Naoe and Yasuke will encounter several powerful opponents throughout taking down the more difficult enemies first, you can quickly be overwhelmed.

The different enemy types in Shadows are easy to tell apart and are usually found in the same environments, such as cities, castles, and the countryside, so paying attention to your surroundings is an easy way to know what enemies you should expect to fight. There is one additional enemy type in the game that poses a real threat to Naoe and Yasuke but will only appear under special circumstances.

8 Outlaws Pose No Significant Threat

Slice Through These Pesky Bandits With Ease

The Outlaws, commonly referred to as Bandits in Assassin's Creed Shadows, are the game's lowest-level and easiest enemy type. They are typically seen wearing ragged clothing with little or no armor. They can be male or female, and carry a variety of weapons, including tantos, kurasigamas, and teppos. You can find outlaws in encampments outside of cities and towns, and they also appear in overtaken castles that are usually partially burned down. In some cases, you'll discover the presence of bandits through hearing villagers talk about local troubles.

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Naoe can assassinate Outlaws easily, and Yasuke can kill them with only a couple of attacks. If you approach a group of them fighting more powerful enemies, you'll be better off getting an assassination on one of their foes rather than wasting it on an outlaw. Just be careful when approaching large numbers of them, as the quick attacks can become overwhelming.

7 Ashigaru Are Individually Fairly Weak

Have Strength In Numbers But Aren't That Strong

The Ashigaru enemy type in Assassin's Creed Shadows

Ashigaru, which translates to "light of foot," serve as the light infantry class of soldiers deployed by Samurai in feudal Japan. In Assassin's Creed Shadows, they are a step up from the Outlaws, but ashigaru are still some of the easier-to-defeat enemies in the game. You'll often find them in Nobunaga's camps, castles, or patrolling populated areas with one or two Samurai.

The Ashigaru use a wide range of weapons with blockable and unblockable attacks, and their combos can be damaging if you don't react in time. Still, they can be easily assassinated and fought, and most of their threat comes from their numbers and their proximity to the stronger Samurai. When taking down ashigaru in the vicinity of more powerful samurai, stealth is of the essence, helping you avoid a fight in the open where their numbers make it difficult to dodge and parry attacks.

6 Portuguese Soldiers Don't Show Up Too Often

Not Very Common, But Easy To Deal With

The Portuguese Soldier Type Enemy Type in Assassin's Creed Shadows

With their shiny breastplates and helmets, the Portuguese Soldiers are very easy to spot in Assassin's Creed Shadows. Portuguese soldiers carry teppos for ranged combat, and they'll try to keep a distance from you by dodging backwards after a melee combo. Naoe and Yasuke both have abilities that can quickly close gaps in combat with attacks. which should help in these scenarios. Their combination attacks are very powerful, so be ready to parry when they draw their swords.

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Portuguese soldiers can be found sporadically throughout Japan, often harassing local merchants in groups of three or four. You should try to assassinate one or two first to reduce their numbers, lower the threat of gunfire, and use smoke bombs to obscure their line of sight while you fight up close. When marking enemies in Assassin's Creed Shadows, ranged ones will show a target over their head, so you can close in to take them out before foes wielding melee weapons.

5 Samurai Are Nothing To Sneeze At

Imposing Soldiers That Require Some Skill To Take Down

Samurai are the main warrior class in Sengokou Japan and are one of the more powerful enemy types in Assassin's Creed Shadows. They are easily spotted thanks to their helmets and armor, although some Samurai can be found not wearing any armor - usually in castles.

Whether they wear armor or not, Samurai will have a minimum of three health segments that you'll have to remove to kill them. The Samurai Daisho you have to kill to get the rewards in Castles are the same as other Samurai you find in the world, but you'll be able to find them by looking for white dots in Naoe's Eagle Vision.

If you try to assassinate a Samurai with Naoe from the front, they will block it completely and you'll do no damage.

Samurai have powerful attack combos and high defense, so trying to fight one while battling other enemies is not advised. Unless you're using the guaranteed assassination setting, Naoe also can't assassinate Samurai all the time without the skills and engravings that remove more health segments from ground and air assassinations. If you clear out other enemies first, you can start with an assassination and finish them off in duels, or you can even disengage and run away between assassinations before returning to kill them with a second one.

