In the diverse arsenal of *Monster Hunter Now*, the Great Sword stands out as a powerhouse, capable of devastating blows. Its sheer size, however, makes it a challenging weapon to master. To build a truly effective Great Sword, you need a strategy that mitigates its unwieldiness. This guide outlines a build focused on maximizing the Great Sword's potential through strategic sleep-inducing attacks.
Thanks to recent updates, crafting sleep-based weapons is now possible, but achieving consistent sleep effects requires specific skills and gear. This build utilizes readily available materials, with one exception, to create a powerful and surprisingly versatile Great Sword build.
The Best Monster Hunter Now Great Sword Build
Unlike the poison-focused Long Sword, the Great Sword shines when utilizing sleep effects. While this build requires materials from one relatively rare monster, the majority of the equipment comes from more common hunts.
Complete Monster Hunter Now Great Sword Build
| Item | Effect |
|---|---|
| Weapon: Frilled Blade | - Element: Sleep - Evade Extender I (Grade 8) |
| Helmet: Nightshade Paolumu Helmet | - Rude Awakener I (Grade 5) - Rude Awakener II (Grade 8) - Driftstone Slot (Grade 8) |
| Mail: Tzitzi-Ya-Ku Mail | - Status Sneak Attack (Grade 2) - Artful Dodger (Grade 4) - Driftstone Slot (Grade 5) |
| Vambraces: Tzitzi-Ya-Ku Vambraces | - Status Sneak Attack I (Grade 2) - Status Sneak Attack II (Grade 4) - Driftstone Slot (Grade 5) |
| Coil: Tzitzi-Ya-Ku Coil | - Evade Extender (Grade 2) - Status Sneak Attack (Grade 4) - Driftstone Slot (Grade 5) |
| Greaves: Nightshade Paolumu Greaves | - Rude Awakener (Grade 5) - Status Sneak Attack (Grade 6) - Driftstone Slot (Grade 5) |
Weapon: Frilled Blade
The Frilled Blade is the optimal sleep-based Great Sword. Its inherent Evade Extender skill significantly improves mobility, crucial for the Great Sword's slower attack animations. While not essential, it enhances survivability. You'll need to hunt Somnacanth for the necessary materials.
Helmet & Greaves: Nightshade Paolumu
The core of this build comes from the Nightmare Paolumu, introduced in an early event. This monster provides the crucial Rude Awakener skill (all three levels), which massively boosts damage against sleeping monsters (100% increase on the first hit). While less frequent now, Nightmare Paolumu remains accessible through events or rare spawns.
Mail, Vambraces, & Coil: Tzitzi-Ya-Ku
Completing the build, the Tzitzi-Ya-Ku provides Status Sneak Attack, maximizing sleep buildup with rear attacks. This also adds points to Evade Extender and Artful Dodger, further enhancing survivability and maneuverability. The Tzitzi-Ya-Ku is thankfully a common monster.
Optimizing Driftstone Slots
This build boasts numerous Driftstone slots. Prioritize five Sleep Attack slots for maximum sleep buildup. Alternatively, invest in Artful Dodger and Evade Extender for improved defense or Sneak Attack for increased damage from rear attacks.
- Sleep Attack (Azure): Increases sleep buildup (50 at rank 1, 150 at rank 5).
- Sneak Attack (Pale): Increases damage from rear attacks (10% at rank 1, 30% at rank 5).
- Artful Dodger (Azure): Improves evasion ease.
- Evade Extender (Pale): Increases evasion distance.
