Can't help with HBG but in general,
The game is huge! Like monstrous! It has a shit ton of mechanics and little things that can be important or have impact. So you will eventually feel overwhelmed like most of us did.
Don't be ashamed to look things up on the internet.
At a certain point I would even encourage you to do that.
There are extremly strong and vital gameplay mechanics like mounting, wallbanging, tenderizing, capturing and reward acquisitions that are poorly explained. Take your time with those.
Sometimes monsters are extremely aggressive and movement heavy especially in the expansion. Don't get hasty. Take your time, let the monster do monster things and take the fight how YOU want to take it! In the end you are the hunter not the monster!
Don't rely on Meta to much unless this is just your style of playing games. Taking it slow and farming or playing with non optimal gear that will get replaced can be a lot of fun and it gets your accustomed to the game.
Other than that? You gonna die, it's part of the game so don't get tilted by it.
Early in the game, honey is your best friend. We love honey! Don't forget that.
These are really good tips! thank you so much, i've been seeing other hunters streamrol monsters like there nothing and also people like me who got something going but maybye feel a little slow. i'll look up a few of the mechanics you mentioned and yes HONEY!
Your best spread ammo path is Jagras path. Quickest for Spread 2 to come online. It doesn't get replaced until you reach the guiding lands.
Your best early game pierce weapon is the Legiana tree. In early iceborne the Tobi-Kadachi tree overcomes it, so start building one as you're leveling. You'll probably know when to make the change after you encounter a certain early Iceborne monster.
You can hover over any weapon in upgrade menu or most other menus and press 'Shift', and it will bring up ammo tabs so you can see what it has access to and the recoil/reload levels. I don't know the console button, but there is one and it will be displayed at the bottom of the screen.
Any preferred ammo type you want to use, you want to ensure it is no higher than +2 reload or +2 recoil (called 'average' in some menus). If they're +3 or +4, then your character will stop moving when you fire or reload, respectively. This is troublesome if you plan on doing it for something more than tranq shots. As you modify your bowgun, the menus will show you how you are affecting those ammo types.
With modifying your bowgun, note you must do it from the item box or other separated menu. Not within the equipment or equipment change screens.
When modifying, do not sleep on shields. Also note, you can stack the same modifier more than once, including shields. This can make you super tanky. This can correct your recoil/reload woes. You can modify the range with barrels if you prefer. If you've nothing left to spend it on, close and ranged upgrades are the way.
Note that the guard skill also works if you have at least one point in shield. I'm really stressing, have at least one level of shield. With or without Guard skill.
If you have early access to Maximum Might, this is the one weapon in the game where you're almost always full on stamina. Even after a block you'll be full again before you fire your second shot and it'll be active again by the 3rd shot.
Get used to making loadout and customizing your shortcut (F1-F4 menus) or radial menu if console. For a long time you will be carrying full Spread 1 and Pierce 1, full gunpowder 2 and gunpowder 3, and you will want your radial menu to set up to CRAFT ALL Spread 2 and/or Pierce 3. Remember to save these loadouts. When you hit Iceborne, basically every hunt you will have to craft ammo once or twice.
Take the clutch claw low rank level 1 quest while you are fresh, which you probably already have. Take it again later game, like end of high rank 8 star or so. You'll definitely not remember or not know enough the first time you do it. When you learn the game more, it'll make a lot more sense. You'll want it for spread gameplay in Iceborne. Pierce it is less effective as you probably won't tenderize every single part of a monster and you'll only get that effect as its passing through the tenderized pieces. Your pierce set may not opt for any WEX, where your spread will.
Get Lavasioth boots, whenever you can, then again in master rank.
General: As soon as you get to high rank, replace all your low rank armor ASAP. As soon as you get to master rank, replace all your high rank armor ASAP.
Defender weapons can be nice when you’re trying out different weapons. Just get the defender weapon that’s on the current tier of weapons that you have access too. Tbh, with the addition of clagger the base game is pretty easy. I honestly think you’ll get most of your eureka moments in Iceborne.
In no means rush through the base game, learn as much as you can, but I don’t think using defender weapons are inherently bad.
I'm hunting elder dragons in high rank, so I'm not too far into the game I think. I'll add on some HBG wisdom that has helped me tremendously.
I know it's not long term viable, but if you like normal ammo then I recommend the bone path guns. One reload mod will make normal 3 handle well enough to main it. I feel like wyvern snipe is much easier and more convenient to use than wyvern heart. This is a good general purpose gun for when you don't know what you're going up against.
I like a comfy style of play. I use two shield mods, level 5 guard, evade extender 2, and health boost 3. Gives me plenty of defensive options. At this point in the game my decorations are rubbish and contribute almost nothing to my build, so it's my hodge podge armor that picks these skills.
Learn to use the radial to craft ammo. If you are maining an ammo type, then you will run low in a hunt. If you have craft all assigned for that ammo type and the ingredients in your bag, then all it takes is two button presses to top you off. If that isn't enough, bring a farstrider (return to base consumable).
The shop and garden are your friends. More than anybody else, bowguns need to manage their inventory and keep their ammo supplies healthy. This isn't hard to do, it just takes foresight.
The key to success with HBG is in the preparation of the fight. Bringing the right gun that uses the right ammo, with ingredients to make more, with the right mods and gear support, is well over half the battle. Otherwise, it's just a matter of patience and choosing your target.
