Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice – 10 Best Martial Arts, Ranked

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is Game of the year 2019 For many reasons, including combat. Sekiro’s fast, fluid, and dynamic combat requires skill and strategy to overcome the game’s many bosses and enemies. One of the main elements of the game is the Combat Arts system, which allows you to perform powerful and unique moves to eliminate your enemies. From quick, flexible attacks to powerful uppercuts, each martial art has its own strengths and weaknesses that you must learn to use effectively.


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Sekiro’s martial arts are divided into different skill trees, and each martial art is designed to be effective in different scenarios. Whether you are an experienced player looking to master new moves or a beginner trying to beat a skill test, these martial arts will surely make your journey around Ashina easier and easier.

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10 Ashina Cross

Ashina Cross is a martial art that allows you to charge forward and unleash a powerful slashing attack that deals great damage to enemies. It’s a useful move for closing distance and catching enemies off guard, but it also leaves you vulnerable to counterattacks if you miss or can’t hit your target.

This martial art costs 2 Spirit Emblems and is best used immediately after parrying an attack as it deals decent damage to the pose. The Ashina Cross is optimal against enemies that are already trained or have a low status, and can be effective in eliminating weak opponents.

9 Dragon Flash

Dragon Flash from Sekiro

This martial art unleashes powerful shock waves and deals massive damage to the enemies in front of you. Incredibly destructive, Dragon Flash is best used against enemies that are still standing or in the middle of their attack animation. Try to avoid using this Combat Art against fast moving targets, as a long finish can cause you to miss and open up to counterattacks.

Dragon Flash requires the use of Spirit Emblems, so it’s not a move you want to rely heavily on unless you have a good supply of Emblems. You can unlock Dragon Flash after defeating the final boss, Sword Saint Isshin.

8 floating lane

Sekiro floating lane martial arts

The floating lane is a series of sword strikes that deal high damage and can quickly break the enemy’s position. It’s fast and exhilarating, and forces your enemies to be on the defensive as you launch multiple sword strikes. The floating lane does some damage to chips even when it’s blocked, so it’s best used against low-status or already stunned enemies. On the surface, it appears to be a combustible martial art, but it can be interrupted by enemies if you’re not careful.

You can unlock this martial art by purchasing the Floating Passage Text from Pot Noble Harunaga in the Hirata Estate.

7 Senpou jump kicks

Senpou jumping into Sekiro's martial arts

Senpou Leaping Kicks are a series of acrobatic kicks that deal posture damage, while also allowing you to maneuver and avoid incoming attacks. You must spend 3 skill points to unlock this skill, which can be found under the temple arts skill tree.

Senpou Leaping Kicks work best against high-status enemies as they can quickly fill up their stance gauge, allowing you to unleash a Deathblow attack. This martial art can also be used to jump over enemies, which makes it useful for escaping difficult fighting situations.

6 Slash nigger

Nightjar Slash Combat Arts in Sekiro

Nightjar Slash is one of the moves that Nightjar Ninjas use against you. This combat movement is agile and quick, allowing you to shorten the distance between you and the enemy. Be careful when fighting the Nightjar Ninjas, as they can also do this and bridge the gap between you. Depending on your situation, you can use this Combat Art to put more pressure on your enemy, or you can use its Reversal version to quickly dash away from incoming attacks.

It is best used against low-status or stunned enemies, as it can quickly take out weak opponents. Low-mode enemies are easily punished by the Nightjar Slash, allowing you to deal a quick whacking attack if timed perfectly.

5 cutting whirlwind

A whirlwind martial arts fight in Sekiro

One of the oldest martial arts you will ever wield, Whirlwind Slash only requires one skill point to unlock. A spinning attack that deals damage to enemies around the area, the Whirlwind Slash deals almost the same attack damage as Kusabimaru’s thrust attack. He has a considerably weak attack, but is very effective at crowd control.

While the Whirlwind Slash will get you enough space without the emblem cost, be careful when using this too often, as it can open you up to attacks and leave you vulnerable.

4 Hi monk

High Monk Martial Arts in Cicero

High Monk is a great upgrade to the already killer Senpou Leaping Kicks. Instead of just jumping over sweep attacks, use High Monk to deal massive amount of stance damage. The coolest thing about Combat Art is that you can use it to switch to Lightning Reversal and deal massive damage while your enemy is stunned.

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It’s also a great way to dodge incoming attacks and put yourself back into battle. Just be careful when using this to dribble; Long animations can lead you to a deadly place where you don’t want to be.

3 Death draw

A deadly drawing of Sekiro's martial arts

Mortal Draw has one of the best traditions in all of martial arts, as Kuro has blessed Sekiro with immortality. Hence, he is one of the few who can wield the Mortal Blade, and Mortal Draw allows you to do so. It has the highest elemental damage out of all martial arts, and extends the upgrade range of its Mortal Draw, allowing you in some way to use Combat Art for crowd control.

Although it requires the use of 3 Spirit Emblems, it can quickly deal a lot of damage to almost every enemy and can easily fill up its Attitude Meter. Although it has a strong damage output, Mortal Draw is blockable, but it still causes chip damage when blocked, so you need to be careful when using Combat Art.

2 shadow fall

Shadowfall Martial Arts in Sekiro

Unlockable under the Mushin Arts skill tree, Shadowfall requires 6 Skill Points and 2 Soul Emblems to use. His powerful thrust attack is unlockable, and it allows you to perform a jump where you can either add more slashes to the combo or use a reparative art to deal damage.

It can be considered the opposite of High Monk, where Shadowfall deals more vital damage than stance damage. If you’d rather deal more damage directly on Vitality, Shadowfall is definitely worth spending Spirit Emblems on.

1 Ichimonji: Double

Ichimonji Double Combat Arts in Sekiro

Posture is one of the coolest combat mechanics FromSoftware has added in Sekiro, and Ichimonji shows how quickly you can defeat opponents if you master the stance mechanic. Ichimonji: Double can be difficult to execute at the beginning of the game, but as you get better at the game mechanics in general, Combat Art will definitely make things easier. It allows you to deal massive amounts of posture damage while also restoring your posture, which makes it extremely useful in long battles, such as mini-boss fights and boss fights.

Ichimonji: Double can be obtained very early in the game and doesn’t drop during the late game, making it a great option to play multiple times. While it does require some skill and timing to use it effectively, Ichimonji: Double can be a game-changing move that can make even the toughest battles much easier.

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