Upgrade Your Shards
Mashing the attack button is fun and all, but making use of the Shard skills is where the real damage potential lies in Bloodstained Ritual of the Night.
In the first level, you’re given a quick tutorial about how Shards work, and you’ll be able to equip different ones from the character menu. Once you clear the first level and Johannes sets up shop in the village, you’ll be able to start upgrading Shards as well.
In the beginning, most Shards can be upgraded very easily, as you only need multiple of the same Shard types to enhance them. Later on, it gets a bit tougher, as you’ll need to farm materials like Steel and other monster drops. However, the early Shard boosts can give you a serious increase in power to help you coast through the early areas of the game very easily.
The Cerulean Splash Shard you get from the first stage of the game is awesome when upgraded, and you’ll also want to keep an eye out for the Heretical Grinder Shard when you get to the castle.