Moonlight Flutist Ki Damage Build
KusarigamaStacks Finishing Flair from the Moonlight Flutist 6-piece set with the Kusarigama's Winter Dawn skill for a global 50% Ki damage buff. Purity then makes targets take 50% more Ki damage, so a single rotation deletes a boss's Ki bar and opens permanent grapple windows that the Maeda Clan amplifies into one-shot territory. Effective from NG through Depths of the Underworld; transitions to Ninigi's Grace once Dream of the Nioh unlocks AA-rank Finishing Flair.
Damage
Triple-stacked Finishing Flair (set + scroll) plus Out of Ki Attack Bonus on grapples. One-shots winded bosses through Depths of the Underworld.
Survivability
Bosses cannot attack from a permanent winded state. Quick-change Scrolls cover the few hits that land. Effectively immortal once the rotation comes online.
Boss
Trivializes every boss NG through Depths. Ki bar deletes in one or two rotations, opening grapple windows that finish the fight before recovery animations complete.
Kusarigama
Chain-and-sickle weapon with the fastest light attacks in Nioh 2 and the largest pool of multi-hit active skills. Its skill tree contains Winter Dawn, a sheathed buff that grants a global 50% boost to Ki damage from every source (melee, ranged, magic, and soul cores), which is the foundation of this build's Ki-suppression loop.
The mandatory primary weapon. Its skill tree contains Winter Dawn, which is the only source of the 50% global Ki damage buff that powers every multiplier in this build. Forge any Kusarigama variant at the Blacksmith and Double Remodel it to add Constitution scaling alongside the native Dexterity scaling. Tempering for Imbued Purity removes the need to spam Purification Talisman every fight.
Alternatives
- Purity-Imbued Secondary Weapon (Flex)Wiki
How to Obtain
The cornerstone of the build and the only source of Finishing Flair before NG+ Dream of the Wise. The full 6-piece equip grants Finishing Flair A, which adds bonus melee damage against winded (out-of-Ki) enemies scaled off the sum of every Ki damage Special Effect on your loadout. Final blows and grapples receive roughly 1.5× the bonus damage, which is what enables the Maeda Clan grapple one-shots.
Alternatives
- Ninigi's Grace (7-Piece, Late Endgame Swap)Wiki
How to Obtain
Star-stat tempering target for the helmet slot. Out of Ki Attack Bonus rolls only on helmets and adds a flat damage multiplier against any enemy whose Ki bar is depleted, which is the exact window this build creates on every engagement. Stack it with Finishing Flair to magnify damage against winded targets twice over.
Optional Inheritable scroll that stacks a third source of Finishing Flair on top of the armor set. A B-rank scroll combined with Moonlight Flutist (A) reaches AA- effective Finishing Flair; combined with Ninigi's Grace (AA) it pushes past the soft cap into AAA- territory. Roll on a Scroll accessory and inherit it onto any slot via the Blacksmith.
How to Obtain
Phantom-type guardian spirit and the strongest Ki-damage spirit in the game. Provides a flat Melee Ki Damage +20% and Faster Ki Recovery (Amrita Absorption) once the secondary attunement threshold is met, both of which feed directly into the Finishing Flair calculation. The Yokai Shift drops a lightning field on the ground for continuous Ki damage during burst windows.
How to Obtain
Combat Strategy
- ▸Sheath the Kusarigama and activate Winter Dawn (Hold R1 + Circle) for the global +50% Ki damage buff before every engagement.
- ▸Confirm your Purity weapon has Imbued Purity tempered on it. If not, ready Purification Talismans from your inventory.
- ▸Equip four Quick-change Scrolls for boss fights as a safety net against unexpected hits during the first Ki-drain rotation.
- ▸Set Yumehami as the primary guardian spirit so the +20% Melee Ki Damage passive is active from the first hit.
- ▸Swap to the Purity weapon stance and close into melee range.
- ▸Open with a Strong Attack or fast multi-hit skill to apply Purity immediately. Purified enemies take +50% Ki damage on every subsequent hit.
- ▸Continue spamming Ki-heavy actives. Winter Dawn (+50% global) and Purity (+50% taken) stack multiplicatively, so the boss's Ki bar drops in one or two complete actions.
- ▸The moment the enemy goes winded, run in and grapple. The Maeda Clan's +100% Reduced Defense (Grapple) and Finishing Flair's 1.5× grapple multiplier compound into a one-shot window.
- ▸If the boss recovers Ki before the grapple lands, reapply Winter Dawn and repeat the rotation. The Ki bar will drop again before the boss finishes its recovery animation.
- ▸Activate Yumehami's Yokai Shift during long boss phases to drop a lightning terrain effect that continues building Ki damage even when you reposition.
- ▸Because Winter Dawn is a global buff, ranged options like Soul Cores and Onmyo Magic also deal massively boosted Ki damage. Use them to whittle a boss's Ki from a safe distance during charge-up animations.
- ▸Skip elemental weapons like Corruption or Lightning. Purity is mathematically superior here because the +50% Ki damage taken from Purified targets multiplies cleanly with Winter Dawn and Finishing Flair.
- ▸Helmets with the Out of Ki Attack Bonus Star stat add a third multiplier specifically inside the winded window. Pair the roll with Finishing Flair for compounded damage on the grapple follow-up.
Sources
Verified: 2026-05-14 · All content is original with full credit to original creators.