Where Winds Meet doesn't use a traditional class system. Instead, your combat identity is shaped entirely by the weapons you carry and the martial arts tied to them. You can equip two martial arts at once, mixing offensive and defensive styles to create your own build. The system has layers — weapon types, martial art paths, individual weapon martial arts, and the gear items themselves — but once you understand how they connect, the flexibility is impressive.
Quick answer: There are seven weapon types (Sword, Spear, Dual Blades, Fan, Umbrella, Mo Blade, and Rope Dart), each with two associated martial arts, totaling 14 martial art weapons on the global version. You unlock most of them through Skill Theft missions or by joining Sects.
All Seven Weapon Types in Where Winds Meet
Weapon types are broad categories. Every weapon item and every martial art belongs to one of these seven families. You can switch weapon types freely by equipping a different weapon in the Gear menu, but you still need both a physical weapon item of that type and an unlocked martial art to actually fight with it.
| Weapon Type | Combat Role(s) | Associated Martial Arts |
|---|---|---|
| Sword | Melee DPS | Nameless Sword, Strategic Sword |
| Spear | Melee DPS / Tank | Nameless Spear, Heavenquaker Spear, Stormbreaker Spear |
| Dual Blades | Melee DPS | Infernal Twinblades |
| Fan | Ranged DPS / Heal | Inkwell Fan, Panacea Fan |
| Umbrella | Ranged DPS / Heal / AoE Control | Vernal Umbrella, Soulshade Umbrella, Everspring Umbrella |
| Mo Blade | Tank | Thundercry Blade |
| Rope Dart | Melee DPS / AoE Control | Mortal Rope Dart, Unfettered Rope Dart |
Each weapon within a type has a completely different skill set. The Nameless Sword throws wave projectiles, for instance, while the Strategic Sword focuses on bleed damage — even though both are swords. Choosing a weapon type is only the first decision; the martial art you pair with it defines your actual playstyle.
Martial Art Paths and What They Do
Martial arts are grouped into seven paths. Each path contains two weapons, and the path determines the general combat philosophy — whether you're built for burst damage, sustained DPS, healing, tanking, or crowd control. Here's how they break down.
Bellstrike – Splendor (Mobility / Single-Target Burst)
Centered on charged attacks and free movement around the battlefield. Excels against bosses and in single-target scenarios. The two weapons under this path are the Nameless Sword and Nameless Spear, both of which are unlocked by default at the start of the game.
Bellstrike – Umbra (Mobility / Bleed Damage)
Retains the Bellstrike emphasis on mobility and single-target focus but swaps burst damage for damage-over-time through bleeding effects. Uses the Strategic Sword and Heavenquaker Spear.
Silkbind – Deluge (Support / Healing)
A fully supportive path. You can heal in an area, resurrect downed allies, and provide damage buffs between cooldowns. The Panacea Fan and Soulshade Umbrella belong here.
Silkbind – Jade (Ranged DPS / Airborne Combat)
Focused on ranged attacks and airborne skills that keep you away from danger. One of the hardest martial art paths to master, requiring precise timing for combos. Strong in 1v1 duels but weaker against groups. Weapons are the Inkwell Fan and Vernal Umbrella.
Bamboocut – Wind (Sustained Melee DPS)
All about overwhelming enemies with rapid consecutive attacks. Delivers high DPS and mobility but offers essentially zero survivability — you live or die by your offense. Uses the Infernal Twinblades and Mortal Rope Dart.
Stonesplit – Might (Tank / AoE Damage)
The survivability path. Grants damage reduction, immobilization resistance, shields, and AoE attacks that handle multiple enemies well. The Stormbreaker Spear (which taunts) and Thundercry Blade (which delivers heavy charged blows) fill this role.
Bamboocut – Dust (Crowd Control / AoE)
Built for dealing with large groups through battlefield control, stackable buffs and debuffs, and time manipulation. Most attacks are ranged AoE. The Everspring Umbrella and Unfettered Rope Dart are the weapons here.
All 14 Martial Art Weapons and How to Unlock Them
The global version of Where Winds Meet has 14 martial art weapons spread across those seven paths. Each weapon has its own skill set, including main skills, basic attacks, and charged attacks, plus a talent tree that unlocks as you upgrade. Two weapons — the Nameless Sword and Nameless Spear — are available from the start. The Stormbreaker Spear arrives through in-game mail early on. Everything else requires either Skill Theft or joining a Sect.
