Zelda Breath of the Wild: How to Parry

How to Parry – The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild

If you want to survive the perils of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, then you will need to master the various combat techniques, such as being able to parry attacks. This powerful counter move allows you to create an opening to launch a flurry of strikes against your foe.

Knowing how to parry moves is critical to surviving a lot of the more intense engagements in Breath of the Wild, as enemies are far more aggressive and dangerous than in previous Zelda titles. In the actual game, parrying an enemy attack is actually called a Perfect Guard, so if that ever comes up, they are referring to the ability to knock away enemies with your shield.

To parry an attack, you will need to have a shield equipped, so two handed weapons are a no-go if you want to use this move. When in a fight, have Link hold his shield up with the left trigger and wait until the enemy is about to strike. Right before the beast hits you, press A and Link will knock their arm away and slow down time for a few seconds. This is easily recognizable by the loud sound cue and big blue ring that expands out from where the enemy hit.

After a parry quickly get a few strikes in and then retreat to safety before they have a chance to follow up with an attack. Timing is everything so if you need to practice save and then go find a small monster camp. Kill every enemy but one and then keep practicing until this becomes muscle memory. This skill is critical in Breath of the Wild, so make sure to use it as much as possible. Also, it’s important to note that you can parry the lasers from the four legged mechanical beasts known as Guardians and take off massive chunks of their health. This is the best way to dispatch them, but you will need to practice because if the beam does connect it will destroy your shield or instantly vaporize Link.

Now that you know how to parry, be sure to check back to Twinfinite and our wiki for more tips and guides on Breath of the Wild.