At a glance
The short version
- Game
- Onimusha: Way of the Sword
- Guide type
- Combat Guides
- Read time
- 7 min read
- Last updated
- Nov 9, 2026
Quick answer
The only answers are Parry and Deflect.
Quick answer
Unavoidable Attacks glow bright pink. Do not dodge them and do not Issen them — Parry or Deflect, or take heavy damage and a possible stun.
Parries and Deflects drain the boss stamina far faster than sword swings. An empty stamina bar gives you a Break Issen — spend it on the tail.
Cutting the tail stuns the boss and removes its tail sweep and tail block, but the tail grows back, and the cut animation does not leave you fully safe — take the soul reward instead when you are low on health.
In phase 2, do not try to deflect the lightning rain. Keep moving and sidestep the bolts; only the boss melee attacks can still be parried or deflected.
Guide details
Boss: Greater Nue, a lightning-charged chimera — an oversized version of the Nue fought earlier.
Where: the Kyoto Imperial Palace section of the story.
First: the first boss built around Unavoidable Attacks.
Core loop: Parry or Deflect, drain stamina, Break Issen, cut the tail.
1. The one rule: Unavoidable Attacks
The Greater Nue introduces a new attack type, and the whole fight is built around it. When a body part glows bright pink as the boss winds up — some guides describe the glow as white — the incoming attack is an Unavoidable Attack. Dodging does not work. Issen does not work either: the counter-attack that answers almost everything else in this game simply fails against these moves. The only defences are Parry, holding your guard, and Deflect, timing your guard at the moment of impact.
The tell is generous once you know to look for it: stop attacking, watch the glow, and meet the swing with your guard. Missing a Parry or Deflect here costs more than missing one anywhere else — these hits deal heavy damage and can stun you into a follow-up. If you have been dying to this boss while dodging on instinct, this is almost certainly why.
2. The winning loop: drain stamina, Break Issen, cut the tail
Do not try to win this fight with sword damage alone. Parries and Deflects drain the boss stamina far faster than raw attacks do, and the stamina bar is the real health bar here. When it empties, you get a Break Issen — a heavy opening against a boss that lets you choose the follow-up. Choose the tail.
Two tools speed the loop up. The Earth-Shakers, a pair of Oni-made hammers, are built to strip enemy stamina — hold the attack input to charge them for more power — and they are the right weapon for the second half of the fight. The Oni Bow helps against the armoured face: shattering the face armour with the bow and Earth-Shakers opens the boss up to real damage.
Once the tail is off, pick it up with Oni Strength and hit the boss with it: the severed tail deals heavy stamina and soul damage. If you cannot grab it, unlock Handle Bigger Objects in the skill menu first — Oni Strength needs that upgrade to lift it.
3. Cut the tail — or take the souls?
The tail question has two honest answers. Cutting it stuns the boss and removes its sweeping Unavoidable Attack and its tail block — but the tail grows back after a while, and the Break Issen cut animation does not make Musashi fully safe. When your health, Oni Power, or Oni Awakening gauge is the more urgent need, taking the soul reward from the Break Issen is the smarter call. Cut the tail when you are healthy and want the structural damage; take the souls when you are low.
4. Phase 1 moveset: what to do against each attack
Phase 1 mixes ordinary attacks you already know with the new Unavoidable Attacks. Read the glow first, then pick the answer:
Opening tail swipe (pink or white glow): Parry or Deflect only. The boss often opens with this, and deflecting it leads into deflectable claw strikes.
Claw strikes: Parry or Deflect, then punish the recovery with a short string. Do not overcommit to long combos.
Shoulder charge, sprint, and leaping body slam: dodge these. You can Issen the leaping slam if your timing is confident.
Blue mouth-worm grab: counter it with Circle when prompted.
Tail shielding the face: break the guard with Triangle and Circle together.
Lightning bolts at range: deflect them back — a clean deflect stuns the boss and opens a heavy-damage window.
5. Phase 2: the lightning rain
Phase 2 is where the fight changes. The boss empowers its attacks with lightning, its enlarged tail swipe leaves lightning orbs on the ground, and near half health it calls down a rain of bolts across the arena. The melee attacks in this phase can still be parried or deflected exactly as before — the lightning cannot.
When the enlarged tail swipe comes, deflect it if you can, then move away from the orbs it leaves behind. When the bolt rain starts, stop trying to counter anything and keep running: steady movement beats counter timing here, and standing still to attempt a deflect will cost significant health.
6. Mistakes that get players killed
Dodging the pink glow on instinct. Every other fight in the game trains you to dodge; this one punishes it.
Trying to Issen an Unavoidable Attack. Issen fails against these moves — guard instead.
Standing still to deflect the phase 2 lightning rain. Run.
Chasing sword damage while the stamina bar sits full. Parries and Deflects are the damage here — the Break Issen is the payoff.
FAQ
Can you dodge the Greater Nue Unavoidable Attacks? No. The pink-glowing attacks cannot be dodged and cannot be answered with an Issen. Parry or Deflect them, every time.
Does the tail stay off once you cut it? No. The tail grows back after a while, so be ready to cut it again with another Break Issen — or take the souls instead if you need them more.
Where do you fight the Greater Nue? In the Kyoto Imperial Palace section of the story, after the earlier Nue fights. It is the first boss that makes Unavoidable Attacks the core of the fight, so the Parry and Deflect practice from the earlier game pays off here.