Is it a Switch or is it an Axe? Neither it's a Switch Axe! Wait I think I did that wrong. This was not meant to be a full guide on SA, there is so much more to cover on all 4 of these playstyles. But it is a decent starting point if you're interested in trying Switch Axe. I mostly just wanted to gush about the SA changes and how complex they have made Switch Axe.
To be honest, I actually HATE the way swaxe feels to play. The occasional side hops, the crazy animation commitment, and any weapon with a power gauge just annoys me. it all adds up to a frustrating experience for me, I'd rather play any other weapon that doesnt have a power gauge.
After this video I finally understand why I was suffering trying to lesrn the weapon and eventually giving up on it lol. I will give it another shot tho it rlly sounds fun to play... And I'm having a lot of trouble with Tigrex
The Switch Axe ... when I started playing MH back in Tri the smithy told me about this weapon and I fell in love with it Back in those rough days you had to learn to , but that didn’t kept me from maining the best weapon of the entire saga 💜 SA mains I Salute you
I actually passed it up for Bow...How could I not? I'm a hunter...A HUNTER...Of monsters, and the bow is one of the oldest, most elegant, most respected of hunting tools! That said, I have since added the best melee weapon to my arsenal and have merrily chopped my way through many a hunt since that time! I...Waited until World, but have since played (almost) every game starting with 3U up to now with the axe as my Blademaster option. I regret taking this long to give my bow the solid companion she deserved. Long live the best weapons in Monster Hunter!
@@procow2274 Yeah it was easy to use, but especially effective against multi monster quests. Like super effective, as blast damage is a fixed damage, like a bomb, but Slime back then did a huge amount of damage until they nerfed it in 4th gen. Hence, Kelbi Bow was ideal for multi monster quests.
Coming back to this video years later because I fucking miss when this content was fresh! I miss Jinjinx, I miss this game and the way it made me feel when I was exploring new areas and hunting new monsters! New quests, new moves, new gear, new skill system, unlocks, upgrades, characters and the pure beauty of the game and gameplay! This is by far my favorite video game ever and the only one I’ve poured in almost 4000 hours, across multiple platforms and save files. Rise wasn’t really my jam but I played it all. All the updates, all the quests and whatnot but I didn’t OBSESS over it like I did World/Iceborne. Now that I’m finished with TOTK I think I’ll be going back to this game! Anyone wanna hunt!?!
Jinx, you don't need gauge when it comes to ZSD spamming, you just need to be amped, no need to let the gauge fill up even the slightest. Also you can ZSD straight from axe mode as long as you clutch claw first, so you don't need to reload sword mode when ZSD spamming.
i dont know if i can called myself a main because i have a 105 gr in mhw but after 60 hr or a switch to Switch axe and having look back I have always like the great sword so i was this is the great sword but with a fast mode win -win. :)
Hey JinJinx I have watched SO many of your videos. The math behind this game is fascinating! There's so much depth here. I'm 600+ hours in and constantly discovering new things. And part of that discovery is thanks to dedicated folks like you sharing your findings with the world. Thank you so much! A switch ax strategy video would be amazing!
Jinx basically explained my grievance with how SwAx was handled in the base game. MHW is my first monster hunter, but SwAx felt off. It was presented as a weapon with two faces, but only one mattered. Both matter now in different ways and I couldn't be happier. I used it a lot in the base game but I use it a lot more compared to my other options before Iceborne dropped.
Same! SwAx just happened to be my second favorite to use after dual blades. I just love explosive finishers, and switch axe was nicer for me than charge blade, which I like a lot too. It always bothered me how off switch axe was, but it was changed up, and it feels so much better. I immediately noticed the different feel when I played the beta, and it was a breath of fresh air.
SwitchAxe is my main weapon style too, I've got a loadout build for each element and ailment type just so I can make the most of any target's weakness. But my go to favorite all around for multiplayer is Great Jagrus tree Saber's Bite 2 for the constant Sleep and Exhaust. I think I've pulled off 5-6 sleeps in a master rank hunt in less then 30 minutes. And the exhausting effect of slowing down monsters and creating openings where they stand there heavy breathing is great for other players to go all out or get wall slams in. I find it hilariously entertaining that such a good weapon is from the first monster in the game.
I tend to go for playstyle 4 myself. I love mixing things up cuz switch axe has such a great toolkit at its disposal. I loved it in base game and I love it far more now cuz now both modes are useful instead of one being used for waiting til the other has enough meter. Having several distinct playstyles makes me think of gunlance, only more fast paced. It really is a rework done right and it's even more of a second main for me next to dual blades. Bless the swag ax.
