Throughout my time playing Monster Hunter Wilds, I have been extremely happy with the balance of weapons within the scope of the game. Personally, ever since the introduction of the Insect Glaive, I have found myself selecting it time and time again. In previous installments of the game, it often seemed as if it was the most viable option for mounting. In Monster Hunter Wilds, I am finding that this is no longer unique to the Insect Glaive. This led me to think, what is the new optimal weapon for my own play style? On a higher level, which weapons were considered to be the best among them?
When I started researching this article, I thought that the answer would be rather cut and dry. Surely there would be weapons that stand out more than others. After conducting damage and mobility tests, along with getting a general feel of the weapons, I found that these tools are incredibly balanced. Sure, no two weapons are the same, but they certainly compete well against each other. With this being said, there still must be a hierarchy somehow. For this tier list, I will be evaluating the usability, damage, and overall feel of the weapons. While you the reader may find yourself disagreeing with this list, please do know that no matter the tool, each of these weapons can be viable in their own unique way and they are all enjoyable in their own right!
S Tier
Bow: A High-Damage Safe Pick for Ranged Players
- Easy to learn
- Feels amazing
- Inflicts statuses and relatively high damage with ease
While ranged weapons have never been my personal cup of tea in Monster Hunter, the Bow’s effectiveness cannot be denied. With the ability to equip varying statuses while maintaining a high DPS, Bow mains are able to fluently take down monsters while staying relatively safe from far away. As far as movesets go, the Bow also excels. Players are able to rain a volley of arrows, shoot a cone, and deal specified damage depending on range. While the weapon isn’t necessarily easy to use, players will quickly find themselves successfully completing hunts after a bit of practice. When playing multiplayer, the Bow becomes even more successful. Melee players are able to take the monster’s attention while players remain at range. While using the Bow can drain stamina very quickly, carrying energy drinks and decorating armor accordingly can counteract this take away with ease.
Hammer: Insane Damage for Resilient Hunters
- Power hits easily stagger
- Breaks parts with little to no effort
- Easy to use, but highly punishable
When deciding between the Hammer and the Great Sword, I found myself extremely conflicted. On one hand, the Great Sword can sever and deals competitive damage. Both are able to effectively counter attacks, but yet, the Hammer still is able to put up higher damage if attacks successfully hit. Along with this, the ability to charge a heavy attack while moving certainly puts the hammer above the rest of the heavy weapons. With a team of four hammers, hunts are easier than they should be. When fighting monsters like the Jin Dahaad, players will find that the hammer is extremely successful in material farming. For these reasons, the Hammer has indelibly earned the rank of S.
Long Sword: Insanely Satisfying Severing Power
- High damage
- Easy to use
- Timed counters
In previous instalments of Monster Hunter, the Long Sword has often had a semi-lackluster moveset. In Monster Hunter Wilds, this could not be further from the truth. Capcom has successfully turned this weapon into a beast. While this weapon is easy to pick up and use, it also holds a high skill ceiling in its combos. If players are able to perform well with the weapon, they build their spirit gauge, giving them a damage buff. At its maximum multiplier, the spirit gauge gives a 10% boost to damage. With the new wound’s mechanic, players would see their gauge build quickly, and each wound they open levels up the spirit gauge. Along with this, there are extremely satisfying aerial combos that deal unprecedented damage for the weapon class with an anime-like animation. Due to the stylish flair of the weapon and its usability alone, the Long Sword found a cozy home in the S tier.
A Tier
Dual Blades: A High Attack Speed Choice
- Hypnotic speed
- Satisfying mounts
- Easy to learn
The Dual Blades are perfect for hunters who want to be up close and personal with monsters. This weapon’s combos reward highly aggressive playstyles. This weapon also has the most satisfying focus shot by far. Players are able to tether to a monster and slash their way across their bodies. What keeps this weapon from S tier is both the damage output and its lack of defensive options. Hunters have to be willing to dodge frequently if they select the Dual Blades, but if they are willing to do this, they will find them to be extremely powerful options.
Sword and Shield: A Weapon For Combining Defense and Offence
- Easy to learn
- Counter based weapon
- Helpful for cutting parts
The Sword and Shield are a versatile choice for hunters who are leaning into mobility but still desire the ability to parry attacks. This weapon also has a relatively accessible infinite combo, and in the right hands, can succeed in severing parts of the monster with ease. This is also one of the few weapons that allows players to use items without sheathing their weapon. A hunter’s success with the Sword and Shield relies on how quickly they are able to put up damage and how well they time their parries. In the right hands, this weapon can easily be considered S tier, but it certainly falls short of the Long Sword’s performance. For this reason, it has earned a solidified spot in A tier.
Insect Glaive: Insanely High Aerial Mobility
- Extreme mobility
- Easy and frequent mounting
- High skill ceiling
This weapon is my personal favorite, and while I previously believed it to be S tier, it would turn out that many place it in B and C tier due to the Kinsect alone. Granted, the Kinsect can be difficult to set up at times. This is, however, on the back-burner, due to how much mobility this weapon can provide. Insect Glaive mains are often able to clear a decent chunk of fights without even touching the ground. On top of this, if a wound is destroyed, the Kinsect becomes fully charged. After fully charging the Kinsect, players are able to perform acrobatic charged attacks that can chain into air combos. For hunters who want to constantly mount their monsters, this weapon is arguably the best choice. For the majority of players who seek to put up high damage numbers while up close and personal, they may find themselves struggling due to the lack of defense outside of aerial combat.
