Everyone who starts out Type Soul has a single question: how to get Shikai and how to do it in the fastest possible way. We’ve broken the whole process down and included tips that’ll get you from trainee to Grade 2 with Shikai in just over an hour. So, let’s dive straight into it.
Type Soul Basics
I’m assuming that some of you will be completely new to Type Soul, so here is a quick list of all the most essential mechanics you’ll need to get going in this experience (these are all for Soul Reapers). If you’re familiar with all of these, just skip to the Trainee -> Grade 3 section.
Controls
- Left Alt – Locks your mouse and camera, making it easier to fight (sometimes you need to click it twice)
- LMB – Attack
- J – Shikai
- Ctrl + J – Reaper transformation
- Q – Dash
- Z X C – Shikai Moves
- R – Critical
- N – Inventory/Skill tree
- M – Meditate
- P – Purify Lost Soul
- B – Grip (execute)
- V – Carry
- Comma – Toggle map markers inside Soul Society
How to Unlock, Equip, and Use Skills
To see the skill trees and your inventory in Type Soul, press N on your keyboard. There are several skill trees, and the skills are ordered by their requirements, with the lowest on the top and highest on the bottom. You can, by default, learn Soul Style and Flashstep by clicking on them and then Learn Skill on the left (you don’t need to equip these as they are passives).
How to Teleport Between Karakura Town and Soul Society
Another skill you unlock by default is Senkaimon, which is in the special skills tree. You can equip it by clicking on it, then Equip on the left, and finally, select one of the quick slots. Use it by pressing the designated quick slot’s key and then enter the gate to move between worlds.
How to Get Shikai in Type Soul Fast Guide
How to Go From Trainee to Grade 3 Quickly
First, the single best way to go from trainee to Grade 3 in Type Soul is to farm missions. You can get them from literally any mission board, and they most often require you to kill a couple of Friskers. This is probably the most time-consuming part of getting Shikai in Type Soul after the Shikai fights, of course. More on that later, but for now, find a quest board and start spamming missions.
Fastest Way to Get Grade 2 in Type Soul
After you’ve hit Grade 3, you’ll need to join a Division. These are required to get Grade 2, as well as a Shikai in Type Soul. Each division has its own Division Duties, which are basically mini-quests, and the 12th Division’s quest is an Osu!-like mini-game. This mini-game is the easiest way to farm Division EXP and get Grade 2 in Type Soul, and the one we’ll exploit.
Joining 12th Division
To join the 12th Division, make sure you’re in Soul Society, turn on map markers (Comma on keyboard), and look for the thistle-shaped insignia. Make your way to that building, and on the bottom floor, you’ll find the division NPC you can use to join the 12th.
How to Leave Your Division
In case you’re already in a division, you’ll have to leave it to join the 12th. You can also just do your current division’s duties, but they are 100% harder than this one. Anyway, the division leave NPC is close to the Jidanbo boss spawn (you can see him in the image above; the boss spawns next to the two tall towers in the middle of Soul Society, and he can get aggro on you, so be careful).
Division Assignments
Once you’ve joined the 12th, your next goal is the Division Duty mini-game, which is in the room right next to the division NPC. Click on the duty board and accept it to start the mini-game (if you’re not Grade 3, you won’t be able to do this). Just click on Hollows that appear till the mini-game ends, and you’ll get your EXP. You’ll need about 6/7 games for Semi-Grade 2 and about the same for Grade 2.
How to Check Your EXP
If you want to check how much EXP you’ve got left before you grade up, you can do that at the hospital in Karakura Town. The hospital is located next to the bridge, as shown in the image above, and you’ll see the NPC just as you enter the door. Interact with the girl and pay her 1,000 kan to check your EXP.
How to Beat the Shikai Boss and Get Shikai
Once you’ve completed the mini-game 15 or so times, you’ll finally reach Grade 2 in Type Soul, and that means you’ll be just an inch (more like a mile) away from getting your Shikai. Here is what you’ll have to do for that.
How to Access Your Inner World
First, you’ll have to access your Inner World. To do that, you must meditate 6 times in a row, 5 minutes each (30 minutes total). Your character will stand up after each 5-minute period passes, so you don’t have to worry about timing. Just make sure you start meditating again.
After you finish the last meditation, meditate once more, and you’ll be teleported to your Shikai World. This is where you’ll find your Shikai, which you’ll have to fight to get its abilities. Talk to him five times to start the boss fight.
Shikai Boss Fight Walkthrough
Preparation
The Shikai boss fight is one of the hardest things you’ll encounter in Type Soul, but there is a cheesy way to do it. First, you’ll have to reroll your element to wind/water (if you used the codes, you should have over 100 rerolls). These are the only two that I know are easy. Ask around the Discord server about others.
Second, use a blue pill if you need to and put all your points into Kendo (use two red pills, too, so you have 35 skill points). Again, this is the one I can guarantee is easy and works. Take Overpowering Slash, Vertical Down, Split Gate, and Bisection, and put them into quick slots. These are the only ones you’ll be needing.
Cheese Tactic
Third, you’ll want to practice the cheese tactic, which goes like this:
- As the combat starts, you’ll lock your camera (Alt) and then Flashstep backward (Shift + S + Q).
- Next, wait for the Shikai’s Flashstep to close in and then buffer your Crit (R).
- Once they are stunned, throw in one of the equipped skills and Flashstep backward again.
- Repeat this until you kill it. You can also try kiting it a bit with Bisection if it stops Flashstepping, just to reset it.
Fight
Now incorporate everything you’ve read above into your gameplay and beat that thing. It uses moves similar to yours, though the element will add a couple of its own, too. So, be on your guard, re-read the cheese tactic again if you need to, and be patient. Also, special thanks to @ZRGforce for helping me out with the strategy for this fight.
How to Retry The Shikai Boss Fight
If you lose, you’ll have to retry the fight, which you can do after a 10-minute cooldown passes. Then, just meditate again, and you’ll be thrown back to your Shikai world. You can also reset the cooldown quicker by gripping a player from one of the other two factions.
How to Use Your Shikai in Type Soul
Once you’ve received your Shikai, it’s time to use it. To activate it, just click J on your keyboard. Then, you’ll get to use the three special skills indicated on the bottom right of the in-game UI. You use each one from top to bottom by pressing Z, X, and C. Each of those has a separate cooldown, so use them smartly.
Well, that wraps this guide on the fastest way to get Shikai in Type Soul. If you found all the above info helpful, be sure to hit that bookmark button. That way, you’ll always be just one click away from an inexhaustible list of video game guides, news, codes, and more.
