The best armor in Assassin’s Creed Shadows

With the best armor in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Yasuke and Naoe become nearly invincible. As you explore feudal Japan, you’ll find many fabulous body armors, helmets, robes, and headbands, but some are worth wearing more than others — and we’re not just talking about looks.

Armor and headgear of “legendary” quality comes with a unique gameplay perk and (usually) the best stats, which is why you’ll only find legendary equipment on this list. These perks range from okay-ish to absolutely overpowered, and if you pair them with the best weapons, you’ll can really max out your builds.

Each character has just two equipment slots: light armor and headgear for Naoe, armor and helmets for Yasuke. Some headgear and armor pieces belong to the same set (they’ll have a similar name and look) but you don’t need to “complete” a set to unlock the perk, so it’s perfectly fine to mix and match the best items.

Below, we’ll show to the best weapons in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, broken down into four categories (two for each character).

Update (April 2): We’ve added additional legendary items to round out our list of the best armor.

Best light armor for Naoe

The best armor for Naoe plays into her role as an assassin. Better vaulting abilities and HP restoration aren’t bad, but it’s far more useful to gain the power to assassinate two targets at once or deplete more health upon assassination attempts. Here’s the best body armor for your stealthy shinobi.

Upon reaching Knowledge Rank 2, you can use Naoe’s mastery points to unlock the “double assassinate” ability, which allows her to kill two targets at once. Thanks to the Tools Master Gear set, however, you can perform double assassinations long before you reach that Knowledge Rank; since early-game enemies aren’t that strong, a kunai in the head usually kills them, thus saving you a lot of trouble. The Tools Master Gear is also one of the best legendary armors in Assassin’s Creed Shadows because the kunai used with the perk is free (it won’t decrease the number of kunai you’re carrying) and the armor location is conveniently close to Osaka, where you start the game.

This fantastic shinobi outfit unlocks instant-assassination opportunities like no other early- to mid-game gear piece. It removes two health segments (two chunks of the enemy’s HP bar) upon air assassinations. Since many early-game enemies don’t even have more than two health segments, this translates to immediate defeats. But even if you’re up against a burly Samurai Daisho with five health segments, depleting his HP by 40% before the fight really begins is a rather welcome effect. Combine this with an Assassination Damage upgrade or two (the Assassin Mastery tree), and this Naoe armor becomes truly overpowered.

If you’re going for an affliction-based Naoe build, the Noh Masterstroke Costume is by far the best armor in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Since it requires many consecutive hits, building affliction can become a frustrating task, which may even feel wasted on weaker enemies as they could die of direct damage before the affliction buildup is complete. The Noh Masterstroke Costume fixes that issue by spreading the affliction to nearby enemies, so the buildup is no longer wasted. It’s highly recommended to pair this armor with the Bloodshade Katana, so you won’t have to worry about affliction loss either.

Removing extra health segments with a specific assassination method is incredibly handy, but we’ll do you one better: Naoe’s Master Assassin Gear removes two extra health segments upon every assassination. It’s basically the upgraded version of the Swift Shinobi Robes, removing the need to climb buildings and thus allowing more freedom. It’s straightforward and incredibly powerful, but it comes with one caveat: you must finish the final main story quest to receive it.

No armor set in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is complete without a helmet, hat, headband, or creepy mask. Here’s an overview of the best headgear for Naoe — and remember; you can mix different sets, so Naoe’s best headgear doesn’t necessarily form a set with her best armor.

As a shinobi, Naoe relies on stealth and assassinations. Unfortunately, you can’t expect to remain unseen for the entire playthrough of Assassin’s Creed Shadows; especially when facing groups or particularly tough enemies, you may be forced to fight in the open. Throwables are a great way to deal with such situations, as they allow you to keep some distance as you chip away at the enemy’s HP. But here’s the problem: You only get a limited supply until you find an opportunity to refill. Thanks to the Tools Master Mask, you don’t need to worry about this anymore as you can collect your shuriken ninja stars after throwing; just get close to the defeated opponent and the shuriken will automatically return to your inventory. Now you can throw them as much as you like!

Active abilities come with amazingly high damage potential and afflictions are a great way to deal extra damage on top of your direct hits — combine the two, and Naoe becomes a melee powerhouse. With the Noh Masterstroke Mask equipped, she’ll easily power her adrenaline gain (required to unleash abilities) by hitting enemies with affliction weapons, such as the Bloodshade Katana. This effect is particularly powerful when combined with the Noh Masterstroke Costume, which spreads affliction buildup upon afflicted enemy kills.

If affliction buildup isn’t quite your style, but you are willing to use assassination techniques, the Hidden Servant Hat is the best headgear to receive a massive adrenaline boost. Take the enemy down and use the extra adrenaline to obliterate other opponents — it’s the perfect way to use stealth without becoming completely reliant on assassinations. The adrenaline gain is even stronger when combined with the Hidden Servant Kosode, but beware that this only works in restricted areas. Combos with the Master Assassin Gear (extra assassination damage) or the Tools Master Gear (free kunai shot upon assassinations) are even better.

We know, Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ DLC armor can be difficult to obtain, but this legendary hood is far too good to ignore. Whether you get it from the in-game shop or by spending some Keys in the Shadows Exchange, the Hood of the Enraged will elevate Naoe’s stealth build. It works best if you use kunai (rather than shuriken) to land headshots from the shadows — and thanks to that 50% extra damage, it’ll be much easier to achieve instant kills on weaker enemies and get a head start against tougher ones.

