Best Beginner Build in Phantom Blade Zero: Weapons, Edges and Accessories

Phantom Blade Zero lets you carry two main weapons and two Phantom Edges, plus accessories. With more than thirty weapons to choose from, new players often spread their Remnant Dust too thinly. This guide puts together an early-game loadout recommended by games.gg and the PBZ Wiki, with the reasoning behind each piece, so you can get through the first chapters with a solid setup.

Main weapon 1: Jagged Steel (or Sanguine)

Jagged Steel drops from the Jagged Steel boss in Weeping Creek Valley, at the very start of the game. games.gg recommends it for bleed-focused boss damage. Repeated hits fill a hidden bleed gauge on enemies that can bleed. At level 5 it gains a special attack on guard-broken enemies that grants a Blood Blade stack, and Soul is invulnerable during that slash. Its weakness is poor guard breaking, so bring something else for shields.

If you prefer something simpler, games.gg suggests sticking with Sanguine, Soul's starting sword. It has reach and fast combos, and its level 5 perk grants a 40-second damage buff.

Main weapon 2: Outlaw Warblade

The Outlaw Warblade drops from Ying Ye, the Outlaw, in the Crimson Forest. Both games.gg and the PBZ Wiki highlight it as the best partner weapon because its standard attacks heal Soul, and its special drains a large amount of HP from an enemy with an invincibility window. The level 15 perk, Survival Shield, adds 10 seconds of invincibility.

Two warnings from games.gg: its heavy attacks turn some of your HP into recoverable damage that is lost if you are hit, and its life drain normally works only on natural, living enemies.

Why swapping matters

Switching between your two main weapons quickly refills your Sha-Chi, according to games.gg. Attack with Jagged Steel, swap to the Warblade to heal or reset Sha-Chi, and swap back.

Upgrade path

Later, games.gg recommends White Serpent & Crimson Viper (from Bai Chilian) paired with the Outlaw Warblade for fast damage and healing. Fiend Saws are a guard-break burst alternative. Upgrade materials can be refunded at the forge; above level 10 this costs a Weapon Reforge Talisman.

Phantom Edges

Early edges are mostly tools you get from bosses, as listed by TechWiser:

• Dread Axe (Peng Meng): heavy damage that also breaks iron chains.
• Hunter's Chain Sickle (The Hunt): grappling plus solid damage.
• Feather Bow (Outpost side task): a ranged option, and missable.

All 25 are in the Phantom Edges database.

Accessories

From AllThings.How's list:

• Reflex Device (Weeping Creek Valley, Valley Sha-Chi Tower Base): +15% parry and perfect dodge windows. Ideal while learning.
• Shenji's Ring (Weeping Creek Valley, Outpost): −20% Sha-Chi cost when blocking.
• Medicine Case (Weeping Creek Valley, Outpost): +20% healing from medicine.
• Livingwood Talisman (Village of Lu): games.gg notes it lets bleed affect puppets, Golden Bodies and Phantom Bodies at 50% effectiveness, which makes Jagged Steel useful far longer.
• Counterstrike Bracers (first Lóng Pillar): +20% damage for 2 seconds after a parry.

See best accessories for more.

Soul Tempering targets

AllThings.How lists Open Wounds for Jagged Steel (key item: Iron Butcher Mask), which builds bleed even through blocks. The Warblade's Ruthless Outlaw (Six Paths Warrant) adds up to 25% damage. See the Soul Tempering guide.

Summary loadout

• Main: Jagged Steel + Outlaw Warblade.
• Edges: Dread Axe + Hunter's Chain Sickle.
• Accessories: Reflex Device, Shenji's Ring, Medicine Case.

Try it in our build planner, and read beginner tips.

Related guides

For more help, use these related pages on this site, each built from published guides:

• Beginner tips: parry colours, Sha-Chi and early priorities.
• Missable items: side quests and drops with a cut-off point.
• True ending guide: the purple quests and Acolytes you need.
• All bosses in order: every main and optional boss by region.
• Phantom Edges database and accessories database: stats and locations in sortable tables.
• Interactive map and collectibles tracker to tick off pickups as you go.