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

In Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Naoe's skill set is tailored for those who enjoy the thrill of stealth and precision in their gameplay. While Naoe excels in the shadows, she is also capable of engaging in direct combat with the right strategy. To help you maximize Naoe's potential, here are the top skills to prioritize in Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

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Best Skills to Get First for Naoe in Assassin’s Creed Shadows

When starting out, focus on skills up to Knowledge Rank 3, which you can achieve by engaging actively with the open world activities in the initial regions.

Katana

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• Dodge Attack – Katana Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point): Enhances your defensive capabilities, allowing you to punish aggressive foes with swift counterattacks.
• Melee Expert – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Boosts your melee damage, making every strike count.
• Counter Attack – Katana Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Perfect for turning enemy attacks into your advantage by countering effectively.
• Eviscerate – Katana Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 5 Mastery Points): A powerful finishing move to end fights decisively.

These skills transform you into a defensive powerhouse, ideal for players skilled in dodging and deflecting, enabling you to counter and deal significant damage, ultimately finishing off opponents with Eviscerate.

Kusarigama

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• Entanglement – Kusarigama Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point): Ideal for controlling crowds and dealing extra damage to larger foes.
• Affliction Builder – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Enhances your ability to apply afflictions, crucial for weakening enemies.
• Big Catch – Kusarigama Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Increases your effectiveness against larger targets.
• Multi-Target Expert – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Makes handling multiple enemies a breeze.
• Cyclone Blast – Kusarigama Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 7 Mastery Points): A devastating area attack perfect for dealing with groups.

These skills position you as a formidable opponent against both groups and single targets, with Entanglement enhancing your crowd control and damage capabilities.

Tanto

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• Shadow Piercer – Tanto Ability (Knowledge Rank 1, 5 Mastery Points): Amplifies your damage output, especially against vulnerable foes.
• Gap Seeker – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Helps you exploit enemy weaknesses for greater damage.
• Backstab – Tanto Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Increases your stealth attack potency.
• Backstabber – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Enhances damage from behind, perfect for stealthy players.
• Back Breaker – Tanto Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 3 Mastery Points): Delivers devastating blows to armored enemies.

These skills are essential for maximizing your damage with the tanto, especially by targeting vulnerable spots and exploiting enemy weaknesses.

Tools

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• Smoke Bomb – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point): Essential for escaping or setting up a chain of assassinations.
• Larger Tool Bag I – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Increases your tool capacity, allowing more strategic flexibility.
• Shinobi Bell – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point): Useful for luring guards away from your target.
• Enduring Haze – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Enhances the duration of your smoke bombs.
• Kunai Assassination Damage I – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Boosts your kunai's lethality at range.
• Shuriken – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Perfect for taking out alarms or triggering explosives.

These tools are crucial for manipulating guards and creating opportunities for stealthy assassinations.

Shinobi

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• Ascension Boost – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points): Speeds up your climbing, essential for navigating the environment quickly.
• Vault – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point): Reduces fall damage, allowing for more daring maneuvers.
• Igan Roll – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point): Enhances your agility and evasion.
• Heighten Senses – Shinobi Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 5 Mastery Points): Slows down time, giving you a strategic advantage in crowded areas.

These skills ensure you remain undetected and agile, crucial for maintaining stealth and reaching your objectives swiftly.

Assassin

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• Executioner – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points): Enhances your assassination damage, making every strike lethal.
• Improved Ground Assassinate – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Increases the effectiveness of ground assassinations.
• Double Assassinate – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Allows for simultaneous takedowns, saving time and resources.
• Assassination Damage I – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points): Further boosts your assassination damage.
• Reinforced Blade – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 4 Mastery Points): Enhances the durability and damage of your hidden blade.

These skills are best paired with a tanto, enabling swift and effective takedowns, even against larger and more resilient enemies.

By focusing on these skills within each category, you'll be well on your way to becoming the ultimate stealth assassin in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. For more tips and guides, be sure to check out The Escapist.