What to know
- You are building around 46 percent Untouched Onmyo so you can spam high-damage spells far more often
- You keep five equipment slots empty to supercharge damage through the unarmored death skill
- You use elemental shots to quickly apply confusion, then dump Hellshock talisman to erase health bars
- You can buy a key passive that adds a flat 25 percent Untouched Onmyo from a specific Sudama vendor location
In Nioh 3, there’s an updated spellcaster setup that can drop bosses in seconds, that is, once you stack Untouched Onmyo to 46 percent, keep multiple gear slots empty for huge damage, then burst with Hellshock once confusion is active.
The whole idea is simple: you play like a pure caster, scale what actually matters, and convert status buildup into a very fast boss delete. This version leans harder into magic scaling, boosts your free-cast odds, and tightens the rotation so you spend less time setting up and more time melting.
| Part | What to use | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Core goal | 46 percent Untouched Onmyo | Lets you spam your strongest spells repeatedly |
| Armor | Shrine Maiden set, using 4 pieces to count as 5 | Keeps the essential magic bonuses while freeing slots |
| Weapons | Bare-handed with talisman of the fist, special effect minus one set bonus requirements | Enables the set-bonus trick and supports the playstyle |
| Empty slots | Five empty equipment slots | Triggers unarmored death for a massive damage boost |
| Must-have skills | Unarmored death, awakening, amplification | Damage from empty slots, faster casting, longer effects |
| Key passive | Mysteries of Onmyo Magic | Flat plus 25 percent Untouched Onmyo |
| Guardian spirit | Ho at level 40 | Adds 10 percent Untouched magic |
| Spell kit | Lightning shot, windshot, explosive shot, Hellshock talisman | Builds confusion fast, then bursts with Hellshock |
| Buffs | Sacred water, talisman of the fist, carnage talisman | Ki recovery plus damage buffs for faster kills |
| Attributes | All points in magic, rest in intellect, meet gear requirements | Maximizes magic scaling and keeps your setup wearable |
Why this updated build hits so hard
The updated approach focuses on a key mechanic change: only your magic scales with your attack power here, so the build pivots to maximizing that instead of spreading power across weapons. From there, you stack free-cast chance, speed up your casting, and extend effect duration so your damage loop stays online during the entire boss fight.
The second big damage lever is unarmored death: leaving multiple equipment slots empty gives you a large boost to both damage and ki damage, which is why you deliberately run with five empty slots rather than filling out a normal loadout.
How to get 46 percent Untouched Onmyo
You are combining three sources that add up cleanly.
- Shrine Maiden set: 11 percent Untouched Onmyo
- Mysteries of Onmyo Magic: 25 percent Untouched Onmyo
- Guardian spirit Ho at level 40: 10 percent Untouched magic
That total is 46 percent, which is the breakpoint the build is designed around because it turns limited-use burst tools into something you can often chain repeatedly.
Where to buy Mysteries of Onmyo Magic location
If you do not already have Mysteries of Onmyo Magic, you can buy it from a Sudama vendor in 1864 near Nij Castle ruins lake shrine. This purchase is what adds the flat 25 percent Untouched Onmyo and is a major reason the updated version feels so much more consistent.
How to set up your equipment and skills
Equipment choices that matter
- Armor: Stay on the Shrine Maiden set for the essential untouched and enhanced magic damage, but use the talisman of the fist with the special effect minus one set bonus requirements so four pieces can still trigger the full five-piece bonus.
- Weapons: Go bare-handed for the boss setup to match the build concept and keep your slots open for unarmored death scaling.
- Empty slots: Keep five equipment slots empty specifically to power up unarmored death.
Skills to prioritize
- Unarmored death: The damage engine, scaling from every empty slot you leave vacant
- Awakening: The most important casting-speed boost in the setup
- Amplification: Extends your effect durations for smoother uptime
- Mysteries of Onmyo Magic: The Untouched Onmyo cornerstone
- Ninja style picks: Long stride dodging and evasion expert for mobility and safety
- Elemental support: Patience of the gods and rigor of the gods to help build elemental status effects
- Dreadbringer: Mandatory for the build as stated in the setup
How to melt bosses with the spell rotation
Step 1
Drink sacred water before you commit to the boss damage loop so your ki recovery stays comfortable while casting and moving.
Step 2
Buff yourself with talisman of the fist and carnage talisman to raise your damage before you start stacking statuses.
Step 3
Alternate your elemental shots such as lightning shot, windshot, and explosive shot to build status effects quickly.
Step 4
Keep alternating until the boss has at least one or two stacks of confusion, then watch for the confusion icon.
Step 5
Once confusion is active, spam Hellshock talisman to melt the remaining health instantly.
Step 6
Lean on your 46 percent Untouched Onmyo to keep firing even when Hellshock should normally be limited; in practice you can sometimes chain it many times in a row.
Rewards
| Reward type | What you get |
|---|---|
| Boss kill speed | Very fast clears once confusion is applied |
| Consistency | High Untouched Onmyo makes your rotation feel reliable instead of cooldown-limited |
| Ease of execution | Simple loop: buff, build confusion, then spam Hellshock |
| Flexibility | You can tweak the elemental shot order as long as you reach confusion quickly |
If you like deleting bosses without relying on weapon combos, this setup gives you a clean caster-first playstyle that stays powerful because it stacks free casting, speed, and a burst window that is easy to trigger. Once you get Mysteries of Onmyo Magic and commit to the empty-slot unarmored death setup, the whole build clicks and bosses start melting the way you expect.
