There are a lot of fearsome enemies in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, but one of the most intimidating is Juzou the Drunkard. A mountain of a man, this bandit leader wields a massive sword and can deal heavy poison damage if you’re not careful. Thankfully, he’s a bit of a pushover if you know how to fight him and his horde of bandits.
Before the fight even begins, sneak your way to the left side of the manor Juzou and his buddies are hanging out front of. You’ll be able to silently eliminate two of his guards before the fight even begins. After taking out these foes, follow the hall towards Juzou and stealth kill one of the shielded guards hanging by Juzou.
Now rush across the field and strike down the archer to your left before retreating back into the manor. You can now run through the building, popping out to quickly deal with one of his men before retreating. It’s easy to outrun Juzou, just be cautious of getting too close as he deals a ton of damage.
Once all of his men are dispatched run to the shoreline directly adjacent to where he was initially sitting. Speak to the man there and we will agree to join you in battle. This turns the fight against the bandit leader into a 2v1, allowing you to use your new friend to draw the boss’ aggro. Use him as bait and stay behind Juzou, striking his backside whenever he’s attacking the other person.
If he dies and Juzou turns his focus on you, keep your distance and wait for these specific attacks to go in and slash at him:
- Two Downward Slashes: Juzou will strike the ground twice with his sword in a vertical direction. You can dodge this by sidestepping him and slashing at his side after the second strike.
- Drinking/Coating His Sword: Juzou will occasionally stop in the middle of battle to drink his poison or coat his sword in the toxin. He is very vulnerable during this, so get behind him and start slashing away. As soon as he finishes the animation, back off and wait for his next attack.
- Spews Poison: Finally, when Juzou leans forward to blow a cloud of poison, you can easily dodge this and get close to him. He is super easy to hit hear, so stack on the damage before running away when he’s done.
Do not try to challenge his Perilous attacks as they will deal a significant amount of damage if they connect. Instead, keep your distance and keep your guard up if Juzou swings his blade at you. He has some decent range, so just be defensive until Juzou exposes himself via the attacks listed above.
This is a fairly easy fight and you should be able to land a death blow before your A.I. buddy falls. Just be patient and use the openings he provides to kill this big bastard.