Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Combat Tips Guide

Here's some beginner tips to get you started on your journey in Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.

Now that you’ve got your hands on Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, perhaps getting some beginner combats tips is in order. Well GameSkinny has got you covered. Here in this guide I’ll cover some tips to keep you alive and moving against those nasty Uruks.

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Enemies are plenty in Mordor and what’s important to keep in mind; the more you progress through the game, the more enemies you’ll come up against and the harder they become. For every enemy you fall to, they become stronger with Power. Depending on their ranking: they can challenge another Uruk, defeat him, then gain Power and rank.

Running away to fight another day is nothing to be ashamed of..

.. hell, it will keep you alive when you come up against too many enemies.

Learning to use Talion’s Stealth tactics is highly advisable. As you gain Ability Points, you can even use the Stealth tactic “Strike From Above” for aerial takedowns–they’ll never see you coming.

Opening the ability “Ride Caragors” is beneficial since you can mount these beasts and takedown enemies. They will also remain on your side and fight for you until they die. Caragors have their own attacks in combat that can be used both against Captains and ordinary enemies.

I highly recommend mastering the Counter function and unlocking “Impact.” This will allow countered enemies to be knocked backwards, stunned or even knocked down.

 

Drain is a vital aspect of Talion’s wraith-like abilities. This allows you to draw the lifeforce from the Uruks to attain Elder shot arrows for your bow (which you need). There are various abilities to unlock for the arrows too:

  • Fire Arrow: will cause huge explosions when used on barrels or campfires
  • Quick Draw: significantly reduces the time taken to charge a bow attack
  • Pin in Place: bow attacks aimed at an Uruk’s legs will pin him in place to keep him from escaping during a tough fight

Drain abilities:

  • Combat Drain: instantly drain an Uruk which recovers Elf shot and terrifies the target
  • Brand: all Drain moves now Brand the target
  • Stealth Drain: Drain while in stealth

When hiding inside bushes, Talion can stealth kill his enemies and perform ranged kills using the bow and arrow. Talion is hidden from all enemies whether he is in crouched or not, he also enters into Wraith Mode. If an enemy sees you entering a bush, this method is not going to work. It’s a good idea to use bushes since you can reduce the number of enemies one by one.

Know Captain Weaknesses and Strengths

 

Each Captain in the game has unique strengths and weaknesses that Talion can know to use to his advantage. There are multiple ways of knowing this information. Some information can be found openly across the world, others by interrogating other enemies. This makes killing them much easier. Some Captains are immune to ranged attacks and some are afraid of Caragor. Worms, another type of Uruk, can expose a Captain’s weaknesses during an interrogation.

It’s better to encounter a Captain in a 1v1 scenario but if he calls for reinforcements, keep your focus on the Captain. The reason is that Captains regenerate health over time which is no fun in combat. They will also try to flee the area. You don’t want this to happen at any cost. If a Captain tries to flee, you must chase him down and kill him.

Watch out for Archers and Poison

 

Don’t underestimate the archers with their long ranged attacks or that of poison attacks. These will hurt Talion in time–trust me. Ranged attacks will come from the archers and spear-throwing enemies. These guys are nasty! Poison attacks will come from ghouls and other specialized enemies. So beware!

Keep us saved on your browser and tune here for helpful guides as I journey further into Mordor.


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Author
Venisia Gonzalez
Venisia is a public relations professional, video game industry contractor, published author, freelance entertainment journalist, copy editor, a co-organizer of the Latinx Games Festival, and a member of the Latinx in Gaming and the Puerto Rico Game Developers (PRGD) community. Her passion is video games. She loves the adrenaline rush from a multiplayer match and understands the frustrations of a brand-new raid. Venisia finds immense value in gaming especially in the realm of mental health.