Mortal Shell 2 Glossary: Every Term You'll Encounter
Combat & Defense
Harden
Turn to stone mid-swing to negate damage. One of your best defensive tools — can cancel swings and absorb hits. See the Harden guide.
Parry / Riposte
Time a guard to deflect an attack; a successful parry opens a Riposte counter. Core to several builds. See parry & riposte.
Seal
One of 4 equippable defensive styles: Guard, Harden, Parry, Slayer. They replace shields. See the 4 Seals.
Resolve
The meter powering both Shell abilities and Sidearms. Budget it as one shared resource. See Resolve.
Break / Stagger / Riposte stance
Breaking an enemy's stance staggers them and opens a punish window — central to fights with parry windows.
Progression & Currency
Shell
A playable "body" with its own stats, active ability and passive. There are 8 unlockable Shells. See all Shells.
Harbinger
Your base form before inhabiting a Shell — also upgradeable with Gloom. The tutorial Shell.
Gloom
XP/currency used to level the Harbinger and Shell points. Not used for weapon upgrades.
Glimpse
A progression currency used to unlock Shell Memories (lore). You need NG+ / NG++ to gather enough for all 40.
Ovum / Ova
Collectible eggs; a large share feeds the Gloom Siphon (Send Ova ending / NG+).
Beacon
Cleansable checkpoints tied to a regional puzzle. Cleanse all for the So Fresh, So Clean trophy.
Items & Upgrades
Tarstone
Equippable stones adding passives/actives to weapon, sidearm, Shell. 10 slots: 4 Support + 2 each Combat/Infusion/Ability. See Tarstones.
Tarforge
The upgrade station for weapons and Tarstones, run by Franz. Uses upgrade materials. See Tarforge.
Upgrade Materials
The ladder (Ventrium → Laterite → Dorsalite → Thoracium → Ossinite → Endless Core) used at the Tarforge. See materials.
Sidearm
A ranged weapon (crossbow, lute, launcher…) powered by Resolve. 8 total. See Sidearms.
❓ Glossary FAQ
- What's the difference between Gloom and Glimpse? Gloom is XP used to level the Harbinger and Shell points; Glimpse is used to unlock Shell Memories (lore), and you need NG+ / NG++ to gather enough for all of them.
- What is a Shell? A Shell is a playable body with its own stats, a signature active ability and a passive. There are 8 unlockable Shells.
- Why does the game have no shields? Defense works through the 4 Seals (Guard, Harden, Parry, Slayer) plus Harden and Parry timing — no shield slot exists.