Choosing the right weapon in Monster Hunter Outlanders can completely change how you approach combat. Some weapons are excellent for dealing massive damage in a short amount of time, while others offer better mobility, defensive options, or the ability to attack monsters from a safe distance. However, not every weapon performs equally well, especially when you’re using the Fated Adventurer.
If you’re unsure which weapon to invest your time in, I’ve ranked all eight available weapon types based on their damage potential, versatility, and overall ease of use. Whether you prefer getting close to monsters with a Long Sword, attacking from a distance with a Heavy Bowgun, or dealing massive hits with a Charge Blade, this guide will help you find the right weapon for your playstyle.
Personally, I recommend starting with the Long Sword, Heavy Bowgun, or Charge Blade if you want a strong weapon for the Fated Adventurer. These three options currently offer some of the best overall performance, although the right choice ultimately depends on how comfortable you are with their mechanics.
Monster Hunter Outlanders Weapons Tier List – Best Weapons
Before looking at individual weapons, here’s a quick breakdown of where every weapon currently stands.
| Tier | Weapons |
|---|---|
| S Tier | Long Sword, Heavy Bowgun, Charge Blade |
| A Tier | Great Sword, Bow, Dual Blades |
| B Tier | Hammer, Lance |
This ranking is specifically for the Fated Adventurer. Some weapons have complicated mechanics, but they can still be extremely powerful once you understand how to use them.
The S Tier weapons are my top recommendations because they offer excellent damage, flexibility, or consistent performance without requiring too much setup. A Tier weapons are also strong but need more attention to positioning, combos, or resource management. B Tier weapons have their own advantages, but their limitations make them harder to recommend over the other options.
I considered three main factors when putting together this ranking. Damage is important, but I also looked at how practical each weapon is during actual monster encounters.
- Damage Output: How much damage the weapon can deal during regular attacks, combos, and powerful abilities.
- Versatility: How useful the weapon is when the Fated Adventurer is being controlled directly or used as an ally in your squad.
- Ease of Use: How difficult it is to understand the weapon’s mechanics, maintain combos, manage stamina, and deal consistent damage.
S Tier – Best Weapons in Monster Hunter Outlanders
These are the weapons I would prioritize if you want the strongest overall options for the Fated Adventurer. They offer excellent performance and are generally easier to get value from during different encounters.
1. Long Sword
Tier: S | Damage: 5/5 | Versatility: 4/5 | Ease of Use: 5/5
The Long Sword is one of my favorite recommendations because it offers a great balance between damage, mobility, and defensive abilities. You don’t need to spend too much time learning complicated mechanics before you can start dealing respectable damage.
Its moveset is straightforward, allowing you to attack monsters while maintaining good movement during combat. This makes it a reliable option for players who prefer staying close to enemies without feeling completely exposed to incoming attacks.
One of the biggest advantages of the Long Sword is Foresight Slash. This ability provides a forgiving parry window, allowing you to avoid incoming attacks and continue your offensive pressure. Once you understand the timing, you can use it as an effective defensive tool instead of constantly relying on dodging.
2. Heavy Bowgun
Tier: S | Damage: 3/5 | Versatility: 5/5 | Ease of Use: 5/5
The Heavy Bowgun is an excellent choice if you prefer attacking monsters from a distance. Even after the changes made since the beta, it remains a useful weapon because of its range, flexibility, and different ammunition types.
Unlike melee weapons, you don’t have to stay directly next to a monster to deal damage. This gives you more opportunities to maintain your attacks while observing enemy movements.
For consistent damage, I recommend focusing on Normal Ammo. If your goal is to cut off monster tails, Slicing Ammo is another useful option.
The other ammunition types, including Sticky Ammo, Cluster Bombs, and Wyvern Ammo, still have their own uses. However, they aren’t as powerful or reliable as they were before the beta changes.
3. Charge Blade
Tier: S | Damage: 5/5 | Versatility: 5/5 | Ease of Use: 3/5
The Charge Blade is one of the most interesting weapons available to the Fated Adventurer. It offers multiple combat modes, giving you different ways to approach monster encounters depending on the situation.
What makes this weapon particularly powerful is its Axe Mode. Once you’ve built up the necessary resources and understand how to use its mechanics, you can unleash attacks capable of removing huge portions of a monster’s health.
The weapon does have a learning curve, especially if you’re completely new to Charge Blade mechanics. You’ll need to understand how its different modes work and when to switch between them.
However, I find its mechanics easier to pick up compared to the Charge Blade in the main Monster Hunter games. You still need practice, but you don’t have to master an overly complicated system before seeing good results.
It’s also worth remembering that the Fated Adventurer is currently the only character capable of using this weapon.
