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The First Berserker: Khazanfeatures a variety of challenging bosses that can give you a tough time if you dare to underestimate them. You will have to use everything in your arsenal to defeat these bosses, and there’s nothing quite like the accomplishment you feel after overcoming them.
Shactuka is the ninth main story boss in the game, and while it hits very hard, it’s pretty easy to avoid most of its attacks. Some of its attacks can be extremely delayed, making them difficult to counter, but if you stay patient, you’ll be able to overcome them with ease.
Preparations For The Shactuka Boss Battle
Shacktuka is the final boss of theInconceivable Truth mission, and it caninflict the Plague status effectwith ease on Khazan, so you should have a fewPlague Cleanse Potionsin your inventory.
If you don’t have any Plague Cleanse Potions, you may go to the blacksmith in the Crevice to craft some after you’ve obtained the Plague Disruption Parchment.
Other than the Plague Cleanse Potions, there’s nothing that you specifically need for this boss fight.Any weapon type works fine,provided that you’veequipped the one with the highest damage.
For armor, you’re able to equipat least two pieces of the Nomad armorset to get thatextra Plague resistancefor maximum protection against the status effect.
ThePlague status effect causes Khazan to freeze in placeand cough blood if he runs out of stamina while being inflicted by it, and youcan’t afford to have that happenin this boss battle.
How To Defeat Shactuka
Shactukaisn’t that much of a threat compared to the other bossesyou’ve faced so far. Itsattacks are slowbut candeal a ton of damage.
The boss caninflict the Plague status effect with any attack that utilizes its mouth or its arm, which turns pink in the middle of the battle when Shactuka coats it in a Plague-inflicting substance for a limited duration.
While it is recommended that youblock most of its attacks,whenever it brings out itsPlague Arm,you should try tododge it as much as possible, because simply blocking any attack from it will cause the Plague status effect to build up on you.
Shactuka also likes to jump a lot around the arena, but you don’t have to follow it. Just wait for it to come to you or attack you. The boss recovers very slowly on certain attacks, giving you enough time to deal enough damage.
5-Hit Combo
Shactuka willattack Khazan with each arm several times,and finish it with an attack where itbrings together both of its handsand slams the ground. The perfect way to deal with this attack is toBrink Parry each hit, dodge the final attack, and retaliate.
IfShactuka’s arm is glowing pink, you will have tododge every hitinstead, because blocking it will fill up the Plague gauge.Dodging and then attacking after the final hitgives you enough time toland more attacks with more stamina to sparecompared to simply guarding against it.
Backfoot Kick
The boss willjump ahead of Khazan, turning its back on you. It will thenunleash a powerful kick with both of its legs. All you have to do against this attack is toblock it.Even if you run out of stamina, the boss will not attack you afterward before you’re able to recover.
While you can also avoid this attack bydodging, it’s simply too risky, and there’s not much room to attack the boss in return after a perfect dodge.
Backturn Arm Swing
The boss will oftenuse this attack after the Backfoot Kick.It slowly turns to face you while launchinga quick attack with one of its hands.
You have toavoid this attack at all costs,whether by blocking or by dodging because after this attack,the boss will fall to the groundand will takea lot of time to recover.
The best way toattack after avoiding this moveis to simply run in anddo a charged sprint Potent Blow. The attack will land on its back, which will deal additional damage to it.
Jumping Swing
Shactuka willjump into the air and land a delayed swing.Keep holding back, and you’ll be able toblock this attack. The boss will jump to the back after landing this attack, andit will immediately perform another attack, so you’ll have to be ready for it.
Don’t chase the boss after this attack,wait for it to do another attack, because most of the follow-ups that the boss usually uses after this attack are very slow to recover, and you’re able to get your turn then.
Backturn Twin Arm Swing
The animation of this attack isvery similar to the Backturn Arm Swing, but Shactuka attacks withboth of its armsthis time. After executing this attack,the boss will lay flat on the ground for a while, and you’re able to approach it to deal a ton of damage.
Make sure youaim for its facebecause the boss takes increased damage to it.
One Arm Swing Into Dive Attack
The bossattacks the groundwith one of its arms andthen immediately jumps back to the distance, only to dive at you shortly after with its face in the front. Make sure youblock this attack or dodge itbecause its recovery is also very slow.
Asthe boss lies on the ground after executing this attack, ensure to get the most out of this opportunity bydoing as many attacks as possibleuntil the boss stands back up.
Triple Bite Combo
Shactuka willbite at you thrice with its plague-inflicting mouth, and then, after a short delay, it will finish the combo with a final attack with its mouth. You want tododge each hit of this attackbecause blocking it will cause you to build up the Plague status effect.
TheDual Wield users have an advantage while dealing with this attackbecause you can do aswift attack into the whirlwind combo,and you’ll automatically avoid the final attack. However, after finishing up the attack, the boss will lie on the ground for a while, so you can alsouse that opportunity to deal damage to it.
Grab Attack
After certain attacks where Shactuka jumps back to do another attack, itmay choose to do a grab attack with its mouth. You’ll hearan audio cuebefore the grab attack and that’s your signal to press dodge.
Bite The Hand
After the boss haslost at least a quarter of its HP, it will often bite its left hand, and it will turn pink,inflicting the Plague status effectwith each hit.This attack is unblockable, so you’ll have to use a counterattack to deal with it.
The attack is very delayed, so you’ll have to be very patient andonly press the counterattack button when you see that the arm is about to hit you.
Scratching Hand
The boss willscratch the ground with its handand then do a swinging attack with its other arm. If the boss has lost at least a quarter of its HP, then it willuse the scratch attack twicebefore unleashing the swing attack.
Keep holding the block button until you’ve blocked the swing attack.Dodging it is riskybecause of the threat of the second scratch.
Charging Claw
The boss will dig its hand into the ground and will charge at you. Shactuka often uses this attackwhen there’s a lot of distance between itself and Khazan.
It is an unblockable attack, butcounterattacking is very challengingdue to the strike being very delayed. But, you can avoid this attack much more easilyby dodging to the side.
Pink Hand Thrust
While its left hand is already pink, the boss will bite it once again,only to throw a quick thrust attack at you. You can easily predict this attack and hit the dodge button at the appropriate time to avoid it.
Keep making use of the opportunities this boss gives youafter avoiding each attack successfully, and you’ll be able to bring it down easily.
Furthermore, after you’ve staggered the boss, make sure to position yourself quickly in front of its face, because its face is the only place where you’ll be able to launch a Brutal Attack.
After you’ve defeated the boss, you’ll receivea shocking revelation from Yulian, who you’ve just managed to save. The rewards for defeating the boss are often randomized, butyou may receive a Beast’s Jawbone, which is required to craft the Beastslayer set and weapon,alongside receiving a Beastslayer equipment piece.
