Shape of Dreams is a roguelite where your choice of Traveler shapes every run. With eight playable characters in total, each one brings a unique playstyle—ranging from sturdy tanks to swift assassins. While two Travelers are available right after the tutorial, the rest demand persistence, creative builds, or specific milestones to unlock.
All Characters in Shape of Dreams
There are eight Travelers you can play as:
- Lacerta – Starting ranged attacker
- Mist – Starting agile melee duelist
- Yubar – Ranged mage, unlocked with Dream Dust
- Vesper – Tanky melee fighter from the third world
- Aurena – Support healer unlocked through cumulative healing
- Nachia – Ranged support tied to defeats or Forest boss kills
- Bismuth – Speed-focused ranged mage
- Shell – Secret assassin unlocked in the Samurai World
With that overview in mind, let’s break down how to unlock each one.
First Characters After the Tutorial
Before you chase secret quests, the game eases you in with two reliable characters:
- Lacerta – A ranged fighter wielding firearms, perfect for keeping enemies at bay. He’s automatically unlocked after finishing the tutorial.
- Mist – A melee duelist who thrives on agility. Also unlocked after the tutorial, Mist’s mobility makes her ideal for dodging and speed-based challenges.
How to Get Yubar with Dream Dust
The first Traveler you’ll naturally work toward is Yubar, a mage who once held godlike power. To recruit him, you need to collect Dream Dust:
- Some guides list 300 Dream Dust, while others state 600 Dream Dust. Either way, the currency is gained by dismantling Essences or breaking crystals.
- Farming Dream Dust happens gradually, so keep progressing and you’ll unlock Yubar sooner than later.
How to Unlock Vesper in the Third World
The next milestone comes when you’ve proven you can survive multiple worlds. Vesper, a heavy melee tank and inquisitor of the Sacred Flame Order, requires you to:
- Defeat the bosses of the first two areas in a single run.
- Reach the third world, often referred to as the Starry Dream or Dream of the Night Sky.
Once you make it that far, Vesper joins your roster as a frontline juggernaut.
Aurena: The Battle Healer Traveler
Aurena is a melee support with strong healing abilities. To recruit her, you must:
- Heal for a cumulative total of 25,000–30,000 health (values vary slightly by version).
- This can be healing yourself or allies, and progress stacks across runs.
Vesper is especially useful for this challenge thanks to his built-in self-healing.
Nachia: A Character Earned Through Losses
Unlike other Travelers, Nachia rewards persistence in failure:
- One method unlocks her by being defeated 20 times.
- Another version specifies beating the Demon of the Forest boss 20 times.
Either approach emphasizes repetition, whether you’re grinding losses or farming a specific fight. Nachia emerges as a ranged support who summons ethereal spirits to fight alongside her.
How to Unlock Bismuth with High Speed
Bismuth is one of the trickiest Travelers to unlock, since her condition is very specific:
- Maintain movement speed above 900 for three continuous seconds.
- Mist is the best pick for this challenge, as she already has high mobility.
- Look for speed-boosting Memories like Immolation or Corrosive Trail, and combine them with Essences such as Quicksilver for maximum speed stacking.
Pulling this off requires both planning and timing, but once complete, you’ll unlock Bismuth, a spellbook-wielding ranged mage with excellent mobility.
The Secret Traveler: Unlocking Shell
Finally, the hidden challenge: Shell, the wooden assassin. Unlocking him is a multi-step quest that only becomes available in later stages:
- Reach the Samurai World (also called the Whispering Lotus Plateau).
- Search every arena for three small souls. They appear randomly in rooms marked as containing a soul.
- Collect all three in a single run.
- Before fighting the world boss, look for a wooden doll near the stairs leading to the arena. Interact with it to deliver the souls.
If successful, Shell awakens as a playable Traveler. A known bug may prevent him from unlocking even after completing the steps, so persistence may be required—try again in another run if needed.
Which Character Should You Unlock First?
Each Traveler suits different playstyles:
- Yubar offers reliable ranged magic and is often the first non-starter you’ll unlock.
- Vesper is tanky and forgiving, making him a strong pick for newer players.
- Aurena and Bismuth reward mastery of healing and speed builds.
- Nachia and Shell lean on persistence and late-game exploration.
Rather than chasing a single “best” character, experiment with each unlock to see which Traveler complements your preferred strategies.
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Unlocking all characters in Shape of Dreams isn’t just about completing a checklist—it’s about experiencing the variety of builds and strategies that keep each run fresh. From Lacerta’s steady gunfire to Shell’s fast assassin strikes, every Traveler expands your options and makes the dream world feel alive.
Conquer each challenge at your pace, and soon you’ll have the full roster ready to explore every corner of the dreamscape. Play Now!
