Kensei Armor

Kensei Armor
Type	Armor
Effects	Increases Resolve gains Increases Ghost weapon damage Enemies hit by Ghost weapons deal less and receive more damage
Cost to buy	Complete "The Six Blades of Kojiro"

Belonged to a Straw Hat infamous for his cunning and deception.
― In-game description

The spirits of death were so astonished by Kojiro they blessed his armor to grant him a tireless sword arm. He’s now more than a man. He’s a slayer of legend.
― Yamato on the Kensei Armor

The Kensei Armor is an armor set in Ghost of Tsushima obtained by completing the Mythic Tale, "The Six Blades of Kojiro". It provides bonuses to Resolve gain and damage dealt by Ghost weapons.

The armor was originally worn by the fearsome Straw Hat, Kojiro. Jin Sakai would claim the armor for himself after slaying the five ronin allied with Kojiro before defeating Kojiro himself in a duel. The armor's tier I appearance heavily resembles the Ronin Attire; upon upgrading the outfit, it gains a unique cape that conceals both the Half Bow and Longbow underneath it.

Effects

When equipped, the Kensei Armor increases Resolve gains and Ghost weapon damage, and causes enemies hit by Ghost weapons to take more damage while dealing less. As further upgrades are purchased, these attributes are improved.

The fifth upgrade is only available in New Game+.

Kensei Armor I

• Moderate increase to Resolve gains.
• Ghost Weapons deal 15% more damage.
• Striking an enemy with a Ghost Weapon causes that enemy to deal 25% less damage and receive 25% more damage.

Kensei Armor II

• Major increase to Resolve gains.
• Ghost Weapons deal 15% more damage.
• Striking an enemy with a Ghost Weapon causes that enemy to deal 25% less damage and receive 25% more damage.

Kensei Armor III

• Major increase to Resolve gains.
• Ghost Weapons deal 30% more damage.
• Striking an enemy with a Ghost Weapon causes that enemy to deal 25% less damage and receive 25% more damage.

Kensei Armor IV

• Major increase to Resolve gains.
• Ghost Weapons deal 30% more damage.
• Striking an enemy with a Ghost Weapon causes that enemy to deal 50% less damage and receive 50% more damage.

Kensei Armor V

• Massive increase to Resolve gains.
• Ghost Weapons deal 40% more damage.
• Striking an enemy with a Ghost Weapon causes that enemy to deal 50% less damage and receive 50% more damage.

Upgrades

The Kensei Armor can be upgraded at any Armorer in exchange for supplies and cloth resources (linen, leather, and silk).

Kensei Armor Upgrades

Upgrade	Supplies	Linen	Leather	Silk	Cosmetic
Kensei Armor I	–	–	–	–	Kensei Headband
Kensei Armor II	250	10	–	–	Kensei Hat - Improved
Kensei Armor III	500	20	10	–	Kensei Hat - Refined
Kensei Armor IV	750	30	20	6	–
Kensei Armor V	1,000	40	30	8	–

Armor Dyes

• Dark Promise (Black Dye Merchant: 10 flowers)
• Deadly Rival's Attire (Baku the Voiceless: 15 Ghost flowers)
• Duel of Lights (Baku the Voiceless: 15 Ghost flowers)
• Ominous Dawn (Izuhara Merchants: 10 flowers)
• Pure Reckoning (White Dye Merchant: 10 flowers)
• River Serpent (default)
• Sanguine Autumn (Baku the Voiceless: 15 Ghost flowers)
• Woodland Omen (Izuhara Merchants: 10 flowers)
• Yharnam Vestments (complete the Blood-Stained Shrine)

Gallery

Dark Promise

Deadly Rival's Attire

Duel of Lights

Ominous Dawn

Pure Reckoning

River Serpent

Sanguine Autumn

Woodland Omen

Yharnam Vestments

Trivia

• The Kensei Armor was the first set of armor revealed in Ghost of Tsushima, as Jin donned the tier II set with the Ominous Dawn dye at the E3 2018 gameplay demo during an early version of "The Conspirator" (Masako Tale 8 of 9).
• The Kensei Hat - Refined incorrectly swaps the River Serpent and Ominous Dawn dyes, listing the red hat as "River Serpent" and the blue as "Ominous Dawn." This error has been in the game since launch.
• When worn by Kojiro during his duel with Jin, the Kensei Armor assumes its tier I appearance, unlike Gosaku's Armor and the Sarugami Armor when worn by Gosaku and Black Hand Riku, respectively.
  • During the cinematics of his Tale, Gosaku is seen wearing the tier III version of his armor.
  • During his duel with Jin, Black Hand Riku is shown wearing the tier III version of the Sarugami Armor.
• The Yharnam Vestments dye is a reference to FromSoftware's PlayStation Exclusive RPG Bloodborne, which takes inspiration from the main character of the game, The Hunter. In order to obtain the armor dye, Jin must solve the riddle at the Blood-Stained Shrine, another reference to Bloodborne. Furthermore, Yharnam is the name of the fictional city that serves as the game's primary setting, as well as an optional boss.
  • The Blood-Stained Shrine riddle can be completed by having Jin stand in front of the statue, equipping the Kensei Armor, and healing yourself. Some of Jin's health needs to be depleted beforehand.
  • The symbol on the Yharnam Vestments dye is the Hunter's Mark from the game Bloodborne.
• The word kensei (剣聖) is an honorary title given to warriors whose skills in swordsmanship border on legendary; the literal translation of the word means "sword saint."