Read this Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (RotN) guide on the best Shards to use and acquire in the game, including stats, benefits, special effects & where to find them.
Featured Articles
Check Out All Shards & Effect List Here!Table of Contents
Best Shards Overview
Shards Selected Based on Utility & Versatility
We selected these shards based on how useful these shards are, and overall versatility whether early game and late game. These are considered must have shards,
Story Locked Shards Are Not Included
Shards you acquire from progressing the story such as Dimension Shift are not included in this list due to its limited availability.
Best Conjure Shards
Welcoming Party
| Obtained From | Poltergeist |
|---|---|
| Effect | Summons Poltergeist to create a protection barrier |
Summons paintings to surround you, dealing damage to anything hit by them. This great for late game at higher rank, as it allows you to summon even more paintings.
8-Bit Flame
| Obtained From | Eight Bit Overlord |
|---|---|
| Effect | Produce a pillar of 8-bit flame |
Summons the Eight Bit Overlord to cast pillars of 8 bit flames, which greatly damage foes. With higher ranks, the more flame pillars it produces.
Best Manipulative Shards
Accelerator
| Obtained From | Harrier |
|---|---|
| Effect | Move more quickly |
This greatly speeds up your movement speed for just a little bit of mana. This makes traversing the map so much quicker. This is obtained by defeating the Harrier shinobi at Oriental Sorcery Lab.
Standstill
| Obtained From | Orlok Dracule |
|---|---|
| Effect | Project a field that stops time |
Freezes time, allowing you to do practically anything you want while enemies are frozen in time. However, this is one of the hardest shards to obtain since it requires defeating Orlok Dracule.
OD Boss Fight & Location Guide - How To Beat ODBest Directional Shards
Heretical Grinder
| Obtained From | Blood Grinder Knight |
|---|---|
| Effect | Extend a shaft of rotating blades in the designated direction |
A great early game directional shard. This allows you to summon a spinning sword that deals continuous damage, which you can spin around.
Chaser Arrow
| Obtained From | Leraje |
|---|---|
| Effect | Shoot a homing arrow in the designated direction |
A shard that allows you to shoot homing arrows. At higher ranks, the more projectiles you can shoot out. This is great for clearing multiple mobs at once.
Best Passive Shards
Optimizer
| Obtained From | Ocypete |
|---|---|
| Effect | Increases weapon attack speed |
Increases your attack speed, greatly increases your DPS. This is great if you love using heavy weapons with high damage. At higher ranks, this also increases your weapon damage!
Money Is Power
| Obtained From | Mimic |
|---|---|
| Effect | Increases your stats proportionate to your health |
With more money, comes more power! This boosts your stats the more have money you have. At higher ranks, this also allows you to sell items at higher prices. Plus, it's easy to farm gold mid to late game.
Check Out How To Farm Gold Fast Here!Best Familiar Shards
Silver Knight
| Obtained From | Found in the game world |
|---|---|
| Effect | Summon forth the Silver Knight to help you |
A very versatile familiar, the Silver Knight protects you from attacks and projectiles which is useful for defending against end game bosses. At higher ranks, the Silver Knight summons light projectiles from below.
Carabosse
| Obtained From | Carabosse |
|---|---|
| Effect | Summon forth Carabosse to help you |
A good early game familiar, the Carabosse helps you find hidden walls that can reward you with various items.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - Featured Articles
All Story Walkthrough
Game Database
Play Tips & Useful Information
| How To Farm XP | How To Farm Money |
| How To Upgrade Shards | Cooking Guide |
| Preparing for a Boss | Points Of No Return |
| After Beating Game | Multiple Endings |
| How To Farm Gold Material | How To Double Jump |
End Game Content Guides
| How To Get Gebel's Glasses | How To Get Solomon's Ring |
| How To Get Recycle Hat | How To Unlock New Game Plus |
| Using 8-Bit Coins | Secret Boss Room & Key |
| Boss Medals | - |
