Bismuth is one of the standout characters in Shape of Dreams, combining powerful ranged damage with unique automation mechanics that make her both approachable and deadly. Her floating book attacks on its own, giving her a playstyle that revolves around movement, dodging, and stacking the right Memories and Essences for overwhelming DPS.
If you want to maximize Bismuth’s potential, the following build focuses on Pure Soul, cooldown reduction, and survivability options that let her dominate even at higher difficulties.
Bismuth Pure Soul Build Essentials
At the heart of this build is Pure Soul (Traveler Memory), which fires homing missiles that scale extremely well with Ability Power (AP). To make this truly shine, you’ll need to combine it with:
- 100+ Memory Haste (Cooldown Reduction)
- High Ability Power from Chaos Orbs
- Self-Writing Story (Unique Bismuth Destruction Star)
With enough Memory Haste, Pure Soul’s 7-second cooldown practically disappears, letting you flood the battlefield with Light damage. Self-Writing Story further automates her kit by auto-casting Memories, making this build as close to “hands-off” as Shape of Dreams gets.
See also: Best Vesper Build in Shape of Dreams (Hysteria & El’s Mercy Guide)
Recommended Constellation Setup
Your constellations should enhance cooldowns, scaling, and survivability while keeping the autopilot playstyle intact.
Destruction
- Hurricane – Boosts attack speed.
- Mature Mind – Grants Ability Power at level milestones.
- Night Time – Further Ability Power scaling.
- Self-Writing Story – Auto-casting Memories with bonus haste.
- Mental Attunement – Stacks AD and AP with basic hits (lost if damaged).
Life
- Second Wind – Cheat-death once per run.
- Threat Detection – Reduced dodge cooldown.
- Regenerative Skin – Stronger healing and barrier effects.
Imagination
- Wealth Accumulation – More gold for upgrades.
- Efficient Extraction – More Dream Dust from dismantling.
- Primordial Chaos – Chance for extra Chaos orbs.
- Black Market – Start runs with Platinum Coins for rerolls.
Flexible
- Say Hello To My Little Friends! – Extends Pure Soul cooldown slightly but increases missile count based on attack speed.
Key Memories and Essences
The Essence of Flow is essential here. It lowers Pure Soul’s cooldown whenever Light damage is dealt—which Pure Soul does constantly—eventually reducing it to zero.
Beyond that, focus on survivability and damage multipliers:
- Mass Protection – Grants barriers over time.
- Purgatory – AoE damage plus strong healing on bosses.
- Ice Shield – Barriers that explode and heal.
- Essence of Predation – Permanent AD/AP scaling from boss kills.
- Essence of Shatter – Empowers Light Memories for extra burst.
- Essence of Clemency – Lifesteal on attached Memories.
- Essence of Rigidity – Barriers gained when hitting enemies.
For Nightmare difficulty, prioritize barrier-focused essences over healing since the mode nerfs sustain.
How to Play the Build
The playstyle is as simple as it is effective:
- Early Game – Feels slow until you get Essence of Flow. Use Dream Dust to rush upgrades on Pure Soul.
- Mid Game – Start stacking barrier and sustain essences. Pure Soul becomes nearly spammable at this point.
- Late Game – With maxed Flow and high haste, your missiles are constant. Keep dodging while barriers and healing cover your fragility.
If using Say Hello To My Little Friends, level up Bismuth’s Prismatic Vision passive for bonus attack speed. Otherwise, funnel rewards into upgrading Pure Soul directly.
Alternative Options
If RNG doesn’t favor you, consider these flexible swaps:
- Second Pure Soul or Valiant Heart for DPS variety.
- Chain Lightning or Starfall as alternative Light damage skills.
- Enlightenment constellation to further increase attack speed (at the cost of Dream Dust gains).
Bismuth is fragile, but when built around Pure Soul + Self-Writing Story + Essence of Flow, she becomes one of the most reliable DPS characters in Shape of Dreams. This build turns her into a screen-clearing machine that requires minimal inputs—just smart positioning and dodging.
See also: Shape of Dreams – Unlock Every Character and Traveler Explained
If you want a high-damage, low-maintenance run that can carry you deep into Nightmare difficulty, this is the best Bismuth build you can use. Play Now!
