Overview
Dual blades are one of the confirmed weapon types in A Whisper of Fall: Jinyiwei. Players can wield two blades simultaneously, offering a faster, more aggressive fighting style compared to single weapons.
Available weapon types
Three weapon categories have been confirmed for the game: spears, dual blades, and one-handed swords. The IGN China hands-on identified two weapon types in the demo with distinct characteristics.
Weapon | Chinese name | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
Dao (saber) | 刀 | Slower, heavier combos with powerful two-handed downward strikes at the end of combo chains |
Jian (sword) | 剑 | Emphasizes lightness (轻灵) with larger movement ranges and greater agility, but lower damage than the dao |
The gameplay trailer also showed enemies using dual-wielding sword-based moves with fiery attacks, suggesting that dual-wielding is not limited to the player character.
Energy systems
Combat uses three energy meters that interact with each other, governing the combat system's moment-to-moment decisions.
Resource | Chinese name | Function |
|---|---|---|
Health | 生命 | Standard health pool; can be recovered via qi gathering when True Qi is full |
Stamina / Inner Breath | 体力 | Depleted by dodging and blocking; regenerates passively; halved when True Qi drops below 50% |
True Qi | 真气 | Increases when landing hits on enemies; decreases when struck or blocked; enables finishing techniques at full |
The True Qi system creates a risk-reward loop: aggressive play fills the meter and unlocks powerful finishers, while taking damage drains it and eventually penalizes stamina. At full True Qi, players can use 集气 (qi gathering) to recover health, though this has a casting time that leaves the player exposed. Enemies also have posture bars that break when depleted, similar to the system in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
Core combat mechanics
The four core mechanics are block, rebound, execution, and dodge. The developer describes the combat philosophy as 见招拆招 ("reading enemy moves and countering appropriately"), requiring mastery of rapid offensive-defensive transitions.
Martial arts connection
Dual-wielding has a long history in Chinese martial arts, with paired weapons like butterfly swords (hudiedao) featuring in southern kung fu styles. The game's dual blade combat fits within the wuxia tradition of stylized, fast-paced martial arts action.