Top Skills to Prioritize for Naoe in Assassin’s Creed Shadows

In *Assassin's Creed Shadows*, mastering the art of assassination with Naoe involves leveraging her stealth and strategic capabilities. While Naoe excels in the shadows, she's also adept at handling direct confrontations when prepared. To maximize her potential, here are the top skills to prioritize early on, focusing on skills up to Knowledge Rank 3, which you can achieve quickly by engaging with open-world activities in the initial regions.

Best Skills to Get First for Naoe in Assassin's Creed Shadows

Katana

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• Dodge Attack – Katana Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point)
• Melee Expert – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points)
• Counter Attack – Katana Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points)
• Eviscerate – Katana Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 5 Mastery Points)

These skills transform Naoe into a formidable defensive fighter, ready to counter aggressive enemies. If you're skilled at dodging and deflecting, these abilities will allow you to capitalize on your counters, deal increased damage, and finish fights with the powerful Eviscerate.

Kusarigama

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• Entanglement – Kusarigama Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point)
• Affliction Builder – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points)
• Big Catch – Kusarigama Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points)
• Multi-Target Expert – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 1/2/3 Mastery Points)
• Cyclone Blast – Kusarigama Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 7 Mastery Points)

These skills make Naoe a dominant force against both groups and individual targets. Entanglement enhances affliction buildup, enabling you to control even larger foes for extra damage. The other skills facilitate handling multiple enemies, keeping them at bay while delivering impactful attacks.

Tanto

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• Shadow Piercer – Tanto Ability (Knowledge Rank 1, 5 Mastery Points)
• Gap Seeker – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points)
• Backstab – Tanto Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points)
• Backstabber – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1/2/3 Mastery Points)
• Back Breaker – Tanto Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 3 Mastery Points)

These skills focus on amplifying the tanto's damage output, exploiting vulnerabilities in enemies. Even armored foes will dread your blade, as you can swiftly maneuver behind them for increased damage with your R2/RT attack.

Tools

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• Smoke Bomb – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1 Mastery Point)
• Larger Tool Bag I – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points)
• Shinobi Bell – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point)
• Enduring Haze – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points)
• Kunai Assassination Damage I – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points)
• Shuriken – Tools Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points)

These tools enable Naoe to manipulate guards effectively, creating opportunities to reach your target. Use Shuriken to disable alarm bells or trigger explosives, the Shinobi Bell to distract and lure enemies away, and Kunai for long-range assassinations. The Smoke Bomb is perfect for escaping or initiating a chain of assassinations.

Shinobi

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• Ascension Boost – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 2 Mastery Points)
• Vault – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point)
• Igan Roll – Shinobi Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 1 Mastery Point)
• Heighten Senses – Shinobi Ability (Knowledge Rank 3, 5 Mastery Points)

These skills enhance Naoe's stealth and mobility, allowing her to navigate undetected towards her objectives. Faster climbing, reduced fall damage, and the ability to slow time provide more room for error in crowded areas.

Assassin

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• Executioner – Global Passive (Knowledge Rank 1, 1/2/3 Mastery Points)
• Improved Ground Assassinate – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points)
• Double Assassinate – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points)
• Assassination Damage I – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 2, 3 Mastery Points)
• Reinforced Blade – Assassin Passive (Knowledge Rank 3, 4 Mastery Points)

When paired with a Tanto, these skills enhance Naoe's ability to eliminate targets swiftly with the Hidden Blade. Double assassinations and the capacity to take down larger foes are invaluable, but remain cautious as you'll encounter enemies with more health that may resist assassination until you further upgrade your skills.

With these prioritized skills, you'll be well on your way to becoming Japan's premier assassinating shinobi in *Assassin's Creed Shadows*. For additional guidance, be sure to explore resources available at The Escapist.