I very much appreciated this video, SA is my second most played weapon just behind IG. SA is so fun, and stylish as well, I'm glad you picked it up, and are doing videos about it, truly it deserves some love. Take care.
I have always been a Switch-Axe main since it was first implemented into Monster Hunter, but I noticed how outdated it felt in the beta for MHW, and basically haven't used my favorite weapon at all... falling back on my secondaries Chargeblade and InsectGlaive, even taking up Sword&Shield with all it's improvement and absolutely loving it. But now with all these Iceborne buffs and discovering your channel over the last week you've really inspired me to take up my main once again! >:D
@@DigitalinDaniel same here. My first MH was MH3U and SA was my main. But when CB became a thing in MH4U I quickly dropped it due to how "un-meta" it was. Glad now I have a reason to go back!
Funnily enough, my favorite weapon has been the insect glaive since 4U and charge blade has typically been my backup. I hated the switch axe until world, which gave the axe mode the weight it needed to feel satisfying, and the ability to go straight into wild swing without an upswing. Now switch axe is one of my favs. As much as I want to get better with axe and blade though, it seems like I just keep coming back to glaive even though I can feel how relatively weak it is when I play it...
@@jadenkarpoff9158 I don't know if it's just hours of playing IG and it becoming pure muscle memory but honestly i struggle to find weapon i can kill faster with, except maybe DB but it's not that big a difference. Most monsters i fight are done in 5-10 mins depending on if they puss out and switch areas a lot, or struggle cuddle me into a wall for the lolz. I find vault, slam attack, followed by 2 Cirlce/B, link into full combo, Repeat, occasionally throw in a mount check and you're golden. And not to sound contrarian but that combo is around 8-900 in less than 20 seconds so IG may not hit for super numbers every hit but it can easily get over 200 on a slam before the two sweeping strikes which add usually a 70 and a 160 hit and with the IG not having to build it's buffs back too often, on top of being very safe while doing it and this thing is a secret killing machine. But I'm with you on the wanting to try out some of the weapons i didn't click with originally but it's hard to walk away from IG and HH when they are so godamn fun.
Finally figured out why I'm getting recommended your videos. Ran across Shenpai who has been playing with Tuna, and being a Swaxe main myself this is just perfect.
Sploosh. Seriously, Switch Axe was my first love in MH. A love I eventually dropped as the monsters got harder because I was frustrated getting hit all the time. Seeing this video just set my heart all to flutter again. Can't wait to try her out
When you're clutched on the monster you can ZSD as long as you're amped regardless of gauge. I just finished a test on the training room cart where I had a sliver of gauge, clutch clawed on to it and forced a ZSD. I don't know how helpful this is but I thought it was worth sharing.
@@thenonexistinghero I know that, my point is if you run your entire gauge out and you're forced into axe mode and then clutch claw on to the monster you can force the full ZSD from start to finish.
Yea clutch ZSD literally has no gauge requirement, no need to be in sword mode, you just need to be within the active time of sword amp and you can spam ZSD as long as you use clutch claw. Straight up spam clutches in axe mode , or sheath to chase monsters and use a sheathed clutch claw and spam ZSD, the fact that it drains gauge doesn't even matter.
I was wondering when someone was going to talk about how well the switch axe has become. I started playing it endgame of base mh and it was good then but has come a long way and is so satisfying to play. I was using charge blade and I find the switch axe to fit my play style much better!
Just started using the swagaxe again. The axe design of the raging brachy is just too delicious, and it's not bad with a 3 piece safi, 2 piece furious rajang set I always use. I'd argue that since SA doesn't need to sheath like LS, it's better for that build. Always enjoy and learn alot from your videos, thank you JinJinx!!
Thank you for explaining to me why I failed so hard at fighting Tigrex. I simply ported my preIB playstyle of sword mode only using NONE of these new SA moves. Thank you. Thank you so much. You're the bestest.
I wwas literally raving to anyone i could about how massive the iceborne changes were for the weapon. It just feels so good now! NGL tho- full stop i was sleeping on the slinger burst- i didn't know it was omni-directional! that's SO much better than just trying to fade morph myself back into position!
I have use my swag ax since mh3 and still use it to this day and i can not describe how happy I was that they changed my baby for the better than need it into the ground.
just came back to play MHW and I use mostly SA/CB. Instantly subscribed from just watching this video since it is really insightful and the content is not dragged just for the sake of content. Great content man!
