Great Sword Weapon Guide and New Moves

The Great Sword is a heavy, hard-hitting weapon that deals massive damage in a single hit in Monster Hunter Wilds. See what new actions the Great Sword can perform, how to use it, its controls, and the best combos in this guide!

New Great Sword Moves

Upwards Counter Slash

The Upwards Counter Slash is a rising attack that can be timed to deflect an incoming monster's attack. The above clip from the weapon trailer shows the move used to intercept a Doshaguma's attack.

It is followed up with a dashing attack, meaning that this move is great for creating openings and moving in to attack. Reminder to press triangle afterward to perform the attack.

Power Clashes

Performing a perfect guard against specific monster attacks can trigger the new Power Clash mechanic that pits the hunter against their foe in a brief struggle. Succeeding in this mechanic causes the monster to stagger backward. You will then be able to transition into a True Charged Slash (TCS).

Note that all weapons that can guard can trigger a Power Clash, including the Great Sword.

Enhanced Tackles

Along with the previous benefits of the Tackle introduced in MH World, Wilds now has Enhanced Tackles which retains the charge level when you use it to deflect monster attacks!

While this is a minimal change, its benefits are certainly noticeable! Essentially, you will lose 1-2 seconds of wind-up time. That will surely make the difference between hitting a TCS.

Perfect Guards

Guarding with the Great Sword is not new, but performing a Perfect Guard is now included for Wilds. To execute a perfect guard, you must guard the monster's attack as you are about to get hit.

A successful perfect guard will nullify all damage taken, remove all sharpness damage, and glow red whilst giving these additional bonuses:

• Additional frames to immediately dodge afterward.
• Replaces the Kick with the option to do a Charged Slash, Offset Charged Slash, or Wide Slash.

Aimed Slashes

Arguably, the Great Sword received the most benefits out of the new Focus Mode due to the simple fact that you can now redirect your Charged Slashes mid-animation. This removes the overarching weakness of the Greatsword, its philosophy to fully commit in a single direction.

Focus Slash: Perforate

The Great Sword's new focus move "Focus Slash: Perforate" has the Great Sword slash at the opponent to then drag it across the flesh to destroy wounds.

As the move can be maneuvered, you can break multiple wounds with one input. Another property of this move is that it is performed rather quickly, meaning you can repeatedly use this to consume all of the monster's present wounds.

How to Use the Great Sword

Disclaimer: The guide presented here includes info from previous games in the series.

Great Sword Gameplay Tips
Sheathe the Sword for Maneuverability Look for Openings to True Charge Slash Tackle to Avoid Roars and Attacks Guard When Necessary Use Concentration and Stun Resistance

Sheathe the Sword for Maneuverability

One tactic players can employ with the Great Sword is cycling through sheathing the weapon, then going in for an unsheathe attack once an opportunity presents itself. This allows for greater mobility, as the hunter moves faster while the Great Sword is sheathed.

However, to fully utilize the Great Sword's abilities, players will have to get used to fighting with the weapon drawn instead of repeatedly sheathing it.

Look for Openings to True Charge Slash

The Great Sword's most powerful attack is the TCS. This action requires a lot of charging to execute and is prone to missing or being stopped if the monster moves or attacks. Here are a list of scenarios where you can use a TCS:

• When the monster is stunned or impaired.
• While the monster commits to a slow attack.
• If the monster is trapped.
• After using a tackle to tank attacks.

To properly land it, a thorough understanding of the monster's patterns is required. Look for openings wherein the foe is recovering from an attack, or is otherwise stunned or incapacitated, to land a big hit.

Tackle to Avoid Roars and Attacks

The Great Sword has a Tackle action that can be used while charging attacks; the tackle has super armor, meaning that it can tank through roars and less powerful attacks, then follow up with a TCS.

Hunters can use this to TCS aggressively, as they can tackle through attacks and follow-up. In particular, the start of a fight often has the monster roar, which presents a great opportunity for this combo.

Guard When Necessary

Remember that the Great Sword has access to guarding as well! If uncertain about tackling through an attack, players can defend against it by guarding instead.

Guarding has also been shown to initiate the Power Clash mechanic, wherein the hunter and the monster enter a brief struggle. Winning the clash will push the monster back and stagger it, giving a window of opportunity for attacks.

Use Concentration and Stun Resistance

The skills Concentration and Stun Resistance are staple skills for the Great Sword in previous titles and can be expected to become essential in Monster Hunter Wilds as well.

The former decreases the time needed to charge for the TCS, while the latter improves the hunter's resistance against being stunned by attacks.

Great Sword Controls

Basic Controls

Action	PC	PS5	Xbox
Overhead Slash Attack
Charge	(Press and Hold)	(Press and Hold)	(Press and Hold)
Tackle	While Charging	While Charging	While Charging
Wide Slash
Rising Slash	+	+	+
Offset Rising Slash	(Press and Hold)+ (Press and Hold)	(Press and Hold) + (Press and Hold)	(Press and Hold) + (Press and Hold)
Guard
Kick	(While Guarding)	(While Guarding)	(While Guarding)
Focus Slash: Perforate	+	+	+

Great Sword Combos

Standard Fast True Charged Slash

Platform	Combo Input
PC	→ ▶︎ → Full Charge
PS5	→ ▶︎ → Full Charge
Xbox	→ ▶︎ → Full Charge

Like its predecessor MH World, the new Great Sword uses the bread-n'-butter combo. Alongside the new focus mode, you will now be able to regularly use this combo even while out of position!

Evading True Charged Slash

Platform	Combo Input
PC	Dodge → → Full Charge
PS5	Dodge → → Full Charge
Xbox	Dodge → → Full Charge

After evading a monster attack, you can immediately use the tackle move to transition into a Strong Charged Slash. Do not charge this slash to quickly set up your TCS, allowing you to punish arduous monster attacks!

New Perfect Guard Combo

Platform	Combo Input
PC	→ + →
PS5	→ + →
Xbox	→ + →

This combo combines the two new mechanics introduced for the Great Sword to reward players who memorize a monster's move set. Use this combo if you are confident that a monster has a set pattern they follow after an initial attack.

Poke Combo

Platform	Combo Input
PC	→ → ▶︎ (Tackle Optional)
PS5	→ → ▶︎ (Tackle Optional)
Xbox	→ → ▶︎ (Tackle Optional)

If you find yourself having a hard time punishing monsters due to their quick recovery, you can opt to use this combo to sneak some hits as it is not as commital as the usual Great Sword combos!

Furthermore, it gives you room to assess whether a monster will perform a move you can tackle as it is easy to access with Charged Slash!

Monster Hunter Wilds Related Guides

All Weapons and Guides

All Weapon Guides

All Weapon Types
Great Sword		Long Sword		Sword & Shield
Dual Blades		Hammer		Hunting Horn
Lance		Gunlance		Switch Axe
Charge Blade		Insect Glaive		Light Bowgun
Heavy Bowgun			Bow