Popular Now

1. Choose Your Combat Approach Early

You can play as:

  • Honorable Samurai (direct combat, standoffs)
  • Stealth Ghost (assassination, fear tactics)
  • Hybrid adaptive fighter

Specialize your upgrades around one primary approach early.

Hybrid builds are stronger mid-game, but early focus improves efficiency.

2. Master Stance Switching

There are four primary stances:

  • Stone (swordsmen)
  • Water (shield users)
  • Wind (spearmen)
  • Moon (brutes)

Switch stances based on enemy type immediately.

Wrong stance = slower guard breaks.

Correct stance = fast stagger and clean executions.

3. Upgrade Core Techniques First

Prioritize:

  • Standoff streak upgrades
  • Parry and Perfect Parry window
  • Resolve gain boosts
  • Assassination upgrades (if stealth-focused)

Core survivability and stagger control matter more than minor utility skills.

4. Use Resolve Efficiently

Resolve fuels:

  • Healing
  • Special combat abilities
  • Mythic techniques

Do not waste Resolve on unnecessary healing.

Use it during burst windows or when overwhelmed.

Resolve management determines survival on higher difficulties.

5. Control Crowd Engagement

Never fight large groups head-on without strategy.

Best practices:

  • Eliminate archers first
  • Use Kunai to interrupt
  • Create spacing with smoke bombs
  • Separate enemies before committing

Positioning wins battles more than aggression.

6. Leverage Stealth Before Open Combat

Even Samurai builds benefit from thinning enemies first.

Use:

  • Tall grass
  • Rooftops
  • Chain assassinations
  • Fear mechanics

Reducing enemy numbers before engagement increases consistency.

7. Upgrade Armor Sets Strategically

Each armor supports a different playstyle:

Samurai Clan Armor:

  • Increased survivability

Ronin Attire:

  • Stealth and melee damage boost

Ghost Armor:

  • Fear spread and stealth scaling

Traveler’s Attire:

  • Exploration efficiency

Upgrade armor aligned with your combat strategy.

8. Use Mythic Techniques at Power Spikes

Mythic abilities provide massive advantage.

Examples:

  • Heavenly Strike
  • Dance of Wrath
  • Way of the Flame

Use Mythic moves to:

  • Break elite enemies
  • Win duels quickly
  • Shift difficult fights

Timing Mythic abilities during stagger windows maximizes impact.

9. Explore Efficiently for Power Scaling

Exploration rewards:

  • Bamboo Strikes (Resolve increase)
  • Hot Springs (Health increase)
  • Fox Dens (Charm slots)
  • Shrines (Charms)

Power scaling comes from exploration, not just story missions.

Balance story progression with world upgrades.

10. Dominate Duels with Patience

Duels require discipline.

Key principles:

  • Do not spam attacks
  • Wait for parry windows
  • Use stagger before heavy combos
  • Control spacing

Duels reward timing and composure, not aggression.

Final Thoughts

Ghost of Tsushima rewards disciplined combat, stance mastery, and controlled aggression. The most effective players manage Resolve intelligently, switch stances fluidly, and approach encounters strategically rather than rushing into chaos.

Master spacing, optimize your armor build, and execute every fight with precision.