How to Draw and Swap Weapons in The Blood of Dawnwalker

Draw and sheathe controls

The Blood of Dawnwalker treats “drawing your weapon” as a toggle between two combat stances. On PS5 press Square; on Xbox press X. Tapping it moves you between armed and unarmed in combat: by day that means unarmed boxing versus your sword, and by night it means vampire claws versus your sword. There is no separate sheathe button to memorize — the same toggle handles both directions, and it works while enemies are swinging at you.

Action	Input	Where it works
Swap armed / unarmed	Square (PS5) / X (Xbox)	In combat, day and night
Change equipped weapon	Inventory menu	Any time, including mid-combat
Claws at night	Automatic unarmed stance after sundown	Night only

Swapping weapons from the Inventory

Your equipped weapon behaves differently from the rest of your gear. Armor and other equipment lock while a fight is on, but weapons can be changed from the Inventory menu in the middle of combat. That makes the Inventory your real “weapon wheel”: carry a short sword for fast pressure, a long sword for reach, and a great sword for heavy hits, then open the menu and swap the moment a fight changes shape.

The game confirms three sword categories — short, long, and great — with different attack paces, and Coen starts with the long sword Peregrini Aurorae, the Dawn’s Pilgrim. Axes and pickaxes can be picked up and used as weapons. There are no bows or crossbows, and helmets do not exist in the equipment system; heavy armor requires a skill to wear, so check the requirement before planning a tanky swap build.

Your day arsenal vs night claws

Coen fights with two toolkits, and the draw toggle means something different in each. By day you swap between unarmed and swordsman combat. By night the unarmed slot becomes vampire claws — and early in the game those claws often hit harder than the swords you own, so staying unarmed at night is genuinely strong. As better swords drop later on, the balance flips and the sword becomes the main damage source again.

You also keep two gear sets, one for day and one for night. Some equipment buffs Witchcraft by day or Vampirism by night, so the swap menu is where builds live: stack health regeneration and Activation Point bonuses to feed your abilities, and once a Legendary piece suits your style, upgrade it at a Blacksmith instead of churning through new drops.

Your first sword: Bad Blood

The story hands you the draw-and-swap lesson early in Bad Blood, the quest that turns Coen into a Vrakhir in the silver mines under Laslea:

1. Follow the torch-lit tunnels with Vladimir until the first cutscene plays near Layos’s body.
2. After the scene, pick up the Common Sword lying on the ground nearby — without it you are unarmed for the fights later in the quest.
3. When kobolds swarm the open cavern, mix sword strikes with Voracious Bite: the bites restore health, the sword ends fights, and the rhythm teaches you the toggle you will use for the rest of the game.

From that point on, Square or X is your stance switch and the Inventory is your armory.

Combat basics that pair with weapon swaps

Drawing the right weapon is half the system; the other half is the directional defense layer. Targeted enemies telegraph attacks from one of 4 directions, and the reticle shows a shield icon when a strike is blockable — tap block as the shield turns orange to parry. Attacks marked with a skull must be dodged instead. Fighting a group, untargeted enemies always attack from the direction they stand in, so parry toward the flanker without turning the camera, and only one enemy strikes at a time.

If directional inputs feel like too much, the options menu has omniblock and omniattack modes that remove the direction component at the cost of extra stamina. Abilities round it out: Swordsman skills work around the clock, Witchcraft is day-only, and Vampirism is night-only, all fueled by Activation Points earned in the fight itself.

FAQ

What button draws your sword in The Blood of Dawnwalker?

Square on PS5 and X on Xbox. The button toggles between armed and unarmed stances during combat.

Can I swap weapons during a fight?

Yes. Weapons are the one equipment slot you can change mid-combat, from the Inventory menu.

Are claws better than swords?

At night and early in the game, vampire claws often outdamage your swords. Later, stronger swords take the lead — keep both stances on the toggle and swap as your arsenal improves.

Is there a bow in The Blood of Dawnwalker?

No. The weapon pool covers short, long, and great swords plus picked-up axes and pickaxes; there are no bows and no helmets.