7 Things Nobody Wants To Admit About Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

2. Tying All Heavy Attacks To Spirit Tokens Can Artificially Elongate Runtime

So you're down and out after being flattened by a boss, over and over (and over), and following a handful of losses in a row, you'll be out of Spirit Tokens, with no more Sen to exchange at a Sculptor's Idol.

This creates an interesting, albeit annoying quandary - one that affects what a "checkpoint" could/should provide for the player, in terms of a place to try again. Because in Sekiro, your heavy attacks/Prosthetic Tool uses are directly tied to Spirit Tokens; a currency doled out from dead enemies, bought at Sculptor's Idols, and occasionally found across the environment.

If you're out of them, you just can't use any tools, and the only option is to disconnect from the fight at hand, to attack a number of grunts and refill your stocks. It's definitely one to think on where you come down, as you could argue there's a massive benefit to offing every foe with just your sword, but the counterpoint would be that you're essentially forced to grind out additional enemies, at the most inopportune times, just to access your full moveset.