Drifter

For the boss with a similar appearance and moveset to this host, see Ronin Alpha

"Spirit and technique, flawless and firm."

Drifter
Type	Melee, Precision Focused.
Unlocked By	Beating the game without taking damage on Hours Difficulty or above. Getting hit once will require you to reset the run. Hint phrase: "Strike the wind"
True Name	One Man, One Sword, One Purpose - The Neorch
Weakness	Critical/DOT attacks
Failed Swordsman
Navigation
Previous Host	Hellion
Next Host	Equinox

Drifter is one of the fifteen Hosts featured in HOURS. It can be obtained by beating the game without taking direct damage on Hours Difficulty or above.

Description

Drifter is a very fast-paced host with high damage output. It uses a katana to inflict swift melee damage over a decent range and parry attacks. Drifter has a faster standard movement speed than every other host in the game.

Upon reaching Phase 2 of Light Beneath Closed Eyes with Drifter, the game shows its true name, Neorch.

Appearance

Identical to Ronin Alpha, hence the name Drifter. Like the default appearance of Ronin Alpha, he looks like a generic noob, and wields a katana that matches his color palette: green handle, yellow blade, and blue pommel and crossguard.

Playstyle

Drifter's play style matches the playstyle players are intended to use to unlock him: Swiftly avoiding all attacks and striking when the time is just right. Its standard attack, Sever, has 5 types of slash combos and is dependant on the player predicting each one to use it to the greatest effect. Its Parry ability is also very useful, allowing Drifter to block attacks automatically. Slide also allows Drifter to dodge and is useful when the player is out of parries. All its other moves allows Drifter to take chunks of HP off enemies.

In addition to his attacks, Drifter also has passive health regeneration. It is crucial to keep track of this to increase survivability.

Statistics

Drifter
			Sever		Parry
			Cycle slash combos for 6 dmg each slice		Block attacks with sword. Can auto-activate
			Slide		Chain
			Slides a short distance forward		Jump-Slash thrice for 6 x 3 dmg
			Throw		Orbit
			Throws the katana for 6 x 2 dmg		Spin katana for 6 x 2 dmg. May summon noobs
Health	75	Passives
Speed (Studs/s)	20	Knockdown Resistance - Any type of debuff effect applied to Drifter lasts for half its normal duration Passive Regeneration - Heal ? HP per second

Abilities

• Default
• Upgrades

	[M1] - Sever
	Cycles through 5 different types of slash combos, each slash dealing 6 damage. Combos reset after 3 seconds In order they are - a whirlwind slash which moves a short distance, a vertical straight cut, a quick horizontal lunge, a triple forward slash and a triple stationary slice with a long windup

	[M2] - Parry
	Raises the katana to parry attacks, holds 3 charges. If an attack gets too close to Drifter, he will use this ability automatically if he is not using another skill. Recharges after 5 seconds for each charge Drifter's main defensive ability, useful for blocking massive attacks and serves as a fail-safe

	[SHIFT] - Slide
	Slides forward for a medium distance, evading enemy attacks. Can be used during an attack to cancel it. Recharges after 3 seconds Drifter is invincible in this state. Slides towards where you are facing

	[Q] - Chain
	Automatically homes in and jump-slashes three times at the nearest enemy, each slash dealing 6 damage and inflicting stagger. Recharges after 12 seconds Each slash moves a short distance forward. Each jump-slash has a small blindspot

	[E] - Throw
	Throws the katana at an enemy and forces it back after reaching a medium distance, dealing 6 damage twice and inflicting staggering. Recharges after 12 seconds Drifter's only consistent semi-range move. Note that the blade has a very small hitbox

	[R] - Orbit
	Spins the katana around, dealing 6 x 2 damage, inflict stagger and summon 4 Noob Dummies dealing 12 dmg each. Can summon again after 30 secs every time this ability is cast. Recharges after 12 seconds Noob Dummies are not immune to debuffs and automatically lose ? HP a second

	[Passive] - :)
	Any type of crowd control effect applied to Drifter (stagger, stun, silence, disarm, root, or slow) lasts for half its normal duration.

	:)
	Gain 6 sword damage and 25 health. Stacks with all other upgrades

Tips and Tricks

Unlock Tips

Unlocking Drifter requires beating the game without taking damage on Hours Difficulty or above. Here are some effective strategies:

1. Prophet with Star Tempo

• Strategy: Use Prophet and Star Tempo for consistent damage and shields.
• Steps:

1. Start with Overflowing Vitality as your first perk.
2. Use Regeneration immediately to gain shields at the beginning of each stage.
3. Activate Star Tempo to open with Heavy Strike.
4. Dash in and out of combat to avoid damage while waiting for cooldowns.
5. Prioritize upgrades that improve Heavy Strike (e.g., Mortal Wound, Follow Up, I Hear The Abyss).

• Tips:
  • Dodge attacks to preserve your shield.
  • Aim for upgrades that grant regeneration stacks for additional shields.
  • Note: This strategy has been nerfed but is still effective.

