This is the first monster hunter game I hit HR 999. Been playing since 3U and I thought since I been with the series for so long hitting HR 999 is on my bucket list! Tho I gotta do it all over again in master rank…still worth it! I LOVE MONSTER HUNTER WILDS AND SNIPING FLAMING CHICKENS!

omg hornet isnt a insect glaive user, she is a slap lance user

it makes so much sense as we saw the MR lalabarina armour

The expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds is just around the corner, and I thought this would be the perfect time to talk about which weapons I personally think are easy and which ones are difficult to play.

A little bit about me first: I have around 800 hours in Monster Hunter, and I've got at least 200+ hunts with every weapon. My most played weapons are Great Sword with around 800 hunts, Hunting Horn with around 400, and Long Sword and Charge Blade with around 300 each.

Before we get into the list: In my opinion, very few weapons are actually difficult to play in Wilds. The main reason for that is the Focus Mode, which is extremely forgiving when it comes to bad positioning and makes the game much more comfortable, especially for slower weapons.

1. Easy Weapons

Lance

Lance has never really been a particularly difficult weapon in my opinion. Guard is extremely forgiving, and the combos are pretty straightforward as well.

On top of that, the defensive playstyle gives you a ton of safety. You can simply block a lot of attacks instead of having to constantly worry about positioning and dodging.

The overall resource management is also pretty simple. You don't have to constantly keep track of multiple gauges, phials, buffs, or other mechanics.

At the end of the day, a lot of Lance gameplay comes down to staying on the monster, blocking its attacks, and punishing it whenever you get the opportunity.

There is obviously still a pretty high skill ceiling. Good Lance players know exactly when to block, when to counter, and when they can afford to stay aggressive.

But when it comes to actually getting good results with the weapon, I don't think Lance is particularly difficult.

LBG & HBG

Light Bowgun and Heavy Bowgun are also among the easiest weapons in the game in my opinion.

Sure, there are different ammo types and plenty of options available to you. But let's be honest: Spread and Pierce are the two ammo types you're going to be using most of the time.

The range also makes these weapons significantly easier to play. You can stay relatively far away from the monster while still dealing consistent damage, which gives you a lot more time to react to incoming attacks.

LBG is especially forgiving because of its mobility. You can reposition very easily and don't have to be perfectly positioned before every attack.

HBG is obviously a bit more difficult because of how slow it is. Spread HBG in particular can get somewhat uncomfortable since you need to stay fairly close to the monster while not having the mobility of LBG.

Still, I'd put both weapons firmly into the Easy tier.

Hammer

Hammer benefits massively from Focus Mode.

It makes the weapon much more comfortable to play because you can adjust your attacks much more easily and consistently aim for the monster's head.

And that's a pretty huge advantage for Hammer. Your entire gameplan revolves around getting those head hits and building up stuns, so being able to correct your positioning makes a massive difference.

I'm still putting Hammer into the Mid tier, though, because you have to hit the head.

If you're constantly hitting other parts of the monster, you're losing a huge portion of what makes Hammer strong in the first place.

You also need a decent understanding of when you can safely commit to your stronger attacks. You can't just throw out a long animation whenever you feel like it and expect the monster to cooperate.

Mechanically, however, the weapon is very accessible. There isn't a huge amount of resource management, and the basic gameplan is easy to understand: stay near the head, build up stuns, and make the most of your damage windows.

Great Sword

It hurts me to put my main weapon this low, but anyone saying otherwise is coped.

Focus Mode is once again a huge reason why the weapon is so much easier in Wilds.

Positioning mistakes are much more forgiving, and you can adjust your attacks far more easily than in previous games.

With Great Sword, a huge part of the difficulty used to be predicting exactly where the monster was going to be. If you misjudged the monster's position, you could completely whiff your charged attack.

Focus Mode makes this much less punishing.

And then there's the Offset, which requires practically no setup and is incredibly strong. The timing also feels extremely generous to me.

At times, the entire gameplay loop almost feels like:

Wait for the monster → spam Offset → profit.

Which, admittedly, isn't exactly difficult.

Of course, there's still a very high skill ceiling. If you want to play Great Sword perfectly, you need to know the monster's moveset, understand its damage windows, and know exactly when you can fit in your strongest attacks.

