◆ Character Summary ◆
Steaks & Sorabayashi Wakako
Lyn Assassin / Yun Blademaster Couple
Blade & Soul
Viridian Coast > Heaven’s Reach Server
◆The Road to Blade & Soul◆
“I was always fascinated with the finesse and swordplay in dramatized Wuxia fiction. Blademaster was a chance for me to embrace and experience that in a way many other MMOs don’t.”
How long you’ve been playing Blade & Soul?
Steaks: Since NEO (Early March 2025) - right before the Bloodshade Patch
Sorabayashi Wakako: I started playing Blade & Soul around mid-February of 2016 (shortly after launch, if I recall), and I joined Blade & Soul NEO late February of 2025.
How did you each discover Blade & Soul?
Steaks: Wakako one day asked me to play this reboot MMO of a game she played back in 2016. She had been trying to find a game we both would like and can play together.
Sorabayashi Wakako:I think I first discovered the classic Blade & Soul through a television ad. I remember seeing Windwalking and gliding, and thinking it was just like the martial arts fantasy TV dramas.
I talked about the game with a friend of mine, and within a few weeks, we had our own clan. When I found out about NEO, I was excited to get back into the Blade & Soul experience.
After getting familiar with the game, what kept you coming back?
Steaks: Gameplay/Battle System, Character Design, Story was good. MAKING FUN OF THE VOICE ACTING (Sorry - examples later!)
Sorabayashi Wakako: One of the biggest aspects of Blade & Soul that always kept me coming back was the story and its thematic elements, the combat style, and dungeon/raid mechanics.
◆Blade & Soul Through The Years◆
“One of the biggest aspects of Blade & Soul that always kept me coming back was the story and its thematic elements, the combat style, and dungeon/raid mechanics.”
Why do you like the game type you’re currently playing (LIVE or NEO)?
Steaks: So I have only put a few hours into LIVE, I’m mainly on NEO. I will say, I think I was spoiled with unlimited stamina… running around in LIVE has been a pain haha. Something about NEO just feels a bit more polished. I’ve had more weird terrain travel bugs in LIVE than I have in NEO lol.
Sorabayashi Wakako: Graphically, I like the polish in LIVE more, but I feel like there is also too much “new” to LIVE for me to pick back up again easily — steep learning curve. I’m very content with picking up NEO at its current pace and making friends along the way.
What do you like most about your current class?
Steaks: Big DPS - Murder Lyn Attack
Sorabayashi Wakako: I was always fascinated with the finesse and swordplay in dramatized Wuxia fiction. Blademaster (especially in early B&S Live) was a chance for me to embrace and experience that in a way many other MMOs don’t.
With NEO, I’ve been thoroughly enjoying the challenge of juggling draw stance and Black Dragon uptime. I like that combat feels like a real-time action puzzle in some ways.
Have you always played this class? If not, what changed and why?
Steaks: First time playing B&S in general, but I usually play assassin type classes in MMOs.
Sorabayashi Wakako: In both Live and NEO, Blademaster was my go-to first pick. Oddly enough, I don’t usually go for this style in other MMOs.
What was the first thing you remember doing together in-game?
Steaks: The first thing I remember doing was farming Stalker Jiangshi because we really wanted an outfit right out the get go.
Sorabayashi Wakako: The first thing I remember was us doing character creation. Then, when we couldn’t find each other, we realized I messed up by creating my character on the wrong server, haha! For the longest time, we did most of the progression at the same pace, side by side.
What does Blade & Soul mean to you now?
Steaks: It’s a small niche community of gamers who love the MMO aspect. And a bunch of nerds, for sure (me included).
Sorabayashi Wakako: The community may be small, but I think I’ve had more friendships that transcend the boundaries of this game than any other online game I’ve played.
♥︎Love For Blade & Soul♥︎
“As for playing Blade & Soul together, I’m always looking for activities and games to enjoy together with the people in my life. Blade & Soul NEO was on my radar, and on a whim, I asked him if he would be willing to give it a try.”
