How to use the Great Sword in Monster Hunter Outlanders: its features and controls, tips for charged attacks, the best combos, including the fastest True Charged Slash, the best craftable Great Swords, and the adventurers who wield it. Moves checked against the in-game skill descriptions on October 29, 2026.
Great Sword Features
The highest single-hit damage of any weapon
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
The Great Sword hits harder than any other weapon type. It attacks slowly, but Trailing Blade Slash after a Perfect Evade, Tackle, and evades let you close in and counter quickly, so once you're used to it, it doesn't feel restrictive.
Charged attacks raise your damage
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Hold Basic Attack to charge an attack. The longer you charge, the stronger it gets, but overcharging actually lowers the damage, so be careful.
Taking a hit during Tackle makes charging easier
If you take a hit during Tackle, you keep your current charge level, and your next charge won't overcharge. That lets you unleash a charged attack right away and cut down openings.
Great Sword Controls
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Basic Attack | Charged Slash. Hold to charge it. |
| Skill 1 | Guard. |
| Skill 2 | Tackle. Pressing it mid-charge cancels the charge into Tackle. |
| Skill 3 | Leaping Wide Slash. Slashes forward, then sheathes automatically. |
| Sheathe | Sheathe your weapon. |
| Evade | Evade. Hold Basic Attack after a Perfect Evade for Trailing Blade Slash. |
| Ultimate | Ultimate. What it does depends on the adventurer and type. |
The moves are the Fated Adventurer's. Pyro and Luxheart have different moves on some buttons (see Great Sword Adventurers).
How to Play the Great Sword
Hit once, then reposition
Input: Basic AttackEvadeSheathe or Skill 3
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
The Great Sword is slow to attack and move, so it leaves big openings. Especially while you're still learning a monster's moves, land one hit, sheathe, and reposition to limit the damage you take. Skill 3 (Leaping Wide Slash) also sheathes automatically after its slash.
Evade after a draw attack to cut the recovery
The Great Sword has long recovery between moves, so if you won't charge after a draw attack, press Evade to cut the opening. It shortens the motion of lifting the weapon after the attack, so you can move on to your next action sooner.
Land charged attacks when you have time
Input: Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold, release at orange)
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
After a draw attack, if the monster isn't targeting you, hold Basic Attack for a charged attack. Release when the gauge is in the orange part to unleash it at high power.
Use Tackle mid-charge once you're used to it
Input: Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold)Skill 2Basic Attack(hold, release at orange)
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Using Tackle mid-charge shortens the charge. Basic Attack → charge → Tackle → charge is the fastest way to True Charged Slash.
You can also use Tackle by sliding the button
Instead of pressing Skill 2, slide your finger while holding Basic Attack to use Tackle right away.
Use Tackle before True Charged Slash to adjust its timing
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Repeating Tackle before True Charged Slash lets you adjust when it comes out. Shifting the timing to match your distance from the monster or the part you want to hit is one option.
Go for True Charged Slash when the monster is down
Input: Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold)Skill 2Basic Attack(hold, release at orange)
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
When a monster is down or paralyzed, actively aim for True Charged Slash to deal big damage. Using Tackle to reach it as fast as possible is recommended.
Pyro and Luxheart play differently
In Monster Hunter Outlanders, each adventurer has different skills, so the basic playstyle and controls change. Pyro and Luxheart also use the Great Sword, but follow-ups after charged attacks and how easy it is to charge differ, so play to the adventurer you use. See Great Sword Adventurers.
Best Great Sword Combos
These combos use the Fated Adventurer's skills. Text in parentheses after a button is how to press it.
| Combo | Rating | Input |
|---|---|---|
| Fastest True Charged Slash | Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold)Skill 2Basic Attack(hold, release at orange) | |
| Three charged slashes in a row | Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold, release at orange)Basic Attack(hold, release at orange) | |
| Trailing Blade Slash | Evade(Perfect Evade)Basic Attack(hold) | |
| Supreme Slash | Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold)Skill 2Basic Attack(hold)Skill 2Skill 2 |
Fastest True Charged Slash
Input: Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold)Skill 2Basic Attack(hold, release at orange)
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Three charged slashes in a row
Input: Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold, release at orange)Basic Attack(hold, release at orange)
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Trailing Blade Slash
Input: Evade(Perfect Evade)Basic Attack(hold)
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Supreme Slash
Input: Basic AttackBasic Attack(hold)Skill 2Basic Attack(hold)Skill 2Skill 2
The footage is from the Japanese version of the game.
Best Craftable Great Swords
These are the weapons in our Great Sword builds. Stats are for the rarity 7 version. The builds article has the full armor and skills.
| Build | Weapon | Element | Attack |
|---|---|---|---|
| General(Charge Enhancement + Immovable Stance)General(Breaker + Wrecker)Dragon Element | Blacksteel Chopper II |  Dragon | 261 |
| Fire Element | Flame Blade II |  Fire | 261 |
| Thunder Element | Radiant Lightning Punisher III |  Thunder | 282 |
Great Sword Adventurers
These adventurers use the Great Sword. Their rank and review come from our adventurer tier list; each adventurer's own moves are below the table.
| Adventurer | Rank and review |
|---|---|
 Pyro | Overall rank: S
|
 Fated Adventurer (Great Sword) | Overall rank: A
|
 Luxheart | Overall rank: B
|
Pyro
Pyro's Skill 1 is Heat Tackle, a charge forward. Skill 3 is Fortifying Slash: hold it to charge, and it turns into True Fortifying Slash, a leaping slam that deals huge damage. Landing a charged slash at the best timing, or dodging with Skill 1, shortens that charge by 2 seconds. While airborne, the Exclusive Trait Robust Physique adds 20% damage, and the Core Passive raises damage based on dragon damage while the dragon specialization is active.
Fated Adventurer (Great Sword)
The moves in this guide are the Fated Adventurer's. You can choose any type, and your Ultimate changes with it. The element comes from your weapon, so pick one from the weapons above. For the Insights to take, see Main Character Build & Tier List.
Luxheart
Luxheart's moves revolve around heat energy. Skill 2 (Starlight Burst: Ignition) draws out heat energy, and while you hold heat energy, Basic Attack becomes Fleeting Star, a three-hit combo, and thunder damage goes up by 40%. With 4 or more heat energy, Skill 3 (Grand Performance) spends it all on a fireworks explosion. The Ultimate, Heating Up, dazes and suppresses the target, and the Core Passive makes dazed monsters take more damage while the thunder specialization is active.
Teams for Pyro and Luxheart
Pyro fits a dragon-focused team that stacks dragon buffs. See Best Team Comps and Party Guide for the full team. Luxheart is SR, and its Ultimate holds the monster in place; for whether to build Luxheart, see Best SR Adventurers for F2P.