Starting as a martial artist in vanilla Kenshi is… a trial. You watch your character get locked in a never-ending “dodge dance,” unable to land a punch while a pack of starving bandits nibbles on their toes. It’s a slow, often frustrating path. But what if it wasn’t? What if you could turn that clumsy brawler into a fluid, deadly fighter reminiscent of a classic kung fu hero? That’s where mods come in. With the right set of Kenshi martial arts mods, you can completely remake the unarmed experience, fixing its most glaring issues and adding layers of new content.
This list is my personal selection of mods that transform martial arts from a meme into a genuinely powerful and fun way to play. We’ll look at everything from crucial animation fixes to complete overhauls, new equipment, and even entire villages dedicated to the art of the fist.
First, Let’s Fix the Clunky Stuff
This is where you start. These mods fix the fundamental problems with vanilla martial arts, making it more responsive, visually appealing, and, most importantly, playable. Forget the janky matrix dodge and endless stunlocks; these are the essentials for any unarmed playthrough.
Martial Arts Fast Dodger
Ever seen your character dodge, and then dodge again, and again, while three enemies attack in a loop and you can’t get a single hit in? Of course you have. This mod is the cure. It’s one of the most important mods for any martial artist, period.
- Increases the speed of dodge animations by 40%.
- Prevents the infamous “dodge dance” loop.
- Allows you to attack more frequently in large fights.
✅ Gameplay changes: The difference is night and day. Combat becomes fluid and responsive. You’ll finally be able to hold your own against multiple opponents without being stun-locked by your own evasive maneuvers. It feels like your character is actually a trained fighter, not just a clumsy person having a seizure.
Martial Arts No Matrix Dodge
While the “fast dodger” mod helps, this one gets rid of the silliest-looking part of the whole affair. The matrix-style, slow-motion backbend dodge looks completely out of place in Kenshi’s gritty world.
- Disables the long, dramatic “matrix dodge” animation.
- Forces your character to use the quicker, more practical step-back dodge.
✅ Gameplay changes: This makes your dodges more consistent and believable. Paired with the Fast Dodger mod, it creates a grounded and efficient defensive style that feels much more effective and less like a trip to the circus.
Sensible Martial Arts – A Martial Arts Overhaul
This mod tackles the balancing act. Vanilla martial arts is weak early on and can become ridiculously overpowered late-game. This mod smooths out that curve for a much more rewarding journey.
- Increases early-level effectiveness and ease of training.
- Reduces the absurd damage output at very high levels.
- Increases dodge speeds to reduce “dodge dancing.”
- Adjusts when techniques are unlocked for a better sense of progression.
✅ Gameplay changes: It makes the journey of a martial artist more satisfying. You’re no longer useless for the first 20 hours, and you won’t be one-shotting leviathans by the end. It strikes a good balance, keeping martial arts powerful but not game-breaking.
Martial Arts Rebalanced
If Sensible Martial Arts seems a bit too complex, this is another fantastic overhaul that aims to fix the same core problem: poor balancing. It focuses more on attack speed rather than raw damage.
- Rebalances martial arts to make speed a more important factor.
- Addresses the weak-early, strong-late game problem.
- A simpler, more focused alternative to a full overhaul.
✅ Gameplay changes: This mod provides another path to a balanced martial artist. While my personal preference is Sensible Martial Arts for its deeper changes to skill progression, Martial Arts Rebalanced is an excellent, more lightweight choice if you just want a straight-up rebalance without extra bells and whistles.
GROUNDED 2 Combat Animations
If you want your fighter to have a unique, specialized moveset, this mod is for you. It adds a huge number of new animations specifically for martial artists, making them feel distinct from weapon users.
- Adds over 75 new attack animations to the game.
- Includes 15 new animations specifically for martial arts.
- Adds 4 new side-dodge animations, giving martial artists more mobility.
- Animations unlock progressively as your skill level increases.
✅ Gameplay changes: Your fighters will look and feel more versatile. The new dodges are a lifesaver, and seeing new kicks and strikes emerge as you level up provides a great sense of progression. This is my go-to for making a martial artist feel like a specialist.
You might find my kenshi animation mods list interesting for more general combat animation enhancements.
Animation Mods For KenshiFlashier Fight
Now, if you’re not a purist and just want combat to look cooler all around, Flashier Fight is an interesting alternative. Instead of keeping fighting styles separate, it blends them.
