Defeating Yamagata Masakage in Nioh 3: A Guide for Warrior of the East

Nioh 3 continues the series’ tradition of challenging gameplay, throwing players into the heat of battle early on. After stepping through time in search of Kunimatsu, you will immediately encounter a significant challenge: a boss fight against the formidable Yamagata Masakage, one of the “Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda Shingen.”

Welcome, Warrior of the East. Here’s a comprehensive guide to conquering Yamagata Masakage in Nioh 3.

Overview of the Battle

Facing Yamagata Masakage can prove to be a significant hurdle, even for seasoned Nioh players. At this stage, your combat options are restricted: you only have access to the Middle stance in Samurai Style, which can feel extremely limiting, especially if you’re transitioning directly from Nioh or Nioh 2 without a chance to adapt to new mechanics like switching between Samurai and Ninja styles.

The lack of equipment variety and the unavailability of Skill Trees means defeating Masakage requires you to maximize the potential of the few tools you have.

Main Strategy: Hit-and-Run Approach

A character in Nioh 3 confronts Yamagata Masakage in a rainy, fire-lit arena with decorative banners. — This strategy emphasizes quick attacks followed by retreating to recover.

The cornerstone of defeating Yamagata Masakage is adopting a hit-and-run tactic. Start the encounter by avoiding any attacks; instead, use this time to familiarize yourself with the boss’s moveset and discover opportunities for attack.

Once you identify openings, engage with quick, three-hit light combos. After executing your third hit, initiate a Ki Pulse or the Ninja Style equivalent, Mist, to minimize recovery time, allowing you to back off for Ki restoration.

Keeping your Ki levels high is essential to survivability in this battle. Masakage can deal significant damage, and if your Ki runs out while you’re trying to block his powerful strikes, it will likely result in your defeat. A strong method for maintaining Ki and delivering burst damage is to transition into Ninja Style (which regenerates Ki more rapidly) to unleash Shurikens.

Why Ninja Style is the Optimal Choice

A character in Nioh 3 in armored attire engages in combat against Yamagata Masakage amidst an explosion in the video game. — Utilizing Uncanny Flame Ninjutsu can turn the tides in this battle.

Ninja Style’s effectiveness in this encounter stems from its swift attack capabilities, which are complemented by the Ninjutsu skill, Uncanny Flame. This ability inflicts fire damage and can trigger a persistent Burn status that gradually depletes Masakage’s health. To induce this status, you need to hit the boss four times in rapid succession, making precise attacks vital.

Moreover, Ninja Style’s ability to build Arts Proficiency effectively elevates your damage output in this confrontation.

Boosting Damage with Arts Proficiency

A character in Nioh 3 battles Yamagata Masakage in a samurai-themed game setting with banners and combat UI displayed. — Utilizing Arts Proficiency significantly amplifies your combat power.

To inflict substantial damage upon Yamagata Masakage, leveraging Arts Proficiency is crucial. When the proficiency bar fills up on the stances interface, you can launch an impressive combo:

Initiate with an aerial heavy attack in Samurai Style.
Immediately follow up with a Heavy Attack.
Be cautious when executing additional hits; it may be risky unless the boss has depleted his Ki. However, if your health is high, continuing the combo can be advantageous. For instance, starting with the Sword, you can transition into Iai Quickdraw (R1 + Circle), delivering rapid damage to Masakage.

Utilizing Living Artifact

A character in the game Nioh 3 battles Yamagata Masakage, with instructions for 'Charge Attack: Y + B' and — The Living Artifact bestows elemental powers and temporary invincibility.

Upon reaching approximately the midpoint of the fight, you can activate Living Artifact (Triangle + Circle / Y + B).This grants you temporary invincibility, empowers your attacks with the Thunder element, and augments your combat moves.

However, even though you have invincibility, exercise caution—Masakage can block and retaliate. Protect your gauge wisely to maximize the duration of the Living Artifact, enhancing your offensive capabilities while being strategic.

If you remain vigilant, take necessary healing actions, and avoid overcommitting, eventually, Masakage will fall, paving the way for a deeper Nioh 3 experience.

Seeking Assistance When in Need

A character in the game 'Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty' stands in a rainy, war-torn village with the on-screen text 'Benevolent — Find the Benevolent Grave to summon an ally.

Though defeating Yamagata Masakage with the right tactics is possible, the battle can be particularly daunting given the limited mechanics at your disposal.

If you find yourself struggling against this battle-hardened general, look just behind the Shrine near the combat area for a Benevolent Grave. Summoning an NPC ally may provide the distraction you need—although this ally might not last long, it will help draw Masakage’s attention, offering you crucial moments to heal or strike from a distance using shurikens and Uncanny Flame Ninjutsu.

This marks the conclusion of our initial guide for the Warrior of the East series, focusing on strategies to triumph over some of Nioh 3’s most formidable bosses.

Strategy formulated and validated over three different playthroughs of the fight on Steam version 1.01. Screenshots captured from the identical version.

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