I choose... Number 4!!! Do all the things, its a lot more fun I feel like starting MHW with Switch Axe and playing through with it has made me better at dodging with other weapons as im so used to to crappy hops into rolls. Also I find that if you have the time or a bit of clever prediction you can use the morph attack from sword to axe to extend your dodge/roll.
I play on PC and i'm a vanilla ZSD spammer, the easiest way to mash it is to listen to the puff sounds the ZSD makes. Generally 11-13 puffs is what you should be aiming for, with it being really hard to consistently get 13 without blowing off with the big explosion.
Was waiting for #4. The swag axe provides so much variety in what you can do, so why not go for whatever you can? Works pretty well if you can play off the actions of your allies. I, for one, generally play the trip axe alongside my hammer buddy to assist in the CC, but go sword as the monster starts to repeatedly hit the floor. I use Zero Sum Discharge whenever reasonable to do so. Don't forget that you can ZSD a (downed) monster, into a clutch claw, then go into mounted ZSD (as the monster gets back up). Very satisfying.
no time stamps on the description or comments, here they are for easier access. axe moves/combos 11:34 sword moves combos 17:00 4 play styles of SA 20:25
Great video, watched it a couple of times to get every detail of the "new" switch axe. I love that it is now viable to play it as a hybrid weapon. In random multiplayer matchups you are free to go ZSD'ing the head if there is no hammer/horn guy, sword chopping the tail if no sharp weapon user is there or just power axe the legs to create openings for you and the other players. In singleplayer I usually play style #4 because it's just so much fun.
Just found this channel. Wow. So many tips and so much information in a relatively quick, clean presentation format. A lot here, so will definitely need rewatching.
SA is just so much. I use evade extender 3 on every SA build I have. Great for positioning, especially when trying to close the distance to a moving monster in sword mode, and no need for extra s when you can just get out of the way completely and then hop right back in.
This really pumps up my interest in Switch Axe. Everything I've read about it for base MHW had said it was a pretty poor option and I avoided it just to lower the amount of weapons I bounced between. Looks like I'll branch back out for Iceborne. Always great to see a developer admit their failings by truly fixing something.
So I learned S.A. from the ground up by myself. I use ZSD playstyle primarily, and use Lunastra 3 piece set with rocksteady and temporal. Depending on the duration temporal lasts, you only have downtime of about 1 minute on your ZSD being threatened. But now that I know what the power mode for the axe does I might do the 'everything' playstyle while dropping the lunastra set. ZSD during mantle uptime, sword combo during enemy downtime, and axe play to round out the rest. This video(even though it may be 5 months old) really helped me to further understand Switch Axe.
Ran through the entire campaign with 2 parts rathian, pukei, pukei switch axe, zero...zero damage boosts apart from venom. Full recovery, health, etc. 1 shot everything, including Nergigante etc and tempered nergigante, val hazak. With the gear I made at mr 2 and the weapon I made at MR2. The poison dots with rathian double duration time hits so hard. 40 up to 50 poison ticks using pukei pukei switch axe, which also have a mile of purple affinity with handicraft amulett, which ok I used and will maybe be an offensive mod. But zero crit, zero tenderizer and I killed things fast. Never played switch axe earlier however your videos helped me understand the combinations and also, how good poison is. And I can just say again: MR2 gear, MR2 Switch axe, beating entire campaign and taking on mid, end game monsters without any problem what so ever. Awsome stuff. I did use Evader 3 and evade window 3 to 5. This is just way too important. This is DPS jewels imo for the Switch axe. So prio evasion over crit cause your uptime will be higher. Also if you play correct you dont need enhancer to atleast do 3 super amped attacks in a row using clutch hook. I went through entire mid early game only using axe, wanted to learn the basics first. In MHW I played Hammer and Gun lance primarily. I did have experience with charge blade which I find amazing weapon, but the switch axe felt like a strong mid between hammer and charge blade. And last note: I did not cheat vs any encounter in the game in Iceborn. Zero, by using another weapon. I used Switch axe vs all, its the only way you can learn. But again what I noted above all: Evasion and evade extender is just mandatory. You prefer attack boost or crit over evasion and evade extender. Trust me, I will out damage your 100% crit with 0% crit, 100% of the time, cause I will have 200% more uptime dealing damage then you:)
For anyone returing to world/iceborne remember that alatreon arms give u 3 points in power prolonger and 3 points in attack boost. So its a no brainer to use the alatreon arms
I've been curious about switch axe for a while now, but couldn't get the hang of it before Iceborne dropped (I'm on PC). Now I've been trying it again and kinda liking it, so it's neat to see this perspective on it. Also, your icon is absolutely adorable.
