[Top 7] MHW Best Longswords That Wreck Hard!

Updated:

04 Mar 2022

The Longsword offers Speed, Power, and Elegance

Alatreon the Blazing Black Dragon

The Longsword has been the most popular weapon in the community for the past few games, with good reason! It has speed, power, and style all wrapped up starting from the hilt to the tip of its blade. It’s one of the most beginner-friendly weapons, but in the hands of a master, it can make for some really impressive speedrun records.

Fatalis Speedrun by Peppo, possibly the best known LS speedrunner in the community

And to help you get closer to achieving those records, I’m here to tell you about 7 of the most powerful Longswords to ever wreck monster hides.

7. Azure Star “Dragon Dance”+

Fight like a samurai, look like a samurai

By doing the USJ events in order, you will be able to craft this powerful longsword fairly early on in Iceborne.

Looking at these stats, it’s easy to see why this particular sword made the list. It has fairly high raw damage, high affinity, a bit of purple sharpness, and a thick layer of white sharpness. But if you ever feel like raising that purple sharpness further, you can freely do so, raising it to a maximum of 70 hits. There’s also a bit of water element to it which is a nice little bonus, but even ignoring that stat, it’s still a really good weapon to customize a build with thanks to the two +4 jewel slots it has.

891 Damage
30% Affinity
20 hits of Purple sharpness, 120 hits of White sharpness
240 Water
2 sockets for level 4 jewels

6. Demonlord Halberd

Here is a simple demonstration along with the Lightbreak Edge and Safi’s Shatterblade courtesy of DC Shiori.

Sometimes, simple is best. And sometimes, the simplicity that makes it one of the best is its high raw damage. Obtained from Furious Rajang, its sizable chunk of purple sharpness that you can further increase with the Handicraft armor skill gives this entry its place here on this list.

If you’re unfamiliar, the higher the level of sharpness is, the higher the damage modifier you receive, with purple sharpness being the highest level you can achieve. And with a thicker chunk of purple even compared to a lot of other weapons, maintaining DPS becomes a great deal easier.

957 Damage
15% Affinity
50 hits of purple sharpness
270 Thunder

5. Kjarr Sword “Decay”

Here's a detailed explanation and demonstration courtesy of Lord Viettner.

This one is a special longsword that can only be obtained from Kulve Taroth. With its high raw and dragon damage, it’s a great weapon of choice for fighting Elder dragons. And while the rest of its stats are great, what makes this weapon so powerful is its special skill: “Critical Element”.

To those unfamiliar, Critical Element was first introduced in Monster Hunter: World and is present in all Kjarr weapons. Normally, critical hits only affect raw physical damage. But with this skill active, even your elemental damage will benefit from your critical attacks, making it especially useful for fighting certain monsters that are particularly weak to elemental damage.

Though, to explain why this particular Kjarr longsword was chosen instead of the others, it is simply because it has the highest DPS potential out of all else. It also has one level 1 jewel slot as well as a fair bit of White sharpness. Paired with the right armor skills, that bit of White sharpness can last you through most of your hunt.

974 Damage
15% Affinity
40 hits of white sharpness
480 Dragon (Average Elderseal)
1 socket for level 1 jewel
Critical Element

4. Safi’s Shatterblade

Here's an in-depth explanation by IDeVaste.

Obtainable only through the Safi’jiiva Siege Quest. You can pick anything in this set of longswords since they all go so well with a ton of builds due to their high adaptability thanks to their capacity for Awakened Abilities. The reason this particular longsword was chosen is simply because Blast is almost always good to have if your only aim is to achieve high DPS.

Awakened Abilities, if you’re not sure what it is, allows for upgrades and customization exclusive only to Safi’Jiiva weapons. This lets you mix and match up to 5 different awakened abilities at a time. There’s a variety to them, but what you definitely want to awaken is any of the set bonuses available for your choosing.

This opens up a plethora of builds to fit your needs without sacrificing your potential DPS. In fact, choosing the right set bonus can amplify your DPS by a huge margin.

891 Damage
5% Affinity
40 hits of white sharpness
210 Blast
Awakened Abilities

3. Lightbreak Edge

Here's a weapon showcase by Peppo of Team Darkside.

Following up on the “simple is best” theme, comes this beast of an entry. Obtained from Raging Brachydios, this longsword has the highest raw damage on the list so far. Paired with Blast and the longsword’s swift moveset, it can deal some pretty hefty DPS on nearly every hunt. It also has 2 sockets for customization which is already rare for a lot of weapons.

990 Damage
0% Affinity
50 hits of white sharpness, 20 hits of purple sharpness
270 Blast
1 socket for level 4 jewel and 1 socket for level 3 jewel

2. Dark Claw “Demise”

Here's a detailed explanation on how it compares to the Kjarr Sword “Decay”, courtesy again by Lord Viettner.

The monster of a longsword from the monstrous Alatreon. With a combination of high raw damage, high elemental damage, and stupid high purple sharpness, it is a weapon made simply for insane DPS. Along with 2 sockets for jewels, it allows for some degree of customization as well.

924 Damage
0% Affinity
90 hits of purple sharpness
660 Dragon
2 sockets for level 2 jewels

1. Fatalis Zaggespanon

Here's a couple of build varieties offered by IDeVaste.

Fitting that the longsword with the highest damage in the game comes from Fatalis, the Elder dragon that can one-shot everything if it so wishes. With base damage hitting the 4-digits, it has potential for the highest DPS, making it a favorite among speedrunners even with the negative affinity.

To a lot of people, the negative affinity can be a turn-off. But when you’re a speedrunner (or at least someone attempting faster hunts) focusing on dealing the most damage in the shortest amount of time possible, sacrificing defensive armor skills in favor of achieving higher DPS is a sacrifice you should be willing to make.

1155 Damage
-30% Affinity
20 hits of purple sharpness, 30 hits of white sharpness
150 Dragon
2 sockets for level 4 jewels

And there we go, those were the top 7 longswords that absolutely destroy monsters hard!

Truthfully speaking, everything from the 5th place onwards could be switched freely as they all serve different purposes in dealing damage. So while in one case you’d prefer to deal the highest amount of raw damage possible with the Fatalis Zaggespanon, in another, you might prefer crazy elemental damage instead with either the Dark Claw “Demise” or any of the Kjarr weapons.

Regardless of your choice, any of these 7 longswords should help you get one step closer to your goal of achieving the fastest hunts possible.