Nioh 3 Demon of Pride Boss Guide

The Demon of Pride looms as a mirror you must shatter-level by level, misdirection by misdirection, until your own arrogance becomes its downfall.

Demon of Pride location

The Demon of Pride can be found in the later stages of the main storyline, deep within the corrupted shrine of Mount Ibuki. Reaching the arena requires clearing several powerful Yokai and avoiding environmental hazards filled with dark energy. The boss chamber lies beyond a massive torii gate, marked by crimson light and swirling Yokai mist, signaling the presence of one of the game’s most intimidating foes.

This secret boss is available as soon as you’ve defeated the Great Tengu boss during “The Age of Clans,” the first mission in the Heian period. This will grant you a new Guardian Spirit, the Kurama Tengu, which you can then use to traverse the spirit vein that leads to the Demon of Pride.

The Demon of Pride is back in the Warring States period however, in the Iinoya region. At the far east side of this region, you’ll find the Sengan Waterfall shrine, which is just south of the aforementioned spirit vein. Climb up to the base of the waterfall and speak to the ghostly apparition to begin the Demon of Pride boss fight.

Demon of Pride strengths and weaknesses

Demon of Pride strengths and weaknesses

Pride is strongest when the boss relies on flashy, multi-hit combos and baitable openings. Its weaknesses show up after it overextends, exposing a brief recoverable window where you can punish with fast counters or precise stagger attacks. Maintain spacing to dodge its rampant overhead slashes, then capitalize on its momentary arrogance with rapid mobility, exploiting its slower recovery on heavy moves. Healing and stamina management matter; force it into risky aggression and wear it down with sustained, disciplined hits.

The Demon of Pride has a number of different water-based ranged attacks, which means that if you can learn its moves and evade/deflect them consistently (more on that below), you’ll be better served by sticking close to the boss. Any equipment you have with water resistance is worth running to help protect against these.

On the other hand, the Demon of Pride is weak to electricity, so weapons and ninjutsu that deal electricity damage are a boon. The boss becomes more aggressive during the second half of the fight too, so stay on your toes and if possible, save your Living Artifact for this stage because you can deal more damage, have unlimited Ki, and you’re invulnerable.

Demon of Pride moveset

The Demon of Pride moves in a brazen, showy tempo, flaunting fast, vertical sweeps and confidence-boosting bursts that punish overextension; stay patient, watch for its taunting tells, stagger its bold openings, and punish with precise, backstep-then-counter combos to whittle its posture while keeping your guard high.

The attack with the most devastating potential the Demon of Pride will cast is where it sends out an unpredictable, homing water bubble. It zigzags through the air and requires precise timing to dodge, but if you have a ranged attack, you can destroy it in midair. If not, it deals a significant amount of damage in one hit. You should also watch out for when it summons up to five water bubbles above its head, which will rest there until they’re periodically sent out towards you. These don’t zigzag, so they’re more predictable, but they’ll still hurt if they connect with you.

It also has a couple of different burst attacks, which are obviously preventable with Burst Break, but using the Style Shift Burst Break technique isn’t recommended because the timing can be frustrating. As a result, you should rely a little more on Guardian Spirit Burst Break, as that can be executed at any point during the charging window, and simultaneously deals damage to the boss. One particularly painful burst attack is when it arches its back and zooms across the floor towards you, which requires quick reflexes to evade or Burst Break.

Up close, the Demon of Pride has a few different melee attacks, including various sweeps with its arms that drag along the floor. One chain of these it will sometimes perform is a few rapid swings in quick succession that you don’t want to commit too quickly to interrupting. Wait until the full sequence has finished because at the end, it may summon a huge water bubble that it forces into the ground, causing a shockwave. It also has a stomp attack that is easily avoided with a quick evade.

Best weapon setups for Demon of Pride fight Nioh 3

For Demon of Pride, fast/agile weapons that let you stay on its side or back and quickly capitalize on short openings work best.

Top weapon choices

• Dual Ninja Swords (Ninja style): Extremely fast, great for dodging between attacks, and very good at shredding Ki so you can force knockdowns and punish from behind.

• Dual Swords (Samurai style): Similar mobility and multi-hit strings; good if you’re more Samurai-focused but still want a hit-and-run, back-stab oriented style.

