How To Defeat Yamagata Masakage – Nioh 3 Boss Guide

Bosses in Nioh 3 don’t just test damage output, they test awareness, reaction speed, and pattern recognition. A single mistake can cost you the fight. But once you understand the systems behind the chaos, every encounter becomes controlled and repeatable.

Guide written by our PROs.
Spent hours testing boss clearing strategies, clearing same boss encounters multiple times to figure out the fastest, most reliable ways to get through.

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Nioh 3 – Yamagata Masakage Made Easy

Yamagata Masakage is the first true skill check boss in Nioh 3, and for many players, this is where the game officially begins. Up until this point, enemies test your reactions. Yamagata tests whether you actually understand the combat system.

This fight revolves around three core mechanics: Burst Break timing, directional dodging, and disciplined aggression. If you try to brute-force him, he will punish you. If you panic-roll or overcommit to combos, he will delete your health bar in seconds.

Yamagata Masakage appears early in the story and uses a long-reach polearm weapon. His range is deceptive, and his damage is high for this stage of the game.

At this point in progression:

• You don’t have strong weapons.
• You don’t have strong armor.
• Your margin for error is small.

This fight forces you to rely on mechanics, not stats.

You just unlocked the Burst Break mechanic. This boss forces you to use it.

When timed correctly, a Burst Break:

• Switches your style
• Interrupts his burst attack
• Drains his Ki (stamina)
• Creates a huge damage window

You cannot simply dodge these burst attacks reliably. Burst Break is your best damage opportunity.

How to Time It Correctly

Watch for:

1. Red aura appears
2. His arm lifts up
3. The moment his weapon begins swinging downward

That downward motion is your cue. Press Burst Break right as the swing starts coming down.

The timing is tight. Expect to fail a few times. Learn it here, and the rest of the game becomes easier.

This sounds simple. It works.

For most of his attacks:

• Dodge left
• Stay close
• Use a single dodge press (don’t double roll unless needed)

You can dodge left through:

• His four-hit combo
• His combo variation with jump ender
• His charge move
• Most normal swings

Staying close reduces reaction time and makes timing easier.

Greed will kill you.

Do not try to dump full combos into him.

Instead:

• Land 3–4 quick hits
• Back up
• Reset
• Repeat

This applies to nearly every Soulslike encounter. Discipline wins fights.

This is the phase you should focus on learning.

What To Do:

1. Stay close.
2. Dodge left through his combos.
3. Watch his arm and weapon movement.
4. Burst Break every burst attack.
5. Hit him 3–4 times.
6. Back away.

His Main Attacks in This Phase

• 2–3 swing combos
• Spinning attack (counterclockwise rotation)
• Charge attack
• Multi-hit combo

For the spinning attack:

• Dash into it.
• Move counterclockwise with him.
• After final spin, you’ll be behind him.
• Punish immediately.

Phase 2: Transform State

When his health drops to around half, he enters a fire-based phase.

This phase adds:

• More aggression
• A jump burst attack
• A charge impale attack

Important:

You do NOT need to force him out of this phase.

If you avoid engaging heavily, he eventually returns to normal state on his own.

Best Approach for Fire Phase

You have two options:

Option A – Low Risk

• Run and full sprint.
• Outrun most attacks.
• Only engage on burst attacks.
• Burst Break.
• Hit him briefly.
• Run away again.

Option B – Controlled Aggression

• Stay close.
• Dodge left.
• Focus only on burst attacks.
• Ignore extended trading.

The fire phase is significantly harder to memorize. If you want efficiency, minimize exposure.

Here’s your mental checklist:

• Stay close.
• Dodge left.
• Watch for red aura.
• Burst Break on downward swing.
• Hit 3–4 times.
• Back up.
• Repeat.

At half HP:

• Minimize fire phase exposure.
• Punish burst attacks only.
• Summon spirit animal if available.

Stay disciplined. Stay patient. Do not chase damage.

Once Burst Break timing clicks, Yamagata Masakage stops being a wall and becomes a tutorial.

Yamagata Masakage marks the moment Nioh 3 stops being forgiving and starts demanding precision. This fight rewards patience, clean execution, and smart positioning far more than aggression. When you focus on consistent Burst Break timing, controlled dodges, and disciplined punish windows, the encounter becomes predictable and manageable. Treat every exchange as calculated, not rushed. Once you defeat him with control instead of chaos, you’ll be better prepared for everything the game throws at you next.

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