NieR: Automata – Using the Taunt Chip
Taunt is a pretty interesting chip that you can equip in NieR: Automata. You’ll be able to get your first Taunt chip from doing the Lord of the Valley side mission. This mission can only be unlocked after clearing the main mission in the Forest Zone and reporting back to Pascal. After that, you can head back to the Forest Zone, drop down the waterfall, and follow the rocky path to find the red-skinned machine lifeform that gives you the quest.
However, what the game doesn’t explain is that you can’t actually use the proper Taunt ability until your third playthrough of the game. When you do unlock the ability to use it, the game will prompt you with a tutorial telling you how to activate it. All you have to do is hold down the attack button (square) until your android points her weapon at an enemy, and says a witty line.
If you want to use the ability before then, equip it, then hit the L3 button to turn your Pod’s light on and off. This is supposed to taunt nearby enemies, and increase your own damage output, along with theirs. However, this method seems a little hit-or-miss, so it might be better to just wait till you get the proper skill during your third run.
Taunt will raise your damage by 180%, and it does the same for nearby enemies as well. Taunt is a good chip for Hard and Very Hard mode runs, where you’ll likely be trying to avoid all hits anyway.
Be sure to check back with Twinfinite and our ever-expanding wiki for more tips, tricks, and information on NieR: Automata.