Did you meet your partner through Blade & Soul? If so, congratulations! How did you initially meet in-game? If not, how did you meet, and how did you start playing Blade & Soul together?
Steaks: Hahaha… She was a friend of my ex (we all worked at an Anime Convention back in the day).
Sorabayashi Wakako: Haha, I used to be a friend of his ex. As for playing Blade & Soul together, I’m always looking for activities and games to enjoy together with the people in my life. Blade & Soul NEO was on my radar, and on a whim, I asked him if he would be willing to give it a try.
How did you grow closer through playing Blade & Soul? What was that process like?
Steaks: We were already close before B&S, but it became a daily grind to get stronger together. It has become part of our daily routine to grind out our dailies and we stream it every Monday to Thursday night… and then play more off stream haha.
Sorabayashi Wakako: The daily grind is more or less regularly scheduled time together, even though he’s always carrying me and I’m playing catch-up. (Always carrying. -Steaks)
We stream it together often, and it’s certainly something we play together almost daily.
Do any zones, dungeons, or moments in Blade & Soul feel “special” to you because of your relationship?
Steaks: I think what made things special was how much we made each other laugh with some of the voice lines in the game. For example, why do the terra cotta soldiers in the Cinderlands TALK? Why do they yell BLOCKED or DEFENDED at me? Aren’t they statues? Also, there's a voice line in Blackram Support - where the guy you fight goes “TRANSSSFOOOOOOORM” and then has this super awkward moan. I always made that moan in voice or loud enough she could hear at her computer and that always made her break out laughing.
Sorabayashi Wakako: More often than not, it’s the voice lines. Honestly, whichever part of the game it comes from, inside jokes will always be a reminder of Blade & Soul.
Does it ever cause funny problems?
Steaks: It causes us to sleep super late and wake up late sometimes. Sometimes we wake up just after World Boss on weekends… oops.
Sorabayashi Wakako: We’ve certainly molded our sleep and eating schedule around streaming (often Blade & Soul), events, and World Boss.
Are you competitive with each other? Who is the better player — honestly?
Steaks: We are always competitive at everything we do. I’m the better player, I just do more damage.
Sorabayashi Wakako: I’m more of a maths person and sometimes make better numbers-based decisions, but he’s definitely got the stronger character by far. The irony is, I’m not optimized for DPS — I just play a build I find fun.
What is the funniest or most unexpected thing that has happened to you two in the game?
Steaks: I never expected to hit top 10 again at world boss after the server merge. I think I’ve hit 2 and 3 when the whales weren’t on… but I do manage top 10 now! Surprising, honestly!
Sorabayashi Wakako: As far as unexpected goes, we’ve each had our moment in the spotlight for community hide and seek during livestreams. Those events had such high participation, and anyone in the community could have won!
♥︎Memories♥︎
“One time on a duo run, I grounded her and told her to sit in the corner so she wouldn't do that. She listened and I solo’ed the boss lol. GOD That attack drives me crazy…”
Your favorite Blade & Soul memory together:
Steaks: My FIRST Heroic Electro-pierce… I opened my box and screamed into the mic. She knew exactly what had happened without me saying.
Sorabayashi Wakako: Honestly, anytime he has any really exciting moments in Blade & Soul, I feel a shimmer of that happiness and excitement, too, because I introduced him to the game.
Your favorite solo memories:
Steaks: She has this attack that STUNS, and she does this dive bomb at the beginning of every encounter. I usually triple Knockdown at the beginning so every time she starts an encounter with this stun, it throws my rotation off. One time on a duo run, I grounded her and told her to sit in the corner so she wouldn't do that. She listened and I solo’ed the boss lol. GOD That attack drives me crazy…
Sorabayashi Wakako: Look, it’s easy and just feels good to enter a fight using Flying Sparrow or Divine Retribution! I know it drives him nuts, haha, so I try to do it less now. As far as solo memories go, I think the peak memory I have from back in the day on Live was grinding out Poharan and learning all of the fight’s ins and outs. I was so enamored by the “girl with a big gun” aesthetic, I even wanted to cosplay her once upon a time.
