Nioh 2

[Tse Tse Fly]

So how do I get good at this? I guess I got the hang of dealing with regular enemies (though I still get sodomized when there are more than 2 of them), but these yokai shits always give me a hard time (let alone bosses, oh God). I hate using blue spirits (feels like cheating to me), but this is the only way I've been able to make progress so far.

 

[Silverfish]

What specifically are you struggling with?

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

What specifically are you struggling with?

Mainly yokai beasts - too strong and quick, I don't know how I'm supposed to take them on 1 on 1, without overlevelling.

 

[Silverfish]

For what it's worth, yokai don't regenerate ki outside of the dark realm, so weapons like axes, tonfas and kusarigamas can whittle their stamina down quickly, at which point you can stagger them and set them up for grapples. If the yokai you're fighting has horns or tusks, breaking them will deal a ton of ki damage as well. If you're using an Odachi, buy the parry from its skill tree, since it has a unique property of being able to parry attacks from weapon-wielding yokai (yoki, enki, ippon-datara and the like), though it doesn't work on bosses.

 

[somerandomdude]

So how do I get good at this? I guess I got the hang of dealing with regular enemies (though I still get sodomized when there are more than 2 of them), but these yokai shits always give me a hard time (let alone bosses, oh God). I hate using blue spirits (feels like cheating to me), but this is the only way I've been able to make progress so far.

It's been quite awhile since I played this, but I remember a few tidbits that might help you.

- Blocking is very good in this game, don't be afraid to use it.
- Yokai skills like Ippon Datara (1 legged hammer bro) are effective for breaking enemies, and have iframes on them (can also iframe red attacks). Gozuki is quite good as well (minotaur-like boss enemy).
- There are a lot of good buff & support spells from ninjetsu and omnyo magic, and these can make a literal night and day difference.
- Burst counter timings vary depending on the type of counter. Certain attacks might be easier to counter with certain burst counter types. The timing for phantom functions more like a traditional parry. Brute type lands a hit, so the focus of using brute type to burst counter would be to tap them with it before the attack lands. I found the timing for feral counter to be odd and inconsistent, and had much better luck using phantom or brute type. IMO brute type works great to counter grab attacks or red attacks with long wind ups, and phantom counter works better to counter quicker strikes. So, if you're getting raped by red grabs try using brute to tap them before the grab lands.

 

[Multidirectional]

Brute burst counter best. If you use Ryomen Sukuna and Kasha Soul Cores together you will have strong Yokai abilities (especially Ryomen) and great life leech with them. Healing up with Ryomen Sukuna spin when engaging multiple enemies is ridiculously good. That thing applies Confusion two, as it deals both fire and water at same time. Another good way to heal while attacking - Life Recovery (Amrita Absorbtion). Earliest source of it before you can get it on equipment is bonus from Toyotomi clan, join that. Extraction Talisman makes that effect much better. That should allow you to combo enemies with more confidence.

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

Meanwhile, I've made it to the 'Shadow' stage of the game. Just killed the 3-eyed owl boss. I almost feel ashamed for relying on ninjutsu so much... But look, if I hadn't managed to hit that owl with my kusarigama a few times first, the final lightning jutsu strike wouldn't have been fatal, right?

 

[Multidirectional]

Feathers are great choice to spend Ninjutsu capacity on, I like to have feathers of all three elements handy so I could keep that Confuse going. Also don't be a soulsfag who thinks that using all the tools game allows is playing it wrong. Wrong mentality for this game I think. Magic and Dexterity should be at 30 minimum and jutsu capacities filled no matter what build you play. By Dream of the Wise I like to have both Omnyo and Ninjutsu power at 500 at least.

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

Another boss (Magara) down purely by using ninjutsu

 

[Skinwalker]

I am not sure if this game is shit, or just has a steep learning curve. There seem to be too many mechanics, and it's all weird and stuff.

Help.

 

[Silverfish]

Help.

Sure, but with what?

Edit: Damn, sorry I asked.

 

[Haplo]

Yeah, the devs went overboard with those yokai morph mechanic thingies IMO.

I liked Nioh 1 more.

 

[Multidirectional]

I am not sure if this game is shit, or just has a steep learning curve. There seem to be too many mechanics, and it's all weird and stuff.

Help.

