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Overview
Katanas are Emma's primary melee weapon in Beast of Reincarnation. The game features multiple katanas that can be discovered through exploration, each with its own stat distribution, combo properties, and visual design. Katana combat is fast-paced and centred on the Parry System, where well-timed deflections generate FP for Koo's Command System and trigger Spirit Stones compounding effects.
Combat Role
Katana combat forms the real-time half of Beast of Reincarnation's hybrid system. Emma's sword strikes are responsive and fluid, with combo chains that vary depending on the equipped katana. The close-range skill tree enhances katana proficiency, improving damage output, combo length, and parry effectiveness. Players who invest in this path turn Emma into a melee specialist who generates FP rapidly through aggressive parry play.
Each katana has its own feel. Some favour speed with shorter recovery frames between swings, letting the player maintain pressure on enemies. Others hit harder but swing more slowly, rewarding players who commit to fewer, more deliberate strikes. The choice of katana affects not just raw damage numbers but the actual rhythm of combat.
Confirmed Katanas
Full Blade List
Blades carry two separate properties that are easy to confuse. The damage type is physical, one of slash, impact, or rupture, and governs how the hit lands. The elemental effect is what builds up a status condition on the target, and many blades have none at all. Base damage is omitted because it shifts with upgrade level and sources record different figures depending on how far a blade had been enhanced. Boss weaknesses are listed under Bosses.
Blade | Damage type | Elemental effect | Special ability | First reachable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mechblade (Standard) | Slash | None | Mech Slash: Medium, a temporary attack boost | Starting blade |
Mechblade (Light) | Rupture | None | Mech Slash: Light, an attack boost on lighter strikes | Chapter 1, Ogouchi Buffer Zone |
Mechblade (Heavy) | Impact | None | Mech Slash: Heavy | Chapter 2, Ancient Civilization Zone |
Purifier | Slash | None | Purifier Soul, reduces stagger taken when Emma is hit | Starting blade |
Purity | Slash | None | Vampiric Blade, recovers a share of damage dealt as health | Chapter 2, bought from a golem merchant |
Cirrus Sword | Impact | None | Chapter 1, Ogouchi Buffer Zone | |
Bell Sword | Impact | None | Crushing Blade, makes enemies easier to break | Chapter 3, bought from the wandering merchant |
Resonance Sword | Slash | None | Puppet's Call, small chance to turn foes into puppets | Chapter 5, Matsukawa Zone |
Kanzashi | Slash | None | Robes of Reincarnation, raises a barrier that restores health | New Game Plus only |
Shark Cutter | Slash | None | Spiral Critical, raises critical chance | Chapter 6, Fuji Frontier Zone |
First Moon | Slash | None | Ravenous Eclipse, applies stacking Weaken | Chapter 7, Giant Tree Zone |
Silverlight | Slash | None | Flurry, raises slash damage | Chapter 9, Inukami River Zone |
Slash | None | Lucky, increases amber gained from defeated foes | Deluxe Edition, available from the start | |
Thunderwave Sword | Not recorded | Lightning | Tempest, calls down lightning and adds lightning buildup | Chapter 2, Ancient Civilization Zone |
Fall Thunder | Not recorded | Lightning | Lightning Edge, charges the blade for heavier lightning buildup | Chapter 7, Giant Tree Zone |
Camellia | Impact | Lightning | Spring Thunder, crackles with lightning buildup | Chapter 12, aboard the Cleanse Walker after the Kunai fight |
Hunter's Sword | Not recorded | Poison | Envenomed, adds poison buildup on hit | Chapter 3, The Great Wall Terraces |
Black Blossom | Slash | Poison and lightning | Poison Storm, calls poison lightning for heavy poison buildup | Late-campaign story reward |
Sunrise Sword | Not recorded | Fire | Light of Dawn, blasts flame and adds flame buildup | Chapter 4, Pilgrim's Zone |
Winterwake | Rupture | Fire and lightning | Vermillion, calls flaming lightning | Chapter 8, bought from the wandering merchant |
Spring Storm | Rupture | Water | Turbulence, gushes water for heavy drench buildup | Chapter 8, Crater Zone |
Hazebringer | Not recorded | Acid | Caustic Touch, adds acid buildup on hit | Chapter 5, Matsukawa Zone |
Big Dipper, previously the only blade named in promotional material, is the Deluxe Edition starter weapon and sits in the roster above alongside the rest of the blades documented since release. The list is not guaranteed complete: the in-game milestone for collecting every blade is one of the rarest in the game, and independent post-launch rosters still differ at the margins.
