If you are a veteran, you do not need this.

This guide's purpose is to serve an example of one way of how you could play Hunting Horn as a support player. By no means it is "the best way" - it is just one way to give new players some orientation how to put the tips & tricks from my guides into action.

There is no "best way" to play a certain weapon - as there are too many factors to take into consideration from the luck of having a fitting talisman for a superior build, to the liking of such a build. The best way to play weapon you can do is the way you enjoy most.

Therefore, please take this guide as it is: an example to inspire you and serve you ideas you might not have thought of, and less a general recommendation.

Before we start with the theoretical and written part of the guide, let me link you a video clip which demonstrates what I am going to mention here.


You do not have to watch the video to make use of the guide, but I still consider it helpful to have as visual material you can use to get a feeling for the tips & tricks you can find here.

As you can see: my gameplay is not perfect, and I have no desire to "perfect" it. All I am doing is having fun. And if it looks like I am playing badly, then it might be just that. But I still had great fun while recording it for you, so it is fine.

Within the video you can spot also several mods I am using to make my game experience more enjoyable without actually affecting the game too much. As in: I am against cheating, but I am fine with visual mods which look cool & cute, or the Wyvern Riding music replacement which makes it so much more enjoyable.

If you are interested in such kind of mods, please have a look:


Link to the overview of the mods you can find in the video description.
All mods I am using and recommending are


https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2791694098

While I do not think that the selection of armour pieces is so important, I know that some of you would like to see it at least for orientation. Keep in mind: the armour pieces matter hardly, but more the skills and how you acquire them. It would probably look entirely different if I had a different talisman and a different weapon.


The Pseudo Scoring-system I am using to pick my armour I am sharing here
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2823558974

The absolute star of this setup is the skills Wide-Range - the skill which applies the effects of the items I consume to nearby players in full. That is the one skill which makes you invaluable to your fellow players, while the other skills around it are only to support that kind of playstyle.

Quick Sheath & Speed Eating for example are by no means must-have skills, but they allow me to react much quicker in time of need. These skills are very good to have when you want to apply medicine on your fellow hunters quick and any time.

Defense Boost, Stun Resistance & Evade Extender are to increase my survivalbility. What is a support player doing any good when they have to constantly heal themselves?

While Attack Boost & Wirebug Whisperer on the other hand increase my offensive capabilities. Hunting Horn skills like Earthshaker, Silkbind Shockwave and Sonic Bloom rely heavily on Wirebugs. So having more for longer and faster available is a big boon - while Attack Boost enhances the damage output. Since Hunting Horn's shockwaves do not work with Critical Hits, I have to spend more on the offensive than just Weakness Exploit.

The rest of the skills you can safely ignore as they are by-effects of armour pieces or just vacant slots I have filled with skills which fit.

The weapon itself is a Duke's Grail - which is one level lower than the maximum possible upgrade. That is due to the banal circumstances that I have not reached MR100 and therefore not yet unlocked the final upgrade set.

In my demo video you can see how the song effects of Sharpness Regeneration and Sharpness Loss Reduction work hand in hand to ensure a constant sharpness for my and my fellow hunters' weapons.

At this point I can assure you: your choice of weapon is up to you. I picked this one simply because I see a great potential in the weapon in comparison to a Hunting Horn which provides Attack Up e.g.

Attack Up gives 10% more damage
While purple sharpness 7% / 10% in comparison to white and ~19% in comparison to blue

Especially with weapons with a high wear and tear these Sharpness affecting song of the Hunting Horn can give a higher benefit. And by the end of the day: it is just very comfortable not to have sharpening your weapon all the time.

While it might not seem like much, the numbers add up dramatically the more players there are in your party who can make use of prolonged purple Sharpness without spending decoration slots on Grinder and such.

Actually, any weapon work well with this - Hunting Horn just gives the powerful melody extra

The mentioned Duke's Grail is just one example. Of course this playstyle will work with other horns and Swords and Shields as well. With some it might even work better. With others less. The Harmonic Resonance e.g. is a good alternative I can recommend.

What makes this a Healer Style is not the weapon after all.

Before we move on to the actual star of the Healer Style, let us have a closer look on some settings details which can be helpful for you as well. You can skip this part if you already have a good setup, but these tips I consider essential for new players.

Camera Shake: Off
Camera Style: Do Not Focus on Target
Target Camera Controls: Type 3
Target Camera Vertical Settings: Don't Match Height
Focus Camera Restrictions: No Restrictions
Camera Terrain Adjustments: Off
Dynamic Camera Settings: Off
Camera Distance: 100

Motion Blur: Off
Lens Distortion: Off
Vignette Effect: Off
Depth of Field (DOF): Off

Character Names: Don't Display
Player Silhouette: Type 2
Hit Effects: Less
Player Hit Effects: Display at 25%
Other Player Hit Effects: Display at 25%
Health & Stamina Gauge: Fixed
HUD Map Type: Detailed Map

Button Hold Settings: Short
Sheathe Settings: Manual Sheathe
Transition to Wall Running Off (In Combat Only)
Buttons for Wyvern Riding: A (Weapon Sheathed)



You can change the order in which the items are sorted in your Item Bar by manually sorting them before saving it as a loadout. When hunting monsters which cannot be trapped you can leave the trap tools behind and instead bring along Dust of Life e.g.
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2830376467


An equally good tip like with the Item Bar order is setting your Action Bar that it has Use the Felvine! as first selection. Allowing you to instantly see and use when it is charged and ready.


