Monster Hunter Freedom Unite: Bow Guide by Polantaris Version 1.3, Last Updated 2010-01-03 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Polantaris' Bow Guide Note: No one is perfect. If I made a mistake, let me know. Update 1.3 Changes: Changed my E-mail. If I didn't respond to an e-mail before this update, please resend it to my new one at polantaris@gmail.com I also updated a few things about the damage you deal with a bow that I have learned recently through close observation. See the Range section for more information on this. Update 1.2 Changes: Updated all names of weapons and skills that are different between P2G and Unite. If I miss something, let me know. Side Note: Just for future reference...since I just got one of these. If you are going to email me to insult my guide, me, or tell me how everything I wrote is wrong. Go to hell. You will not get a response. This is a guide that was created based on my experience and opinion while playing the game. I have been using Bows since Freedom 2 was released. I created this guide to help players that are new to Bow get working with them, and get used to them, and gain knowledge in the usage of Bows. If you have a different way of playing, that's absolutely fine, but do not email me and insult my methods, or my suggestions just because you feel yours are better than mine. I answered one of these emails, I will not answer a second, or more. Keep your thoughts to yourself. That aside I still welcome corrections, and POSITIVE input and feedback. If it's negative in any way, don't bother. -------------- Table of Contents -------------- 0. Intro [I0] 1. Basics [B1] 2. Coatings [C2] 3. Shot Types [S3] 4. Elements [E4] 5. Armor Skills [A5] 6. Tactics [T6] 7. End Game Bows [E7] 8. Recommendations[R8] 9. Credits [C9] -------------- Introduction--[I0] -------------- What is this guide? It's a guide to assist new and continuing players in the use of the Bow weapon. New since Monster Hunter 2 (Or to Americans, Monster Hunter Freedom 2) is the Bow. It is a completely different weapon that you really don't know what to expect from. If you've never used the Bow, you might want to use this guide. It gives recommendations for what to use on every boss besides dromes, and how to play with the weapon in the first place. It includes in-depth information about the weapon as a whole. Basically, if you're thinking about using a Bow, this guide is probably for you if you've never used it before. If you have any questions, e-mail them to me and I'll probably end up adding it here. My e-mail is at the bottom of the guide. Do not host this guide without my permission (Polantaris). And without further wait...here's the guide! Enjoy! Since Unite has officially been released, I have updated the names of several armor skills and what not, as far as I remember them. If I make a mistake, let me know and I will fix it. A new template has been implemented for this. Any name that has been changed will be read as (MHP2G-Name/MHFU-Name), without the parenthesis. -------------- Basics--------[B1] -------------- Please note before reading any further: I am not giving any formula information. If you need damage charts for Bows, please see this guide: http://www.gamefaqs.com/portable/psp/file/943356/57883 All credit goes to Boldrin (dimgradation@gmail.com) for that guide. Contact him if you have any questions about it. I do not have the time, nor the resources, to go into an indepth analysis to see if these numbers or anything else about it are correct, or to figure it out on my own. Controls - When Unsheathed, Triangle on it's own, standing still will unsheathe the weapon. Triangle while moving will unsheathe and load an arrow at once. Triangle + Circle while running will Unsheathe and perform a melee attack. After Unsheathed, holding R will begin to aim. Unlike Bowguns, you can still move while aiming, so the D-Pad is used for aiming, and the Analog stick will still move you. Be aware that when you move while aiming, when you stop moving, your aim will be reset. Hold Triangle to load and pull back an arrow. Release to shoot. Circle performs a basic melee attack, to which there is a two-part combo. Triangle + Circle while your weapon is unsheathed will load a coating, which is selected through Triangle and X in the inventory. X while stationary is a back-hop. X while moving rolls. When you are loading an arrow, Square will also roll. When you are NOT loading an arrow, Square will sheathe your bow. Charges - Bows are different in that they have "Charges". The longer you hold Triangle, the more powerful your shot becomes. Most bows have three levels of charges. Some have only two, while others have four. An armor skill called Load Up can increase the maximum of charges by one, but it cannot surpass four. See a damage formula chart for information on how much difference your charges do, but be aware that in almost every situation, a level 4 charge is superior to a level 3 charge which is is superior to level 2 charge which is superior to a level 1 charge. IE: 4>3>2>1. The longer you hold back the string, the more damage you will do. Revamped the Range section, if you've read it before, read it again. Range - Range is an important factor with bows. There is what you would call a sweet spot where you