Valor Mortis Beginner's Guide: Combat, Upgrades, and Catalysts

Valor Mortis does not reward mindlessly swinging your sword. You can survive the first enemy hit, spend all of your Endurance on the counterattack, and then die to the next strike before you even have a chance to dodge. Once you understand the game's systems, however, combat becomes much more manageable. This guide explains what to do during your first hours in Valor Mortis, which upgrades to prioritize, and how to reach a boss with full resources instead of empty flasks.

What to do at the very beginning of Valor Mortis

During the first few minutes, do not rush toward the next story scene. The opening area exists largely to help you get used to the first-person perspective and learn the Sabre's reach. Avoid long attack strings. Until you understand enemy attack speeds, it is safer to strike once or twice and stop. That habit will help you much sooner than any flashy upgrade.Here are the basic priorities:

1. Learn the controls. Check the inputs for Block, Dodge, light and heavy attacks, firearms, and Transmutation selection. If the default layout feels uncomfortable, rebind it before the first serious fight.
2. Learn to defeat a single enemy without consumables. Wait for the attack, parry or dodge it, then answer with a short sequence. Do not move on to the next group until you can repeat this several times.
3. Rekindle the first available Lantern. It becomes your respawn point and a place to level up. Remember the route back before exploring deeper into the area.
4. Check side paths and items you find. Do not ignore Catalyst Clots and other useful resources. At the same time, avoid optional fights when William is already barely standing.
5. Spend your Catalysts. As soon as you have enough for a useful upgrade, return to a Lantern. There is no reason to carry everything you have earned into an unfamiliar enemy arena.

Which settings make combat easier to learn?

In Valor Mortis, it is especially important to read the beginning of a wind-up and the direction of the next attack. Open the settings and check Target Lock. In a duel, it helps keep the enemy in front of you and prevents you from losing track of them after a dodge. If your normal melee attacks often miss, try Combat Assist. It makes swings snap toward the target more reliably, but you still need to choose the right moment to attack.Also check Quick Cast and Instant Restart. Quick Cast removes an extra confirmation step when using Transmutations, while Instant Restart lets you return to an attempt more quickly after death.

Lanterns, Catalysts, and death: How to preserve your progress

Lanterns are your main points of safety. William restores Health and Nephtoglobin there, improves his attributes, and can Fast Travel between discovered Lanterns. Resting revives normal enemies, but it also restores your combat resources. Rest deliberately. Check nearby side paths first, then decide whether you really need to reset the area.Catalysts are the main resource used for leveling. You earn them by defeating enemies and can also find Catalyst Clots while exploring. Do not carry a huge amount for no reason. When William dies, all unspent Catalysts remain at the place of death. You can retrieve them, but dying again before doing so permanently destroys the lost amount.A simple routine helps avoid donating your savings to enemies. After clearing a small section, check whether you have enough Catalysts for another useful upgrade. If you do, return to the Lantern and spend them. If you do not, keep exploring until you reach a convenient return point, but do not enter a boss arena just because you are trying to earn the last few Catalysts for a level.

How to recover Catalysts after death

If you die while carrying a large amount, your first objective on the next attempt should be your place of death. Do not get distracted by extra loot or try to kill every enemy along the way. Re-establish a safe route, avoid enemies that can be bypassed, and retrieve the Catalysts first. Once you return to the Lantern, spend what you managed to recover.If the lost Catalysts are inside a dangerous combat area, be patient. Lure ordinary enemies out one at a time and preserve enough Endurance to dodge. Do not sprint blindly through a crowd without a plan. One extra fight on familiar ground is often cheaper than dying again only a few steps away from your dropped currency.

What should you upgrade first?

A reliable early build does not require a rare weapon or complicated synergy. At the beginning, you need Health, Endurance, and consistent Sabre damage. Health lets you survive mistakes while learning attacks, Endurance gives you room to retreat, and better melee damage shortens each duel.For your first upgrades, use this priority as a general guide:

• Maximum Health. Take several upgrades if one ordinary mistake kills you in only one or two hits.
• Maximum Stamina. Increase it if a short attack string leaves you without enough Endurance to dodge or block.
• Melee Damage. Improve your Sabre damage once you understand the basic defensive mechanics. Shorter fights mean fewer opportunities to make a mistake.
• Parrying Impact and Critical Damage. Useful once you regularly break enemy Posture.
• Nephtoglobin and Transmutation upgrades. Invest more heavily here if you often use Fire or the defensive barrier.

This is not a rigid purchase order. If you regularly finish fights with half your Health but no Endurance, increase Maximum Stamina next. If your parries are already consistent and you rarely take damage, speeding up kills with Melee Damage and Critical Damage makes more sense. Choose the upgrade based on what is actually killing you most often, not the most impressive number in the menu.

