The Karakuri Staff has to be one of the more creative weapon additions that Wild Hearts adds to the monster-hunting sub-genre.
This weapon, unlike all others in the game, can transform between 4 different weapons, with a 5th used an as 'ultimate attack' of sorts. When used properly, the Karakuri Staff can unleash some of the highest DPS Wild Hearts has to offer, all while looking as stylish as possible. So, to help hunters who may be thinking this weapon is too complicated to use, let's go over it in-depth.
Karakuri Staff Overview
Out of the 8 playable weapons in Wild Hearts, all of which have their own unique gimmicks, the Karakuri Staff has to be the most deceptive one. Memorizing the attacks of 5 different weapons sounds complicated, and it looks like it requires a lot of input timing when players watch others use it, but the weapon is actually pretty simple. To start, it'd be best not to mistakenly think of the Karakuri Staff as 5 separate weapons, but rather as one weapon that switches between different 'forms' throughout a combo. When players manage to properly use the Weapon Shift mechanic, they build a bar towards using the full unleashed Juggernaut Blade combo, and this rotation is the core gameplay loop of the weapon.
With that in mind, the Karakuri Staff is a weapon that rewards players for proper input timing, like the Maul, but isn't quite as simple as the Maul. While players can absolutely just spam their Attack 1 input and randomly use the Special Attack Weapon Shift to rotate between the weapon lineup, they're not going to build much of their Juggernaut Blade meter that way.
Basic Karakuri Staff Mechanics, Systems, & Combos
Now, just like every other weapon (including the other two unlocked after Chapter 1), the Karakuri Staff has an Attack 1, an Attack 2, and a Special Attack input. But, because both Attack 1 and Attack 2 are dependent on the weapon currently out, the only constant mechanic between all of them is the Special Attack which is called Weapon Mutation.
And, because the Karakuri staff has attack patterns with each of the 5 weapons, and these attack patterns can actually vary widely based on how long a player keeps the Mutate combo going, the list of 'basic' attacks can look bloated. Still, remember that the intention of this weapon is to be constantly cycling through them, so players won't need to worry so much about each individual input:
Weapon Name | Attack 1 | Attack 1 (x2) | Attack 1 (x3) | Attack 2 | Aerial Attack |
Long Staff | Downswing | Single Strike | N/A | Leaping Strike | Aerial Downswing |
Twin Fang | Jumping Slash | Double Cut | Spin Slash | Jumping Spin Slash | Aerial Cross Slice |
Giant Shuriken | Hack | N/A | N/A | Forward Throw | Jumping Sweep |
War Pike | Cut Down | N/A | N/A | Nimble Lunge | Aerial Downswing |
Now, outside of the general attack patterns for each weapon form, the Karakuri Staff also has all the standard unique attacks, such as a running attack, attack after a sliding dodge, and all the attacks with Basic Karakuri. The Basic Karakuri ones are a bit advanced, so let's save those for later, but in the meantime here are the unique attack names as well as each weapon used during them:
- Running Attack 1: Double Upswing (Long Staff)
- Running Attack 2: Forward Throw (Giant Shuriken)
- Sliding Attack: Scissor Cut (Twin Fangs)
- Unsheath Attack 1: Double Upswing (Long Staff)
- Unsheath Attack 2: Lunge (War Pike)
And finally for basic info, let's discuss the Karakuri Staff's meter and weapon based around this meter, the Juggernaut Blade. This is the main incentive for players to be using the Weapon Mutations with the proper timing (during the orange flash). Doing this builds the meter above the player's health bar, and at different points in the meter, the hunter can press Special Attack + Attack 2 to pull out the Juggernaut Blade for one to three hits. To elaborate a bit more:
- Special Attack + Attack 2: Full-Body Wave Slice (0-3 bars of meter)
- Special Attack + Attack 2 (x2): Full-Body Wind Cleave (4-7 bars of meter)
- Special Attack + Attack 2 (x3): Full-Body Air Cleave (Maxed out meter)
- Special Attack + Attack 2 (in air or after Crate Karakuri jump): Full Body Slam
Advanced Mechanics & Combos
This next aspect of the Karakuri Staff is one that barely anyone has been seemingly talking about, and it's the fact that the attacks, number of inputs, and even attack names themselves change if depending on how far along a player is in the Weapon Mutation combo without missing the proper timing and without interruption.
While the Attack 2's don't change at any point, if a player were to stop attacking after getting to the second variation of the Giant Shuriken, they'd find their Attack 1 is completely different until they stow their Karakuri Staff. For those who are wondering how long this Weapon Mutation combo and weapon variation go before circling back around, the full version is: Staff, Fangs, Shuriken, Pike, Staff, Shuriken, Fangs, Pike, Shuriken. After that, it cycles back around to the default rotation and moveset.
