Highlights
- Tensegrity allows structures to be stable and hold their shape without solid supports at each corner, using a gimmick in the middle to distribute compression forces evenly.
- Players can utilize tensegrity to build stable, lightweight, and efficient structures with minimal materials, as demonstrated in a Reddit post.
- Hooks required for building using tensegrity can be found on Great Sky Island, offering players the opportunity to create large structures without the limitations of game physics.
A talented Tears of the Kingdom fan was able to build a completely stable (but not that aesthetically pleasing) Tensegrity device in-game using only wood and hooks pulled from shrines and rails.
Tensegrity, or tensional integrity, is simply a way for structures to be stable and hold their shape even if they don't have solid supports pillars at each corner. In fact, you can connect two square wooden platforms with strings or rubber bands tying the corner of each upper wooden platform to the corner facing it in the lower platform, and they would still stand. And the idea is that there's a gimmick built into the center of the contraption that absorbs the tension and keeps everything in balance.
Basically, the gimmick in the middle (made up of connector struts or strut-like elements) is the one that absorbs the compression from gravity and any other forces acting on the structure. However, it would be more accurate to say that the center structure distributes the compression forces evenly across all the elements of the main structure, rather than each corner column pushing on its own. So even if you push on one side, the other sides will keep their balance because they are all connected by the tensegrity gimmick in the middle.
The real application of this concept for players is the ability to build stable, lightweight, and efficient structures with minimal materials, as seen in the reddit post. The user uses the minimal number of wooden posts and hooks to keep everything floating. The other application is giving players the ability to keep very large structures balanced without having to stack a bunch of things or establish strong foundations.
As for where to get the hooks, the creator, IAMA_llAMA_AMA, says there are five of them on Great Sky Island. Specifically, they are located on the track between two islands at the leftmost shrine on Great Sky Island. And there are definitely more of them scattered around if you look hard enough. This could open up the possibility for players to build large structures like houses and bridges without having to worry too much about the weird physics of the game.