Great Sword

Weapon Traits
The Great Sword requires certain amount of knowledge to use it properly and master it; it becomes a slow weapon if not used correctly. In the hands of an experienced hunter, it is a very handy weapon with a very nice damage output. See the Videos ahead; there are some tutorials on becoming a GS master!.


 * GS's provide the hunters with shielding capabilities by pressing "R" button. The downside of this is that you lose sharpness with each shielded attack; the amount of sharpness losing this way is rumored to be the equivalent to a bounced attack. Don't forget those whetstones!.


 * The Vertical slash can be "quickdrawn". This means that if you are walking or running and press triangle, you will quickly attack with vertical slash, thus giving the fastest GS attack possible.


 * The vertical slash can be charged. This works just like a bow's charges; while marking the attack if you hold triangle, the attack will charge, this is possible also to charge a quickdraw, it take 3-4 seconds to complete the level 3 charge. And most importantly, the third charge gives really high damage capable of even knocking down a flying Rathalos.


 * Due to the size of the GS, its horizontal slash can get rid of mobs of monsters very easily. This can be a downside for multiplayer quests, since you can also very easily hit your fellow hunters.


 * The Upside slash can literally send fellow hunters flying if they get hit by it; if used properly, you can save another hunter from monster's attacks (they do not receive damage from this attack and they will be invulnerable while in flight).


 * The GS has its own damage system based on which part of the Great sword you are hitting the enemy. The hilt and the tip of the blade gives the poorest damage, while the middle section deals the top damage.


 * All 3 slashing attacks can be chained together, but no two same slashes can be chained. For example, after slashing vertically(Triangle), either the horizontal(Circle) or the upward slash(Traingle+Circle) can be performed, but not the vertical slash. However, chaining an upward slash and a vertical slash causes a lengthy delay between each attack.


 * Hunters can roll to the sides or to the front after each attack, giving you a nice option for hit and run tactics. This can be done to avoid the delays that come after each attack.


 * Along with many other weapons, you can find the area with the most damage by looking at your slashes: if it flows right through the victim, it is not a weak spot, but if the slash seems to move in slow motion while on contact, it is weak.
 * With the GS unsheathed, you can press SELECT to perform a quick frontal kick. This kick is much faster than the one done with any weapon sheathed, and is particularly useful in knocking back pesky mobs like 'Preys and giving you some time to attack with the GS.


 * The great sword gets sharper when you charge it; try charging on the monster's part where a normal attack bounces. This technique is useful on monsters with incredibly hard shell.(i.e. Yian Garuga, Basarios, Gravios, etc.)
 * In MH3, there is a new attack for the GS, where the hunter slaps the monster with the side of the sword to cause impact damage.

Videos
The Monster Hunter Wikia does not take credit for these videos.

PSP Controls
Sheathed = Unsheath (While Move) =  Heavy Smash (Hold) = Charged Heavy Smash Note: It have four charge levels (Uncharged, Yellow Charge and Red Charge and some kind of Giant Red Charge)

Unsheathed = Heavy Smash (Hold) = Charged Heavy Smash = Horizontal Slash ( + ) = Backward Slash = Roll Select = Kick R = Guard

Combo Horizontal Slash + Backward Slash + ( + ) (, ( + ),, ... )

MHP3 New Combos

Heavy Smash + Horizontal Tab + or  (Hold)  + (, , , ... )

Heavy Smash + Horizontal Tab + Crouching Heavy Smash + +  (Up)Pad or (Hold)  +  + (Up)Pad (Hold)  Note: Like Heavy Smash, Crouching Heavy Smash have four charge levels