Sword and Shield Low Rank Builds for Monster Hunter Wilds

Welcome to our Monster Hunter Wilds build guide for the Sword and Shield. Listed below you will find the best Low Rank Sword and Shield builds in Monster Hunter Wilds with several suggestions for various Hunter Ranks.

Whether you're a seasoned hunter or just starting out in Wilds, our build guides provide you with everything you need to know for Low Rank. On this page, we will be covering a build path that will comfortably keep up with every hunt Monster Hunter Wilds will throw at you during the main story.

To understand more about Sword and Shield or for High Rank builds, please check the guides below.

The first thing every hunter knows is keeping their weapon up to date for each hunt is the best path to success. You don't want to get caught in a dangerous hunt with an old one, so here we will cover a comfortable build path that will get you through low rank without needing to farm everything that shows up.

Hope Sword II ➜ Quematrice Cuchillo I ➜ Balahara Blade I ➜ Rey Kuara I ➜ Albirath Edge I
Sword and Shields have a lot of room to counter element weaknesses on monsters due to their fast attack speed, though they also have a handful of key skills such as Offensive Guard that are strong pick-ups. This path aims to keep hold of those while diversifying element options, and then transitioning to strong offensive skills ready for High Rank.

1. Hope Sword II - Click for Materials

   • Iron Ore x 2
   The smithy gives some free mining materials to craft this for your early hunts and it should serve you well to start with. As soon as you start taking down monsters though, it's time to look for something a bit more specialized.
2. Quematrice Cuchillo I - Click for Materials

   • Quematrice Scale x 3
   • Quematrice Igniter x 2
   • Quematrice Crest x 1
   A great early craft that nets you the first chance to access Offensive Guard for an early power spike. This also suits a number of upcoming monsters well and will cover hunts in the first two areas.
3. Balahara Blade I - Click for Materials

   • Balahara Scale x 3
   • Balahara Skull x 1
   • Aqua Sac x 1
   Very similar to the Quematrice craft, this also gives Offensive Guard. This is more-so recommended to suit the monsters you find in the third area, pivoting away from the Fire element due to their resistances - if you don't have any issues at this point you can opt to skip this instead.
4. Rey Kuara I - Click for Materials

   • Rey Dau Scale x 3
   • Rey Dau Wingtalon x 2
   • Rey Dau Thunderhorn x 1
   Another craft suited toward the tail end of Low Rank, the Rey Dau weapon provides both Guard and Offensive Guard, while having excellent green sharpness and Thunder element to target some monsters in the fifth area.
5. Albirath Edge I - Click for Materials

   • Guardian Rathalos Scale x 3
   • Guardian Rathalos Webbing x 2
   • Flame Sac x 1
   While this pivots away from the Guard related skills, it instead trades it for both Critical Element and Master's Touch, providing a way to maintain sharpness through your critical strikes. The Affinity that comes with this supports that goal, and it comes with a good amount of Fire element to carry into the early parts of High Rank.

Remember though, if you are struggling to deal with monsters and you have parts lying around for a weapon that looks better, don't hesitate to craft it. You can always go back and farm those parts again later if you need them for something else!

The Sword and Shield in Monster Hunter Wilds has a handful of skills it's on the lookout for, though some of them are only found on weaponry. Offensive Guard in particular rewards you for using Perfect Guard (which you should actively be doing) and is a premium option when found on weapons. Weakness Exploit, Flayer and Burst are also extremely strong offensive armor skills that can be found on later Low Rank and High Rank sets, which many sets build around.

For comfort skills however, Sword and Shield has less of a reliance on anything that mechanically alters how it plays, and it's much more open with what you choose to pick. A common option is Wide Range for co-op play, as Sword and Shield can often help with group support due to its unsheathed item use mechanics. Evade Extender also helps a lot with staying active on monsters, as staying mobile with the Sword and Shield is key to wearing them down.

Below is a solid beginner set that aims to provide additional benefits to your Perfect Guards, and can cover you for the early part of Low Rank before more suitable armor sets can be crafted.

As there are not many high value comfort or offensive picks early on for the Sword and Shield, picking up the Doshaguma set bonus to get an attack bonus payoff from Clashes is the best early option. It comes with a few extra comfort skills like Free Meal to save on early consumables when you don't have a stockpile built up too which can be nice. It uses the leftover slot and Talisman to pick up two points in Evade Extender for some extra dodge comfort too, setting you up for most of the early and mid game.

When it comes to decorations, it is pretty limited how many you have access to early on, so I would recommend putting anything in that sounds like it would make combat more comfortable such as Gobbler or Brace if you are lucky enough to get some.

• Free Meal - Level 3
• Evade Extender - Level 2
• Recovery Speed - Level 1
• Doshaguma's Might - 2 and 4-piece

As you progress deeper into Low Rank offensive options open up, with a good mix of all 3 of Sword and Shield's ideal picks being on the table. This trades out some of the comfort from early game armor builds in exchange for raw power to tackle the tougher challenges.

With more access to offensive skills Sword and Shield starts to shine a bit brighter. Weakness Exploit is provided by the Gloves and Legs, while Burst comes from the Helm and Waist. These provide a good mix of universal attack buffs and rewards for targeting weak points, making them a potent mix for the Sword and Shield gameplay style.

There are fewer good Chest options however, so the Ajarakan chest is used for Partbreaker to assist in generating wounds to support Weakness Exploit. Your talisman slot here is a bit more open as stronger skills aren't unlocked yet - I've opted to recommend Evade Extender just to maintain some of the comfort from the previous set for familiarity. If you see another skill that looks helpful though, it can easily be subbed in.

When it comes to decorations, it is pretty limited how many you have access to early on, so I would recommend putting anything in that sounds like it would make combat more comfortable such as Gobbler or Brace if you are lucky enough to get some.

• Weaknes Exploit - Level 2
• Burst - Level 2
• Bleeding Resistance - Level 1
• Partbreaker - Level 1
• Ebony Odogaron's Power - 2-piece
• Rathalos's Flare - 2-piece