Monster Hunter: Rise is full of exotic weapons. There's a gigantic guitar, a lance that shoots bullets, and a naginata that comes with a team of insect lackeys. Players may pass over the more humble, grounded weapons. Appearances can be deceiving, though. The Sword and Shield, maybe the humblest of all, is a fast, balanced weapon that suits players of all skill levels.
The Sword and Shield is, in some respects, a jack-of-all-trades weapon. Thus, it can be hard to decide what aspects to focus on when creating the optimal build. There are indeed many ways to build it. But the best way to use the Sword and Shield is as a quick, crit-heavy DPS. Once a hunter knows what exactly to focus on, creating a great loadout is surprisingly easy.
Sword And Shield Basics
The Sword and Shield is a balanced weapon, combining fast strikes with a built-in guard. The quick rate of attack is great for afflicting statuses, and the shield can even stun. Unfortunately, this weapon has a very short reach, so hitting a monster's head while it's up is hard. And, because this weapon is so focused on combos, getting flinched out of an attack really ruins a player's day.
There's one very special thing about the Sword and Shield: the weapon doesn't have to be sheathed to use items. That's why it's so frequently recommended to new players, but it's incredibly useful at all levels of play. The hunter can even use items while they're guarding.
Skills For Sword And Shield Users
Since the Sword and Shield has a fast attack rate, Critical Eye is one of the best skills for it. This skill increases Affinity and makes critical hits more likely. Critical Eye is also one of the most common skills, as many armor items provide the bonus.
Razor Sharp is a crucial skill for anyone running with a bladed weapon. This skill decreases the rate of Sharpness loss. As weapons get duller, their damage decreases. At the lowest levels of Sharpness, the weapon won't be able to cut off monster parts and may not do any damage at all. Razor Sharp prevents this from happening.
The Best Switch Skills
For the first Switch Skill slot, pick Sliding Slash. Both Sliding Slash and Advancing Slash are decent advancing attacks, but the former has more potential to start a combo. It might take some practice, but a well-timed input leads to a jumping attack. The slide sends the hunter quite far ahead, but they can't turn while it's in progress.
There are two options for Silkbind attacks, and they work more or less the same way. Windmill is slightly better than Metsu Shoryugeki, due to a faster recovery. However, the latter has more aerial reach. Windmill is better for most battles, but don't be afraid to switch if the need arises.
Best Low-Rank Armor
Izuchi Helm
- Monster Bone S x1
- Great Izuchi Pelt x2
- Izuchi Pelt x1
Izuchi Mail
- Great Izuchi Hide x2
- Great Izuchi Pelt x1
- Sharp Claw x1
Izuchi Coil
- Great Izuchi Pelt x2
- Sharp Claw x1
- Izuchi Pelt x2
One of the first large monsters players encounter is the Great Izuchi. These sneaky Bird Wyverns drop materials for the Izuchi armor set. This set is the easiest way to get the Critical Eye skill early in the game. The Helm, Mail, and Coil are listed here because they're the only ones that give Critical Eye. However, it's still in most player's best interest to craft the whole set. Izuchi armor has good resistance against Fire, so it's the best set to equip when fighting Aknosom for the first time. The fire-breathing feathered fiend can be a wall without adequate preparation, so this armor set provides some decent defense.
Best High-Rank Armor
Almudron Mail
- Fertile Mud x1
- Almudron Tail x1
- Golden Muck x2
- Almudron Shell x3
Almudron Greaves
- Mizutsune Fin x1
- Almudron Claw x1
- Almudron Fin x2
- Almudron Scale x2
When the hunter gets strong enough to face Rank 6 monsters, they should look into the Almudron armor set. Some of the pieces of this set give the aforementioned Razor Sharp skill. As said before, it's one of the best skills in the game, but it's quite rare. The only other option is the Channeler set, which is even rarer and built more for ranged users. Sword and Shield wielders should stick with Almudron.
Best Low-Rank Weapons
Fighter Sword
- upgrade of Hunter's Knife II
- Malachite Ore x3
- Lightcrystal x1
Pukei Sword I
- upgrade of Fighter Sword
- Dragonite Ore x3
- Pukei-Pukei Quill x3
- Pukei-Pukei Sac x2
At the very beginning of the game, the humble Fighter Sword is a cheap weapon with all-around good stats. The Ore Tree is the best path to start with for every weapon type, because the materials can be acquired without defeating monsters. To really rip through the early levels, seek out a Pukei Sword. Defeating the Rank 4 Pukei-Pukei will be a challenge, but it's worth it to get a Poison element sword.
Best High-Rank Weapons
Hidden Edge I
- upgrade of Kamura Sword III
- Monster Bone L x1
- Nargacuga Blackfur x4
- Narga Tailspike x3
- Nargacuga Scale x3
Flash in the Night
- upgrade of Hidden Edge II
- Rakna-Kadaki Carapace x3
- Narga Medulla x1
- Nargacuga+ x15 points
Stronger players will be able to face the terrifying Nargacuga and gather its drops. They can then craft the Hidden Edge, one of the best Sword and Shield weapons in the mid-late game. Its power is a bit on the low side, but it has high Sharpness and, most importantly, 30 Affinity. This weapon's crit rate is very high and it can dish out a lot of quick attacks before becoming dull, making it vital for an optimal DPS build. The Nargacuga tree can be ridden to the endgame, too. The final weapon, Flash in the Night, has all the upsides of Hidden Edge, but even better.
Best Solo Build
- Flash in the Night
- Zinogre Helm S
- Zinogre Mail S
- Anjanath Vambraces S
- Anjanath Coil S
- Zinogre Greaves S
This build is all about maximum Affinity. Zinogre armor comes with Weakness Exploit, which greatly increases Affinity when striking weak spots. Meanwhile, the Anjanath Vambraces grant Slugger, a skill that makes it easier to stun monsters with the shield bash. Latent Power increases Affinity and Stamina efficiency after taking a certain amount of damage. Finally, Attack Boost increases damage all around.