How To Recruit All Allies And Companions In Assassin's Creed Shadows

Are you looking for more companions and allies in Assassin's Creed Shadows? These supporting characters might be in dire straits when you first meet them. However, you can help them out as Yasuke or Naoe, which then gives you an opportunity to convince them to join the League. Our guide has all the details, but be forewarned that there will be spoilers ahead.

Where to find all companions and allies in Assassin's Creed Shadows

You'll meet several potential allies as you go through the campaign and explore the vast lands of Sengoku-era Japan. Some companions are encountered as you tackle main quests (i.e. Shinbakufu targets), while others are part of side quests in other regions.

Ally recruitment tips: Canon Mode, impactful choices, and romance

Here are some important tidbits to remember if you want to recruit allies and companions in Assassin's Creed Shadows:
Do not enable Canon Mode when playing the campaign. Canon Mode prevents you from choosing between Yasuke or Naoe, as well as restricts you from picking dialogue responses. As such, it's possible to miss out on pivotal moments or crucial choices.
Some crucial choices are related to dialogue replies. You'll usually receive a warning like: "This will impact [character name]."
Choosing the incorrect response may lock you out of recruiting that companion.
In some cases, certain companions might die before they can even join your League.
Lastly, there are some allies who are also romance options.

The Dojo: How to summon allies and upgrade their abilities

As soon as you've recruited your first ally in the game, you'll be able to construct the Dojo building in your hideout. This facility lets you assign a companion to your squad. In combat, you can hold the aim button and press the corresponding prompt/keybind to summon them, whereupon they'll use their abilities.
Likewise, you can upgrade your Dojo by spending mon. Here's what each upgrade provides:
Dojo level 1: You can train allies up to Initiate rank--i.e. unlock their first passive skill on top of their default active ability.
Dojo level 2: You can assign up to two allies to aid you in battle.
Dojo level 3: You can train allies up to Veteran rank--i.e. unlock their second passive skill.

Yaya

Yaya will likely be the first Assassin's Creed Shadows ally that you'll meet in the campaign. She makes an appearance while you're tackling The Wounded arc. Later, you can do her side quest called The Stray Dogs so she can join you permanently.
Recruited by: Naoe
Quest/arc: The Wounded - Heads Will Roll and The Stray Dogs
Requirements: If you see "impactful" dialogue responses when talking with Yaya, be sure to select those that cause her to forgive others:
Shinbakufu quest: Heads Will Roll - "Killing them isn't justice."
Ally quest: The Stray Dogs - "We forgive him."
Romanceable: No
Ability: Rikishi - Joins the fight and performs pushback attacks.
Passive skill 1: Oshitaoshi - When joining the fight, Yaya will knock down an enemy.
Passive skill 2: Inner Strength - Uses a powerful kick to send enemies flying.

Gennojo

Gennojo is yet another ally that can join the League. For starters, you need to tackle the arc that involves taking out The Fool member of the Shinbakufu. After eliminating your target, you must then complete Gennojo's personal quest chain. This leads to the concluding quest called The Godless Harvest.
Recruited by: Naoe
Quest/arc: The Fool - Ise Sadatame/The Messenger and The Twisted Tree
Requirements: There are a few key requirements to get Gennojo to join your team:
Ally quest: Honor Among Thieves - Reply with "I'm keeping it then" when Gennojo tells you what's on the note that you just stole.
Ally quest: The Godless Harvest - After killing the samurai named Tatsugoro, Gennojo will attempt to blow up the supply of rice. Choose to "soothe Gennojo" when prompted.
Romanceable: Yes - You can learn more in our Gennojo romance guide.
Ability: Mischievous Sabotage - Throws a startling explosive projectile.
Passive skill 1: Over Here - Draws the attention of an enemy that's about to attack you.
Passive skill 2: Charming Presence - Servants no longer inform enemies about the crimes that they see.

Katsuhime

Katsuhime is an Assassin's Creed Shadows companion that can join your team, as long as she manages to survive a pivotal moment during one of her quests.
Recruited by: Naoe
Quest/arc: The Naginata - Aoi/Shotei/Katsuhime
Requirements: The goal is to take out the Naginata member of the Shinbakufu. After that, you can tackle a series of side quests from Katsuhime. Eventually, you'll receive a quest called The Diary of Lady Rokkaku, where you'll learn that Katsuhime infiltrated Omizu Tenshu on her own.
You have to kill a samurai named Isono Kazumasa, as well as the other guards nearby. Failure to do so quickly will cause Katsuhime to die.
If you managed to rescue Katsuhime in the nick of time, you still need to take out the other sentries. Clear a path so that you can carry Katsuhime on your back and bring her outside the castle's gates. After the cutscene, you should be able to recruit her.
Romanceable: Yes - You can learn more in our Katsuhime romance guide.
Ability: Teppodo - Joins the fight and deals daze attacks with her teppo.
Passive skill 1: Explosive Entrance - Throws a dazing bomb when joining the fight.
Passive skill 2: Bullet Ricochet - Bullets that hit a dazed target also ricochet to another target.

Oni-Yuri

Unlike several other Assassin's Creed Shadows allies and companions, the process to recruit Oni-Yuri isn't part of a broader arc concerning the Shinbakufu targets. Instead, she has her own side quests that take place in Sotomo Gate in the Wakasa region, the northwesternmost part of the world map.
Recruited by: Naoe
Quest/arc: Sweet Lies and Sweet Revenge
Requirements: Basically, whenever you're prompted to choose between characters or make a reply, you have to choose Naoe instead of Yasuke. Naoe is more understanding, which means Oni-Yuri will feel more comfortable with her. You can learn more in our Oni-Yuri recruitment/quests guide.
Romanceable: No
Ability: Sleep Dart - Oni-Yuri puts enemies to sleep.
Passive skill 1: Increased Dosage - Releases a toxic cloud that envenoms people.
Passive skill 2: Poison the Rations - Reinforcements are delayed in the event of an alert.

Ibuki

Similar to Oni-Yuri, Ibuki's recruitment is also part of a separate quest chain. The key factor here is that there's a certain combination of "bad" replies and outcomes that will prevent him from joining your League.
Recruited by: Yasuke
Quest/arc: Ambush Interrupted and Homecoming
Requirements: You need to pick all the good replies, or a mix of good and bad. You should avoid choosing all the bad responses/outcomes while doing his quests. The four good responses/outcomes are below:
Ambush Interrupted good reply: "I have changed."
Ambush Interrupted good reply: "I would exile him."
Homecoming good reply: "Fight with us, Kyobei!"
Homecoming good outcome: Kyobei survives the battle against Nakatomi.
Romanceable: Yes - You can learn more in our Ibuki romance guide.
Ability: Petals in the Wind - Ibuki joins the fight and deals impact attacks.
Passive skill 1: Strike of the Ronin - When joining the fight, Ibuki shatters the armor of enemies.
Passive skill 2: Blade of Fujin - Ibuki will use Strike of the Ronin more often.
That does it for our guide on how to recruit companions and allies in Assassin's Creed Shadows. We'll update our article as we discover other potential buddies for Naoe and Yasuke, so stay tuned.
Do you need more help as you continue your adventure throughout Sengoku Jidai era Japan? We've got you covered, so just take a look at our Assassin's Creed Shadows guides hub.

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