This is a list of all the best abilities to get for Naoe and Yasuke in Assassin's Creed Shadows (AC Shadows). Read on for a ranking of the abilities in each of the mastery trees including a tier list of the best mastery trees to prioritize when playing as Naoe or Yasuke.

Ability Guides
Best Abilities Tier List	List of All Abilities

Best Abilities

All Ability Mastery Trees Ranked
Tier	Naoe	Yasuke
S-Tier	Assassin Tools	Long Katana Samurai
A-Tier	Katana	Kanabo
B-Tier	Tanto	Naginata
C-Tier	Shinobi Kusarigama	Bow Teppo

Click on any of the Mastery Trees listed to jump to its best abilities section!

Best Abilities for Naoe

Best Abilities for Each Character
Naoe	Yasuke

Click on either link above to jump to Naoe's or Yasuke's best ability list.

Best Assassin Mastery Abilities

All Naoe Mastery Trees
Assassin		Tools		Katana
Shinobi		Tanto		Kusarigama
Best Assassin Abilities
Assassination Damage (★★★★★)		If you're playing with Guaranteed Assassination turned off, this will be the best Assassin ability to get since it allows you to maintain the one-hit kill assassinate as enemy scaling catches up with your level.
Improved Ground Assassinate (★★★★★)		Similar to Assassination Damage, this ability improves Ground Assassinations, making it perfect for early game when you still don't have access to Engravings that improve assassinations.
Reinforced Blade (★★★★★)		Finally allows you to assassinate large enemies. Prior to getting this, you won't be able to assassinate them at all.
Hand Of The Creed (★★★★)		Allows you to be a bit more aggressive when attempting to assassinate enemies since enemies can no longer deny an assassinate when they see you.
Double Assassinate (★★★★)		Unlocks the ability to double assassinate two enemies in close proximity. A great ability to get once you get your first Tanto.
Vigor (★★★)		This passive only starts becoming useful later in the game after you've invested a ton of points in the Assassin and Tools Mastery Trees. Only get this if you have 4 active abilities available.
Shoji Door Assassination (★★)		While definitely cool, this ability has limited uses since the enemy needs to be extremely close to the door in order for you to even get the prompt to assassinate them.
Rush Assassinate (★)		A flashy with no practical use since it is outclassed by the ranged assassinate of the Kunai. Why get close when you can stay hidden and still one-shot enemies?

Assassin damage passives were not included in this list since they are situational. If you plan to stick to be more combat oriented, invest in Executioner. If you plan to be sneaky, get either Frontrunner or Nightcrawler later in the game.

Best Tools Mastery Abilities

All Naoe Mastery Trees
Assassin		Tools		Katana
Shinobi		Tanto		Kusarigama
Best Tools Abilities
Kunai Assassination Damage (★★★★★)		Kunai are S-tier assassination tools and this only improves their one-shot kill potential. At Rank III, Kunai assassinations are arguably better than the regular way to assassinate targets since it's easier to stay hidden.
Everlast (★★★★★)		Essentially makes it so that you can always retrieve your Kunai. You no longer need to play around with timers and guaranteed kills in order to retrieve a thrown Kunai with this ability learned.
Large Tool Bag (★★★★★)		More Kunai means more kills that you can perform in quick succession. At max rank, you'll have 6 Kunai to throw; that's 6 one-shots without having to leave your hiding place.
Tool Professional (★★★)		Improves tool damage. If learned till Rank 3, an undetected Kunai throw will deal 418% damage.
Shuriken (★★)		Can't be used as an assassination tool since it mostly deals chip damage. However, it can be useful for disabling alarm bells at range in castles (so you don't have to waste Kunai on them).

The Smoke Bomb and Shinobi Bell are optional since they don't seem to work consistently. Sometimes, they'll function as intended, but their unreliability disqualifies them from this list (especially since they can cost you a run when playing at max stealth difficulty).

