Essense of the Ink
major updateGlobal Strike · published
The battlefield is about to witness art in motion.
Introducing Essence of the Ink Combine, a legendary war fan infused with the fluid power of ink magic!
Wield elegance and destruction in perfect harmony as you paint your path to victory. 🌸
Duration: 28 February - Permanent ⏳
Playing the new legendary melee is simple and includes 4 main parts:
- Factory: Obtain the weapon in V0 and V1 with some sidekicks ➜ Cost: 12,600 Gold
- Forging Crystal Event: Cost: 26k - 32k Gold ➜ Allows you to reach Level 2 Legendary Form
- Maxing the weapon: The most expensive part ➜ Up to 257,000 Gold
- Collection Boosters: Final investment ➜ Up to 423,000 Gold
More than expensive, right? The good thing is the event is permanent, meaning you can max it over time by recharging for other stuff. Plus, we will carry you up with some discounts!
Let's dive into it! 🔥
✍️ Part 1: Event Overview
1.1 Essence Factory
The acquisition of Ink Legend melee is similar to the previous legendary Star-shatter.
First, you have to collect Heart of the Essence, totaling 12,600 Hearts, costing 12,600 Gold.
Formula: For every 400 Gold recharge, you can buy 500 Hearts for 500 Gold by clicking on the "+" sign at the top left.
Factory Formula:
DrawHeart of the EssenceArtifact Essence
Draw 130030
Draw 250030
Draw 380030
Draw 4200030
Draw 5400030
Draw 6500030
Total12600180
Completing the Factory will allow you to obtain Blade V0 and evolve it up to level 1 in the Forge.
Additionally, you can receive decent, good-looking wings.
These wings are also upgradable in the Weapon Workshop.
Moreover, according to the official announcement, these two wings will have a dyeing system in the future, which is quite tempting.
Completing the Factory will allow you to obtain Blade V0 and evolve it up to level 1 in the Forge.
Additionally, you can receive decent, good-looking wings.
These wings are also upgradable in the Weapon Workshop.
Moreover, according to the official announcement, these two wings will have a dyeing system in the future, which is quite tempting.
1.2 Spirit Legendary Crystal ✨
As with any other legendary, you must join a lucky draw 🎲, which grants you a chance to win a crystal that allows you to reach the legendary form of the new melee.
This will cost between 26k and 32k gold 💰, worst case based on luck. The price can be reduced by using x10 draw tickets, which can be received for free through Hot Events, Expert Rush, and other online missions.
Total Cost from V0 to V2:
12,600 + ~28k Gold = 40k'ich Gold 🔥
Access the Legendary Forge above psionic arsenal to evolve.
1.3 🎨 Design
Essence of the Ink is a folding fan with a strong traditional Chinese style! 🏮✨
It features a great design and attractive effects.
📸 Here an HD picture of the fan:
🤔 But wait… there's a lot more! Even though the melee has one visual for all evolution levels, where did all these variations come from?
Let's dig into its features! 🔍
🎭 Part 2: Skills and Features
2.1 Effect 🌸
A soul skill that Ink has possessed since birth. It is a characteristic of weapons that advances with damage/kills in battle.
It is said that the Ink appearance does not change in the three stages. However, in reality, this legendary fan does change during battle.
If you switch between forms, you may think they all look the same, but **this is not true**!
The PNGs above (and we haven’t even shown them all!) prove the rare design this legendary fan offers. 🔥
After entering the battle, when holding the weapon, a progress bar and symbols representing the four forms of Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum 🌸🎋 will appear in the middle of the screen.
Every time all the weapons in the current backpack cause damage, the progress bar will increase.
When the progress bar is full, the icon above will light up ✨, allowing the Ink Blade to enter the next level! 🔥
The energy required to fill the progress bar 📊 increases as you advance.
Transitioning from Plum → Orchid requires just one kill ☠️, while Orchid → Bamboo and Bamboo → Chrysan each require two kills in competitive modes.
