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Mortal Shell 2 is a souls-like action RPG developed by Cold Symmetry, and Shells sit right at the heart of its build system. Each one starts off with only a fraction of its abilities available, and getting the rest requires investing two separate resources, Glimpse and Gloom, into two separate progression systems. Here's how both of them work.
Deepening a Shell's Bond
Once you've unlocked a Shell, you'll need to deepen your bond with it to get more out of it. Head to Zhirelle, the Shellkeeper found in Marrow Keep, and spend Glimpse to raise its Bond Tier, which ranges from I to IV. The one exception is Genessa, whose Bond Tier is raised by speaking with Genessa herself, or rather Stray Sester, in Marrow Keep rather than through Zhirelle.
You don't need to make the trip to Zhirelle every time, though. Bond Tier can also be raised at any Beacon by selecting the Level Up option, offering a quicker alternative if you're not near Marrow Keep.
Deepening a Shell's Bond does a few things at once. It improves that Shell's health on revive and its revive efficiency, unlocks a new tier of Abilities you're able to use on that Shell, and gradually reveals its Memories, the story content tied to each Shell's backstory.
Since a single run only nets a limited amount of Glimpse overall, you'll likely have to choose between fully maxing out the Bond Tier on a couple of Shells or spreading your Glimpse thinner across several. Glimpse spent this way also cannot be refunded, so it's worth being deliberate about which Shells you invest in. A single playthrough also doesn't hand out enough Glimpse to max out every Shell's Bond Tier, so if you want to unlock the full set of Memories across all Shells, you'll need to carry progress into a second playthrough to gather enough.
Spending Shell Points
While Bond Tier determines which Abilities are unlocked for a Shell, actually levelling those Abilities up requires Shell Points, which you earn by levelling up your character with Gloom rather than through the Shellkeeper. Once you've got them, you can spend them on your currently inhabited Shell's talent tree.
Each Shell also has its own Shell Points Capacity, which caps how many Abilities can be active on it at once. Worth noting though, Shell Points are a shared pool across every Shell rather than something you earn separately for each one. Abilities can be freely refunded and respent though, so it's worth mixing and matching different combinations to find a playstyle that suits you.
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