Best Katana Mastery Abilities

All Naoe Mastery Trees
Assassin		Tools		Katana
Shinobi		Tanto		Kusarigama
Best Katana Abilities
Guard Breaker (★★★★★)		One of the best Katana abilities since it pairs really well with both Affliction buildup perks and the Engraving that grants a % chance to remove a health segment on attack. Effectively allows you to chunk away at enemy HP with each use.
Counter Attack (★★★★★)		Makes fishing for deflects worthwhile since you can actually counter-attack and chain into a combo due to the Vulnerable status inflicted on the enemy.
Dodge Attack (★★★★)		A fully upgrade Dodge Attack (with Generator and No Mercy) makes fights trivial since the Vulnerable procs on hit ensures you can full combo enemies over and over again. Effective when playing at higher difficulties since it's much safer than fishing for deflects.
Eviscerate (★★★)		A very situational ability that gets decent mileage if you're fighting next to cliffs or ledges. Similar to Yasuke's Kick, this is a nice setup for an easy gravity kill. When upgrading it, make sure to only upgrade until Outclass since the final upgrade isn't worth the extra mastery points.
Tidal Wave (★)		While definitely useful during the early game, its utility quickly falls off as you progress since it doesn't do much for you during multi-enemy fights. Unlike the Guard Breaker which guarantees damage or Eviscerate which is a great "get off me" card, this ability is mostly for show only.

Of the 3 damage passives in the Kata Mastery tree, only Melee Expert is worthwhile to invest in. Affliction Effectiveness and Momentum Builder aren't that useful in the early game, so any points you have available are better used on improving active abilities.

Best Shinobi Mastery Abilities

All Naoe Mastery Trees
Assassin		Tools		Katana
Shinobi		Tanto		Kusarigama
Best Shinobi Abilities
Vault (★★★★★)		A very useful ability when in open combat since it allows you to proc Vulnerable while also synergizing with the Backstab passive of the Tanto. Damage after a vault can even be upgraded if you invest in the Evasive passive.
Prodigy (★★★★)		Gets a lot of mileage after getting either Katana or Kusarigama active abilities. However, it's best to invest in this after you've managed to specialize in Assassin, Tools, and your chosen weapon mastery tree.
Lightning Kicks (★★★)		A good crowd control ability when getting mobbed. However, it is very situational since enemies can still hit you while in the middle of an ability. Unlike other abilities like Guard Breaker which slows down time, this one occurs in real time, making it dangerous to pull off when getting shot at.
Heighten Senses (★)		Not as useful to get since 5 points are better invested in other mastery trees. There are plenty of ways to remain undetected in Castles or Hostile POIs. This is more of a gimmick ability since your Adrenaline chunks are best saved for actual combat.

Nothing really stands out as overpowered in the Shinobi Mastery tree. Most of the abilities and passives in this tree are very situational and are often beaten out by better passives in both the Tools and Assassin Mastery trees.

Best Tanto Mastery Abilities

All Naoe Mastery Trees
Assassin		Tools		Katana
Shinobi		Tanto		Kusarigama
Best Tanto Abilities
Hidden Hand (★★★★★)		Very useful to get a guaranteed kill in the thick of combat. Since Naoe struggles against multiple enemies, an ability that can thin out the herd is a game changer. The only downside to this ability is that its upgrade to make it unblockable is locked behind completing Naoe's story.
Leap Strike ＆ Escape Strike (★★★★★)		Leap and Escape Strike are amazing abilities that give you free damage and reposition attacks with the Tanto. When paired with the Engraving that slows down time on Escape Strike (that you can get very early), you get a free slo-mo switch that you can use to exploit to get free damage in.
Shadow Piercer (★★★★)		An amazing damage ability for the Tanto that effectively extends its "range" during fights. Allows you to reposition without having to sacrifice damage in the process.
Backstab (★★★)		Very situational since it requires you to have the Vault ability and a very good deflect skills. However, when you successfully pull off the Vault into Weak Point Backstab, the damage is amazing.
Backstabber (★★)		Again, hinges on you working the Backstab ability into your combat rotation. However, this only pays off if you decide to main a Tanto as your main damage source.
Shadow Barrage (★)		Auto-dodge isn't that good when it's pretty easy to dodge attacks in-game. The fact that the quick evade doesn't proc a Vulnerable like a regular perfect dodge makes this an ability you can do without.

