How to Unlock Bankai in Type Soul (Step-By-Step)
STEP #1: Create a Shinigami Character
Only Shinigamis can unlock Bankai in Type Soul, so you’ll have to create a Shinigami character in a new slot if you still haven’t.
Once you’ve created a Shinigami, you’ll automatically spawn in Soul Society, where the grind for your Bankai begins.
STEP #2: Reach Elite Grade
Next up, you’ll need to get your Shinigami to Elite Grade to unlock Bankai. Starting from Trainee, which is the Class you get at the start of the game, here’s everything you have to do to get to Elite Grade:
- Trainee to Grade 3: Complete Mission Board quests in Soul Society.
- Grade 3 to Grade 2: Join a Division (we recommend joining Division 5 as it gives out the easiest Division Duty quest), then complete Division Duty quests to get Division EXP.
- Grade 2 to Elite Grade: Defeat your Shikai Boss. You can spawn the Shikai boss and unlock your Shikai by meditating three times every five to seven minutes, then completing your Shikai Quests for Shikai EXP depending on what Shikai Whisper you hear while meditating. Upon meditating three times, further Meditations will take you to your Inner World, where you’ll be able to talk to your Shikai Boss and fight them once you’ve completed the Shikai Quests.
After obtaining your Shikai, continue clearing Mission Board quests, Shikai Quests, and Division Duty Quests, then Grip players from opposing factions (Quincy/Hollow) after defeating them until you get to Elite Grade.
STEP #3: Get 7 Clan War Wins, 25 Ranked Wins, or 13 Raids Wins
Upon reaching Elite Grade, you’ll have to achieve either of the following to proceed:
- x7 Clan War Wins
- x25 Ranked Wins
- x13 Raids Wins
You can check your progress in this step by talking to V, an NPC in Karakura Town.
STEP #4: Kill Jindabo or Bawabawa, 80 Hollows, and 15 Elite Quincy/Arrancar Players
Next, you must kill either Bawa Bawa in Hueco Mundo or Jindabo in Soul Society. Both bosses spawn every 1 hour and 30 minutes in server time. Feel free to server-hop until you find a server with any of these bosses already spawned in.
After killing either Bawa Bawa or Jindabo, you may now proceed and kill 80 Hollows and 15 Elite Players of an opposing faction to Grip them.
To make the Grip-farming process easier and less risky, we recommend just farming either an Elite alt Quincy/Arrancar character or a friend’s Quincy/Arrancar character.
WARNING: If your character dies at any point during this step, your progress will reset, so be careful!
STEP #5: Talk to Kisuke in Karakura Town
With your tasks now complete, you must talk to Kisuke in Karakura Town and find your True Zanpakuto by hitting the swords in the location he’ll teleport you in.
Do note that only one sword will allow you to proceed (hitting incorrect swords will give you a hint that will help you locate the correct sword) and that failing this challenge means you’ll either have to wait one hour or Grip a player from an opposing faction until you can retake it.
STEP #6: Defeat Your Shikai Boss the 2nd Time
The final step to unlock Bankai is to Meditate once again and fight your Shikai Boss the second time around.
This boss fight will be harder than the previous one, as your Shikai Boss will now use the Bankai of the weapon you currently have equipped, so be ready!
Upon defeating the Shikai boss, you’ll now unlock Bankai, which you can activate by pressing CTRL + J. Congratulations!
TIP: You can make this battle easier by rerolling for a Twin Blade weapon whose Bankai ability only makes your Shikai Boss stand still and counter.
Conclusion
We highly recommend you unlock Bankai ASAP if you’re a Shinigami, as it will significantly improve your combat performance and unlock different playstyles for your character depending on your current Locked Weapon.
Now, if you fancy progressing as a Hollow and would like to unlock Vastocar (one of the best Races in the game) instead, then check out our Vastocar Unlock Guide for Type Soul!
