but Kass and Penn stuck with me. With Kass' creative side and Penn's search for truth, I could imagine the two of them being great travel buddies. I like that both of their occupations are vastly different, and yet they're somewhat connected. One example is that Kass became Penn's inspiration for honing his own skills which I find quite adorable.

Yome

Marketing Intern
Pronouns: she/herFavorite NPC:
Honestly it’s hard to pick just one favorite, but if I were to narrow it down to two, Paya and Sonia stand out! I love Paya because of how awkward and shy she was in BotW and has grown into her leadership role in TotK! I love her strong commitment to her family and the Sheikah tribe, and think her crush on Link is adorable! I love Sonia and how she was like another mother figure in TotK for Zelda and had such a calm and inviting presence.

Daeyumi

Art Mod
Pronouns: they/themFavorite NPC:
Too many to count! Urbosa, Riju, Daruk, Sidon, Bolson, Vilia (she was done dirty in BotW but we stan a queen), Buliara, Muava (the older Gerudo woman who sits in the alley in BotW and talks to Link about how her life used to be).

Dalsalie

Alt/Merch Mod
Pronouns: she/her | they/themFavorite NPC:
Mipha. My fish waifu. ToTK Purah because she’s hot and true form Midna, because well you know. It’s Midna.

JoeyJ

Formatting Mod
Pronouns: she/herFavorite NPC:
I love Teba because I admire that he keeps Revali’s name going and acts like a descendant by teaching Tulin about Revali and his techniques. He’s the only champion “descendant” that isn’t really connected to their champion in any sort of way. Which is heartwarming since Revali was pretty closed off/had no family but Teba still keeps his legacy going.

Important dates to keep in mind: Contributor applications will be open from Feb. 10th to Mar. 5th. We are anticipating result emails to go out by March 15th. Working period will be from Mar. 25th to Jun. 20th, 2024. Our estimated zine release date will be in late July 2024.We will be accepting contributor applications for artists, writers, digital merch, crafters, and musicians primarily. For artists specifically, it is recommended that you include examples of LoZ characters as well as dynamic pieces with backgrounds in your completed applications. This will ensure we have all the resources possibly available to make a decision as to who will be the best fit to contribute to this zine!When applying, we will be looking for three examples of your work, as well as a link to your current portfolio. Our zine will remain at a T rating or below, and we will NOT be accepting NSFW content in applications nor in completed submissions. NSFW includes but is not limited to the following: sexual content, graphic violence, gore, vore, or fetishes of any kind.We will NOT be including characters from Age of Calamity in this zine as it is not considered 'canon' to these stories despite the setting within same version of Hyrule.FOR ARTISTS: we are looking for three completed works in your applications. This goes for both page artists and digital merch artists alike. We also ask that you include your portfolio with other examples of your completed works. This may be shown using a link to a Google folder, an Ao3 account, or something of that nature. Please ensure all works are clearly labeled.FOR WRITERS: we are also seeking three examples of your work. These can be completed poems, short fics of 1,500 words, or snippets of larger fics with a similar word count. We may consider longer snippets during the application process with a hard limit of no more than 2,000 words. The zine staff will be reviewing ALL of the submissions, and longer entries may extend the results period before the emails go out. Additionally, if there is NSFW content on a linked, personal account profile being used as a portfolio, ratings on ALL fics must be clearly marked.FOR ALT CREATORS: the expectations remains three submissions per application. For musicians applying, please keep your audio samples at 1 minute or less to give us an example of your work. The guidelines regarding a portfolio inclusion still apply.FOR ALL THE CREATORS:
At the time of applying, we will be asking for you to offer three unique pitches. These pitches constitute examples of new ideas that you would be willing/able to create for inclusion in the zine. Important note: Due to the popularity of the Champions and Sages within BotW/TotK, we are requesting that only ONE of your pitches be centered on your Champion(s) or Sage(s) of choice. We are planning on showcasing each character one or two times each, however, we are looking for a wide variety of characters overall, including the lesser popular ones. Please keep this in mind, and be creative!Additionally, as there are a wide range of BotW and TotK NPCs, we will NOT be including OCs (original characters) or AU (alternate universe) settings and content. If you are accepted and you’re not sure if your pitch falls within the outlined parameters, please reach out to the zine staff.If you have any additional questions. please feel free to us and we would be happy to discuss them with you!

WHAT IS AN NPC?
NPC stands for Non-Player Character. In the context of this zine, it will be any non-monster character that exists within the BotW/TotK canon. While Link may be included in some of the artwork interacting with the other characters, as beloved though he may be, he should not be the focal point for this project.WHAT IS THE THEME OF THIS ZINE?
This zine is themed around the NPCs seen throughout the world of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom!IS THIS ZINE FREE OR FOR CHARITY?
This will be a charity zine supporting Zeldathon.IS THIS ZINE DIGITAL OR PHYSICAL?
The zine will be digital-only, and will include digital merch as well!HOW MANY CONTRIBUTORS WILL YOU ACCEPT?
We have accepted 40 artists, 9 writers, and 4 merch artists. We also have 6 guest merch artists and 1 guest cover artist.IS SHIPPING CONTENT ALLOWED?
The focus of the content of the zine will remain general/platonic unless it is an established relationship in-game (i.e. Rauru and Sonia, Hudson and Rhondson, or Sidon and Yona.MAY I SHARE WORKS IN-PROGRESS I'VE DONE FOR THIS ZINE?
Work in-progress may be shared online with the mod team's permission, but nothing more than 40% finished. Sharing progress within the zine's server is perfectly fine and encouraged!MY QUESTION ISN'T HERE, WHAT SHOULD I DO?
You can send your questions to our Twitter or Instagram! Just click the icons below.