Soulrift Zephyr and Cross

Every Soulrift account owns Zephyr and Cross. They are not tutorial dummies. They are complete PvE kits with 110 and 100 HP, and they carry you through the first Souls cheques while you learn Dash. This page sits under Players next to shop roster and quest roster. New accounts should still open getting started first.

Zephyr — melee starter (110 HP)

Public description: a swordsman with fast-paced moves and ranged slashing attacks. That mix is why Zephyr is the default “I want to feel like a fighter” pick. You can contest melee uptime like a budget Sunder and still throw slashes when the boss forces a gap. Stay on Zephyr if you like controls that reward walking into range and walking out on a telegraph.

Play him when your lobby already has a Cross or Ricochet. Swap off him when nobody is ranged and ground effects make melee a joke — then Cross kites. Accessories: speed plus damage (accessories).

Zephyr is B on the tier list because Sunder exists, not because Zephyr is unplayable. Sunder costs 1000 Souls and 125 HP. Earn that after Reviva if groups die (Souls and XP).

Cross — ranged starter (100 HP)

Lasers and grenades. Lower HP than Zephyr, safer if you actually stand at range. Cross teaches the habit Lumina players forget: do not walk into the slam to “feel damage.” Ricochet later is the fire-rate upgrade; Lumina is the cooldown upgrade. Cross is the classroom.

Play Cross when you are solo in public servers and cannot trust melee to live. Swap when you bought Ricochet or you need a healer more than a third gun. Cross does not revive anyone. If the lobby wipes, you needed Reviva, not a better laser.

How long to stay on starters

Until:

• Baby Steps and Just Getting Started are done (200 Souls).
• You can Dash a named (to you) telegraph on beat bosses.
• You have either Reviva or a friend on Clockwork for team comps.

You can stay longer. Hitting Your Stride and Proven Fighter still pay Souls while you main a starter. The unlock planner is a shop tool, not a command to abandon Zephyr the minute you have 250 Souls if you already have a healer in the friend group — then Sunder is the upgrade path.

Starters in Shuffle and high ticks

Shuffle Mode is friendlier on Cross because random ground effects punish Zephyr. High boss difficulty is friendlier on whichever starter you Dash better, not on the one a thumbnail called S-tier. Codes will not gift a third starter (codes hub).

Practice assignment

One night Zephyr only, one night Cross only, same boss, lowest tick. Write which kit died less. Main that one until your first shop purchase. Then read unlock characters. Quest characters can wait; Clockwork is the first quest that might outvalue a starter support-wise, and it is not a starter.

VIP (gamepasses) speeds the exit from this page. Skill still starts here. Scripts that skip the roster (scripts) skip the part where you learn to play Soulrift.

Accessory and quest notes for free kits

Fill speed on both starters before you obsess over a shop icon. Zephyr uses speed to leave melee; Cross uses it to keep lasers legal. Neither starter completes Awakening for you, but both can babysit a Clockwork run if you Dash. If a friend insists you are “wasting time” on Zephyr with 800 Souls in the bank, show them the wipe recap, not the shop. A live starter with accessories still beats a naked Sunder.

Cross grenades are not a license to stand still. After the toss, walk. Zephyr ranged slashes are not a license to never enter melee; you still have 110 HP of swordsman identity. Alternate nights if you cannot choose. The wiki will not pick for you, but it will tell you that both are legal mains through Veteran Status.