do maximum damage. It is believed that this spot is where the aiming line begins to dip downward. If you are too close, you will do less damage. You will also do less damage if you are too far away. The proof in this is simple: Try killing a Velociprey up close, at optimal range, and then far away. See which is faster. Melee Attacks - Melee attacks can serve only one major purpose. Your ranged attacks cannot cut tails, but your melee attacks can. When the enemy is down, stunned, or in a trap, attacking the tail may be a good idea, especially if everyone is ranged or blunt. Only attack the tail when you know it can result in a good thing. Running up like an idiot and getting smacked in the face by the tail is a dumb idea, but if the enemy is unable to do anything, cutting it is a good thing and you can't get hit. Remember, you do not have as much defense as a Blademaster. You want to stay close, but not get hit. -------------- Coatings------[C2] -------------- Coatings are special equipment for Bows that work like bullets in a bowgun. Certain bows can equip certain coatings, not every bow can use every coating. There are 6 types of coatings in Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G. I'm including Item Combos to make more Coatings. Try to remember them. Meleeing with a Coating does NOT remove it. You can save the last of a status coating to melee it on. Power - Item Max of 50. Item Combo is Empty Bottle + Nitroshroom. With the combo, you can get between 70-90 Power Coatings. Power Coatings increase your damage output, with no negative effect. I think it increases it by about 75%, but I need confirmation on that. Paralyze - Item Max of 20. Item Combo is Empty Bottle + Parashroom. You can get 30-40 Para Coatings with the combo. Paralyze Coatings replace your elemental damage with a Stun effect. Every shot does 5 on the stun limit, at level 3 charge. (Almost 100% sure, need a confirmation on that as well) Poison - Item Max of 20. Item Combo is Empty Bottle + Toadstool. You can get 30-40 Poison Coatings with the combo. Poison Coatings do the same as Paralyze by replacing your elemental damage with a Poison effect. They add 5 on the posion limit as well. Sleep - Item Max of 20. Item Combo is Empty Bottle + Sleep Herb. You can get 30-40 Sleep Coatings with this combo and the coatings. Sleep Coatings do the same as above by replacing your elemental damage to add a Sleep effect. They add 5 on the sleep limit. Paint - Item Max of 99. Item Combo is Empty Bottle + Paintberry. Paint Coatings replace your elemental damage to instead act as a paintball. Every bow can use this coating. Razor/Close Range - Item Max of 20. Item Combo is Empty Bottle + Knife Mackrel. Razor Coatings do nothing except increase your melee damage. All you really need is 1, unless you accidentally shoot it. Since coatings don't get removed by melee attacks, you can use the same Razor Coating for all melee damage. -------------- Shot Types----[S3] -------------- There are three types of Shot Types. All have five levels of power. The higher the level the more damage and hits you will do with a single shot. Keep in mind that while you only load one arrow, you actually shoot more than one, with the exception of Pierce. Rapid - Rapid shot is a shot that shoots arrows in a vertical line. The level of the shot indicates how many arrows will be shot. The only exception to this is Level 5, in which it only shoots 4 arrows. Rapid is a good shot type when you are fighting something small, or you want to hit a specific part, like the Wings of the enemy you are fighting. Scatter - Scatter shot is a shot that shoots arrows in a horizontal line. Unlike Rapid, Scatter shoots 3 or 5 arrows, depending on the level of the shot. Level 1 and 2 shoot 3, while any higher shoots 5. Scatter shot is good against something you can be pratically on top of, or if you want to hit the entire enemy, regardless of where it hits. Since it always shoots more arrows than Rapid, you generally can hit more of the enemy with a single shot. If you are close, you can get more hits in on a single part than with Rapid, but if you are far away you tend to hit much less. Very small creatures like Dromes aren't the best idea for Scatter, you tend to miss at least one or two arrows per shot. Pierce - Pierce shot is a shot that shoots a single arrow that doesn't go away when it hits the target. It will continue through and continue to hit the target until either a certain amount of hits are obtained, or it goes through the enemy. Pierce shot generally does one more hit than its level. What I mean is that if it is Level 3 Pierce, you will get 4 hits before the arrow disappears. Pierce is the worst idea for small enemies. You generally only get a few hits in before the arrow is going through them, and it doesn't normally get many hits on the smaller things, like Kirin. When shooting an enemy with Pierce, aim for hitting it through them long-ways. Prepare to get as many hits as possible. Shooting the wing when it's facing you is not optimal. Shooting the wing when it is facing 90 degrees away from you is. Shooting its face when its looking at you is optimal as well. Also, Pierce shot arcs slightly differently than other shots. It shoots higher, and stays up longer. Take this into consideration