Monster Hunter Wilds

Hunting Tips and Beginner's Guide

Monster Hunter Wilds Walkthrough Team

Last updated on: October 3, 2025 04:34 AM

Monster Hunter Wilds Hunting Basics and Beginner
Here is a list of beginner and advanced guides and hunting tips and tricks for Monster Hunter Wilds. Learn more about our beginner's guide and hunting strategies here!

List of Contents

Hunting Basics
Beginner Tips
Advanced Tips
Related Guides

Hunting Basics

Hunting Basics
Understanding the HUD or UI Familiarize Yourself with the Controls Choose a Primary and Secondary Weapon Equip Armor with Complementing Skills Bring Hunting Items Eat Meals to Boost HP and Stamina Bring Your Palico with You Begin Your Hunt

Understanding the HUD or UI

HUD Explanation
Health Gauge - Shows how much Health your hunter currently has. This gauge automatically hides into the icon on the left and will reappear once you are damaged. Stamina Gauge - A resource used for performing actions such as running, rolling, and certain weapon attacks. This gauge automatically hides into the icon on the left and will reappear once you use stamina. Sharpness Gauge - Determines the sharpness of a melee weapon. This gauge shortens every melee attack you do and will shorten more when your attack is deflected. Can be refilled upon using a Whetstone. Party Members - This displays all the health and names of your party members, including your Palico. Their health gauges also hides into their ino on the left and will reappear one they are damaged or in combat. Nearby Materials - Your Scoutflies automatically look for gathering nodes near you and will display what they are here. Current Quest - Display the current Quest you are taking, along with a Quest Timer on the right. Day Cycle - Displays your current daytime (Morning, Evening, Night). Mini Map - Shows a mini version of the map that also contains nearby gathering nodes, monsters, and the current area. Weather Cycle - Displays the current weather (Plenty, Fallow, Inclemency). Certain monsters can appear in certain weather types. Slinger Ammo - Displays the current ammo you have equipped on your Slinger. The numbers on the left represent the remaining ammo you have. Monster Status - Displays the current status of the monster you are hunting whether it is Enraged or Capturable. Item Bar - Contains all the items you currently have in your pouch. Holding L1 will show the Radial Menu and extend this into a bar that you can cycle through and select the item you want to use.

HUD Explanation

Health Gauge - Shows how much Health your hunter currently has. This gauge automatically hides into the icon on the left and will reappear once you are damaged.
Stamina Gauge - A resource used for performing actions such as running, rolling, and certain weapon attacks. This gauge automatically hides into the icon on the left and will reappear once you use stamina.
Sharpness Gauge - Determines the sharpness of a melee weapon. This gauge shortens every melee attack you do and will shorten more when your attack is deflected. Can be refilled upon using a Whetstone.
Party Members - This displays all the health and names of your party members, including your Palico. Their health gauges also hides into their ino on the left and will reappear one they are damaged or in combat.
Nearby Materials - Your Scoutflies automatically look for gathering nodes near you and will display what they are here.
Current Quest - Display the current Quest you are taking, along with a Quest Timer on the right.
Day Cycle - Displays your current daytime (Morning, Evening, Night).
Mini Map - Shows a mini version of the map that also contains nearby gathering nodes, monsters, and the current area.
Weather Cycle - Displays the current weather (Plenty, Fallow, Inclemency). Certain monsters can appear in certain weather types.
Slinger Ammo - Displays the current ammo you have equipped on your Slinger. The numbers on the left represent the remaining ammo you have.
Monster Status - Displays the current status of the monster you are hunting whether it is Enraged or Capturable.
Item Bar - Contains all the items you currently have in your pouch. Holding L1 will show the Radial Menu and extend this into a bar that you can cycle through and select the item you want to use.

We recommend understanding the HUD (Heads-Up Display) or the User Interface first since they are extensive and essential towards combat. Key elements include the Health, Stamina, and Sharpness Gauge, Party Members, nearby Materials, Day and Weather Cycle, Mini Map, Slinger Ammo, Monster Status, and Item Bar.

These resource are important towards completing a hunt and mastering the gameplay of Monster Hunter Wilds. Follow our guide above to see an explanation of each HUD element and icon.

Familiarize Yourself with the Controls and Settings

Controls

The game's controls is varied whether if your weapon is sheathed or not, so it can be useful to get familiar with the game's controls either with a console gamepad or with a keyboard and mouse.

Each weapon type also have their own moves and combos, so try out your weapon at the Training Area before going out on a hunt.

The game also offers a lot of settings that you can tweak to fit your liking, so try to spend some time checking out the game's options!

