Light Bowgun | Monster Hunter World Wiki

Light Bowgun (ライトボウガン raito boogan, "light bowgun") is a weapon category in Monster Hunter World (MHW). Like all Weapons, it features a unique moveset and an upgrade path that branches out depending on the materials used. Please see Weapon Mechanics for details on the basics of your hunter tools.

The Bowgun can be used to attack monsters from long range. There are two types of Bowgun: the Heavy Bowgun, which  is generally slower, more powerful, and has access to high-damage ammo, and the Light Bowgun, which allows for greater mobility and evasive capabilities, and faster shooting.

 

Light Bowgun Weapon Tree

For full details, including rare 9 and above weapons added with Iceborne, please see Light Bowgun Weapon Tree

You can also see Master Rank Iceborne Light Bowguns.

 

 

Light Bowgun Traits & Abilities

• Fast fire rate and short to moderate range
• Variety of ammo types with special effects
• High mobility

 

Light Bowgun Guide

The Light Bowgun is the smallest of the three ranged weapons. Its small nature allows hunters to rapidly reposition and dodge incoming attacks. On offense, the Light Bowgun boasts the highest fire rate of the ranged weapons. It also specializes in support ammo, such as poison, paralysis, and recovery, meaning it can reliably inflict a variety of status effects on the monster while still dealing damage. Light Bowguns are also capable of using special rounds, which are covered in detail further down.

Like the Heavy Bowgun, the Light Bowgun has an optimal range for firing. Being too far away from the target will cause shots to do less damage. The optimal range will vary based on ammo, and the crosshair will glow orange when the monster is in the optimal range.

Customizing Your Bowgun

Light Bowguns can use custom mods to shorten reload time, reduce recoil, and improve damage at specific ranges. You can even equip the same mod multiple times to improve its effects.

 

Critical Range 

Ranged weapon attacks have a Critical Range, which is the distance at which that attack deals the most damage. It's important to experiment with different ammo and arrow types to determine their Critical Ranges in order to deal as much damage as possible. It's also worth noting that the critical range shown by the glowing orange reticule is only relevant to the first point of impact of a particular shot. Ammo that inflicts multiple hits, like Slicing, Sticky, and Piercing Ammo, will experience critical range in different ways.

 

Light Bowgun Advantages

• Wide variety of ammo for applying various status effects
• High rate of fire - many Light Bowguns fire some Ammo types in a rapid-fire mode, which can potentially lead to high damage output.
• Great mobility

 

Light Bowgun Disadvantages

• Worse ammo stats than Heavy Bowgun on non-Rapid Fire ammo types
• Has access to one less mod than Heavy Bowgun
• Has only one type of Special Ammo
• Must supply own ammo

 

Attachments

Attachments are various mods that can be put onto a bowgun to alter its stats. Attachments are free, can be swapped out at any time at the smithy, and can stack. The number of mods that can be put onto a gun depends on its rarity rank. Ranks 1 and 2 have one mod slot. Ranks 3 and 4 have two. Ranks 5 to 8 have three. Ranks 9 to 12 have four.

Available mod types:

• Recoil Suppressor: Lowers the recoil when firing. Effectiveness varies with what ammo type is being used.
• Reload Assist: Speeds reload times. Effectiveness varies with what ammo type is being used.
• Deviation Suppressor: Lowers deviation. Can only be used if the Bowgun has deviation.
• Close Range Up: Increases damage at close range.
• Long Range Up: Increases damage at long range.
• Long Barrel: Increases critical range and projectile speed.
• Power Barrel: Increases tick rate for piercing ammo types and stun/exhaust build-up for Sticky/Exhaust ammo.
• Evade Reload: Allows ammo to be reloaded while evading.
• Wyvernblast Counter: Changes Wyvernblast into a forward facing counter attack.

Ammo Types

The Ammo a hunter can use varies with the Bowgun they have equipped. It is also important to note that ammo performance for one model of Bowgun (in terms of shots per magazine, recoil, rate of fire, and reload speed) may perform radically differently on another model of Bowgun. Always check the detailed description of a Bowgun model before investing resources into crafting it!

Each damaging Ammo type has its own Motion Value (MV), which is used when calculating damage. Elemental attacks from Bowguns are subjected to both this and the Weapon type multiplier, and use the Raw Attack value as the starting Elemental value. See Damage Types for more information.

See Bowgun Ammo for a quick list of Ammo Types.

See Bowgun Comparison for a quick list of Ammo in regards to bowgun modifications.

