The universe of Nioh 2, by now we have understood it, it is rich in thematic inspiration coming from a local folkloric culture, to say the least enormous. After having dealt with historical warriors and creatures taken with both hands by the Japanese tradition, we came across one of those difficult to forget, both for a purely aesthetic question and, and above all, for what it represents.
Tatarimokke: appearance and origins
Tatarimokke (name composed of "Tatars" = "curse" and "moke" = "child") looks like a giant three-eyed owl, capable of using both physical and magical strikes. According to popular tradition, it is born from the fusion of a large number of resentful spirits and the more spirits unite the more the greatness of the Tatarimokke grows. When they are exceptionally large in size, these particular Yokai can group together some of the spirits that make them up and throw them at humans.
In the Tohoku region the term "tatarimokke" is used to refer to the curse cast by those who have met horrific deaths and is said to be so powerful, in the event of a murder, that it remains in the killer's lineage for several generations.
It is also said that it may be an owl with the spirit of a dead child inside. The Tatarimokke would continue to live at the dwelling he had in his life and his verses would be the cry of the dead child in question. It is said that the origin of the Tatarimokke is in fact to be compared to the fact that once in Japan newborns were not considered completely human beings and therefore a dead newborn did not receive a real funeral but was simply buried near the house; the spirits of these children were thought to float away from the body, often getting stuck inside owls, giving rise to the aforementioned Yokai.
Main attacks
The main attacks of this particular Yokai are those that most would be expected: blows with the wings, with the tail and with the claws. To this he then adds other techniques, but let's go in order. Tatarimokke will try to harm you by hitting you with his wings with a spin attack or by trying to hit you with a kind of "punch". Another way he will try to put you in trouble is by hitting his tail or trying to scratch you after taking off. All the shots listed above can be both dodged and blocked.
Tatarimokke then has another couple of shots in his arsenal, these a little more particular: he can in fact launch dark globes from the wings, a ray from the third eye or launch a fan attack using his feathers.. You can both avoid and block all three of these attacks, but remember that the beam and orbs can provide you with a good window in which to attack the boss. Then there is another shot to keep an eye on: when the boss takes off and tries to rush towards you, you should dodge or use the Explosive Counterattack.
Tips for attack and various vulnerabilities
Tatarimokke is vulnerable to more than one element, then use elemental buffs for your weapon if you can. The battle isn't overly complex if you can get close to the boss: get under him and attack him, paying attention to his blows and dodging or parrying them whenever possible. The attacks are not complex to stem and Tatarimokke does not change moveset when it enters the Dark Kingdom. In this situation there is only one difference compared to before: everything will be dark and you will have to break the red sphere that you will find in the arena, which will turn out to be the only source of light. If you manage to eliminate it, Tatarimokke's ki will drain instantly and you can hit it with ease.
Proceed with caution and hit him without ever being greedy: if you run out of ki you will find yourself unable to get close, so it can easily hit you by taking flight, and unable to parry or dodge anything, therefore at its total mercy. We also advise you to try to destroy his eyes, as this will take a large amount of damage and also be prevented from using the laser beam, which is never a bad thing.
final Thoughts
Tatarimokke is a splendid enemy to behold and at the same time disturbing, but not necessarily too demanding. With the right foresight in memorizing the attack patterns and its movements, you can get over the splendid creature with not too much difficulty, as long as you have the right weapons to deal with it: patience and attention. This boss is the perfect example of how Team Ninja has been able to draw heavily from Japanese folklore, shaping it properly to create a very special and extremely fascinating game.
Difficulty: 2,5/5
Appearance: 4/5
Thematic inspiration: 5/5
Overall rating: 4 / 5
► Nioh 2 is an Action-RPG type game developed by Team Ninja and published by Koei Tecmo for PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 13/03/2020
