How to Defeat Bettomaru in Ghost of Tsushima

Ghost of Tsushima has numerous activities to complete throughout the journey, and boss fights are one of the most important among them. Most of these enemy interactions are annoying, with the bosses giving players a hard time taking them down. Otherwise, these fights are immensely straightforward to deal with. However, Jin rarely encounters an enemy in a friendly fight. Fortunately, the Bettomaru fight is one of these friendly fights to complete.

Players will encounter Bettomaru as part of a mythic tale and face him for a friendly fight. Even if he is not an aggressive enemy like others, defeating this enemy is tricky. So, if you got eliminated by him a few times, that’s understandable. In that case, let’s check out the proper strategies to fight the enemy.

Where to Find Bettomaru in Ghost of Tsushima?

Bettomaru is not a mandatory enemy to fight. Because he is part of a mythic tale, players can easily skip this fight without impacting the main story. However, skipping this fight will make players miss out on a combat skill called The Way of the Flame. That’s going to be a great loss for the players. 

Before going further and discussing the fighting process, it is time to check the location of the boss. Bettomaru will be found during the final mythic tale of Act 3, The Undying Flame. This mythic tale will begin once players make their way to Mt. Jogaku and reach the top of the mountain. On its top, Jin will locate a dojo in the middle of a snow-covered valley. 

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Apparently, the dojo seems abandoned, but soon Bettomaru will introduce himself and inform Jin that the ignited sword attacks that the Mongols are using have been taught to them by his ancestors. At this point, Jin will request Bettomaru to teach him combat ability so, as a samurai, he doesn’t fear the Mongols using this attack. 

Bettomaru will invite him for a friendly fight to teach him the ability. Thus, the combat begins. Though the combat is not against any powerful enemy, players still need to be careful during the fight as the Way of the Flame ability is dangerous and Bettomaru is going to use it throughout the battle.

How to Defeat Bettomaru in Ghost of Tsushima

Once the cutscene ends, players need to make their way to the round fighting area outside the dojo, and on one side you will find a rock that Bettomaru instructed you to pick up to initiate the fight. As both parties are ready for this fight, the enemy will start attacking Jin first. Even though the purpose of the fight is to teach Jin a combat skill, trust me, Bettomaru is going to hit hard. So, the initial strategy is to focus on defense. 

Sword attacks are the primary and only attacks of Bettomaru, but the problem is that often the boss ignites his sword and attacks Jin. Of course, he has a few attacks without using The Way of the Flame ability, but most of them are chain attacks, and their unblockable nature makes them tough to avoid. Even he has a multi-attack combo initiated by his quick two-handed stab. 

Watch out for the moves of the boss and perform dodge and parry, respectively. For the unblockable attacks, it is impossible to parry them. So, better you dodge these attacks. Jump to any side to avoid these attacks. If they land successfully, these attacks drain a chunk of your health. For the multi-attack combo, players need to dodge the first attack and then parry the coming attacks.

Among all Bettomaru attacks, the most fearsome one is the burning sword attack. Here, the enemy runs toward Jin with the burning sword, and if he successfully hits him with the sword, it not only deals damage but also burns players. This is an unblockable attack, so parrying is not an option here. Roll out of the way to avoid the sword touching your body.

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Initially, Jin needs to parry the attacks of the boss, and doing this a few times will help them stun the boss for a few seconds, opening a passage to land critical hits on him. After Jin deals a considerable amount of damage to the boss and blocks some of his ignited sword attacks, Bettomaru will prompt players to try igniting the sword using the rock they have picked up before the fight begins. After this instruction, the game will show the button that players should press to ignite their swords. For the PlayStation players, it is R1. Immediately after pressing the instructed button, Jin will have a fired-up katana, and the ability will be unlocked.

Well, the fight will continue after this, and players can now use this newly unlocked ability to deal damage to the enemy. This will be a great way to understand the power of The Way of the Flame ability. If you can land a few successful hits using this ability, Bettomaru will be defeated.

As soon as the fight ends, a cutscene will show Jin and Bettomaru interacting with each other, where Bettomaru reminds Jin that The Way of the Flame is not for friendly enemies. So, Jin should keep it for challenging and aggressive Mongols. After exchanging a few words, the interaction will end, and Jin will come out of the battle arena to start his journey toward his next destination.

That’s everything players need to know about how to beat Bettomaru in Ghost of Tsushima. This fight is much easier and more straightforward if you are aware of the burning sword attack of the boss. This fight won’t take a long time if players don’t lose a lot of health during the fight. Even if you do, make sure you have enough Resolves in stock to revive your HP. Fighting with low health is not at all recommended.

The next fight you are curious about is probably Khotun Khan. He is challenging, but check out our guide for a complete walkthrough of the fighting process. Additionally, for any queries or confusion, go through our Ghost of Tsushima guides and news pieces to stay updated.