Help a noob out? (Motivation Edition)

So I just broke into G-Rank quests.  "Yay me!" I was thinking.  "Now I'll get to face the really cool and epic challenges and make awesome-looking gear from all the new subspecies!"

So...is everything supposed to be killing me in 2 hits?  I spent so much time floundering around in High-Rank to make absolutely sure all my weapons and armor were fully upgraded, so why does it feel like my armor doesn't protect me for squat and my weapons still take 40+ minutes to kill things?  I don't recall the transition from Low-Rank to High-Rank being this tough.  I mean, I can still beat the quests, but I have to put so much more mental effort into every fight than I did in High-Rank that it's getting kind of stressful.  Maybe this all gets better when I make some G-Rank armor/weapons, but each fight is so grueling that I'm having trouble working up the willpower to want to grind out all the fights required for a full set.

I dunno...I'm just finding it tough to actually want to turn the game back on because the fights are more stressful than fun now that the difficulty's spiked.  Someone please tell me it gets better or if I'm doing something wrong...

EDIT: Should probably mention I'm new to this series with MH3U being my first MH game, so if this spike is normal throughout the series I claim ignorance on that front.

Im pretty sure G rank was created with the idea that you will be playing as a team,
Also the spikes are normal in my opinion. In MHFU and tri (which was only low to high) I beleive the spike were very unforgiving.

G-Rank is the hardest difficulty of the 3, so yes expect some damage. It's even common for people with maxed G-Rank armor to die from 3-4 hits. Though if you're soloing, G-Rank can be hard since your new to MH. I'd recommend taking your time with it, learning the moves, stall times, and also farm as many mats as you can with the Moga Farm. It's just like any other difficulty and monster youve faced. Practice, grind, and farm.

Firpi wrote:

Im pretty sure G rank was created with the idea that you will be playing as a team,
Also the spikes are normal in my opinion. In MHFU and tri (which was only low to high) I beleive the spike were very unforgiving.

I recall doing a high rank Pink Rathian when i first entered G rank in about 10 minutes. Actually, I've soloed the entire G rank excluding the tedious boss fights of Goldbeard Ceadeus and Dire Miralis in intervals of 10, 15, and 20 minutes, so I have to disagree with you that it is meant for multiplayer. I believe it's mostly solo with some multiplayer battles (like hell quests need 4 people to be completed reasonably fast).

Reaperfan wrote:

so why does it feel like my armor doesn't protect me for squat and my weapons still take 40+ minutes to kill things?

This difficulty spike is expected. You'll slowly progress through early G rank, so getting armor with excellent skills (notably full Helios Z armor with Helios X waist) is necessary.

Reaperfan wrote:

but each fight is so grueling that I'm having trouble working up the willpower to want to grind out all the fights required for a full set.

The difficulty spike between low and high rank is the same as high to g rank. I don't understand why this is bothering you know (unless you breezed through high rank).

Reaperfan wrote:

I'm doing something wrong.

Taking 40 minutes on a quest (assuming you are in solo mode) is outrageous. I understand the difficulty spike but the only quests that ever took me longer than 40 minutes was the Duramboros urgent in village, and Mark of a Hero. Surely you aren't doing something wrong, but your skill may be lackluster, although I have to recognize that this is your first MH game so that is to be expected. My advice is to practice the weapon before you practice the monster

Sai_ wrote:

Reaperfan wrote:

but each fight is so grueling that I'm having trouble working up the willpower to want to grind out all the fights required for a full set.

The difficulty spike between low and high rank is the same as high to g rank. I don't understand why this is bothering you know (unless you breezed through high rank).

Pretty much that. High-Rank didn't seem to cause any problems for me. It's why this feels kinda jarring right now...

Sai_ wrote:

Reaperfan wrote:

I'm doing something wrong.

