Okay folks let's make way for the goat himself, KYOSHIN! My main is in the house and I am going to teach you how to play through any game mode looking like an unkillable god. You can be the main character in the anime with the Kyoshin, his flair, fighting style, and general badassery will lead you to victory against any and all heroes.

Kyoshin is a fearless samurai that wields the Shikomizue Blade and Scabbard. He wields them both, often using his scabbard to parry his foes and his blade to dice them into small pieces. As you may remember from my tier list at the end of last year I had the Kyoshin ranked as the best hero in the game and I still very much believe that, so let’s get into some beginner tips that will help you dominate early on.

Beginner Tips

The first thing you will learn as Kyoshin is that he is the only non-shield wielding hero that does have an All Block known as the Kaze Stance. You activate Kaze Stance the exact same way you activate any other hero's All Block ability, and the Kyoshin will begin twirling his sword in all directions deflecting all attacks that are not “unblockable.” While this ability is incredible, relying on it too much will get you killed off quickly. The key to the Kyoshin is mastering when and where to use Kaze Stance and I will instruct you on how to do just that.

1. Superior Block to attain Kagerou: 

On top of his Kaze Stance the Kyoshin also has an ability known as Kagerou that he unlocks as the first tier feat ability OR by pulling off a Superior Block. For the uninitiated a superior block is when you initiate Kaze Stance at the precise moment an enemy's attack hits you. Essentially timing the Kaze Stance as you would a normal parry. Doing this will cause a black and green mystic circle to form behind the Kysohin and he will gain the ability to stack bleed damage on the opponent and heal himself with each strike. 

While this ability can only be used in team battles it is incredibly important to learn how to superior block as it will help you master the timing for the Kaze stance. Also, if you mainly play team battles the Kagerou ability can allow you to turn the tide of battle instantly by gaining back health and causing some serious bleeding on the opponent.

2. Slice and Dice Baby: 

If ever there was a warrior to make you feel like saying Slice and Dice it is the Kyoshin. They expertly dispatch their opponents with beautifully timed combinations. These combos are best initiated out of the All Block Kaze Stance. When an opponent strikes you with any normal attack they will be stunned for a brief second and you will be able to perform several different combinations on them. 

You can always initiate a light opener, but the heavy opener will give more damage and is also unblockable. The best strategyhee is to use the heavy opener unless you are in the Kageru state which stacks bleed with each strike. If you use an all light attack combo then the Kyoshin will land a guaranteed 4 strike combo stacking much more bleed than the typical two hit heavy initiated combo. All of the combinations you can perform are as such: light, light, light, light…  Light, light, heavy… Heavy, light, heavy… Heavy, Light, Zone attack. With so many different ways to cut your opponent down you are bound to find the rhythm that works best for you.

3. Elbow Bash your way to Victory:  

The Kyoshin has a couple breakers that help them shake up combat strategies, but the most productive one is the elbow bash. The bash can follow up any initial light strike by hitting the breaker key after. This can then be followed by either a light attack or heavy strike. The light attack has a guaranteed land while the heavy strike could be blocked or parried due to timing. It is a very easy combination to pull off, but it is one that will essentially reset the fight. It is best to resume Kaze stance after pulling it off as most opponents will try to instantly retaliate. This will then let you get off a whole new combination and before you know it your opponent is almost dead.

Advanced Tips

1. Zone Attack out of Kaze Stance: 

I cannot reiterate enough that mastering the timing for Kaze Stance is critical to playing as the Kyoshin. Without it you are just a much weaker and slower Orochi, however, once you do have it mastered the attack combinations are nearly endless. Everytime you deflect an attack with it there are several different light and heavy combinations you can come out swinging with. While this is great, unless you use all light strikes, the enemy is capable of parrying/blocking any strikes after the initial one. It is important to remember that all of the followup combinations we discussed in the Slice and Dice strategy go to the right side, so if your opponent knows what they are doing this will not harm them as much as you would like. However, coming out of a Kaze deflection with the zone attack will cause the Kysoshin to twirl and strike from the left.

When you use the zone attack to go from the left you will disorient your opponent, especially if you have fought them multiple times and they know a Kysohin’s combos after all block go right. Once you successfully use your zone attack combo a few times they are bound to be thrown off and not know how to predict your next few strikes. 

2. Cancel Out of Attacks:

Canceling out of attacks is nothing new, but is crucial to each and every hero, the Kyoshin being no exception. The best part about this hero is his unpredictability. When an experienced player runs up on a hero they will immediately have a strategy in mind and know to expect a list of moves from the opponent. The Kyoshin has the tools to break that process if you play them right and this helps even more if you start to cancel out attacks.

When you begin to cancel out of your attacks it just adds one extra layer of confusion to the enemy and the more they overthink on their end the better your chances of cutting them down.

3. Do NOT Sit in Kaze Stance Forever:  

What do you do when you see the Warlord sit back in his all block stance for 5 seconds? You breaker him asap. This is no different for the Kysohin. If you are sitting back in the All Block for too long the opponent will start to breaker bully you without question. Especially with the introduction of Kyoshin, the breaker queen, you will struggle if you rely too heavily on the stance. Instead you must learn how to read your opponent. While this is easier said than done and can totally differ from player to player I will walk you through some telltale signs to read when fighting.  

When you enter into the Kaze stance, give it at least two seconds of your opponent not doing anything and that hesitation will let you know they are preparing to breaker or brain farted on what attack to follow up with. Immediately initiate your light attack strikes when this happens and it will almost always land, deflecting their breaker or striking before their attack does.

Next, recognize when an opponent is charging a heavy into an unblockable (especially for Hitokiri, Shigoki, and Highlander who become uninterruptible when they charge up) no matter who you are facing you have the time to exit Kaze Stance and roll backwards out of the way, side dodge attack, or if you are a true master parry the unblockable.

4. Out of Stamina Management: 

Personally I never recommend that you let yourself run out of stamina, but if you play the Kyoshin as you should, as the aggressor, then you are bound to run out of stamina in some fights. You can always do the classic dodges and backups to try and mitigate the damage you take, but even without stamina the Kyoshin can be the aggressor. If you parry an attack while out of stamina you can follow it up with a guaranteed light strike. Making sure you do this will help keep you in the fight and allow for some insult to injury to your opponent as you are most likely out of stamina from beating them down so hard. 

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Kyoshin is a super fun hero to play as and in my opinion the best one in the game. Because of his versatility there are almost no weaknesses to a perfectly played Kyoshin. The biggest challenge you will face is staying versatile and not locking yourself into a set of basic combos you do each time. Learn everything there is to know about this hero and I guarantee you will dominate each round you play. Hopefully the above strategies will help you feel that superior top tier status! If you want some more For Honor content check out the rest of my articles, especially how to play the newest hero, Afeera, like a pro!

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