when you aim, the aim line is WRONG with Pierce shots! -------------- Elements------[E4] -------------- Bows are like Melee weapons in the fact that they have a perminant elemental attribute. When choosing your weapon, put this and your shot-type into consideration. If you're fighting a Kirin, don't choose a Dragon weapon because it has Dragon, because it might be a Pierce Bow, which makes it a weak choice. Always keep into mind both element and shot type. Also, Bows don't have status inflictions as element types. Instead, they can get certain Coating Ups, defined in the weapon's information. -------------- Armor Skills--[A5] -------------- The following is some armor skills you may want to keep in mind when creating sets. I won't actually give any sets, because most people looking at this guide are probably too low rank to use any I remember/still have. Evade - Increases the time you cannot get hit after you roll. You can dodge most screams with this if it is +2, and most attacks that should hit you. Evade Increase - Increases the distance that you roll when you do. If you are fighting something that follows you as it runs, this is a good idea. Example is Diablos. If you are far away, Evade Inc can get you out of the way where without it you'll get hit. Speed Fire/Auto Reload - Removes the need to actually equip coatings. With it, changing to the coating in your inventory instantly equips it. Reloading Speed+ - Increases the speed in which you equip coatings. Useless if you have Speed Fire. Concentration/Focus - Increases Charge Speed. You charge to the next level faster. Runner - Significantly reduces the speed in which your stamina drops from anything that it reduces from over time. Examples: Holding the bow string and running. Both are reduced. Defensive Manuvers/Constitution - Reduces the amount of stamina lost from rolls. The higher the + the better. Runner is a better idea if you can gem that in instead of this. Sneak - Only useful online. It reduces the frequency in which the enemy targets you, leaving you open to attack more and dodge less. Pierce/Scatter/Rapid S Up - Increases the damage of the specific shot. If you are gemming this in, gem for the specific weapon's third level charge. Reckless Abandon - Increases affinity, which is the percentage in which you do a critical hit. Higher levels increase it more. Earplugs - Neutralizes some monster yells. High Grade Earplugs neutralizes all yells. Great if you're a bad yell roller (roll through yells). Survival/Guts - Keeps you alive if you get hit from a hit that would normally kill you, and you have over 65 health. If you were going to die from the attack, you are left at one health and no recovery. (From mazereon: One Mega Potion and one regular potion will bring you back into this threshold.) Adrenaline - Makes it so that if you are not in the threshold of Survival, your damage is increased. Bullet Limit - Makes it so that your combinations that will give you 1-2 of something, you always get the maximum. For example, Power Coatings can give either one or two. With this, you ALWAYS get two. Load Up/Capacity Up - This is the armor skill that increases your charge level. Bows that can only use level three can use level four, those that can only use level two can use level three. Bows that can use level four have no use with this skill. Elemental Attack Up - Since most Bows have a perminant element, this is a good skill to consider having. It's not a skill that you won't survive without, but it's a good idea to grab if you can. ------------- Tactics------[T6] ------------- Before going off on any mission, there are two things to take into consideration. What is the monster weak to? What type of monster is this? Always bring either whatever the monster is weak to, or a raw weapon without element. By "What type of monster is this?" I mean in relation to it's size. A tiny monster like a drome you don't want to bring a Pierce shot with. You want to take into consideration what type of monster it is in comparison to the types of shots you have. Keep in mind that generally, raw type Bows either have a high attack, high affinity, or allow a large number of coatings. It's a good idea to have a large armada of Bows, so that you can prepare for every situation. If you only have a Pierce Fire Bow against something that's weak to Fire but is small, you might want to consider bringing a Raw Bow instead. Another thing to keep in mind is what types of coatings you can use. It may be a good idea to bring the Tuna Bow, which gives Para Coating Up, to a monster that can be paralyzed easily. If you have the inventory space, always bring the materials to make more Coatings, with at least Book of Combos 1+2, because the chance is not 100% with coatings. When fighting a monster with a group, nothing calls for a beat down more than when you paralyze it with that bow of yours. Remember that you CAN cut tails with your Bow! If you are the only one that has that type of weapon, when you do something to it like tripping or paralyzing it, you may want to take that time to attack the tail with a melee attack. Just remember that your ranged attacks CANNOT cut the tail. When fighting anything, learn its "optimal distance". What I mean by that is to learn how close you can be without