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Where Winds Meet guide: How to unlock all weapon martial arts
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Alan Wen
At launch, there's 12 different weapons-based martial arts, but you won't have access to all of them at the beginning, and you can't just learn them by picking up the relevant weapon. This guide will provide a quick overview of each martial art and how to unlock them. And while you're at it, check out our guide to obtaining all the Mystic Arts as well!
Important things to do first before unlocking more martial arts
While you'll have a few martials arts available early on, you'll need to gain some important Mystic Arts in order to unlock the rest. After reaching Level 8, go to Peace Bell Tower in southwest Qinghe. You'll enter the skill theft minigame, which requires observing and comprehending your target's moves by pressing F when gold rings appear. When you’ve successfully done this, you'll learn Veil of Stillness, which is required for stealthy infiltration.
Next, complete the side quest “Echoes of Old Battles” at Northern Vow Ruins, southeast of Qinghe. Open a hidden passage by defeating the enemies in a large courtyard with a large circular symbol in the center, then light the flame contraption there and another on a tower southwest of the ruins.
Complete the puzzles underground and you'll find a gold chest that includes the Touch of Death skill, which allows you to assassinate targets from behind.
To infiltrate certain locations underground, you'll also need a Dragon Key, which can turn up as a reward when clearing outposts in the world.
Nameless Sword
The Nameless Sword is your starting martial art. It’s a highly mobile style that specializes in melee DPS when facing single targets, with skills that let you lunge towards enemies or backflip out of danger while delivering an attack.
Nameless Spear
You'll unlock Nameless Spear almost immediately, another highly mobile melee DPS style, with a skill that briefly immobilizes your target while restoring your endurance and another that deals a high-damage thrust.
Panacea Fan
The Panacea Fan is a support-based martial art that also offers long-ranged combat. In a group, it's great for attacking at a distance as well as healing teammates thanks to its skills, which heal allies in an area of effect or yourself and the ally with the lowest HP respectively.
You can unlock this early on as one of your rewards after learning Tai Chi from the bear and delivering a bee hive to Qi Cheng. Otherwise, you can obtain it via skill theft from an underground sanctum located near Bamboo Abode, close to where you start the game.
Thundercry Blade
The Thundercry Blade is a martial art for those who like their swords slow and heavy. You can generate a shield that's equivalent to 25% of your max HP and pull in nearby enemies before unleashing a devastating area of effect attack.
You can unlock this early on as one of your rewards from Qi Cheng. If you don't choose this reward, you'll have to wait until you reach Kaifeng and infiltrate the Well of Heaven's martial camp at the southern part of that region. This location is on the surface rather than underground, though you'll still be restricted from using your traversal skills. Beware of core disciples on the rooftops who can spot you like a hawk.
Infernal Twinblades
Infernal Twinblades is a martial art for those favoring fast and vicious melee DPS. You have a Karmic Flame meter that builds up as you attack; instead of a heavy attack, this meter buffs you so that you're immune to some damage while boosting your critical rate and damage bonus.
This is another martial art you can unlock as a reward early on from Qi Cheng. If not, you'll need to infiltrate the Midnight Mercy Sanctum, which is southwest of Battlecrest Slope in Qinghe, where you unlocked Touch of Death.
Vernal Umbrella
Vernal Umbrella is a martial art that deals ranged DPS, and its skill turns the umbrella into a floating turret that lets you swap to another weapon. Another skill immobilizes non-boss enemies, allowing you to retreat or punish.
If you don't choose this as a reward early from Qi Cheng, you can unlock it at Temporal Pavilion in Kaifeng. You have to complete a quest instead of using stealth, as you need to get into a special room where a private banquet is taking place.
Speak to the page boy Wang Ping'an outside then go inside the pavilion, head up to the third floor to speak to Jiang Ting'er, who will ask for a keepsake for entry. You'll then need to gather five nearby clues from the following:
- Someone standing guard at a door to a warehouse just as you go back downstairs
- Two women playing a game outside the pavilion to the southwest
- A tabby cat just southwest of the pavilion perimeter
- Two women standing by a screen on the ground floor of the pavilion
- Two women standing by the window on the third floor where the banquet is taking place
Stormbreaker Spear
The Stormbreaker Spear martial art is for dealing high damage and absorbing damage by taunting enemies. Another skill can also knock down a target, causing them to be susceptible to higher damage.
When you reach Level 3, open your menu and check your letter tab and you'll find a letter from the Raging Tides General that includes the Stormbreaker Spear martial art that you can claim as a free reward!
Strategic Sword
The Strategic Sword is a melee DPS martial art that excels at dealing bleed damage if you sustain multiple attacks on your target, which encourages an aggressive playstyle.
You can unlock this martial art through skill theft by infiltrating the Lone Cloud Sanctum near Encircling Lake, southwest of Qinghe.
Heavenquaker Spear
The Heavenquaker Spear is a melee DPS martial art with long-reaching thrust attacks. Its two skills work in tandem: the first grants you a buff based on the number of successful hits of its spinning combo, which in turn affects the power of the second spinning skills, which can also inflict bleed damage.
You can unlock this martial art by infiltrating the Raging Tides Sanctum in the eastern part of Qinghe, which is just over the river north of Verdant Wilds, where you start the game.
Inkwell Fan
Inkwell Fan is a ranged melee DPS with skills that can launch enemies in the air or knock them back with a wind blast, the latter improving your dodge and boosting your ranged damage.
You can unlock this martial art via skill theft by infiltrating the Silver Needle Sanctum in north Qinghe, quite near Bodhi Sea.
Soulshade Umbrella
Like Panacea Fan, Soulshade Umbrella also offers healing and ranged combat, except the umbrella's skills can track allies needing healing or turn into a support turret while you swap to another weapon.
To unlock, travel to a village west of Mistveil Forest in Kaifeng. There's a building with an open entrance on the upper floor that you can sneak up to. From there, take the stairs down then descend a ladder, where you can find the umbrella-wielding master you can steal the martial art from.
Mortal Rope Dart
Mortal Rope Dart is a melee DPS martial art that's both quick and good at closing distances, since the rope dart can pull enemies towards you or launch yourself towards a boss. You can also summon rats to attack by using the Token of Gratitude resource unique to this art.
Unlocking this martial art requires infiltrating the Nine Mortal Ways martial hall in the south of Kaifeng City, but if you try to enter, a guard will block the way, which will prompt a mysterious elder to demonstrate how you can get in with a disguise. Next, speak to Wuyan at Lin's Cosmetics to the southeast of the city in the Fairgrounds area and complete her request to unlock the ability to make disguises.
Return to the martial hall where you'll find a Nine Mortal Ways disciple sitting outside, and when prompted, create a portrait of him, then go and give this to Wuyan to get your disguise. Make sure you take a different path back to the martial hall so that you don't bump into the same disciple, or you'll lose the disguise. Once inside, follow a few more steps and you can retrieve the mortal rope and then learn its art.
Where Winds Meet is out now on Epic Games Store.