Monster Hunter Rise throws a dizzying number of complex weapons and systems at players from the start. But among the 14 unique weapon types, a few standout options make getting into the game much more approachable for total beginners.
In this guide from a seasoned Hunter, I break down the top 5 easiest to pick up and master weapons for Monster Hunter Rise.
Why Easy Weapons for Monster Hunter Beginners Matter
Monster Hunter titles have an infamous learning curve. When weapons have dozens of combos and nuanced mechanics while formidable beasts easily crush an unprepared hunter, it can be extremely punishing.
This turns many prospective players away before they have a chance to experience Monster Hunter‘s satisfying gameplay loop of strategic hunts leading to new gear leading to tougher monsters and so on.
However, selecting an accessible, flexible beginner weapon mitigates the early game frustration substantially. Instead of struggling just to survive and swing your unwieldy weapon, you get to actually observe monsters, practice dodging and experiment with combos.
This builds the fundamentals that allow mastery of Monster Hunter‘s combat system rather than tossing you into the deep end from the outset.
Great gear progression depends on skill acquisition. So choosing a weapon that facilitates this in the early game smooths the ride up the learning curve rather than hitting a wall immediately.
And rest assured the weapons below have enough depth and viability that they won‘t hold you back once you‘ve honed the core skills that Monster Hunter demands.
So whether long hunting horn combos make your head spin or great sword tackling timing leaves you flattened, try out these well-rounded beginner weapons instead!
5 Best Beginner Weapons For Monster Hunter Rise
Here are my top recommendations for the most accessible yet fully capable weapons to pick up as a Monster Hunter Rise newcomer, in no particular order:
1. Sword and Shield
The quintessential starter weapon, Sword and Shield sports good reach, cutting/impact damage and solid combos without much complexity. Its fast, flexible play rewards an opportunistic hit and run style against larger monsters.
You can stick to quick slashes before rolling away, negating the need for lengthy, vulnerable combos. The backhop and sidestep give you critical evasion tools as well.
And of course, having a shield to block monster attacks helps tremendously when learning patterns. The shield bash combo deals impact damage for stunning monsters too. Sword mode provides cutting tails or breaking parts as needed.
This versatility combined with straightforward buttons make it a safe choice for beginners dipping their toes into early hunts, while intermediate players use the falling shield bash and perfect rush for big damage.
Finally, Sword and Shield uniquely allows using items and swinging your weapon simultaneously. This quick on-the-fly healing, buffing or status curing is invaluable!
Sword and Shield Key Abilities:
- Balanced cutting and impact damage
- Straightforward combos plus evasive moves
- Block attacks using the shield
- Use items without sheathing
By starting with Sword and Shield fundamentals, you grasp vital skills like observation, quick reactions and proper item usage – all while building knowledge of monster moves. This transfers well to any other melee weapon later.
2. Light Bowgun
A nimble gunner stays light on their feet and keeps the monster at range, precisely sniping weak spots using pierce, spread or elemental shots. The Light Bowgun excels at dealing status conditions too like sleep, paralysis and poison.
This is achieved by balancing rapid fire ammunition, evasion focused armor skills and mods that improve reload speed, recoil and more. Make the monster your helplessly immobile pincushion!
The key benefit for beginners is that keeping your distance allows safer observation of new monsters to study their movements and attacks. Range paired with the Silkbind Evade reload art gives you flexible spaces to escape harm and support teammates.
Once openings become visible, rapid fire and land charged shots on heads, tails or other vulnerable areas, maximizing each chance you safely get. Over time, you can invest in skills like Spare Shot to recover more ammunition as well.
Light Bowgun Key Abilities:
- Ranged damage from a safe distance
- Rapid fire standard shots or status/elemental ammo
- Customizable bowgun mods
- Highly evasive movement
Though fairly skill point hungry to optimize damage, Light Bowgun‘s mobility and safe distance provides new hunters room to study monsters up close while narrowly averting danger. Then punish the beast‘s mistakes ruthlessly!
3. Hammer
Despite its chunky profile, Hammer is more agile than expected with several charging attacks and impact damage focus. The satisfying charged brutal big bang on a knocked out monster‘s head is a perfect opener for unleashing wild combos.
By charging attacks between monster strikes and predicting openings to unleash a Level 3 charge on heads, Hammer users can rack up KOs, creating temporary windows to go ham on damage, then roll away before retaliation.
The balanced commitment between charging and combos gives wiggle room for beginners to experiment. Land Level 2 charges and basic combos as you observe monster patterns, then exploit openings without overextending once you have an opportunity.
For group hunts, the Level 2 Charged Upswing art launches teammates into the air too! Savvy Hammer mains can enable ally aerial attacks while building up big charge damage themselves.