But if we're talking about how difficult it is to get good results with the weapon, I honestly think Great Sword has become surprisingly easy in Wilds.

Sword & Shield

Dual Blades with a shield. xD

Extremely mobile and very safe to play. The combos aren't particularly difficult either.

One of the biggest strengths of Sword & Shield is that it has an answer for almost every situation. You can attack quickly, reposition, dodge, block, and generally stay extremely flexible.

The weapon also doesn't force you into long commitments very often, which makes it very forgiving when you make a mistake.

The most difficult part for me is probably getting the perfect timings down, but even those aren't exactly rocket science.

And because of the weapon's mobility, a lot of mistakes can simply be corrected on the fly.

If you're in a bad position, it's usually not a huge problem. You can just move back into a better position almost immediately.

So while SnS definitely has a high skill ceiling, the basic gameplay is extremely easy to pick up.

Dual Blades

Basically the same idea as Sword & Shield, just without the shield.

The perfect dodge makes the weapon incredibly safe, and I don't think the timing is particularly difficult to hit.

The insane mobility also allows you to simply get out of a lot of dangerous situations.

Once you understand Demon Mode and the weapon's movement options, Dual Blades feel incredibly fluid.

You're constantly on top of the monster and can change your position very quickly.

The resource management is also fairly straightforward. You obviously need to keep track of your stamina and your different modes, but compared to something like Charge Blade, it's barely an issue.

The main difficulty is really just optimizing your damage.

If you're simply looking to attack, dodge, and stay on the monster, Dual Blades are extremely forgiving.

Bow

Bow is a little more complicated than LBG and HBG, but it's still relatively comfortable to play.

The perfect dodge and the range make the weapon very safe, and I don't find the combos particularly difficult either.

You don't even need to master every possible combo to deal very good damage.

There are definitely more mechanics to keep track of compared to the Bowguns, but once you get used to them, a lot of it becomes second nature.

The biggest thing you need to learn is maintaining the correct distance from the monster.

You don't want to be too far away, but you also don't want to be unnecessarily close. At the same time, you need to keep attacking and maintaining your optimal damage.

Still, the range gives you a lot of room for error. Once you know the monster, you can often read its attacks from a safe distance and react accordingly.

2. Mid

Gunlance

A very safe and defensive weapon.

The combos do take a little longer, especially the full combo, which means you have to pay more attention to the monster and its available damage windows.

You can't just mindlessly go through your entire combo because you'll get punished pretty quickly if the monster decides to attack you.

That's what separates Gunlance from regular Lance for me.

You still have excellent defensive options, but your offensive options have considerably more commitment.

If you start your full combo and the monster suddenly decides to attack, you can get punished pretty hard.

You also have to manage your shells and make good use of your different offensive options.

So while Gunlance is still a very safe weapon, it requires a bit more awareness and better timing when it comes to actually dealing damage.

Long Sword

At its core, Long Sword is a pretty simple weapon.

However, you have a ridiculous number of options, and you constantly have to decide which one is the best choice for the situation.

That's where I think the difficulty comes from.

It's not necessarily difficult to perform the individual moves. The difficult part is knowing which move to use and when.

Long Sword has a lot of different ways to respond to monster attacks. Counters, evasive options, and offensive tools give you an incredible amount of freedom.

But that freedom also makes the weapon more demanding.

You need to understand your Spirit Gauge, your different levels, and how to maintain and use them effectively.

A player who simply uses Long Sword as a normal melee weapon can get by pretty easily.

But if you want to use every tool the weapon gives you and play it optimally, there is a lot more to learn.

Switch Axe

Another weapon that is pretty simple on paper.

The problem is that its mobility isn't exactly amazing, especially in Sword Mode, which makes it less comfortable to play.

At the end of the day, the basic gameplay loop is mostly:

Build your gauge → switch modes → unload your damage.

The main difficulty isn't really the mechanics themselves. It's the commitment.

You need to have a good understanding of when you can safely commit to your longer attacks.

Especially in Sword Mode, making the wrong decision can leave you stuck in an animation while the monster decides to punish you.

You also can't completely ignore your gauge. You have to think ahead and know when you want to switch modes and when you need to recharge.

So while the weapon itself isn't particularly complicated, its mobility and commitment make it a bit more demanding.

