Out of all the weapon types to use inMonster Hunter World, the Bow is one of the more unique. The Bow is one of three Gunner weapons, prioritizing long-ranged attacks and support as opposed to Blademaster weapons and their up-close-and-personal specifications. As such, some Bow users will feel like they’re playing a different game than, say, Lance users.
This also means that, when choosing to use the Bow inMonster Hunter World, there are a plethora of Armor skills that would be useless to equip. However, there are plenty of skills that Bow users should be on the hunt for when choosing the best set for them. These six in particular will turn any Bow user into a valuable asset for a co-op team online.
6Critical Draw
Keeping Your Distance Is Critical
While Affinity is often seen as a bonus for Blademaster weapons like Long Sword or Dual Blades, it’s also a strong quality for Bows. With the ability to land critical hits more frequently, Bow users can deal a ton of damage from far away. That’s why Critical Draw is an essential skill for Bow users, as itincreases affinity when using draw attacks.
Bow users might find themselves sheathing and drawing their bow on a moment’s notice, given that they must navigate the map from a distance to keep up with the monster. A chance for a critical hit on a moving draw attack for Bow can come in handy during any fight, andgive players an easier time taking down a monster one-on-one.
5Stamina Surge
Ready the Next Shot with Speed
Stamina Surge, as a Skill,may seem useful for many weapon types, offeringthree levels of increase in stamina recovery speed.Given that the Bow is often controlled by charging a shot and firing, making sure that stamina is fully recovered by the next time shot is important, especially in battles against fast monsters who can keep players on their toes.
Additionally, Stamina Surge is included in the Master Rank Nargacuga Beta+ Armor set. This might be the perfect option for Bow users, given that it also includes helpful skills like Evade Window and Piercing Shots. Overall, any skill that will benefit stamina usage, especially when fighting Ice or Water monsters, will be appreciated by Bow users.
4Constitution
Charging In With Confidence
Also in the category of stamina-improving skills that Bow users should seek out is Constitution. Thisskill can be useful for many weapon types, both Blademaster and Gunner. With Constitution,moves that would normally deplete stamina will take up less stamina.This means that a player’s stamina won’t be eaten up by keeping their Bow charged.
What’s also beneficial about Constitution is the variety of levels it can be upgraded to. There are five levels of Constitution, which will reduce stamina depletion up to 50%. Any weapon that requires charging would benefit from this, but especially Bow users, as their only method of attacking first requires them to charge their Bow.
3Normal Shots
A Basic Arrow Gets a Special Skill
As for skills that specifically benefit Gunner weapons, Normal Shots is a simple two-level skill that will increase the attack power of Normal ammo and Normal arrows. This is especially useful for Bow users, given that Normal arrow will likely be the bulk of what they shoot with, not including special arrows or coatings that change an arrow’s element or arc.
What’s not beneficial about Normal Shots as a skill, however, is its lack of frequency among Armor sets. It only appears in single pieces fromZinogre, Glavenus, and DiablosMaster Rank sets. However, players can easily acquire both levels through Decorations, filling up the many slots that are included with Master Rank armor sets.
2Weakness Exploit
Monsters Won’t Know What Hit ‘Em
Weakness Exploit is another skill that can be utilized by multiple weapon types, but Bow users get a special advantage from it. With all three levels of Weakness Exploit, hunters will have a30% increase in Affinity against a monster’s weak spots, and anadditional 20% on monster parts that have already been broken and/or wounded.
Obviously, this benefits Bow users quite a lot, since they can aim from a distance and have a better shot at hitting monsters’ weak spots. The precision of the weapon type is one of its strongest qualities, which makes Weakness Exploit an especially useful skillcompared to a more unwieldy weapon, like Insect Glaive or Dual Blades.
1Bow Charge Plus
Every Bow User Should Take Advantage of This
One skill that is essential for any Bow user, much like Hunting Horn’s Maestro or Gunlance’s Artillery, is Bow Charge Plus. This isone of the few skills in the gamethat only affects Bow users, giving the bow an additional charge level to max out on. This guarantees that any fully-charged shot from a Bow user with Bow Charge Plus will hit even harder.
What’s even better about Bow Charge Plus is that there’s only one level to it, meaningall it takes is one Decoration to equip. The Mighty Bow Jewel 2 requires a level 2 slot, which shouldn’t be hard to find, especially on Master Rank armors. Bow Charge Plus also comes as a skill on Armor sets of Legiana, included as a bonus of the skill Legiana Favor.
