Soul Cores Guide

In Nioh 2 Soul Cores are special items that hold remnants of a Yokai's power. Soul Cores are obtained from certain Yokai enemies when you defeat them and can be used by attuning them with your Guardian Spirit to add magical attacks to your combat repertoire. These attacks consume Anima (the purple gauge on your HUD) and usually mimic the Yokai they came from. Check out our Soul Cores Guide to find out everything you need to know about them.

Where to Find Soul Cores

In Nioh 2 there is a possibility of getting a Soul Core by defeating the non-human Yokai you encounter. You will be guaranteed a Soul Core drop if the Yokai you kill is a boss. Check out our Where to Farm Soul Cores guide to find out where you can find these items.

How to Use Soul Cores

A Soul Core needs to be purified before it can be used. When you pick up a Soul Core as a drop it will be impure and the only way it can be purified and ready to use is to take it to a Shrine and Pray. When you select 'Manage Soul Cores' at a Shrine you will be given three options: Attune Soul Cores, Soul Fusion, and Resting Rites. If you select Attune Soul Cores you will be able to pick which Soul Cores you want to assign to each of your Guardian Spirits as Yokai Abilities. When you then use a Yokai Ability it will consumes Anima (the purple meter in the top left of your HUD). To recharge Anima you need to land melee attacks on enemies.

What is Soul Fusion

Soul Fusion is when you improve the stats of your Soul Cores by feeding one Soul Core to another at a Shrine. To perform this process you choose the Soul Core you want to improve and the one you want to feed it. Before you proceed with the Fusion will be shown what the outcome will be on the right of your screen. You can only fuse Soul Cores from the same Yokai and the fusion will not change the Level, Attack, or Defense of a Soul Core. A successful Soul Fusion will increase the the Soul Core Rank which will make it more powerful by improving its Special Effects. A Soul Core's Rank can only be increased to 9 and this can only be achieved by feeding a higher level Soul Core.

What are Resting Rites

The Resting Rites option destroys Soul Cores and converts them into Soul Fragments. Collecting enough Soul Fragments will earn you a Shiftling Skill Point which you can then spend in the Lean Skills tab of your menu. These skills add new abilities to your Yokai forms and change how your Anima is used and refilled.

Check out our What are Kodamas guide to find out more about this character and how they can give you Elixirs and help you clear your inventory of useless items.