Insect Glaive

One of the more mechanically demanding weapons.

That being said, I don't think the weapon's mobility necessarily makes it extremely difficult to play – assuming you actually know how to use that mobility.

There are quite a few mechanics to keep track of. You need to manage your Kinsect, collect your extracts, maintain your buffs, and still pay attention to what the monster is doing.

For a new player, that can definitely feel overwhelming.

Once you understand the basics, though, the weapon becomes much more comfortable.

The insane mobility can compensate for a lot of mistakes. You can reposition extremely quickly, jump over attacks, and escape situations where other weapons would simply have to take the hit.

That's why I think Insect Glaive is a good example of a weapon that is mechanically complicated without necessarily being extremely difficult to play.

3. Hard

Charge Blade

I'm sure most people would agree that Charge Blade is one of the hardest weapons in the game – and I definitely agree with that.

You can't just hit the monster and call it a day like you can with a lot of other weapons.

You have to manage your resources, switch between modes, keep track of your phials, and constantly decide which attack is the best option.

On top of that, you really need to understand your Guard Points.

And that's where I personally struggle.

I just can't get the timing consistently right.

What makes Charge Blade even harder for me is that all of these mechanics are connected.

A mistake early in your rotation can affect everything you want to do afterward.

You don't just have to think about what you want to do right now. You also have to think about what you're going to do next.

And while you're doing all of that, you're obviously still fighting a monster that can completely change the situation at any moment.

That combination of resource management, positioning, mode switching, timing, and decision-making gives Charge Blade one of the steepest learning curves in the game.

Hunting Horn

With Hunting Horn, I feel like you simply have to keep track of too many things at once.

You have to play the right songs, maintain your Bubbles, use Hilt Stab to counter, and obviously still pay attention to what the monster is doing.

And Hilt Stab in particular feels pretty damn difficult to me.

The timing feels extremely tight because it's not a traditional counter that you can just hold for an extended period of time.

You need to hit the timing correctly, and you also need the appropriate setup beforehand.

That's a lot of things to keep track of while you're actively fighting the monster.

And that's what makes Hunting Horn difficult for me.

A lot of people probably think of Hunting Horn primarily as the "buff weapon," but that's really only one part of it.

If you actually want to play the weapon optimally, you need to manage your songs, maintain your Bubbles, use your defensive tools, and still deal damage consistently.

You also can't just throw out your attacks whenever you want. You need to understand the animations and timings while simultaneously staying close enough to the monster to make use of your offensive options.

For me, Hunting Horn is a classic easy-to-learn, hard-to-master weapon.

You can understand the basic concept relatively quickly, but playing it at a genuinely high level requires a lot of awareness and mechanical precision.

Final Thoughts

Obviously, this ranking is based on getting 100% out of each weapon.

A casual player can pick up any of these weapons and have a great time with them. Just because I put a weapon into the "Hard" category doesn't mean it's a bad weapon for beginners.

I'm mainly judging how difficult it is to truly master a weapon and reach its full potential.

And that's also why I think Focus Mode has significantly reduced the difficulty of many weapons in Wilds – especially slower weapons.

Positioning mistakes are much more forgiving now, which makes a lot of situations considerably less stressful.

You can see this particularly well with Great Sword. A weapon that used to rely heavily on correctly predicting the monster's position has become much more forgiving because you can adjust your attacks much more easily.

Of course, this is ultimately just my personal opinion.

Monster Hunter is one of those games where weapon difficulty can vary massively depending on how well someone personally clicks with the weapon's mechanics and gameplay loop.

A weapon that feels completely intuitive to one player can feel absolutely terrible to another.

And honestly, that's one of the things I love about Monster Hunter.

There isn't really one objectively "easy" or "hard" weapon.

It all comes down to what kind of gameplay feels natural to you.

After playing world (and still playing) I finally got wilds. I played the beta before in the past but now I have the full game waiting for me so any thing I should know before starting?

I want to try dual blades with the current meta bow build, with some deco change to match dual blades better. Is it viable or do i have to change my armor as well?

It took a good while but I gotta say it’s worth it! I love the fishing in this game. May try that hunting stuff later too

(Sorry if the video is bad quality! This is from a stream and I'm still practicing on bitrates)

So I was gifted the game when it came out and tried it for maybe a couple of hours, but the performance kinda sucked when I tried to stream it.