Last but not least, make good use of your minimap. As you can see from the demo video, I am using the minimap to show Endemic Life only, especially since I am not yet that used to the new Sunbreak maps. That helps me a lot to navigate and make proper routine routes to collect Spiribirds and Hunting Helpers as quick as possible.

In the video you can also see how I take a different route than my fellow huntress. There are few reasons to go the same path together since Hunting Helpers, unlike Wirebugs, are only available for one hunter before they respawn.
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2717340432

That looks mouth-watering, does it not?
We are talking about something similar ~ now I want some Ayu...



The absolute Master Rank star among the consumables and support items.

90 seconds of health regeneration

It renders most of the new Master Rank debuffs harmless while allowing you to focus on fighting the enemy. You did not think playing the Healer Style is all about consuming potions and shoving powders into the air while keeping a steady watch on other players' health bar, did you?
That is not how healing and supporting in Monster Hunter works.

In Monster Hunter it is wise to keep this rule of thumb in mind:

The first hit throws you off, the second hit kills you.

To some it might sound like an exaggeration, but that is the only truth when facing the hardest challenges in the game for the first time. Just because you get gear upgrades and better skills, it does not mean you should disrespect a challenge.


It is more important to learn taking hits and deal with them, than getting healed in general. A common beginners mistake is trying to get up as fast as possible instead of just staying put and making use of the moment when you are invincible. Some monster attacks are specifically made to punish you when you try to Wiredash out after getting hit.

Getting hit means you are going to faint and cart, unless you heal up. You cannot expect anyone to help you when that happens, as it is your personal responsibility to survive and fight. Support players can only do so much, but they cannot cure irresponsible behaviour. It is irresponsible if you rely on your Palico or on another player for a heal. They are not always available and every moment you spend not healing yourself you risk the success of the hunt. Not to mention the fact that if you need heal, and they have to heal you, that means also they cannot deal that much damage as before. So, what is the big deal behind Healer Style?



Jokes aside, it is really mostly the Gourmet Fish. While every veteran player bring along their own Upgrade Items, including Gourmet Fish, it hits differently when you have a support player with Quick Sheath which makes it easy peasy to buff the whole party with that. Most hits get healed up quickly enough with just that, without the additional need for Lifepowders or Potions.

It is that good.

The benefits of having a dedicated Wide-Range player do not end there - when people get hit it is often inevitable or affects almost the whole party, like with e.g. a sweep or an area attack by the monster. Drinking a Mega Potion at that moment heals up the whole party, minimising the overall stress. Especially when it comes with Quick Sheath & Speed Eating.

Lifepowder and Dust of Life are still great as instant heal items, nonetheless.
You just do not need them as often when having a dedicated Wide-Range player.
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2748134725

Fishing Sushifish and have them improved via Motley Mix. Cheap, simple, straightforward. Does not take that long even, considering how fast fishing is in Monster Hunter Rise.

I tend to watch anime or listen to podcasts while restocking Sushifish.


In the process of acquiring Gourmet Fish, you also get Dango Tickets. Awesome, is it not?

Sometimes Rondine offers Sushifish as rare items for trade. While it might look expensive at first, you will get more than enough Kamura Points to spend by the time you make use of Gourmet Fish.
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2770796671

Despite my many attempts to make it clear, this point is seemingly hard to explain to many players. For reasons, I guess. The selection of your Buddy you bring along for Multiplayer does matter.

The best choice you can make is based upon what the party is already using. While I personally prefer a Healer-type Palico, I brought along an Assist-type Palico in the video. Simply because my fellow huntress already brought along a Healer-type Palico.

Best you can do is to check what the other players are bringing along, and adapt accordingly to the quest requirements. An Assist-type Palico would have done much less effect when dealing with an Elder Dragon e.g.

My recommendations for a four player party


or


or


That way it would be easiest to utilise all their Support Moves effectively, without having too often overlapping effects. For more tips in regards of Buddies, check out my guide
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2782822341

When it comes to the choice of Dango, we want to survive as easy as possible as a Healer and supporter. Therefore there is only one menu I can recommend:


Left with Hopping Skewers
Right for pre-Sunbreak without Hopping Skewers and Elgado Dango flavours

For more Dango tips check out my guide
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2811588420

Playing the Healer Style or a Support Style can be extremely rewarding.
But that does not work by keeping simply your party alive. You want to buff them, and by the end of the day creating an overall higher damage output and better teamplay together in the process, rather than losing out on some because one dedicates themselves to support.

While it may feel at first counterintuitive by saying that a healer in your party will increase your damage output, that is how it works with Monster Hunter. Helping your team to focus on combat can make a huge difference.

And taking into consideration the possible buffs you can get with playing a Hunting Horn, a Support player can create an additional damage output equal to two or more players when the party coordination is done right.

Wait a minute? One player = two or more players worth? That is right.

If you have four players dealing 100% damage each, and increase that value by 30% each (Attack Up + Infernal Melody for example), plus additional attack opportunities, plus additional Palicoes and their Support Moves and so on, you easily get an 8:3 advantage over a monster, as their limited health points scaling give them a huge disadvantage in comparison to four hunters with increased attack powers and possibilities.

Having one Support player in your party can increase your damage output as a team massively.

Do not underestimate the healers!

Thanks for reading and as always ~