Taking 40 minutes on a quest (assuming you are in solo mode) is outrageous. I understand the difficulty spike but the only quests that ever took me longer than 40 minutes was the Duramboros urgent in village, and Mark of a Hero. Surely you aren't doing something wrong, but your skill may be lackluster, although I have to recognize that this is your first MH game so that is to be expected. My advice is to practice the weapon before you practice the monster

The reason I'm taking 40 minutes is because I have to play so much more cautiously. I can't attack as often as I'm used to because I'm being extra careful to not get hit (usually resulting in 1-2 less total attacks per opening) and it's severely cutting into my damage output. I'm using the same weapons I've been using for all of High-Rank (GS, DS, and LBG), so while I may not have mastered them I've certainly got in dozens of hours of practice with each. And yes, I'm doing them in solo mode.

Which monster specifically are you having trouble with?

Sai_ wrote:

Which monster specifically are you having trouble with?

My worst encounter so far has been with the Pink Rathian, which frustrates me because I've fought so many of them before and I feel like I should be better at the fight than I've been doing. It's just that "dying in 2 hits" thing.

I also remember dying in a single hit from full health to a water jet attack from the Green Plesioth the first time I fought it. Just...ugh.

Maybe I should start smaller, hunting Great Jaggis/Azuros and really simple stuff in the Harvest Tours...

Ah, I remember her. Her poison is deadly and her tail attacks are probably the strongest. I can post a video on how I hammer her, which is my favorite weapon class to use on the Raths.

Reaperfan wrote:

Sai_ wrote:

Which monster specifically are you having trouble with?

My worst encounter so far has been with the Pink Rathian, which frustrates me because I've fought so many of them before and I feel like I should be better at the fight than I've been doing.  It's just that "dying in 2 hits" thing.

I also remember dying in a single hit from full health to a water jet attack from the Green Plesioth the first time I fought it.  Just...ugh.

Maybe I should start smaller, hunting Great Jaggis/Azuros and really simple stuff in the Harvest Tours...

Early G-Rank is super tough - I'm lucky enough to have online, but if you're playing solo, I'd use high rank Azure Los armor with a range of elemental dual swords. Gem Azure Los for HG Earplugs, since that will give you another attack opportunity on large monsters. The critical eye boost works well too for boosting damage, and the armor's late-high rank, so it should have good defense as well. I'd say this is a good mix of attack and defense, and if you're still struggling, then try to beat at least the Great Jaggi/Qurupeco and make their G Rank armors. Good luck!

X Kitsune X wrote:

Reaperfan wrote:

Sai_ wrote:

Which monster specifically are you having trouble with?

My worst encounter so far has been with the Pink Rathian, which frustrates me because I've fought so many of them before and I feel like I should be better at the fight than I've been doing.  It's just that "dying in 2 hits" thing.

I also remember dying in a single hit from full health to a water jet attack from the Green Plesioth the first time I fought it.  Just...ugh.

Maybe I should start smaller, hunting Great Jaggis/Azuros and really simple stuff in the Harvest Tours...

Early G-Rank is super tough - I'm lucky enough to have online, but if you're playing solo, I'd use high rank Azure Los armor with a range of elemental dual swords. Gem Azure Los for HG Earplugs, since that will give you another attack opportunity on large monsters. The critical eye boost works well too for boosting damage, and the armor's late-high rank, so it should have good defense as well. I'd say this is a good mix of attack and defense, and if you're still struggling, then try to beat at least the Great Jaggi/Qurupeco and make their G Rank armors. Good luck!

Thanks for the encouragement

I ended up getting lucky and catching Granny when she was selling Armor Stones, bought a fortune's worth of them and spent some Harvest Tours gathering materials for making Heavy and a couple of Tru Armor Spheres to boost my defenses without really having to fight things. I know I probably could have just practiced the fights and gotten better, but there's a fine line between when getting punished for a mistake feels like a learning experience and when it just feels frustrating. It's still pretty tough, especially since I'm still stuck going solo, but at least now I'm actually given enough room for error to not be paralyzed by the fear of slipping up