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Nioh 3

How to Beat Takasugi Shinsaku

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★ List of Weapons | Armor Sets | Martial Arts
★ Nioh 3 Interactive Map
★ Best Weapon Tier List
★ Best Ninja Builds | Best Samurai Builds
★ Character Creation Codes
★ How to Emote

Takasugi Shinsaku is a boss in Nioh 3 during the main mission A New Era. See how to beat Takasugi Shinsaku, as well as the weaknesses, drops, and location in this guide.

List of Contents

How to Beat Takasugi Shinsaku

To beat Takasugi Shinsaku, avoid his Guardian Spirit's attacks while counterattacking him from behind.

Follow these strategies to win the encounter:

  1. Look Out for His Guardian Spirit
  2. Dodge Toward His Rear
  3. Jump Over His Grab Attack
  4. Get Aggressive During the Second Phase
  5. Use Your Summoning Seals
  6. Farm Levels and Better Gear
  7. Secure with Living Artifact
  8. Summon Assistance from Acolytes
  9. Use Talismans and Items for Buffs

Look Out for His Guardian Spirit

Shinsaku Guardian.png

Unlike other human bosses, Takasugi Shinsaku’s Guardian Spirit summon is nearly instantaneous. He also zips around the arena and his Guardian Spirit can hit you from your blind side.

His Guardian Spirit plays the shamisen (musical instrument) when it attacks, so use this audio cue to dodge immediately.

Dodge Toward His Rear

Dodging is recommended against Shinsaku as he and his Guardian Spirit can quickly deplete your Ki if you block. Try to position yourself behind him to land clean hits before he regains composure and guards your attacks.

Jump Over His Grab Attack

Shinsaku's grab attack has a lengthy wind-up, but the attack itself is incredibly fast. It may be difficult to react with a sidestep, so jumping is a safer option.

Get Aggressive During the Second Phase

Get Aggressive During the Second Half

Once Shinsaku's health drops to half, his Guardian Spirit will stop attacking. Instead, it provides two arena-wide buffs: increased Ki regeneration and stagger negation (heavy hits will still send you flying).

Capitalize on these buffs by overwhelming Shinsaku with attacks to end the fight quickly, while making sure to avoid incoming strikes.

Use Your Summoning Seals

Do not forget to use your summoning seals, especially as you can now have two of them equipped by this stage in the game. They can help deal extra damage, open opportunities to attack, or even save you from dying.

List of Soul Cores

Farm Levels and Better Gear

If you're struggling at the recommended level, take some time to gain a few extra levels and farm better gear before your next attempt.

How to Level Up Fast: Amrita Farming Guide

Secure with Living Artifact

Keep your Living Artifact ready to secure the victory when Shinsaku is low. You're invulnerable while in this state but you must still dodge or block because sustaining damage shortens its duration.

You also have unlimited Ki while Living Artifact is active. Use this to spam your most potent Martial Arts.

List of All Martial Arts

Summon Assistance from Acolytes

Summon an acolyte from nearby benevolent graves to serve as a distraction and help deal chip damage. You'll need Ochoko Cups to summon acolytes, which you can obtain by defeating revenants from bloody graves.

Use Talismans and Items for Buffs

Use talismans and items such as Power Talismans and Power Pills to boost your attack. Note that they do not stack and only refresh the duration of the attack buff.

You can also use the talismans from Soul Cores listed below to give you an advantage.

Talisman / Soul Core Effect
Scampuss Summoning Seal
(Scampuss Soul Core)		 Shreds enemy Ki quickly
Life Leech Talisman
(Mermaid Soul Core)		 Helps keep your health topped up
Preservation Talisman
(Mujina Soul Core)		 Saves you from a fatal hit
Barrier Talisman
(Otoroshi Soul Core)		 Boosts Ki regeneration and dispels Yokai Realms

List of Soul Cores

Equip Awakening to Speed Up Talisman Usage

The Awakening skill is highly recommended to speed up talisman usage, especially against bosses where you can easily get punished.

It is also easy to fit in most builds as it only costs 3 Points.

List of All Skills

Takasugi Shinsaku Weaknesses

Boss Weakness and Overview

Weaknesses ・None
Resistances ・Scorched
・Saturated
・Electrified
・Blustered
Era Bakumatsu
Main Mission A New Era
(Recommended: Lv 100)

Takasugi Shinsaku Drops and Rewards

・Fujiwara Sadayasu Lv. 109
・Shock Troop Greaves Lv. 109
・Samurai's Locks

Takasugi Shinsaku Location

Found in Shimabara

Takasugi Shinsaku is found in Shimabara during the mission A New Era.

List of All Main Missions

Nioh 3 Related Guides

Bosses

List of All Bosses

List of Main Bosses

Warring States
Yamagata MasakageYamagata Masakage Jakotsu-babaJakotsu-baba Baba NobuharaBaba Nobuharu
Yamagata Masakage MikatagaharaYamagata Masakage (Yokai) Takeda ShingenTakeda Shingen Takeda Shingen SaigagakeTakeda Shingen (Yokai)
Heian
Great TenguGreat Tengu OtoroshiOtoroshi Ibaraki DojiIbaraki Doji
Kajiwara KagetokKajiwara Kagetoki Minamoto no YoritomoMinamoto no Yoritomo
Antiquity
KusanagiKusanagi HirukoHiruko
Return to Edo
Tokugawa KunimatsuTokugawa Kunimatsu
Bakumatsu
Takasugi ShinsakuTakasugi Shinsaku EnenraEnenra NuribotokeNuribotoke
Okita Soji Tokugawa Yoshinobu
Final Battle of Edo
Death Veil Hiruko (Final Boss)

List of Secret Bosses

Optional Bosses
Demon of PrideDemon of Pride Demon of EnvyDemon of Envy Demon of ObsessionDemon of Obsession

List of Optional Bosses

Optional Bosses
Bloodedge DemonBloodedge Demon Ryomen SukunaRyomen Sukuna Hino-EnmaHino-Enma
Otazu no KataOtzu no Kata YokiYoki Hattori Hanzo
Ninja Yoki Kyokotsu Aggrieved Warrior

List of Formidable Enemies

Warring States Era
KamaitachiKamaitachi MezukiMezuki Green ShadowGreen Shadow's Blade
Blood-Spurting Ogin Naito Masatoyo Anayama Nobutada
Honda Tadakatsu Nuppeppo Onryoki

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