DEFENSE
Parry, deflect and dodge: choose by threat, not pride
The correct defense is the one that answers the attack in front of you and leaves you able to see the next one.
01Three different jobs
Treat close defense, precision defense and movement as different tools. Exact outcomes depend on the attack and build, but the decision rule stays useful: move when staying in front of the hit is the risk.
02Read distance before timing
Many failed defenses start too close, too far away or with the camera facing scenery. Find a readable distance, then practise from the same place.
| Situation | First question |
|---|---|
| A familiar single strike | Can I recognize the commitment consistently? |
| A wide attack | Will staying in front trap me? |
| A crowded fight | Can I see the next threat afterward? |
| An unknown boss pattern | Can I survive once before attempting a counter? |
03Turn defense into progress
After a good defensive answer, take a short reliable punish and re-center. Overextending after a parry is an easy way to lose the advantage.
04Deflect pressure and Break Issen
Xbox Wire explains that repeated parries build the Blaze Gauge, while deflecting an incoming strike is a block plus attack at impact. Deflects deal large stamina damage, and enough pressure can create the Break Issen opening. Use this as a combat goal: build an opening first, then spend it safely—do not chase the execution while another enemy can hit you.
05Parry is a hold with a timed heart
On the Basic layout, hold L1 / LB. Attacks from behind still hit the guard. That is the “block from any angle” line in Capcom’s own reel. A parry is the same button used with intent: you want the impact, not a panic hold from across the room. Successful parries fill the Blazing gauge. When the sword burns blue, you are in Blazing State and your cuts hurt more until the buff drops. Consecutive parries also feed the buffs Wikipedia summarised as swift follow-up executions. The combat overview lists those gauges in one place. A prolonged parry can steer. Push the stick and the locked enemy stumbles the way you point — into a friend, off a ledge, into a cart you already kicked. This is the crowd-control version of “play dirty,” and it is how you keep a Kiyomizu-dera courtyard from becoming a grab pile.
06Deflect is the extra tap
Hold guard, then press the assigned face button on the beat. Producer Kadowaki’s memo: even if you miss the timing, you are still blocking, so the drill is low risk. Deflect returns projectiles and carves stamina. It is the answer to archers you do not want to sprint toward and the safer stagger tool on Ganryu if True Issen still feels like a coin flip. On Active layout the extra tap becomes a single timed button instead of a hold-plus. That is the “more challenging” option Kadowaki described. If deflect “does nothing,” you are on Active and tapping the Basic combo. Check controls before you blame the window. Sasaki Ganryu no-damage — parry only and dodge only Esoterickk’s clip above splits a no-hit Ganryu into a parry-only half and a dodge-only half. It is the best public proof that you do not need the full kit. Watch the parry half for the three-hit poke and the delayed red closer, then go fight him. The dodge half is there so dodge-mains do not feel lectured.
07Blade Barrage, Blade Lock, grabs
Blade Barrage is a clash minigame: match the attack type on the beat. One-handed into one-handed is a trap; the published rule is to answer one-handed with two-handed and the reverse. Blade Lock is the bind that wants a mash. Win it and you cash both parry and deflect benefits. Blue-telegraph grabs are neither. They want the contextual counter on the interact button. Parrying a grab is how Daidara steals your souls. Reflex Dodge is the remaining defensive verb: a timed evade that fills its own gauge and pays a back or side cut. It is a lane, not a panic roll. If you dodge every swing, you will never fill Blazing and you will never learn Issen. Pick dodge as a main only if that is the fight you want; the Ganryu video shows it works.
08Deflect Issen as a teacher
Hold guard, attack on the flash. A miss is a block. A hit is a baby Issen. Ten of these on the first demo pack will teach the impact frame better than any paragraph. Then drop the hold and try True Issen on the same pack. Then take it to a boss. The Issen page is the rest of that ladder. The how to play page is the version for people who have not opened the demo yet.
FAQよくある質問
Why can I block attacks from behind?
The guard stance covers all directions. That is intentional, and one of the ways the game refuses the Soulslike label.
Parry versus deflect — which should I main?
Parry for damage and steers. Deflect for stagger and arrows. Either can beat the demo bosses.
What is Blazing State?
A blue-flame sword buff earned by successful parries. Extra damage for a short window.
Can I parry every attack?
No. Grabs and some marked swings want dodge or a contextual counter. Look for the colour and the prompt.
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