Wuchang: Fallen Feathers features a massive skill tree filled with nodes to invest in, which can passively increase your stats, improve your special attacks, or even upgrade how many healing charges you get from your Manna Vase. Best of all, every skill you buy can be refunded with a simple press of a button, meaning you can experiment to your heart’s content with different builds and strategies.
While you may want to try new things as you work your way through the game, you’ll be more limited in the opening hours of the game. And that’s why I think you’ll definitely want to unlock the early skills below so you’ll be prepared for everything Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is going to throw at you.
Note: These skills are easily bought during the opening hours of the game when you have a limited set of weapons. As such, I chose to focus on the Longsword skill tree due to its strong potential for stunning enemies and dealing reasonably fast damage compared to heavier weapons you may discover in the first few areas. If you find that you prefer a different weapon a few hours into the game, rest assured there are comparable skills early in their skill trees, too.
Skyborn Call I
Skyborn Call I is the node located directly to the left of Illusive, which is unlocked by default.
This skill will increase your maximum Skyborn Might charges by one. Since Skyborn Might is among the most important parts of your kit, you’ll want to grab this one as soon as possible. With more Skyborn Might at your disposal, you can use magic more often (as well as wield stronger spells) or unleash multiple powerful melee skills in a row.
Manna Capacity & Manna Potency
Manna Capacity and Manna Potency nodes are located directly above and below Skyborn Call I, respectively.
These skills do exactly what you’d expect: increase your Manna Vase’s number of uses and healing power. But they don’t require Red Mercury Essence to purchase. Instead, you’ll need special items found while exploring: Forgotten Remembrance and Lost Remains. You can find quite a few of these throughout your adventure, but I pointed out two early locations in our beginning tips guide. So, check that out if you haven’t found them yet.
You’ll find multiple other Manna Capacity and Manna Potency nodes throughout the skill tree as well, each offering three tiers of upgrades (meaning three upgrades per node), so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to increase your capacity and healing power.
Sword Saint
Sword Saint is a node located in the Longsword tree located directly beneath Blink Kick.
This skill grants you a single stack of Skyborn Might after the second hit of your Longsword light attack combo. Since this combo is quick and easy to pull off, it makes for an excellent early pickup to ensure that you can keep stacks of Skyborn Might rolling in consistently. You’ll be especially happy to have this once you combine it with the skill below.
Windforce
Windforce is a node located in the Longsword tree purchaseable after buying Sword Saint and two Strength upgrades.
This skill allows you to use a charged heavy attack much more quickly if you have a stack of Skyborn Might. Thanks to Sword Saint helping you consistently build stacks alongside any you get from dodging well, you can pull off these charged heavy attacks with frequency. Doing so will let you stun enemies for critical attacks more quickly, with it being especially effective against small-to-medium-sized human foes.
Strong Blade
Strong Blade nodes are located in the Longsword tree that can be found on either side of Windforce after buying an adjacent node (either Vitality or Endurance).
Regardless of which node you choose, this skill will level up the mastery of the Longsword and increase its damage. But it doesn’t require Red Mercury Essence to purchase. Instead, you’ll need Faint Red Feathers, which you’ll find by exploring thoroughly and defeating specific enemies. One example is a little creature in a jar that spits poison at you. They’re often found down optional pathways or lurking in corners among debris.
You’ll find more Strong Blade nodes throughout the skill tree as well, each offering three tiers of upgrades (meaning three upgrades per node), so you’ll get more chances to increase the damage of your weapon as you venture further into the game. As you level these higher, however, you’ll need more advanced upgrade materials (feathers).
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is available now on PS5, Xbox Series S/X, and Windows PCs.
