Choosing the right early skills in Nioh 3 determines how smooth your combat experience feels during the opening hours. The Samurai Martial Arts tree strengthens your Ki control, stance mechanics, and weapon pressure, while the Ninjutsu tree enhances mobility, disruption tools, and reactive combat options in Ninja Style.
This guide explains what the skill does, how it functions in real combat, and why it should be unlocked early.
1. How To Unlock Martial Arts And Ninjutsu Skills
You unlock skills by spending Samurai Locks and Ninja Locks in the Acquire Martial Arts / Ninjutsu menu. You’ll naturally earn these as you play through early progression (including from quests and exploration pickups like treasure chests and guarded corpses)
If you ever dislike your choices later, you can respec the Martial Arts and Ninjutsu trees from the same menu, letting you correct early experimentation without restarting.
Low Stance Skill
2. Best Samurai Martial Arts You Should Learn First
These Samurai picks are the strongest early investments because they directly improve survival, consistency, and damage uptime. If you learn nothing else early, start here before branching into weapon-specific Martial Arts.
2.1 Deflect
Deflect changes how your early Samurai defense works. Instead of holding block, you tap the block button just before an attack hits. When timed correctly, you’ll get a clear confirmation (a distinct yellow flash and a sharp clang). It’s a first priority because:
- Successful deflections restore some Ki, helping you avoid getting drained during long exchanges.
- Deflecting also builds your Arts Gauge, and it contributes to your broader gauge economy as you progress.
- It keeps you stable against normal attacks.
Because running out of Ki is one of the most common early-game failure points, Deflect is one of the highest-impact skills you can buy immediately.
Deflect Skill
2.2 High Stance
Stances are a core Samurai mechanic. If you want a straightforward early boost to damage and pressure, High Stance is a strong first stance investment. It’s the stance choice that most directly supports a “hit harder” game plan early on, especially when you’re still learning enemy patterns and want clear, consistent output.
High Stance
2.3 Low Stance
If High Stance is your early damage button, Low Stance is your early safety net. This stance pick supports a cleaner “in-and-out” rhythm that helps you maintain control while you learn timing and spacing.
2.4 Mid Stance
Mid Stance is your balanced stance option. If you prefer a steadier pace that supports both offense and defense in a single stance choice, this is the early pick that keeps your toolkit flexible while you decide which weapons and Martial Arts you want to specialize into.
2.4 Flux I & Flux II
Flux I and Flux II enhance Ki management during stance transitions. These skills reward clean stance switching by improving Ki recovery and reducing stamina downtime during active combat.
Flux I introduces the mechanic, allowing you to benefit from stance changes during combat flow. Flux II strengthens that benefit further, making your transitions more efficient and your Ki recovery more stable. Without Flux, aggressive play results in Ki depletion and vulnerability.
Flux II Skill
2.5 Sword Ki
Sword Ki is a weapon-based Martial Art that enhances offensive pressure when using a sword. It improves your ability to apply momentum during engagements and maintain control during exchanges.
Sword Ki synergizes directly with:
- High Stance damage windows
- Ki recovery enabled by Flux
- Gauge generation from Deflect
If you are using swords early, Sword Ki is one of the strongest early weapon investments because it builds offensive consistency without compromising your Ki flow.
3. Best Ninja Skills You Should Learn First
Ninjutsu is where you get early tools that make fights easier. You gain options to create openings, improve safety, and set up consistent damage windows. These are the skills that matter first because they immediately affect how you survive mistakes and how reliably you can finish encounters.
3.1 Evade
Evade improves your movement responsiveness and defensive mobility. It enhances your ability to reposition quickly during combat and reduces vulnerability windows during enemy pressure.
Because Ninja Style relies heavily on movement, Evade is a foundational investment that immediately increases survivability.
Evade Skill
3.2 Gunpowder Bomb
Gunpowder Bomb provides explosive ranged pressure. It allows you to damage enemies from a distance, soften targets before committing to melee, and disrupt grouped enemies.
This tool is particularly useful in situations where direct engagement is risky. It adds safe damage potential and improves encounter control.
3.3 Caltrop Ball
Caltrop Ball create ground hazards that interfere with enemy movement. When deployed, they slow advancing enemies, allowing you to create space and control positioning.
This skill is extremely useful in narrow areas or during multi-enemy encounters where controlling enemy movement becomes essential.
Calltrop Ball Skill
3.4 Trembling Earth
Trembling Earth disrupts enemy stability and creates opportunities for follow-up attacks. It interferes with enemy rhythm and allows you to regain momentum during exchanges.
This skill supports controlled aggression and adds disruption utility to Ninja engagements.
3.5 Midair Dodge
Midair Dodge expands your defensive toolkit by allowing evasive movement while airborne. This increases survivability during aggressive or mobile combat sequences.
Midair Dodge is particularly valuable in dynamic fights where vertical movement or jump-based positioning occurs.
Mid-Air Dodge Skill
3.6 Drifting Counter
Drifting Counter enhances reactive play by allowing you to respond to incoming threats with precise counter movement. It rewards timing and awareness and supports advanced defensive rhythm in Ninja Style.
4. How Samurai And Ninja Skills Work Together
The strongest early progression comes from pairing Samurai stability with Ninja utility:
- Samurai Martial Arts keep your fundamentals solid (defense timing, Ki stability, stance access).
- Ninjutsu gives you flexible tools for controlling encounters, creating openings, and improving consistency.
A simple early approach is to build Samurai around reliable defense and stance control, then use Ninjutsu to handle the moments your weapon kit struggles with, which could be tight spaces, awkward enemy patterns, or situations where you need an immediate reset.