For the Tanto Mastery tree, you can safely skip out on the Critical Thinker and Gap Seeker passives. Even on Extreme combat difficulty, it'll be better to play into Afflictions or % chance to remove health segments than it is to build up Armor Piercing or Crit Chance since the former two get better results immediately.

Best Kusarigama Mastery Abilities

All Naoe Mastery Trees
Assassin		Tools		Katana
Shinobi		Tanto		Kusarigama
Best Kusarigama Abilities
Cyclone Blast (★★★★★)		This sweeping AoE attack that pushes enemies back is the best ability you can get for the Kusarigama since it typically struggles against big mobs of opponents. This'll be your free "get off me" card when getting mobbed.
Snake Bite (★★★★★)		Snake Bite is another great ability since it guarantees a knockout. While down, you can use a ground attack to directly deal damage to your stunned opponent for free. Makes 1v1s easier, especially when fighting much stronger opponents.
Quick Strike (★★★★)		Anything that can grant you extra strikes is welcome since the Kusarigama excels when it comes to Affliction buildup. Extra hits means an easier time proc'ing these Afflictions.
Multi-Target Expert (★★★★)		When you first start using a Kusarigama, the AoE posture attack will feel very weak. It requires a lot of investment, and included in this investment is building up this passive to Rank 3 for that 15% damage increase.
Affliction Builder (★★)		While great for Affliction builds, it's entirely optional since Engravings have better effects if you want to boost your Affliction buildup.
Entanglement (★★)		Not entirely feasible at higher difficulties since Enemies will mob you. The long windup and animation is good for style points but not much else.
Feral Outburst (★)		You don't get damage immunity while dealing all 4 strikes, leaving you open when fighting against multiple enemies; this is a highly impractical combat ability.

Of the three weapons available to Naoe, the Kusarigama is by far the weakest and most difficult to use. It is recommended that you lean into Affliction buildup as your primary source of damage since a regular Kusarigama (and its abilities) hit like a wet noodle when you first start the game.

Best Abilitiys for Yasuke

Best Abilities for Each Character
Naoe	Yasuke

Best Long Katana Mastery Abilities

All Yasuke Mastery Trees
Long Katana		Samurai		Naginata
Kanabo		Bow		Teppo
Best Long Katana Abilities
Payback (★★★★★)		Hands down the best Long Katana ability since it restores your health on both hits of the attack. Given Yasuke's playstyle, it allows you to face-tank and trade damage even on Extreme Combat Difficulty. Make sure to max out its upgrades to get the most out of its damage and healing.
Adrenaline Builder (★★★★★)		Yasuke lives off of his Adrenaline Chunks. Getting up to 15% increased Adrenaline Gain at Rank 3 using this passive allows you to consistently spam his abilities.
Combat Expert (★★★★)		Again, as Yasuke, you'll always be better facing enemies head on. Increasing his melee weapon damage early on buffs all 3 of his best weapon types, making this a must-have once you have points to spare.
Power Dash (★★★★)		This is a great reposition ability. Allows you to gap close when fighting pesky ranged enemies (especially since Yasuke is quite slow to move). Its Vulnerable proc also allows you to interrupt enemy chain attacks with ease.
Sheathed Attack (★★★)		A really good switch for high damage regular attacks, but it can be safely skipped until you've built up enough points in both the Long Katana and Samurai Mastery trees. This passive only pays off if you max out its upgrades so that you get the 50% Adrenaline Chunk generation on hit.
Samurai Showdown (★)		Not as useful since its utility is outclassed by the guaranteed Vulnerable proc of Power Dash.