- Enables martial arts moves for weapon users, and vice-versa.
- Increases attack speed by 10% and defense speed by 20%.
- Boosts stumble recovery by 30%.
✅ Gameplay changes: This makes all combat more dynamic, at the cost of uniqueness. Seeing a samurai throw a kick is cool, but it does blur the lines between disciplines. It’s a matter of taste: choose GROUNDED 2 if you want your martial artist to be a specialist, or Flashier Fight if you want everyone to be a bit of a Jackie Chan.
Training, Equipment & New Starts
A warrior is nothing without training and tools. These mods give you the dojo to practice in, the gear to fight with, and even the option to skip the humble beginnings if that’s your style.
More Training Dummies
The vanilla training options are… limited. This mod expands them significantly, letting you train what you want, when you want, without resorting to cheesy tactics.
- Adds three tiers of training dummies (training up to levels 10, 25, and 50).
- Includes specific dummies for Martial Arts, Strength, Dexterity, and more.
- Organizes dummies into logical categories in the build menu.
✅ Gameplay changes: It gives you a clear and balanced path for training your squad at your base. No more luring bandits into a cage just to get some skill-ups. You can create a proper dojo and train your recruits in a way that feels natural and rewarding.
Fist Weapons of Kenshi (Belt Edition)
Fist weapons are a classic trope for a reason. This mod adds them in a smart, balanced way, occupying the belt slot to provide bonuses without replacing your hands entirely.
- Adds Katars, Tekko, and Tekko-Kagi as belt items.
- Provides various martial arts bonuses.
- Includes a small attack penalty to balance the fact it’s a belt item.
- Weapons can be crafted and are found in shops around the world.
✅ Gameplay changes: This gives you another equipment slot to customize your martial artist’s build. The author notes that the Weapon Slot Edition has crashing issues, so I strongly recommend using this Belt Edition instead.
Martial Arts Armour Set
Fighting unarmored is cool, but not always practical. This mod adds a beautiful, lore-friendly armor set designed specifically for martial artists.
- Adds a full set of specialized armor with a unique “monstrous” design.
- Offers a balance of protection and flexibility.
- Blueprints are available from various vendors (Holy Nation, Mongrel, Tech Hunters).
✅ Gameplay changes: Finally, a set of armor that looks the part and doesn’t completely cripple your dodge and martial arts skills. It’s perfect for roleplaying and provides decent protection.
And for those interested in... other types of outfits, kenshi nsfw mods list might offer some different aesthetics.😏
NSFW Mods For KenshiMartial Artist Start
Look, I get it. Sometimes you just want to get to the good stuff. If starting as a nobody and getting beaten up for ten hours isn’t your idea of fun, this mod is for you.
- Provides a dedicated “Martial Artist” game start.
- Begins your character with some basic unarmed skills.
✅ Gameplay changes: It lets you bypass the initial, brutal grind. Personally, I think the true Kenshi journey is earning those first few skill points through pain and perseverance. But if you’re on your tenth playthrough and just want to start throwing kicks, this is a straightforward way to do it.
Recommended Load Order & Final Tips
Most of these mods play nicely together, but here is the combination I’d recommend for a comprehensive and stable experience.
- Main Fixes: Martial Arts Fast Dodger + Martial Arts No Matrix Dodge. Don’t leave home without them.
- Balancing (Choose One): Sensible Martial Arts (my pick) for a deep overhaul, or Martial Arts Rebalanced for a simpler, speed-focused alternative.
- Visual Flair (Choose One): GROUNDED 2 for a specialized martial artist, or Flashier Fight for blended, Hollywood-style combat for everyone.
- Core Upgrades: More Training Dummies, Fist Weapons of Kenshi (Belt Edition), and the Martial Arts Armour Set for training and gearing up.
A Final Punch
Building the perfect martial artist in Kenshi is a journey, and these mods make that journey so much better. They fix the clunkiness, smooth out the difficulty, and add layers of flavor that the vanilla game just doesn’t have.
If you have any favorite Kenshi martial arts mods that I’ve missed, feel free to contact me. I’m always looking for new things to test, and I might just add your suggestion to this list. Now go out there and show the wasteland the true meaning of unarmed combat.
