The best charms in Ghost of Tsushima for most players are the Charm of Amaterasu, which restores health on every kill, the Charm of Inari, which boosts the materials you collect, and the Charm of Mizu-no-Kami, which makes parries and Perfect Dodges easier, all three available from shrines in Act 1. Later on, the Charm of Izanami, the upgradable Inari's Might and Silence charms from Inari Shrines, and Iki Island's Versatile Skills round out the strongest builds. You can equip six charms at once: two major and up to four minor.
We checked effects and locations against Push Square's charm guide, the Ghost of Tsushima Fandom wiki's charm, shrine and trophy pages, and the PlayStation Blog's 1.1 update notes in November 2026.
How Charms Work
Charms are passive bonuses that you slot from the gear menu. There are two kinds. Major charms, shown with a gold icon, give the biggest effects, and you can only equip two of them at a time. Minor charms, shown in silver, give smaller effects and fill the remaining slots.
You start with the two major slots. The minor slots come from Inari Shrines: follow a fox from a Fox Den to its shrine, honor it, and you earn progress toward a new slot. The wiki counts 49 Inari Shrines on Tsushima, 22 in Izuhara, 17 in Toyotama and 10 in Kamiagata. Once all slots are open, further shrines instead build up the Charm of Inari's Might and the Charm of Silence, which keep getting stronger as you honor more. Filling all six slots earns the bronze trophy A Charming Man.
Major charms mostly come from Shinto Shrines, each dedicated to a kami and usually reached by a climb, and the trophy Favor of the Kami rewards honoring all of them. Minor charms come from side tales, Legend ranks and Inari Shrines. Since the 1.1 update, you can also attach a set of charms to each armor through armor loadouts, so a stealth outfit and a dueling outfit can each carry their own charms.
The Best Major Charms
With only two major slots, these are the charms that most often earn one. Shrine names and acts come from Push Square's guide.
- Charm of Amaterasu (Golden Summit Shrine, Act 1): killing enemies restores a moderate amount of health. It keeps you topped up in long fights without spending Resolve, and it is the default pick for most of the game.
- Charm of Inari (Arrow Peak Shrine, Act 1): increases supplies, predator hides, bamboo and yew wood gained from collecting. Equip it while exploring and you will run into far fewer upgrade bottlenecks.
- Charm of Mizu-no-Kami (Spring Falls Shrine, Act 1): parries, Perfect Parries and Perfect Dodges are easier to perform. It is the best defensive charm for anyone still learning the combat timing.
- Charm of Izanami (Marsh Rock Shrine, Act 2): Iron Will revives you at 50 percent of your maximum health. It turns a near-death save into a genuine second chance.
- Charm of Ikazuchi-no-Kami (Crane Mountain Shrine, Act 3): perks and abilities that Terrify are 25 percent more likely to trigger. Strong with the Ghost Armor.
- Charm of Izanagi (Winding Mountain Shrine, Act 2): headshots have a 40 percent chance to return the arrow, which keeps a bow build supplied.
- Charm of Nigihayahi-no-Mikoto (Frost Cliff Shrine, Act 3): moderate bonus damage at full health, a good fit for confident duelists.
A few Legend-rank rewards are also major charms. Push Square lists Incineration (Black Powder Bombs set enemies on fire), Toxic Demise (wind chimes release poison) and Uneven Standing (Sticky Bombs knock down affected targets). They suit Ghost Weapon builds, particularly with the Kensei Armor; our best armor guide explains that pairing.
The Best Minor Charms
Minor charms are where builds get their shape, because you can stack four of them. These are the standouts listed on the Fandom wiki, with where each comes from.
- Charm of Inari's Might: increases health and melee damage, and grows stronger with more Inari Shrines. Unlocked by honoring 20 Inari Shrines. The wiki notes it stacks with the Sakai Clan Armor's own health and damage bonuses.
- Charm of Silence: reduces enemy detection speed by 15 percent and increases Resolve gains, with the Resolve bonus scaling up as you honor more shrines. Unlocked by honoring 24 Inari Shrines.
- Charm of Resolve II: 25 percent more Resolve from every source. From the tale "The Fool."
- Charm of Dual Destruction II: attacks have a 10 percent chance to deal double damage. From "The Conspirator" or "A Final Request."
- Charm of Resistance III: reduces all damage by a major amount. From "The Guardian of Tsushima."
- Charm of Divine Healing II: while at 50 percent health or less, healing recovers an extra 30 percent. From "The Burden of Theft."
- Charm of Broken Barriers: breaking an enemy's defense grants 15 percent Resolve. From "Honor Buried Deep" or "The Delicate Art of Negotiation."
