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Shin Megami Tensei V

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How to defeat Jatayu

By
Jarrod Garripoli

Punishing Foes are challenging, completely optional bosses that can be found while exploring the game’s worlds, and are tougher than normal encounters. This page will give details on the Punishing Foe, Jatayu.

Jatayu will likely be the first Punishing Foe you will fight

Where To Find Jatayu

Jatayu is a Punishing Foe you might have encountered during The Ultimate Omelette subquest, as you need to steal its egg for it. If you don’t remember where that is, or just want better directions, then you will find the Jatayu flying around in the West Shinbashi area of the Minato region. There is a path on the western side of the area, which leads up to the demon’s nest, although it’s possibly the Jatayu will see you before then, as it flies around and might aggro you.

(1 of 2) Jatayu will fly around this area of the first region

Jatayu will fly around this area of the first region (left), He will spot you whenever you get close enough (right)

Stats and Resistances

Icon Name Lv Weakness Resistances Location
SMT_V_Jatayu_Icon.jpg Jatayu 25 Electric_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png, Dark_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png Force_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png (ABSORB) Minato - West Shinbashi

Skills

Type Skill Effect
Physical_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png Critical Wave Weak Physical attacks to all foes. High chance of critical.
Force_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png Zanma +4 Medium Force attack to 1 foe.
Support_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png Sukukaja +3 Raises Accuracy/Evasion of 1 ally by 1 rank for 3 turns.
Physical_Icon_Shin_Megami_Tensei_V.png Lunge Weak Physical attack to 1 foe.

Recommended Party

Jatayu is likely the first Punishing Foe you will be able to fight in the game, as it is the lowest leveled one. Being around level 25 yourself is what you will want, as that puts you on even ground with the demon. Likewise, you will want immunity to Force here, as Jatayu’s main attack is Zanma, so changing the Nahobino’s affinities to block Force with an Essence will be one of the strategies here.

At this point in the game, the moveset for Jatayu isn’t too varied. His main attack is likely going to be Zanma, a Force-elemental attack that hits a single target. As long as none of your demons, and yourself, are weak to Force, then you should be more than fine. The other two attacks are Physical-based, with Lunge targeting one character and Critical Wave hitting the entire party. The latter has a high chance of critical, but it’s not 100%, so you better hope it doesn’t crit to give Jatayu another Press Turn icon. It’s pretty early in the game to have immunity to Physical, so just make sure to heal after Jatayu uses it.

(1 of 2) Blocking Force attacks will help limit the turns Jatayu gets

Blocking Force attacks will help limit the turns Jatayu gets (left), Be careful whenever Jatayu casts Sukukaja on himself (right)

One of the more annoying things Jatayu has in his arsenal is Sukukaja, which increases his accuracy and evasion. He has decent Agility, so his accuracy is not going to affected too much, but you don’t some of your attacks to be missing because of the increased evasion. If you have someone with Sukunda, then it’s a good idea to counter Sukukaja with it to get things back to normal. Whenever Jatayu enters Magatsuhi, there is no set skill he will use, although he might favor Zanma more than anything. To be extra careful, it’s probably best to just guard on the turn after he uses it, to reduce the chance that he might use Critical Wave instead of Zanma.

When you go on the offensive, you will want to be using both Electric and Dark attacks. Zio and Mudo will be your go-to moves in the battle, so you should have that on all of your characters. At this point in the game, Zionga and Mudoon are better, but they might be too MP-heavy. If you have a healthy supply of Chakra Drops, then you can use the strong versions. Two of the recommended demons either block wind or resist it, while someone like Jack Frost has a high magic. None of the three mentioned do learn anything Zio or Mudo-related naturally, so they will have to get them via fusion or from Essences. Kikuri-Hime is a great one, though, as she can also act as a healer, since she learns Media.

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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Atlus, Nintendo, Sega
  • Platforms,
    Switch
  • Genre
    Action Adventure, Action RPG, RPG
  • Guide Release
    5 November 2021
  • Last Updated
    18 February 2022
    Version History
  • Guide Author

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