Monster Hunter: World - Weapons
The 14 weapon types of Monster Hunter: World, grouped as the game groups them: the melee set from Great Sword to Insect Glaive, and the three ranged classes. Each entry covers what the weapon asks of the player, how it builds its damage, and the mechanic that separates it from the rest of the roster...
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of 14 entries
· updated 2026-09-15
Melee Weapons
The eleven melee classes, from the slow two-handed weapons that commit to every swing to the fast blade and blunt classes that trade commitment for pressure.
| Name | Type | Description | Stats | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Sword | Melee Weapon | A two-handed blade built around the Charged Slash and the True Charged Slash. | Role: Burst damage Mobility: Low Range: Long Key Mechanic: Charged Slash / True Charged Slash | Crafted at the Astera smithy from bone and monster material trees |
| Long Sword | Melee Weapon | A long katana-style blade whose Spirit Gauge fills through landed combos and empties into Spirit Blade attacks. | Role: Sustained damage Mobility: Medium Range: Long Key Mechanic: Spirit Gauge and Foresight Slash counter | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Sword and Shield | Melee Weapon | The most flexible melee class: fast slashes, a shield that blocks, the ability to use items and the slinger without sheathing, and a jumping attack that lets the Hunter mount from flat ground. | Role: Utility and pressure Mobility: High Range: Short Key Mechanic: Items and slinger usable without sheathing | Starting weapon for new Hunters; crafted at the smithy |
| Dual Blades | Melee Weapon | A paired-blade class built on Demon Mode, which drains stamina in exchange for faster attacks and a Demon Dance finisher. | Role: Elemental DPS Mobility: High Range: Short Key Mechanic: Demon Mode stamina drain | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Hammer | Melee Weapon | A blunt weapon whose whole design points at the monster's head: KO damage builds through repeated head hits, and a stunned monster is the Hammer player's damage window. | Role: KO and head damage Mobility: Medium Range: Short Key Mechanic: Stun buildup on the head | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Hunting Horn | Melee Weapon | A blunt weapon that doubles as a party buff: each Horn carries a song list, and playing the notes in sequence grants attack, defense, stamina or utility buffs to everyone in range. | Role: Support and KO Mobility: Medium Range: Short Key Mechanic: Song list buffs for the whole party | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Lance | Melee Weapon | The defensive melee class: a large shield that can block almost anything, a counter thrust that turns a blocked hit into damage, and a charge that closes distance without sheathing. | Role: Tank and counter damage Mobility: Low, with a charge Range: Medium Key Mechanic: Counter thrust and shield block | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Gunlance | Melee Weapon | A lance with a cannon in it: shelling ignores much of a monster's hide, and the Wyrmstake Cannon plants a stake that ticks damage. | Role: Fixed shelling damage Mobility: Low Range: Medium Key Mechanic: Shelling levels and Wyrmstake Cannon | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Switch Axe | Melee Weapon | A weapon that flips between an axe and a sword: axe mode builds the gauge, sword mode spends it on phial bursts, and the Zero Sum Discharge empties the whole thing into a monster's face. | Role: Burst and sustained damage Mobility: Medium Range: Medium Key Mechanic: Axe to sword phial discharge | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Charge Blade | Melee Weapon | The most technical melee class: sword and shield mode charges phials, the shield stores them, and axe mode spends them on elemental discharges and the Super Amped Elemental Discharge. | Role: Technical burst damage Mobility: Medium Range: Medium Key Mechanic: Phial charging and Super Amped Elemental Discharge | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Insect Glaive | Melee Weapon | A polearm paired with a Kinsect: the bug harvests extracts from a monster, and red, white and orange buffs stack into a faster, stronger moveset. | Role: Aerial and sustained damage Mobility: Very high Range: Long Key Mechanic: Kinsect extract buffs and vault | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
Ranged Weapons
The three gunner classes, all of which draw from the same ammo and bow coatings economy and rely on critical distance rather than combo trees.
| Name | Type | Description | Stats | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light Bowgun | Ranged Weapon | The fast, mobile gunner class: rapid-fire ammo types, a slide that repositions without commitment, and the widest status and elemental ammo support in the game. | Role: Status and elemental support Mobility: High Range: Long Key Mechanic: Rapid fire and Wyvernblast mines | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Heavy Bowgun | Ranged Weapon | The slow, heavy gunner class, built around crouching fire and the biggest single-shot ammo in the game. | Role: Heavy ranged damage Mobility: Low Range: Very long Key Mechanic: Crouching fire and weapon mods | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
| Bow | Ranged Weapon | A ranged class that plays at mid distance: charge levels change the shot type, coatings add status or element, and the Dragon Piercer rewards lining a monster up lengthwise. | Role: Elemental ranged damage Mobility: High Range: Medium to long Key Mechanic: Charge levels, coatings and Dragon Piercer | Crafted at the Astera smithy |
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