Monster Hunter World - Monster Weaknesses
Monster weaknesses in Monster Hunter World is valuable information that will make the whole hunting of monsters a whole lot easier.
Tracking down and slaying monsters is relatively easy in Monster Hunter World, but hunting monsters effectively is what separates the good hunters from the best hunters. A part of becoming the best hunter you can be is learning a monster’s weaknesses.
Last updated on March 1, 2020 at 11:18 p.m. EST.
Monster Weaknesses Explained
At first, hunting a monster in Monster Hunter World is all about hacking at it until it falls. Soon enough, you will want to become a seasoned and skilled hunter, and this requires research and learning a monster’s weakness. However, what’s really important is knowing about how monster weakness works in Monster Hunter World.
Whenever you encounter a monster in Monster Hunter World, you will make a note of it in your Hunter’s Notes, under the Monster Field Guide sub-section. In this section, you will begin to learn more about that monster. This will help you track it better, see its breakable sections, see what you can harvest from it and its rewards, and learn its strengths and weaknesses.
When you first start out, however, it can be a bit difficult to understand what all the stars, crosses, and marks mean in the journal. Keep in mind that when you first begin, only the Low Rank rewards will be shown, you must unlock the High Rank content to be able to see the High Rank rewards!
Let’s use the entry above of the Barroth as the example. Here you can see the four breakable sections (head, arms, feet, and tail), but only two of them are weak points, the arms and tail. The arms are weak to sever, blunt, and ammo damage, all of which are 3-star effective. Meanwhile, the tail is the only severable section (meaning it can be cut off), and sever damage, blunt damage, and ammo damage are only 2-star effective.
Over on the right-hand side, you can see two tables consisting of Element damage and Ailment damage. As you progress through Monster Hunter World, you will be able to infuse your weapons with different elements or ailments, depending on your playstyle and what you wish to use against a monster.
The Barroth is a unique monster, in that it has two states, covered in mud and not covered in mud. The table indicates these two states with the use of brackets. The table says that, when the Barroth is not covered in mud, fire is 3-star effective at dealing damage, but when the Barroth is covered in mud, it is completely resistant to fire (as noted by the red X). Similarly, you can see that the dragon element is only slightly effective against the Barroth, with one star.
Much like the Elements table, the Ailments table shows you how effective certain ailments are against the monster. The Barroth is extremely susceptible to Poison, Paralysis, and Blast damage, while Sleep is some-what effective against it and Stun is only slightly effective. Ailments aren’t damage-focused, meaning their effects are utility-only – except for Poison.
Using the above information you can see that if you wanted to deal a lot of damage to the Barrath, you should attack its arms with a fire weapon when not covered in mud and a water weapon when it is covered in mud. It’s also vulnerable to poison, meaning it gets poisoned extremely easily.
Now that you understand this monster weakness, you can apply that knowledge to other monsters. As you fight through Monster Hunter World, remember to always refer to your Hunter’s Notes for more monster weaknesses. Be sure to check out the Shacknews Monster Hunter World guide for ever single thing you need to know about the game.