• Normal: Normal Ammo (fires a standard single shot). MVs:
  • Lv1: 10
  • Lv2: 20
  • Lv3: 34
• Pierce: Pierce Ammo (fires a straight shot that pierces through monsters to hit them multiple times. Number of hits is dependent on the ammo strength and the frame rate. Damage is reduced after the 9th hit). MVs:
  • Lv1: 7 * number of hits
  • Lv2: 7 * number of hits
  • Lv3: 9 * number of hits

• Spread: Spread Ammo (fires a short-ranged shotgun blast). MVs:
  
  • Lv1: 6 * 3
  • Lv2: 7 * 5
  • Lv3: 8 * 7
• Sticky: Sticky Ammo (attaches a charge to the target that explodes after 5 seconds. Fixed damage, ignore*****zone values and cannot crit. Deals a small amount of Fire damage. Applies Stun if explosion hits the monster's head). MVs:
  
  • Lv1: 12
  • Lv2: 17
  • Lv3: 24

• Recover: Recover Ammo (heals teammates and palicos)
  • Lv1: restores 30 HP
  • Lv2: restores 50 HP
• Poison: Poison Ammo (inflicts Poison on the target)
  • Lv1: 40 Poison build-up
  • Lv2: 80 Poison build-up
• Paralysis: Paralysis Ammo (inflicts Paralysis on the target)
  • Lv1: 40 Paralysis build-up
  • Lv2: 80 Paralysis build-up
• Sleep: Sleep Ammo (inflicts Sleep on the target)
  • Lv1: 40 Sleep build-up
  • Lv2: 80 Sleep build-up
• Exhaust: Exhaust Ammo (inflicts Exhaust on the target, or Stun if it hits the head)
  • Lv1: 50 Exhaust or 20 Stun
  • Lv2: 100 Exhaust or 40 Stun
• Flaming/Freeze/Thunder/Water: Elemental Ammo (deals elemental damage, scaling off the weapon's raw Attack. Pierces through the monster in a straight line, but can only hit the same part once). MV: [8 (shot) + 22 (element)] * number of hits
• Dragon: Elemental Ammo (deals elemental damage, scaling off the weapon's raw Attack. Fires a slow, short-range arcing projectile that ticks multiple times). MV: [2 (shot) + 18 (dragon)] * number of hits
• Slicing: Slicing Ammo (attaches a charge to the target that explodes after 5 seconds. Deals sever damage). MV: 6 * 5
• Demon: Demon Ammo (increases the Attack of a teammate or palico by 10 for 120 seconds).
• Armor: Armor Ammo (increases the Defense of a teammate or palico by 30 for 120 seconds).
• Tranq: Tranq Ammo (used to capture monsters. Works just like Tranq bombs)

Note: Rapid Fire ammo (unique to Light Bowgun) will fire 3 shots instead of one. The 2nd and 3rd shot have half the MV of a regular shot. Rapid Fire Sticky will only fire 2 shots with a total MV of 24.

Special Ammo

Special Ammo recharges over time. Some can be used before they are fully recharged but to reduced effect. What special ammo a hunter has is determined by their bowgun, and every bowgun has only one special round.

• Wyvernblast: Has up to 3 mines with a recharge time of 60 seconds each. Plants a mine on the ground with a jet of gas coming out the top. Three mines can be deployed at one time and will automatically explode after a while. The mine can be detonated by the hunter or by the monster and the size of the explosion depends on the strength of the attack that hit it. Each mine starts with a total of 5 charges which are depleted when they are triggered. MVs:
  
  • Small explosion (consumes 1 charge): 26
  • Medium explosion (consumes 2 charges): 32
  • Large explosion (consumes 4 charges): 49
• Wyvernblast Counter: Can be equipped by any LBG by using the Wyvernblast Mod. Has up to 3 mines with a recharge time of 60 seconds each. Shoots a mine and pushes back the hunter at the same time (it has no invincibility frames). If the monster hits the mine it will trigger an explosion (size is relative to the strength of the attack that hit it), if not the mine will automatically explode after 1 second. MVs:
  • Small explosion/failed counter: 26
  • Medium explosion: 49
  • Large explosion: 73
  • Extra-Large explosion: 110 

Light Bowgun Controls

•  (Hold): Aim
• : Fire (also reloads if magazine is empty)
• : Place Wyvernblast
• : Reload
• D-pad up/down or  +  / : Select Ammo
• + : Melee Attack. MV: 25
• Midair : Jumping Reload (performs a Melee Attack and reloads at the same time)
•  + : switch between Aim and Slinger

 

 

   

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