Top Skills to Prioritize for Naoe in Assassin’s Creed Shadows

In Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Naoe's mastery of stealth and assassination techniques is key to becoming the ultimate shinobi. While she excels in the shadows, she can also hold her own in direct confrontations with the right preparation. Here's a guide on the best skills to prioritize for Naoe up to Knowledge Rank 3, ensuring you can quickly enhance her abilities through engaging with the game's early open-world activities.

Katana

• Dodge Attack – Katana Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point): Enhances your defensive capabilities, allowing you to counter aggressive enemies effectively.
• Melee Expert – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Boosts your melee damage, making each strike more impactful.
• Counter Attack – Katana Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Increases your ability to turn enemy attacks into your advantage.
• Eviscerate – Katana Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 5 Mastery Points): A powerful finishing move that can end fights quickly.

These skills transform Naoe into a formidable opponent in close combat, especially for players skilled in dodging and countering.

Kusarigama

• Entanglement – Kusarigama Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point): Ideal for building affliction, and can throw even larger enemies for extra damage.
• Affliction Builder – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Enhances your ability to inflict status effects on enemies.
• Big Catch – Kusarigama Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Further improves your control over enemies.
• Multi-Target Expert – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Makes handling groups of enemies easier.
• Cyclone Blast – Kusarigama Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 7 Mastery Points): A devastating area attack that can clear multiple foes.

These skills make Naoe a versatile fighter, especially effective against groups or single powerful targets.

Tanto

• Shadow Piercer – Tanto Ability (Knowledge Rank 1, 5 Mastery Points): Amplifies damage, especially against vulnerable enemies.
• Gap Seeker – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Increases your ability to exploit enemy weaknesses.
• Backstab – Tanto Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Enhances damage from behind, crucial for stealth kills.
• Backstabber – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Further boosts backstab damage.
• Back Breaker – Tanto Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 3 Mastery Points): Allows for powerful strikes from behind.

With these skills, Naoe can deliver devastating blows, particularly against armored foes, making her a deadly assassin.

Tools

• Smoke Bomb – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point): Essential for escaping or setting up multiple assassinations.
• Larger Tool Bag I – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Increases the number of tools you can carry.
• Shinobi Bell – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point): Lures enemies away from your path.
• Enduring Haze – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Extends the duration of your smoke bombs.
• Kunai Assassination Damage I – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Enhances the lethality of your kunai.
• Shuriken – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Useful for disarming traps and triggering explosives.

These tools offer Naoe numerous ways to manipulate and distract guards, making her approach to targets smoother and more strategic.

Shinobi

• Ascension Boost – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Speeds up climbing, crucial for navigating environments quickly.
• Vault – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point): Enhances your ability to quickly scale walls.
• Igan Roll – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point): Reduces fall damage, increasing survivability.
• Heighten Senses – Shinobi Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 5 Mastery Points): Slows down time, allowing for more precise navigation and attacks.

These skills keep Naoe stealthy and agile, ensuring she can move through the world undetected.

Assassin

• Executioner – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Increases the damage of your assassinations.
• Improved Ground Assassinate – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Enhances your ability to take down enemies from the ground.
• Double Assassinate – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Allows you to take out two enemies simultaneously.
• Assassination Damage I – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Boosts the damage of your assassinations.
• Reinforced Blade – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 4 Mastery Points): Strengthens your Hidden Blade, making it more effective against tougher foes.

These skills make Naoe a lethal assassin, capable of taking down targets with precision and efficiency.

By focusing on these skills, you'll ensure Naoe becomes the most effective assassinating shinobi in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. For more tips and strategies, be sure to check out The Escapist.