Mortal Shell 2 Night Mode Secrets and Changes Explained

Night Mode is an optional high-difficulty setting in Mortal Shell 2 that you can switch on and off at will. It makes enemies far deadlier, but it also pays out more Gloom and opens areas, items, and encounters that stay hidden during the day.

Quick answer: Grab the Gloombound Flame near the Great Arbiter of Flesh at Widow’s Overlook, take it to the top of Marrow Keep, light the extinguished lantern, then tell Thestus to “Call forth the Night.” The screen blacks out and displays “Night Summoned” once it is active.

How to turn on Night Mode in Mortal Shell 2

Activating Night Mode requires a single key item and one trip back to your hub. Follow the sequence below.

Head to the Widow’s Overlook beacon in Fainweald and go down the sloping path toward the muddy graveyard where you fight the Great Arbiter of Flesh. The Gloombound Flame sits on a stone stele southeast of the beacon, right in that arena. Grab it and retreat before the miniboss punishes you.

Travel back to Marrow Keep and take the elevator to the top of the tower. Look for the extinguished lantern and interact with it, then choose “Yes” when prompted to light it with the Gloombound Flame.

Lighting the lantern summons Thestus, the NPC who controls the shift between day and night. Exhaust his dialogue until you reach the “Call forth the Night” option and confirm it. The screen darkens for a moment and “Night Summoned” appears, confirming Night Mode is live.

Player speaking with Thestus beside a lit brazier at Marrow Keep to summon the night — Talking to Thestus at the lantern on top of Marrow Keep to trigger Night Mode. Image credit: Playstack / LunarGaming

To return to standard difficulty, speak to Thestus again at the top of Marrow Keep and pick “Seek Daylight.” You can toggle between the two states as often as you like.

What Night Mode changes about combat and rewards

Night Mode darkens the world and scales up every enemy. Foes gain a large boost to health and damage, some move faster, and stronger groups can appear. In exchange, kills drop more Gloom, which makes the mode a viable way to farm resources for leveling once your build can survive the hits.

Effect	Change under Night Mode
Enemy health	Roughly +100%
Enemy damage	Roughly +100%
Gloom reward	Around +20% per kill
Glimpse drops	Increased in the areas where you met each Shell

The health and damage figures are close estimates measured in play, so treat them as a guide rather than exact values. Because a single strong attack can flatten a low-HP shell, upgrade your weapons and sidearms as much as possible before switching over.

Note: Some areas display a riddle that reads, “By the light of day, the truth remains sealed. And yet in darkness all shall be revealed.” That message marks a secret that only becomes visible at night, such as the tattered note tucked inside Garrick’s Den in the starting cave area.

Armored shell moving through a dark cave passage toward a torchlit opening in Garrick's Den — Garrick’s Den hides a night-only note behind the cave passage in the tutorial area. Image credit: Playstack

The Collector merchant at the Abandoned Outpost

While Night Mode is active, a merchant called The Collector sets up shop at the Abandoned Outpost Beacon in the Deserted Slums. He carries four Tarstones, a stack of Glimpse, Thoracium, and a Blackmarrow Key. Nothing here is missable through normal play, but the Tarstones and key are convenient one-stop buys.

Map screen highlighting the ruined outpost location where The Collector merchant appears at night — The Abandoned Outpost Beacon in the Deserted Slums, where The Collector trades only at night. Image credit: Playstack

Item	Price
Fulminant Stone	1500 Coins
Infested Stone	1500 Coins
Weeping Stone	1500 Coins
Infused Stone	1500 Coins
Glimpse (x3)	500 Coins each
Thoracium (x2)	2500 Coins each
Blackmarrow Key (x1)	1500 Coins

Gloombound Ritualists duo boss at Revenant Graves

Return at night to the spot at Revenant Graves where you found Genessa’s Sester’s Sencer. The area now hosts a two-part boss fight against the Gloombound Ritualists, and clearing it also awards three extra Glimpses. Shells, weapons, and sidearms are not locked behind this fight, so it is optional challenge content rather than a progression gate.

Shrine of Sorrows dungeon walkthrough

Night Mode unlocks the Shrine of Sorrows, a first-person dungeon near Mushroom Village. Interact with the giant glowing mushroom to accept the invite and drop into the misty entrance. Full completion nets a Blackmarrow Key and a Touch of Noche, plus a Dorsalite from an early side chest.

Map screen with the Ritual Grounds dungeon near Mushroom Village highlighted for entry — The Ritual Grounds mushroom fissure near Mushroom Village is the entrance to the Shrine of Sorrows. Image credit: Playstack

After entering, move forward until you spot a cabin, but do not go in yet. Turn right and follow the cliffside to collect a Ventrium.

Head back and go left toward a well. Light both candles below it plus the one beside the stone chest to unlock the chest and take one Dorsalite.

Enter the cabin and interact with the cauldron to receive the Tempered Iron Key. Use it to open the first room off the hall.

Interact with the body inside to get the Moonlight Sonata, then enter the newly opened room on the left and grab the Sunlight Sonata from the floor.

Place both books on the ritual table by the coffin. This opens the previously sealed area in the yard with the large tree.

Face the impaled head, spin fully around, look at it again, and repeat the process one more time. You are then transported to a new area.

Move forward and take the Starlight Sonata from the grave, then repeat the spin-and-face trick once more to return to the shack.

Go to the altar in the cabin and place the third book to spawn an Alluring Mushroom. Pick it up, add it to the cauldron, and drink.

Enter the shack again and collect the Basement Key. Use it on the door glowing red light and head down to witness the witches’ ritual.

Examine the area, then turn around to be sent back and complete the Shrine of Sorrows. You receive the Blackmarrow Key and Touch of Noche on clearing it.

Forgotten Tower and the three gland locations

The Forgotten Tower holds a revered corpse that accepts the Thawed, Depleted, and Faded Glands. Offer all three at night and it hands over the Seedbearer’s Scripture, a permanent pickup that triggers a unique interaction during a key phase of the final boss fight. Collect every gland first, then bring them here together.

Map screen with the Forgotten Tower location marker highlighted near the center-right — The Forgotten Tower marker, where you offer the three glands for the Seedbearer’s Scripture. Image credit: Playstack / LunarGaming

Gland	Where to find it
Thawed Gland	Conquered Temple Gate. Follow the starting path past the traversal gate, ignore the path on the right and drop into the crevice below. Cross it and enter the room on the left by the Subjugated Sentry to find the gland on a pedestal. Frost resistance (Sester Cerresa, Tiel, or a Frost-resistant Eredrim) helps.
Faded Gland	On an altar below the Fated Citadel’s (Gate of Infinity) Citadel Annex Beacon. The surrounding enemies can overwhelm and one-shot low-HP shells.
Depleted Gland	In the Withered Shoals. Reach it by clearing the Gate of Mammon beacon, then turn around after dropping onto the platform you fall from to face the Hexapod.

With Night Mode active, you also gain access to night-only achievements, so the mode is required for full completion. Explore each area during the day first to learn its layout, then flip to night with Thestus when you want the extra rewards, the exclusive fights, and the secrets that only surface in the dark.