How to find and use the Dirty Key in Nioh 3

(Image credit: Koei Tecmo)

Finding out where to use the Dirty Key in Nioh 3 is surprisingly tough, though perhaps not as tough as getting it in the first place. Early on in the game, you'll come to a ruined village, and inside you'll find a fearsome Yamainu enemy. Though you can run straight past, if you decide to take on this wolf demon you'll get the Dirty Key as your reward.

Unfortunately, you get no indication of where to use this key, and you'll definitely want to, since it gets you a nice chunk of treasure including a Secret Skill Text. That said, here's where exactly to find the Dirty Key in Nioh 3 and how to use it.

How to get and use the Dirty Key in Nioh 3

Nioh 3 Dirty Key house location — You can use the Dirty Key to open the easternmost house in the ruined village (Image credit: Koei Tecmo)

You get the Dirty Key in Nioh 3 by defeating the Yamainu enemy patrolling the ruined village at the start of the game, after you arrive in the open world Warring States period map. He's pretty easy to spot—simply head down the path from the Prospect Hill shrine (the first you find), past the two yokai enemies into the village, where you'll see this wolf wandering up and down. Make sure to deal with the enemy on the right side rooftop who throws stuff before you engage the wolfie.

Yamainu can be tricky to beat, so I recommend softening them up with projectiles, perhaps from a rooftop, before drop-attacking onto them. They also get stuck on scenery quite easily and struggle to enter buildings, letting you easily cheese them if you're struggling to fight the proper way or can't be bothered. Once you've defeated the Yamainu, you'll get the Dirty Key and some dialogue will play.

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Nioh 3 Dirty Key - Yamainu — Defeat the Yamainu in the village to get the Dirty Key(Image credit: Koei Tecmo)

Now, to use the key, you'll want to visit the location marked above:

Enter the village from the direction of the Prospect Hill shrine
Head down the street a little way and turn left
Turn left again up the steps to the house with the cooking pot in front of it—there's also a Chijiko you can shoot down above, so you'll know you're in the right place

Interact with the door to use the Dirty Key and then open the chest inside. You'll get some assorted gear, but also the Armor Piercer Ninjutsu Secret Skill Text.

Sean's first PC games were Full Throttle and Total Annihilation and his taste has stayed much the same since. When not scouring games for secrets or bashing his head against puzzles, you'll find him revisiting old Total War campaigns, agonizing over his Destiny 2 fit, or still trying to finish the Horus Heresy. Sean has also written for EDGE, Eurogamer, PCGamesN, Wireframe, EGMNOW, and Inverse.

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