Several minor charms come in numbered versions from different tales, so if you see a Roman numeral, the higher number is the better version and you only need one.
Iki Island Charms Worth Getting
The Iki Island expansion adds charms that are good enough to carry back to Tsushima. Our Iki Island guide explains how to reach the island; these are the charms to look for once you are there.
- Versatile Skills: a major charm that doubles the effect of a minor charm if it is the only minor charm of its category equipped. Earned by reaching the Legend rank "Legacy Redeemer" on Iki. It rewards a spread of minor charms across categories rather than stacking one type.
- Mashira's Protection: from the monkey sanctuaries. Healing briefly extends your Perfect Parry and Perfect Dodge windows, at the cost of one extra Resolve per heal.
- Sugaru's Sight: from the deer sanctuaries. Bows can fire up to three arrows at once if you have the ammo.
- Nekoma's Hunt: from the cat sanctuaries. Throwing kunai at a target during chain assassinations extends their range.
- Abundant Reserves: doubles the ammo from pickups. Earned at the Iki Legend rank "Unwavering Son."
Loadouts for Four Common Builds
The right charms depend on how you fight. These combinations use only the charms described above, and you can save each one to an armor loadout.
- Open combat (Sakai Clan Armor): Amaterasu and Izanami in the major slots, with Inari's Might, Resolve II, Dual Destruction II and Resistance III as minors. You heal on kills, survive mistakes and hit harder.
- Stealth (Ghost Armor): Ikazuchi-no-Kami and Amaterasu as majors, with Silence, Resolve II and two damage minors. Enemies detect you more slowly and more of them flee when the killing starts.
- Archery (Tadayori's Armor): Izanagi for arrow returns plus Sugaru's Sight from Iki, with minors such as Efficiency, which speeds up nocking and reloading by 15 percent.
- Parry and counter: Mizu-no-Kami and Mashira's Protection, paired with Broken Barriers and Resolve II. Our parrying guide explains the timing this build depends on.
Swap the Charm of Inari into a major slot whenever you are exploring rather than fighting, and swap it back out before a big battle. That simple habit is one of the most effective ways to stay ahead on upgrade materials.
A few mistakes come up again and again with charms:
- Skipping Inari Shrines: without them you are stuck with two major slots and none of the minor ones, which is most of your build. Honor every Fox Den you pass.
- Doubling up on numbered charms: equipping Resistance I and Resistance III together wastes a slot that a different effect could fill. Keep the highest version and use the space for something new.
- Ignoring Versatile Skills: it only doubles a minor charm that is alone in its category, so a build of four different minor types gets far more from it than four defense charms would.
- Forgetting the loadout: charms attached to an armor loadout swap with the armor, so set them up once per outfit instead of rebuilding them before every fight.
Charms You Can Only Get in New Game+
A second playthrough adds a small set of charms sold by Baku the Voiceless for Ghost Flowers. They are built to change how combat plays rather than just add numbers, such as Canine Recruitment, which lets you win over a Mongol guard dog, and Ghostly Fury, which keeps your Ghost Stance streak from resetting completely when you take a hit. Push Square lists four of them at 15 to 25 Ghost Flowers each, and the wiki adds a few cosmetic and utility options such as Carnage. Our New Game+ guide covers how to earn the flowers and which to buy first.
Skipping the Material Farming
The Charm of Inari exists because upgrade materials run short. If you would rather not farm them at all, the store's post-tutorial modded save starts right after the tutorial with max rank, all stances unlocked, and max cloths, goods, metals and wood, which frees that major slot for a combat charm from day one. Charms themselves are still earned through shrines and tales as normal.
This is a PlayStation-only service for PS4 and PS5, and since only the save is sold, you need your own copy of the game. More options are listed on the store's Ghost of Tsushima page.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many charms can you equip?
Six: two major charms and up to four minor charms, with the minor slots unlocked through Inari Shrines.
Where is the Charm of Amaterasu?
At the Golden Summit Shrine, available in Act 1, according to Push Square's guide.
What is the best charm early in the game?
Amaterasu for healing, Inari for materials, or Mizu-no-Kami if you struggle with parries. All three are in Act 1.
How do you unlock more charm slots?
Honor Inari Shrines by following foxes from their dens. There are 49 on Tsushima.
How do you get Inari's Might?
Honor 20 Inari Shrines. It increases health and melee damage and grows stronger as you honor more.
Which charm helps with parrying?
The Charm of Mizu-no-Kami, plus Mashira's Protection on Iki Island, which extends the windows after you heal.