getting hit by its generic attacks, but not be a mile away. It's not the same for everything, and its size makes a difference. Always remember that while you may be further away and do less damage, it's better than dieing! You do NOT have the defense a Blademaster has, even if your damage is based on range. You may want to stand back and observe for a bit before you decide to attack close in. See how far it can attack standing still. As goes with any ranged weapon, if the enemy looks at you, run. Don't forget that you can still charge your bow while moving. After you load the arrow, while you wait for the charges you can move around and do anything you want. Rolling is the same as putting the arrow away (Which you can't do, so if it leaves roll so you don't waste the coating) NEVER FORGET this! You have an extreme amount of mobility with the Bow class. There's only a few times when you should be standing still, and that's only because the game won't let you move. Standing still in the middle of a fight is almost as good as suicide. Try not to take a lot of time aiming. If you're taking longer aiming than it does to charge to the max level of charging, you're taking too long. Standing still for long periods of time is asking for it. You never need to aim to avoid your allies. Default aim for bow is directly above the head of any human-sized creature. This makes it very easy to do sudden shooting without aiming. Optimal damage and range is important. Bows don't do a ton of damage like Greatswords or Hammers do. Don't take silly risks to do a lot of damage, but don't stay a mile away and do no damage. ------------- End Game Bows[E7] ------------- This section will categorize every single End-Game Bow in the game. It will have all their stats, information, etc. If you want information on a specific Bow, here's where you should look. Template: --- Bow Name - Slots(Number only) Raw/Element Affinity Coating Up (If any) Shot 1 Shot 2 Shot 3 *Load Up Required Shot (Indicated by the * infront of it) (Note, the shots go in order. 1 = Level 1 charge, 2 = Level 2 charge, etc. The location in the list determines that level and it's shot type. This is implied and will not be specified throughout the list) Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz - Missing Coatings indicate that it cannot use that type. This rule Excludes Paint, every bow can use Paint. --- Now let's begin. --- Wing Bow IV - 1 348 Raw 0% Affinity Sleep Coating Up - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 5 Rapid Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 4 - Pow|Slp|Raz --- --- Jungle Bow II - 0 360 Raw 15% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Vice-Grip Bow/Showroom Model - 1 372 Raw 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Refined Tuna Bow/PerfectSwordfishBow - 3 288 Raw 0% Affinity Para Coating Up - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Slp|Raz --- --- Shadow Bow "Silhouette"/Midnight Bow - 0 324 Raw 50% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 Pierce Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Heartshot Bow III - 1 336 Raw 30% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Para --- --- Queen Blaster V - 2 360 Raw 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois --- --- Vicious Bow/Crow Bow - 0 360 Raw 10% Affinity Poison Coating Up - Rapid Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois|Raz --- --- Tiger Growl/Tigrex Whisker+ - 1 384 Raw -30% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois --- --- Hunter's Bow G - 3 278 Raw 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Wild Bow G - 3 338 Raw 0% Affinity - Pierce Lv. 2 Rapid Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Wild Power Bow G - 2 360 Raw 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Tuna Bow G/Swordfish Bow G - 3 324 Raw 0% Affinity Para Coating Up - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Slp|Raz --- --- Hunter's Power Bow IV - 0 324 Raw 0% Affinity +30 Defense - Rapid Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp --- --- Ebony King Blow/DiablosKingHornBow - 0 372 Raw 20% Affinity +30 Defense - Pierce Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Pow --- --- Annhilator Bow/Exterminator Bow II - 1 384 Raw 20% Affinity +20 Defense - Scatter Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 4 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow --- --- Diablos Horn Bow G - 1 372 Raw 10% Affinity +20 Defense - Pierce Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 *Scatter Lv. 4 - Pow --- --- Sonic Bow IV - 2 240 Raw / 180 Thunder 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 4 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Raz --- --- Khezu Bow II - 1 288 Raw / 240 Thunder 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 2 Pierce Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Slp|Raz --- --- Dragonwood Bow Apollo/AncientDragonwoodBow - 0 300 Raw / 180 Thunder 20% Affinity Para Coating Up - Scatter Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Great Demon Bow/BeastKingThunderBow - 0 336 Raw / 130 Thunder 0% Affinity - Pierce Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Raz --- --- Sonic Bow G - 2 276 Raw / 200 Thunder 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 5 