List of Controls	Best Keyboard Settings
Best Settings for Console	Best Graphic Settings on PC

Choose a Primary and Secondary Weapon

Before heading out to hunt, you first have to pick a Primary and Secondary weapon of your choosing. Try to pick a weapon that suits your playstyle and another that can complement your main weapon.

Keep in mind that you can switch weapons any time so it does not matter whether your main weapon is your Primary or Secondary.

Best Weapon Tier List	Best Secondary Weapons
Best Weapon Combinations	Easiest Weapons for Beginners

Equip Armor with Complementing Skills

Depending on the weapon you chose, you will need armor that benefits your weapon according to the skills it has. Make sure that you are using skills that focus on a certain aspect of the weapon such as stamina, charge attacks, blocking and parrying, and many more.

Some examples would be the Dual Blades and Bow which are stamina heavy so equipping armor with Stamina Surge and Constitution will help you greatly. The Hammer and Hunting Horn are blunt weapons so armor with Slugger can benefit from its high stun chance.

List of Skills

Best Skills

Bring Hunting Items

Hunting Items are essential to your survival and affects the way you hunt monsters. You can either buy them from the shop or craft them yourself before heading out so you will be prepared for anything that happens.

Some suggestions would be the Pitfall Traps and Shock Traps which are great for creating openings and is required for capturing a monster, while Antidotes, Cleansers, and Nulberries can cure certain status effects that may hinder you.

Make sure to bring Barrel Bombs as well since these deal huge damage against sleeping monsters.

List of Items

Best Items to Bring

Eat Meals to Boost HP and Stamina

Never go hunting on an empty stomach. Meals are your go-to pre-hunting essentials as these boost your Max HP and stamina which makes tanking hits and performing attacks so much easier.

Eating meals while adding additional ingredients will also grant you Food SKills which can improve your hunts!

How to Cook and Eat Meals

How to Farm Cooking Ingredients

Bring Your Palico with You

Your Palico is your best friend when it comes to hunting as they can help you in various ways such as laying traps and healing you when you are low.

Additionally, they also help you in combat by attacking monsters in tandem with your moves.

Palico Guide

Palico Voice Options

Begin Your Hunt

In order to begin your hunt, you have to either start your quest from Alma the Handler or venture out on your own and hunt monsters along the way.

Once you have everything prepared, you are ready to go hunting! Go through the campaign and watch cutscenes to immerse yourself with the game's story. Feel free to invite friends or join quests that other hunters are doing to make things easier.

Tips to Hunt Better	Multiplayer Story
Skipping Cutscenes	Photo Mode Guide
Arachnophobia Mode	Where to Find Poogie

Beginner Tips for Monster Hunter Wilds

Beginner Tips
Customize Your Hunter Saving and Pausing Stopping Fleeing Monsters Dodging and Avoiding Attacks Break Monster Parts and Cut Tails Login Daily and Use Lucky Vouchers All About Equipment Catch Endemic Life and Fishes Hunt with Other Players

Customize Your Hunter

Character Customization

Before you start the game, you will be able to customize your hunter as you wish. There are also a couple of features that you can tweak later on, like your Hunter Profile or armor color, to further personalize your hunting experience.

If you can also make any changes later on, but do note that you need Character Edit Vouchers to fully customize your hunter again.

You can also port your hunter that was made from the game's Open Beta or use hunter designs made by other players.

Character Creator Guide	How to Change Character Appearance
Beta Character Data Transfer Guide	Character Design Codes Guide
How to Change Your Character Name	Using Character Edit Vouchers
Can You Change Your Gender?	Hunter Profile Features Explained
How to Change Hunter Profile Title	How to Use Gestures and Stickers
How to Hide Helmet	How to Change Your Armor Color
Disable Buff Glow Feature	How to Change and Unlock Handlers

Seikret Customization

You'll also be able to customize your Seikret from Nona or inside your tent as you progress through the game's story. Your Seikret is your main way to move across the map, so take some time to decorate your feathery ride!

Seikret Customization Guide

Equipping Layered Armor

Upon reaching High Rank, you will be able to unlock the ability to equip Layered Armor, which you can obtain by simply crafting High Rank gear. Layered Armor only changes the look of the armor you are wearing, but you will keep all the stats and skills of your main equipment.

You can check out our Fashion Hunting and Layered Armor board to get ideas on how to hunt in style!

How to Unlock Layered Armor

Saving and Pausing

Pausing Quests

All play and no rest makes a dull hunter! The game will automatically save your progress as you play, but you can also manually save in the game's options.