Thanks for explaining why I had so much problems with Switch Axe. It was one of the few weapons I just couldn't get in to because I was only able to anything weapon when a monster was downed. SA is a very cool weapon so I'm glad to hear they fixed a lot of the problems I had so now I think I'm going to actually try it out now
This is good to know, Swaxe was my starting weapon in Mhw, I enjoyed it but after certain match ups I went to lbg main and duals for fun. Going to give Swaxe a shot after some training.
I basically only played switch axe though base game and now ive literally got in the habit of having a trade-blows then heal playstyle that burns through mega potions like crazy.
As a potion burner i can relate to this. I mains Swax and HH, so Free meal 3 and Speed eating 3 is my friend. Spamming pots, dusts and never worried about runs out since it's activated almost all the time (75% chance)
Great vid JinJinx, I'm a SA main myself so always love seeing SA getting some screentime. I abuse the crap out of ZSD Spam while fighting Shara and going for the double head break. I pre-game on the arms getting 1-2 hits from amped state, get the soften, amp up back on the forearms(work towards an arm break trip) and put on Rocksteady or Temporal and go to town on the face. Works great for solo play. Probably works well for multi as well, but everyone has to be focusing just the head or its all for naught.
Yesss love this video thank you! Been a switchaxe main since base game world as well and it really did suck defensively but I had more fun with it than any other weapon. Now it finally paid off 😏👌🏼 thank you capcom for making the switchaxe top tier now 🔥
I’m a SA main, and here are a few other changes to it that I’ve noticed in Iceborne as well: - Axe mode sidesteps are longer. - If you press Δ after the Axe stab (Forward Slash), you immediately do an Overhead Slash, not a Side Slash like in vanilla MHW. You don’t even need to use a Slinger Burst to do this. This is now the fastest way to do an Axe Overhead Slash. - Sword mode sidesteps and back hops have faster recovery, which makes hop rolls more reliable. I’m unsure if the front hop in particular got any faster, but it’s still faster than the sidesteps and back hop like before. - Holding the left stick forward during the Sword Overhead/Morph slash moves you forward a lot more than it did before. This, combined with the faster sidesteps/hops, makes repositioning and staying mobile considerably easier in Sword mode, not to mention the mid-roll Sword-to-Axe morph, which was already good in the base game.
Would for sure love to see a DPS comparison video!! As always, great content from you guys, even long-winded rants like these! Keep it up as always dudes!!
After returning from a lost save file and wanting to go at Iceborne but with a different weapon, I’m sooooo glad I watched this! Just massacred my first Yian Garuga and could not imagine not using the switch axe 😁 Thank you very much
Thank you guys You have made me realize that I have wasted my entire monster Hunter life playing long sword and now I am a full-fledged switch ax convert holy crap what a weapon and once you get a handle on it and know what the optimal combos are it's not that difficult but you've got to watch that meter
ok so i'm really glad it wasn't just me that noticed that SA got hard nerfed for base MH world. I used to use a switch axe in the previous games a LOT, not my main i'd say i use more hammer or GS than anything although i use all weapons as i get bored with a rotation of moves after awhile. SA in MH tri/3 ultimate was fantastic really any of the older games it was in it was great because the monsters' moves typically only did straight lines and predictable angles so the hops were so smooth to use to evade. conversely the side hops and fade slash of LS were objectively terrible for the same reasons that SA hops were bad in world. took too long and didn't go far enough plus the counter slash wasn't a thing yet except as a hunter art which you could only use once per 2-3 mins. I don't claim mastery over any weapon or playstyle in MH though so i'm always happy to watch stuff like this for new techniques. cheers man
Fantastic video! I really appreciate these type of videos since they reveal your thought processes, experiences, and math behind the topic at hand. I've been focusing on GS, Bow, and DB so far in Iceborne but after this video, I'm considering giving SA a go again. SA was my first love in Base MHW but it became clear early on that other weapons were better. But now it looks like it's time to make some Swaxes! Really looking forward to future videos on the SA! Keep up the great content - we really do appreciate all that you and Tuna do. :)
So glad you are talking about this! SA is my favorite weapon, but I always feel like I'm giving up effectiveness for a risky (but very fun) playstyle. It's so easy to accidentally over commit using SA my goodness
This vid couldn't have shown up in my recommended at a better time considering I was just considering getting into SA after making the namielle SA because of how good it looks
My brother is a switch axe main, and he destroys shit with it. I'm glad that they added some more utility to it. This has inspired me to pick it up again and go play with the axe, which was my favorite part to begin with.