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Raz --- --- Dragon Bow Solar G - 1 288 Raw / 210 Thunder 10% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 Pierce Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp --- --- Ice Crystal Bow II/Icicle Bow II - 0 264 Raw / 230 Ice 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Abominable Bow II - 2 288 Raw / 200 Ice 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 4 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois|Para|Slp --- --- Daora's Ippos/Daora's Sagittarii - 1 300 Raw / 180 Ice 30% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois|Para --- --- Ucamulbas Bow/Ukanlos Bow - 0 432 Raw / 100 Ice -40% Affinity +10 Defense - Pierce Lv. 2 Rapid Lv. 2 Scatter Lv. 2 Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Slp --- --- Blango Fur Bow G - 3 276 Raw / 180 Ice 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 2 Scatter Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 *Pierce Lv. 3 - Pow|Pois|Para|Slp --- --- Purple Warbow II/GrtPurpleEmperor II - 1 300 Raw / 210 Water 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 4 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp --- --- Dragonhead Harp III - 3 240 Raw / 300 Water 30% Affinity +20 Defense - Scatter Lv. 5 Rapid Lv. 2 Rapid Lv. 1 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Blood Pincer Bow/Eraser - 0 324 Raw / 140 Water 0% Affinity - Pierce Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Raz --- --- Daimyo's Warbow G - 2 278 Raw / 180 Water 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp --- --- Blue Kut-Ku Stave III - 2 278 Raw / 200 Fire 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- NOTE: THIS BOW IS UNOBTAINABLE IN UNITE WITHOUT CHEATING! Devil Blos Bow/dummy - 1 324 Raw / 150 Fire 10% Affinity +10 Defense - Pierce Lv. 3 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow --- --- Prominence Bow V - 2 300 Raw / 180 Fire 0% Affinity - Rapid Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 *Pierce Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois --- --- (Thanks to RaX for this!) Courageous Faith/Courageous Dream - 2 338 Raw / 110 Fire 0% Affinity - Pierce Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Rapid Lv. 4 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Slp|Raz --- --- Kut-Ku Stave G - 1 278 Raw / 180 Fire 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 4 Scatter Lv. 5 *Pierce Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp --- --- Tyrant's Wrack/Akantor Chaos Bow - 1 312 Raw / 200 Dragon 40% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 *Rapid Lv. 5 - Pow|Pois --- --- Glorious Triumph/Glorious Victory II - 0 338 Raw / 270 Dragon 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 2 Pierce Lv. 3 Rapid Lv. 3 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Paint Only --- --- Dragonbow Meteor/Dragon Bow Chaos - 0 360 Attack / 220 Dragon 0% Affinity - Pierce Lv. 2 Pierce Lv. 3 Scatter Lv. 5 *Rapid Lv. 4 - Pow|Para|Pois|Slp|Raz --- --- Black Bow G - 2 300 Attack / 160 Dragon 0% Affinity - Scatter Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 4 Pierce Lv. 5 *Scatter Lv. 5 - Pow|Raz --- That's every End-Game Bow in the game. If you find a mistake. let me know. ------------- Recommendations[R8] ------------- This section, I will put a monster name, and recommend at least one Bow to use against it, as well as a recommended Shot Type, in case you have a problem with the Bow(s) I suggest. (For example, you can't get it) Keep in mind that the bow recommendations will usually exploit the weakness of the enemy. If you want to use a Raw bow, there's no problem with that. I tend to use Raw Bows more often, because they are more versatile than the elemental bows. (More Coatings and more slots) I am writing these recommendations to help someone with no experience do the most damage they can fast, without too much requirement in strategy. Be aware that I am not giving strategies to fight the enemies, just basically information on why my recommendations are what they are, and what you might want to do if you cannot get the weapon I suggested, since the suggestions are based on the above end-game weapons. Template: Monster Name - Weakness Bow Recommendation Shot Type Recommendation Other Notes --- Yian Kut-Ku (Regular + Blue) - Weak to Water Purple Warbow II Rapid/Scatter Recommendation Rapid to get the Ears. If you are good at staying close, Scatter is a good idea, but if you are not, I then suggest Rapid. This is a small monster, so your Optimal Range should be close enough that a level 3+ Scatter Shot should hit it completely. If you're not sure if you can do good, I suggest you stay with Rapid. --- --- Yian Garuga - Weak to Water Purple Warbow II Rapid Recommendation Unlike the Kut-Ku, it is not east to stay close to a Garuga, nor is it recommended. Rapid shot will be able to let you hit any part of its body you wish, while staying a good distance away. Scatter will not be able to hit everything, and it is too small to use Pierce on. --- --- Hypnoc/Hypnocatrace - Weak to Fire Courageous Faith or Vicious Bow Rapid/Scatter Recommendation Just like the Kut-Ku, it is small and only has one breakable part. In this case, it's its beak. Rapid will be able to get rid of that quickly, which is why