Quick Links
Using a loadout with the highest damage numbers isn’t always the best thing to do inMonster Hunter Wilds. Players who don’t plan on speedrunning a hunt have a lot of other options to consider, such as builds using abnormal status effects like Exhaust.
Exhaust is one of the lesser-known status ailments inMH Wilds. Unlike Poison, Paralysis, and Sleep, Exhaust isn’t found as a weapon stat oran elemental damage type, and yet, it can be just as useful as all three of those once players know how to take advantage of it.
What is Exhaust in Monster Hunter Wilds?
As its name implies, Exhaust isa status effect that tires monsters out. Once it triggers, your target will get staggered, opening them up to follow-up attacks and putting them in an Exhausted state. You’ll know that a monster is Exhausted if it isvisibly drooling. Adrooling dinosaur iconwill also appear next to their icons on the map.
When a monster is Exhausted, it willbecome significantly slower and less aggressive, and in some cases, it will beunable to perform certain attacks. For example,an Exhausted Rathalos inMH Wildswon’t be able to spit fireballs — instead, it will only blow out smoke. The Exhausted state will last for a short duration, after which the monster will return to its normal behavioral patterns.
How to Exhaust Monsters
Exhaust is built-up byhitting monsters with Blunt damage. Nearly every weapon has an attack that deals Blunt damage, though themost obvious one is the Hammer. As long as you hit a monster with Blunt damage, it will eventually become Exhausted. All weapons that can deal Blunt damage or inflict Exhaust are:
Hitting a monster’s head with Blunt damage will also build up a hidden Stun bar. Filling this bar up will knock the monster down.
Some ranged weapons can be loaded withExhaust Ammo/Coatings. Hitting monsters with these will deal raw Exhaust damage, which means you can still tire monsters out without having to manually bash them with your weapon or use Bow’s Arc Shot attack.
The Charge Blade and Switch Axe are also very good at exhausting monstersas long as you’re hitting them with attacks that discharge Impact or Exhaust Phials:
Exhaust Skills
TheStamina Thiefskill increases the amount of Exhaust built up by your attacks, though you need to use attacks that build Exhaust in the first place. If you want to focus on Exhaust as a core part of your build, this is the best skill you can get.
In previousMonster Huntergames, thePunishing Drawskill also added Exhaust damage to weapon draw attacks, despite the skill’s description saying it only adds stun. This may still be the case inMH Wilds, but such a claim is yet to be proven.
