You can access skill upgrades and equipment enhancements at Spirit Mirrors in Onimusha: Way of the Sword, which can be purchased with Red Souls, Power Stones, and Oni Stones. This guide will provide you with a list of the best skills and upgrades in the game for your clothing, sword, and gauntlet.
Best Skills & Priority Order
When deciding which skills to unlock first, always focus on defensive timing, sustain, exploration, and only then on damage and other Oni tools. Here are the top skills you’ll need and the order in which to unlock them:
| Skills | Features |
|---|---|
| Blazing State | Top priority for successful parries that fill the gauge, allowing you to deal bonus damage and generate more Blue Souls. |
| Deflect | Unlocked during “The Oni’s Apprentice” story mission, which is excellent for stamina shredding and projectile reflection when paired with parries. |
| Reflex Combo | Strong option against unarmed bosses and chaining dodges into big damage. |
| Absorb Souls While Attacking | Allows you to collect souls mid-fight without stopping, turning encounters with enemies and bosses into soul farms. |
| Oni Vision: Treasures | Highlights hidden chests and Hozuki, which is critical for collecting upgrade materials. |
| Oni Vision: Destructibles | Reveals breakable and weak points, which is very useful on bosses, too. |
| Chain Issen | Excellent crowd control after a successful Issen. |
| Two Celestials: Combo Strength | Adds damage and extra Yellow Souls for healing. |
Equipment Upgrades & Priority
When it comes to upgrading your equipment, clothing and sword need more individual upgrades to level up than the Oni Gauntlet. Here are the top upgrades for clothing that focus on your survivability:
| Upgrades | Features |
|---|---|
| Health Pool I | +15% maximum health, helping you survive extra hits. |
| Stamina Regen I | +20% stamina recovery rate, helping you stay aggressive longer without posture breaks. |
| Health Pool II | Additional +15% maximum health that stacks, which is needed for mid-game damage spikes. |
| Posture Recovery | Reduced stagger duration after posture break. |
Then, you can focus on increasing your damage output using these top sword upgrades:
| Upgrades | Features |
|---|---|
| Issen Multiplier I | +20% Issen counter damage, which amplifies your strongest weapon. |
| One-Handed Power | +15% one-handed stance damage for better pressure. |
| Two-Handed Speed | -15% two-handed wind-up frames, making the heavier stance more usable. |
| Armament Synergy | +25% armament follow-up damage for strong chains from Oni Armaments into Issen. |
Finally, make sure to increase your Soul Absorption and Oni Power with these top gauntlet upgrades:
| Upgrades | Features |
|---|---|
| Absorption Range+ | +30% soul pull radius, which allows you to catch more orbs during fights. |
| Move Absorption | Absorb souls while walking and moving. |
| Oni Power Gauge+ | +25% gauge capacity with more Armament uses per fight. |
| Rapid Charge | -20% armament cooldown, letting you chain Armaments more frequently. |
