Unleashing the Power of Sakai Horse Armor in Ghost of Tsushima
The Sakai horse armor in Ghost of Tsushima is more than just a cosmetic upgrade; it significantly enhances your mounted combat capabilities. Primarily, equipping this armor bestows two key advantages: it increases the damage dealt by your horse charge by 50%, allowing you to plow through enemies with devastating force, and it provides a 10% chance to recover 3 resolve with each horse charge impact. This combination turns your horse into a powerful offensive tool, capable of dispatching brutes with a single hit, while also granting you crucial resources for healing and special abilities.
The Impact of Sakai Horse Armor
Enhanced Horse Charge
The most significant benefit of the Sakai horse armor is the massive increase to horse charge damage. This upgrade not only allows you to kill weaker enemies with a single charge, but also allows you to take down the heavy-hitting brutes that previously required multiple attacks. This capability transforms how you approach combat scenarios, allowing you to swiftly clear out entire groups of enemies while mounted and engage multiple targets with ease.
Resolve Recovery
The added 10% chance to recover 3 resolve per horse charge impact further enhances the horse’s role in combat. Resolve is a crucial resource used for healing as well as using powerful abilities, especially during difficult encounters. By actively using your horse and its enhanced charge, you can maintain a steady stream of resolve, giving you more opportunities to use healing and special combat abilities, making it easier to stay in the fight for extended periods of time.
The Aesthetic Advantage
Beyond its functional benefits, the Sakai horse armor provides a visually stunning upgrade to your horse. It transforms your mount into a formidable beast, projecting an image of strength and intimidation. This cosmetic upgrade adds to the overall experience, making your character’s journey all the more immersive and satisfying.
Acquiring and Customizing the Sakai Horse Armor
The Legacy of Kazumasa Sakai Mythic Tale
The Sakai horse armor isn’t available at the start of the game. Instead, players must acquire it by completing the “Legacy of Kazumasa Sakai” Mythic Tale, which is part of the Iki Island DLC. This involves a quest that delves into the history of Jin Sakai’s father, providing further context to Jin’s journey and motivations. It is a challenging but rewarding quest.
Unlocking Dyes and Customization
Once acquired, the Sakai horse armor can be further customized with dyes. New dyes become available by finding Sakai Banners spread across the Iki Island. Every six banners discovered unlocks a new dye option from a dedicated dyer, giving players further control over the aesthetic of their horse and allowing for a personal touch to this already unique piece of armor. The banner location can be found south of Nakajima Overlook.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Sakai Horse Armor
1. Does the Sakai horse armor prevent dismounting?
While the armor significantly enhances the horse’s charge damage and resolve recovery, it does not directly prevent dismounting. However, the armor’s damage boost can quickly eliminate threats that might cause you to be dismounted, effectively mitigating that risk indirectly.
2. Can the horse charge kill any enemy with the armor equipped?
Yes, with the Sakai horse armor, a single horse charge is capable of killing brutes, which previously would have required several attacks. However, armored enemies may still require more than one charge, though will take significantly more damage.
3. How does the resolve recovery with Sakai horse armor work?
The 10% chance to recover 3 resolve per horse charge impact means that each time you hit an enemy with a charge, there’s a 10% chance that you will recover 3 resolve points. This is not guaranteed with each hit, but happens relatively frequently with multiple impacts.
4. Where is the Sakai Banner location for dyes?
The Sakai Banner location, where you can find a dyer to unlock new dyes for your Sakai horse armor, is situated to the South near Nakajima Overlook on the Iki Island map.
5. Is the Sakai horse armor part of the base game or DLC?
The Sakai horse armor is exclusively part of the Iki Island DLC, and cannot be found in the base game.
6. What other armors are related to the Sakai Clan?
The Sakai Clan Armor is worn by Jin and provides enhancements to melee combat, health, and Standoff capabilities, but is not related to the Horse armor, other than in name.
7. Does the horse armor affect the horse’s speed or handling?
No, the Sakai horse armor does not alter the horse’s speed, agility, or handling in any way. It’s a purely combat-focused enhancement.
8. How does the horse’s armor interact with Ghost Stance?
The Sakai horse armor enhances mounted combat, but it doesn’t directly interact with the Ghost Stance. These are separate, unrelated systems. Ghost stance is linked to the Ghost Armor for Jin.
9. Can I customize my horse’s appearance beyond dyes?
Beyond dyes for the Sakai Horse armor, you cannot customize your horse’s appearance other than by selecting its color at the beginning of the game. The armor’s aesthetic effects are the main customization feature.
10. Are there other horse armors in the game?
No, the Sakai horse armor is the only horse armor available in Ghost of Tsushima and its DLC.
11. Does the armor’s damage affect other mounted attacks?
The damage increase applies specifically to the horse charge attack, not other forms of mounted combat. You must make contact by impacting an enemy directly using your horse’s momentum.
12. Is the Sakai horse armor the best horse armor?
Since it is the only horse armor in the game, it is technically the “best” and only option. However, its focus on damage and resolve makes it ideal for an aggressive, mounted combat style.
13. Can the resolve recovery chance be increased?
The resolve recovery chance is fixed at 10% and cannot be modified with any equipment or skills.
14. Is there any story significance to the horse armor?
Yes, the armor is tied to the “Legacy of Kazumasa Sakai” Mythic Tale, which delves into the history of Jin Sakai’s father. This creates a personal significance for Jin.
15. Is the horse you choose important?
No, the horse you choose has no impact on gameplay. All horses have the same speed and stats. Only their color is different. The only significant impact on horse gameplay comes from the Sakai Horse armor.