Where Winds Meet has a full gacha wardrobe, but a surprising amount of fashion never asks you for real money. Sets, standalone outfits, and hairstyles can all be earned through story progress, exploration, social systems, and long-term achievement grinds.
The trick is knowing which activities feed which cosmetic, so you can stop wandering blindly and start targeting the looks you actually want.
How cosmetics work in Where Winds Meet
Cosmetics are tied to the wardrobe system and sit on top of your gear. Body Outfits override the look of your entire armor set; you can’t mix individual armor pieces visually when a full-body outfit is equipped. Other appearance slots cover:
- Cosmetic Sets (outfit + hairstyle, often with accessories)
- Standalone outfits
- Hairstyles
- Hats and other accessories
- Mount skins and more
Every outfit in the wardrobe shows its unlock method. Scroll to the entry, select it, and you’ll see whether it comes from a sect shop, exploration reward, gacha banner, social currency, or an achievement.
Free cosmetic sets and where they come from
Sets are the fastest way to stop looking like a nameless wanderer. Many of them are technically “premium” but still obtainable without paying by playing long enough and using in-game currencies instead of cash.
| Set | How to unlock without real money |
|---|---|
| Novice Wanderer | Available by default at the start of the game. |
| Master Deceiver | Claimed from in-game mail as an Open Beta pre-registration reward. |
| Mountain Pine | Given as a Beta test reward. |
| Swaying Lotus | Delivered via mail as a pre-registration milestone reward. |
| First Step | Finish the “Another New Wing” main quest in the Heaven Has No Pier chapter. |
| Elegy of Petals | Draw it from the Solemn Echo permanent banner using Echo Jade. |
| Return of Spring | Draw it from the Solemn Echo permanent banner. |
| Crimson Curtain | Draw it from the Solemn Echo permanent banner. |
| Blazing Passes | Draw it from the Solemn Echo permanent banner. |
| Peaceful Life | Complete seven chapters of the A Warrior’s Journey progression. |
| Humble Hero | Reach level 61 on the Path of the Strong event track. |
| Blazing Midnight | Join Midnight Blades and buy it from that Sect’s shop. |
| Heavenly Frost | Join Well of Heaven and purchase it from the Sect shop. |
| Silent Current | Join Silver Needles and purchase it from the Sect shop. |
| Ninefold Freedom | Join Nine Mortal Ways and purchase it from the Sect shop. |
| Enlightened Mind | Spend 520 Cosmetic Chests in the Season Shop. |
| Chasing Red | Earn 520 Cosmetic Chests in the Still Shore Campaign to buy outfit + hair, or pull it randomly from campaign reward chests. |
| Bounty Hunter | Buy it with the currency from the Bounty Shop. |
| Sound of Valor | Reach level 5 exploration in Qinghe. |
| Opulent Grace | Reach level 5 exploration in Kaifeng. |
| Penstroke Posy | Level up the Scholar profession. |
| Art of Healing | Level up the Healer profession. |
| Gray Wolf | Use Adventure Slip in the Social Shop’s Wandering Paths tab. |
| Purple Dew | Also bought with Adventure Slip in Wandering Paths. |
| Loyal Heart | Spend Harmony Charm in the Social Shop’s Partnership tab. |
| Twin Swallows | Spend Harmony Charm in the Discipleship tab. |
| Still Moonlight | Spend Harmony Charm in the Sworn Cohort tab. |
| Flawed Harmony | Reach Partnership level 3. |
| Yaksha | Farm Sin Leaf in Perception Forest and trade it at the Sin Leaf Exchange. |
| Orchid Dew | Pick it up from the Guide Red Gold Boutique. |
| Alms Pilgrim | Finish the Hero & Beauty encounter near Bloomveil Monastery Outpost in Qinghe. |
| Forgotten | Complete both “Lifetime Lockup” and “Behind Bard Blues” achievements by serving roughly 200 hours in jail. |
All of these sets correspond to the names listed in the in-game cosmetics index: Celestial Mortal, Musical Grace, Bounty Hunter, Master Deceiver, and so on. Once unlocked, their outfits and hairstyles also show up individually under the Outfit and Hairstyle tabs, where you can mix pieces across sets if the game allows.
Free standalone outfits and how to unlock them
Some clothes don’t sit inside a named set. They either form simple looks for early-game players or act as small bonuses from story beats and seasonal tracks.
| Outfit | How to unlock |
|---|---|
| Novice Wanderer | Starting outfit available from the moment you enter the world. |
| Taming Storms | Finish the “A Horse Neighs in the Forest” quest during Heaven Has No Pier. |
| Jianghu: Wanderer | Pull it from the Solemn Echo permanent banner. |
| Blue Clouds | Buy it from the Season Shop, costing 360 Cosmetic Chests. |
| Autumn Orchid | Also purchased from the Season Shop for 360 Cosmetic Chests. |
| Bathrobe: Golden Threads | Earn the Golden Guest achievement (also listed as a Wandering Whispers achievement tier). |
Several other outfits listed under the game’s All Outfits view overlap with the set rewards above: Tranquil Bamboo, Green Vines, Enlightened Mind Outfit, Sound of Valor Outfit, mountain-themed sets, and more. When you see an outfit and a set sharing the same name, the set entry usually refers to the complete look, while the outfit entry is just the body piece.
