TalesupportingTale of TsushimaAct II — A Gathering Storm

Ghosts in the Fog

A Tale of Tsushima in Toyotama, norio tale 3 of 9 — part of a warrior monk arming the temples once prayer proves insufficient.

RoleNorio questline
Importancesupporting
  • TypeSide Tale (Norio Tale 3 of 9)
  • Act2
  • RegionToyotama
  • Quest giverNorio in Akashima Village
  • PrerequisiteComplete "Three Actions, Three Illusions"
  • RewardsMinor Legend Increase, Minor Defense Charm, Noble Fighter’s Headband
  • Steps11

Overview

A Tale of Tsushima in Toyotama, norio tale 3 of 9 — part of a warrior monk arming the temples once prayer proves insufficient.

Ghosts in the Fog belongs to Norio’s questline: a warrior monk arming the temples once prayer proves insufficient. It is norio tale 3 of 9, set in Toyotama.

The ally questlines are the game’s best writing and they run in order, so this tale assumes the ones before it. Norio’s arc rewards being followed as a sequence rather than picked at.

In the game’s own framing: The monks are safe, and the Mongols have come back for the village that sheltered them.

This is tale 3 of 9 in Norio’s arc. The ally questlines run in order and assume the ones before them, so they reward being followed as a sequence rather than picked at.

What to bring

The stances are a counter-table, not a preference: each one is the answer to a specific enemy, and this tale fields the ones below.

  • RequiredComplete "Three Actions, Three Illusions"This tale does not appear until then.
  • RecommendedWater StanceWater is the only efficient answer to a raised shield.
  • RecommendedSmoke BombThe steps call for one — it is the reset when the fight turns.

Objectives

  1. Meet Norio
  2. Reach the village centre
  3. Survey the defences
  4. Speak with Norio
  5. Light the six incense burners
  6. Wait for them
  7. Open with an air assassination
  8. Defeat the Mongols
  9. Go to the temple
  10. Help Norio
  11. Speak with Norio

Full walkthroughSpoilers

  1. 01
    Meet Norio

    In Akashima Village.

  2. 02
    Reach the village centre

    Climb onto the armor shop’s roof.

  3. 03
    Survey the defences

    Four things: the swamp, the temple, the village entrance and the incense burners. Survey points are not decoration — each one you mark puts an objective or a hazard on your map, and skipping them means finding the same things the hard way.

  4. 04
    Speak with Norio

    Back at the centre, about how to hold it.

  5. 05
    Light the six incense burners

    Marked with yellow icons around the village.

  6. 06
    Wait for them

    Go to the marker and climb the ladder into the raised house.

  7. 07
    Open with an air assassination

    Take the first Mongol below before the fight starts properly. Take the ends of patrol routes first, where a body will not be walked into — a discovered corpse raises the alarm just as reliably as being seen.

  8. 08
    Defeat the Mongols

    Twenty or more of several types. Smoke bombs are more reliable here than the incense. The smoke both breaks line of sight and stuns what is inside it, so it works as an opener as well as an escape.

  9. 09
    Go to the temple

    Once the village is clear.

  10. 10
    Help Norio

    Mongol shieldmen are on him. Shield-bearers need Water Stance, and specifically its heavy attacks — light attacks chip uselessly at a raised shield.

    TipWater is the only efficient answer to a raised shield.

  11. 11
    Speak with Norio

    He is standing over a body.

    Checkpoint

Enemies in this tale, and how to fight them

Strengths

  • Shield-bearers — Water Stance, and specifically its heavy attacks — that is what breaks a raised shield. Trying to chip through the front of a shield with light attacks wastes the fight. Stagger them first so the guard comes up and breaks, then go through the opening quickly before it closes.

Rewards

  • Minor Legend Increase
    A smaller step toward the next Legend rank — the size a side tale, a liberated settlement or a cleared encounter gives.
  • Minor Defense Charm
    A silver charm. Minor charms are weaker than major ones and go in the minor slots — you start with two major slots and unlock up to four minor ones by honouring Inari Shrines, for six equipped at once.
  • Noble Fighter’s Headband
    A head item. Cosmetic unless the set states otherwise.

What this unlocks

Norio’s tales

Characters in this tale

Sources

Relationships