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When it comes to weapons inMonster Hunter Wilds, you have options. There are 14 weapons overall, and each one excels in a slightly different area. Certain weapons fit into niches, and many players will find there are a few weapons that appeal to them. For players who wanta little bit of complexity, the Long Sword fits the bill.
It has important mechanics to keep track of; if you make use of these mechanics, it’s a weapon that can take you far. If you squander the opportunity the Long Sword’s unique mechanics provide, it’s going to be equivalent to hitting a monster with a noodle.
you may see the specific Long Sword controls for your platform by going into Settings > Info > Play Guide > Weapon Controls > Long Sword.
Long Sword Overview
The Long Swordrequires some maintenance during a fightto maintain a high damage output, and that’sdue to the Spirit Gauge. Once you get familiar with how to fill the Spirit Gauge and turn it red, the Long Sword is going to feel like a new weapon entirely.
Spirit Gauge
At its most basic, the only thing you need to know about theSpirit Gauge is that you want it to turn red. When the Spirit Gauge is red, you’ll havenew, faster weapon combos and increased damage. It’s going to make fighting with fluidity a lot easier, and you’ll find that you’re having an easier experience timing your attacks and keeping the monster from hitting you.
Filling the Spirit Gauge requires a combination of regular attacks and special attacks. To differentiate between how to do both, you’ll need to differentiate between thetwo types of chargesthat the Spirit Gauge has:interior and exterior.
Tocharge the interior barof your Spirit Gauge,use any Basic Attack combo. These aren’t going to expend any Spirit Gauge, and every time you hit a monster, it’ll charge a sizable portion of the interior. This interior charge is needed for most Spirit abilities.
Tocharge the exteriorof your Spirit Gauge, you’ll need to usetwo specific attacks:Spirit Roundslash, and Focus Strike: Unbound Thrust, which will both be detailed in the combos section. These attacks are going tocharge the outer edge of your Spirit Gauge, andthis is what you’ll need to fill in order to make it turn red.
The interior or the yellow bar in the Spirit Gauge has nothing to do with turning the bar red, but you’llneed the yellow bar at least partially full to use your Spirit attacks, including Spirit Roundslash.
Long Sword Combos And Tips
The Long Sword hasslightly different behavior depending on whether the Spirit Gauge is red or not. It is going to bemarkedly more effective when it is, but you’ll need to be familiar with the regular attacks in order to consistently activate your red Spirit Gauge.
The most important thing when it comes to the Long Sword is getting an active Red Spirit Gauge as often as possible. Make tactical use of your attacks to build it up, and don’t take unnecessary risks. Once the Red Spirit Gauge is active, unleash attacks with everything you’ve got.
Basic Attack Combos
The Basic Attack combos with the Long Swordcan be mixed and matchedmore or less at will. They don’t particularly have a more powerful end to the combos, so you may feel free to jump in and out of these pseudo combos as you please.
In general, one of your Standard Attack buttons is going to bea slower, more sweeping attack, and the other Standard Attack button is going to bea quicker, thrusting attack.
These attacks are going to fill the interior section of your Spirit Gauge.
Basic Attack Combos (Red Spirit Gauge)
Yourattack combos with the Red Spirit Gauge activeare going to be very similar to their less-powerful alternatives. But the benefit is, they’re going to come outmuch quicker,and they’re going todeal considerably more damage.
Like normal attacks, you can mix and match Standard Attacks with a Red Spirit Gauge.
Fade Slash
Fade Slash is performed by pressing both Standard Attack buttons at the same time and is asmall positioning toolfor the Long Sword.It’s going topropel you slightly backwardfrom the direction you’re facing anddeal a medium amount of damage, compared to other attacks.
Fade Slash will fill more of the interior portion of the Spirit Gauge than many other attacks and is relatively quick. This makes it a good way to get some of the interior bar charged quickly to use attacks that utilize that portion of the bar.
Spirit Charge
Spirit Charge has a lot of different possibilities, and we’ll go over each one.
You can also chain Spirit Blade I into II, and so on, provided you’ve got the Spirit Gauge charge for it.
Landing these attacks is going toconsume the interior charge of your Spirit Gauge, andcharge the exterior charge of your Spirit Gauge, eventually producing a Red Spirit Gauge.
Foresight Slash
Foresight Slashuses all the charge of the interior Spirit Gaugethat you’ve built up. This attackmust be performed in the middle of a combo, but it’s worth the setup.
Foresight Slashmoves you backwardsconsiderably and thendashes you forward. This is a great way to avoid an attack, and maximize that avoidance with damage.
Landing this attack after successfully dodging an attack will fill the Spirit Gauge.
Spirit Thrust
Spirit Thurst is another attack that uses a portion of the Spirit Gauge; this attacklunges you forward, with some of thebest reach of any attack with the Long Sword. Hitting with this attack when your exteriorSpirit Gauge is at least halfway full will automatically follow it up with another attack.
This secondary attack is called Spirit Helm Breaker. Itlaunches you into the air,slamming you back downand damaging the monster multiple times, adding up to some extreme damage. While in the air, you’ll dodge any attacks meant for you on the ground, making it very similar to an Insect Glaive attack.
When your Spirit Gauge is red, it’ll chain into another attack called the Spirit Release Slash, dealing even more impressive damage. But using this attack with a red gauge will consume it, forcing you to reactivate it.
Luckily, that’s quite easy because it still maintains the charge that it takes to get right up to the brink of it.
Because this attack willconsume the entire Red Spirit Gaugewhen used, it’s a great attack touse when your Red Spirit Gauge is mostly empty. That way, you aren’t wasting the majority of the Gauge, but you still get to use this particularly powerful attack.
Special Sheathe
Special Sheathe is activated immediately after beginning your Spirit Charge and has two attack possibilities:Iai Slash and Iai Spirit Slash.
The default Iai Slash willconstantly charge the interior of your Spirit Gauge, while the Spirit variation willcharge the exterior of your Spirit Gaugeif it’s timed with a monster attack.
The default of this attack can be a good way to maintain some Spirit Gauge charge throughout a fight, while the Spirit variation can be extremely valuable when timed perfectly.
Focus Strike: Unbound Thrust
The Focus Strike with the Long Sword is calledUnbound Thrustand works similarly to the others: when a monster has a wound, you cantarget that wound with this attack to deal heavy damage.
On top of the damage, the benefit to this is that itcharges the exterior of your Spirit Gauge, just like Spirit Roundslash. It’s agreat way to maintain momentum in a fight, allowing you to reactivate your Red Spirit Gauge after it extinguishes with ease.
