Lady Butterfly is one of the toughest skill check bosses you’ll encounter in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. It is technically possible to reach her quite early as long as you have the right key items. However, she will easily humble unprepared players with her lightning-fast attacks and unique ninja tricks. In this guide we’ll explain how to prepare for and weather Lady Butterfly’s unrelenting assault.
Sekiro: Defeating Lady Butterfly
Shortly before the Lady Butterfly fight you’ll meet a wounded samurai who gives you a curious item: Snap Seeds. It’s not immediately apparent how or when you should use the Snap Seeds, but you will need them. In fact, before you challenge Lady Butterfly directly you should first go out and find more Snap Seeds.
Finding Snap Seeds
Snap Seeds can be found along the same cliffs where you encounter the Great Serpent. If you’ve already survived the Great Serpent encounter, you can return without fear of encountering it a second time. Specifically, a stack of five Snap Seeds lies near the palanquin where you stabbed the Great Serpent’s eye.
With the Snap Seeds in hand you can challenge Lady Butterfly. Bolstering your stats as much as you can beforehand isn’t a bad idea either. If you can, try to defeat Gyoubu Oniwa first since doing so boosts your combat potential.
Fighting Lady Butterfly
The actual Lady Butterfly fight seems intimidating at first, but she’s actually quite manageable once you figure out her routine. Her close-range attacks are quick, but are also surprisingly easy to dodge/deflect. Your first goal is to whittle down her vitality so that her posture doesn’t recover as fast. Whenever she finishes a combo, slip in for a quick counter-hit. Also, when she’s leaping in the air, you can knock her down with the shuriken launcher prosthetic tool.
Lady Butterfly also has two “danger” moves you need to watch out for. The first is a lunging sweep which you can avoid by jumping. The second is a high jump which transitions into a heavily damaging throw if it connects. You can avoid the throw by quickly dodging backwards as she comes down.
Even though she only has one deathblow counter, Lady Butterfly is actually a two-phase fight. After you fell her once, she’ll reveal her deception and come back for a second go. During the second phase she’ll also summon spirits who will try to attack you with melee swings. After a few moments the spirits will also transform into hard-to-dodge butterfly projectiles. Use the Snap Seeds to quickly banish the spirits and get back to fighting Lady Butterfly.
Since the Snap Seeds are limited-use items, you should only use them if you’re confident you can win the battle. Aside from the spirits Lady Butterfly doesn’t have any other new tricks during phase two. Just keep up the pressure to break her posture and the battle will be yours.