Katana | Source | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Deluxe Edition starter weapon. | Named in the Deluxe Edition contents; visible in the pre-order trailer in active gameplay. Available at the start of the campaign for players on the Deluxe SKU; see Editions and Pre-Order Bonuses for the full bundle. | |
Starting katana | Standard Edition opening. | Default weapon Emma carries from the opening arc; specific name not yet disclosed in published material. |
In-game the category is labelled blades, and the collection milestone for gathering all of them is one of the game's rarest. Blades sit at two base attack tiers: the higher tier trades raw damage for a weaker status effect, while several lower-tier blades apply much heavier elemental buildup.
Where a blade carries an element, its physical damage type is not published separately, which is why those rows read as not recorded rather than as having no physical type. Two blades stand outside the exploration loop: Kanzashi is only obtainable on a New Game Plus run, and Camellia appears aboard the Cleanse Walker after the Kunai fight rather than being found in the world. Black Blossom is a late-campaign story reward, and post-launch guides disagree on which fight hands it over, so this page leaves the exact trigger open.
Parry-System Hook
Each Spirit Stone effect is designed to trigger on a successful parry, which makes the katana the engine of the entire customisation loop. The katana sets the tempo; the parry timing converts that tempo into resource.
Beat | What the Katana Drives |
|---|---|
Successful parry | Generates FP for Koo's command menu and fires the equipped Spirit Stone effect. |
Chained parries | Compound multiple Spirit Stone effects within the same exchange, so a katana with a fast recovery window stacks more triggers than a heavier blade in the same fight. |
Riposte and follow-up | The post-parry punish defines how much of the resource gained per parry actually translates into damage. Faster katanas extend the follow-up window; heavier ones convert a single window into more raw damage. |
Discovery
Like Charms, katanas are found through exploration rather than a linear upgrade path. The game's districts and zones contain hidden katanas in optional areas accessible through Plant Abilities. This means the order in which players find katanas varies depending on which areas they explore and how thoroughly they search each zone.
The discovery-based system means that katanas are not a simple better-or-worse progression. A katana found early might suit a particular playstyle better than one found later. The value of each weapon depends on the player's build, their Spirit Stone setup, and their preferred combat approach.
Spirit Stone Interaction
Armour offers between four and six Spirit Stone slots, with the starting Light Gambeson already carrying five, so the practical depth of a katana build comes from how its tempo lines up with the parry-driven Spirit Stone triggers. Two players carrying the same katana with different Spirit Stones effectively wield different weapons. One configuration might lean into critical-rate compounding for a burst-damage build; another might stack defensive triggers for a tankier parry loop. The katana itself sets the rhythm; the Spirit Stones decide what each parry actually rewards.
Build Pairings
Direction | Katana Tempo | Spirit Stone Anchor |
|---|---|---|
Burst aggressor | Faster katana with tight recovery, leaned into back-to-back parries. | Critical Rate stones to convert the parry chain into a damage spike window. |
Sustained brawler | Heavier katana whose single hits matter more than chain length. | Attack and Skill Power stones, with a smaller defensive cushion to survive the slower trade rhythm. |
Defensive anchor | Mid-speed katana run primarily for the parry trigger rather than for damage output. | HP and Defense stones to convert each parry into sustain rather than damage. |
Ranged Alternatives
While katanas are Emma's signature weapons, players are not locked into melee combat exclusively. Emma also has access to a bow and crossbow for ranged engagements. The long-range skill tree supports this alternative approach.
However, katanas remain the most direct path to FP generation through parrying, making them the natural choice for players who want to maximise their use of Koo's Bloom Arts. A pure ranged build can clear most encounters, but the loss of consistent parry triggers reduces both Spirit Stone activations and the command-resource refill rate for the dog side of the duo.