• Spear: Safe mid-range pokes, lets you punish whiffs and bubble-attack recoveries without getting too close, and works well in a more defensive/block-heavy approach.

• Switchglaive / Tonfa: Both are high-DPS options that maintain pressure while giving reactive tools to punish openings; they rate near the top overall in weapon tier lists for bosses.​​

Quick comparison

How to set them up for this fight

• Dual Ninja Swords / Dual Swords

  • Stack Ki damage and close-combat bonuses if you can.

  • Focus on low/mid stance for fast strings, then heavy attacks from behind once its Ki breaks.

• Spear

  • Prioritize Ki management and Martial Arts that give strong thrusts or quick follow-ups (e.g., moves that turn Ki pulses into extra pokes).

  • Play around blocking, then counter with mid-range thrusts when Demon of Pride finishes a combo.

• Switchglaive / Tonfa

  • Aim for martial arts that keep you close and let you quickly disengage after a short combo.

  • Use them when you’ve memorized its patterns enough to stay in safely and maintain DPS.​​

If you tell me your current build (Samurai/Ninja, stats, and what weapons you’ve already leveled), I can suggest a specific stance, skills, and a simple 2-3 move combo loop tailored for this fight.

Best armor sets for Demon of Pride in Nioh 3

For Demon of Pride, prioritize mobility, water resistance, and Ki pressure; you generally want light-to-medium sets that let you dodge bubbles and punish safely rather than full heavy tanking.

Strong overall set types

• Light / agile sets

  • Any ninja or light-samurai style set that boosts evasion, Ki recovery, or damage from behind works very well, because Demon of Pride has many punishable recovery windows if you can reposition quickly.

  • Examples from common build resources include fast sets like Shadow Ninja-style or other “ghost/assassin” type sets that emphasize agility, Ninjutsu power, and Ki regen.

• Balanced samurai sets

  • Mid-weight samurai sets that give both solid defense and offensive bonuses (melee damage, Ki damage, or stance-specific buffs) are ideal if you’re still learning patterns and want some forgiveness on mistakes.

  • Look for set bonuses such as “Guard Ki Consumption ↓”, “Damage Taken ↓”, “Melee Damage (Unscathed)”, or “Defense Bonus (Heart/Constitution)”.

• Element- and yokai-oriented sets

  • Sets that boost Lightning damage or Ki damage help exploit Demon of Pride’s susceptibility to being pressured and staggered by sustained offense.

  • Yokai-oriented sets that increase Yokai weapon damage or give Life Drain from elemental hits can make the fight safer by rewarding every successful burst or elemental punish.

Example armor directions

These are archetypes you can aim for with whatever pieces you actually have:

• Agile “Ninja” setup

  • Use a light or ninja set with bonuses to Ninjutsu, Ki regen, and evasion, then pair it with dual swords/tonfa for fast Ki break and frequent back attacks.

  • The goal is to dodge bubbles and big swings, drain Ki, then unload from behind while your armor keeps you fast and hard to hit.

• Balanced “Samurai” setup

  • Choose a medium samurai set that boosts both offense and defense and preferably gives reduced Damage Taken or Guard Ki Consumption.

  • This works well with spear, katana, or switchglaive, letting you block some strings and still roll out quickly from bubble patterns.

• Tanky / defensive setup

  • If you struggle to survive mechanics, a high-defense or “Defender/Warlord-style” heavy set with strong elemental resistances can give you extra room for error.

  • You’ll be slower, so you must learn attack telegraphs well, but you’ll take less damage from stray bubbles and chip while guarding.

Practical stat and bonus priorities

When choosing among the sets and pieces you actually own, try to prioritize:

• Water or general elemental resistance, to blunt its main damage type.

• Ki recovery and Guard Ki Consumption ↓, so you can block or dodge more often during long strings.

• Melee Damage, Ki Damage, or damage from behind, since most of your safe hits will be on its side/back after it whiffs or recovers.

If you tell me your current level, build focus (Samurai vs Ninja vs Onmyo), and what armor sets or named pieces you already have, I can suggest a specific 4-7-piece combination and what stats to prioritize on each slot for this fight.