Mortal Shell 2: Splitting Stone Location and Multi-Shot Effect

Sidearms in Mortal Shell 2 are usually a one-shot-at-a-time affair, and every shot eats Resolve. The Splitting Stone changes that math. It is a Combat Tarstone that splits a single sidearm shot into several projectiles, and it does not charge you any extra Resolve for the privilege.

Quick answer: Loot the Splitting Stone from the chest inside the Lonesome Spire, the building directly east of the Gate of Mammon beacon in the Outskirts of Mammon region.

Splitting Stone location: route from the Outskirts of Mammon beacon

The Outskirts of Mammon is late-game territory, so expect enemies that hit considerably harder than anything in Fainweald. If you already have the Gate of Mammon beacon lit, skip straight to the final step and fast travel there.

Fast travel to the Outskirts of Mammon beacon. This is your starting anchor for the whole run, and it keeps the trip short if you die along the way.

Head into the forest and follow the path across the bridges until you reach the Abandoned Outpost beacon. Light it before pushing on, because the fights get denser from here.

The Harbinger running down a forest path past a large tree with enemies ahead — The forest run toward the Abandoned Outpost, with enemies clustered around the large tree on the path. Image: Cold Symmetry

Continue past the enemy groups and climb the cliffs to reach the High Lord’s Terrace beacon. Running past most of these fights is viable if you would rather not burn healing items.

Player character walking through a narrow stone corridor with two enemies ahead — A narrow stone corridor on the climb, with two enemies blocking the way through. Image: Cold Symmetry

Push on to the Gate of Mammon and light that beacon. Open your map to confirm the beacon is registered, since it becomes the fastest return point if you want to come back and farm the area later.

Armored character crossing a flooded courtyard toward a closed castle gate — The flooded courtyard leading up to the closed gate at the Gate of Mammon. Image: Cold Symmetry

Map screen with the Gate of Mammon beacon selected and labeled — The map screen with the Gate of Mammon beacon selected — the Lonesome Spire sits to its east. Image: Cold Symmetry

From the beacon, move east to the Lonesome Spire. The Splitting Stone is inside a chest in that building, and looting it is all you need to do.

You will know it worked when the pickup prompt names the Splitting Stone and it appears under your Combat Tarstones. Nothing else needs to be triggered, and there is no boss gating the chest.

What the Splitting Stone does and which sidearms accept it

The effect is short and blunt. Your sidearm fires multiple projectiles per shot without consuming additional Resolve. That last part is the reason the stone is worth a slot at all — you get a spread of hits for the same Resolve cost as a single bolt.

Sidearm firing a spread of projectiles at an enemy during combat — A single sidearm trigger pull sending out a spread of projectiles with the Splitting Stone infused. Image: Cold Symmetry

It is a Sidearm-only Tarstone, so it will not slot into a primary weapon or a Shell. Three sidearms take it.

Compatible sidearm
Forgotten Crossbow
Caged Hystrix
Troubadour’s Lute

Each upgrade tier adds one more projectile and shaves the damage of every individual projectile. Total output per shot goes up, but each pellet lands for less, which matters against enemies with heavy damage resistance or when you are trying to break posture with a single clean hit.

Tier	Projectiles per shot	Damage per projectile
First	2	Roughly 55–70% of base
Second	3	Roughly 40–60% of base
Third	4	Roughly 35–50% of base

Note: the exact percentages have shifted between versions of the game, so treat the numbers on your own Tarstone description as the authoritative ones. The projectile counts have stayed consistent.

How to upgrade the Splitting Stone at the Tarforge

Out of the box, the Tarforge in the Marrow Keep cannot push the Splitting Stone past its base tier. You need to hand Franz the Etching Needle first, a quest item that unlocks the higher upgrade options for every Tarstone.

Grab the Etching Needle from the chest sitting just before the Magdalena, the Lady of the Woods boss arena. Once you spot Ruk past the bridge, drop through the opening and turn right before the tunnel to find a small alcove with a bone chest.

Take the Etching Needle to Franz at the Tarforge in the Marrow Keep and hand it over. His upgrade menu will expand to cover the higher levels.

Equip the Splitting Stone and kill enemies with it slotted in. Tarstones gain experience only while they are equipped, so swapping it out stalls the progress bar.

When the experience bar fills, return to Franz and pay the Coin cost to move the stone to the next level. Repeat for each tier.

If Franz will not offer the next level, one of two things is true: the stone’s experience bar is not full yet, or you have not delivered the Etching Needle. There is no other prerequisite.

The practical takeaway is that the Splitting Stone rewards close range. Spread means more of your projectiles connect when a target is right in front of you, and less of your damage lands when it is across a room. Pair it with a crossbow build that closes distance, and the flat Resolve cost turns each shot into a genuinely efficient burst.

Splitting Stone location: route from the Outskirts of Mammon beacon

What the Splitting Stone does and which sidearms accept it

How to upgrade the Splitting Stone at the Tarforge

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