Parry, Perfect Counter & Dodge Timing Trainer

From glints to frames: a practical glossary of enemy telegraphs and the exact moments to press the button

Ghost of Yōtei rewards players who can read an enemy’s intent and answer with the right input at the last possible heartbeat. This guide is your focused training plan for Parry, Perfect Counter (Perfect Parry), and Dodge: how to read every telegraph, when to press, and how to build reliable muscle memory. It combines the game’s official cues (the colored “glints”), community-tested timing advice, and in‑game tools you can use to practice—so you can turn any duel into a lesson and every lesson into a win. Blue glint attacks can be parried (but not blocked), red glint attacks must be dodged, and gold glints open special interactions; we’ll use those color cues throughout.

Key vocabulary (and why it matters)

• Block (hold L1): Prevents chip damage from standard hits, but fails against blue or red glints. Use sparingly—blocking is safe, but it teaches bad timing habits.
• Parry (tap L1 just before impact): Staggers or creates advantage on most non-glint and blue‑glint attacks. Regular parry is lenient compared to Perfect Counter.
• Perfect Counter / Perfect Parry (tap L1 at the last moment): A tighter, late press that briefly slows time, opens a brutal counter, and can one‑shot common foes. Roughly a 0.10–0.15s window by community timing tests—think 6–9 frames at 60fps.
• Dodge / Roll (Circle): Grants brief invulnerability and repositioning. Red glints must be dodged; perfect dodges set up counters if you recover facing the attacker. Difficulty options and certain armor pieces can lengthen these invincibility frames.

Pro tip: While swapping weapons (hold R2) the game subtly slows time—use this ethically for practice reps to “stretch” your perception of the impact moment. Don’t rely on it in real fights; your dodge input is locked while R2 is held.

Reading telegraphs: the glint system at a glance

• Blue Glint — “Parry me, don’t block me.” You can’t block these, but you can parry and even Perfect Parry them. Ideal for turning defense into damage.
• Red Glint — “Unblockable, unparryable.” Dodge or roll only; learn the angle and distance so the hitbox passes through your i‑frames.
• Gold Glint — “Disarm window.” If you’ve unlocked the disarm technique, hold △ and release as the gold glint swells to pop the weapon away. Get hit here and you may be disarmed.

Input windows: how late is “late”?

Precise frame data isn’t published by Sucker Punch, but several sources and hands‑on testing converge on the following practical ranges:

• Perfect Counter: ~0.10–0.15s before contact (tight). Expect no forgiveness if you press early; plan to press on contact.
• Regular Parry: Wider than Perfect Counter; many players read it as roughly ~2× the Perfect window. (Inference from pre‑release Tsushima analysis at ~0.25s, with Yōtei feeling a touch tighter—train for Perfect and regular parry will follow.)
• Dodge i‑frames: Short, but extendable through settings and specific armor (see below). If you’re getting clipped, your roll is too early or you’re moving into the swing path.

Settings that matter: In Custom Difficulty, the Timing Windows slider directly affects how strict parry and dodge windows are. Start wider to learn patterns, then ratchet down.

The Trainer: a 15‑minute routine that actually works

1. Warm‑up on dojo drills. Early story sequences take you to training yards (e.g., Master Yoshida’s dojo). Spend two minutes blocking only while watching arms, shoulders, and hips—train your eyes to spot the hit’s true contact frame.
2. Blue‑only practice. Find a swordsman who likes blue glints. No attacks. Aim for ten perfect parries in a row. If you miss, reset the streak.
3. Red response ladder. Against heavy brutes or odachi users (lots of red glints), drill single‑step sidestep → roll → late roll. Your goal: leave the hitbox behind your back shoulder.
4. R2 slow‑time reps (practice‑only). Hold R2 just as an enemy begins a combo; release R2 and press L1 at the (now clearer) last instant. Do five reps, then repeat at full speed.
5. Counter confirmation. After each Perfect Parry, don’t mash. Watch the brief slow‑mo cue, then input the built‑in counter. On fodder enemies, expect instant kills; on elites, expect big posture/stagger damage.
6. Finish with disarms. If you have the gold‑glint technique, hold △ early and release at the swell. Five successful disarms on spear or odachi users builds timing discipline.

Benchmark: If you can achieve 10 consecutive Perfect Counters on blue glints and dodge 10 red glints in a row without chip, you’re timing‑ready for lethal‑difficulty duels.

Loadouts and settings that widen (or shrink) the window

• Armor of the Undying (example): Extends Perfect Parry and Perfect Dodge windows and slightly increases dodge i‑frames—excellent for learning, still useful at high level.
• Custom Difficulty → Timing Windows: Set to Lenient for drills; move toward Strict as you improve. You can tweak Timing Windows without raising enemy damage.
• Controller latency hygiene: If Perfect seems “impossible,” verify your display’s low‑latency mode and disable added post‑processing. (Community timing complaints often trace back to setup, not the game.)

