Monster Hunter World(MHW) features 14 different weapon types, with theLight Bowgunbeing one of them. In thisGuidewe’ll take a look at exactly how to use thisWeaponto its fullest, as well as show you some things you may not know about it. If you’re new to the game or you are a veteran of the franchise and just need a quick refresher, thisGuideis for you.
Light Bowgun Guide
The Light Bowgun is the smallest of the three ranged weapons and its small nature allows hunters to rapidly reposition and Evade incoming attacks. On offense, the Light Bowgun boasts the highest fire rate of all the ranged weapons. It also specializes in support ammo, such as poison, paralysis and recovery, meaning it can reliably inflict a variety ofStatus Effectson monsters while still dealing damage. While theHeavy Bowgunmay have more raw damage, the Light Bowgun has more versatility.
Basic Combos
The Light Bowgun does not have combos, but instead focuses on dealing it’s damage through bursts fired into the monster it is facing. And, just like most ranged weapons,
is aim and
is fire. However, the Light Bowguncan hipfire by simply pressing
, which has less accuracy.
Players can also press
to melee either while standing or jumping to deal a modest amount of damage. This isn’t particularly useful against monsters, but you may use it to set off traps around the environment.
While moving with your weapon drawn you can press
to sidestep and if you sidestep repeatedly you will do a slide that covers a fair bit of distance. If you are used toEvadingwith
, this will take some getting used to.
Just like the Heavy Bowgun, players can cycle through their ammo types by pressing Up or Down on the D-Pad and then pressing
to load them up. And
is also the button used to reload. you may see a list of ammo types below:
Special Attacks and Things of Interest
Each Light Bowgun has a special ammo type that is unique to that Bowgunand can be loaded by pressing
. These ammo types having varying effects such as placing bombs on the ground, so you may need to try a few to find the one you like.This ammo will regenerate over time when not using, and in some cases you must let it regenerate all the way before firing it again, but not all.
Light Bowguns can be modified in your inventory with various things that have various effects.Rarer Bowguns will allow you to place more Modson them, which you can at the Smithy. Be sure to check out what’s available and find the Mod that best fits your style of play. You can see a list of these below:
Final Tips
Light Bowguns have an optimal range when firing, and firing from that range is key to maximum efficiency with this weapon.You will know you are within proper range when your cross hairs glow orange when aiming at the monster with
. Different Ammo types will also affect this range, so be sure to learn what these ranges are so you can position yourself accordingly.
The difference between the Light Bowgun and the Heavy Bowgun are that the Light Bowgun moves faster and reloads nearly instantly, but has more recoil and has a smaller ammo capacity. If you play the Light Bowgun and it’s not quite right for you, try the Heavy version and see if you like it better.
Keep an eye on your special ammo Gaugeon the lower right-hand side of the screen. This will replenish over time, so don’t let it sit on full very long when you could be using the powerful attack that it does. Learn your Bowgun’s special ammo and anticipate where you need to be when it’s ready to fire.
Becoming familiar with the monster you are fighting can go a long way to improve your effectiveness in combat. Monsters have specific weaknesses and weak points and aiming for those is crucial, as is using the best ammo for the job. Learn what monsters are weak to and use that knowledge against them.
Lastly, one of the downsides of this weapon is thatyou must supply your own ammo, which means that you will have to farm for crafting materials regularly to keep yourself topped up. On the plus side you can set the game to auto-craft the ammo types you want, so that when you gather the corresponding materials it makes them automatically.
Be sure to check out our otherWeapon and Monster Guidesfor all your needs and if you have specific questions be sure to check out theMonster Hunter World Wiki. Good Luck Hunters! May the furs be with you!