How to earn Catalysts without unnecessary risk

Find a Lantern with several familiar enemies nearby. Clear a short route, defeat them, and return to rest. Normal enemies respawn after resting, while the Catalysts remain yours as long as you do not die. Repeat the loop only until the next useful upgrade. There is little value in farming weak soldiers for hours when a later area can offer better returns.Early on, it is better to earn the resource reliably rather than as quickly as possible. Fight enemies whose attack strings you already understand, stay close to a Lantern, and do not risk saved progress for only a few extra kills.

How to fight: Blocking, parrying, and dodging

William has three main responses to an incoming attack: Block, Parry, or Dodge. Each has a different purpose, so do not try to finish the entire game with only one defensive action. Blocking helps you survive an unfamiliar strike, parrying creates counterattack opportunities, and dodging handles attacks that normal defense cannot stop.

Why you should not hold Block throughout the entire fight

Normal blocking reduces incoming damage but consumes Endurance. Once the bar is empty, you have little left for the next attack. If you block a hit and lose recoverable Health, landing a quick melee attack shortly afterward can restore part of that loss. Do not try to recover Health while the enemy is still in the middle of a combo.

How to parry and break Posture

Press Block immediately before the enemy weapon connects. A successful parry completely prevents the damage, costs no Endurance, and deals significant Posture damage. Normal attacks also contribute, but precise defense breaks Posture much more effectively. Once the Posture meter fills, the enemy becomes staggered. Use the opening for a Critical Attack.Practice against individual soldiers. Do not watch only the beginning of the wind-up. Wait until the blade actually starts moving toward William. Parry, check whether the enemy combo has ended, and only then counterattack. This rhythm lets you defeat tougher opponents without constantly burning through Ferrofluid Flasks.Our separate Valor Mortis parry guide covers timing, Posture, Perfect Dodge, and counterattacks in more detail. It is useful if you keep getting hit by the second strike in a combo or are unsure when a Critical Attack becomes available.

What to do against red attacks

If an enemy prepares an attack with a red glow, do not try to Block or Parry it. These are Unblockable Attacks and must be avoided with a Dodge. Time the movement closer to the dangerous part of the attack rather than reacting immediately to the warning. Dodge too early and your invulnerability may end while the attack is still active.A well-timed Dodge at the last moment can trigger a Perfect Dodge and empower your next attack. Learn to avoid the damage first, then start turning each dangerous move into a counterattack opportunity. Always watch your remaining Endurance. Two unnecessary Sabre swings can remove your only safe defensive option.

Sabre, Rapier, and firearms: What should a beginner use?

Start with the Sabre. It supports normal blocking, giving you room to make mistakes while learning new enemies. Do not rush to replace it with something that offers more impressive Critical Damage. Your first priority is learning how to survive an enemy attack and recognize when it is actually safe to answer.The Rapier is faster and suits precise attacks against Weak Points. It can destroy those points in melee without consuming ammunition, and its parry-focused defense is especially effective in skilled hands. There is one major drawback: the Rapier cannot perform a normal block. If you have not yet learned precise defense, switching to it makes every mistake much more dangerous.

When should you use the Pistol or Musket?

Do not turn firearms into a way to shoot every basic soldier. The Pistol is especially useful against Weak Points and enemies that are dangerous to approach. The Musket is useful at long range when you need to hit a single target accurately. Ammunition is limited, so save shots for situations where melee combat is inconvenient or too risky.If you can see a Weak Point ahead, first decide whether you can safely hit it. Breaking Weak Points helps generate Nephtoglobin for your abilities. If an ordinary enemy is already close and open to the Sabre, spending scarce ammunition on them is usually unnecessary.

How Transmutations work and where to get Nephtoglobin

Nephtoglobin is a separate resource used by William's supernatural abilities. Do not confuse it with Endurance. Melee attacks, sprinting, and dodging use one resource, while Fire and defensive Transmutations use another. Replenish Nephtoglobin by landing melee hits and shattering enemy Weak Points, then spend it on the ability that solves the immediate problem.

Fire Transmutation

Fire is useful against enemies and Infestation growths that do not respond well to an ordinary blade. Do not keep attacking something that the Sabre barely affects. Switch to Fire Transmutation, let the effect work, and preserve enough Endurance to defend against the response. If the route is blocked by suspicious organic growth, check whether it reacts to Fire or to hitting a highlighted Weak Point.

Shield Transmutation

Shield Transmutation creates a protective barrier that can fully block attacks at the cost of Nephtoglobin, then release a damaging wave after a successful defense. Use it when you need to survive a dangerous strike or push through an area under pressure. It does not replace normal parrying. Holding the barrier constantly drains a resource you may need during the next phase of the fight.

