Great Sword Guide
Great Sword converts long openings into a small number of high-motion-value severing hits. Its defensive tools are a sharpness-consuming guard and Tackle, which absorbs knockback without making the hunter invulnerable.
Scope and Weapon Model
This article assumes Monster Hunter World: Iceborne under the final balance rules. Great Sword's displayed Attack multiplier is 4.8, so displayed Attack 1440 represents 300 true raw. The official manual: Hunter's Notes identifies the in-game control reference; this article covers charge behavior, routes, modifiers, and build effects.
Charge Levels and Overcharge
Charged Slash, Strong Charged Slash, and True Charged Slash each advance through Lv 1, Lv 2, and Lv 3. Releasing at Lv 3 gives the intended maximum. Holding past that window produces an overcharged attack with lower values rather than a fourth upgrade.
| Attack | Lv 1 raw MV | Lv 2 raw MV | Lv 3 raw MV | Overcharged raw MV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charged Slash Lv1 family | 48 | 77 | 110 | 77 |
| Strong Charged Slash Lv1 family | 82 | 111 | 131 | 90 |
| True Charged Slash, second hit | 120 | 175 | 211 | 182 |
Charge levels also change element multipliers. For example, Lv 3 Charged Slash uses 1.5x element, Lv 3 Strong Charged Slash uses 1.7x, and the second hit of Lv 3 True Charged Slash uses 1.7x.
True Charged Slash and Power
True Charged Slash has a small first hit followed by the main hit. At Lv 3 those hits have 22 and 211 raw MV. If the first hit connects with a valid monster part, the second hit becomes the Power version: its Lv 3 raw MV becomes 264 and its part-damage modifier rises to 1.3x. Missing the first hit still permits the second, but loses that conversion.
The normal ground route passes through Charged Slash and Strong Charged Slash. Two important shortcuts preserve the destination while changing the time and position required:
- A roll can branch into Tackle, then Strong Charged Slash or another tackle, reaching True Charged Slash without first landing Charged Slash.
- After many attacks, Slinger Burst can aim and reposition the hunter, then lead directly to True Charged Slash. The burst's flinch depends on the loaded ammunition and monster state.
Tackle, Guard, and Recovery
Tackle has hyper armor, reduces the damage taken, deals blunt damage, and preserves progression through the charged-slash sequence. It does not nullify damage, status, stun buildup, pins, or a second hitbox. Its raw MV is 26, 35, or 48 according to the inherited charge stage, and it applies no weapon element or status.
Guarding is available from neutral but consumes sharpness when an attack is blocked. Guard strength can be improved by skills, yet the sharpness cost and loss of charge progression make it a distinct emergency defense rather than the same system as Tackle. Rolling after a swing shortens some recovery and opens the roll-to-tackle route.
Core Offensive Priority
This priority assumes a general raw set aimed at wounded sever hitzones with useful enrage uptime.
| Priority | Skill or system | Mechanical reason |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Focus Lv 3 | Shortens charged-slash charge time and changes which openings can reach Lv 3. |
| 1 when eligible | Non-elemental Boost Lv 1 | Multiplies base raw by 1.05x when no element is active. |
| 1 | Weakness Exploit Lv 3 and affinity to 100% | Concentrates critical damage on the parts used for the main hit. |
| 1 | Critical Boost Lv 3 | Raises positive critical raw damage to 1.40x; especially valuable on large individual hits. |
| 1 | Required sharpness support | Preserves white or purple damage and the sharpness consumed by accidental guards. |
| 2 | Agitator | Adds raw and affinity during enrage, which Iceborne clutch actions can help control. |
| 2 | Clutch Claw Boost Lv 1 | Great Sword already wounds in one attack; the skill instead adds slinger-ammunition drops for burst routes. |
Frostcraft, Critical Draw, and Punishing Draw support a draw-focused damage model. They do not multiply every stage of a general True Charged Slash set. Airborne applies to eligible jumping attacks, not ordinary ground charged slashes.
Defensive and Utility Priority
| Priority | Skill or system | Great Sword interaction |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Health Boost Lv 3 and upgraded armor | Increase the damage that can be survived, including damage taken through Tackle. |
| 2 | Stun Resistance Lv 3 | Prevents accumulated stun from converting absorbed hits into a later loss of control. |
| 2 | Divine Blessing | Can reduce damage taken during a committed charge or Tackle. |
| 3 | Quick Sheath | Shortens the weapon's long ordinary sheathe; it does not shorten charge animations. |
| 3 | Evade Extender | Changes roll-to-tackle positioning and can move the next charged attack farther than intended. |
| Conditional | Guard and Guard Up | Reduce guard reactions or permit specified normally unblockable attacks; neither affects Tackle. |
Settings and Mechanical Details
- Directional input during Slinger Burst changes the facing of the following True Charged Slash.
- Mind's Eye/Ballistics prevents ordinary deflection but does not improve a hard hitzone.
- Partbreaker raises part damage before a break, including the Power hit's already high part modifier, but does not raise direct health damage.
- Element remains possible, but Great Sword's largest raw values and low hit count normally make raw scaling more influential than on rapid multi-hit weapons.