Preface

It is highly recommended to complete the game once while collecting the 3 key items from just the Phantom Realms at Underwater Temple and Mont St. Michel. This enables you to start a new game with the three secret weapons which will be found at the same street where Samanosuke first transfer into the future.

Keep in mind that Timer starts when you hear the sound effect after New Game is selected. Timer stops on The Final Hit Against Genma King Nobunaga. Submissions must contain all footage for the runs provided, including difficulty choice and result screen

Big credits to yorisiro for the video footage.

I. Intro

• Boss: Ranmaru Mori - Immediately Transform into Onimusha then attack to land free Criticals 4 times to finish the fight.
• 7x Zolm (Jacques) - You can cancel the recovery from shooting by tapping any movement direction. The closer you are to the enemy, the more damage they take.
• Zaghat Staircase - Attack one at a time, then push until Zorm appears further inside. Usually, after 2~3 attacks. After taking out both at once in a single flash, you temporarily ignore the souls and move forward.
• Boss: Brainstern - Destory both arms with Tenso Magic then absorb red Souls. If you are fast enough, you can immediately kill it with Raizan Magic twice. Otherwise, you will wait for mode switch iframe.

II. Mt. Hiei / Sewer

Mt. Hiei (Jacques)

• 9x zombies - Initial spawn is 2 sword, moving to the center of the area triggers an event fight. Not killing the zombies quickly makes the spawn bit unstable.
• Backtrack Corridor - Bazu will rotate at you, it's recommended to chain crit here for movement boost.
• Gorr Block - Fastest way to pass through Gorr is Oni-Binder ⇒ kick.It's not a guaranteed method, but it's a bit faster than the magic knock down.
• Boss: Marcellus - Less than half health will enter phase 2 by throwing his shield away. Ideally you should chain crit him in two sets: 5-chain and 6-chain.

Sewer (Samanosuke)

• At the start of this segment you will have around 2,000 or more souls. You will need at least 5,000 souls by the end of this segement.
• Zolworm (Slime) Block - knocked away by running slash⇒ normal slash, or two kicks.
• Make sure to equip Red Vest as soon you as you get the second stone. After running the generator, 2 slimes will spawn. You should need to get the large currency boost from them.
• During the boulder push chain 2 Zaghat in one crit to earn soul bonuses. This is your second important money route.
• Zaghat has several patterns in the number of red souls that they drop. If the combo bonus is displayed as "+300", both are the minimum number. If both are the maximum number, the bonus is +1000. This is exactly why getting currency from 2 slimes is important.
• Quick Ladder Climb - If you hover to the left, Michelle will miss the ladder, so you can climb first.

III. Sakai Town / Cathedral

Sakai Town (Jacques)

• Raisen Pick up Sequence - Visual cue on how to move from blacksmith sequence till market non-stop.
• Backward dash method - Avoiding to get hit from Ogre can be tricky at times.
• Gorr Block - Same as Jacques previous segment. It's much better to magic bind knock down here.
• Boss: Heihachiro Honda - One of the only bosses that you Deflect Critical and it is the most reliable method here.
• Doll Loop - Can get bad RNG here but the idea is to corner the doll by Anti-Air attack (R1 + X) then loop with uppercut Stance > tap forward twice + attack.

Cathedral (Samanosuke)

• Test of Hover Running movement.
• Chaining Bazu is fast but if they don't instantly do the rolling then there is no need to wait.
• Blade Corridor movement - If done right you won't have to wait for rotating Blade at all.
• 2x Doldow - Mandatory fight that gives you a lot of soul points on critical.

IV. Underwater Temple / Boulogne Zoo

Underwater Temple

• Past: Right after the start - After receiving the 'Yellow Plate' from Samanouske, the group of Zombies can be dealt with all at once with Thunder Magic.
• Boss: Demon Ranmaru - At the start, get close and force Ranmaru to dodge which will either make him slash or flies backward to launch a Fireball. For some reason with 'Tenso' the uppercut critical deals double damage during critical chain.
• Hyosai pick up - Tactical Magic can help to clear around with Zombie Archers. Ignore the dark puppets found at the locations. However, beating them will have a chance of healing item.
• Farming Point 1 - Very important chain against Fobra to get soul bonus for the 'Kuga' upgrade.
• Gorr Block again - Same idea but watch out for the archers.
• Last Farming Point - Here, the soul points should reach 6,000. If you're worried about game over, you can remove the Red Vest before using the power crystal.
• Boss:Gertrude - If you can completely destroy the armor on the right front and hind legs, it will make Samanosuke's fight at Mont Saint-Michel a bit easier. Old method

Boulogne Zoo

• 2x Doldow Nade setup - This should be faster and more consistent.
• Nuraubis setup - Throw three grenades then finish it with two shottys.
• Boss:Gildenstern - It is possible to one cycle otherwise you keep looping with puppet deflect chain. Just don't get caught at desperatation move.

