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☆ Tier List | Weapon Guides | Builds
┗ Artian Weapons | Best Artian Weapons
☆ Monsters | Items | Skills | Decorations
This is a full list of builds for the Great Sword in Monster Hunter Wilds (MHWilds). Learn about the best Great Sword builds for High Rank and Low Rank, as well as the best Skill and Armor Pieces to use with the Great Sword!
| Great Sword Guides | ||
|---|---|---|
| Weapon Guide | Builds | Tree |
List of Contents
| High Rank | Build Name |
|---|---|
| HR36++ | Critical Sleep GS |
| HR21 - HR35 | Agitated Max Might Exploiter GS |
| HR9 - HR20 | WEX Agitator GS |
Note that if you are still comfortable with a previous build you're using, you can skip some builds. This is a suggested build progression that you can follow until endgame.
Effective Raw
303.1
Effective Element
32.2
Raw Crit Damage
1.34x
Element Crit Damage
1.00x
Attack
1032
Element
280
Affinity
20%
Sharpness
Defense
319
vs. Fire
0
vs. Water
4
vs. Thunder
-5
vs. Ice
4
vs. Dragon
-13
Critical BoostLv.3
FocusLv.3
Offensive GuardLv.3
HandicraftLv.2
AgitatorLv.5
Weakness ExploitLv.5
CounterstrikeLv.3
Quick SheatheLv.3
ConstitutionLv.2
FlayerLv.2
Binding CounterLv.1
DecimatorLv.1
|
Varianza
|
|
| This endgame Great Sword build revolves around maximizing affinity and damage by using a variety of skills, partnered with the Sleep status to occasionally deal huge amounts of damage. | |
Critical Sleep GS Build Details
|
Artian Blade I
|
|
| A High Rank build focused on increasing your Affinity as much as possible to deal critical damage to monsters. | |
Agitated Max Might Exploiter GS Build Details
 Chicken Decapitator I
|
|
| A build for the early High Rank that focuses on increasing your damage using Weakness Exploit and Agitator. | |
| Low Rank | Build Name |
|---|---|
| HR6 - HR8 | WEX Flay Decimator |
| HR3 - HR5 | Offensive Guard Partbreaker |
| HR1 - HR3 | Mobile Crit Draw |
 G. Veldian Gladius I
|
|
| A great Low Rank build usable until early High Rank, this build will make Wounds easier to make, which in turn increases your Affinity with Weakness Exploit, while also providing sustain with Decimator. | |
Wex Flay Decimate GS Build Details
 Immane Blade I
|
|
| A good upgraded Low Rank build which takes advantage of Partbreaker to destroy parts and deal more damage to Wounds. | |
Offensive Guard Partbreaker GS Build Details
 Buster Sword I
|
|
| A starter build that focuses on the Great Sword's hit-and-run playstyle to deal damage while keeping out of reach of monsters. | |
Mobile Crit Draw GS Build Details
These skills make it possible to deal extra damage! Aim for these skills for maximum DPS to defeat those monsters easier and finish those quests faster!
| Best Skills | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Weakness Exploit ★★★ |
As you will be attacking a monster's weak spot anyway, getting Weakness Exploit is a must, as it increases your Affinity when attacking a monster's weak point. |
| Agitator ★★★ |
Agitator can give up to 20 Attack and 15% Affinity whenever your target is enraged. While this may seem situational, monsters become enraged more easily in High Rank, making this a great late game skill. |
| Maximum Might ★★★ |
Thanks to the Great Sword's stationary combos, you will be able to activate Maximum Might even if you need to expend Stamina do evade or block enemy attacks. Synergizes well with Second Wind, but is not necessary. |
| Counterstrike ★★★ |
Thanks to the Great Sword's Tackle, you will be able to activate this skill and get up to 25 Raw Attack by using the Tackle's Hyper Armor to counter enemy attacks, especially those that can knock you back. |
| Critical Boost ★★ |
A great source of damage amplification if you have a high Affinity build. Do not take this skill if you cannot reliably crit. |
| Partbreaker ★★ |
Lets you break monster parts more easily while also increasing the damage you deal to Wounds when using Focus Strike. |
| Flayer ★★ |
This skill allows you to create wounds more easily, which synergizes well with Weakness Exploit and the Arkveld Armor Set Bonus Decimator. |
| Critical Draw ★★ |
Grants up to a 100% affinity on draw attacks, and is great for hit-and-run tactics, but is outshined by how fast you can perform a True Charged Slash in Monster Hunter Wilds. |
| Offensive Guard ★★ |
Thanks to the Perfect Block and the new Power Clash mechanic, Offensive Guard is a viable skill to use. |
| Attack Boost ★ |
This skill improves your attack by both giving a percentage increase as well as a flat increase in attack, making it good for the Great Sword's hard hitting attacks. |
| Critical Element ★ |
Increases your Elemental damage whenever you crit, and is great if you have high Affinity. The downside is that Elemental damage is not ideal for Great Swords thanks to their slow attack animations, leading to reduced instances of Elemental damage. |
| Elemental Attack ★ |
Use the Elemental Attack skills to raise a specific Elemental damage. Best used with Critical Element. |
| Latent Power ★ |
Latent Power's additional Affinity and reduction to Stamina consumption makes it great as both a Damage skill and a Comfort skill. Sadly, running this skill is redundant if you already have high Affinity or Stamina Surge, which do not have a strict activation requirement compared to Latent Power. |
These are skills that make managing weapon mechanics a lot easier. Damage is only part of the equation - taking time to slot in comfort skills that increase consistency & comfort will also increase overall DPS!
| Best Skills | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Focus ★★★ |
Makes the Great Sword's charge attacks charge faster, making it a must-have skill for any Great Sword build. |
| Decimator ★★ |
This skill heals you whenever you destroy wounds, which reduces the downtime caused by healing. This in turn allows you to attack more often. |
| Constitution ★★ |
Lowers your Stamina consumption when blocking or evading, making it perfect for Great Sword survivability. |
| Guard ★★ |
As blocking attacks is now encouraged on the Great Sword, having this skill lets you block attacks more, allowing you to stay close to the monster for counter-attacks. |
| Handicraft ★ |
Consider slotting this skill in either to get your weapon's sharpness to the next level, or when you need to increase the length of your current Sharpness bar to prevent constant sharpening. |
| Shock Absorber ★ |
Useful especially in multiplayer as it will prevent your attacks from getting interrupted by your teammate's attacks. |
| Quick Sheath ★ |
Lets you sheath your weapon quickly, which is great for when you need to relocate or dodge large monster attacks. |
| Speed Sharpening ★ |
Reduces your sharpening animation, allowing you to get back in the fight faster. |
List of Builds for Each Weapon
| All Weapon Builds & Guides | |
|---|---|
 Great SwordLow Rank | High Rank |
 Long SwordLow Rank | High Rank |
 Sword and ShieldLow Rank | High Rank |
 Dual BladesLow Rank | High Rank |
 HammerLow Rank | High Rank |
 Hunting HornLow Rank | High Rank |
 LanceLow Rank | High Rank |
 GunlanceLow Rank | High Rank |
 Switch AxeLow Rank | High Rank |
 Charge BladeLow Rank | High Rank |
 Insect GlaiveLow Rank | High Rank |
 BowLow Rank | High Rank |
 Light BowgunLow Rank | High Rank |
 Heavy BowgunLow Rank | High Rank |
| Non-Meta Builds & Guides | |
|---|---|
| Immortal Build | Support Build |
| Best Gathering Sets | How to Make a Good Build |
Best Great Sword Builds and Armor
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