The biggest “we finally did it!” achievement together:
Steaks: We kept trying to duo Soguns: Gardens, but just couldn't do enough DPS. After she upgraded a handful of equipment (she finally had hit all Winterbane at this point) and I had finally gotten a leggy EP, we FINALLY could do it. Next up: Attempting to Duo Soguns: Lament together!
Sorabayashi Wakako: Definitely, the duo Soguns Lament: Gardens run we were finally able to pull off has been the biggest. Before that milestone, it was duo Bad Bug Raid, and even further back, duo Blackram Supply Chain: Support.
A time when everything went hilariously wrong:
Steaks: There are some times she is sleepy and either walks on autopilot, and does a lot of other things she normally would.
One example is, Hongmoon Blocking at the wrong times, dashing into the boss at the wrong times, etc. She knows exactly when she messes up and calls herself out on it right after and we all have big laughs, stuff happens (especially when you're tired!)
Sorabayashi Wakako: There’s been a couple of runs of Sundered Nexus: Upper Floor and Frenzy Avalanche Den where I’ll get revived and die again before my feet even touch the ground, multiple times in the same fight. That one’s always wild. But yeah, I do sometimes mess things up because of sleepiness, or muscle memory kicking in before I’ve actually processed what I’m seeing on screen.
◆Clan and Community◆
“We hung out with some clan members at Anime Expo - went and visited the B&S Heroes booth. We made some irl friends from this game, kept some, and got rid of some. C’est la vie!”
Have you been part of a clan together?
Steaks: We were invited to join “Hell” in Viridian Coast. Most quit around server merge, and we were sick of pugging all the time. Then Mantoubunz told me to message “Near Death”’s clan leader - and we’ve been here since.
Sorabayashi Wakako: As he said — I more or less tag along where he goes. I’m more of a wallflower until I get to know people, and even then, I prefer more one-on-one conversations.
What role did your clan or friends play in your story?
Steaks: Wakako and I did everything duo, up until Infernal Lord, where we started looking for groups. We met some cool people at Bad Bug Raid - and eventually they took us into their clan. That's where we were able to get stronger with the help of the clan.
Sorabayashi Wakako: Clanmates and friends have definitely played a big part in helping me complete dungeon runs and learn boss rotations.
Any favorite or legendary clan memories?
Steaks: I can never forget the hours spent in Training Base shouting at each other while we learned boss rotations, HMB and party stealth timing, etc. I remember being in there for 2 hours with the clan shouting “TANK! PIZZA! TANK! AOE!!” We suffered for sure but when we finally beat it, after 2 hours, we all LEARNED the rotations. Subsequent runs became stupid easy! Wakako and I still shout rotation steps out loud when we learn new dungeons.
Sorabayashi Wakako: What he said. I remember the Cold Storage calls of “He’s cowarding! He’s mad!” (<-- HAHA I inject stupid commentary everywhere… -Steaks)
Do you have any funny stories involving rival clans or players?
Steaks: One time, a cerulean destro was shouting at Wakako “WHERE IS STEAKS” because he wanted to pvp… I was literally like a few feet away in Mushin’s Tower…
Sorabayashi Wakako: Oh my goodness, that guy…! The funny thing is, I had been AFK in Mushins, so I suspect he thought I was ignoring him.
What’s your favorite B&S meme, joke, or community inside-joke?
Steaks: We knew someone who had poor sleep habits, and would always fall asleep during dungeon runs; specifically Cold Storage. With the old clan, the phrase “Winter is coming” is something we made fun of him using - since we heard that voice line well over 100 times that night…
Sorabayashi Wakako: I think my favorite line from Live is “Read the letter, Cricket!”, but certainly, there are a lot of inside jokes. “The early Cricket gets the… worm? Or doesn’t the worm get the cricket? That can’t be right.”
