In the depths of the Belurat Gaol, you will find a peculiar magic-slinging swordslinger. This little demi-human is Demi-Human Swordmaster Onze, and you will need to have your timings down if you want to survive him. Or just bring a summon.
General Tips
Swordmaster Onze has several long combos, with fast attacks. This means blocking and parrying is effective, so long as you are wary of the frostbite buildup.
Due to his fast movement and magical teleportation, it will be difficult to maintain range against Onze. Even if you do, he can block or dodge most projectiles.
Onze is extremely susceptible to staggering, letting you interrupt him before a combo starts, or pummel him after. This is especially potent when summoning. Do be ready for a teleportation counter, however.
Summoning can be difficult in this fight, since Onze closes the distance immediately with a Teleporting Magical Jump Attack at the start of most battles.
Onze’s moveset is surprisingly varied. While you can react similarly to many of his attacks, it may take time to learn exact timings for things like parries and rolls.
Strategy
Onze can be a tricky fight, and is harder the slower moving you are (especially if you plan to take him on solo). This is because he is fast-moving, closes distances instantly, and has some nasty combos with many hits in them. That said, the best strategy for taking on Onze is simple: get hits in to stagger him, and keep them up until he counter attacks. While he is attacking, focus on dodging (or going for parries), and then attack at the end of his combos to repeat the cycle.
More specifically, Onze is a fight all about reacting with precise timings to his moves. He begins most fights simply enough: will a Teleporting Magical Jump Attack, which you can dodge easily enough as he brings his blade down. A fast enough attack can stagger him here, letting you start the fight with a few good hits. Be aware that many of his combos see him leap backwards at the end of them, keeping him out of harms way. Be patient with these, and let him come back to you.
Demonstration of Staggering Onze
You might think to try ranged attacks after he flips away, but unfortunately he can block most ranged attacks, or roll to the side. That said, casting certain spells right as he leaps away will hit him, giving you the opportunity for some damage before he closes the gap again. Generally, though, spellcasters should bring in an agile summon like Black Knife Tiche so that they can keep Onze off balance while you pummel them with spells. In general, a strong summon can make this fight a breeze, as you can leverage Onze’s low poise to keep him nearly stunlocked.
The only other thing to really keep in mind with this fight, besides memorizing his attack patterns and considering a summon, is that you have to be very cautious about summoning and drinking flasks. As I said, once you’ve summoned, the fight gets easier, but even finding space to against such an agile foe is hard. And so, in order to perform actions that take time, you will need to make spaces yourself. Aside from after a parry, the best time to summon or drink flasks is at the end of Onze’s combos, after he leaps back. Pace yourself and stay calm until he does if you need to chug or summon.
Beyond that, you should have all the tools you need to take on Onze. Remember: keep him staggered, be ready for his counter-attacks, and otherwise wait him out until the end of his combos. Oh, and bring summons.
Moveset
Onze has a surprisingly huge moveset, and it will take a while to learn if you are trying to perfect his timings. But, dodging away from the begining of his combos and then to the side at the end of a combo is the best strategy for most of his attacks.
Teleporting Magical Jump Attack: While at a distance, Onze will leap into the air, teleport to you, and then bring down a glintstone-infused slash on you. Roll to the left or right to avoid this.
Magic Grasp: Onze will bring back his hand and fill it with magic, while a twinkling effect plays. When he trusts forward, roll to the side to avoid his command grab.
Spinning Slash: Onze will spin in a circle, slashing twice in front of him. He can do this at two speeds, one with a very short delay, and one with a longer delay. Block, parry, or dodge to the left or right.
Frostbite Sphere: After a misty-step forward, Onze will pull his sword back and charge it for a moment. After the twinkling sound effect, he will thrust forward, surrounding himself with a sword-sphere of frost. Roll back and away when he prepares this attack to avoid its AOE.
Magic Sword Combo: Onze will pull his sword back, and it will twinkle. Then, he will slash twice quickly, a third time after a delay. You can dodge all of these by rolling backwards, or parry. This move then has two possibilities:
He will leap and bring his sword down twice in a row, with the last attack being a slam. All of these attacks will need to be rolled away from, aside from the final attack which can be rolled to the side.
He will leap into the air and prepare a spinning slash, which you can dodge. Then he will leap in the air again, and twirl twice before slamming his sword down hard, which you should dodge to the side to get hits in. Be careful, as if you dodge either of his twirls then he will hit you when he actually brings the sword down.
Slashing Combo: Onze will slash with upward attacks. First to the left, then right. He can go from here into several possible attacks, some involving his misty-step, but they can all be dodged by rolling backward. It will be clear when his combo ends, opening him up to attack.
Counter-Attack: If you hit Onze enough, he may deflect with his blade. He will then misty-step, then attempting a Spinning Double-Slash, which you should dodge to the side. You can also use this to parry, since the timing will be reliable and on your terms.
Overhead Combo: Onze will raise his sword above his head. When he brings it down, he will do two quick slashes (which can be dodges, blocked, or parried), and then leap to your side to swing his weapon down once more. Dodge back until the last strike, which you can dodge to the side.
Thrust Step: Onze will thrust his attack forward, which you can dodge, block, or parry. If you don’t parry, he will then misty-step past you and begin a different combo, usually the slashing combo.
Regular Jump Attack: Onze will leap up, then shoot forward and slash at you, without magic. Dodge to the side.
Graves is an avid writer, web designer, and gamer, with more ideas than he could hope to achieve in a lifetime. But, armed with a mug of coffee and an overactive imagination, he'll try. When he isn't working on a creative project, he is painting miniatures, reading cheesy sci-fi novels, or making music.
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