the Courageous Faith bow is suggested. Scatter is a good alternative, because it is also small and Pierce is a bad option because of that. The Vicious Bow is a Raw Bow that has Rapid, so you can use that if you wish to, it has Poison Up in case you want to Poison it, and is a good alternative if you do have a Fire Bow. --- --- Gypceros (Regular and Purple) - Weak to Fire Courageous Faith, Blue Kut-Ku Stave III or Wing Bow IV Rapid/Scatter Recommendation This monster is slightly larger. It's possible you can unlease the full power of Pierce shots, but I wouldn't recommend trying. Wing Bow can put it to sleep easily, or you can use a Scatter Kut-Ku Bow to exploit it's weakness. You can also use Courageous Faith to do exploit it. --- --- Rathalos - Weak to Ice Ice Crystal Bow II or Daora's Ippos Scatter/Pierce Recommendation An easy victim for a Pierce bow. You can shoot straight between both it's wings, or from head to tail with a Pierce bow. Of course, there's still the chance that the arrow will not hit every hit, but it's worth the risk if you're good enough. Scatter Bow is the alternative if you do not feel confident in using Pierce. With Scatter you can hit a single Wing with every arrow, breaking it easily. --- --- Azure Rathalos - Weak to Dragon Dragonbow Meteor, Black Bow G, or Tyrant's Wrack Scatter/Pierce Recommendation The same goes with Azure as above. Even without Load Up, Tyrant's Wrack is still a powerful weapon, and it's middle charge is Pierce. Although you should never spam a Level 1 charge, a Level 2 charge is at least damaging. Always remember to aim to get the most damage as possible, this is especially true for Pierce shots. --- --- Silver Rathalos - Weak to Water and Thunder Dragonwood Bow Apollo, Khezu Bow II, or Great Demon Bow Scatter/Pierce Recommendation I'm not going to echo myself. I suggest the Great Demon Bow because it is a powerful Rapid bow. If you are going for something specific, you may want to use that bow instead of the other two, as it is easier to break specific parts with a Rapid Bow. --- --- Rathian (Regular and Pink) - Weak to Dragon Dragonbow Meteor, Black Bow G, or Tyrant's Wrack Scatter/Pierce Bow Recommendation Read Azure Ratahalos for Other Notes, it's almost exactly the same monster. --- --- Gold Rathian - Weak to Thunder Dragonwood Bow Apollo, Khezu Bow II, or Great Demon Bow Scatter/Pierce Recommendation Read Azure + Silver Rathalos for Other Notes, it's almost exactly the same monster. --- --- Khezu - Weak to Fire Blue Kut-Ku Stave III or Vicious Bow Scatter Recommendation Khezu leaves itself open ALL the time. Because of this, you can be practically on top of him and not get hit (Don't stay too close, if you get killed because you get too close, don't blame me). Because of this, Scatter is the perfect weapon against him. I only recommend Vicious Bow because Poisoning him is fun. --- --- Red Khezu - Weak to Water Purple Warbow II or Queen Blaster V Scatter Recommendation Same reason as Regular Khezu. Purple Warbow II is Water, which is its weakness. There are no Level 3+ charged Scatter Bows, so Queen Blaster V is a recommendation because it has Poison (Which is still fun), and it is Scatter. --- --- Basarios - Weak to Dragon and Water Purple Warbow II or Glorious Triumph Rapid Recommendation Basarios becomes extremely easy to kill if you break the belly/chest plate. With Rapid, this becomes extremely easy. Since attacking it after it is broken results in more damage, you will want to continue to attack that once it is broken. --- --- Congalala - Weak to Fire Courageous Faith or Blue Kut-Ku Stave III Rapid/Scatter Recommendation I recommend using Rapid, but Courageous Faith is a hard weapon to get compared to the enemy you are fighting. You want to break the head piece with FIRE to recieve special rewards. The next best option is Scatter. --- --- Green/Emerald Congalala - Weak to Ice Ucamulbas Bow or Abominable Bow II Rapid Recommendation Same reason as above, except in this case you do have Rapid Ice Bows. Breaking the head with Ice will give special rewards as well, so the above remains true. A good idea is to stay away from the rear end...it's much worse than regular Congalala. --- --- Daimyo Hermituar - Weak to Fire and Thunder Blue Kut-Ku Stave III, Great Demon Bow or Annhilator Bow Scatter/Rapid Recommendation Take this into note now: You cannot break Hermituar shells with a Bow. It is impossible. Because of this, you want to break the claws. Rapid shot is a good idea for this, and a Scatter shot is a good alternative. The claws are small, and so is the monster in general, a Pierce shot probably won't be as effective. Annhilator Bow is an amazing Rapid Bow, it's a good idea to bring it if you can. --- --- Purple/Plum Daimyo Hermituar - Weak to Ice Ucamulbas Bow, Abominable Bow II or Annhilator Bow Rapid Recommendation Same information as above, the shell is still unbreakable by bows, but the claws are not. You can get some good shots in at almost all times with a Rapid Bow. --- --- Shogun Ceanatuar (Regular and Red/Terra) - Weak to Thunder Sonic Bow G, Khezu Bow II or Great Demon bow Rapid/Scatter Recommendation Shogun can be really annoying when it comes right down to it. It's fast, unpredictable, and painful. Rapid is a priority so you can break the claws