Key tips
- Chaining assassinations is risky here — a discovered body raises the alarm.
- Helmeted enemies survive Half Bow headshots; save them for the sword or a heavier bow.
- Hanging lanterns are the most efficient answer to shipboard archers.
Overview
Ryuzo does not want a speech about duty. He wants his men fed, and he is entirely open about that being the transaction.
The mission reconnects Jin with the man he trained alongside under Lord Shimura's roof, now leading a band of masterless ronin. His terms are practical: the Straw Hats will fight at Castle Kaneda once their stolen food supplies are recovered.
It is the clearest early statement of the game's class argument. Jin has a name, land and a lord; Ryuzo has the same training and none of those things. Everything that happens between them later is set up in this conversation.
In the game’s own framing: Ryuzo agrees to help rescue Lord Shimura on one condition — Jin must recover stolen food. That means Fort Ohira, its alarm, and the Mongol cargo ships offshore.
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 "Blood on the Grass"This tale does not appear until then.
- RecommendedStone StanceStone breaks swordsmen, who make up most of every Mongol group.
- RecommendedWater StanceWater is the only efficient answer to a raised shield.
- RecommendedWind StanceWind gets through spear reach, which otherwise keeps you out of range.
- RecommendedMoon StanceMoon staggers Brutes; nothing else in the melee kit reliably does.
- RecommendedSmoke BombThe steps call for one — it is the reset when the fight turns.
- RecommendedBlack Powder BombThe crowd answer this tale expects.
- RecommendedFlaming ArrowsThe steps use fire on grass, barrels or enemies.
- RecommendedFocused HearingThe steps rely on it to place guards through walls.
Objectives
- Meet Ryuzo at Takuzudama Cemetery
- Follow Ryuzo to Fort Ohira
- Breach Fort Ohira
- Disable the lighthouse alarm
- Regroup with Ryuzo
- Survey the Mongol landing site
- Lead Ryuzo down the cliffs
- Reach the rowboat
- Search the first ship
- Defeat the Mongols on the first ship
- Cross to the second ship
- Search the second ship
- Return to the first ship
- Find Ryuzo
- Defeat the Mongol brute
- Jump off the ship
Full walkthrough
- 01Meet Ryuzo at Takuzudama Cemetery
Talk to Ryuzo to plan the raid.
- 02Follow Ryuzo to Fort Ohira
They discuss a plan in which Jin carries most of the risk.
- 03Breach Fort Ohira
Use the fallen tree against the wall to get in. Ronin Attire and stealth charms help. Track patrols with Focused Hearing. Take the two guards at the cliff edge first, then the two near the lighthouse fire. Focused Hearing shows enemies through walls and floors, so use it to place everyone before committing rather than to react once you are seen.
- 04Disable the lighthouse alarm
Climb to the top of the lighthouse and disable the signal fireworks so the Mongols cannot call reinforcements.
- 05Regroup with Ryuzo
Meet him inside the fort, clearing any remaining guards. He comments on how cleanly you did it.
- 06Survey the Mongol landing site
From the cliff, examine four points: the small boats at the dock, the front gate, the central black powder cache, and the clifftop positions. 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. Shoot the powder before the group spreads out. Once they scatter, the barrel is worth one kill instead of four.
- 07Lead Ryuzo down the cliffs
Follow the descending path. A cinematic shows Ryuzo signalling his archers, who put fire arrows into the camp. There is no grass here — use rocks and cargo piles. Most Mongols are busy with the fires; assassinate the lone beach patrol and clear the way to the docks. Deal with the archers first. Everything else in the fight is harder while arrows are landing, and archers fold quickly once you are on them — or take them at range before you commit. 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.
- 08Reach the rowboat
Board at the waypoint and sail out to the cargo ships.
- 09Search the first ship
Ryuzo assassinates the first guard. Search the holds — there is no food, and Mongols are waiting on deck. 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.
