Black Myth: Wukong

By
Jason Rodriguez
on August 19, 2024 at 7:00PM PDT

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Black Myth: Wukong offers fast-paced, frenetic, and ferocious combat. Most of the time, though, you’ll need to deftly avoid enemy attacks by dodging. Well, at least until you can properly deflect them that is. Here’s our guide to help you unlock the parry spell in Black Myth: Wukong.

Black Myth: Wukong parry guide – How to unlock the parry spellThe Black Myth: Wukong parry spell is called Rock Solid and, no, it’s not available at the start of the game. Our guide discusses where you can acquire it, along with its talents/perks, as well as other methods that help you negate damage.

How to unlock the Rock Solid parry spellThe Black Myth: Wukong parry spell is unlocked during the events of Chapter 2. Specifically, once you reach the Crouching Tiger Temple, you’ll do battle against the Tiger Vanguard boss. This foe has rather fast attacks, including multi-hit sequences that can leave you reeling. As such, we recommend equipping certain curios/accessories and gourd drinks/soaks, as well as activating your transformation when necessary.

After the boss has been defeated, the headless minstrel NPC will make an appearance. He’ll then teach you the Rock Solid spell.

Rock Solid usageThe Rock Solid parry in Black Myth: Wukong is considered an Alteration-type spell. That means it conflicts with Cloud Step since they share the same keybind/button assignment. As such, you’re going to have to pick between the two.

As for what makes Rock Solid a “solid” choice, it’s because it has a rather forgiving parry window. When the button is pressed, your character enters a defensive stance for around one second, whereupon any attack gets automatically deflected. Ideally, you should cast this when an enemy’s melee blow is about to land, since it can stagger them instantly. If you cast this to avoid a ranged projectile, then it will get wasted since your target won’t flinch at all.

Rock Solid talents and perksHere are the default values for Rock Solid:

Mana cost: 30Cooldown: 15 secondsHere are the unlockable perks:

Rapid Return – Rock Solid can be canceled at will.Rock Mastery – Moderately reduces the cooldown.Nick of Time – Grants a considerable amount of focus after a successful deflection.Ironclad – Grants damage reduction for a short period after a successful deflection.Upper Hand – Increases the damage of the light attack starter after a successful deflection.Bold Venture – Recovers a small amount of mana after a successful deflection; narrows the deflection window if activated.Among these options, we feel that Rapid Return, Rock Mastery, Ironclad, and Upper Hand offer the best results. It’s unlikely that you’ll need the others, and you definitely don’t want to make the deflection window narrower than it already is.

Can you parry using your staff?The Destined One can only wield a staff (which is fairly lore-accurate). However, the parry mechanic for staves, if we can call it that, isn’t as straightforward as pressing a single button at the right time. Basically, there are three instances where you’ll be able to negate damage:

Initial varied combo animation – A varied combo occurs when you do light attacks, followed by a heavy attack that consumes a focus point. The initial animation or wind-up usually has invincibility frames or iframes.Seeing through an enemy’s move – Smash Stance has a “see through” mechanic, whereby you automatically riposte an enemy’s hit. This is done by doing a varied combo and starting your heavy attack just as an enemy blow is about to land.Tactical Retreat – Thrust Stance, meanwhile, has its own varied combo where the heavy attack causes a backstep. This can be followed up with a powerful thrust or a series of quick jabs depending on perks that you’ve unlocked. Unlike seeing through with Smash Stance, the backstep can be done even if you mistime your target’s incoming attack.

Can you parry using spirit forms?The Black Myth: Wukong parry system extends to spirit forms, albeit in a slightly different manner. Here are some examples:

Flint Chief – Activating this skill turns you into a chunk of rock. You should be able to negate damage for around a couple of seconds.Earth Rakshasa – This creature plops down a giant shield. If an enemy strikes this shield, they’ll get staggered temporarily.That does it for our Black Myth: Wukong parry guide. For other tips, you can take a look at our HP/mana/stamina upgrades guide and spells guide.

Black Myth: Wukong takes you to realms filled with mysterious beings and numerous challenges. For more tips and tactics, you can visit our Black Myth: Wukong guides hub.