The land of Sekiro is full of strange creatures, and one of those creatures is Headless. As its name suggests, these pale-bodied creatures have no head and appear only wearing a fundoshi. Most of their attacks are through the purple blade they wield.
Battles with this mini-boss are optional but recommended since they net you some of the best loot in the game. Fighting against the Headless may appear easy until you discover that a regular blade does not affect this creature. You need other items like Divine Confetti equipped on you that Headless is vulnerable against.
Where Is Headless Located?
In the game Sekiro, there are five encounters with Headless in different locations, all mentioned below:
Ashina Outskirts
From the “Outskirts Wall – Stairway” sculptor’s idol, head straight to the arena where you have battled Chained Ogre previously in the game. Go through the building and move to the right on top of the building, where you can cross by grappling to the ledge. Head straight, and you will find a small house with a cliff on its left leading to a tree branch. Grapple there and face the ridge again to jump to the ledge and shimmy across it. Once you do, you’ll find a cave where the Headless waits for you, head in after equipping the necessary weapons.
Ashina Depths
Start from “Ashina Depths – Hidden Forest” sculptor’s idol, and move down the cliff with your grappling hooks. Head towards the left corner of the forest, and you’ll find Headless standing there.
Note: It is recommended that before you take on Headless, clear the way of mist and spirits by defeating the boss, Mist Noble. The headless will stay there for an encounter later on.
Sunken Valley
To get to the next Headless, travel to the “Sunken Valley – Under-Shrine Valley” sculptor’s idol. You have to turn around from the idol and grapple across the gaps where the two riflemen stand. Then, move forward, jump across another opening, hug a wall, and shimmy through the ledge. You will encounter three phantoms you can run past and dive into nearby water. Follow the cave to the water’s surface, and you’ll see Headless waiting there.
Note: You need Mibu Breathing Techniques to reach this boss, acquired after defeating the Corrupted Monk.
Ashina Castle
This encounter is a different one since the battle is held underwater. From the “Ashina Castle – Old Grave” idol, head into the lake near the Lookout Tower and dive deep to find the boss.
Fountainhead Palace
Travel to the “Fountainhead Palace – Flower Viewing Stage” sculptor’s idol to enter the Great Carp’s lake. At the bottom, beside the remnants of a giant fish, you’ll find the boss’s apparition waiting for you. The boss will be waiting near the ghost, but there is enough distance between them to give you time to deal with the apparition before taking on the actual boss.
What Items Do You Need to Bring for Fighting Headless?
The following items are recommended since they perfectly align with the Headless’s weaknesses.
- Divine Confetti: You must always carry this because the regular slashes from your blade will not affect the boss; the divine confetti-empowered sword will make your fight much more straightforward. You can get an unlimited supply from the trader in Dilapidated Temple.
- Pacifying Agent: The boss’s presence affects your terror status, and once it fills, you’ll suffer an instant death, so it is highly recommended to bring it along as it helps remove terror status.
- Mottled Purple Gourd: Like the pacifying agent, it also helps control the terror status.
- Ako’s Sugar: This gives extra vitality and posture, but replacing it with Ako’s Spiritfall is recommended once you have defeated the Headless in Ashina Outskirts.
- Malcontent: This item aids you in stunning the boss up to three times, creating an opening to deal with some free hits.
How to Beat Headless?
Strategy for On-Land Headless
The Headless found on land test the player’s patience since they have two health bars and require two death blows to defeat.
Before you head into the battle, sprinkle the divine confetti and Ako’s sugar so you can take a few hits as soon as the fight starts. Its highly telegraphed attacks help you easily avoid them. For example, if he starts slashing, you need to get back until it completes its combo, or if it disappears, turn around because it will spawn right behind you.
The boss is programmed only to hit you from the front, so if you stay behind its back, it will turn around, and when the mist appears, the boss turns around a bit slowly. You can use these two facts to your advantage by constantly remaining behind its back and slashing with a confetti-sprinkled blade. Make sure you sprint to its back after every slash rather than walking, or it might attack you, and even a minor attack can take a massive chunk off your health bar.
Once the mist disappears, this strategy won’t work because its speed for turning around will increase. Maintain your distance until the fog appears, and use divine confetti or healing gourd if necessary. This strategy does not utilize your pacifying agent because there is no terror build-up since you don’t get attacked but always keep some ready to use as you don’t know when things can go wrong.
Strategy for Underwater Headless
The Headless found at the bottom of the lakes only have one health bar and require one death blow rather than two. Unfortunately, the items cannot be used underwater, but their effects will last in the water if you use them right before diving in. Use a pacifying agent and divine confetti for these as well. Stay behind the boss and deal with a few slashes at a time. The key is not to get greedy with the attack, as the mist has no effect underwater, and the headless will be at its standard moving speed.
The headless found at Fountainhead Palace will have a projection assisting it, so it is much easier to take on the projection first as it has low health. Once the apparition is dead, don’t move perpendicularly toward the boss because it will shoot projectiles that can deal much damage. Instead, move in a circular motion or go behind him by moving around the sides. Stay behind the headless, deal no more than two slashes, and swim clockwise to avoid its projectiles, and the boss will be dead in no time.
What Are the Rewards for Fighting Headless?
Each Headless has different rewards, listed below:
Ashina Outskirts
- Ako’s Spiritfall: A quick item used during a fight, it increases the Sekiro’s vitality and posture damage for 30 seconds.
Ashina Depths
- Gachiin’s Spiritfall: A quick item that increases Sekiro’s stealth capability by silencing him and consuming Spirit Emblems.
Sunken Valley
- Gokan’s Spiritfall: A quick item that reduces 33% of posture damage taken by Sekiro for 30 seconds.
Ashina Castle
- Ungo’s Spiritfall: A quick item used to enhance the physical defense of Sekiro for 30 seconds. The damage inflicted by the boss is reduced by 33%.
Fountainhead Palace
- Yashariku’s Spiritfall: A quick item that gives an Attack Power Boost of 50% to posture damage and 25% to vitality damage for 30 seconds, at the cost of diminishing vitality and posture by 50%.
Conclusion
It’s important to know what you’re up against before you march into the battle, so that is all the information you need to know about the Headless. Armed with the insights shared in this guide, you’re now well-prepared to face the daunting challenge.