as fast as possible, because when it's angry, it can practically hit you no matter what you're doing, or where you're going. Scatter is a good shot for knocking it down easily, you can hit both of its legs at once, then you can wail away on its arms while it's down. Try to bring Para Coatings, it being Paralyzed is a giant plus when fighting it. --- --- Blangonga - Weak to Fire Blue Kut-Ku Stave III or Courageous Faith Scatter/Rapid Recommendation Breaking it's fangs is a very good idea, and the best (and possibly the only) way to break them is with a fire weapon. Apparently breaking the fangs stops this monster from summoning Blangos to assist it in combat. (RaX) After the fangs are broken, shooting both legs on one side with a Scatter shot is a great idea. Since practicaly the only thing you can hit when it's on its side are the leg/arm, it's easy to trip him. --- --- Brown/Copper Blangonga - Weak to Ice Ucamulbas Bow or Ice Crystal Bow II Scatter/Rapid Recommendation Same as above. Just remember that Brown and Regular Blangongas are two different monsters. The same stratgey won't work, but tripping it will leave the same oppertunities. Note that Brown Blangonga does not summon Blangos. --- --- Plesioth (Regular and Green) - Weak to Thunder + Paralyze (No extra damage from Para, but easy to start the status effect on it) Dragonwood Bow Apollo Pierce Recommendation One of the biggest monsters in the game. Because of this, it's very easy to get a full Pierce shot to...well pierce it. Dragonwood Bow Apollo has Para Coating Up, which is great for you and your team when fighting a Plesioth, not to mention that it's weak to Para. Aim for the head at all times, and make sure your shot will go straight through, and you'll have little to no trouble at all. --- --- Naruga Kuruga/Narga Kuga - Weak to Fire and Thunder Blue Kut-Ku Stave III or Devil Blos Bow Any Shot Type. Because of the long tail, a correctly aimed Pierce shot will go straight into a Naruga and never leave. Note: Don't try to cut the tail of Naruga, it has over 1300 health and it'll never happen if you're the only one trying to do it. Remember that it's just like a Tigrex, in the fact that both its arms can be broken. It's hard with a Naruga, but possible, so keep trying. Don't stick on top of it, it's unpredictable. --- --- Tigrex - Weak to Thunder Dragonwood Bow Apollo or Great Demon Bow Pierce/Rapid Recommendation Pierce for the same reason as Naruga, you can get all of it down because of it's tail, but make sure it's facing the right way...or you will do very few hits. Rapid shot is great to break the arms fast. Aim for the same arm and unleash and they will break easily. --- --- Diablos (Regular and Black) - Weak to Ice (Black is weak to Poison as well) Abominable Bow II, Daora's Ippos or Ucamulbas Bow Rapid/Pierce Recommendation Rapid shot against Diablos is a good idea. You can break the horns easily with it. On the other hand, you can use a Pierce bow and easily get it to hit every single hit, with few troubles. Even if you attack from wing to wing you can probably get all the hits in. Scatter is just inferior compared to the other options, only use it if you have an Ice bow that's scatter and nothing else. --- --- Monoblos (Regular and White) - Weak to Thunder (White is Weak to Poison too) Great Demon Bow or Dragonwood Bow Apollo Rapid/Pierce Recommendation Almost the same reasoning as Diablos, except with this, you can use Dragonwood Bow Apollo, which has Para Coating Up. --- --- Gravios (Regular and Black) - Weak to Water (Black is weak to Poison as well) Purple Warbow II Rapid Recommendation Rapid is a good choice. Although the enemy is extremely large (In which case you can use a Pierce if you really want to), if you break it's chest you do double damage to the chest. Rapid is the only good idea for this. You can get most, if not all arrows to hit the chest once you break it and do extreme amounts of damage fast. If you are close, and you see black smoke coming out of it, run away because it's about to do an explosion attack. --- --- Rajang - Weak to Ice Ucamulbas Bow or Abominable Bow II Rapid Recommendation Rapid is a great choice against Rajang, because you can break the horns easily with it. The Horns and the tail are the only breakable parts, but the horns are basically the only choice you have as a Bow user. Breaking the horns gets easy if you can shoot them far away and still hit, because Rajang goes everywhere. --- --- Volganos/Lavasioth - Weak to Water and Para Blood Pincer Bow or Tuna Bow G Pierce Recommendation Think of Plesioth, except really annoying and lives in Lava. That's Volganos for you. Volganos is exceptionally weak to Paralyze, in the fact that although your shots don't add extra Para to the counter than normal, he has a low threshold before he gets paralyzed. Take advantage of this with a bow like the Tuna Bow G, which has Para Coating Up. If you don't have one of those, just bring a Water Pierce bow, which is useful since it's so big. --- --- Kirin - Weak to Fire and Water Blue Kut-Ku Stave III or Dragonhead Harp III Scatter Recommendation Dragonhead Harp III is the only bow that gets more use out of Level 1 charges than Level 3. Since Kirin is so fast to move, you can take that advantage out on him easily. This is