Every time a phase is unlocked, Essence of the Ink retains the abilities of all previous forms.
For example, once Bamboo is unlocked, the weapon simultaneously holds the traits of Plum, Orchid, and Bamboo.
Upon reaching its final form, Chrysan 🌼, the progress bar starts depleting ⏳.
After 15 seconds, it fully drains, reverting the weapon back to Plum.
This means the final form lasts for a total of 15 seconds.
If the player dies before reaching full power, they lose one phase, and the energy bar resets 🔄.
For example, dying in the Bamboo phase results in reviving at the Orchid phase with an empty progress bar.
However, once the weapon reaches its fully developed state (Essence of the Ink - Unified) ⚡,
death no longer causes phase downgrades. 🔥
2.2 Ink Spirit ❤️🔥
Ink Spirit is the primary damage mechanism of Essence of the Ink in Mutation, Challenge, and Adventure Modes.
It has four forms:
- Ink Spirit - Initial includes Plum and Orchid forms. 🌸
- Ink Spirit - Rise adds the Bamboo form. 🎋
- Ink Spirit - Unified introduces the Chrysan form. 🌼
🌸 Plum Form
When Essence of the Ink attacks, a Plum Branch appears at the crosshair, dealing damage to the target. 🎯
The Plum Branch deals AoE damage and can trigger critical hits. 💥
- In Adventure Mode, the area of effect is large. 🌍
- In Competitive Mode, the area is much smaller. 🎯
🌼 Orchid Form
When any weapon in your current backpack deals damage, a yellow orchid spawns at the player’s feet.
- The Orchid slowly moves forward and expands.
- Standing inside it grants a damage reduction effect. 🛡️
At first, this damage reduction isn't very practical because:
1. The Orchid is small and doesn't last long. ⏳
2. Since it moves slowly in one direction, it's hard to stay inside it. 🏃♂️
However, once the Orchid reaches MAX, it turns blue 🔵 and automatically follows the player, making it much more useful:
- Auto-follows the player. 🚶♂️💠
- Increased damage reduction. 🛡️
- Restores HP upon killing enemies. ❤️🩹
🎋 Bamboo Form (Unlocked at Ink Spirit - Rise)
When holding Essence of the Ink, the weapon automatically selects the nearest enemy at intervals 🎯 (in Mutation Mode, targets must be within sight 👀).
- After a short delay, it triggers "Broken Bamboo" at the target's location, dealing damage. 💥
- The target is briefly stunned. ⚡
- The stun effect has a cooldown between activations. ⏳
This form acts as a background attack, meaning:
- It triggers frequently. 🔄
- It auto-aims at enemies. 🎯
- In Adventure Mode, it can target any enemy in the scene. ⚔️
- In Mutation Mode, it only targets enemies within the player's vision. 👀
🌼 Chrysan Form (Unlocked at Ink Spirit - Unified)
The Chrysan Form is a buff form that enhances the effects of Plum, Orchid, and Bamboo.
1. Removes the damage delay from Plum Branch and Broken Bamboo, making them deal instant damage upon activation. ⚡
2. When an Orchid spawns, it immediately appears at MAX level (blue form) and auto-follows the player. 🔵🏃♂️
3. Increases the damage of all weapons in the player's backpack while active. 💥🔥
2.3 Ink Soul 🎭
Ink Soul is the core mechanic of Essence of the Ink in Knife Fight, Blade, and Big Head Knife Fight Modes.
① 🌸 Plum Form
When performing a left-click attack, there is a chance to generate a Plum Branch at the crosshair position.
- After a brief delay, it deals 51 damage. 💥
- If the Plum Branch doesn’t trigger, the damage of the left-click attack increases. 🔺
- The damage boost can stack. 📈
- This resets once the Plum Branch triggers. 🔄
The Plum Branch activation is random—sometimes it triggers within a few hits, other times it takes many attempts, making it unpredictable. 🎲
② 🌼 Orchid Form
When performing a right-click heavy attack, a Blade Light remains on the battlefield.
