This Nioh 2 Combat Guide will show you all the basics of combat that you will need to use against the various enemies in the game. Though the game is difficult, you have plenty of weapon choices, abilities and stances that you can use to your advantage to defeat enemies and bosses.
While you may be familiar with the stance system from the previous Nioh game, Team Ninja has also introduced the new Yokai Abilities to fight against the demons. This feature adds another level of complexity in combat and gives you new challenges to overcome.
Nioh 2 Combat Guide
Below we have detailed the basics of combat in the game.
Choose Your Weapons
The game offers plenty of starter weapons that you can choose from. Your character can carry two weapons from the beginning but can choose more that are dropped by enemies. When you start the game, you will have the switchglaive and the double hatchets that you can use.
With the hatchets, you can quickly attack the enemies, while holding the triangle button will allow you to toss one of the hatchets towards the distant target. The double hatchets are pretty fast but do not deal a ton of damage. Alternatively, you can use the switchglaive which gives you different styles of attacks depending on your stances.
You can experiment with other weapons as well, and find out what weapons best suit your combat style. Pick up weapons dropped by enemies and try them out. You can also have better stats to make your weapons powerful against tougher enemies.
Combat Stances
Your character in Nioh 2 fights in three different stances. These stances are high, medium, and low where each stance will have a different move with your weapon. Mastering between these stances will truly make you better combat and will help you take tougher bosses down the road.
The high stance will allow you to slam the weapon down from above for a crushing attack. The high stance depletes an of the opponent’s stamina. However, missing the attack in this stance will leave you vulnerable.
Medium stance produces attacks that are aimed at the midsection of the opponent, providing medium power attacks. This is a well-balanced stance allowing you to attack and begin most fights.
The low stance gives you the ability to attack swiftly with quick attacks. This is best used for taking out the smaller yokai enemies.
Managing Ki With Attacks
Your character’s stamina is measured by the Ki Guage on the top left of the screen. Stamina plays a very important part in combat and depleting it will have you stuck with no attacking, dodging or evading option.
Every time you attack, or even dash, a little chunk of Ki will be depleted. Ki can either recover over time or can be regenerated using the Ki Pulses. After each attack, you have to press R1 at the perfect moment when the character started glowing. Try practicing this before you engage with opponents, and use the Ki Pulses in between each attack or dodge.
Yokai Abilities
Nioh 2 also comes with the new Yokai Abilities that you can use. From the starting of the game, you will be shown the Burst Counter which activates your yokai form and allows you teleport through your enemy’s attack. Striking the enemy while in the yokai form will deal massive damage to their health and ki.
There are three Yokai forms in the game. the first is the Feral form in Yokai Shift will allow you two special moves called Shadowstep and Shadowstab. The first move allows you to dodge while performing a quick attack, while the Shadowstep is basically the next quick attack for a combo.
The second form is the Phantom, which also comes with two special moves called Blood Moon –Yin, and Blood Moon – Yang. The Yin move will allow you to aim and fire your weapon towards the enemy. If you are successful in hitting the enemy, you will be teleported right next to the enemy location. The second move is Yang, which allows you to perform the opposing attack when performing either the Strong or Quick attack.
Lastly, the Brute Form prevents you from being staggered by enemy hits. The special move that comes with it is called Fang Break, which when performed at the right time will allow you to deflect enemy attacks.
If you need more help with the game, make sure to check the guides below as well.
This concludes our Nioh 2 Combat Guide. Post your comments below.