Great Sword: Heavy Hitting Severer
- Heavy hitting powerhouse
- Easy to learn
- Severing machine
While this weapon could easily be S tier, it unfortunately lost its best-in-class medal to the Hammer. This weapon is a close second in terms of damage, and where it lacked most for me was its finesse. The Great Sword just didn’t hold up to the same satisfying standard that the Hammer does. This is not to say that the Great Sword isn’t enjoyable, but many including myself find themselves whiffing attacks. Along with this, the attacks just felt too repetitive and static. While this weapon is easy to use, its skill ceiling is relatively low, and relies on luck and solid reading more often than not.
Heavy Bowgun: Prehistoric Tommy Gun
- Easy status affliction
- High damage ranged
- Clunky but formidable
This was one of the more surprising entries to this list. While I am by no means a ranged player, I can easily recognize that this weapon is far better than the Light Bowgun. Behind the Bow, it deals the most damage out of all of the standard range build weapons. If the hunter does not mind the massive detriment to movement speed, they will be able to inflict statuses on monsters while still putting up numbers. The worst part about this weapon is how punishable it is. If the player is not able to position themselves accordingly, they will find themselves hit several times before they are able to flee and heal. The best part about this weapon is its full auto. The main facets limiting this weapon are ammo caps and selecting positions to fire from.
Gun Lance: A Blend of Ranged and Melee
- Explosive damage
- Thrusting attacks
- Combination of ranged and melee
The Gun Lance is an all-around powerhouse. It is able to unleash steady ranged attacks following melee thrusts. This weapon is able to deal explosive damage which ignores armor too. The Gun Lance also excels at breaking monster’s armor, and some of the sturdier parts such as the face and the back, are able to break with ease if they are hit repetitively. The biggest downside to this weapon is how linear it is. In my personal opinion, the only thing making this weapon better than the Lance is its ability to fire rounds at monsters following a flurry of melee attacks. The Gun Lance is the only ranged weapon that encourages a close proximity, giving it an easy slot in the A Tier.
B Tier
Charge Blade: A Classic for Many Hunters
- Difficult to master
- Deals impressive damage in bursts
- High skill ceiling
The Charge Blade is a finicky weapon. While it by no means lacks in the damage category, it is very difficult to use well. The weapon revolves around filling phials to deal immense damage to monsters. If players are able to use this successfully, they will be able to do a large amount of burst damage during when they fill their phials. Experienced players love this weapon, but those who are not fluent with the weapon may find more enjoyment utilizing the Great Sword, or the Insect Glaive if they still want to experience a degree of complexity in their build.
Lance: Piercing Damage With High Defense
- Highly defensive weapon
- Thrust based move set
- High piercing damage
While this weapon is arguably the best defensive choice, it is a bit out of place in Monster Hunter Wilds. Outside of fighting AOE monsters, players are better off experimenting with the Gunlance. While this weapon can pierce armor, it lacks the explosive ammo capabilities of its predecessor on the list. For this reason, the Lance remains at a shaky position between B tier and C tier due to its detriments in mobility and linearity.
C Tier
Hunting Horn: Notoriously Complicated, Resoundingly Helpful
- Most difficult solo weapon in game
- Highly rewarding for parties
- Staggers well at the cost of being highly punishable
Notoriously one of the most overcomplicated weapons in the game, the Hunting Horn does not shy away from controversy. While the capable damage is insanely high, and the buffs that can be rewarded with its melodies are valuable, it is nearly unplayable for the vast majority of hunters, at least with a sense of efficiency. Instead of focusing on hunting monsters, Hunting Horn players are focused on playing the role of a bard, giving buffs to the party. While this weapon is phenomenal in multiplayer, it is difficult to win fights solo, making it deserving of a C rating, consistent with the previous instalments of Monster Hunter.
Light Bowgun: A Light Alternative for Ranged Builds
- Easily builds statuses
- High mobility
- Very low damage
The Light Bowgun is everything that the Heavy Bowgun is not. While players are far more mobile with this weapon, its damage is subpar when compared to the Bow or the aforementioned Heavy variant. While statuses are still able to be utilized at the same rate, the damage done by the Light Bowgun is often extremely disappointing. At the same time, the Light Bowgun requires high situational awareness during the hunt and is very punishable if positioned poorly.
Switch Axe: Difficult to Master, High Skill Ceiling
- One of the most difficult weapons to use
- If used well, extremely satisfying
- Very clunky and punishable
The Switch Axe is a higher complexity version of the charge blade in more ways than one. For instance, its damage can be pretty high, but it is often more punishable than the Hammer while simultaneously dealing less damage. Overall, this weapon lacks a sense of flow that is found in other weapons on the list. If players are able to decipher this weapon however, it is an extremely capable and viable choice within the sandbox. This being said, I have rarely run into hunters who have learned the move set of this weapon fluently.
Throughout building this list, I found that each and every one of these weapons can be a great choice. While no two weapons are the same, they compete very well against each other. Capcom has excelled in creating a balanced sandbox this time around, and while I was not sure where to place many of these weapons, the stats do not lie! This is absolutely not to say that hunters are not able to succeed with a weapon that fits their playstyle, but often times, what placed a weapon lower on this list was its ease of use. If hunters are willing to conquer this, they will find extremely viable choices all the way through C tier.
Do you agree with our list, or do you think we have it wrong? Let us know your own list in the commets below!
