Mortal Shell 2 How to Change Shells & Respec
Quick answer: Sit at any Beacon or talk to Zhirelle in Marrow Keep and swap to an unlocked Shell. There is no cooldown. Shell Points can be reset in the same menu at no cost. Glimpse spent on Bond is the one you do not get back.
Official promotional screenshot: Steam / Cold Symmetry / Playstack
How to switch
- Unlock the Shell first: inhabit the remains and finish its opening memory. Finding the body is not enough.
- Rest at any cleansed Beacon, or walk to Zhirelle behind the Marrow Keep Beacon.
- Choose the unlocked Shell. Weapons, sidearms, Seals, and Tarstones stay equipped — they are on the Harbinger, not on the body.
Harros is prologue-only. After Marrow Keep he is gone; Tiel and Proxima are the two Zhirelle marks for free.
Sester Genessa is the exception. She is treated as a separate character, not a body the Harbinger inhabits. Bond her at the training Sester (she becomes Stray Sester while you are wearing Genessa), and level her at a Beacon.
Respec: what is free, what is not
| Resource | Refund? | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Shell Points (Harbinger levels) | Yes, free, any time | Beacon Level Up window or Zhirelle |
| Glimpse / Bond tier | No, for practical purposes | Do not max a Shell you have not played |
| Weapon / sidearm gold and ore | Yes, after Foundry Stone smelting | Tarforge |
Shell Points are shared on the Harbinger. If you leave Tiel for Eredrim, reset Tiel's tree and put the points on Eredrim. FandomWire's launch tip is exactly that: respec whenever you switch so idle points are not sitting on a body you are not using.
Balance Patch 1 refunds Glimpse previously spent on Shell map markers and moves those marks onto a Gloom cost. Check Zhirelle's alcove if you paid Glimpse for locations before the patch.
When to actually switch
- Before a boss, not during. Swap at the nearby Beacon, rest, then walk in.
- Tiel or Proxima for the first hours. Eredrim for raw poise. Genessa later if you want her kit.
- Do not spend Glimpse to have Zhirelle mark remaining Shells unless you are stuck. Community location pages are cheaper than 3–5 Glimpse per pin.
Related guides
All Shell locations · Best Shells · Glimpse budget · Boss summons
Evidence: Free Shell Point resets follow GameSpot, KeenGamer's Zhirelle notes, and All Things How's Shell skills page. Swap-at-Beacon-or-hub is the launch-week consensus (eGamersWorld, GamingProMax). Glimpse is treated as non-refundable except the Balance Patch 1 map-marker refund. Verified August 23, 2026.