Hammer Key Abilities:
- Charged attacks to KO monsters
- High damage per fully charged hit
- Surprisingly mobile with max charges
- Launches teammates with Charged Upswing
Though marginally less mobile than Sword and Shield, I rank Hammer as an easy option for new players thanks to uncomplicated charge timing that teaches good habits. Smashing skulls paves the way to victory!
4. Hunting Horn
This heavy support weapon built around chaining combo inputs to play magical songs may seem anything but beginner friendly. But truly, Hunting Horn offers very accessible, impactful damage through charged attacks, overhead bonks and tremendously useful songs that buff the entire team.
By memorizing a couple core song sequences or using shorthand guides, you can easily grant attack, defense, healing, blight cures, head protection, tremor resistance, earplugs, stamina recovery and other bonuses!
This provides fantastic utility while Hunting Horn dished out charged uppercuts and slams on monster domes to generate knockout damage too. Floating melody prolongs songs as well so your buffs last longer.
The spinning hunter art chucks teammates towards monsters for mounting damage also. Despite some lengthy animations, self-improvement increases movement for repositioning making HH a surprisingly versatile support pick.
Hunting Horn Key Abilities:
- Play magical buffing songs
- Respectable cutting and impact damage
- Overhead attacks to stun monsters
- Songs that support team survivability
Made even friendlier by Rise‘s new Silkbind Shockwave art, perform an encore smash then watch in delight as the monster gets flattened! Help struggling teammates climb the Monster Hunter curve with Hunting Horn‘s harmonic hunting power.
5. Bow
A tactically demanding weapon, Bow rewards precision, planning and efficient stamina management by raining ranged damage, coatings and thousand dragons from safety. Its extreme evasiveness keeps you nimble against adversity.
By going high elemental, Bow melts monsters with rapid combos while upgrading stamina for optimum damage uptime. Constitution reduces costs further so dash dancing is sustainable. Arc shots batter zones while powered up dragon piercers nail weak points accurately.
This flexible play causes some stamina juggling but pays dividends once elementally aligned to enemy weaknesses. Dash dance into two or three fast powershots, strafe safely away, then repeat the cycle – peppering lethal elemental arrows between the monster‘s attacks.
The Fanning Maneuver silkbind art now improves repositioning as well. Ultimately, Bow‘s evasion possibilities and tactical positioning supports a hit and run style that maintains safety even against temperamental beasts.
Bow Key Abilities:
- Precise weak point sniping
- High evasion and mobility
- Coatings (para, poison etc)
- Charged arc shot and dragon piercer
Stamina management and shot precision make Bow harder to initially grasp than melee options. But once elemental advantage is leveraged properly, Bow‘s sustained DPS from safe distancing kills beasts through attrition.
Weapon Comparison Table
Here is an overview stats comparison across some key criteria for each of the 5 recommended starter weapons:
Based on these metrics, Sword and Shield stands out as the most well-rounded and forgiving weapon for beginners thanks to balanced offense with strong defense and solid group synergy.
Meanwhile, Light Bowgun trades defense and cutting ability for unmatched range with Bow, sacrificing some group buff potential. And Hunting Horn surprisingly outpaces Hammer for KOs while offering incredible team utility through its signature songs.
So consider this matchup as you weigh your playstyle preference and desired weapon strengths.
Expert Commentary: Why I Recommend These Weapons
As an 800+ hour Monster Hunter veteran who has mained almost every weapon type extensively, I‘ve built up key insights on what armaments do and don‘t facilitate getting good for beginners in this punishing series.
The reality is that even after dumping tons of attempts into weapons like Charge Blade, Switch Axe or Gunlance, a newcomer will likely cart more hunts than they clear trying to manage so many complex mechanics simultaneously.
I‘ve certainly rage quit my fair share of investigations after getting stunned and flattened by Nergigante‘s dive bomb for the 10th time because I couldn‘t properly time Guard Points or Sacred Sheathe counters. Most of the veterans you see pulling off crazy CB guard point chains have fought the same monsters for hundreds of quests – practice makes perfect!
But expecting that from someone on their first Rathian hunt will only leave them discouraged, not engrossed. We all need an on ramp to skill progression rather than hitting a wall immediately.
That‘s why straightforward options like Sword and Shield that allow you to gradually implement more complex tricks over time just work better for acquiring the underlying competencies to get gud. Lessen the burden of ultra-punishing combos when you are still learning how Anjanath telegraphs fire blasts after all!
Once you have 50+ hunts comfortably under your belt, you‘ll have the foundational game sense to expand your repertoire to trickier weapons. For now though as a novice, lean towards Frame Advantage‘s fantastic recommendations not just because they are the path of least resistance, but also because they gift you openings to immerse yourself in the rest of Monster Hunter‘s intoxicating action RPG depth.
Now let‘s cover how to complement your shiny new Sword and Shield or Heavy Bowgun with proper armor…
Matching Armor Skills
Picking complementary armor skills that enhance a particular weapon‘s strengths while offsetting its weaknesses goes a long way towards efficient hunting for beginners and veterans alike.
