Quick answer: Guard or parry the Shadow Assassin’s hooked-blade strings until its guard breaks, then press E to execute it. Repeat each time the prompt returns until the final execution kills it, while stepping out of the Floating Head’s shockwave.
It drops into the hall beneath the gallery a few seconds after you slide down the rope, so face it as soon as you land.
Shadow Assassin at a glance
The Shadow Assassin is a masked fighter in a shaggy feathered cloak. It carries a hooked, sickle-like blade in each hand. Its health shows as a small bar over its head, not as a boss bar along the bottom of the screen.
- Health on Wayfarer: 22,530 HP
- Arena: a square wooden hall in the Mirage Estate, with a patterned carpet, pillars and an open balcony walkway around the outside
- Company: a Floating Head, a floating doll head with a purple flame, shares the hall
- Reward on Wayfarer: 2,239 dust
Two more Shadow Assassins perch on the roofs above the gallery walkway. They stay where they are when you walk underneath them.
Where to find the Shadow Assassin
Shadow Assassin attacks and the Floating Head
Arrival from its perch
The fight starts the moment you touch the floor.
Slashing strings with both blades
Up close, it chains slashes from both hooked blades, often several in a row. Guarded hits throw orange sparks. This is the attack you want it to use, because guarding these strings is what breaks its guard.
High jump and smoke drop
It leaps high, either onto a railing or straight into the air, then comes down on you in a burst of grey smoke.
Floating Head shockwave
The Floating Head drifts toward you and releases a round shockwave around itself. It tends to land while your attention is on the Assassin.
Pursuit onto the balcony
If you retreat onto the narrow balcony walkway, the Assassin follows. Railings and pillars there get in the way of the camera.
How to beat the Shadow Assassin
On Wayfarer, the fight runs about three minutes, and a single gourd heal can carry you through with a bit over 60% health to spare. If you struggle, return with upgraded weapons or lower the difficulty to Wayfarer.
Shadow Assassin reward
On Wayfarer, killing it pays 2,239 dust. The Floating Head remains in the hall afterward, and you can deal with it once the Assassin is down.
