Monster Hunter Outlanders Greatsword Guide: Combos and Tackles

The Greatsword in Monster Hunter Outlanders plays as a heavy, hit-and-run burst weapon that trades attack speed for massive single-hit damage. Because walking with the weapon drawn slows your movement significantly, effective play centers on landing deliberate charge attacks, roll-sheathing to reposition, and using the shoulder tackle to absorb monster hits while skipping directly to your highest-damage swings.

Charge Slash Progression and Timing

The Greatsword combo tree builds across three distinct attack tiers, culminating in the two-hit True Charged Slash (TCS):

1. Charged Slash (Tier 1): Tap and hold the primary attack button from neutral or a draw attack. Releasing at the third visual and audio pulse achieves peak charge damage. Holding past the third pulse triggers an overcharge penalty, which automatically releases the swing at reduced tier-two power.
2. Strong Charged Slash (Tier 2): Initiated by holding forward and charging after an overhead swing or a shoulder tackle. This attack steps forward slightly, covering small gaps.
3. True Charged Slash (Tier 3): The final stage of the combo. The hunter leaps forward with a low-damage initial strike followed by a massive overhead slam. The secondary slam delivers the bulk of the weapon's overall damage, making it your primary objective during monster openings.

Because charges can only be pivoted roughly 15 to 30 degrees during the windup, line up your hunter's facing angle before initiating the hold.

Shoulder Tackle Cancels and Shortcuts

The shoulder tackle provides hyper-armor, enabling you to absorb monster roars, flinches, and knockback without interrupting your offensive sequence. You still take chip damage through the tackle, so monitor your health bar closely when tackling through heavy attacks.

Tapping the secondary action input during any charge animation immediately cancels the swing into a tackle and advances your combo chain by one tier:

Positioning and Mobile Touch Flow

Maintain mobility by sheathing your blade immediately after completing an attack string or rolling out of recovery frames. Running with your weapon sheathed allows you to reposition around monster flanks, use curative items, and set up running draw strikes into weak points like the head or severed tail.

When managing touch controls, use one thumb to hold and time your charge releases while using the other thumb to steer the camera and align evasion rolls. Avoid committing to raw, unassisted charge chains from neutral. Instead, draw into a quick strike, read the monster's retaliation, and immediately decide whether to tackle through the attack, roll-cancel into a sheath, or release the swing.

Adapting to Monster Speed

Save full True Charged Slash rotations for confirmed vulnerability phases, such as trips, stuns, paralysis procs, or stamina exhaustion. Against fast, erratic monsters that reposition quickly, abandon full three-tier charge commitments. Revert to a basic hit-and-run loop: land an unsheathed draw slash, evade sideways, sheath your weapon, and wait for the target to commit to its next recovery animation.