Lance or Gunlance?

Hey guys,

As a experienced player, I've been trying out weapons that are past my comfort zone really, I like LS, Hammer and SA mainly, but I've wanted to change that for MH3U, and lance is one I haven't tried at all in any game yet, but I noticed gunlance... Now, with no lance knowledge or even bowgun knowledge really... My question is what's the good and bad things of each?

If anyone can help I'd be grateful!

Daniel

Takeshiren wrote:

Hey guys,

As a experienced player, I've been trying out weapons that are past my comfort zone really, I like LS, Hammer and SA mainly, but I've wanted to change that for MH3U, and lance is one I haven't tried at all in any game yet, but I noticed gunlance... Now, with no lance knowledge or even bowgun knowledge really... My question is what's the good and bad things of each?

If anyone can help I'd be grateful!

Daniel

The gunlance is a bit more offense oriented with it's shelling and wyvernfire, and they replaced the shield charge/bash move with a lunging attack that goes further and can be cancelled into shelling. Really the only way to block attacks is from a standing position, as you don't have a counter or advancing guard move like you would on the lance. It's also got a full burst attack that unloads all of your shells at once for good damage depending on your shell type.

Quick breakdown on shell types:

Spoiler:

As for lances, if you learn the weapon and still get hit, you are doing something wrong. Lance is great for not getting damaged while still dealing out good damge. It has a big shield that can block attacks some other weapon types can't, an advancing guard that can be chained into a shield bash and stab combo, a counter move that can be cancelled into by most of it's other moves or charged for more damage, and you can sidestep up to 3 times to avoid enemy hits, or backstep to move very far back very fast Aside from all of it's defensive abilities, it's still a great offensive weapon. It's got a charging attack that is basically running with your weapon drawn(be careful not to hit other players if you use this) for attacking fleeing monsters or covering a lot of distance fast, the counter attack does decent damage, and it's stab and upstab attacks do good damage as well.

MasterOnion wrote:

The gunlance is a bit more offense oriented with it's shelling and wyvernfire, and they replaced the shield charge/bash move with a lunging attack that goes further and can be cancelled into shelling. Really the only way to block attacks is from a standing position, as you don't have a counter or advancing guard move like you would on the lance. It's also got a full burst attack that unloads all of your shells at once for good damage depending on your shell type.

Quick breakdown on shell types:

Spoiler:

As for lances, if you learn the weapon and still get hit, you are doing something wrong. Lance is great for not getting damaged while still dealing out good damge. It has a big shield that can block attacks some other weapon types can't, an advancing guard that can be chained into a shield bash and stab combo, a counter move that can be cancelled into by most of it's other moves or charged for more damage, and you can sidestep up to 3 times to avoid enemy hits, or backstep to move very far back very fast Aside from all of it's defensive abilities, it's still a great offensive weapon. It's got a charging attack that is basically running with your weapon drawn(be careful not to hit other players if you use this) for attacking fleeing monsters or covering a lot of distance fast, the counter attack does decent damage, and it's stab and upstab attacks do good damage as well.

Thanks for the help!

I just got the event gunlance and it's so fun to use! Need some practise but practise makes perfect! :D

Daniel

Thanks, and I hope you have a good time here on the forum and with the weapon. Please feel free to use the thank or + function. Arbitrary approval over the internet makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside! :D

MasterOnion wrote:

Thanks, and I hope you have a good time here on the forum and with the weapon. Please feel free to use the thank or + function. Arbitrary approval over the internet makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside! :D

Aha, no problem at all, thanks again for all the help!

The lance has very few 'fancy' moves. It focuses on practicality, and relies mostly on your standard stabbing moves, chained together by counters and dodges. Your objective will be to 'stick' to the monster, keeping up a near-constant stream of attacks, while dodging or countering any attacks coming your way. While it is often initially perceived as a defensive, turtle-style weapon, the lance actually has a very impressive damage output if you can use it properly.

I'd recommend primarily using skills to improve your dodging and blocking abilities. Guard +1/2 is very useful for allowing you to counter more easily - this is especially important in MH3U, as the counter has been weakened, making it harder to pull off effectively. Evasion +1/2 is also very useful, as, with the proper timing, it will allow you to step through most attacks coming your way. This skill is made even better by the fact that you can dodge at any point in a combo. Of course, on the topic of skills, AuX is always nice, particularly when you're already using one of the game's most damaging weapons...


I have considerably less experience with the gunlance, but I'll try to be helpful. From what I've gathered, the gunlance operates in a similar way to the original lance, but with more powerful attacks, and explosions. Your objective is still to 'stick' to the monster, but you now have more special attacks. You'll want to try to chain together your stabs and shots into a good combo for doing damage quickly, as you likely won't be able to stay in contact as long as with the regular lance. The lack of a counter attack as well as slightly slower moves, means you won't be able to keep attack as much, but your attacks are now more powerful.

It is also notable that the gunlance has a few very powerful special moves, namely, burst fire and wyvernfire. These require a fair bit of time to use (burst fire is chained on end of standard combo, wyvernfire just has to charge up a bit) so they're a bit impractical, but still very powerful when used at the right time. Sort of like with the greatsword's charge attacks.

You'll probably want similar skills. Guard +1/2 is notably less valuable than before, however, as you cannot counter. Blocking is still important, though, assuming you want to... well, survive. Evasion won't always cut it, especially as the gunlance cannot chain together 3 dodges like the normal lance could. But if you evade properly, this shouldn't be a problem.

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Overall, I prefer the lance. The gunlance may have great power and some fun moves, but I still think practicality is more important. With the lance, you should eventually be able to keep up a constant stream of attacks, which is not only great for damage, it's also great for status effects. Did I mention how much I love poison and paralysis? The lance is one of my favourite weapons. I'm really not much of a fan of the gunlance.

Signed, Spiritlord Z