Top 10 Best Solo Weapons in Monster Hunter World is a triple-A action role-playing game that captured the eyes of real hardcore gamers. The game Monster Hunter has always been one of the best game franchises in history, but Monster Hunter World exceeded all expectations even by Capcom itself. The game sold 12.6 million copies on all platforms combined, and it comprises 20% of all 53 million copies sold by the whole Monster Hunter franchise. Regardless of the huge and very active community, the game’s rating is not that much compared to other triple-A games in the market nowadays. It only scored 6 out of 10 on Steam, though most of its negative feedbacks were dated from when the game was released.
We scanned the reviews through Steam to find the reasons for its low rating, and we found out that a lot of the negative comments came from players who quit abruptly because the game was difficult for them and the weapons were not user-friendly.
While it is true that all 14 weapons have unique mechanics, practicing what you really like would benefit your hunting life a lot. Also, it is imperative to know that some weapons can be effective against a certain monster but may be less effective against others. So if you are a solo player, you need to know which weapons you should look after. Just sit tight and continue reading as we unfold the top 10 best weapons in Monster Hunter World for solo players.
Below are the Top 10 Best Solo Weapons in Monster Hunter World.
Light Bowgun
Light Bowgun is one of the most versatile weapons in Monster Hunter World. This weapon is one of the few that can be effective against ALL monsters even for average players. Also, this weapon is very user-friendly making it one of the easiest weapons to use.
This weapon may not hit as hard as other weapons, but you can get a lot of mobility in using this. Some of the ammos can shoot at very far distances, keeping you safe from any monsters you encounter. Just a downside though, even if the weapon is extremely easy to use the weapon can be very complicated in terms of builds. It has tons of build setups that a beginner may find difficult to understand.
Switch Axe
Switch Axe is a very powerful weapon in Monster Hunter World which utilizes stored energy (phial system) to deliver strong attacks against monsters. This weapon has two main forms; the axe mode and the sword mode. The axe mode has less damage but will give you good mobility and it is also a pre-requisite to utilize sword mode’s powerful attacks.
The sword mode on the other hand inflicts more damage than the axe mode but will make you less mobile.
The sword mode also uses vial charges which you can obtain/charge while on axe mode.
You can switch between modes to inflict huge damage and at the same time maintain mobility. The Switch Axe may be difficult to master because of its complexity and its powerful attacks can be often slow, but once you get used to it, shall then you will realize its true potential.
Hammer
Hammer according to most users is the most fun to use in Monster Hunter World. If you are the type of hunter who wants to inflict status ailments on a monster so you can land stress-free hits, then a hammer could just be your weapon of choice. This blunt weapon can stun monsters multiple times in the whole duration of the hunt giving you the chance to deal free hits against ANY monsters.
You just need to make sure that you hit the head to inflict stun status on the monster, and when the stun status ailment reaches a threshold, the monster will simply fall on the ground giving you a lot of time to hit further.
Heavy Bowgun
Heavy Bowgun is the best in terms of damage per second, making this bad boy a weapon of choice for many speedrunners. Take note that the very first player to solo Behemoth (the strongest monster in MHW to date) used Heavy Bowgun, and Behemoth is one of the two monsters that have a fixed HP pool. This means that its health points are the same regardless if you fight it alone or with other players.
Though Heavy Bowgun is the best damage dealer, it requires very rare equipment to take advantage of. It also has a very complicated build comparable to light blowguns and is the least in terms of mobility. It can equip a shield to make up for the huge mobility loss, but you wouldn’t be able to guard all attacks until you get to equip a shield jewel (guard up) which is extremely rare.
Insect Glaive
If you are into glaives or Kung Fu, then this weapon might be just for you. Insect Glaive as the name goes is a glaive weapon in Monster Hunter World with an added feature – the kinsect. The Insect Glaive is a very versatile weapon that lets you leap into the sky while attacking airborne. This weapon is also good when used mainly while on the ground, but if you want to mount monsters so you can stagger it for free hits, then the aerial gameplay is what’s best for you.