2. Subject with Crystal Potion

• Strategy: Use Subject’s Crystal Potion for consistent shields.
• Steps:

1. Use Crystal Potion to gain a 25 HP shield.
2. Always keep an extra Crystal Potion ready, as the shield expires after a certain time.

• Tips:
  • Be cautious of fast attacks (e.g., Bloxxerman or Light Beneath Closed Eyes Phase 1), as they can quickly deplete your shield.

3. Hellion with Word, Omit, or Sand

• Strategy: Use Hellion with Word, Omit, or Sand Tempo for a more conservative playstyle.
• Steps:

1. Use Overclocked Omit or Sand to stay in invincibility frames (i-frames) for extended periods.
2. Play defensively to avoid attacks.

• Tips:
  • This method is ideal if you don’t want to rely on shield-based strategies.

4. Visitor with Behind a Front

• Strategy: Use Visitor with the Behind a Front upgrade for constant shields.
• Steps: Equip Behind a Front to gain a constant shield.

1. Use Rush to speed up attacks.

• Tips:
  • Be cautious of fast attacks, as Visitor’s slow movement speed can make it difficult to avoid damage.

5. Buffoon with Aspect of God/Shade

• Strategy: Use Buffoon with Aspect of God and Aspect of Shade upgrades.
• Steps:

1. Equip Aspect of God for survivability or Aspect of Shade for projectile defense.
2. Use Overclocked Word for invincibility frames.

• Tips:
  • Aspect of God is easier to use but requires caution during the final fight and against Bloxxerman.
  • Aspect of Shade is harder to use due to projectile-based bosses.

6. Multiplayer Cheese with Omit

• Strategy: Use Overclocked Omit in Multiplayer to cheese the game.
• Steps: Assemble a team of Subjects and at least 1 Parting. # Activate Omit as soon as possible.

1. Let your team kill bosses and enemies while you avoid damage.

• Tips:
  • This method relies on RNG, as AI behavior and upgrades can vary.

General Tips

• Rerolling Upgrades: To reroll for specific upgrades, start a round, select your desired upgrade, or skip and return to the menu to try again.
• Avoiding Damage: Focus on dodging and parrying to maintain a hitless run.
• Practice: Spend time learning enemy patterns and Drifter’s abilities to improve your chances.

Gameplay

• Using Zero does not reset the cooldown for the dummies summon from the orbit ability
• It's best to avoid using the dummies against Equinox when he is low on health due to it being able to heal from the dummies with the tornado.

Chromashift

• Red
• Orange
• Dark Orange
• Yellow
• Green
• Cyan
• Light Blue
• Dark Blue
• Purple
• Pink

Trivia

• Drifter can be unlocked in the cheat menu with the command "Class5318008".
• The Resident Mind clone of Drifter was originally able to parry at all times, meaning that even in in stopped time i.e. Halt, it could still parry the player's attacks. This was later fixed in the Revamp update
  • However, enemy Drifters from Multiplayer/Endless Timeless can move for 5 seconds within stopped time once attacked. This is a feature and not a bug, shown by how they gain color temporarily in stopped time
• Drifter's original name was "Failure", but was renamed to "Drifter" on April 6th, 2021
• Drifter's face is actually a 3D model rather than a decal, hence why his face is glowing red during April Fools 2022 rather than just being bland red
• Drifter is able to manually parry both of Bloxxerman's landing shockwaves
  • This is also true of Equinox's Black Tornado, and it will keep parrying as that the tick rate of the tornado is fast enough for it to be considered a single attack, meaning it will use only one of Drifter's parries
• Throwing Drifter's Katana (E) above/at any of Toxic Teapot's toxic puddles formed by their Noxious Spin will cause Drifter to be poisoned as if Drifter stepped in the puddle
• While fighting Ronin Alpha, Drifter can automatically parry the damage and impact stun of Goliath Omega's Giant Noob Smash. The field-wide stagger can not be parried
• Drifter’s flavor text unlocked upon beating the game is a reference to Kanshou and Bakuya from Fate/Stay night
• Drifter is the only host that begins each game with an ability with the R Keybind
• Drifter and Dreamer are the only two boss echo hosts that have a true name
• Drifter's face got temporarily changed to neon orange in the April Fool's 2022 update
• Before the April Fool's 2022 update, Drifter had the "Heavy Hitter" Passive, which caused all of his attacks to stagger enemies. This made him the only host with a staggering M1 attack in Seconds Difficulty
  • This trait has since been given to Bloxxer
• Equinox, Bloxxer, Drifter, and Hellion are the only hosts that have only one upgrade available.
  • Hot Rash does not count since his only one upgrade has different names.
• Drifter's Minion is not the same to Ronin Alpha's Minion. The Drifter's minion has around twice more health and uses its attack quite faster than its counterpart.
• His idle is a reference to Khan from JJBA HFTF/JoJoban.[1]
• When obtaining drifter, if you take damage after Resident Mind is defeated (i.e. a projectile), you will still obtain Drifter.
• Drifter is the only host in the whole game to have a voice, as he screams upon death.

Gallery

Drifter's Icon.

(Made by Krims#3939)

(Made by Gears#6442)

(Made by grug#2639)

( Made by .dipLomatic3bastard)