V. Mont Saint-Michel

• Boss: Heihachiro Honda - Just like when you fought in Sakai Town. Jusw watch out with his kicks, which can't be blocked.
• Gate Key - If done well, you can break through nonstop. To be consistent, wait for the right timing with the fourth torch.
• Nuraubis - Zavheits can be annoying but you can chain with them to get rid of Nuraubis quickly.
• If you fail critical on Gorr, who is blocking your way back, you can one cycle it with a 4-hit normal attack ⇒ Magic.
• Plate step quick solution -
• Future Arc de Triomphe - Nuraubis and Slimes can be dealt with one chain. Watch out at the rooftop with Don Gorr, wait for a bit in front of the treasure chest. The moment it starts charging, open the chest, dodge in the opposite direction with your steps before leaving.
• There are cases where the game freezes due to a bug when returning from time space.
• Obtain the Triangle Key ⇒ Phantom Plant Seedling ⇒ Iron Gear
• Henri Escort - Very RNG heavy section because if Henri isn't nearby, you can't move to the next area. For the first two hall way room, you can move when Henry's head appears at the bottom of the screen. Kick Zavheits in front of the door and wait for Henri to be close enough to progress.
• Boss:Gertrude II - Make sure to hit 'Tenso' Magic on the right head after you do enough Chain Critical.
• For the last sequence with Jacques if you have trouble getting critical against Don Gorr switch to 'Hyosai' use Magic ⇒ Attack x2 ⇒ Magic

VI. End Game

• Lake Biwa - If the iceberg get hit three times, it's game over. The cycle against Battobone and Dark Spider is 'Enja' 3 Hit combo into Anti-Air combo. There are 3 Grizmoh and it's best to practice critical hit on the first two. You can take down the third one right away with Magic into normal hits. Switch to Raisen after that to deal with the birds with Magic.
• House Puzzle - If you can lock onto Ogre, the first person you encounter as shown in the video, you can pass through before the red fence closes after opening the treasure chest. You can comfortably deal with Don Gorr with 'Hyosai' Magic, If you are not confident on landing Critical. Your health and magic fully recovers after obtaining the 'Oni Army Orb.'
• Boss: Marcellus II - Same as Mt. Hiei but, the platform can make it weird to register critical hits. Don't forget that if Ako is still wearing Red Vest then you can't recover health or magic.
• Boss: Vegadonna - If she dodges your attacks when her health is below half, she will have clones, so ideally, you should beat her with two sets of 5 or 6 critical chain. If she climbs, you can knock her down immediately with Raisen Magic.
• Eiffel Tower is one of the hardest segement in the run due to time space traps.
• Electric Generator - If you have enough purple souls to transform then refer to the video cycle to get the timing. If you don't have all the purple souls, then use the Magic 'Kuga' and 'Chigo'.
• Boss: Demon Ranmaru II - If you do absorb in front of him, he will charge an attackthat you can counter with critical. Just keep in mind that he might do other occasional pattern.
• Nobunaga vs Jacques - Most of Nobunaga's attack has a grace that is almost 1 frame. Although, countering Nobunaga's deflect critical is the most reliable method to chain criticals. Switch to Raisen and force him deflect on your fifth hit.
• Nobunaga vs Samanouske - First phase is self-explantory. Second phase is the hardest fight in the game as it can ruin your run. When his health drops below 42%, he will enter the final phase. The goal is to beat him with two sets of Chain Critical. For the first set, you can chain up to 5 times, and for the second set, you can combine the first set with 10 reps. You can finish him off with either Rising Slash. Timing is usually late when you can't "critical"

VII. End Note

This should be a good crash course and there are are probably some difficult spots to understand. Make sure to check getting started section for a terms that you are unfamiliar with.

If you have any questions or suggestions for improvement, There is a server called 'Onimusha Speedrun Community', so use that.