Soh's face: Maskless Soh.

A comparison between menu renders. Her outfit colors look different but they aren't. The colors change in lighting.

I decided to do a playthrough with no mask, to obtain scene footage.

Unfortunately it's a bit awkward as there's rarely 'expressions' on her face. A permanent ':3' smile is on her face, which is lovely, but her eyes are dull and her face never changes. Her eyes don't focus on anything.

Even a stoic person has subtle expressions.

Her face is basically a different mask put on her model.

To better visually explain the issue with her eyes, look at Yoshiro's in comparison to Soh's.

There is a constant light reflected in Yoshiro's eyes and upon her face, illuminating her at all times. It prevents unflattering shots like Soh's face in the True Ending and this:

Bad lighting, dead eyes

No lighting

In the normal ending, she's fully lluminated:

Her eyes shine here.

Games sometimes have many models for a character. Yoshiro also has this kind of 'blank' model, usually on the field:

Her eyes are lighter here with little depth

No light

The 'blank' face again

If you've played Kingdom Hearts, it's cut-scene faces vs outside cut-scene faces. (Games like Final Fantasy X and X-2 also had these kinds of 'blank' models and then higher resolution models for cut-scenes. It's to optimize the game.)

I would've liked a better quality face during cut-scenes but that might've been too much extra work?

Soh with her mask on has more reactions because you have to pay attention to her body language only. Without her mask, you instinctively look to her face for how she's feeling or thinking and there's nothing there.

Very doll-like when she moves her head around...

But she's beautiful!!

I thought her make-up had been changed to resemble Yoshiro's, since her lips are bright red in the rewards menu but it isn't.

Red lips

Her eye-shadow appears to be a purple/lilac on the lid and soft red with subtle brown undertones on the bottom and up to the browbone.

 

I love her ':3' lips

The red undertones in her make up come out

The make-up of the two is well-done with some thought put into it. Yoshiro has Marilyn Monroe's eyelid trick of putting the peak of a cat-eye upon the lid, giving a seductive sleepy look when the eyes droop. Soh's make up emphasizes her upturned eyes, pulling them further up. A very strong gaze.

The peak is on her lid, giving her a seductive look

It reminds me of how much thought was put into Bayonetta's make-up. Also extremely beautiful...(the benefits of having women on the team?)

(Although this Soh is entirely her own character. That is, when I joke I'm Soh, I don't mean her...I mean the masked one...)

I prefer her masked version only because the best thing is that behind the mask is a beautiful woman. You just don't get to see her all the time. When you do, it's a lovely surprise.

Lillies...

Otherworldly Venture: rewards and thoughts.

After playing for a few hours, I obtained the Otherworldly Venture's rewards.

The first two difficulties, Easy and Normal, are fine. You play up to a certain wave and need to obtain enough points during to unlock the reward. (Or it unlocks automatically?)

On Hard, you need to obtain enough points as it's endless.

I enjoyed the first two difficulties but Hard is a bit repetitive. I don't enjoy cycling through the same levels over and over nor do I enjoy fighting the same Festering Seethe only one level later from the previous time I did. 
The Seethe start off difficult and are as hard as later-cycle Seethe. (the small flying ones take two shots to kill instead of one)

I struggled the most with Hard, especially wave 11. The game is strategy but also chance as what items you may pick from is randomized. 
I discovered that it's better to upgrade Villager levels, have talismans that support their vitality and have the Tsuba Guard that engulfs them in a holy aura. Once a villager falls, they are cocooned until the end of the night and there can be many waves in one night, leaving you struggling.
Using the picks that boost damage and lower damage from Seethe are vital. Especially when facing Festering Seethe. The mini-bosses can be devastating, especially in small, enclosed spaces.
(I struggled terribly in Wave 11, fighting Raikobo and a spectre of Cursed Soh. It was only until I used the boosting options that I was able to defeat them.)

Onto the rewards!

• Easy Reward: Outset Costume.

A new outfit for Soh. Too bad it's ugly. I'm not sure how this design managed to get approved...

The colors are pretty.

I like the mask though...

The white nails have debuted!

White nails!

More photos:

Short hair! Cursed Soh's long hair is because of Yoshiro.

Since Soh's outfits are related to lore, what is the lore behind this? Has Soh become corrupted from venturing into the Otherworld?

This design on her arm is seen here, on the concept art for the Spirit Stone:

Original design for the Spirit Stone

So now we have another link between Soh and the Spirit Stone?

