"brute force" build?

[thelittlegear]

I'm trying really to get into the deflect/parry philosophy of this game, but I'm sensing that I really am getting too old/slow for this kind of reaction.
I tried to fight tencent again and again focussing on deflecting or at least blocking, and learning his patterns for the two counters against thrust and sweep, but to no avail.

Then I found that tactic where you use well timed thrusts to bring his vitality down, it worked like a charm, and with this tactic, I managed to win against two bosses and several mini bosses.
I managed to humble the ministry ninja with just this thrust, and a few well timed firecrackers.

I'm aware that I won't be able to get through the whole game with this. But I have always specialized in hit hard tactics, and I want to follow that approach in this game, at least for the time being.

Are there skills or anything else that go in this direction?

[Hanma]

just spam. spam is the key . determination too .

[LuckyCheshire]

For single high-damage attacks, Combat Arts and Prosthetics are about your only options.

[thelittlegear]

Originally posted by LuckyCheshire:

For single high-damage attacks, Combat Arts and Prosthetics are about your only options.

I have yet to unlock combat arts.
Care to elaborate a little more?
What combat arts would you suggest?
Which prosthetics do you prefer?

[Tep]

There are consumables that for a short time grant additional attack power like divine confetti and ako's sugar. They can only boost attacks so much, but in some cases they really help (divine confetti is more effective against apparition-type enemies, for example). The main issue with heavily relying on these for everything rather than just as a last resort to overcome a hurdle is in that case you will probably end up needing to farm to get more of them.

Originally posted by LuckyCheshire:

For single high-damage attacks, Combat Arts and Prosthetics are about your only options.

Yes, for example Mortal Draw is a strong attack combat art you can get in the mid-game. And various prosthetics come in very handy in specific situations (generally they do powerful but somewhat context specific things, and especially some get much more useful as they are upgraded).

Also just one specific prosthetic thing to consider that isn't strictly about increasing attack power is acquiring/upgrading the umbrella prosthetic which makes turtling and then deflecting/attacking much easier (at the cost of a mild use of spirit emblems).

When you can, use stealth to shorten a boss fight.

Lastly, learning specific combos with the various tools at hand is the ultimate way to trivialize certain fights. There are plenty of useful tutorials on youtube about specific strategies for the bosses or other things like farming resources.

[Tep]

Originally posted by thelittlegear:

I have yet to unlock combat arts.

Oh you're still very early in the game. Give yourself more time to make progress. You'll definitely start getting the hang of it better if you just keep going. This game usually feels very difficult at first, but at some point it will start to become more intuitive. And you will unlock combat arts, prosthetics, and gain attack power as you go. Beating main bosses grants straight attack power upgrades.

[Tep]

Originally posted by thelittlegear:

What combat arts would you suggest?
Which prosthetics do you prefer?

I'd recommend looking at some tutorials on youtube, they will explain this very well.

[thelittlegear]

Originally posted by Tep:

Originally posted by thelittlegear:

I have yet to unlock combat arts.

Oh you're still very early in the game. Give yourself more time to make progress. You'll definitely start getting the hang of it better if you just keep going. This game usually feels very difficult at first, but at some point it will start to become more intuitive. And you will unlock combat arts, prosthetics, and gain attack power as you go. Beating main bosses grants straight attack power upgrades.

This gives me hope that it'll slowly learn to adapt, thank you 😊🙏
I already made quite some progress when it comes to deflecting. But I also know my limitations: I gave up on Nioh 2 simply because I couldn't make any progress, because the game was so focused on those quick reflexes.

[Tep]

Yes, I think you'll learn if you give yourself enough time. It's a steep learning curve at the beginning, but very rewarding.

Originally posted by thelittlegear:

quick reflexes.

This game does require some quickness, but it's not entirely spontaneous improvising because all the enemies attacks are choreographed, perfectly repeated patterns, so it's moreso a matter of learning the rhythms of specific enemy attacks and how they are likely to be spaced or strung together. It's much more of a dance than a disorganized frantic frenzy. You do something, they respond, then you respond etc. You can sometimes straight interrupt enemy attacks with your own but it's more about timing than quickness. But the game will always punish for making mistakes like letting your posture get broken or just quickly spamming blocks or attacks too much (counter-argument to the person who commented recommending just spamming). But the more practice you give yourself with the base mechanics and then on each particular boss or situation, the more you will not be relying on reflexes and will just be pressuring and responding based on what you've already learned. And the more you will get used to keeping the pressure on the enemies, especially bosses, which will eventually make most fights much quicker and fluid. Once you are getting the hang of deflecting, defense and offense become the same thing.

BTW another thing I would strongly encourage if you haven't been doing so is to frequently use the NPC in the starting area for practice with all the mechanics. He's very good training for learning all the base combat mechanics individually and then combining them.

[thelittlegear]

Some very valuable input there, Tep!
What you are saying reminds me of my Lies of P run, where i had to learn that my defensive, passive dark souls approach was completely counterproductive. That s one thing i will have to relearn for sure for this game!

[Tep]

Glad I could help! I haven't played that but it does look cool.

[thelittlegear]

uh uh! I just found the loaded spear prosth... Yummie, that sounds just like down my alley :)
And it comes with multiple upgrades, too!
Tear off the armor from afar, then go in with those thrusts to gnaw away at vitality.

[r]

you just need to memorize all the moves of the boss... no other skill required.

[thelittlegear]

Originally posted by r:

you just need to memorize all the moves of the boss... no other skill required.

And that's something I've never done, and never will - much too much to memorize.
I prefer focusing on 2-3 things max and keep it as simple as possible.
Fortunately, developers of all the soulslike I've played until now always made this approach possible 😊

[Gomez]

Just do it again and again and again. much you get dead much you get better.

every boss encounter made me want to drop the game. now me as a really bad player, doing my last playthrough to 100%. almost finishing it without die once. worth it.

[thelittlegear]

I just remembered you can save in front of a boss encounter and reload it rather quick, instead of having to refight your way up to the boss 😅 ah, good times!

And then there's always this guy

https://youtu.be/NmpRO3Fyk_Q?si=qGPPv84he3zYhxJI

4-5 tries per boss is enough, then I need a quick solution otherwise it's too much precious lifetime lost