Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance is Giving Gunlance a Massive Combat Overhaul

When Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance launches, Gunlance owners can expect a lot. Capcom's latest gameplay showcase has shown many new Gunlance abilities, giving the weapon greater mobility, stronger offensive options, and new ways to reload mid-battle.

The new update will take Monster Hunter Wilds up to Master Rank by bringing new monsters, new challenges, new hunting actions, a new area, and the next part of the Expedition Team's story. Ascendance is currently set for 2027 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

For those who use Gunlance in particular, the most significant new feature is the Boost Bracer system, which seems designed to make the weapon—traditionally rather slow—much more aggressive.

A more obvious addition is an action that lets the hunter move toward a monster while raising the shield; this gives Gunlance users a much quicker way to close distance rather than slowly pursuing the monster after it has created distance. This action also comes with corresponding offensive and defensive options.

Depending on the situation, the hunter can either perform a drilling thrust or launch upward with a sudden attack to counter incoming attacks. Above all, when the new movement option is activated, it also helps with Gunlance's resource management by reloading shells and Wyrmstake; the move therefore goes beyond being just a means of mobility and becomes part of the weapon's combat routine, enabling hunters to close the distance while at the same time getting ready for their next attack.

Assault Reload also brings a major change to reloading. When the Boost Bracer is in use, Assault Reload replaces the normal reload, allowing the hunter to maintain momentum while reloading. Instead of moving away from the action to reload fully, the new action lets Gunlance users keep attacking and repositioning while reloading.

It is especially interesting to incorporate defensive timing into the process. The new reload can also be used with perfect guards, giving the Gunlance another way to combine attack, defense, and resource management. Since the weapon depends heavily on shells and Wyrmstake management, it could make combat feel much smoother.

The alterations don't end there.

Wide Sweep also gets an upgrade: Double Wide Sweep. Instead of one sweeping attack, the new version lands two successive slashes faster. Moreover, the combo options available after using the move change, meaning it is not just a stronger version of the original attack.

It may therefore be useful to use Double Wide Sweep to maintain pressure and move into different parts of the Gunlance's move set. A major addition is also the Wyrmstake Rapid Burst. The new attack changes how Wyrmstake is used, turning it into a quick sequence of explosive drilling attacks. Since hunters can keep firing multiple shots by holding down the button, the move can deal continuous damage during the opening.

If you need a bigger finisher, you have one more option. You can cancel the sequence early in Point Blank Wyvern's Fire, then choose to continue with the quick series of Wyrmstake attacks or finish with a more powerful attack. Point Blank Wyvern's Fire is also a major addition to the weapon.

This change lets the hunter connect directly with the monster before launching Wyvern's Fire at point-blank range, and the move also includes hyper armor, which helps prevent interruptions during the animation. This is especially important for a move that requires the hunter to get very close to the monster.

Gunlance has always been about balancing heavy attacks with defensive positioning, and Point Blank Wyvern's Fire seems to take that even further; instead of maintaining a safe distance before using Wyvern's Fire, hunters can now make their weapon's most powerful explosive attack a more aggressive option.

Loading Slash could also prove useful when chaining longer combos. The recovery move lets the hunter quickly reload both the shells and the Wyrmstake after heavy attacks. While it isn't as impressive as the new mobility features or Point Blank Wyvern's Fire, it could significantly improve the smoothness of Gunlance combo sequences.

Including these new Monster Hunter Wilds features suggests Capcom isn't just adding a few extra attacks to the weapon. The aim is to change how the Gunlance moves during a full hunt. Rather than relying so much on slow positioning and separate reload windows, Gunlance users can now move toward monsters, reload while fighting, keep attacking, and transition between explosive attacks more aggressively.

This could make the weapon feel much more responsive. The Monster Hunter community has also noticed another point: possible elemental shelling. This section should still be handled with care. If elemental shelling becomes a full mechanic, it could significantly affect Gunlance builds by giving hunters more reasons to choose different Gunlances based on elemental matchups rather than focusing mainly on shelling characteristics.

At this stage, however, the scope of that system is still unclear. The same goes for whether other effects such as poison, paralysis, sleep, or blast could interact with shelling in the future; although there has been some speculation, these should not be treated as confirmed until Capcom provides more information.

It has been confirmed that Gunlance is receiving one of the more significant action updates shown for Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance to date.

The new range of tools available to the weapon appears designed to address some of its main mobility and momentum issues, without giving up what makes the Gunlance special. It still uses a shield, shells, Wyrmstake, and explosive attacks. The difference is that hunters now have more ways to combine those tools.

The new gap closer lets the hunter close distance while reloading their resources. With Assault Reload, the hunter stays active while gathering ammunition; Double Wide Sweep adds another quick offensive move; and Wyrmstake Rapid Burst gives the weapon a new kind of sustained explosive attack.

Point Blank Wyvern's Fire also turns one of Gunlance's most identifiable attacks into a more aggressive close-range option. These changes suggest the Gunlance has become faster and more fluid. Since Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance is still in development, some details might change before launch. Capcom's own footage includes this caution, too.

Hence, the mechanics shown should be considered part of the current development build, not definite features of the final version. Yet the direction is clear. Gunlance isn't just getting another set of flashy attacks; the new moves seem aimed at keeping hunters involved, reducing downtime, and giving the weapon more ways to turn defense into attack.

For the Gunlance, Ascendance could be one of the most significant updates it has received in Monster Hunter Wilds. If the apparent elemental shelling turns out to be a full feature, there might be an even bigger change beneath all those new explosions.