Just finished the game, first run. (I got it for Christmas and only took this long because I chose to *savor* it).
Something on the order of 154000 rupees. 19 deaths. I suck. To my credit, I died a lot because I chose to do stupid things, like trying to take Turtle Rock as a first dungeon and then taking it as a second dungeon... and popping out of cliff walls into the abyss for the heck of it.
Just started a new file on Hero Mode. I'm wondering if I should self-impose a challenge of "Renting Items Only" without ever buying them, since on my first game, I bought Ravio out and improved everything through Mother Mai Mai, even when I no longer needed them. (Sand Rod, outside the desert, you're pretty useless)!