Stellar Blade may be getting a lot of attention based on its stellar combat system. But that does not mean its main narrative takes a backseat. The game delivers several immersive, intuitive narrative beats that can change the way its players interpret its complex story.

In a late-game reveal that calls back to the game’s prologue, Eve finds herself fighting the very first person who accompanied her to Earth – her friend and commanding officer, Tachy. While the player witnesses Tachy being defeated by Naytibas, Eve does not encounter her until later in the story. And at this point, a fight between mentor and pupil seems inevitable.

The Student Must Surpass the Master

Throughout Stellar Blade’s story, Tachy does crop up a few times, showing players that things are not as they seem with Eve’s former CO.

However, the game makes it very clear that Tachy is somehow under the influence of the Naytibas and that things are certain to take an ugly turn when she next gets a moment with Eve.

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It turns out that Tachy has been turned into one of the Alpha Naytibas, making her a significant threat to Eve and the rest of humanity. With her newfound status among the Naytibas, she gains a lot of new abilities and powers that can – and must – give Eve a few reasons to think twice about facing her.

The showdown with Tachy finally takes place in the final arc of Stellar Blade’s narrative, when Eve finds herself exploring Matrix 11 during the Contaminated Water Purification story mission.

Tachy’s skills are obvious from the very first moments of Stellar Blade’s story. Her time with the Naytibas has only added to that arsenal of attacks. Similar to fighting against other hunters in Bloodborne, she shares many of her skills with Eve, such as the ability to parry and dodge attacks while being very nimble on her feet.

How to Defeat Tachy in Stellar Blade

Unlike other Naytibas like the Stalker, Tachy is strategic and cautious, relying on finesse and skill over brute force. That being said, many of her attacks can deal a lot of damage very quickly if they are not dealt with consistently and effectively.

Many of Tachy’s attacks can be parried, and with enough perfect parries, Eve can consistently unleash her Beta Skills for a lot of damage, keeping Tachy at a disadvantage while also building up to Retribution Attacks.

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Some good defensive options include the Reflex-Type Exospine, which makes perfect dodging and parrying easier while adding some shield regeneration to the mix, or the Beta Trance-Type Exospine, which improves Beta Gauge Recovery and Beta Skill Damage.

While this approach may seem too defensive at first, you will soon find that Tachy leaves very little room for an all-out attack. Mashing the square button won’t get Eve very far against an opponent like this.

That’s because Tachy has a variety of slashes and thrusts from her Tachyon Blade at close range. With a wide range of animations and movements, it can take a while to nail down your parry timing. But this is the first step toward ensuring that the fight always remains under your control.

She slashes at Eve up to five times per combo at the beginning of the fight, adding in a sixth slash after she loses about half her health.

At range, Tachy swings her blade to send out waves of Tachyon energy at Eve. These are easily avoided by moving away from them. Watch out for a potential rush attack after the third wave, which you can perfectly dodge to build up your Beta Gauge.

Pay special attention to opportunities to blink through attacks or repulse them to build up your Burst Skills. These can come in handy when Tachy does a teleport move where she could either glow yellow before sending out a shockwave or glow blue when she tries to grab you. Dodge the shockwave, but blink through the grab move to get some damage in.

Tachy can also launch counterattacks that can be repulsed. Just watch out for the purple glow on Tachy and time your backward dodge with the purple glow on your sword.

A general rule of thumb to follow is to limit your attacks to three at a time, as Tachy is almost certain to launch an attack of her own after your third hit. Being flexible between offense and defense can make this thrilling encounter easier to handle. And perhaps even enjoy!

The most important reward you get from this fight is the Tachyon Blade. Speak to Lily back at Xion to unlock a whole new Skill Tree for Eve. It comes with some serious firepower!

If you’re looking for help with more bosses – we found the Juggernaut quite difficult – we have a lot of Stellar Blade guides that could help. Check them out to make Eve the Naytibas’ worst fear in this new action title.