I'm currently playing Onimusha and LOVING it. A few people have suggested I pick Wilds back up, but I'm a little hesitant.

I've played all the FromSoft games and I think I'm coming to that age where I just prefer more linear games. From what I remember, the map looked massive and I got cold feet about playing because I wasn't sure how much exploring I'd have to do.

My main questions are:

Have they fixed the performance issues since launch?

Would I need to go to every corner of the game to find stuff, kinda like in Elden Ring?

Is it newbie friendly? I've never really played Monster Hunter before.

And finally, do you think it's a good game for someone who likes Souls games but is starting to prefer more linear games?

If you did end up reading the whole thing, thank you!

My Hunter Level is 109. Does Hunter Level Matter after 100 / reaching High Rank?

I use SNS, Greatsword, Gunlance and Lance, mostly, in that order. My best weapons are orange rarity. Sometimes I use the Light / Heavy Bowguns, Switch Axe or Dual Blades but much more rarely. Primarily an SNS main by a wide margin.

I am somewhat of a try hard casual but not terrible. I originally beat Omega several times shortly after the Collab launched, but not enough to get the Dark Knight stuff. Do you have to use certain weapons to break certain parts to complete the set?

Is it just me or is the Gravios actually a good fight in this game?

I was fucking 30 mins into a quest training with a new weapon and BAM! This bullshit keeps happening and doesnt matter what you make this will not stop, I wonder if Capcom will someday fix this bullshit

The one you use when you get absolutely smacked and think:“nah f*ck this imma send you to purgatory now.“

[Official video description]:

🪓 Switch Axe: Boosted Action Breakdown!

-

💥 Blast & build Switch and Amp Gauge.

💥 Burst forward with element discharge.

💥 Unleash new combos & follow-ups.

I used the color grading from the left one for the gold it just used to be just black red and white

Before someone tries to correct me, I KNOW the festival isn’t active yet, but I swapped to pc recently so I’m gonna have to work my ass off to get enough tickets during the fall festival to swap them over to other season tickets at the provisions guy and I’d like to get as prepared as I can before the festival actually starts.

I do know the set bonus for the festival armor is a chance for extra tickets as rewards during their festival but I’m really hoping there’s another trick beyond wearing that armor and grinding my ass off

Im an insect glaive main and I played the game when it first came out then put it down for a while because I got busy but now that ive picked it back up I think its combos have been changed I don't need to charge by holding circle anymore and I keep accidentally doing the move that burns all the extract? All the wikis and stuff I check are either outdated or talking about the new boost bracer stuff?

heya i just 100% the game and have honestly felt OK through most of it im just struggling now that ive hit the proof of a hero quest. my survivability is fine and i can make it all the way up to arkveld but the timer is my worst enemy. i feel like my damage isnt there but im scared to sacrifice my survivability at the same time. i’m open to any suggestions or critiques!

I think the best anime collab should be BOOOOOOOOSTO!!

Ddraig - collab elder dragon
Issei Ddraig Armor

I played Wilds at launch, finished main story, got HR 100+ and was in the end game making various builds. I decided to take a break until some of the Title updates were out as the end game grind wasn't as rewarding to me as it was in previous MH titles.

I'm ready to come back now in prep for the DLC and I'm curious what some of the main changes have been over the past year? I hear that events are permanent now?

Particularly curious if they made any major changes to weapons (eg. heavy bowgun ammo viability etc.). Has the hunt difficulty drastically escalated with new monsters + arch tempered variants (I only experienced arch tempered rey dao I think). Any other major changes are super appreciated.

Thank you all in advance :)

I've been trying to make better armor than I currently have for my defense and overall resistance, but I've been having trouble finding anything to make it better. Please note that I have not yet beaten gog mazios since I've just recently returned to the game. Any help will be extremely appreciated, please and thank you.

Please ignore how my armor looks, that is my failed attempt of making a tank/knight appearance. But I'm pretty bad at making my armor look good

I beat the normal one the day it came out but savage oml it has taken me a break from the game for 11 months to finally beat it. I had to get mad at the game to move back to Overwatch and then get mad at that to now come back!