- The Blade Light deals continuous damage while active. ⚔️
- Each hit deals 15 damage. 💥
- The number of Blade Lights is limited to 2 active at a time. 🔢
⚠ Important:
If 2 Blade Lights are already present, a new one won’t trigger until an existing one disappears.
This limitation can be frustrating, especially when you need it but it doesn’t activate due to the limit. 😤
③ 🎋 Bamboo Form
After killing an enemy, the weapon triggers the MAX status of Blessing of Ink Spirit.
- While active, it blocks multiple hits from outside the Ink Spirit zone. 🛡️
- Testing suggests it can block up to 3 hits. 🔄
🔥 Why is this useful?
This defensive mechanic is highly effective, especially against long-range knife attacks, since those attacks often have hit limits. 🎯
④ 🌼 Chrysan Form
- Reduces the damage delay of Plum Branch, making it more responsive. ⚡
- While standing inside the Blessing of Ink Spirit zone, HP is continuously restored. ❤️🩹
2.4 Pure Essence 🪽
In Mutation, Challenge, Adventure, Knife Fight, Blade, and Big Head Knife Fight modes, when advancing forms, there is a chance to skip a phase, counting as a full cycle.
This mechanic is easy to understand, but in practice, Plum → Orchid never seems to skip.
However, Orchid → Bamboo often skips directly to Chrysan instead. 🎭
2.5 Ink Mark 🗡️
Unlocked at Phase 2 in Mutation, Challenge, and Adventure Modes.
- Completing a full Plum → Orchid → Bamboo → Chrysan cycle grants one Ink Painting (max storage: 2 paintings). 🎨
🌪️ Wind and Rain Summoning
- Press "E" to consume 1 Ink Painting and activate Wind and Rain Summoning
(*in Adventure Mode, it consumes energy instead*). ⚡
- Creates a storm zone at the crosshair location 🌩️ (*limited to a certain number of active zones*).
- Enemies inside the zone suffer:
- Continuous damage 💥
- Slow effect 🐌
- Reduced energy crit rate ⬇️⚡
- Pulled into the zone from nearby areas 🌪️
💡 Instant Chrysan Upgrade:
- If not already in Chrysan form, activating Wind and Rain Summoning immediately upgrades to Chrysan.
- This does not grant an Ink Painting when triggered.
The Ultimate Ability
This is Essence of the Ink’s only active skill, featuring:
✅ Continuous damage
✅ Enemy slow
✅ Enemy pull effect
✅ Crit rate reduction
When the weapon reaches 1950% synchronization, Wind and Rain Summoning upgrades to Forbidden Blast Zone, completely blocking enemy critical hits.
2.6 Legendary Linkage 🔗
🔹 Adventure Mode:
- Hitting a target applies "Damage Deepening", increasing damage taken by the enemy.
- Having this weapon (Essence of Ink - Combine) enhances all melee weapons in the inventory.
🔹 When 2 legendary weapons are in the inventory:
- Chrysan Form lasts longer.
- Left & right clicks increase melee attack speed.
- In Ink Soul mode:
- Bamboo Form: More Ink Spirit area block activations.
- Plum Form: Higher chance of Plum Branch triggering.
🔹 When 3 legendary weapons are in the inventory (Blast & Team Modes):
- If the weapon is in the back slot and HP drops below a certain threshold, HP will automatically restore to that threshold.