Each of the insect glaives also has their unique kinsects which you can summon to inflict damage and status ailments against monsters. The availability of your insects during hunts is limited, and you could see a gauge filling so you will know when it is available. Use it at the right place and time, and you will surely finish your hunt in no time – even when playing solo.
Dual Blades
Without a doubt, Dual Blades is the fastest and the best weapon in terms of mobility. You will be sprinting most of the time when using this weapon, and you will be able to inflict countless attacks against monsters. You can use demon mode to further increase your speed at the expense of consuming a lot of stamina, and once you hit the monster enough to fill your demon gauge, you will be able to improve your demon mode further into arch-demon mode.
The arch-demon mode will enable you to do new movements that you can’t perform while in demon mode. These new movements are extremely powerful but highly limited, so you need to analyze when is the best time to switch modes during your hunts.
Charge Blade
Another melee on this list is the Charge Blade. The Charge Blade is a very powerful weapon in Monster Hunter World that will surely hasten your hunts regardless of the monster you are against. What makes Charge Blade unique from other weapons is that this weapon has a very powerful special move that IGNORES enemy defenses. This means that you can hit any monster part even if it is a weak spot or not.
Just like Switch Axe, you will be charging your vials while you are in sword and shield form. What’s good about the sword and shield form is that you would be able to guard attacks from monsters, making you safer than the switch axe. The Charge Blade when in Axe form can perform a special charged attack called SAED which deals a huge amount of damage regardless of which monster part you land it.
Greatsword
Greatsword is the strongest one-time damage dealer weapon in the game. This weapon though is very slow, and most of the time you will be charging attacks to deal more damage.
However, this weapon made it to our top 3 list because despite the sluggishness and the annoying charge time, the damage it inflicts especially when it lands a weak spot is just very satisfying. Depending on how good your greatsword weapon and build is, this weapon can deal 4 figures of damage that could 1 shoot dead selected monsters.
Another good thing about this weapon is that it is very easy to build, and the best greatsword to date can be obtained through an event (every hunter’s dream) which is very easy to accomplish. So if you are this hunter who is struggling to obtain good weapons and jewels, then Greatsword might just be a good alternative for you.
Bow
The bow is without a doubt the best all-around weapon in the game, especially when playing solo. It is relatively easy to use, it is extremely fast, and it has a very good range. The bow also is one of the best damage dealers in the game, 2nd only to Heavy Bowgun (though some pro players were able to outperform heavy Bowgun users in terms of speedrunning selected strong monsters).
The Bow is only our top 2 because bow builds are very complicated and very expensive.
You need a lot of rare jewels to make your damage good, and you consume a lot of stamina while performing your combos. To outperform other weapons in terms of damage, you need to spend stamina modifiers like very costly dash juice. There are builds to correct its costly nature, but this can get complicated because you can only apply limited skills to your build, while the bow requires many skill sets to dominate.
Longsword
Finally, the top 1 on our list and potentially the best overall weapon in Monster Hunter World is the Longsword. The Longsword is an all-around weapon that will slay every single monster in the game in no time. It is a weapon of choice for speedrunners, and though it can’t inflict damage as much as bow and heavy bowgun users could, this weapon can make you evade monster attacks better than any other weapons in the game.
The longsword is still one of the best damage dealers in the game, but its counterattack move which is the foresight slash makes the longsword a favorite for many hunters. You will also be able to fill a spirit gauge as well which increases your damage. This spirit gauge will deplete over time, but you can refill it by hitting monsters. You can also perform unique attacks when your spirit gauge is filled, so make sure to keep your spirit gauge filled during your hunts.
Conclusion
So these are the Top 10 Best Solo Weapons in Monster Hunter World World. Take note that this review is based on the weapons’ popularity, overall ratings, and reviews. Also, all of the weapons in the game have their specialty.
As said earlier, one can be effective against a set of monsters but not on others. Practice is the key to dominating the game, and this review is intended to give you ideas only of what you may want to try. In the end, it is you who will choose what’s best for you and our ultimate advice in choosing a weapon is this – “Don’t think, feel!”.