The important thing to note here is that when this happens, the number of Attack 1s needed for the Mutation combo's orange flash to appear changes, with the first Giant Shuriken variation needing two Attack 1 inputs instead of a single one and so on. More often than not, players won't get to this state during a Kemono fight, and even if they do it's pretty easy to just keep pressing Attack 1 until the flash appears. But, it's a mechanic that's absolutely still worth knowing about.
Outside of this, the actual 'advanced' combos of the Karakuri Staff consist of its attacks using Basic Karakuri, as there really isn't much variation players can add to the basic Weapon Muttation combo other than throwing in an Attack 2 input every once in a while before starting it back up again. With that in mind, let's go over each Basic Karakuri attack and weapon used during it:
- Crate and Stake Karakuri: War Pike Flash - A downward thrusting attack that can hit multiple times depending on player placement, height, or Kemono size.
- Spring Karakuri: Twin Fang Loop - A heavily horizontal attack where the player flies forward while spinning their Fangs, hitting the monster a multitude of times as they fly by. Incredibly useful against gigantic Kemono like the Kingtusk.
- Glider and Celestial Thread Anchor Karakuri: Long Staff Blow - A vertical spinning attack that functions very similarly to War Pike Flash in how it can hit multiple times.
- First Torch Karakuri Attack: Blade Wheel Inferno - The first input of the Torch Attack where the hunter throws the flaming Giant Shuriken in a very similar manner to the standard Forward Throw Attack 2.
- Second Torch Karakuri Attack: Long Staff Fire Fury - A second Torch Attack unleashed if the hunter does the Weapon Mutation at the right time after Blade Wheel Inferno. This is a spinning Long Staff attack where the player moves forward while spinning their flaming staff, hitting a multitude of times before slamming the Staff down in a fiery vertical arc.
How To Properly Use The Karakuri Staff In A Hunt
Here's the most important section for the Karakuri Staff, how to use it in a Hunt. While it's nice that the weapon can chain infinitely if players keep nailing the Mutation combo inputs, Kemono aren't exactly going to sit there, wait, and tank all the hits without moving. So, which attacks, combos, or general strategies seem to be the most useful in a battle against Kemono? Here are some general thoughts and other pro tips:
- Get off as many Weapon Mutations as possible to build meter, but don't be afraid to dodge roll cancel or even Karakuri Build animation cancel (a mechanic many people still aren't aware of) if an enemy attack is coming.
- The Karakuri Staff is another weapon that ends up using its Basic Karakuri-based attacks pretty often.
- Both Torch Karakuri attacks are very useful, especially for building a bit of quick Juggernaut meter.
- The Giant Shuriken's Attack 2 Forward Throw (or just general running Attack 2 if the Staff is stowed) is a fantastic poke option for Kemono that seem to punish hunters that stick too close like Deathstalkers and Emberplumes.
- The War Pike's Nimble Lunge actually has some power armor on its animation, so players can use it to 'trade' hits with Kemono pretty reliably.
- The third hit of the Juggernaut Blade combo, Full-body Air Cleave, is one of the hardest-hitting single attacks in Wild Hearts, so it's worth saving up for in general, but the single and double-hit combos are absolutely still worth using often against Kemono with smaller windows of opportunity like Lavabacks or Golden Tempests.
- Blacked out, Fatigued, or trapped Kemono (whether it's with a Chain Trap or Harpoon Fusion Karakuri) are when Karakuri Staff users should always use their Juggernaut Blade, no questions asked.
- A full Juggernaut Blade meter only lasts about 30 seconds, so there is a bit of push to using it ASAP when reaching maxed meter.
- Remember, Karakuri Staff hunters are some of the fast-moving and most mobile hunters with their weapons out, and this is by developer design to incentivize them against holstering their Staff too often. Try to use Basic Karakuri and well-time rolls to avoid attacks instead of holstering as much as possible.
Which Archetypes Are Drawn To The Karakuri Staff & Why?
But, what reason is there to pick the Karakuri Staff over the other options? Is it worth waiting until the end of Chapter 1? Well, that depends on each individual player. But, for the most part, these are the types of players who are drawn to the Karakuri Staff:
- People who like visually bombastic weapons.
- Hunters who like the concept of a 'jack-of-all-trads' type weapon.
- Anyone who saw the Juggernaut Blade in one of Wild Hearts trailers and was immediately captivated.
- People who like both long and short-range options.
- Players that prefer to have options for just about every scenario.
And that's about it for the Karakuri Staff guide. It's a relatively simple weapon masquerading as something much more complicated. It's not for everyone, but for the people who are on the fence about this weapon or need just a bit more convincing:
- The Karakuri Staff is one of the most visually 'bombastic' weapons in the game, as the player character is constantly moving around and attacking with different weapons before swinging the absurdly gigantic Juggernaut Blade.
- It's a great combination of mobility, high damage, and unique attack patterns.
- The different weapon upgrade paths are infinitely more visually appealing with the Karakuri Staff, as each one changes the appearance of all 5 weapons, including the Juggernaut Blade.
Wild Hearts is available now on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.