💰 Upgrade Materials Table
Sync LevelMaterial
25% - 225%Lv.1 Glow Gemstone * 1 (9 Gems)
250% - 425%Gold Shard * 20 (8 times)
450%Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Legendary * 1
475% - 575%Aptitude Gem Lv.2 Gold * 1 (4 Gems)
600%Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Legendary * 1
625% - 725%Aptitude Gem Lv.2 Gold * 1 (4 Gems)
750% - 800%Lv.2 Moonlight Gem * 1 (3 Gems)
825%Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Legendary * 1
850% - 925%Lv.2 Moonlight Gem * 1 (4 Gems)
950% - 1000%Lv.1 Mirrored Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (3 Gems)
1025%Lv.3 Unreal Gem (Essence of Ink) * 1
1050% - 1075%Lv.1 Mirrored Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (3 Gems)
1100%Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Legendary * 1
1125%Lv.3 Unreal Gem (Essence of Ink) * 1
1150% - 1225%Lv.1 Mirrored Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (4 Gems)
1250% - 1450%Lv.3 Unreal Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (9 Gems)
1475% - 1550%Lv.2 Chrono Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (4 Gems)
1575%Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Legendary * 1
1600%Lv.3 Unreal Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink)
1625%Lv.2 Chrono Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink)
1650%Lv.3 Unreal Gem (Essence of Ink) * 1
1675% - 1725%Lv.2 Chrono Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (3 Gems)
1750%Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Legendary * 1
1775% - 1800%Lv.3 Unreal Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (2 Gems)
1825% - 1850%Lv.1 Mirrored Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (2 Gems)
1875% - 1900%Lv.2 Chrono Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (2 Gems)
1925% - 1950%Lv.3 Unreal Gem * 1 (Essence of Ink) (2 Gems)
📜 Upgrade Materials Summary
MaterialAmount
Lvl1 Glowstone9
Lvl2 Moonlight9
Lvl3 Splendid Jewel5
Aptitude Gem Lv.2 Heroic8
Aptitude Gem Lv.4 Heroic6
Lvl1 Mirrored Gem (Essence of Ink)11
Lvl2 Chrono Gem (Essence of Ink)10
Lvl3 Unreal Gem (Essence of Ink)12
Gold Weapon Shards160
Synchronous Crystal8000
Sync Crystal60957
🔥 4.1 Adventure Tips – Essence of Ink 🔥
🗡️ Essence of Ink is the first legendary melee weapon—a Chinese-style masterpiece with elegant design and deadly power.
🎯 Want Essence of Ink Instantly?
💰 If you're aiming for a full upgrade, be prepared to invest some gold. But don’t worry! You can save a lot through:
- In-game events
- Recharge events
- Expert Rush Ticket rewards
🔔 Good news! This event is permanent, so no need to rush—take your time and build up gradually.
In other words, when you recharge for Wind God, this recharge will also count for Ink, as well as for new grenades and Grey Core.
So while obtaining this gun, your top-ups are also counting for Ink!
⚠️ Just make sure each time you recharge, you spend your points on the event to avoid any bug.
⚔️ Using Essence of Ink in Adventure Mode
🔹 Key trick: Use Plum Branch to activate Broken Bamboo—this triggers auto-aim, allowing Essence of Ink to seek enemies automatically and deal massive AoE damage.
🔹 Perfect for mob clearing (e.g., Island 10, where mobs spawn close together).
🏆 The Best Support Knife?
✅ Amplifies the damage of other weapons in your loadout.
✅ Provides passive background damage and attack boosts when fully upgraded.
✅ No need to switch weapons—it works passively!
⚡ Better than DC and Axes? Yes, depending on your needs, but it outshines them as a support weapon!
✨ Legendary Linkage & Extra Perks
⭐ Just like Starshatter, Essence of Ink benefits from owning multiple legendary weapons—so your old legendaries still contribute!
🖋️ Ink Blessing boosts damage against mutants significantly and speeds up knife switching, making combat smoother.
🔮 Comes with Ultimate & Mutant Stones, granting unique stats and powerful boosts—especially the Mutant variant.
✨ Why Choose Essence of Ink?
If you love style, elegance, and purity, this melee weapon is perfect for you! 🌊⚔️
Not to mention, the automatic change of appearance and visibility without extra cost will shift you to another level of gaming experience.