Those symbols also appear on her outfit. (I also updated the symbols post with image from the artbook)

Both symbols

It's called 'Outset' which means the beginning or start of something. Could this have been the very first Soh's outfit? Or perhaps this was the first design for Soh?

Normal Reward: No Mask(Original Costume)

I thought they changed her make-up(she has red lips here)

No mask!!

I couldn't believe it! I had my suspicions a maskless model had been created for her and here she is!

Unfortunately, she doesn't emote and her bangs don't move. Her face isn't lit up like Yoshiro's.

See how there's a light on Yoshiro, brightening up her face? Her eyes are also reflecting a light.

No such thing with Soh...her face is very blank, which makes scenes feel awkward.

Her face, as I suspected, is totally different to Yoshiro.

What a beauty!

(Before I played the DLC, I was working on a mazo talisman post that I planned to publish after I wrote about the DLC and in it, I mentioned their faces are not similar at all, actually. Nice to see I was correct. The reason we think they look similar is because they have the same hair color and eye color and are very beautiful. They are also the only faces we see.)

Hard Reward: Outlet(No Mask)

No-mask version for this outfit. Very disappointing...

I had high hopes. Something for Yoshiro. Maybe something related to Cursed Soh...

No extra lore. (Yet?)

A Maiden's Duty.

Soh is a Maiden who's merged with the Goddess and becomes her Messenger by wearing the mask of the Goddess to allow the Goddess to act through her.

We play as the Goddess, subtly confirmed in an interview.

When Soh loses her health, she can perform the role of 'Soh' and of 'Yoshiro'(bestowing masks and guiding villagers) but she cannot purify. Purifying is linked to the Goddess.

Her spirit form resembles a tamagushi, a former yorishiro. We can still control this form because as the Goddess, we've merged with this Maiden.

Soh 'descends alongside Yoshiro' because she is the descended Goddess merged with a former Maiden(Yoshiro).

The merge appears to be complete when the Maiden is granted the mask. (normal ending)

In the prequel, the Messenger is described as 'nameless'. I took this to mean it was the original descended Goddess and not a Maiden-fused-with-Goddess.

But Yoshiro is 'nameless' herself as Yoshiro is just name given to every chosen Maiden. It's not a real name. Soh likely is as well, just a 'name' given to the Messenger, who is an ancestor of the Maiden.
The name was likely given by the Maiden.

The play uses 'Maiden' and 'Messenger' but no names.

A concise way of putting this all together is: 

The Goddess is possessing a Maiden's spirit through the mask.

The Maiden, through prayer, merges with the Goddess. She becomes a Messenger, able to wear the mask of the Goddess to allow the Goddess to act through her.

Is the Soh in the play a previous Maiden?

It must be someone the Goddess is acting through.

Or is the implication in the normal ending that Yoshiro's spirit had been wearing the mask? But it can't be because this spirit ascends in the true ending.

Matching pattern on Yoshiro and Soh.

It's also found on Soh's choker? And her arm. (It's present on villagers, too.)

In Phantom Paths, Yoshiro's pattern is underfoot the two, possibly representing the Maiden as the foundation for both.

Phantom Paths is possibly inspired by this:

Red and White Plum Blossoms

The Maiden is the one holding impurity(after purging the mountain) and the Goddess's continuous merging with her is what causes Cursed Soh.

If you look at the inspired art and incorporate it into the idea, both Cursed Soh and Soh are 'blossoms', a result from merging with Yoshiro. Continuous merging through cycles eventually defiled the Goddess, turning her into Cursed Soh. Same method, different outcome.

Blossoms are also used to describe Maidens. A blossom is a flower that usually blooms alone. Cherry blossoms are associated with the Goddess and usually bloom in clusters.
(Yoshiro's plaque says a single flower doesn't hesitate to bend to the wind. Is her fragility linked to her solitude we witness in-game?)

Soh is the previous Maiden who's fused with the descended Goddess. 

Cursed Soh is the previous Maiden fused with the descended Goddess but due to the impurity from several previous Maidens, the Goddess herself has become defiled, creating Cursed Soh.

The black river with the gold pattern separating the blossoms(Cursed Soh and Soh) can be see as the impurity from Yoshiro. If these trees receive nourishment from the river deep underground...the Goddess, through Soh, is steadily being cursed by merging with Maidens.

Stylish Soh.

Beautiful. Stylish. Graceful.