Soulframe Greatsword Guide: Playstyle, Virtues and How to Get One

“I run a greatsword with Flyblades as my sidearm. Does that even work?” Questions like this pop up in the Soulframe community all the time, because the game barely explains its weapon systems. This guide covers what makes the Soulframe Greatsword tick as a weapon class, which Virtue really drives it and whether the greatsword and Flyblade combo holds up, checked against Preludes 16 “Of Hook and Hound”.

⚔️ What is a Soulframe Greatsword?

Greatswords belong to the Heavy Combat Art in Soulframe, which they have shared with heavy maces such as Orst-III since Preludes 14.5 “Ode'n Tempers”. According to the community-run wiki at wiki.avakot.org the game has eight Combat Arts in total: Bows, Flyblades, Heavy, Long Blades (including rapiers), Magick, Polearms, Shields and Short Blades.

You wield greatswords two-handed with medium reach. The playstyle is slow on purpose but powerful: greatswords are built to stagger enemies while dealing serious damage. Think sledgehammer, not scalpel.

Like most melee weapons in Soulframe you have two basic attacks:

• Light attacks: quick standard swings to keep pressure up.
• Heavy attacks: can be charged and hit much harder, but you are vulnerable while charging.

That charge is the core of the greatsword playstyle. You mix fast light hits to keep pressure with charged heavy swings whenever a window opens, for example after a parry or a dodge.

🛡️ Combat Arts for the Soulframe Greatsword

Each Combat Art has its own talent tree. The greatsword uses the Heavy tree. You earn experience by fighting with the weapon, which levels it up and gives you points for that tree. Progress is tied to the Combat Art, so greatsword XP does nothing for bows or rapiers. Per the wiki every weapon gives five points on the way to rank 30, and those points apply to every weapon in the same Combat Art. The Combat Arts guide covers the full system.

Confirmed talents for greatswords include:

• Headlong: charges heavy attacks faster.
• Helm Gong: increases stagger on fully charged hits.
• Riposte: a hard counter after a perfect parry.
• Spectre Strike: a strong attack after a perfect dodge.
• The greatsword also benefits from Smite: Spectral Sight exposes enemy souls and you pull them for big bonus damage. How that loop works is explained in our Smite guide.

💡 Tip: because greatswords build so much stagger, actively look for parries and dodges instead of just swinging. A clean counter with Riposte or Spectre Strike is often worth more than three normal swings.

✨ Which Virtue fits the greatsword?

Soulframe has three Virtues: Courage, Spirit and Grace. Every weapon is attuned to one or more of them. Only when your Virtue value meets the weapon's requirement do you get the full damage bonus. Below that there is no partial bonus, there is none.

According to the community wiki, greatswords scale mainly with Courage, like most large melee weapons (Heavy, Long Blades except rapiers, Polearms, Shields). Courage is the red Virtue, and in-game text ties it to the deity Mora. It stands for melee strength and gives 12 health per point per the wiki. For a pure greatsword build, that means putting your points into Courage first.

Some greatswords also want Spirit or Grace depending on the model, so a greatsword can have mixed attunement. Since you can reassign Virtue points per loadout under “Virtues” in the Nightfold Arsenal, check your weapon's attunement in the menu before dumping everything into Courage. The Virtues guide goes deeper.

Values per the community wiki at weapon rank 0 and rank 30. Since attack grows with rank, numbers in other sources often differ depending on which rank they mean.

Note on The Paragon: this greatsword is exclusive to the Founders Pack of the same name and can't be earned through normal crafting or loot. For most players Needleseye and Purity are the relevant options.

🔗 Greatsword plus Flyblades: does the combo work?

Yes, structurally nothing stops it. Your sidearm is fully independent of your main weapon. Once you own a Flyblade, equip it as your sidearm and swap in combat with a key press (R on PC by default). It even complements the greatsword, which has no ranged option of its own. The Flyblade fills that gap, for tagging enemies before they close in or hitting floating targets you can't reach in melee.

The catch is attunement. Flyblades scale with Grace per the community wiki. Precklies is attuned purely to Grace, Skilter needs 7 Courage and 6 Grace for its bonus. In a pure Courage greatsword build you would have to put a few points into Grace on purpose to get the most out of the Flyblade. Without them the Flyblade still works, just without the attunement bonus.

The only known Flyblade clearly tied to Courage (Thrice Spurns) is Founders Pack exclusive like The Paragon, so it is not an option for most players.

💡 Recommendation: if you want the full benefit from both, don't plan your Virtue points purely around Courage. Reserve as much Grace as your Flyblade asks for (Skilter: 6 Grace next to 7 Courage). If your point budget can't cover that, it is usually smarter to treat the Flyblade as a pure ranged tool without the bonus than to weaken your greatsword attunement.

💡 How to get a greatsword and reforge it

Since Preludes 15 most weapons drop fully forged, according to the community wiki. Only some still have to be built from fragments at the smith Tuvalkane in your Nightfold. The star tier doesn't tell you which: Purity is a 3-Star greatsword, but you get it fully forged. Needleseye (2-Star) comes either fully forged or as a fragment from Avakot's Dungeon Deeds in the Undercity near Hilly-Den.

To change the attunement of a greatsword you already own, for example to lean harder into Courage or add some Grace for a Flyblade combo, you use Joineries, the colored bottles from chests and dungeons. You reforge the weapon with them at Tuvalkane from Bond rank 2.

Per the community wiki each Joinery adds 1 to 3 attunement pips in Courage, Spirit or Grace depending on its tier (Blessed, Twice Blessed, Thrice Blessed). Verite or Gildaur Joineries fit melee weapons like the greatsword. The full process including sources is in our Joineries guide.

To be honest, the greatsword is not universally loved in the community right now. Some players find it slow and lacking punch compared to other weapon types despite its high base stats. Soulframe is still in the middle of its Preludes test phase, so that can change with future balance patches. If you like the stagger and counter playstyle, you already get a solid if demanding weapon.

❓ Soulframe Greatsword FAQ

Which Virtue do I need for the greatsword?

Mainly Courage. Some greatswords also want Spirit or Grace, so check the exact requirement in the weapon menu before spending your points.

Can I combine a greatsword with Flyblades?

Yes. The sidearm is its own independent slot. For the full attunement bonus on both weapons, plan some Grace for the Flyblade, since Flyblades scale with Grace per the community wiki (Skilter needs 7 Courage and 6 Grace, for example).

How do I get a new greatsword?

Needleseye (2-Star) and Purity (3-Star) drop fully forged per the community wiki. Needleseye is also available as a fragment from Avakot's Dungeon Deeds. The Paragon belongs to the Founders Pack of the same name.

How do I change my greatsword's attunement?

With Joineries when you reforge at Tuvalkane. Each Joinery adds 1 to 3 attunement pips depending on its tier, according to the community wiki.

Is the greatsword a good beginner weapon?

It suits players who want to use parries and dodges actively, since the playstyle rewards timing over fast spam. For a first look at the game, start with our Soulframe beginner guide.

🏁 Verdict

The Soulframe Greatsword is a classic stagger weapon: slow, but with high damage potential when you land charged hits and counters from parries or dodges. Courage matters most for damage. Pairing it with Flyblades works fine, but needs some Grace in your Virtue spread if you want the full bonus. Joineries let you fine-tune the attunement further.

Checked against Preludes 16 “Of Hook and Hound” with Hotfix 6 as of October 2026. Greatsword stats, Combat Arts, sources and Joineries come from the community-run wiki at wiki.avakot.org. There is no official Soulframe wiki. Soulframe is still in its Preludes phase, so values, talents and systems can change with future updates.