the only time I recommend spamming Level 1 charges, when you have that bow. If you don't want to do that, the Blue Kut-Ku Stave will do good enough. Shoot it on the side at all times, it has no wings so shooting to the head will miss most shots. --- --- Kushala Daora - Weak to Dragon and Thunder Dragonbow Meteor or Tyrant's Wrack with Load Up Scatter/Rapid Recommendation The main objective against a Kushala is to break it's horns. That's easily done with anything but Pierce. It's also more weak to Dragon than Thunder, so focusing with Dragon is a better idea. You can paralyze it, which is why Dragonbow Meteor is a good idea. --- --- Chameleos - Weak to Dragon, Fire, and Para Any Dragon Bow Any Shot Type Chameleos is easy with any shot type or bow. It tends to stand still and move for only bouts at a time so it makes it easy to line up the perfect shot many times. You may want to take Para Coatings or a Neutral Bow with Para Coating Up, to make it even easier. --- --- Teostra - Weak to Dragon Dragonbow Meteor or Tyrant's Wrack with Load Up Scatter/Rapid Recommendation Teostra is much like Kushala, you want to break the horns first to negate it's shield. You can also do this with Poison, but that's temporary. It has big wings, so Scatter can easiy hit those as well. --- --- Lunastra - Weak to Dragon, Ice and Poison Dragonbow Meteor or Tyrant's Wrack with Load Up Scatter/Rapid Recommendation See Teostra, basically the female form of him. Same strategy for the most part. --- --- Yamatsukami/Yama Tsukami - Weak to Ice and Dragon Ucamulbas Bow or Dragonbow Meteor Scatter/Rapid Recommendation Pierce is a bad idea only because its hitspots are small and although he is big, I personally cannot tell if you hit him fully with a Pierce arrow. Sometimes it takes until the arrow is in the middle of him to even hit him once, even though visually you've hit him already. Since Scatter and Rapid disappear on impact, they are guaranteed hits. --- --- Akantor - Weak to Dragon Any Dragon Bow Any Shot Type Akantor is big and husky. Any shot type will hit him fully, unless you miss. Akantor is an easy monster to cut the tail off, even with a Bow. Since he is so big, unless he is doing a tail whip his tail is usually open for a melee attack. Learn how to detect when it is a good idea and you can easily cut his tail with a Bow. --- --- Ucamulbas/Ukanlos - Weak to Fire Any Fire Bow Any Shot Type Ucamulbas is just like Akantor in every regard, except some of his attacks. His tail is the same way as Akantor's is as well. Learn when to attack it and you will be able to easily cut it off without any trouble. Don't be reckless, but you can use any weapon you feel is good. --- --- Shen Gaoren - Weak to Dragon Dragonbow Meteor, Black Bow G, or Tyrant's Wrack without Load Up Pierce Recommendation Shen Gaoren is almost as easy as a piece of pie when you have a Pierce Bow. ALWAYS aim for his shell. When it is broken twice, you do double damage. The bows I recommend, make sure you fire on the Pierce Charge, which is either Level 2 or 3, and you'll be fine. --- --- Lao-Shan Lung - Weak to Dragon Dragonbow Meteor, Glorious Triumph or Tyrant's Wrack with Load Up Rapid/Scatter Recommendation There are 3 spots you need to aim for with a Bow. Meleers normally cannot hit the Shoulders or Back with their weapons, so it's your job to break those parts. A Pierce bow is a bad idea for most breaks, so a Rapid or Scatter bow will do the job. --- --- Fatalis (Any Color) - Weak to Dragon Any Dragon Bow with Rapid Rapid Recommendation The best place to hit a Fatalis is the face. The best idea for this is with a Rapid Bow, because it is small and you shouldn't be anywhere near it if you like living. --- I hope this helps someone! ------------- Credits------[C9] ------------- The guide itself was written by Polantaris. My e-mail is polantaris@gmail.com. If you see an error, or would like clarification on something, please e-mail me. If you ask a question that is answered on this guide, you will NOT get a response unless I'm feeling nice. If you would like another section on something related to Bow, let me know. Thanks to: Capcom for making this amazing game. Ner'zhul of Minegarde for a Correction pikachuwei of Minegarde for a Correction eyjaynizel of Minegarde for an Armor Skill suggestion RaX of Minegarde for several fixes, as well as a Bow I somehow missed. Pride from Minegarde for the suggestion to add the last 2 sections, although I was going to do it anyway, I was lazy until you said something. Mazereon from Minegarde for the tip about Survival. Want to be here? Give me a legitimate suggestion to add or a correction. The following are allowed to have this guide on their site. If you are not on this list, and I see my guide on your site, I'm gonna get pissed. Just ask for permission, I'll probably be fine. Don't change the contents of this guide. If you want something changed, let me know I'll do it and upload a change to the correct people/sites. GameFAQs.com Minegarde.com neoseeker.com sites.google.com/site/monsterhunteroutpost/ I recently allowed several sites to upload my guide, but I forgot the names of the sites. If I forgot to add your site name here, please tell me. Monster Hunter Freedom Unite: Bow Guide by Polantaris Version 1.3, Last Updated 2010-01-03