Do note that one of Yasuke's best passives, Riposte, is locked behind main story progress. Make sure to complete Shinbakufu missions to unlock this amazing passive early.

Best Samurai Mastery Abilities

All Yasuke Mastery Trees
Long Katana		Samurai		Naginata
Kanabo		Bow		Teppo
Best Samurai Abilities
Vigor (★★★★★)		Your priority as Yasuke is to get as many Adrenaline Chunks unlocked as soon as possible. This allows you to spam abilities in combat, especially with how easy it is for Yasuke to generate Adrenaline.
Regeneration (★★★★★)		Yasuke goes through regular soldiers like a hot knife through butter. Regeneration ensures you get free healing per kill when you go berserk on regular soldiers.
Heavy Impact (★★★★)		Kick is a great tempo setter during pitched battle. Heavy Impact allows you to ragdoll even large enemies, making fights even against enemies like Guardians a breeze since you can just send them flying while you deal with weaker enemies.
Stronger, Smarter... (★★★)		Again, anything that helps you spam abilities will be amazing on Yasuke. However, since this hinges on you having abilities to actually spam, it's lower on the list of things to get early.
Battle Cry ＆ Impenetrable Defense (★★)		Both of these abilities are situational since Yasuke is already very effective without them given the possible Engravings and Armor Perks he can stack.

For the Samurai Mastery tree, Kick and Bull Rush are not ranked since you get these by default. Also, do note that you can only have 1 active Samurai ability. This means, if you plan to get either Battle Cry or Impenetrable Defense, you'll lose out on the Kick ability.

Best Naginata Mastery Abilities

All Yasuke Mastery Trees
Long Katana		Samurai		Naginata
Kanabo		Bow		Teppo
Best Naginata Abilities
Crescent Strike (★★★★★)		AoE crowd control is amazing enough, but the fact that this sends all enemy types flying on hit is amazing for controlling big fights.
Far Reach (★★★★★)		Since all Naginata regular attacks are wide sweeps, this passive guarantees that you always get its bonus damage and Adrenaline gain procs when facing off against large enemy groups.
One Man Army (★★★★)		Similar to the Kusarigama, you'll want to boost the damage you can do against multiple enemies since it stacks up especially when assaulting castles solo. Any extra damage you can eke out is more than welcome in a Yasuke build.
Onslaught (★★★)		Flashy damage ability that can be useful if you want to quickly deal with weaker opponents in combat.
Impale (★★★)		A great alternative to Onslaught since it allows you to isolate an enemy while also rendering them Vulnerable if you upgrade this ability further.
Whirlwind (★)		On higher difficulties, enemies are very aggressive. The long windup of each swing and the animation time means you will definitely get interrupted during this combo. Can be safely skipped until you're more comfortable with combat.

Of the remaining global passives, only get Piercing Momentum and Combo Ender Armor Piercing if you plan to max out the Naginata Mastery passive, later on.

Best Kanabo Mastery Abilities

All Yasuke Mastery Trees
Long Katana		Samurai		Naginata
Kanabo		Bow		Teppo
Best Kanabo Abilities
Forward Momentum (★★★★★)		Since the Kanabo has a very slow attack speed, being able to chain attacks faster means this passive is a must-have if you want to wield this weapon effectively.
Devastation (★★★★★)		Pairs really well with Forward Momentum since input switching is baked into the passive. Couple it with the added damage of Devastation and you can safely deal damage with the Kanabo without needing to get active abilities early.
Crushing Shockwave (★★★★)		AoE crowd control and amazing single-target damage always pairs well with the rapid Adrenaline Generation of Yasuke. Spam this with abandon especially when getting mobbed.
Spine Breaker (★★★★)		An amazing ability to setup a Ground Attack. Perfect when fighting elite enemies 1v1.
Slugging Rampage (★)		Due to the short range, you don't get much out of this ability since enemies just dodge out of the way.

