Upgrades Guide | Mortal Shell 2
Upgrades in Mortal Shell 2 are enhancements that can be applied to the player's equipped Weapons and Tarnished Seal. These Upgrades improve the equipment's properties, adding effects or increasing damage, and can be performed at an Anvil or Workbench using specific Key Items. Below, players can find an Upgrade Guide and a list of all available Upgrades in Mortal Shell 2, including their effects and where to find them.
All Upgrades and Upgrades Guide in Mortal Shell 2
Leveling Up the Harbinger in Mortal Shell 2
After reaching Marrow Keep in the Beta of Mortal Shell 2, you can now access the Level Up feature that increases the stats of the Harbinger. Leveling up the Harbinger costs Gloom, which is a currency acquired from defeating enemies and bosses or from destroying effigies that contain Gloom. When you level up the Harbinger, it will improve its Health, Shell Health, Base Damage, Critical Chance, and Shell Points.
Similar to souls-like games, dying in Mortal Shell 2 will cause you to drop the Gloom at your site of death. You can retrieve your Gloom, but if you die before it's recovered, the currency will be lost permanently.
You can also pick up Gloom by destroying effigies found throughout the map. These effigies can be attacked to destroy them, dropping Gloom on the ground.
Weapon and Equipment Upgrades in Tarforge Mortal Shell 2
Franz the The Tarforge Smith, is the character responsible for handling equipment upgrades. You can find him at the Marrow Keep, where he tends to the Tarforge. When you first arrive at the Marrow Keep, talk to Franz to learn about the forge's condition. After that, he'll ask for your help to locate her parts. Then, you can stand on the other side to operate it and upgrade your primary weapon, like The Iconoclast. Later on, you can recover the items to expand your upgrade options at the Tarforge, allowing upgrades for Sidearms, Tarstones, and Seals.
These are the key items that you will need to start upgrading your equipment in the Tarforge:
- Etching Needles - Upgrade Tarstones, requires Coins
- Muradean Actuator - Upgrade Primary weapons, requires Ventrium and Coins
- Obsidian Lathe - Upgrade Sidearms, requires Ventrium and Coins
Mortal Shell 2 Tarstones Upgrades
While exploring in Mortal Shell 2, you'll come across Tarstones, which are a unique item that can be equipped by the Harbinger. Tarstones provide different passive effects and modifiers that change the behavior of the Harbinger's actions. The most likely first Tarstone that you'll find is the Arbiter's Prize or the Shattering Stone. These 2 items are near each other, but the only difference is that the Arbiter's Prize is an item you get from defeating the boss, Great Arbiter of Flesh, while the other is a chest loot that you can find in a village just past the boss fight.
After you get your first Tarstone, you can view it in your inventory and see all 4 Levels of this item. Each level grants it improved effects, and it gains experience by equipping it, and slaying enemies. Once the required XP is reached, you can then upgrade this at the Tarforge in Marrow Keep.
Before you unlock this option, however, you need to locate the Etching Needles, which is a quest item that you can find before the boss fight against Magdalena, Lady of the Woods. Luckily, this item is just located inside an unguarded chest, and you can quickly return to Marrow Keep for easy upgrades. Hand over the Etching Needles to Franz, then you can operate the Tarforge to upgrade your Tarstones. Upgrading Tarstones requires Coins.
| Tarstone Name | Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acolyte's Stone | Level 1: Consume Resolve to perform a charged Light Attack. | Level 2: The charged attack has a +15% Critical Chance. | Level 3: The charged attack deals 150% Critical Damage. | Level 4: Resolve cost reduced to 10. |
| Arbiter's Prize | Level 1: Consume 30 Resolve to infuse your weapon with Bloodcurse. | Level 2: Infusion lasts for 4 strikes | Level 3: Infusion lasts for 8 strikes | Level 4: Infusion is permanent |
| Corroded Stone | Level 1: Projectile start dealing damage over time after hitting their target. | Level 2: Projectiles deal 0.2 damage every 1s for 3s. | Level 3: Projectiles deal 0.3 damage every 1s for 5s. | Level 4: Projectiles deal 0.4 damage every 1s for 5s. |
| Deadman's Stone | Level 1: Improves melee Critical Chance | Level 2: Melee attacks have +10% Critical Chance | Level 3: Melee attacks have +15% Critical Chance | Level 4: Melee attacks have +18% Critical Chance |
| Emberseed Stone | Level 1: Consume 20 Resolve to infuse your sidearm with Burn. The equipped Sidearm inflicts Burn on Critical Hits only. | Level 2: Infusion lasts for 4 shots | Level 3: Infusion lasts for 8 shots | Level 4: Infusion is permanent |
| Magdalena's Memento | Level 1: Consume 70 Resolve to rise into the air and unleash a flurry of ruthless strikes. | Level 2: Each strike inflicts 2 Weak stacks. | Level 3: Each strike has +15% Critical Chance. Each Strike Deals +50% Critical Damage | Level 4: Each strike deals +100% Critical Damage |
| Marksman's Stone | Level 1: Improves ranged Critical Chance | Level 2: Ranged attacks have +10% Critical Chance | Level 3: Ranged attacks have +12% Critical Chance | Level 4: Ranged attacks have +15% Critical Chance |
| Parasitic Stone | Level 1: Slaying foes grants you Leech. | Level 2: Gain 1 Leech stack per kill. | Level 3: Gain 2 Leech stack per kill. | Level 4: Gain 3 Leech stack per kill. |
| Shattering Stone | Level 1: Improves melee Stagger Damage | Level 2: Melee attacks deal +150% Stagger Damage | Level 3: Melee attacks deal +200% Stagger Damage | Level 4: Melee attacks deal +220% Stagger Damage |
| Shrike Stone | Level 1: Consume 70 Resolve to leap high and plunge your weapon into the ground ahead. | Level 2: Each strike inflicts 150 Perforation stacks. | Level 3: Resolve cost reduced to 50. | Level 4: Each strike inflicts damage. |
| Siegebreaker's Stone | Level 1: Improves ranged Stagger Damage | Level 2: Ranged attacks deal +150% Stagger Damage | Level 3: Ranged attacks deal +200% Stagger Damage | Level 4: Ranged attacks deal +220% Stagger Damage |
| Tarblighted Trophy | Level 1: Consume 40 Resolve to launch a heavy round that detonates above the target, scattering explosive projectiles below. | Level 2: The heavy round detonates 2 times, each explosive projectile deals 8 splash damage. | Level 3: The heavy round detonates 2 times, each explosive projectile deals 12 splash damage. | Level 4: The heavy round detonates 2 times, each explosive projectile deals 14 splash damage. |
| Unwieldly Stone | Level 1: Consume 25 Resolve to perform a Charged Heavy Attack. | Level 2: The charged attack grants 2 Leech stacks on kill. | Level 3: The charged attack grants 3 Leech stacks and restores 20 Health on kill. | Level 4: The charged attack grants 5 Leech stacks and restores 35 Health on kill. |
| Volatile Fragment | Level 1: Enemies dying by a ranged attack will explode, dealing splash damage. | Level 2: Exploding enemies deal 15 splash damage. | Level 3: Exploding enemies deal 25 splash damage. | Level 4: Exploding enemies deal 35 splash damage. |
