Status effects in Onimusha: Way of the Sword cover both temporary stat boosts and harmful ailments that can affect Musashi during Combat System encounters. Whenever a stat is temporarily raised, or Musashi is suffering an ailment such as burning, an icon appears above the Health Gauge to indicate it.
Stat Boosts
Effect | What It Does |
|---|---|
Health Recovery (Continuous) | Health will recover continuously for a certain period of time. |
Stamina Recovery (Continuous) | Stamina will recover continuously for a certain period of time. |
Oni Power Recovery (Continuous) | Oni power will recover continuously for a certain period of time. |
Stamina Loss Disabled | Stamina will not deplete for a certain period of time. |
Blaze Gauge Accumulation Boost | Increases the accumulation rate of your Blaze Gauge for a certain period of time. |
Health Loss Down | Reduces the amount of physical damage taken for a certain period of time. |
Stamina Loss Down | Reduces the amount of stamina damage taken for a certain period of time. |
Malice Damage Down | Reduces the amount of damage dealt by Malice for a certain period of time. |
Action Input Time Extended | Temporarily extends the window to perform parries, deflections, Issen, grab reversal, Reflex Dodges, and Chain Issen. |
Apply Soul Extraction Effect | Temporarily allows you to extract souls while attacking. |
Soul Absorption Boost | Temporarily increases the effect of enemy souls absorbed. |
Attack Boost (Health) | Temporarily increases the damage dealt to an enemy’s health. |
Attack Boost (Stamina) | Temporarily increases the damage dealt to an enemy’s stamina. |
Burning Status Nullified | Temporarily prevents you from getting burned. |
Oil-soaked Status Nullified | Temporarily prevents you from becoming oil-soaked. |
Malice Damage Nullified | Temporarily prevents you from suffering Malice damage when affected by it. |
Ailments
Ailment | What It Does |
|---|---|
Burning | Musashi becomes temporarily engulfed by flames and takes continuous damage. |
Ablaze | Musashi becomes temporarily engulfed by an intense burst of flames and takes continuous damage, a more severe version of Burning. |
Oil-soaked | Musashi becomes temporarily oil-soaked; while in this state he is more susceptible to catching fire. |
Affected by Malice | A state in which Musashi takes damage inflicted by Malice. |
Stamina Recovery Pause | A state in which stamina cannot be recovered. |
Boosts That Pre-empt an Ailment
Three of the stat boosts exist specifically to head off an ailment before it starts rather than to recover from one already in effect: Burning Status Nullified blocks Burning outright, Oil-soaked Status Nullified blocks Oil-soaked, and Malice Damage Nullified blocks the damage that comes from being Affected by Malice. Picking one of these up mid-fight is a way to walk through a hazard that would otherwise force a detour.
Status Effects and the Parry Window
Action Input Time Extended connects the status layer directly to the core of Combat System: it widens the timing window for parries, deflections, Issen, grab reversal, Reflex Dodges, and Chain Issen all at once, rather than affecting a single technique. Picking one up ahead of a difficult exchange makes the entire defensive toolkit more forgiving for its duration.
Dealing with Burning
Burning gradually drains health for as long as it lasts. Evading repeatedly shortens its duration, giving a way to fight through it without items, while a Minor Miracle Cure item puts the flames out immediately and prevents Musashi from being reignited right away.
Practical Notes
Because Oil-soaked does no direct damage by itself but sets up Burning, it is worth treating any fight involving oil, or an enemy that applies it, as a fire fight in waiting; putting distance between Musashi and open flame while Oil-soaked is active is often safer than trying to shrug it off. Malice-related ailments, meanwhile, are tied to the same corrupting influence described elsewhere in the game's world.