Monster Hunter can be a tricky series to get into. I certainly know I bounced off it a few times. Fortunately, I eventually found my own pace and tempo to the series. And a big part of getting into it, and as I’ve found by getting friends into it, is finding the right weapon. Weapons in the Monster Hunter series are diverse and varied, and I wrote a brief guide on how to find a weapon that interests you. But some weapons are certainly more beginner friendly than others, having mechanics that are more straight forwards and forgiving. Here are five weapons, in no particular order, that I believe are best for beginners to the Monster Hunter series.

Sword & Shield

The Sword and Shield is an extremely straightforward weapon. You have a small sword in one hand, and a shield in the other. Your moveset is very clear, with your strongest attacks just requiring a little bit of timing. And, even if you miss that timing, you’ll still do good damage. However, the Sword and Shield aren’t just beginner weapons. They have a low skill floor, and a high skill ceiling; in layman’s terms, they’re very easy to pick up, but they can go incredibly far once you get good with them.

With this weapon, you have fast attacks that don’t require much commitment. You can use your shield to block attacks you may not be able to dodge, put your weapon away rapidly, and make use of both the sword and shield for striking. Deal blunt damage with your shield to eat away at a monster’s stamina and stun it, and use your sword to cut vulnerable pieces off and do good damage. Another benefit is that you can use items in the middle of combat better than any other weapon, not even needing to put your sword away first. This means not only that you can heal yourself easily, but also that you can “expand” your moveset with things like traps, flash bombs, and so on. It’s very hard to go wrong with Sword and Shield, making it an excellent choice if this is your first time with the series.

Dual Blades

This is another weapon that is pretty obvious, a pair of blades that you use in tandem with each other. The Dual Blades are an incredibly fast and mobile weapon, dishing out dozens of attacks in the time another weapon might deliver one. They promote a quick, frantic playstyle, and have the unique mechanic of “Demon Mode.” In this state, you gain access to faster, even more aggressive attacks, and longer combos. You also move at high speeds, and your dodge becomes a lot better. Your stamina does consistently drain during this form, so you can’t stay in it all the time, but the more recent games have mitigated this downside.

Archdemon Mode can be used after dealing enough damage in Demon Mode. It is not as strong as its stamina-draining counterpart, but it comes for free when you disengage that state. It gives you some of the same benefits that you get in Demon Mode, meaning that you can continue to fight effectively while waiting for your stamina to regenerate. It forms a concise loop of dishing out damage in demon mode, playing it a bit safe in your normal form/archdemon mode, and then looping right back into hyper aggression when you get the chance. If you like the idea of a fast hitting, evasive, high-speed playstyle, you might want to pick up the Dual Blades and give them a whirl.

Bow

Of the three types of ranged weapons in the modern games, Bow is the most easily approachable. The Light & Heavy Bowguns are very ammo focused, with limited magazines. Bows, on the other hand, are limited only by stamina. You can fire arrow after arrow into a monster, while also having quick dodges that can charge your arrows to make them stronger.

The main special aspects with this weapon consist of being able to charge your arrows for extra damage, or even extra arrows per shot. Different bows have different extras for charging, but they still accomplish the same general idea of “hitting things harder.” You can also use Arrow Coatings: these modify your arrows to have special effects, inflict status ailments, or do even more damage. You have a limited number of coatings of each type, but they’re easy to replenish, can be crafted in the field, and can be applied, disengaged, or switched with the tap of a button. If you’re interested in a ranged playstyle while being highly agile, I’d recommend trying the bow.

Hammer

I will confess something preemptively: Hammer is my favorite weapon type. This is by no means an unbiased account of the weapon, but I do feel qualified to explain its strengths and weaknesses. First of all, Hammer does blunt damage exclusively. This means that it’s attacks can fatigue a monster, making them more sluggish and unable to use some of their stronger attacks. By targeting a monster’s head, you’re able to knock them out for a few seconds. This leaves them on the ground, open to attacks from you and your allies.

The main mechanics of the hammer are the aforementioned knockouts, and your charged attacks. You can remain on the move while charging up a hammer swing, and it’s very fast to charge as well, up to 3 levels. The third level is the slowest and does the most damage, while the first is the fastest and does the least. But Hammer can do incredibly high damage, and it’s a good idea to dart in and out, hitting the monster’s head as much as possible. Save your strongest attacks for when the monster is caught in a trap, recovering from an attack, or already knocked out.

Longsword

The longsword is a great weapon that falls in the “middle” of a lot of areas. It’s not as fast as the Dual Blades, but still attacks quickly and with low recovery. It doesn’t have the defensive properties of the Sword and Shield, but comes with a few dodges and counter based moves. You don’t have the range of a bow, but you do have great range for a melee weapon. And you won’t be hitting as hard as the hammer, but you have some moves that do great damage.

The longsword’s main mechanic is the Spirit Gauge. Hitting with your attacks fills up the gauge, and it can be expended on special Spirit Combo attacks. Hitting with the last hit of the combo increases the Longsword’s damage, and this can be done up to three times. Those spirit attacks do good damage, and also won’t be deflected by sturdier parts of a monster. It’s a bit more complicated than the other entries on this list, but it serves as a great introduction to weapons that have some more in-depth mechanics.

Hopefully, this might help you get into Monster Hunter. And if none of these weapons suit your fancy, then feel free to try out the other weapons in the game to see if any click!

Featured Image: Capcom

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