Nioh Guide: How To Level Up & Which Stats To Focus On

While the challenges that you’ll be faced with during Nioh’s dozens of hours of gameplay will push you to your limits, with a little patience and diligence you will eventually overcome them. While naturally becoming better at the game will be a big part of that, another big part is the fact that you can level up your character and enhance his various stats to make life easier. This guide will teach you how to do just that.

As you take down the game’s various enemies you will notice that you will slowly but surely accumulate Amrita, which functions very similarly to how souls do in the Dark Souls series. You take these Amrita to locations called Shrines, which are sparingly spread throughout the game’s missions. If you have enough Amrita then you will be able to improve one of your character’s stats, and then the cost of improving a stat at the next level will go up. The following is a list of stats that you can level up in the game and what they do:

Body: Leveling up this stat will typically increase your overall health, though it will also have an impact on your elemental resistances and can result in you receiving Samurai skill points. The weapons that this stat favors are Spears.

Heart: Leveling up this stat will typically increase overall Ki, though it can also improve your overall health and life. The weapons that this stat favors are Swords and Bows.

Stamina: Leveling up this stat impacts life and how much weight you can carry. The weapons that this stat favors are Cannons.

Strength: Leveling up this stat impacts the amount required to activate the special effects of heavier weapons and armor. It also impacts the maximum amount of equipment you can carry and can give you Samurai skill points. The weapons that this stat favors are axes.

Skill: Leveling up this stat impacts the amount required to activate the special effects of more technical weapons and armor. It also makes Ninjutsu skills more powerful and can give you Samurai skill points. The weapons this stat favors are Dual Katanas and Guns.

Dexterity: Leveling up this stat impacts the effect and capacity of your Ninjutsu. This stat favors Ninjutsu weapons.

Magic: Leveling up this stat impacts the effect and capacity of Onyo Magic. This stat favors Onyo Magic abilities.

Spirit: Leveling up this stat impacts the power of your Guardian Spirit, with this stat being entirely focused on your Guardian Spirit and its Living Weapon attacks.

Depending on the type of player that you are, focusing on certain stats over others will be a great way to build a character that is better suited for you. If you’re typically a more tank-focused character, then put your Amrita towards Strength and Stamina stats. However, if you’d like to deal damage from afar, then the Skill and Dexterity stats will suit you better. Finally, if you like dealing magic damage and adding elemental perks to your standard attacks, then the Magic and Spirit categories will be what your main focuses should be.

Of course, whenever leveling up your character you should always cycle through each of the above stats and see what’s going to be improved, as you might find that the level you’re at will result in some big stat buffs by enhancing a stat you otherwise wouldn’t focus on. You’ll also want to make sure that you occasionally level up stats outside of your focus, as well, in order to make sure that you aren’t completely incompetent in certain areas.