Of the remaining passive in the Kanabo Mastery tree, you can get either the Ability Master or Damage Reduction. Get the former if your ability damage feels lacking. However, if you feel like you're taking too much damage while swinging the Kanabo, the latter is the way to go.

Best Bow Mastery Abilities

All Yasuke Mastery Trees
Long Katana		Samurai		Naginata
Kanabo		Bow		Teppo
Best Bow Abilities
Silent Arrows (★★★★★)		Ranged attacks don't really mesh well with Yasuke's playstyle. However, since Silent Arrows give you to get an alternate Stealth option for Yasuke, it ranks very high on this list.
Larger Quiver (★★★★★)		More arrows means less trips to guard towers or practice fields in order to get more. Very convenient when stealthing castles as Yasuke since he has no eagle vision to help him find ammo resupply points.
Kyudo Master (★★★★)		Ranged gameplay can feel very clunky in AC Shadows. Being able to improve your reload speed and Posture Window makes it easier to integrate Bow shots it into your combat loop.
Marksman's Shot (★★★★)		Improved fire rate in combat really helps out Yasuke since he isn't as agile as Naoe. Moving and repositioning can feel awkward, so anything that can double your damage output easily is welcome.
Clear Mind (★★★★)		Really useful for players who really want to make a bow build work. Slowing down time helps you hit shots in quick succession (even more deadly if you have aim asssist turned up to Full).
Staggering Blast ＆ Retreating Shot (★★)		Both are just too situational to rank any higher than 2 stars. Staggering Blast has too-long of a charge up time to make it practical. Unless you're building around high ability damage, you're better off sticking to Silent Arrows for stealth one-shots. Retreating Shot is the same. You get locked into animation for too long, allowing enemies to mob you if you aren't aware of your spacing in battle.
Serrated Arrows ＆ Poison Arrows (★)		Not as useful as Silent Arrows. You can safely complete an entire playthrough without getting either of these ammo types.

Of the remaining passives in the Bow Mastery tree, the Swift Hand passive is the best to get if you have spare points since it allows you to nock and fire arrows faster.

Best Teppo Mastery Abilities

All Yasuke Mastery Trees
Long Katana		Samurai		Naginata
Kanabo		Bow		Teppo
Best Teppo Abilities
Reload Speed (★★★★★)		Improving the reload speed of the Teppo is critical. If left with its base reload speed, you might as well treat this as a "fire and forget" weapon at higher difficulties.
Explosive Surprise (★★★★)		Very quick to use and acts as a great stagger to interrupt enemy attack animations. Very useful for players who want to move and shoot in combat.
Armor Buster (★★★)		Despite its slow animation, the payoff is great, especially in a 1v1 against a strong opponent. Makes use of 100% of your ability damage, guaranteeing good damage each time you pull it off.
Teppo Tempo (★★★)		A perfect passive for players who want to shoot and scoot; otherwise, you'd have to deal with the janky aiming camera whiel in the middle of a pitched battle.
Close Quarters (★★)		Gimmicky since it locks you into a standing animation. You'll get more mileage out of the other two active abilities in the Teppo Mastery tree than this one.
Steady Hand (★)		Delaying your shot for a short time is tedious since it doesn't align with the tempo of combat that Yasuke is accustomed to. Better to invest in this passive once you have more points in the Teppo tree so that the bonus damage pays off.

Only two out of three bullet types in the Teppo Mastery tree are worth getting. Get Concussion Bullets if you plan to stick to using the Teppo in combat since Daze pairs well with your slow fire rate. If playing as a melee-ranged hybrid, Steel Bullets are the way to go since they guarantee a Vulnerable proc.

Assassin's Creed Shadows Related Guides

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