Characters & NPCs

the player character and an elite assassin of the Phantom Blade sect who gets betrayed and poisoned at the start of the game and has exactly 66 days to find a cure and get revenge and honestly the ticking clock is what makes the whole story feel so urgent and compelling, Soul is a master of Sha-Chi combat whose near-death experience apparently awakened latent powers that even he didn't know he had which is pretty convenient plot-wise but whatever it works, and the choices you make throughout those 66 days determine which of the 8 endings you get so basically every dialogue option and side quest matters

a really mysterious figure who saves Soul after the betrayal and honestly I still have no idea what their actual deal is, they belong to some reclusive circle of Sha-Chi practitioners who use their abilities for preservation rather than combat which is kind of rare in this world, their motives for saving Soul are unclear and probably not entirely altruistic and their knowledge of the curse suggests they know way more than they're willing to reveal which makes me think they're going to be important to the true ending somehow

the current leader of the Phantom Blade sect and Soul's mentor and a legendary warrior whose mastery of Sha-Chi is basically unmatched in the entire setting, but his role in the conspiracy that kicks off the story is really ambiguous and I've gone back and forth on whether he was involved in the betrayal or whether he's a victim of it himself, the game kind of strings you along on this question for most of the story and his loyalties shift depending on which path you take through the 66 days

the primary human antagonist that you encounter throughout the game representing the Order's interests and showing up at key story moments usually with elite guards in tow which makes every encounter with them feel like a boss fight waiting to happen, their connection to Soul's betrayal is gradually revealed through documents you find and confrontations you have and honestly the slow burn reveal of who this person actually is and why they did what they did is one of the better story threads in the game

a fellow assassin of the Phantom Blade sect and Soul's former partner whose loyalty is totally dependent on your choices throughout the story, he can become a valuable ally who fights alongside you in certain boss encounters or a formidable enemy who shows up as a mini-boss fight depending on how you treat him and which dialogue options you pick, I'm not sure exactly which decisions swing him one way or the other but it seems like being honest with him about what happened is the safer path

a mysterious artist you encounter in a remote temple who seems to know way more about the curse and Soul's fate than any random NPC should, their cryptic paintings apparently contain clues about hidden locations and secret bosses and the true nature of the Sha-Chi artifacts, I've spent way too much time trying to decode the paintings in preview footage and honestly some of the hidden area hints are incredibly subtle so you might want to take screenshots when you talk to this character

not a single character but a group of three elite enforcers serving the Order who you encounter as one of the hardest boss fights in the entire game, each one has a distinct combat style and personality and their defeat reveals crucial information about what the Order is actually planning and why they betrayed Soul in the first place, see the boss strategies page for detailed fight guides because you're going to need them

a reclusive weaponsmith who can evolve your primary blades up to +4 which is the max upgrade level and basically essential for tackling the endgame content, his knowledge of ancient forging techniques is how you unlock each weapon's full potential and he also offers side quests that reward rare evolution materials which you absolutely need because those +3 and +4 materials are scarce and you'll want every source you can find