I began using switch axe because I had mained lance for so long, I specifically wanted a weapon with shit defense to force me to learn how to position myself when I don’t have Lance’s defensive options. I wound up falling in love with the play style of SA where I’d use axe for mobility/safety, then go into sword when I had a large enough opening. The transform attacks gave you good mobility, but you had to know ahead of time when to switch to axe mode, so you’d be ready to disengage. If you waited until the monster was attacking you, you were stuck with sword’s shitty movement. The way the weapon forced me to learn foresight and be proactive in my defense was exactly what I wanted out of it. I just got IB and don’t know the weapon reworks yet, so when you went over it’s weaknesses, I was worried you were going to say they took them away by giving it great defensive capabilities in sword mode or something. But it sounds like there’s still that dichotomy between the two modes I like, while giving axe its own offensive niche, instead of existing purely for mobility & meter management. And without stepping on sword mode’s toes by matching its sheer DPS. Sounds like it’s gonna be a lot of fun in IB.
I used the switchaxe quite a bit in MH Tri and I loved the axe mode so much for cutting tails. Glad to see I can use the axe mode over the sword mode now.
Been waiting on a vid like this since IB came out. SA is my fav melee weapon and second overall and I’ve been playing the hell out of it since IB dropped. Can’t wait for more Swaxe vids!!!!!!!!!!!!
Much appreciated, picked up a few new tactics, was having a hard time against a few monsters and this should smooth things out. Didn't know about the exact abilities granted to you by power axe, so thanks for going over that as well as suggestions on where, when, and how to use it.
Man this guy said all the words I was feeling but couldn't express because I'm not a very technical person. I used Switch Axe a lot, but it was hard for me to "be good at it" in base MHW. Also all the "fun" stuff was bad, like amped elemental discharge.
you and tuna should make guides for combos and weapon guides, you explain things so much better than some of the other people and it's a shame i can't just watch you two for everything Monster Hunter World related
ZSED spam with both rocksteady an temporal mantles, they both prevent you from getting knocked off. So I charge blade, put on one mantle, spam ZSED until it runs out, sometimes charge again and keep going before mantle expires, charge it yet again, use the other mantle to spam, etc, hopefully first mantle is ready again, if not, equip more of that tool recharge skill, or fight in other ways until it is ready. BTW, even if you have no power and are in axe mode, your sword is actially still charged and you can claw back on and keep on blastin'!
Thanks for this video! I've been maining SA until IB comes out and you said everything I was feeling about it. I'm probably gonna go back to bow to finish up the story and get right back to SA when IB drops. Thanks again and subbed!
Before I played MHW for the first time my friend showed me what weapons I’d like to play. I saw the switch axe and thought it was cool. When I got the game the first time you can say that this was a grave mistake using the switch axe for my first weapon for someone not knowing the mechanics yet. But after some hours and understanding the game more I went back to the switch axe to learn and have fun with.
New to the channel but this is some high quality and well thought out content. Thank you so much! Definitely earned a subscribe and I will check out your stream.
I'm a SA main and never knew about the slinger bust to flinch combo. I'm totally going to abuse the crap out of that. When doing ZSD spam I like to get on the monster, get 11 "pops" off, jump off, jump on, get 12 "pops" off into the full ZSD animation. It maximizes the potential ZSD spam from a single phial charge on the sword. Bonus, if you run an ice SA like I do you can get 23 ZSD on Bracidios's hands and face in one charge of the sword which will help remove the goo from them.
I came back to Iceborn after a long time. Someone offered it to me and since I already had the base game been playing it non stop. I noticed that some Switch Axe speedruns would do things I didn't understand. I didn't remenber all those attacks and new combos being in base game so went for some reasearch and found this video. I can say now that I have been playing my favourite weapon like a farmer from the boonies. Time to relearn everything about it!
Nicely made video! Great job! I was looking to main a second weapon and this video definitely piqued my interest for the switch axe. Additionally, I am interested in all the weapons' dps and very curious about CB's SAED vs Savage axe triangle circle combo comparison.
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