How to block and parry in Naraka Bladepoint

Mastering how to block and parry is key to success in Naraka Bladepoint. The Battle Royale is doing what it can to stand out from the rest of the genre. The developers chose classic martial arts action instead of the typical run-and-gun fare other titles offer. With various weapon styles to master, the gameplay is fast and frenetic - provided you know how to defend yourself from incoming attackers.

As Naraka Bladepoint recently went free-to-play, there has been an influx of players who may not know all of the ins and outs of the game. Even something as important as blocking and parrying may not be clear. Here’s how you do it in-game.

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Blocking and parrying in Naraka Bladepoint

You don’t exactly block in Naraka Bladepoint. When your opponent’s aura glows blue, they’re about to use a Focus Attack. At that point, if you hold both the LMB/RMB buttons (both attacks), you will essentially block the attack.

However, parrying is incredibly important. You can’t parry common attacks, but you can (and should) use this technique on the Blue Focus attacks. Parrying disarms your attacker and can lead to powerful counterstrikes, so it’s important to master.

Canceling from a jump or crouch is going to be incredibly important to learn (Image via 24 Entertainment)

The most basic parrying is done by pressing both attack buttons together. On PC, for example, it’s LMB/RMB simultaneously. It’s not the best method, though. There are plenty of advanced forms of parrying as well. In particular, there are Quick and Jump parries. What makes these powerful is that you cancel out of an attack into one of these types, which is much faster than the traditional option.

This is the recommended way to parry by many players. If you want to crouch parry, you press the crouch button at the same time that you hit both attack buttons. It’s noteworthy that this only works while your feet are on the ground in Naraka Bladepoint.

Even while in the air, you have defensive options (Image via 24 Entertainment)

You also have the jump parry, which works anytime. Just jump and hit your LMB/RMB in the air to trigger it. It can even deal with out-of-range focus attacks, which is handy. However, failure means you’re more vulnerable than normal due to being in the air. Having the right sensitivity on your mouse may help you move and parry in time, though.

Finally, players can access the Quick Parry key bind, which you can set to whatever is most convenient. When you press it, it will attempt to perform the following parry types in order of priority:

• Scissors
• Aerial
• Parry
• Crouch

You can also crouch, jump, or full crouch to perform quick versions of those parries.

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When do you parry in Naraka Bladepoint?

Almost every weapon in Naraka Bladepoint uses a three-strike system. That means the two first strikes will be normal, and the third will glow blue - a Focus Attack. This means you can easily learn the timing to start deflecting these attacks with ease, whether on a team or in a 1v1 setting.

You can poke them on the first hit and parry on the second (Image via 24 Entertainment)

That said, the Great Sword in Naraka Bladepoint uses its Focus Attack on the second swing - keep that in mind, so you can strike before it’s too late.

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It will take time and practice to master the art of parrying in Naraka Bladepoint, but it’s one worth devoting time to if you want to climb the ranks and become the best. The game is free-to-play, so there’s never been a better time to play it. If you need more combat tactics, here's our guide on countering.