Just dodge to the side, then attack him for a few seconds from behind. High stance heavy attacks also do the most damage / Ki drain in one hit and its multiplied by attacking from behind. This time you have an AI companion to help you out. K oei Tecmo’s Nioh 2 is here and, to the surprise of no one, it has some pretty tough bosses. When he goes into Dark Realm mode just keep doing what you were doing. But when he’s down to 10% health Mezuki spawns in as well and you have to fight both of them at the same time for a moment. Just run in big circles around the arena and don’t bother with attacking her until that sawblade is gone. If you haven’t yet, get all Kodama in the region to start out with more Elixirs after death. The projectile will miss you 100% of the time this way and you’ll be close to the boss and can land 1-3 hits (with spear use only mid stance to attack, but other weapons will work too). Because you’re wearing low weight armor it helps to get a defense boost elsewhere. Be sure to use your weapon’s high stance attacks for maximum Ki drain. When he is close to the other side of the pillar you strike while he’s on the move!

The main attacks you can easily exploit are: 1) when he slows his two snake arms into the ground to make them spawn through the ground, it leaves him completely defenseless for a long combo; 2) his red charged attack when he slithers forward, run sideways so he misses and do a combo as he slithers past you. Use high-stance, let Sakata Kintoki throw his hatchets into the trees (just hide behind the trees). When you see his hand casting white fog, dodge away, then repeat the Strike+Spear Flourish combo. Feral (Daggers): Run to his right and do the spear slice while running followed by Spear Flourish skill. On the way to the boss you can also make use of the hot spring.

When you see explosives on the floor, dodge away and let them explode. If you ever do start burning, heal yourself with a Daion-Jin’s Sake if you have any (assign to a shortcut via usable item menu). As you get more comfortable with his move pattern you can also try to land a high-stance strike after he detonates the explosives on the floor or does a body slam. See boss #25.

The same basic strategy works in 95% of fights: Run sideways in a big circle around the boss, let them miss a combo. He will sometimes do a swirl of electricity or put electric traps on the floor. See boss #8, the exact same tactics apply, it’s the same boss from before. This time it feels a little easier because now you are higher level and already know his move set. Shibata Katsuie is a Yokai monster boss with tusks like a boar and he uses fire element. If he uses the purple ranged type it’s too risky so just run away from him until he goes back to human form after a minute. Also equip as many Rejuvenation Talisman as you can carry (Onmyo Magic Skill). Other than that it’s a pretty straightforward fight. Dodging only! Moving to the left makes him miss more often than walking to the right. For the rest of the fight he stays in the same form. Oh, and also use the Hot Spring that’s just behind the 3rd Shrine, it heals you for quite a while. An easy way to win is to throw the Kusarigama with high-stance while Shisenin Kosen is running towards you. If it’s a non-charged spin you can easily block it. Especially his tornado move, ALWAYS counter this one with + (Burst Counter). For the individual boss tactics see Boss #1 & Boss #3. Just use Burst Counter on his red charged attacks and land single High-Stance hits when he missed a combo. Use the ramp by the yellow crystals, drop down the top part of the ramp and let him drop down after you. Each shard you destroy reduces the Ki bar (purple stamina bar) of the boss. If you get stuck in the rain of swords you’re dead. The key to winning this fight is to break Mezuki’s Ki bar (the purple “stamina” bar at bottom of screen), this will stagger him. So lock-in on Mezuki to keep an eye on those ranged attacks. Other than for those two moves you don’t want to go near her or attack her, it’s too risky. Keep running in a circle around Enenra, he will miss all strikes and kicks while you run to the left. This makes bosses a lot easier as you have more health recoveries! This gives you an AI companion to aid in battle. So don’t stand still when he does that, run to the right to evade it.

Having light armor (below 30% equipment weight) helps to boost Ki (stamina) recovery speed so you can keep running. From Shuten Doji to Tatarimokke, follow this guide for some helpful tips on how to defeat some of the hardest bosses in Nioh 2. Again, remember to get all Kodama in this level before the boss, so that you start out with more Elixirs on respawn! Pack at least 2 of them, more if you can. After it has missed its dive attack you can attack from behind. After a successful Burst Counter land a good combo on him. As soon as she stops, unleash your highest damage combo on her (that’s generally high-stance). It’s behind the hidden wall left side before the boss, where 3 samurai enemies are standing. Mission Level: 11. Before approaching an arm make sure your Ki is full. Only do single hits and no combos, he spins around much too quickly and will just hit you.