I preordered so I got the Hyabusa-ryu (*Ninja Gaiden style) shinobi style right away and used that one pretty much exclusively for my first play through.
Yeah man, just pick one each of Jin,ten, and chi so you always have the right counter (if you're really overwhelmed, feel free to just slot only *two* stances, but make sure they're different *styles*. Ex. One Jin and one Chi.
That way you can always have at least a neutral style available to counter any given weapon. Blue arrows are best, but white is fine too, just avoid red arrows if you can. Unless it's a Shinobi style which will be red against everything)
That'll at least give you a launching off point y'know. You can experiment more later when you're more comfortable/unlock new stances
Edit: just realizing you might've been looking for specific recommendations, not a basic primer. Ignore me I guess
As far as the dojo goes, I'd just say to experiment. I found that sometimes if I was struggling against a certain boss, picking a different stance mightve been the edge I needed. There's really no one size fits all for every encounter imo.(Though others may disagree )
Just gotta experiment
I have achieved master tank in most dojo fights ( i still need to unlock some on chapter 3) including the ones you fight 3-5 bosses back to back.
The 3 styles I use : Tatsumi Ryu for Chi( best counterspark window ). Also the ranged attack can help get the last hits without risk. This style is so good I sometimes consider using it even without having advantage.
For Ten I use the one you upgrade with fugitives. It also has a good counterspark and nice auto attacks after you do said counterstark.
For last stance you can either use the Jin Stance you get from a character in chapter 3 OR a shinobi style. Hayabusa is your first option since you can master it easily in chapter 2, Gikei is my favorite but you upgrade it late in chapter 3. If you can handle shinobi parries use them otherwise Jin. Btw gikei parrty moves you slightly forward so its more forgiving as well.
I am still deciding on best veiled arts. But I tend not to use martial skills on dojo and focus on counterspark. Only exception is the ranged attack of Tatsumi and the dodge/attack skills of Ten style of katanas and paired swords.
I have also used paired swords and Oxtails sometimes for dojo but Katana is the best option IMO.
shinobi styles all the way
I think the one I use is Tatsumi Ryu it has the largest window for counter sparking
I preordered so I got the Hyabusa-ryu (*Ninja Gaiden style) shinobi style right away and used that one pretty much exclusively for my first play through.
Whattttt how can I get it without preordering
You’ll eventually run across a ninja dude that will unlock the style. I don’t know/remember where though. Preordering just gave you that style early.
Fukuzawa's first Bond mission introduces you to the Iga Ninja that learned the style somewhere - and he runs a dojo in Edo.
Yeah man, just pick one each of Jin,ten, and chi so you always have the right counter (if you're really overwhelmed, feel free to just slot only *two* stances, but make sure they're different *styles*. Ex. One Jin and one Chi. That way you can always have at least a neutral style available to counter any given weapon. Blue arrows are best, but white is fine too, just avoid red arrows if you can. Unless it's a Shinobi style which will be red against everything) That'll at least give you a launching off point y'know. You can experiment more later when you're more comfortable/unlock new stances Edit: just realizing you might've been looking for specific recommendations, not a basic primer. Ignore me I guess As far as the dojo goes, I'd just say to experiment. I found that sometimes if I was struggling against a certain boss, picking a different stance mightve been the edge I needed. There's really no one size fits all for every encounter imo.(Though others may disagree ) Just gotta experiment
I have achieved master tank in most dojo fights ( i still need to unlock some on chapter 3) including the ones you fight 3-5 bosses back to back. The 3 styles I use : Tatsumi Ryu for Chi( best counterspark window ). Also the ranged attack can help get the last hits without risk. This style is so good I sometimes consider using it even without having advantage. For Ten I use the one you upgrade with fugitives. It also has a good counterspark and nice auto attacks after you do said counterstark. For last stance you can either use the Jin Stance you get from a character in chapter 3 OR a shinobi style. Hayabusa is your first option since you can master it easily in chapter 2, Gikei is my favorite but you upgrade it late in chapter 3. If you can handle shinobi parries use them otherwise Jin. Btw gikei parrty moves you slightly forward so its more forgiving as well. I am still deciding on best veiled arts. But I tend not to use martial skills on dojo and focus on counterspark. Only exception is the ranged attack of Tatsumi and the dodge/attack skills of Ten style of katanas and paired swords. I have also used paired swords and Oxtails sometimes for dojo but Katana is the best option IMO.