Okishima 1336 Sword Combat: How to Attack and How the Nodachi, Katana and Tanto Differ

Quick answer

Equip any of the three swords — nodachi, katana or tanto — and attack with M1 for basic attacks and moves. On PC, the nodachi's named moves sit on X and Z: X is a low sweep (the nodachi's form of the poke move every weapon has) and Z is a vertical slash down. The katana keeps that same vertical slash down but swaps the sweep for a straight poke, and the tanto is the dagger — faster, with more movement.

• Three swords are in the game right now: nodachi, katana and tanto
• Nodachi: slower, but more range — low sweep on X, vertical slash down on Z
• Katana: same vertical slash down as the nodachi, with a poke instead of the sweep
• Tanto: faster, with more movement
• Starter sequence: dash, dash, kick, X

Which sword you are holding, and what it does

Okishima 1336 has three swords right now: the nodachi, the katana and the tanto. They share part of one attack skeleton — M1 drives basic attacks, and every weapon has a poke move — but each fills that skeleton differently.

Comparison

Comparison

Weapon	Speed, range and role	Named moves shown
Nodachi	Slower, but more range — the long great sword	Low sweep on X (the nodachi's poke form), vertical slash down on Z
Katana	Speed and range not detailed; it is the seam-cutting pick	Same vertical slash down as the nodachi, with a straight poke instead of the sweep
Tanto	Faster, with more movement — the dagger	Has the poke every weapon has; its exact key binds are not shown in the overview

The key binds above are the PC controls shown for the nodachi and katana. The poke slot is where the swords diverge: on the nodachi the poke comes out as a low sweep on X, while on the katana it is a straight poke and the Z slash down stays identical to the nodachi's. The tanto is the dagger of the group, trading the nodachi's reach for speed and extra movement.

How attacking works

M1 is your core input in a fight: it covers your basic attacks and your moves. On top of that sit the named moves — the nodachi's low sweep on X and vertical slash down on Z, with the katana sharing the same slash down.

The poke has a payoff worth planning around: if the target is low enough and you poke at their head, the poke can take the head off. The height condition genuinely matters — a poke at the head of a target who was not low enough did not remove the head, while a poke at a low target's head took it clean off. Check the height before you commit the poke.

Dashes, stamina and a starter sequence

Dashing is flexible — you can stack dashes — but it runs on a stamina budget. The more you dash during a fight, the faster you run out of stamina, especially on top of moves and M1. Spamming dashes is not recommended unless you are a highly skilled movement player who can manage the cost.

For everyone else, a basic sequence recommended for all players looks like this:

1. Dash
2. Dash again
3. Kick
4. X — the low sweep, as shown on the nodachi

Treat it as a starting point rather than a full combo list.

Seam cutting: slashing straight through the body

Okishima's signature sword trick is player cutting — slashes that follow the seam you aim at. If you aim at a seam on a player or NPC and slash, you cut straight through: a downward slash at an arm seam shears straight through the arm. The katana is the weapon for this technique; the nodachi, for all its range, is a poor pick for seam cutting.

That makes the katana the precision option of the three — it keeps the nodachi's vertical slash down, swaps the sweep for a true poke, and handles the seam cuts the nodachi cannot.

It is all part of the game's directional limb slicing design, and our limb slicing guide covers that system in more depth.

Grabs, throws and the one true escape

You can grab an NPC or another player and pull them along with you. The grabbed target has exactly one way out: parry the attacker's next attack. A clean parry ends the grab, and the target escapes without taking damage.

If the parry never comes, the grab turns lethal — a follow-up attack on the grabbed target can decapitate. The throw is a separate payoff: it works like a mini stun, leaving the target stunned for a moment while the attacker can use a move.

Because parrying is the only counter to a grab, it is worth learning properly — see how to parry in Okishima 1336.

Your height sets your speed and reach

Character customization feeds straight into swordplay: the shorter you are, the faster you are, and the taller you are, the more range you have — which directly affects the reach of your attacks. Height is set in the Customize menu when rolling your character, so decide your speed-versus-reach preference before you lock in a build. See character customization for more.

Why it all feels so physical

None of this floats free of the game's design: Okishima's combat is physics-driven and built around momentum and physical interactions, with momentum-based attacks, dynamic parries, directional limb slicing and destructible armor. That is why your aim point decides whether a slash shears through a limb, and why stamina-conscious movement sits next to attack inputs as a core skill.

For the wider system, start with the Okishima 1336 combat guide and the momentum combat breakdown. Brand new to the island? The beginner guide covers the first steps.

Picking between the three

Choose by the fight you want: the nodachi for reach and its low sweep, the katana for seam cuts and a straight poke, the tanto for speed and movement. Just remember that M1 and the poke move exist on all three swords, so those fundamentals carry over whichever you equip.