Welcome to Ezo, a land packed with danger, secrets, and more loot than you’ll know what to do with! Whether you’re here for revenge, glory, or just to flex your skills, you’ll need every edge you can get early to survive. From snagging rare armor to unlocking lifesaving charms, this guide will ensure that Atsu’s journey starts off right. Here are 13 things you need to do first in Ghost of Yotei.
13 Things to Do First in Ghost of Yotei
Clear Out the Old Inn
Your first stop should be the Old Inn quest at Yotei’s Shadow Inn. It’s easy to find, and completing it sets the foundation for everything ahead. This quest unlocks the bow merchant, armorer, cartographer, and bounty board, and grants you Ornyo’s Howl – a fear-inducing ability. Do this before diving into Atsu’s revenge journey.
While we know that the vast open world is incredibly inviting, we encourage you to follow the main quest at least to this point!
All Along the Watchtower
Once in the Yotei Grasslands, head to the Crow’s Nest Watchtower near Nupur River. Using your spyglass here reveals points of interest: pillars, duel trees, enemy camps, and even Hot Springs that increase max health.
It’s one of the fastest ways to uncover the map and prioritize exploration.
Save Taro the Scavenger
North of the Old Inn, you’ll find Taro, a boy surrounded by hostile Ronin. Rescue him, and he becomes your personal merchant – selling weapon kits, dyes, charms, and even armor.
Early on, we recommend buying the Charm of Last Chance, which automatically triggers heal technique when suffering lethal damage. Taro later appears in your Wolf Pack tab and brings scavenged loot from defeated enemies.
Buy Maps to Find Altars of Reflection
Altars of Reflection unlock combat and stealth skills, but they’re scattered everywhere with very little indication as to where to find them.
The quickest way to scope them out is by purchasing Traveler’s Maps from Isaburo the cartographer, who you’ll first meet at Yotei’s Shadow Inn.
Pro Tip: If you’re short on coin, buy a map, screenshot the solution, then reload a prior save – you’ll keep the knowledge without losing money, as you don’t need to have the map to interact with the Altar.
Stack Coin with Bounties
After finishing the Old Inn quest, the bounty board opens up. Bounties are a fast way to earn coin – vital for armor upgrades and materials – and sometimes will even reward you with your target’s mask as proof of the kill. You can also select your own bounty, which reduces notoriety and restores Spirit.
As you progress, bounty details become more elaborate in their descriptions and how they’re painted, giving Atsu more reason to smirk after each job well done. While bounties don’t exactly get marked on the map, their location does get a gold border around it, highlighting the rough location in which they’ll be hiding.
Gamble for Charms
Gambling unlocks early after visiting the Huranui’s Rest Inn and can be a risky but rewarding way to earn coin. Winning a game gives you the option to play again for a charm, which provides powerful buffs for combat and exploration. A few wins can give Atsu a real edge in the early game.
Find the Charm of Kanayago
If you’re serious about upgrading weapons and armor quickly, seek out the Charm of Kanayago. This charm boosts the amount of metals and black powder collected while scavenging – core materials for gear upgrades.
You’ll find it at the Fall’s Rest Shrine, southeast of the Yotei Grasslands and just northeast of Shirahige Falls. The climb is long, but it pays off in spades.
On that same note, it’s also worth finding the Charm of Bountiful Harvest. This one increases the amount of wood, flowers, and plants gained when collecting them, which does wonders if you’re trying to upgrade your bow and buy dyes for your armor. The charm is located south of the Shikotsu Woods, also in the Yotei Grasslands, so you can find it early as well.
Seek Out the Armor of the Undying
The Armor of the Undying is one of the best armor sets to excel in combat, and you can snag it early. Start the quest by visiting Ugetsu the Storyteller, who is next to the aftermath of a bear attack near the Old Inn.
He’ll tell the tale of the Undying Samurai and task you with collecting four chimes, and using the wind to find them. Place the chimes at the Undying Samurai’s Lair (west of the Rumoi River along the coast) to summon him.
link=Defeat him in a duel and claim the Armor of the Undying, which boosts Perfect Parry/Dodge windows, restores health on stagger, and can even increase stagger damage during focus attacks when weapon aligned.
The Way of the Yari
Atsu will wield a variety of weapons, but we recommend setting your sights on learning the Yari spear as soon as possible. The yari is an essential weapon that guards well against sickles and other spears. Many low-level enemies use them, and pairing the yari with the Armor of the Undying makes combat smoother and deadlier. It also has a Typhoon Kick attack that pushes enemies away when they surround and try to disarm you.
To discover and learn the Yari, you have to first complete “The Way of the Yari” quest. To do so, seek out the Yari Master who can be found on a small island, west of the coast in Ishikari Plain, and challenge him to a duel.
He will agree with your stance on revenge and offer to help. Learn the yari by catching some fish, painting with your wrist, then fighting alongside the Yari Master, and it’s yours.
Give Him a Name
Finally, to choose and name your horse, complete the “Old Trails” tale quest at the Old Stables, which is northwest of Windy Meadow and east of Shikotsu Woods. You’ll be able to pick a new steed and give it a proper name.
Don’t worry – if you’re already attached to your starter horse, you can choose him again and still give him a name.
Uncover These Resource Enhancing Charms
The Charm of Kanayago is a very useful, early-game Charm that doubles the amount of Common and Rare Metals you pick up, which are used to purchase upgrades for your Armor and Melee Weapon. So, as you can imagine, unlocking the Charm of Kanayago as soon as possible will make gathering resources early on much easier. You can find the Charm at the Fall’s Rest Shrine in the southeastern area of the Yotei Grasslands, just northeast of Shirahige Falls.
If you’re wanting to increase even more resources, you may also want to get your hands on the Charm of Bountiful Harvest, which you can find on the northeastern corner of the lake in Shikotsu Woods of the Yotei Grasslands. This Charm doubles the amount of wood, flowers and plants gathered, which is very handy for upgrading your Bows and their carrying capacity, crafting arrows at campsites, and affording new Outfit Dyes.
Which Charm you decide to equip is totally up to you, but having the option to switch freely will be invaluable when first starting out.
Consider These Skills First
One of the first skills we recommend unlocking is Perfect Parry, which you’ll find under Onryo > Attacks. Now, while it may be related to parrying, it does allow you to quickly counterattack enemies if you nail the timing of a Parry, letting you go on the offensive on a specific target. Perfect Parry is especially helpful in the early game because it inflicts high stagger on any target, meaning with a bit of patience you can go on the offensive even if you don’t have the specific weapon to counter an enemy type just yet, such as Spearmen or Sickle enemies.
Additionally, if you’re a fan of the Odachi weapon, we recommend getting the Indomitable Counter move as soon as possible. This skill upgrades the Bulwark Stance technique (the one where you hold down and release Triangle to stun enemies) into a Perfect Counter move. This means that if you release Triangle with Parry-like timing, Atsu can Perfect Counter any attack, including the red glint Heavy Attacks, making the Odachi much more viable in combat.
Prioritize Trips to the Weapon Merchants
When you first arrive in a new area, like Tokachi Range or Ishikari Plain, one of the first things we recommend doing is to make a beeline to the local weapon Senseis, as they will expand Atsu’s arsenal so that she’s more capable in combat. This is especially true when visiting Ishikari Plain, as Sickle enemies can be very tough to handle without a Yari.
With that said, do try and avoid the Ishikari Plain region until you’ve gotten your hands on a fair few techniques first, and strengthened Atsu’s weapons. The enemies here can be very technical, and heavily-armored, making them especially difficult in the first 10 hours of the game.