The beginning is harder as you have less tools. Level Dexterity and Magic to 30 to max out capacity earlier on to have more tools. I recommend ninjutsu feathers of all elements and omnyo for talismans. Barrier talisman is certainly something you'll want. Otherwise pump Stamina as heavy armors are good in this game and Toughness is a nice stat. It's Stability and Poise in one. You can forget about pumping damage via attribute scaling until later NG cycles, most of your damage comes from weapon level. Also use Brute guardian spirits as they have best overall burst counter. Want a noob friendly weapon? Odachi. Axe too but Odachi has more move variety. And join Toyotomi clan, Life Recovery (Amrita Absorbtion) is a cool thing to have, and it's the only source of it early game. Later on you can stack more of it via equipment.
This game is actually way more fair than later From games, it just requires that you learn to use more than 3-4 buttons.

 

[Multidirectional]

Yeah, the devs went overboard with those yokai morph mechanic thingies IMO.

I liked Nioh 1 more.

I love Yokai mechanics and would almost certainly find Nioh 1 lacking now if I tried it again.

 

[Haplo]

At least in Nioh 1 it was much easier to man up and beat the enemy with your weapon and your superhuman might, rather then resort to dirty tricks and magery.
Which is how I prefer to roll in such games.

 

[Silverfish]

"The game is harder if you don't utilize all of its tools" is actually a point in N2's favor.

 

[Haplo]

Only if the tools are enjoyable.
These yokai morphs look and feel weird as hell to me.

 

[Silverfish]

"I jumped in the air to dodge an attack and threw a spear!"

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

Am I wrong or Fists are overpowered, and Dual Swords and Hatchets suck ass?

Also what weapon do you recommend if I got bored with Kusarigama?

Also is there a way to level up weapon skills faster? Like, currently I have only lvl 21 in Kusarigama but lvl 46 in Ninja, despite that I started using Ninja skills much later into the game (and I got to Ninja lvl 21 much faster than to Kusarigama lvl 21).

 

[Multidirectional]

Weapon skills are gained based on amount of damage you deal, I think, so higher level weapons will gain them faster. Haven't tried Dual Swords or Hatchets in this yet, but I remember having bad time with Dual Swords in Nioh 1. Fists I used for NG+ on my current run and they did seem to be way too easy to stunlock enemies with. Switched to Spear for NG++ and it's significantly more challenging. Not sure what I'm going for in NG+++ but I have been forcing myself to switch weapons every NG cycle this time, having played single weapon two times up to last difficulty before, first with Odachi and then Kusarigama. This is likely my final run up to last difficulty, where I'll probably stay and experiment with all types of weapons. Maybe even go through all Underworld floors this time. I would stop around floor 90+ before. I know there's this Depths thing too, which I couldn't be arsed to reach before.

 

[Silverfish]

Hatchets suck ass?

Nope. Hatchets give you a no-cost ranged option, good ki damage, decent speed in mid-stance and their rolling attack in high-stance has almost unfair tracking and distance. Best non-dlc weapons in the game.

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

Am I the only one who largely avoids using (weapon) skills? They don't seem any more efficient compared to series of normal attacks (even less so), and sometimes there are caveats to using them or they have limited applicability, and I feel like I would've died countless times if I tried to rely on them in any critical situation.

 

[Silverfish]

It depends on where you are in the game and what weapons you're using. A lot of weapon skill become more useful in the late game / NG+ since they can be boosted by various buffs and armor / accessory abilities. For example, Iai quickdraw with the sword isn't too useful if you buy it right away since it needs to be charged and doesn't do much more damage than a heavy strike, but stack effects like melee damage while poisoned / paralyzed, skill damage, stance damage, attack boost on amrita absorption, set bonuses and back attacks and it can one-shot bosses.

 

[Tse Tse Fly]

Couldn't resist and started a new playthrough, without finishing current one. I was kinda bored with my current fighting style, now I decided to go with Switchglave & Onmyo Magic. It's good to see that my skills have improved somewhat, compared to how pathetic I was initially (this time I was able to defeat Gozuki without much trouble). Or maybe it's just that Switchglave is much more powerful than Kusarigama.

 

[Multidirectional]

I reached Dream of the Wise now and also picked up Switchglaive for first time. Yeah another fun weapon. And at least so far, few missions in, it seems easier to get into than Spear. That Cyclone move pretty good. And cool that there are Flux attacks without needing to switch weapon during it, that shit never felt good to do when I tried so I just gave up on it.