If you want to take a break mid-hunt, you ca also pause the game in the options, but do note that this is only available when playing alone.

How to Save the Game

How to Pause the Game

Stopping Fleeing Monsters

Hunting Monsters

Monsters can move to another area while you are hunting them, which can be bothersome if you are trying to take your target down quickly. You can use Luring Pods, traps, or Flash Pods to stop monsters from moving to another area.

If you're able to keep the monster at bay, you can try to mount them and bait them to slam their heads into walls. When it is near death, you can choose whether to capture the monster, which gives additional rewards, or kill them completely.

Taking Down Flying Monsters	Stopping Monsters From Fleeing
How to Slam Monsters into Walls	Capturing vs Killing Monsters

Dodging and Avoiding Attacks

Dodging Attacks

There are a couple of way of avoiding getting hit with an attack, but dive evading, which is sprinting away from the monster and jumping down, allows you to evade any kind of attack as this gives you around three seconds of invulnerability and lets you leap away by safely.

Additionally, when your health bar flashes red with waves shaking wildly, it is indicating that the incoming attack is fatal! Keep an eye on the top left corner of the screen and make sure to dodge the attack when it warns you to, then pop a potion when it's clear. It can also help to have the camera focus on your target at all times.

How to Dive Evade

How to Dodge Monster Roars

Target Lock Guide

Break Monster Parts and Cut Tails to Get Materials

Part Breaks

As you progress through the game, you'll be in need of monster materials to craft weapons and armor. Aside from completing quests and carving items slain monsters, you can also get materials if you break monster parts by attacking their wounds and getting an extra carve if you are able to cut a monster's tail.

How to Break Monster Parts

How to Cut Monster Tails

Login Daily and Use Lucky Vouchers

Lucky Vouchers

There's a benefit of playing the game every day as you can get a few rewards from logging in daily.

Every day, you can claim login bonuses to get some items as well as getting a Lucky Voucher, which you can use upon starting or joining a quest to double the rewards you can get from a hunt.

Lucky Vouchers

All About Equipment

Your equipment is vital when it comes to hunting, as armor and weapons, as well decorations that you can slot in, can give you increased offense and defense, as well as useful skills, to make your hunts easier.

As you progress through the game, make sure to upgrade your armor from Gemma at the Smithy with Armor Spheres and equip decorations that fit your playstyle. You'll also need to upgrade your weapon as you unlock weapon trees to increase your damage output and keep up with tougher monsters!

Upgrading Armor

Equipping Decorations

Unlocking Weapon Trees

Catch Endemic Life and Fishes

What is Endemic Life

As you hunt and take on quests, you will encounter various Endemic Life which you can either use against monsters or just catch at your own leisure.

Doing so will net you some Guild Points or even materials you can use to craft items.

Catching Endemic Life

Fishing Guide

Hunt with Other Players

Multiplayer

Hunting ferocious monsters is no easy task, but you can always join other players to make slaying large beasts more fun!

If you find yourself stuck with defeating a certain monster, you can always hunt with other players via online multiplayer.

Multiplayer Guide	How to Check Hunter ID
Prevent Flinching in Multiplayer	Should You Join a Lobby?
How to Join a Session Mid-Hunt	How to Use Voice Chat
How to Bring Support Hunters in Quests	Squad System Explained
Link Party System Explained	Arm Wrestling Guide

Advanced Tips

Advanced Tips
Raise Your Hunter Rank Farming Zenny and Guild Points Changing the Time and Weather Farming Materials in High Rank Crafting Endgame Equipment Accept Meal Invitations Gold Crown and Great Hunts

Raise Your Hunter Rank

Hunter Rank

Once you complete the main story in Low Rank, your main goal for the rest of the game is to raise your Hunter Rank to progress through the High Rank story, hunt new and tougher monsters, and unlock a variety of features.

You can complete side missions, and hunt Tempered monsters to quickly raise your Hunter Rank.

Hunter Rank Guide	Unlocking High Rank
Reach HR 100 Fast	Ruins of Wyveria in High Rank
Switching to Low Rank	The Grand Hub Explained

Farming Zenny and Guild Points

Zenny and Guild Points

Zenny and Guild Points are the main currencies in the game, and you'll need a lot of these to craft armor and weapons, purchase various items, and use some of the game's facilities.

Zenny Farming Guide

Guild Points Farming Guide

Changing the Time and Weather

How to Rest in the Tent

Once you reach High Rank, you'll unlock the feature to rest in your tent, which you can use to change the weather and time into a specific one. Do note that it costs 300 Guild Points each time you rest.

