Devil May Cry 5: 8 Tips To Master V's Combat (2024)

When Devil May Cry 5 got released, newcomer V easily became an enigmatic figure throughout the story. Beseeching Dante’s assistance in stopping a new demonic invasion, V himself revealed he isn’t without a host of powers of his own. Surprisingly absent in usual Devil May Cry protagonists, the thin V isn’t much of a hardline fighter. Rather, he relies on spells and his demonic companions to do the combat for him.

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For newcomers to the Devil May Cry franchise, this laid-back approach to combat can become quite new to the heavy-action series. However, V’s mechanics in Devil May Cry 5 prove he can dish out just as much damage and combos as series staples Dante and Nero. However, just how can players fully master V’s combat, considering how different it is compared to the two demon hunters?

8 Distance Is Key In Combat

Whereas both Dante and Nero rely on closing in on enemies to juggle them with long-ranged weapons or eliminate them with melee, V’s fighting style relies heavily on distance. Players need to understand that mastering V means getting familiar with three crucial aspects of his combat strategy:

• Familiars are the Strikers: V has three key Familiars to aid him in combat, namely Shadow, Griffon, and Nightmare. V can manually control the Familiars to attack, or use a bit of the Devil Trigger gauge to have them automatically attack on his behalf.
• Cane is for the Finisher: While V’s Familiars can definitely attack on his behalf, V still has to get close enough to eliminate the enemies with his cane’s finishing move.
• Book replenishes Devil Trigger Gauge: V can also strategically read his Book to recover his Devil Trigger Gauge, allowing him to use his Familiars again. However, the rate of recovery depends on how far V is from his enemies, making this a crucial point in combat.

7 Familiars Work Best With Specific Functions

Thanks to his demon summoning capabilities, V has three constant Familiars in combat. Griffon takes the form of a bird, Shadow takes the form of a quadruped, while Nightmare takes the form of a giant beast. While each Familiar is a force to reckon with in combat, they each specialize in particular playstyles that can help V maximize his presence on the battlefield:

• Griffon must be Automatic: Griffon is V’s long-ranged specialist, meaning it’s recommended for Griffon to attack automatically and keep opponents at bay while V recharges and finishes them off with his Cane.
• Shadow must be Manual: Being a quadruped, Shadow specializes in short-ranged incursions. It’s recommended that V control Shadow manually so it can obliterate enemies while they can’t attack V courtesy of Griffon.
• Nightmare must be for Emergencies: Since Nightmare depletes three Devil Trigger gauges upon summoning, it’s evident that it’s a much more powerful beast to use. V should use this to keep enemies in line while he charges to use both Griffon and Shadow once again.

6 Familiars Affect Overall Movement

Compared to Nero and Dante in their respective games, V’s movement abilities do get affected by the presence of his Familiars. This can drastically affect the flow of battle and may have to force players to rethink their approach to their V as he couldn’t be as fast-paced as they expect him to become compared to the likes of the other protagonists. Here are movement conditions to take into consideration:

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• Griffon triggers Double Jump: If V wants to double jump, he would have to summon Griffon to help propel him in the air. This would interrupt any battle progress Griffon is having with opponents, so use this carefully as this will definitely stop combat.
• Shadow becomes a skateboard: V can use Shadow to cover more ground as he can use Shadow like a skateboard. This stops Shadow from attacking, so it’s not recommended to use this in combat and instead rely on this for exploration.
• Nightmare gives the reins: When Nightmare is summoned, V can actually take the reins and ride it, allowing him to manually control its actions. However, it’s recommended to leave Nightmare to do its thing while V recuperates or prepares to summon the other two beasts.

5 Dodge For Both V And The Familiars

While V’s Familiars can simply return to him for another round of summoning, helping them stay up in the middle of combat can make things more comfortable for V. As such, while it’s extremely ideal for V to dodge in order to avoid incoming damage, it can also help to train dodging with the Familiars.

Remember that certain movements will return Familiars to V’s side, such as double jumping to resummon Griffin and side-stepping to resummon Shadow. These aren’t just created for the sake of inconvenience and flashiness. Once players see that an opponent can strike his Familiars, they can do any of these moves to get them back on his side. After all, that attack would interrupt his Familiar’s combo anyway, so may as well ensure they don’t get in hit in the process.

4 Speed Is Key To Survival

Given how V is dependent on his companions to facilitate much of his combat, it’s evident that V isn’t as tough and durable compared to Dante and Nero. As such, players who want to master V’s combat would want to ensure he’s adequately equipped with the right set of Abilities first. Here are some must-haves for V, regardless of playstyle:

• Quick Play: This allows V to move faster, enabling him to jump, dodge, and run from danger much faster compared to his base state.
• Trigger Heart: This allows V to use Nightmare more often without costing as much from his summoning gauge. With this, he can focus on offense more frequently.
• White Gainer: This lets V maintain the Devil Trigger gauge much longer with more chances of getting White Orbs.

3 Crowd Control Efficiently With Summon Placements

While each Familiar has a particular specialization, using them in a particular order can definitely keep V safe in combat despite lacking general participation over them. At its core, a key method of securing kills over a huge number of enemies would be to pull off certain summons in a particular order:

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• Spam Griffon to keep enemies at bay: It’s recommended to spam Griffon’s basic attack and switch it up for its lightning pillar to ensure enemies are kept at a safe distance. This helps avoid unnecessary incoming damage towards V.
• Secure Shadow for crowd control: Thanks to Shadow’s numerous offensive abilities, it’s best suited for dealing with close-ranged engagements in a wide variety of means. For a flashy opener, V can summon Shadow via a jump attack or a rush attack, where Shadow attacks with V at the same time. Afterward, Shadow can secure crowd control with Combo A or Combo B, and even use Hedgehog to get it out of sticky situations.

2 Focus On A Single Target To Maximize Damage

Whereas both Nero and Dante are advised to keep AOE combos rolling out to eliminate any chance of counter-attackers, V’s best combo tip is to focus on a single enemy as often as possible. Whenever he summons his Familiars, it’s best to have Griffin focus fire on an enemy, Shadow to quickly obliterate their health, and for V to finish them off.

The main advantage of V compared to Dante and Nero is that V has the means to attack simultaneously, allowing him to secure combo points faster and eliminate foes quicker. With the right distance and setup, V wouldn’t have to worry about surrounding enemies as he’ll be targeting them as soon as they come close.

1 Combo Finishers With Lock On

While it’s recommended to deal with one demon at a time once V gets them weak enough, it’s also a recommended practice for players to try to combo their finishers as often as possible. They can do this by switching up their lock-ons as soon as a demon is weak or prone to death, dealing with another demon until they’re weak enough.

Once V secures a crowd of demons that he can one-hit kill, he can start using his finishers consecutively so he secures as many combos as possible. This also appears cool in terms of visuals, as V becomes an executioner of sorts - something Nero and Dante don’t always get to pull off in intense combat.

Devil May Cry 5 is currently available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Amazon Luna.

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