Yasuke’s greatest strengths are his superb defensiveness and downright destructive blows deriving from his counters and posture attacks. So, naturally, the best armor for Yasuke improves that sturdiness while boosting his strongest strikes. Let’s see which Yasuke armor you shouldn’t miss out on.

Not only is this shiny golden gear one of the first legendary armor pieces you can get for Yasuke, it’s also one of the best. Although Yasuke isn’t bad at dodging (but not quite as good as Naoe), it’s usually better to parry an incoming enemy attack as this allows you to avoid damage and instantly counterattack. Unfortunately, you can’t parry “unblockable” attacks as Yasuke… unless you have the Protector’s Armor. With this legendary armor equipped, you no longer need to be wary of incoming attack types; just parry as much as you can and take every opportunity to reverse the damage. To make the most of this magnificent ability, consider wearing the full Protector’s armor set — the helmet increases Yasuke’s parry damage.

Outfit of the Legendary Ronin

If a 50% damage bonus sounds good to you, the Outfit of the Legendary Ronin is your friend. As long as you start the battle with a brutal assassination, you will get the bonus — easy! You don’t even need to focus on the brutal assassination’s damage itself — you can just use it to dispose of weaker enemies and gain an advantage against larger ones, but if you want to go full assassin mode with Yasuke, equipping the full Legendary Ronin set is wise as the Kasa (headgear) removes two additional health segments for each assassination. Beware that you must unlock Yasuke’s brutal assassinations first, which you’ll find in the Samurai Mastery (starting at Knowledge Rank 1), but this shouldn’t take too long.

Extravagant Kabukimono Outfit

Many of Yasuke’s strongest attacks come from his abilities. Sadly, abilities require adrenaline, which can take tediously long to replenish, even with a high adrenaline gain. The power to collect a full adrenaline chunk upon every weakpoint attack is therefore a most welcome perk. We won’t lie; there is a bit of a learning curve as you must trigger a vulnerable state through well-timed parries and dodges before hitting the vulnerable enemy with a light posture attack, but once you get the hang of it, the extra ability usage is absolutely worth it. The Extravagant Kabukimono Outfit is even better when paired with ability- and weakpoint-based effects, most notably one of Yasuke’s best headgear: the Red Dragon Helmet. Now you get instant adrenaline and instant healing upon weakpoint attacks!

Yasuke’s best headgear makes him more defensive or damaging in open combat — preferably both. Pay special attention to the Protector’s Helmet, as it truly shines in combination with the Protector’s Armor we mentioned earlier.

As an expert swordsman, Yasuke has the ability to parry incoming attacks and deal instant counterattack damage. Parrying is a great way to deflect damage even without a boost, but the Protector’s Helmet makes it ridiculously easy to turn the enemy’s fortune whenever they try to hit you. Beware that unblockable attacks can’t be parried, but that’s why we recommend wearing the full Protector’s set, as the Protector’s Armor allows Yasuke to parry unblockable attacks too. Any swordsman trying to slash you will instantly regret it.

Parrying is a powerful ability, but it requires expert timing. If you’d rather rely on Yasuke’s posture attacks, a.k.a. his charged attacks, the Defense Master Headwrap is the best headgear for you. There’s just one problem: To perform a posture attack, you must find an opening to charge it. It’ll only take a second, but that’s enough to get hit by a slightly faster opponent. This is where the Defense Master Headwrap comes in: every time you dodge an attack, time is slowed down, thus granting you the opportunity to charge the posture attack in peace — now you can unleash these devastating blows as often as you want.

Kasa of the Legendary Ronin

Yasuke should leave the assassinations to Naoe? Not anymore! As long as he wears the Kasa of the Legendary Ronin, he can easily walk up to his enemies (from behind, mind) and take them down with an extra-powerful brutal assassination. Weaker ones will instantly perish while sturdier ones become far easier to defeat — especially when combining this brilliant helmet with the Outfit of the Legendary Ronin, which grants a 50% damage bonus after a brutal assassination. Don’t forget to unlock the brutal assassination ability in the Samurai Mastery tree!

Extravagant Kabukimono Headgear

Weakpoint attacks are wonderfully efficient ways to deplete enemy HP, but they can be difficult to trigger. First, you must parry an incoming attack or dodge an incoming unblockable attack, then you must hit the vulnerable enemy (who has an orange glow) with a light posture attack. You must remember the order, get the timing right, be fast about it, and not get interrupted. If it’s all a bit much, the Extravagant Kabukimono Headgear is a real gamechanger as it removes the second part of that instruction; you just need to parry enemy attacks. This legendary headgear is particularly powerful when worn as a full set, because the Extravagant Kabukimono Outfit adds free adrenaline chunks with every weakpoint hit.

Would you like to become immortal? Place this shiny red helmet on Yasuke’s head, and your wish is granted. Since rations are limited, HP restoration can be a major concern in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, especially if you prefer a close-quarters combat style. With this helmet, you can replenish Yasuke’s health as often as necessary — just be sure to land a weakpoint attack every now and then. It may require some practice, but here’s how to do it; when an enemy is vulnerable (orange glow), hit them with a light posture attack. The only downside is that the Red Dragon Helmet is a DLC helmet, so you must either purchase it from the in-game store or spend Keys (which you can find through exploration) in the “Shadows Exchange” whenever it’s featured.

For more Assassin’s Creed Shadows guides, see our running lists of Lost Pages, Kuji-kiri, and armor locations. Or see our full Assassin’s Creed Shadows walkthrough, and our guides on how to get all companions and romance options.