A Tier – Strong Weapons Worth Using
A Tier weapons can still perform extremely well. They simply require more attention to combos, positioning, or specific mechanics to reach their full potential.
If you enjoy any of these weapon types, there’s no reason to avoid them just because they aren’t in S Tier.
4. Great Sword
Tier: A | Damage: 5/5 | Versatility: 3/5 | Ease of Use: 4/5
The Great Sword is all about delivering powerful attacks. If you enjoy slower weapons that reward proper timing, this is one of the options I would recommend trying.
Its charged attacks can deal excellent damage, but you’ll need to understand how the charging and Tackle mechanics work to get consistent results.
The Tackle mechanic is particularly important because it allows you to continue your offensive approach through certain incoming attacks. The weapon also has Unwavering integrated into its kit, giving you another way to withstand attacks without immediately interrupting your damage.
The main disadvantage is that the Great Sword isn’t as versatile as some of the S Tier weapons. You need to understand monster movement and attack openings before committing to its slower attacks.
5. Bow
Tier: A | Damage: 4/5 | Versatility: 4/5 | Ease of Use: 4/5
The Bow is a solid ranged weapon that provides a good balance between damage and mobility. If you enjoy attacking monsters from a distance but want something more active than the Heavy Bowgun, this is worth trying.
Its biggest advantage is the ability to maintain ranged damage while repositioning around enemies. However, you can’t simply keep firing without thinking about your positioning and stamina.
Stamina management is particularly important because you’ll need enough stamina available when you have to dodge incoming attacks. If you use everything while attacking, you might find yourself unable to escape a monster’s next move.
6. Dual Blades
Tier: A | Damage: 4/5 | Versatility: 3/5 | Ease of Use: 4/5
If you prefer fast attacks and aggressive combat, Dual Blades might be the weapon for you.
Unlike the Great Sword, which focuses on powerful individual hits, Dual Blades allow you to attack monsters with fast combos. The weapon has a satisfying attack sequence that rewards players who can maintain their offensive pressure.
However, a large part of its damage potential comes from combos and building up the Demon Gauge. This means you need to maintain your attack sequence and manage the weapon’s mechanics properly.
The biggest limitation is that its reliance on combos can make it difficult to deal consistent damage against certain enemies. If a monster frequently moves away or interrupts your attacks, maintaining your Demon Gauge and combos becomes more challenging.
B Tier – Situational Weapons
The Hammer and Lance aren’t necessarily bad weapons. They both offer useful mechanics, but their limitations make them harder to recommend over the options in S and A Tier.
7. Hammer
Tier: B | Damage: 4/5 | Versatility: 4/5 | Ease of Use: 3/5
The Hammer has a unique advantage in Monster Hunter Outlanders because it’s currently the only weapon capable of applying Stun.
This makes it useful for controlling monsters and creating opportunities for your teammates to deal damage. Successfully stunning a monster can give your squad valuable time to attack without worrying about incoming moves.
However, the Hammer has some noticeable weaknesses. Its attacks are relatively slow, and your Charge Attacks can reset if you’re hit before completing them.
Another important thing to understand is that the Hammer relies heavily on targeting monster heads. This isn’t always easy, particularly when fighting fast-moving enemies or monsters with large area-of-effect attacks.
8. Lance
Tier: B | Damage: 3/5 | Versatility: 4/5 | Ease of Use: 4/5
The Lance is a defensive weapon that allows you to block incoming attacks and respond with counterattacks.
It also has dash attacks, giving you additional ways to maintain pressure while moving toward monsters. This makes it a reasonable choice if you prefer a defensive playstyle instead of relying entirely on dodging.
However, the biggest problem with the Lance is its overall speed. Despite being a defensive weapon, you’ll still need to maintain an aggressive approach to deal consistent damage.
Its slower attacks can make it difficult to keep up with faster monsters, and the damage output isn’t as impressive as what you can achieve with the higher-ranked weapons.
That’s my current weapon tier list for Monster Hunter Outlanders. The Long Sword, Heavy Bowgun, and Charge Blade are my top three recommendations for the Fated Adventurer because they offer excellent overall performance.
However, don’t feel like you have to use an S Tier weapon just because it’s ranked higher. Great Sword and Dual Blades can also deal impressive damage, while Hammer and Lance provide useful mechanics that might suit your personal playstyle better.
My advice is to experiment with different weapons before settling on one. Pay attention to how comfortable you feel during actual monster encounters, learn the weapon’s mechanics, and choose something that you genuinely enjoy using.
After all, a weapon you understand and can use consistently will often perform better than a higher-ranked weapon you haven’t mastered.