Use colour to choose a response
On the default layout, time L1 to parry. Normal and blue attacks permit parries; red attacks require evasion. Yellow attacks threaten to disarm you, so prioritise evasion while learning them.
The colour tells you which response is appropriate, not a universal moment to press. After spotting the glint, watch the weapon move. Do not assume every attack of one colour has the same wind-up.
Section sources: GameWith — 受け流しのコツとやり方 · Game8 — Combat Focuses on Dirty Dueling
Treat yellow attacks as a separate lesson
Do not answer a yellow warning as though it were blue. A timed offensive response is possible, but first creating distance keeps the learning task simpler if you do not understand that response yet.
You do not need to learn parries, evasion and disarm counters in one fight. Survive the yellow attack, review the relevant technique and training instructions, then practise its specific answer separately.
Section sources: Game8 — Combat Focuses on Dirty Dueling
A successful defense may not end the sequence
If you get hit immediately after defending, the issue may be reading the end of the enemy’s sequence rather than your original timing. Avoid treating one successful parry as permission for a long combo. Watch for another preparation movement.
Our suggested exercise is a short counter followed by observation. Extend it only after the same opening proves reliable. This guide does not promise a fixed number of safe hits or a universal window measured in seconds.
Check whether equipment changes the rules
Bounty Master Armor disables regular parries while strengthening perfect-parry play. If defense suddenly feels different after changing equipment, inspect its effects first.
Keep equipment and difficulty consistent while practising timing. Changing several conditions together makes it difficult to separate better execution from an equipment benefit. Once you understand the baseline, experiment deliberately.
Section sources: PlayStation Blog — Builds guide
Keep a small practice record
Record one failure cause: misread colour, late input, or an overlong counter. Each calls for a different adjustment.
- Attempt one: observe colours and weapon movement.
- Attempt two: use only a short counter after defending.
- Attempt three: compare whether the same mistake decreased.
- Note any equipment or difficulty change.