The Onimusha Way of the Sword deflect is a hold-plus-tap on the exact impact frame. It turns the attack aside, drains a large amount of enemy stamina with no health damage, staggers the enemy, and costs you no stamina.
On this page
Unlock the skill first
Deflect does nothing until you buy it. It is a Basic Skill obtained during the story mission "The Oni's Apprentice" at Rendaino Temple for 2 Power Stones:
Speak to Shizuka Gozen at a Spirit Mirror.
Open the Enhance Equipment / Abilities submenu.
Take Deflect from the Basic Skills tab.
Go to the Practice Ground by ringing the bell at the temple shrine, where Takamura makes you successfully deflect Genma soldiers three times.
Nothing deflects before that purchase, which matters if you are chasing the Pinch Hitter trophy.
Onimusha Way of the Sword deflect input on each layout
The two controller layouts use the same idea with different buttons, and mixing them up is the usual reason deflect seems to do nothing.
- Basic layout: hold guard and tap the assigned face button on the beat. The window is generous, and a miss still leaves you in a normal block.
- Active layout: a single timed button press instead of hold-plus-tap. This is the harder of the two options.
On PS5, guard-plus-attack is L1 plus Square in the Defensive layout and Square plus X in the Aggressive one; on Xbox it is LB plus X or X plus A. On PC keyboard, hold the right mouse button and tap one of the attack buttons. Every button in both layouts is on the controls guide.
What deflect gives you
- Massive enemy stamina damage with no health damage, which is how you reach a Break Issen quickly.
- No stamina cost, which is the tell that the input landed.
- A stagger and disrupted balance.
- The enemy can keep attacking during deflect recovery. A deflect into a recovering enemy's attack is the setup for an Issen.
Deflecting during Blazing State causes major stamina damage.
Deflect upgrades
All of these sit in the same branch and are bought at a Spirit Mirror:
| Upgrade | Cost | Available after |
|---|---|---|
Deflection Power 1 | 4,500 Red Souls | 1st Oni Portal |
Deadly Deflection | 3 Power Stones | 2nd Oni Portal |
Deflection Power 2 | 6,500 Red Souls | 3rd Oni Portal |
Deflecting against bosses
Two story fights reward deflect specifically. Daidara swings a mace slowly and heavily telegraphed, so timed deflects are what keeps his stamina bar empty while you collect the blue souls he tries to steal. Byakue's axe swings are deflectable even though his charges are not.
Among the rematch variants, Enhanced Dohatsu-ten teleports and attacks immediately after each relocation, and those attacks can be deflected as well. Fully Armed Benkei adds an undodgeable white-glow polearm flurry that must be deflected — blocking it will not hold.
How to deflect arrows
Arrows and other projectiles use the same input as melee, timed to the projectile's arrival rather than to the enemy's draw or release animation.
To send a shot back, you must be facing the shooter. Use lock-on, or hold forward toward the archer. A deflected arrow flies back at its source, staggers the archer and leaves it open for an Issen.
That makes a clean deflect the only response that damages the archer without closing distance. A parry neutralises the shot but kills nothing, and holding guard just absorbs it at a stamina cost.
Kubi Akari floating heads fire slow, readable ball projectiles and count as deflectable projectiles. Deflected arrows drain enemy stamina without killing, which also helps the bow headshot trophy.
Pinch Hitter: deflect 50 projectiles
Deflecting 50 projectiles is the bronze trophy Pinch Hitter. Three conditions decide whether an attempt counts:
- Only deflects registered with the Deflect skill count, so buy the skill first.
- The projectile does not have to hit an enemy afterwards.
- Holding guard as the shot lands, or dodging so it misses, does not count.
Reliable places to farm the fifty:
The barricaded Hitotsume Gasa archers on the elevated arch in Eastern Kyoto, identified by glowing yellow weak spots on both legs. They cannot be killed and keep firing at a steady pace, which makes them the best target.
Groups of Kubi Akari around Kyoto.
Mixed melee-and-ranged Genma pulled through Nijo-jo Castle during "What Lurks in the Shadows".
Repeatable boss rematches in the Practice Ground opened by "The Oni's Apprentice".
Free roam stays open up to "The Clash at Rendaino", and a New Game+ run on Carnage carries the skills over and supplies more archers. Boss Rematch is covered on the rematch guide.