Has B&S ever crossed into your real life?
Both: Meetups! We met our old Viridian Coast Clan “Hell” at Disneyland, that was super fun. We also met Kellpak there! We hung out with some clan members at Anime Expo - went and visited the B&S Heroes booth.
We made some irl friends from this game, kept some, and got rid of some. C’est la vie!
◆World, Zones, & Content◆
“The in-game flavor text says “Even the champion of the Hongmoon Clan cannot outswim the tide of destiny.” We then proceeded to have every clan member run out and die to the tide of destiny.”
NPCs or bosses you’re oddly attached to:
Steaks: Poharan is cute, Chef is Mommy.
Sorabayashi Wakako: I’ve been attached to Poharan since the days of Live. I spent countless hours learning to solo Poharan back in the day, and she still holds a special place in my heart for her character design. I do have a newfound appreciation for Tae Jangum, though.
What is your favorite zone in the game and why?
Steaks: MSP is probably my favorite, it's just gorgeous.
Sorabayashi Wakako: MSP is definitely beautiful - it’s a shame we can only be in there for so long. Otherwise, I would love to just run around taking screenshots. If only there were a photo-mode version of MSP where every enemy was “passive”, no loot, no EXP, but unlimited time. My next favorite is Blackram Supply Chain, in its full B&S Live single-dungeon glory. I spent so much time there back in the day.
Where do you have some of your best memories?
Steaks: There is this part near the beach factions, that if you go TOO far away from the main area you just DIE. The in-game flavor text says “Even the champion of the Hongmoon Clan cannot outswim the tide of destiny.” We then proceeded to have every clan member run out and die to the tide of destiny.
Sorabayashi Wakako: Probably Blackram Supply, Blackram Command, and Cold Storage. That was the era when I really felt a contributing part of a team, playing with my clan.
Favorite Blade & Soul events of all time:
Steaks: Silverfrost Launch Party! Purple Selector was HUGE back then.
Sorabayashi Wakako: I think the Silverfrost Launch Party was my favorite community event, especially the hide & seek and the dash across the Silverfrost region.
Both: We enjoyed Hide & Seek with Rownen. We would always try to race to see if we could find him.
Was there a specific update, patch, or era that felt like the “golden age” for you?
Steaks: Pre server-merge. The first clan we were in were active, made good friends, and had good times. Post server merge, they all slowly quit or just never came back. Currently, this era feels good. I can carry people and I'm only 1-2 patches behind still haha.
Sorabayashi Wakako: Shortly before server merge. I actually felt like my damage output was somewhat competitive. Back then, I hit top 10 a couple times at World Boss when the whales didn’t show up. Now, I’m just the clan backpack — always getting carried.
◆Looking Ahead◆
“Really, thank you all for making runs amazing (and miserable) - may leggys bless each and every one of you one day. Keep on the hard grind! Thanks for the great memories.”
What are your hopes for the future of Blade & Soul?
Steaks: Is there where I put in my requests ;) like a Lyn Destroyer with an axe the size of a Gon? Or you know, Gunslinger? I hope the game stays alive and we get new players & classes. Might need to look at early game / new player experience for that. I’m thankful there's a lvl 45 skip at least, vs LIVE where you pay for a lvl 60 ticket, or grind it.
Sorabayashi Wakako: When I went on hiatus from B&S Live, a lot of new classes dropped. I would really like to try my hand at playing Warden on B&S NEO.
Anything else you’d like to say to the Blade & Soul community?
Steaks: Really, thank you all for making runs amazing (and miserable) - may leggys bless each and every one of you one day. Keep on the hard grind! Thanks for the great memories.
Sorabayashi Wakako: I know many people were hoping for a proper “NEO Classic” experience when NEO launched, but I appreciate everyone who stuck around to help make the game experience what it is today. There are some really wonderful people willing to host dungeon carries and share reliable suspicious ritual/field boss information in world chat.