Is Samurai Clan Armor Good in Ghost of Tsushima?

The short answer is an emphatic yes – the Samurai Clan Armor lives up to its namesake by being one of the strongest armors for general combat use in Ghost of Tsushima. Let‘s analyze why it deserves such praise.

Samurai Clan Armor Benefits

Right off the bat, equipping the Samurai Clan Armor provides the following potent perks:

• Restores ~10% health when taking damage – This occurs once every few seconds to provide sustainability
• Increases maximum health by ~30% – More health means surviving formerly lethal blows
• Reduces all incoming damage by ~15% – Combined with the health restore, makes you extremely durable

You can really feel these benefits combine to make you a walking tank in battle while retaining mobility. Even when surrounded, the health ticks give you a strong survivability edge.

Understanding the Impact of Vital Perks

To appreciate why the Samurai Clan Armors main effects are so impactful in Ghost of Tsushima, let‘s overview some key combat mechanics:

• Parrying is High Risk – Perfect parries greatly damage enemies but missing one often means taking hits
• Damage Adds Up Quickly – Just a few hits from hard foes can be lethal if health isn‘t restored
• Spacing is Limited – The camera perspective and mix of enemies means you can get swarmed and flanked

This makes sustaining health while battling multiple foes essential. The Samurai Clan Armor passively addresses these needs. You have wiggle room on parries, room for error when flanked, and don‘t get worn down as smaller hits accrue.

Hard Stats Quantifying the Benefits

Let‘s hypothetically compare how the Samurai Clan Armor performs versus going armorless using Jin at an equal power level.

Incoming Attacks Without Armor:

• Heavy Spear Attack: 60 damage
• Heavy Sword Combo: 40 + 40 + 50 = 130 damage

Incoming Attacks With Armor:

• Heavy Spear Attack: 60 * 0.85 = 51 (15% reduction)
• Heavy Sword Combo: 34 + 34 + 42 = 110 (15% reduction)

Effective Health Increase

• Base Health: 100 HP
• Samurai Armor Bonus: +30 HP
• Effective Health: 130 HP (30% increase)

So with the armor, you take 15% less damage from attacks while having 30% more total health. This combines to make you far tougher against lethal combinations of enemy attacks compared to no armor.

The health restore effect then provides sustain on top of the boosted durability.

How Samurai Clan Compares to Other Top Armors

While the Samurai Clan Armor excels on its own merits, how does it stack up versus other strong armor choices in Ghost of Tsushima?

Here‘s a comparison table to showcase differences:

Key Takeaways on Comparisons:

• Only the Sakai Clan Armor comes close in terms of combat effectiveness
• Gosaku trades defense for heavy offense with its stagger damage
• Ronin gear sacrifices combat ability severely for stealth focused perks

So while the other armor sets have their niches, the Samurai Clan Armor really provides the most versatile boosts for challenging battles against hordes of foes.

The health sustain allows you to get aggressive with Gosaku while the damage reduction means you aren‘t as fragile for stealth scenarios when wearing Ronin attire. It combines superbly with any playstyle.

Ideal Player Builds & Playstyle Pairings

We‘ve covered why Samurai Clan Armor works so well independently – but what builds and playstyles make it shine brightest?

Complementing Swordplay Approaches

Aggressive Swordsman – Pair with Stone Stance for breaking defenses and Sarugami Armor for deadly combos after perfect parries. The health restore sustains your relentless attacking.

Balanced Samurai – Combine with extremely quick Water Stance maneuvers and the Sakai Armor‘s terrifying Standoff streaks. FillResolve between active melee attacks.

Evasive Ronin – Supplement the Ronin Armor‘s stealth attacks with Wind Stance evasions and hit-and-run tactics. Use health restore to offset any hits taken.

Boosting Devastating Techniques

Explosive Arrow Barrages – Grab the Sarugami Long Bow for bonus draw speed and use Explosive Arrows to detonate whole crowds. Armor durability lets you take nearby blasts.

Charging Through Horses – Equip Jinde Horse Armor to increase charge damage. Now you can decimate enemies by quickly charging between hordes as the armor restores health lost.

Backstabbing Assassinations – Take the Stealth Charm to speed assassinations from behind then use the armor to offset enemies investigating their comrades‘ deaths.

As highlighted above, the Samurai Clan Armor flexibly empowers both aggressive and evasive tactics while covering up weaknesses of specialized builds.

Future Armor in Ghost of Tsushima

While the Samurai Clan Gear currently reigns supreme, it‘s possible future armor may surpass it one day. What kind of upcoming armor sets could give it competition?

Iki Island DLC Armors – We may see new native islander armor added with effects tailored to horseback combat given the expansion‘s setting and themes. These could alter the meta.

Mythical Armors – Ghost of Tsushima lacks exceptionally rare crafted armors beyond cosmetics. Weapons have some so perhaps mythic armors with exotic effects get added.

New Game+ Exclusive Armors – One speculative idea is New Game+ unlocks special armors only obtainable by starting fresh playthroughs. These could offer altered effects.

Of course the above is just speculation – there have been no armor-related announcements yet from Sony Interactive Entertainment. But the future looks bright for armor diversity in Ghost of Tsushima!

In the context of its current competition, the Samurai Clan Armor stands tall as one of Ghost of Tsushima‘s best armors for versatile combat effectiveness.

The vital combination of health sustain, damage reduction, and boosted health makes it uniquely equip you to endure battling groups of foes. These bonuses complement any melee tactics and build beautifully.

While specialized armors like Gosaku and Ronin gear enable niche playstyles, none quite offer the Samurai Clan Armors exceptional coverage of combat fundamentals.

So if you‘re struggling in lethal duels or relentless onslaughts, I‘d wholeheartedly recommend grabbing the Samurai Clan Armor early. It embodies the durable spirit of Tsushima‘s warriors.

That sums up my in-depth take! What has your experience been using the heralded Samurai Clan Armor? Have any preferred pairings with it? Let me know in the comments and stay tuned for more Ghost of Tsushima coverage.