Here are solid early game armor combinations to consider by weapon type:
- Sword & Shield – Hunter Helm, Skalda Thorax, Rhenoplos Braces & Greaves. Gives Attack Boost, Critical Eye, Speed Sharpening with noted Weakness Exploit & Critical Eye gem upgrades down the line. Excellent well-rounded melee set.
- Light Bowgun – Leather Headgear, Hunter‘s Mail, Rheno Braces & Greaves. Starts you out with Spare Shot, Reload Speed, Recoil Down, Piercing Shots boost & Critical Eye alongside gem slots to reduce deviation. Fantastic entry gunner set.
- Hammer – Izuchi Helm, Vaik Mail, Rathian Braces & Ingot Greaves. Nets Slugger for KO damage, Partbreaker to smash monster parts, Health Boost 2 for survival & Attack Boost 2 means solid damage skills. Gem in some affinity and you‘ll be bonking excellently!
- Hunting Horn – Izuchi Helm, Skalda Thorax, Ingot Braces & Chrome Metal Coil. Gives Horn Maestro to extend songs longer, Attack Boost, Weakness Exploit, Wall Runner, Windproof and tremor resistance. Augment songs further with gems.
- Bow – Shell-Studded Hat, Kamura Garb, Rhenoplos Braces & Mosgharl Roots. Starts you off with Constitution for dash dance stamina management alongside Stamina Surge. Boost elemental damage further via gems. The evasion skill is key here.
Obviously mix and match other complimenting gear too. But these matched sets align nicely with taking advantage of each weapon right from their first hunt!
Playstyle Tips Per Weapon
Based on my extensive first hand experience, here are fundamental playstyle tips I recommend adopting per each beginner weapon:
Sword and Shield
- Use hit & run tactics rather than committing to full combos
- Employ shields often to block monster attacks
- Get used to using items with weapon drawn for quick heals/buffs
- Falling bash provides good burst damage from the air
Light Bowgun
- Maintain critical distance between you and target
- Go for weak spots with rapid fire ammo
- Paralyze or sleep monsters to create major openings
- Modify bowgun for reduced deviation and reload speed
Hammer
- Charge attacks fully before discharging on openings
- Always aim Level 3 charges at monster heads for KOs
- Use sliding spins and spins into walls to reposition
- Stay mobile between charges to avoid hits
Hunting Horn
- Memorize and play buffing songs early in hunts
- Encore songs once the melody gauge is full
- Overhead smash into Big Bang combo on KO‘d monsters
- Utilize hilt stab and neutral Y attacks to conserve sharpness
Bow
- Dash dance using power shot after dodges for mobility
- Apply power and elemental coatings wisely
- Use dragon piercer, then arc shot to soften parts
- Maintain constitution and stamina skills for longevity
Revisit these principles if you ever get stuck. Fundamentals pave the path to truly mastering any Monster Hunter weapon.
Closing Thoughts
Monster Hunter Rise throws a lot at players immediately with numerous complex weapons and challenging beasts requiring pattern recognition and strategic exploitation.
This baptism by fire risks turning off newcomers before they get opportunities to enjoy the addictive loop of using new gear to overcome tougher challenges.
Equipping a versatile, uncomplicated beginner friendly weapon helps tremendously in getting over the initial hurdles. Sword and Shield, Light Bowgun, Hammer, Hunting Horn and Bow won‘t leave new players struggling just to stay alive or figure out combos and mechanics.
Instead, these accessible options with simplified counters and combos grant you room to actually study the monsters, practice dodging and positioning, use items efficiently and build other core skills that set you up for victory with any weapon type down the line.
They strike a nice balance between offense, defense and mobility without needless complexity that only overwhelms novices. Plus, their well-rounded capabilities ensure these starter weapons won‘t hold you back once past the learning curve‘s steep introduction.
Supplement it with fundamental armor skills that facilitate staying alive and dishing damage rather than niche builds demanding highly specific decos and talismans you won‘t have access to early on.
This combination gives you a solid framework towards truly enjoying Monster Hunter Rise‘s viscerally satisfying action. Take the time to learn monsters, tells and attack patterns without just spamming meta combos and builds from the get go.
The journey to honing your skills and equipment will prove extremely rewarding. Soon you‘ll be tackling challenging G rank quests with fully optimized end game builds wielding the flashiest legendary weapons that now feel intuitive rather than impossible in your hands.
But walking first allows you to eventually run – and Monster Hunter Rise provides fantastic options to get you sprinting towards domination over any beast!
Now grab your Sword and Shield, bowgun, hammer or horn of choice and start hunting, rookie! I‘ll see you in Sunbreak when you‘re ready for the end game. 😉
Happy hunting!
