Sure, you could hack-and-slash your way through every enemy encounter in the game, but where’s the fun or style in rapidly tapping light attack and heavy attack hundreds of times? You can mix up the combat in Assassin’s Creed Shadows by implementing powerful skills, many of which you’ll unlock early, upon leveling up.
As the stealthy Naoe, most of your skills—early game through to the conclusion—revolve around stealth kills, debuffs, and striking fast and hard from the shadows before disappearing. The goal, as Naoe, is to end fights quickly, not draw them out into stylish masterpieces like Yasuke.
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Tidal Wave is one of the earliest abilities you’ll want to unlock for Naoe. It’s a katana ability that allows you to launch forward in a quick-as-lightning attack that slashes through a single target, dealing 25 percent ability damage and causing Vulnerable, which opens up your foe to additional strikes and damage.
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As a ninja, you would do well to learn how to dodge attacks to avoid taking too much damage. Naoe may be tough, but she’s frail in a drawn-out fight. As such, Dodge Attack helps even the playing field by enabling a fast counter-attack after dodging out of the way, allowing for what is essentially a free strike.
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Once you unlock or purchase a tanto, slot it into your secondary weapon space, then use Shadow Piercer. It’s a useful ability that allows Naoe to dash forward, stab an enemy, deal 40 percent ability damage, and incur Vulnerability.
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To pair with other abilities that incur Vulnerability, like Shadow Piercer, Executioner capitalizes on the debuff by increasing your damage output by up to 12 percent at max rank. Now, 12 percent isn’t a tiny buff, and it’s often enough to take down enemies in two or three hits.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is available now on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows PC.
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