How to use Ambers and choose your first passive effects

Ambers provide additional effects after you equip them, including Health recovery, stronger Critical Attacks, firearm support, and resource generation. You do not activate them with a separate button during combat. Find a useful Amber, return to a Lantern, unlock an available slot, and equip it.For a first playthrough, effects that help you survive mistakes are usually more useful. Passive Health regeneration helps while exploring, while healing after a Critical Attack suits players who already break enemy Posture consistently. Be careful with aggressive Ambers. Some increase your damage at the cost of taking more damage, while others change how Ferrofluid Flasks work entirely.Do not spend every Catalyst only on additional slots. If your Health and Endurance are still too low, another passive effect may not compensate for weak base stats. Our Valor Mortis Amber guide explains slots, equipping, switching Ambers, and Catalysts in more detail.

How to explore levels without missing useful discoveries

Valor Mortis levels encourage you to look not only forward but also upward. There are alternate routes, shortcuts, vertical sections, and areas that may require a movement ability before you can reach them. Do not treat every locked door or large gap as a sign that you should immediately continue the story. Check nearby walls, ledges, and alternative routes.

Open shortcuts before difficult fights

Found a door that opens from the other side, a ladder, or a route leading back to a familiar area? Check it before heading to the next boss. A shortcut makes the runback shorter and lets you save Ferrofluid Flasks for the actual fight instead of clearing another group of ordinary soldiers.After Rekindling each Lantern, remember two landmarks: where you came from and which branch you have not explored yet. If the main route ends unexpectedly, return to the last intersection and look above or below. Movement abilities such as the grapple and wall running can help with vertical sections once they become available.

When should you return to an older area?

Return when you unlock a new movement ability, notice a previously inaccessible route, or want to collect missed resources. The same applies to infected barriers. Gaining Fire Transmutation or another suitable ability may let you pass obstacles that were previously impossible to clear. Do not spend Ferrofluid Flasks trying to force your way through something when you may simply be missing the required tool.Explore side paths before moving into a new major story section, especially when an important encounter is clearly ahead. Valor Mortis contains secrets and sidequests, so it is worth checking conversations, discovered items, and accessible doors instead of always walking directly toward the next objective.

How to prepare for bosses

The biggest mistake before a boss is entering the arena with a pile of Catalysts, almost no Nephtoglobin, and only two shots left. Before a serious encounter, find the nearest Lantern, spend your Catalysts, and restore your Health and resources. Then check your weapons. Against an unfamiliar enemy, the Sabre is safer than the Rapier, while a supply of ammunition can help with Weak Points.Use your first attempts to learn rather than maximize damage. Skip your own attack, wait for the boss's first combo, and identify which strikes can be parried. When you see red warnings, Dodge. Once the combo ends, land one or two attacks and return to defense. This teaches you the safe windows without forcing another runback after every reckless long combo.Watch the boss's Posture, not only their Health. Parries and normal attacks gradually lead to a stagger, and a Critical Attack during that opening is worth much more than a few random swings. If the boss has visible Weak Points, use firearms and the Nephtoglobin they generate. When additional enemies appear, remove them before focusing on the main target again.

Most common beginner mistakes

• Spending all of your Endurance on a long combo. After one or two hits, preserve enough for a Dodge. Enemies rarely let you complete a long attack string for free.
• Trying to block red attacks. Switch to a Dodge as soon as you recognize the warning and time it around the actual hit, not the beginning of the wind-up.
• Parrying and immediately counterattacking. Some enemies continue their combo. Make sure the sequence has ended first.
• Saving Catalysts until the boss. If you die, they remain inside the arena. Spend them at a Lantern before entering dangerous content.
• Using the Rapier before learning precise defense. Without a normal block, every timing mistake becomes more dangerous. Return to the Sabre and practice.
• Shooting safe basic enemies. Save firearm ammunition for Weak Points and targets that are difficult to approach.
• Ignoring Ambers. Even one passive healing effect can make exploration noticeably easier. Check the available slot at the nearest Lantern.
• Running past shortcuts. One opened route saves far more time than the few seconds you gain by skipping exploration.

Quick plan for your first few hours

If you want a straightforward start, follow this order. Learn combat with the Sabre first, then Rekindle Lanterns and spend Catalysts before gradually adding firearms, Transmutations, and Ambers. Do not try to master every system in a single fight. Each new tool should solve one clear problem: surviving, dealing damage, opening a path, or shortening the route to a boss.The most useful skill in Valor Mortis is knowing when to stop. You do not need to squeeze in another Sabre swing every time. Once defense and preparation become automatic, even difficult bosses start to feel far less unpredictable.