- 10Defeat the Mongols on the first ship
Swordsmen, shield-bearers, pikemen and archers. Kill the archers above you first, use the gunwale as cover, and drop the hanging lanterns on them. Switch to Wind Stance for the armoured polearm leader while Ryuzo holds the melee. Shield-bearers need Water Stance, and specifically its heavy attacks — light attacks chip uselessly at a raised shield. Wind Stance for the spearmen: they will hold you at the end of their reach all day otherwise, and Wind's kicks and spins are built to close that gap. Deal with the archers first. Everything else in the fight is harder while arrows are landing, and archers fold quickly once you are on them — or take them at range before you commit.
TipStone breaks swordsmen, who make up most of every Mongol group.
- 11Cross to the second ship
Ryuzo leads the gangplank assault and takes the main deck; the upper deck is yours.
- 12Search the second ship
Two patrolling guards in the hold, an archer on the upper deck, two more on the main deck. Use Focused Hearing to time it. You find Mongol battle plans on the table — still no food. Deal with the archers first. Everything else in the fight is harder while arrows are landing, and archers fold quickly once you are on them — or take them at range before you commit. Focused Hearing shows enemies through walls and floors, so use it to place everyone before committing rather than to react once you are seen.
- 13Return to the first ship
Follow the trail of Ryuzo’s kills. He is gone.
- 14Find Ryuzo
Follow the markers to the aft deck.
- 15Defeat the Mongol brute
Ryuzo is down. The heavily armoured brute swings unblockable overheads. Drop a smoke bomb immediately and revive Ryuzo before it recovers — two-on-one splits its attention. Moon Stance if you have it, Wind Stance otherwise. Duck the high swings, jump the leg sweeps, and roll back rather than trying to block. Switch to Moon Stance for the Brutes: they shrug off ordinary damage and Moon's heavy overheads are what actually stagger them. Their big swings are unblockable, so dodge rather than block and answer in the gap afterwards. The smoke both breaks line of sight and stuns what is inside it, so it works as an opener as well as an escape.
TipMoon staggers Brutes; nothing else in the melee kit reliably does.
- 16Jump off the ship
The Mongols answer with fire arrows; go over the side as the ship burns.
Enemies in this tale, and how to fight them
Strengths
- Archers — Deal with them before you commit to the melee, because everything else in the fight becomes harder while arrows are landing. Take them with your own bow, drop them from stealth before the fight opens, or close the distance immediately — archers are poor at close range and fold quickly once you are on them. Where the tale gives you high ground, use it: an elevated position means only one side of the field can answer you.
- Brutes — Moon Stance. Brutes soak an enormous amount of ordinary damage, and Moon's heavy overhead strikes are what actually stagger them. Their big swings are usually unblockable — red marker — so dodge those rather than trying to block, and answer in the window afterwards rather than trading. Some carry explosives. If you have Resolve banked, a Brute is the right place to spend it.
- 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.
- Spearmen — Wind Stance. Spears have reach on you and will keep you at the end of it indefinitely if you fight them at their distance. Wind's kicks and spinning attacks are built to close that gap. With the deflection skills unlocked you can deflect spear attacks outright, which turns their advantage into an opening.
- Swordsmen — Stone Stance, whose heavy attacks do extra stagger damage to sword-wielders and break their guard. Swordsmen are the backbone of nearly every Mongol group, so Stone is the stance you will spend the most time in. Parry timing matters more here than anywhere else: blue attacks can be parried, red ones cannot and have to be dodged.
- Straw Hats / ronin — Japanese swordsmen rather than Mongols, and they fight like it — faster and more technical than the invaders, with less armour. Stone Stance still applies. Standoffs work well against them, and against unarmoured ronin a won standoff often kills outright.
Rewards
- Major Legend IncreaseA large step toward the next Legend rank. Legend gates your Ghost Weapon unlocks and your health and Resolve upgrades, so main and Mythic Tales are the fastest way to raise it.
What this unlocks
Characters in this tale
Sources
- Ghost of Tsushima Walkthrough — PowerPyx
- Ghost of Tsushima: Act 1 — Rescue Lord Shimura — Knowll