Free hairstyles and how to claim them
Hair is where Where Winds Meet quietly hands you a lot of free customization. The game separates starter hairstyles from special styles earned later.
| Hairstyle | How to unlock |
|---|---|
| Hairstyles 1–12 | Pick one in character creation; unlock the rest by brushing your hair at the bronze mirror in Blissful Retreat every two in-game days. |
| Unbound: Hair | Draw it from the Solemn Echo permanent banner. |
Every named set (Crimson Curtain Hairstyle, Return of Spring Hairstyle, Elegy of Petals Hairstyle, and so on) also has its own hairstyle. Those unlock together with their parent sets or through the same banners and shops used to obtain the outfits.
Where the free currencies come from
Most of the cosmetics above do not ask for Echo Beads (the hard-currency equivalent). Instead, they lean on a web of soft currencies and progression tracks:
- Cosmetic Chests – earned from campaign chapters like Still Shore and Halo Peak, then spent in the Season Shop on outfits such as Enlightened Mind, Blue Clouds, Autumn Orchid, and Chasing Red.
- Exploration levels – each region has an Exploration rank; hitting level 5 in Qinghe unlocks Sound of Valor, while Kaifeng at level 5 unlocks Opulent Grace.
- Sect currencies – Sect dailies (Jianghu Errands) grant points that can be spent in Sect shops, even before you formally join; once you choose a Sect, those points go toward outfits like Heavenly Frost, Blazing Midnight, Silent Current, and Ninefold Freedom.
- Social currencies – Adventure Slip and Harmony Charm drip from co-op systems like Wandering Paths, Partnership, Discipleship, and Sworn Cohort, and fuel purchases like Gray Wolf, Purple Dew, Loyal Heart, Twin Swallows, and Still Moonlight.
- Profession XP – the Scholar and Healer professions directly unlock Penstroke Posy and Art of Healing as you rank them up.
- Events and battle passes – Path of the Strong and Battle Pass-style tracks hand over sets such as Humble Hero and Willow Breeze at higher tiers.
- Achievements and long-term grinds – jail-time cosmetics like Forgotten or achievement-linked outfits such as Bathrobe: Golden Threads are slow burns by design.
Echo Jade, the currency used for Solemn Echo draws, also trickles in through leveling, exploration, and events. That makes permanent-banner cosmetics like Elegy of Petals, Return of Spring, Crimson Curtain, Blazing Passes, Jianghu: Wanderer, and Unbound: Hair technically free if you’re willing to wait.
Farming free outfits efficiently
If the goal is to build a solid wardrobe without touching your wallet, a few activity patterns cover most of the list:
| Focus | What to prioritize | Key rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Main story and campaigns | Clear Heaven Has No Pier and push through Bodhi Sea, Blissful Retreat, Still Shore, and Halo Peak. | First Step, Taming Storms, Peaceful Life, Enlightened Mind, Blue Clouds, Chasing Red, Green Vines. |
| Exploration | Target 50%+ completion in Qinghe and Kaifeng, collecting Sentient Beings and chests. | Sound of Valor and Opulent Grace. |
| Sects and dailies | Run Jianghu Errands daily, preview each Sect shop before committing to one. | Heavenly Frost, Blazing Midnight, Silent Current, Ninefold Freedom, Tranquil Bamboo from Sectless shop. |
| Professions and co-op | Level Healer and Scholar, play Wandering Paths, and invest in Partner, Disciple, and Sworn Cohort links. | Art of Healing, Penstroke Posy, Gray Wolf, Purple Dew, Loyal Heart, Twin Swallows, Still Moonlight. |
| Achievements and oddities | Track Golden Guest, Wandering Whispers, and the jail-related achievement chains. | Bathrobe: Golden Threads, Forgotten and Forgotten: Rags. |
| Gacha (permanent banner) | Save Echo Jade and spend only on the Solemn Echo permanent cosmetic banner. | Elegy of Petals, Return of Spring, Crimson Curtain, Blazing Passes, Jianghu: Wanderer, Unbound: Hair. |
Checking unlock requirements inside the game
Whenever you see an outfit you like on another player or in the preview carousel, you don’t have to guess where it comes from. The wardrobe itself carries that answer:
- Open the Appearance or Outfit tab from the character menu.
- Select the outfit or set you’re interested in.
- Read the unlock line beneath it – it will list the campaign, shop, event, exploration rank, banner, or achievement you need.
Bottom rows in the outfit list skew heavily toward free unlocks, while many of the upper entries are tied to Echo Beads or limited banners. Working through the free entries in that lower band is an easy way to get several distinct looks early without touching premium currency.
Where Winds Meet spreads its best free fashion across almost every system: main quests, exploration, sect politics, co-op bonds, professions, events, and even the jail. The more of those systems you touch, the less your wardrobe feels like it came from the starter village, and the more it starts to look like a long-running wuxia legend.
