As iconic as it is powerful, the Great Sword remains one of the most reliable weapons in Monster Hunter Wilds. From the very first Monster Hunter game to today, the Great Sword has always been a fan favorite. Having the right build is essential to fully maximize its damage potential. In this guide, you’ll find the best Great Sword builds in Monster Hunter Wilds.
*This guide was updated for Title Update 4
Great Sword Gameplay and Combo
The Great Sword continues to dominate as one of the strongest weapons in Monster Hunter Wilds, and several new mechanics make it even more effective.
The True Charged Slash remains the go-to move for maximum damage. Focus Mode enhances this significantly by giving you better control over positioning and timing. It’s recommended to set Focus Mode to Toggle rather than Hold for a smoother experience.
Shoulder Tackle
A well-timed Shoulder Tackle now has a perfect execution window. Hold Triangle and press Circle right as a monster’s attack connects to successfully perform it. This preserves your current charge level, allowing you to chain high-damage hits more efficiently.
Offset Rising Slash
This move introduces a powerful counterattack option. Charge it by holding Triangle and Circle through three levels, then release just before a monster’s attack lands. A successful counter can be followed up with a Cross Slash, which deals damage comparable to the True Charged Slash.
For the highest damage output, continue the chain into a True Charged Slash: Offset Rising → Wide Slash (Circle) → True Charged Slash.
Power Clash
The Perfect Guard now opens the door to Power Clashes. Press R2 with precise timing as a monster strikes to trigger a Perfect Guard, which then creates the opportunity to initiate a Power Clash, a very cinematically cool and rewarding new tool for Great Sword players.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the best builds and progression.
Low Rank GS Build & Progression
Begin with the default Hope armor, which provides the useful Divine Blessing skill. As soon as you defeat Nerscylla, prioritize crafting the Immane Blade I. This weapon inflicts Sleep status, which pairs exceptionally well with the Great Sword. A sleeping monster takes amplified damage from the first hit, making your True Charged Slash incredibly potent right from the start.
Once you unlock Guardian Rathalos and Guardian Doshaguma, build a mixed set using three pieces of Rathalos armor and two pieces of Doshaguma. This combination offers solid defense and activates Weakness Exploit, giving you a meaningful damage boost during early High Rank content.
While the G Veldian Gladius I becomes available around this time, the Immane Blade I or II is the stronger choice.
Best Great Swords for Low Rank
- Immane Blade II
- G Veldian Gladius I
High Rank GS Build & Progression
Once you reach High Rank, shift your focus toward building a strong skill foundation. The priority skills for this stage are Weakness Exploit (Level 5), Critical Boost (Level 5), and Agitator (Level 4). Together, these three form the damage backbone of any effective Great Sword build. Maximum Might and Counterstrike are also valuable additions once you have the necessary decoration slots to fit them in.
The Exploiter Charm II is essentially mandatory for this build. Its value extends beyond Great Sword as well, making it a worthwhile investment regardless of which weapon you play.
The Red Wing I is the standout choice for this stage, offering three levels of Critical Boost built in, a significant damage boost on its own. It also carries respectable sharpness and affinity. That said, if you prefer to maintain a Sleep-oriented playstyle, the Immane Blade III remains a strong and viable alternative.
This build will carry you comfortably through High Rank monsters and story content up to approximately HR 40, at which point you can begin transitioning into endgame builds.
Best Great Swords for High Rank
- Red Wing I
- Immane Blade III
- G. Veldian Gladius II
Best High Rank to Endgame GS Builds
These builds are the best options to carry you from the end of the story quests and help increase your HR until you reach true endgame monsters, such as arch-tempered Elder Dragons and Gogmazios.
Second Wind Mighty Build
This is a well-rounded, high-performing build suitable for hunting any monster. I personally think this is the best build to get you from early HR to endgame. It revolves around three core mechanics: Second Wind, Black Eclipse, and Maximum Might.
Second Wind grants an additional stamina bar, which keeps Maximum Might consistently active even after several dodges. Black Eclipse, combined with the Antivirus skill, provides an extra 25% Affinity and a notable damage boost, both of which are ideal for a Great Sword’s critical hit-focused playstyle.
Counterstrike, Focus, Agitator (Level 2), and Burst (Level 1) round out the build, further enhancing damage output and overall performance.
For the weapon, use the Artian Great Sword with full Attack infusion, reinforced with 4 Attack + 1 Sharpness. This configuration provides the best balance of raw damage and sustained sharpness.
Arkveld Comfy GS Build
This build is ideal for players who prefer a more sustainable, low-risk playstyle without sacrificing meaningful damage output.
Equipping two pieces of Arkvulcan armor activates the Hasten Recovery set bonus, which restores health as you continuously land hits on a monster. This significantly reduces reliance on healing items and keeps you in the fight longer.
Despite its comfort-oriented nature, this build doesn’t compromise on damage. It retains Black Eclipse for the 25% Affinity boost, full Weakness Exploit for consistent critical hits, full Maximum Might for stamina-based affinity uptime, and full Critical Boost to amplify critical hit damage.
The Varianza remains the top weapon choice here, reinforced with 4 Attack + 1 Sharpness for strong raw damage and reliable sharpness throughout the hunt. It is also recommended to keep the Immolator Blade as a secondary weapon for situations where you want to set up a Sleep wake-up True Charged Slash for a significant burst of damage.
Best Endgame Great Sword Builds in MH Wilds
At the endgame stage, Great Sword builds are centered around either Raw damage or Status weapons. Elemental builds are generally not recommended for Great Sword, as the weapon’s playstyle doesn’t lend itself well to the frequent hit counts needed to make elemental damage worthwhile.
The builds below cover the best available options; choose whichever suits your preferred playstyle.
Shatterseal Latent Power Build
With the introduction of Arch-Tempered Arkveld in Title Update 4, this build takes the top spot as the strongest Great Sword setup currently available.
The build is built around Doshaguma’s Might and Soul of the Dark Arts, two powerful skills that form its damage foundation. These are further complemented by full Latent Power, full Weakness Exploit, and full Critical Boost, creating an aggressive, high-affinity setup that hits exceptionally hard.
For the talisman, aim for either 1 Weakness Exploit or Burst, paired with Attack Boost Level 3. This combination provides the best possible boost to the build’s overall damage output.
Endgame Comfy GS Build
If you prefer a more relaxed and forgiving playstyle, this build offers the best of both worlds: strong damage output while maintaining the comfort of Hasten Recovery through the Arkvulcan set bonus. The addition of new Arch-Tempered Arkveld armor pieces allows you to maximize the build’s potential without giving up sustainability.
With the right decorations, this build achieves maximum levels of Critical Boost, Focus, Weakness Exploit, Latent Power, Counterstrike, and Maximum Might, covering all the essential damage skills a Great Sword build needs.
For additional comfort, three levels of Recovery Up can be slotted in to further enhance the healing provided by Hasten Recovery, making hunts even more forgiving and relaxed.
Currently, these are the best Great Sword builds in Monster Hunter Wilds as of the latest update (TU 4). This page will be updated as new meta builds emerge in future updates.