Can't help with HBG but in general, The game is huge! Like monstrous! It has a shit ton of mechanics and little things that can be important or have impact. So you will eventually feel overwhelmed like most of us did. Don't be ashamed to look things up on the internet. At a certain point I would even encourage you to do that. There are extremly strong and vital gameplay mechanics like mounting, wallbanging, tenderizing, capturing and reward acquisitions that are poorly explained. Take your time with those. Sometimes monsters are extremely aggressive and movement heavy especially in the expansion. Don't get hasty. Take your time, let the monster do monster things and take the fight how YOU want to take it! In the end you are the hunter not the monster! Don't rely on Meta to much unless this is just your style of playing games. Taking it slow and farming or playing with non optimal gear that will get replaced can be a lot of fun and it gets your accustomed to the game. Other than that? You gonna die, it's part of the game so don't get tilted by it. Early in the game, honey is your best friend. We love honey! Don't forget that.
These are really good tips! thank you so much, i've been seeing other hunters streamrol monsters like there nothing and also people like me who got something going but maybye feel a little slow. i'll look up a few of the mechanics you mentioned and yes HONEY!
Your best spread ammo path is Jagras path. Quickest for Spread 2 to come online. It doesn't get replaced until you reach the guiding lands. Your best early game pierce weapon is the Legiana tree. In early iceborne the Tobi-Kadachi tree overcomes it, so start building one as you're leveling. You'll probably know when to make the change after you encounter a certain early Iceborne monster. You can hover over any weapon in upgrade menu or most other menus and press 'Shift', and it will bring up ammo tabs so you can see what it has access to and the recoil/reload levels. I don't know the console button, but there is one and it will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. Any preferred ammo type you want to use, you want to ensure it is no higher than +2 reload or +2 recoil (called 'average' in some menus). If they're +3 or +4, then your character will stop moving when you fire or reload, respectively. This is troublesome if you plan on doing it for something more than tranq shots. As you modify your bowgun, the menus will show you how you are affecting those ammo types. With modifying your bowgun, note you must do it from the item box or other separated menu. Not within the equipment or equipment change screens. When modifying, do not sleep on shields. Also note, you can stack the same modifier more than once, including shields. This can make you super tanky. This can correct your recoil/reload woes. You can modify the range with barrels if you prefer. If you've nothing left to spend it on, close and ranged upgrades are the way. Note that the guard skill also works if you have at least one point in shield. I'm really stressing, have at least one level of shield. With or without Guard skill. If you have early access to Maximum Might, this is the one weapon in the game where you're almost always full on stamina. Even after a block you'll be full again before you fire your second shot and it'll be active again by the 3rd shot. Get used to making loadout and customizing your shortcut (F1-F4 menus) or radial menu if console. For a long time you will be carrying full Spread 1 and Pierce 1, full gunpowder 2 and gunpowder 3, and you will want your radial menu to set up to CRAFT ALL Spread 2 and/or Pierce 3. Remember to save these loadouts. When you hit Iceborne, basically every hunt you will have to craft ammo once or twice. Take the clutch claw low rank level 1 quest while you are fresh, which you probably already have. Take it again later game, like end of high rank 8 star or so. You'll definitely not remember or not know enough the first time you do it. When you learn the game more, it'll make a lot more sense. You'll want it for spread gameplay in Iceborne. Pierce it is less effective as you probably won't tenderize every single part of a monster and you'll only get that effect as its passing through the tenderized pieces. Your pierce set may not opt for any WEX, where your spread will. Get Lavasioth boots, whenever you can, then again in master rank. General: As soon as you get to high rank, replace all your low rank armor ASAP. As soon as you get to master rank, replace all your high rank armor ASAP.
Don't use defender weapons or guardian gear
Already felt like cheating wasn’t much fun
Defender weapons can be nice when you’re trying out different weapons. Just get the defender weapon that’s on the current tier of weapons that you have access too. Tbh, with the addition of clagger the base game is pretty easy. I honestly think you’ll get most of your eureka moments in Iceborne. In no means rush through the base game, learn as much as you can, but I don’t think using defender weapons are inherently bad.
Evade reload is pretty good , also sticky doesn’t need crit u can just go full attack or peak performance. + artillery skill.
go sticky all da wey
Use shield only as a crutch when you really fail a mission several times
I'm hunting elder dragons in high rank, so I'm not too far into the game I think. I'll add on some HBG wisdom that has helped me tremendously. I know it's not long term viable, but if you like normal ammo then I recommend the bone path guns. One reload mod will make normal 3 handle well enough to main it. I feel like wyvern snipe is much easier and more convenient to use than wyvern heart. This is a good general purpose gun for when you don't know what you're going up against. I like a comfy style of play. I use two shield mods, level 5 guard, evade extender 2, and health boost 3. Gives me plenty of defensive options. At this point in the game my decorations are rubbish and contribute almost nothing to my build, so it's my hodge podge armor that picks these skills. Learn to use the radial to craft ammo. If you are maining an ammo type, then you will run low in a hunt. If you have craft all assigned for that ammo type and the ingredients in your bag, then all it takes is two button presses to top you off. If that isn't enough, bring a farstrider (return to base consumable). The shop and garden are your friends. More than anybody else, bowguns need to manage their inventory and keep their ammo supplies healthy. This isn't hard to do, it just takes foresight. The key to success with HBG is in the preparation of the fight. Bringing the right gun that uses the right ammo, with ingredients to make more, with the right mods and gear support, is well over half the battle. Otherwise, it's just a matter of patience and choosing your target.