Enemy telegraph glossary & recommended responses

Use this as a quick‑look field manual. “Press timing” is described relative to the moment of impact.

Legend:
– Cue: What you’ll see/hear.
– Glint: None / Blue (parryable) / Red (dodge‑only) / Gold (disarm)
– Best answer: Parry, Perfect Counter, Dodge, Disarm
– Press timing: Early / Mid / Late (Perfect)
– Notes: Extra tips (angle, follow‑ups, traps)

Why “very late”? The game pays big for delaying your press until contact. Perfect Counter slows time and auto‑opens your punish—resist the urge to flinch early or pre‑buffer your input.

Perfect Counter and Perfect Dodge: what success looks like

• Perfect Counter: The screen micro‑eases, the attacker staggers, and you gain immediate initiative—often with a built‑in riposte that deletes fodder outright. If you didn’t get the slow‑mo, you were too early. If you got hit, you were way too late.
• Perfect Dodge: You slip the hitbox in the last slices of the roll, recover facing the foe, and can answer with a fast strike. If you feel contact “through” your roll, adjust direction; if the hit catches your recovery, you rolled early. (Tighten timing or widen windows via settings/armor.)

Drills to build timing (and keep it)

1. The “last‑pixel” drill: In a duel, move just into range so the enemy’s blade nearly touches Atsu’s shoulder. Your cue is the first pixel of contact. Parry 5/5.
2. Metronome flurry drill: Against dual‑wielders, count “one‑two‑three” and perfect the third hit only. It teaches patience inside strings.
3. Mirror‑hand drill: Hold the controller loosely. For parries, tap with a single fingertip; for dodges, squeeze and release your thumb quickly. You’re training distinct motor patterns—panic mashing breaks Perfect.
4. R2 slow‑time diagnostic: If you consistently miss Perfect by a hair, run three sets with the slow‑time practice trick to re‑calibrate your eyes to the contact frame. Then do three at full speed.
5. Strict‑mode sprints: In Custom difficulty, drop Timing Windows to strict for a 3‑minute “sprint,” then return to normal. This contrast hardens your late‑press discipline.

Common mistakes (and fast fixes)

• Pressing on the glint, not the hit. Glints are advisories, not the press cue. Watch the hip drive + shoulder line and press on collision.
• Rolling into arcs. Many sweeps carry forward; rolling backward gets you clipped. Roll across the attacker’s chest line.
• Input delay gremlins. If Perfect Parry “moves” depending on the scene, check your TV’s Game/Low‑Latency mode and trim motion smoothing; then revisit drills.
• Training only on fodder. Elites/bosses alter cadence—some “hold” their windup to bait early presses. Practice against a variety of weapon types so you learn rhythms, not animations.

Progression picks: skills and gear that help timing

• Perfect Parry technique (Onryō → Attacks): Unlock it early. Its slow‑mo confirmation helps you learn late presses.
• Roll (Survival tree): Adds consistent escape and utility (e.g., extinguish fire), making red‑glint drills safer.
• Armor of the Undying: Lengthens Perfect windows and adds dodge i‑frames—great for bedding in habits you’ll keep when you switch to lighter gear.

A sample 5‑day plan to “feel” Perfect timing

• Day 1: Blue‑glint Perfects only (10× streak goal).
• Day 2: Red‑glint dodges from brutes/odachi users (10× streak; aim for side rolls).
• Day 3: Mixed strings—parry early hits, Perfect the last blue.
• Day 4: Add gold‑glint disarms (5× on spears).
• Day 5: Strict Timing Windows sprint (3 minutes), then a live duel.

By the end, your thumb will wait instead of flinching—and the game will pay you for it.

Quick reference: Inputs you’ll press (and when)

• Parry (L1): Press as the weapon enters you—resist early taps.
• Perfect Counter (L1): Press on contact—if you hear the hit and pressed, you were late; if you see the slow‑mo, you nailed it.
• Dodge / Roll (○): Press as the swing would pass through your shoulder; finish behind/aside the opponent, not in front. Red glints demand this.
• Disarm (hold/release △): Start holding as the gold glows, release at the swell.

Final thought

Ghost of Yōtei’s combat isn’t about memorizing 50 animations—it’s about learning to wait so you can answer at the exact right moment. Train with clear cues (glints), practice with helpful tools (Custom → Timing Windows; R2 slow‑time while learning), lean on friendly gear (Armor of the Undying), and let Perfect timing become instinct. That’s how every fight turns from chaos into choreography.