| Weapon | Path | Type | How to Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nameless Sword | Bellstrike – Splendor | Melee DPS | Unlocked by default |
| Nameless Spear | Bellstrike – Splendor | Melee DPS | Unlocked by default |
| Stormbreaker Spear | Stonesplit – Might | Tank | Received via in-game mail |
| Strategic Sword | Bellstrike – Umbra | Melee DPS | Skill Theft at Strategic Sword Sanctum |
| Heavenquaker Spear | Bellstrike – Umbra | Melee DPS | Skill Theft at Raging Tides Martial Sanctum; or join Raging Tides Sect |
| Infernal Twinblades | Bamboocut – Wind | Melee DPS | Skill Theft at Midnight Mercy Sanctum; join Midnight Mercy Sect; or from Qi Sheng (first Oddity) |
| Inkwell Fan | Silkbind – Jade | Ranged DPS | Skill Theft at Inkwell Fan Sanctum; or join Silver Needle Sect |
| Vernal Umbrella | Silkbind – Jade | Ranged DPS | Skill Theft at Time Tower; join Velvet Shade Sect; or from Qi Sheng (first Oddity) |
| Panacea Fan | Silkbind – Deluge | Heal | Skill Theft at Panacea Fan Sanctum; join Silver Needle Sect; or from Qi Sheng (first Oddity) |
| Soulshade Umbrella | Silkbind – Deluge | Heal | Skill Theft at Soulshade Umbrella Post Station; or join Hollow Vale Sect |
| Mortal Rope Dart | Bamboocut – Wind | Melee DPS | Complete "The Art of Skill Theft" exploration quest in Kaifeng; or join Nine Mortal Ways Sect |
| Thundercry Blade | Stonesplit – Might | Tank | Skill Theft at Well of Heaven Martial Camp; join Well of Heaven Sect; or from Qi Sheng (first Oddity) |
| Everspring Umbrella | Bamboocut – Dust | AoE Control | Join Velvet Shade Sect |
| Unfettered Rope Dart | Bamboocut – Dust | AoE Control | Join Nine Mortal Ways Sect |
How Skill Theft Works
Most martial arts are obtained through Skill Theft, a stealth-based mission where you infiltrate a faction's base and observe a master practicing the technique you want to learn. These missions require a Dragon Key (also called a Loong Key), which you earn by clearing outposts in the open world.
Step 1: Open the Develop menu and click one of your equipped Martial Arts to enter the Martial Arts list. Select the weapon you want to unlock, then choose "Obtain." The game will mark the Skill Theft mission location on your map.
Step 2: Travel to the marked location and use a Dragon Key on the mechanism at the entrance to open the dungeon.
Step 3: Sneak through the area without being detected. You won't be fighting — this is purely a stealth challenge. The Mystic Skills Touch of Death, Veil of Stillness, and Wind Sense are extremely useful here. Touch of Death lets you silently eliminate patrolling guards.
Step 4: Reach the observation point and start the Skill Theft mini-game. Golden rings will appear on screen, and you need to press the capture button when they show up. Grey rings are decoys — ignore them. Successfully completing the sequence unlocks the martial art.
Step 5: Leave the area to complete the quest. While you're inside, look for chests — they often contain weapon items compatible with the martial art you just unlocked.
Joining Sects to Learn Martial Arts
The alternative to Skill Theft is joining a Sect. Each Sect teaches its own martial art when you become a member. You can join and leave Sects freely, but finding them requires gathering clues scattered throughout the world. Check the Sects Menu in-game to review the clues you've collected and track down the elders who can invite you in.
Some martial arts — like the Everspring Umbrella and Unfettered Rope Dart — can only be obtained by joining the Velvet Shade Sect and Nine Mortal Ways Sect, respectively, with no Skill Theft alternative listed.
Equipping and Upgrading Weapons
Unlocking a martial art doesn't mean you're ready to fight. You also need an actual weapon item of the correct type in your inventory. Weapon items drop from chests, outpost raids, quests, and general exploration. Once you have one, go to the martial art you unlocked and equip it — or open your inventory and equip it directly from there.
If you switch between martial arts that share the same weapon type (for example, swapping from Nameless Sword to Strategic Sword), you don't need a new weapon item. However, some weapon items have stats that favor one martial art over another, so it's worth checking your options.
Upgrading martial arts uses Zhou Coins and Training Items, both of which are farmable from defeating enemies. Your martial art level can't exceed your character level. Every 10 levels, a breakthrough is required, which costs Tips, Training Items, and Zhou Coins. Tips can be purchased from the Activity Shop using Jade Fish — look for "Martial Arts – Custom Tips" — but you're limited to 15 Custom Tips per week.
Upgrading increases your overall damage output and improves specific aspects of your skills and talents. If a weapon grants a shield, for example, upgrading makes that shield stronger.
Weapon Attack Structure
Every weapon in Where Winds Meet follows the same control framework, though the actual moves differ completely between martial arts.
| Attack Type | Input (KBM / Gamepad) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Light Attack | Left Click / Right Trigger | Basic combo string, unique per weapon |
| Heavy Attack | Hold Attack / Charge variant | Often has a charged version with different properties |
| Martial Art Skill | Q / X (▢) | Cooldown-based, costs Endurance |
| Special Skill | ` / Y (△) | Cooldown-based, costs Endurance |
| Dual-Weapon Skill | TAB / A (✖) | Switches between your two equipped weapons; no Endurance cost |
All weapons also share universal Basic Martial Arts like Jump Strike and Deflection, though the animations are unique to each weapon type. As you upgrade, you unlock Martial Arts Talents — passive bonuses that improve attack effectiveness or strengthen your character while using that specific weapon.
The weapon system in Where Winds Meet rewards experimentation. Since you can equip two martial arts simultaneously and swap between them mid-combat with Dual-Weapon Skills, the real depth comes from finding complementary pairs — pairing a Stonesplit tank weapon with a Silkbind healer, or combining two Bamboocut DPS options for relentless aggression. Keep collecting Dragon Keys, explore every Sect lead you find, and you'll eventually have the full roster of 14 martial arts at your disposal.