4 Warrior Monks Are Agile Foes

Resolutely Defend Their Grounds With Deadly Skills

Warrior Monks wear light cloth clothing and sandals; some have gauntlets but otherwise are very lightly armored. That doesn't mean they're easy to kill, as they have very high mobility, will dodge melee and ranged attacks, and can heal mid-combat. They use unique weapons like dual katanas and long-bladed spears, and will also use ranged weapons during combat after dodging backwards. Using weapons like Yasuke's Naginata or Naoe's Kusarigama could help when dealing with more than one Monk at a time.

Be careful when taking out enemies in camps, as they will thoroughly investigate the surrounding areas when they find a body. Warrior Monks can be found defending restricted shrines and temples throughout Japan, so you'll need to sneak past them, take them out, or simply run like the wind when picking up collectibles like Lost Pages in these areas. Naoe can recruit a powerful Warrior Monk as an ally during Assassin's Creed Shadows' story, who is a very formidable opponent for your enemies.

3 Shinobi Give Naoe A Taste Of Her Own Medicine

Naoe Can Meet Her Match In These Tricky Enemies

The Shinobi Enemy Type in Assassin's Creed Shadows

It can be very hard to spot a Shinobi, as Naoe's enemies can attest to if they live long enough. You'll know when you've come across one very quickly, though, as these silent assassins will use many tools familiar to the player against them. These include the Tanto and Kusarigama, but Shinobi will also use Kunai, Shuriken, and Smoke Bombs to deal damage and make themselves harder to hit. It's best to keep up constant pressure against Shinobi to minimize these opportunities, and even a Smoke Bomb won't do much if you don't let them reposition.

Shinobi will appear in all sorts of places once you've progressed far enough in the Assassin's Creed Shadows' story, sent by the Shinbakufu and other organizations to hunt down Naoe and Yasuke. As a result, they can surprise you in towns and cities by emerging from crowds, ambush you on the road, or attack you in shrines and castles. Use all the tools and skills available to level the playing field after you've been ambushed. If they a fight where you're already overwhelmed, though, you might just want to run.

2 Ronin Are Serious Wandering Threats

Samurai Who Serve No Lord And Are Extra Deadly

The Ronin Enemy Type in Assassin's Creed Shadows

Ronin are Samurai who serve no master and now operate as mercenaries for the Shinbakufu, tasked like the Shinobi to attack Naoe and Yasuke on sight. As a result, the Ronin poses a serious threat throughout Japan as they wander the roads looking for their next victim. They wear very little armor compared to traditional Samurai, but they should be approached with caution. Ronin will attack Naoe and Yasuke on sight after Akechi Mitsuhide becomes an enemy.

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Ronin hit extremely hard, with complicated unblockable and blockable combinations. They also parry your attacks very effectively and have counter-attack combos, so make sure you're attacking carefully when you fight them. If you are skilled enough to survive an encounter with a Ronin, they usually have impressive loot on them, so the risk is often worth the reward. Their gear also provides some cool outfits for Yasuke, especially the shaggy, overhanging straw hats.

1 Guardians Are Deployed As Powerful Punishment

These Deadly Samurai Will Punish You If You're Wanted

If you're caught entering a restricted area like a camp or castle and you don't eliminate everyone there, then you'll become wanted in that entire region as a result of your crimes. Once you're wanted, a new enemy type will appear: The Guardian. When you are wanted, Guardians can be found both in the restricted area you were found or patrolling the towns and cities in the provinces, and they will attack you on sight.

The best way to deal with a Guardian is to avoid them at all costs; they're very powerful and often not worth trying to fight. Deep enough into the game, Naoe may be able to assassinate them, and Yasuke's stronger abilities can take out a lot of their health. The safest option, however, is to get rid of Naoe or Yasuke's wanted status in the game, which will then make the Guardian despawn. Guardians are the deadliest enemy type in Assassin's Creed Shadows, with extra health segments, powerful weapons, and relentless combos to punish your dissent.

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Assassin's Creed Shadows
Systems
Released
March 20, 2025
ESRB
Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language
Developer(s)
Ubisoft Quebec
Publisher(s)
Ubisoft