How to Change Time

Weather System Explained

Farming Materials in High Rank

Rare Materials

Like in Low Rank, you'll also need more materials when crafting weapons and equipment for endgame in High Rank, which can require rarer monster materials. You'll also need to farm Armor Spheres as upgrading armor will be more important in High Rank to fend off against tougher monsters.

Farming Armor Spheres

Getting Rare Materials

Crafting Endgame Equipment

Endgame Equipment

Crafting endgame equipment that can go against Tempered monsters is also another goal you can aim for in High Rank.

More decorations and armor will be available as you progress through High Rank, giving you more access to skills which can help you in tougher hunts.

Farming Decorations	Best Mixed Decorations
Secret Armor Sets	Alpha and Beta Armor

Take Advantage of Buffs

You can also depend on getting attack and defense buffs during hunts on top of relying on your weapon and armor skills. You can use Demondrug and Armorskin to get these buffs, or rely on Hunting Horn songs to give yourself a little boost!

Buffs Explained?

How to Get Buffs from The Diva

Meal Invitations and the Canteen

Azuz Everforge Meal Invitation

Meal Invitations from various NPCs will grant you useful Food Skills which last longer than regular meals from cooking, so try to accept meals from them! You can also get these meals at the Canteen in the Grand Hub.

You'll also encounter Wudwud feasts every nighttime during Plenty weather at their hideout in the Scarlet Forest, so make sure to hang out with them!

Meal Invitations

Canteen Guide

Wudwud Feasts

Gold Crown and Great Hunts

Gold Crown Target

Getting gold crown records, which are the smallest and largest sizes of a monster that you can encounter, is an optional side activity that you can do to get certain trophies.

In conjunction with this, Great Hunts feature two target monsters within a single quest, which can be useful for farming various materials or aiming to get gold crown records.

Farming Gold Crowns

Great Hunts

Monster Hunter Wilds Related Guides

Monster Hunter Wilds Walkthrough Wiki

Monster Hunter Wilds Wiki Contents
Weapons	Armor Sets
Monsters	Builds
Story Walkthrough	Artian Weapons
Maps and Locations	Items and Materials
Tips and Tricks	Game Mechanics
Endemic Life	Skills
Decorations	Talismans
Characters	Quests
Palico	Trophies
Cosmetics	Furniture
Festivals	News and Game Info
Message Boards

Recommended Guides

Best Weapons Tier List	Secondary Weapons
Weapon Combos	Best Items to Bring
Armor Set Search	Endgame Guide
Unchangeable Features and Missables	Best Skills
Best Beginner Weapons	Easter Eggs and Secrets
Respawn Timers	Is MH Wilds Too Easy?
Best Meals and Food Effects	Best Status Effect
List of All Bugged Skills	Best Co-op Strategies
Weapon Popularity Tier List	How to Prepare for Title Update 1
Weapon Changes from the Beta	Weapon Changes from Rise and World
List of All DLC and Prices	All Event Armor and Weapons
Talisman Rating Tool	Best Talismans

Comment

Anonymous 9 months

Am I missing where the buffs are displayed in the guide?

Walkthrough Team 9 months

Hi! You're welcome anon. We aim to help out all of our fellow hunters of all skill levels, and we're glad to know that we've helped you understand the game. :) Feel free to check out our guides and ask away. Happy Hunting!

See more comments (3 Comments)

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Monster Hunter Wilds Walkthrough Team

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Hunting Tips and Beginner's Guide

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Monster Hunter Wilds Walkthrough & Guides Wiki

Quick Access

Hunting Tips and Beginner's Guide

Hunting Basics

Understanding the HUD or UI

Familiarize Yourself with the Controls and Settings

Choose a Primary and Secondary Weapon

Equip Armor with Complementing Skills

Bring Hunting Items

Eat Meals to Boost HP and Stamina

Bring Your Palico with You

Begin Your Hunt

Beginner Tips for Monster Hunter Wilds

Customize Your Hunter

Seikret Customization

Equipping Layered Armor

Saving and Pausing

Stopping Fleeing Monsters

Dodging and Avoiding Attacks

Break Monster Parts and Cut Tails to Get Materials

Login Daily and Use Lucky Vouchers

All About Equipment

Catch Endemic Life and Fishes

Hunt with Other Players

Advanced Tips

Raise Your Hunter Rank

Farming Zenny and Guild Points

Changing the Time and Weather

Farming Materials in High Rank

Crafting Endgame Equipment

Take Advantage of Buffs

Meal Invitations and the Canteen

Gold Crown and Great Hunts

Monster Hunter Wilds Related Guides

Recommended Guides

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