Monster Hunter Rise: Best Dual Blades Upgrades to Target on the Tree (2024)

Of all of the 14 weapon classes in MHR, the Dual Blades stand out as both the top choice for hack-and-slash fans as well as one of the best weapons for solo hunts.

As with all weapon classes, there are loads of Dual Blades to unlock on the upgrade tree branches, from those made with common materials to late-game Elder Dragon weapons.

Here, we’re looking at the best Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise. As there are many ways to play and different monsters to deal with, we’re looking across the key aspects, such as affinity grants, attack values, elemental effects, and more.

Diablos Mashers (Highest Attack)

Upgrade Tree: Bone Tree
Upgrade Branch: Diablos Tree, Column 12
Upgrade Materials 1: Elder Dragon Bone x3
Upgrade Materials 2: Diablos Medulla x1
Upgrade Material Types: Diablos+
Stats: 250 Attack, 16 Defence Bonus, -15% Affinity, Green Sharpness

Starting with the Diablos Bashers I, the Diablos Tree is all about weapons with high attack values, and they offer the unique bonus of granting additional defence. Of course, to get into these, you’ll need to defeat the mighty Diablos.

Unlocked in the six-star Village Quests, you’ll be tasked with hunting a Diablos in the Sandy Plains. It’s just as ferocious and powerful as ever in Monster Hunter Rise, but it is susceptible to blunt shots to the head and abdomen.

The Diablos Mashers are at the end of the Diablos Tree and rank as the best Dual Blades in the game for attack. The weapon boasts 250 attack, a decent amount of green sharpness, and grants a 16 defence bonus. However, the top-tier Dual Blades do enforce a -15 per cent affinity.

Night Wings (Highest Affinity)

Upgrade Tree: Ore Tree
Upgrade Branch: Nargacuga Tree, Column 11
Upgrade Materials 1: Rakna-Kadaki Sharpclaw x3
Upgrade Materials 2: Narga Medulla x1
Upgrade Material Types: Nargacuga+
Stats: 190 Attack, 40% Affinity, White Sharpness

The whole branch of the Nargacuga Tree is loaded with high-affinity weapons. From the Hidden Gemini I upgrade, which is 110 attack and 40 per cent affinity, the branch improves on sharpness and attack with each step along.

The Nargacuga is a ferocious beast to take on, but its materials are used to make a few of the best Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise. When taking on Nargacuga, likely in the five-star Village Quest, you’ll find that it’s weak to thunder on its cutwing, and has sharp and blunt weakness on its head.

Perhaps ranking as the best Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise overall, the Night Wings boast a decent 190 attack, an impeccable full bar of sharpness up to white grade, and a tidy 40 per cent affinity.

Daybreak Daggers (Best Fire Element)

Upgrade Tree: Ore Tree
Upgrade Branch: Aknosom Tree, Column 9
Upgrade Materials 1: Firecell Stone x4
Upgrade Materials 2: Bird Wyvern Gem x1
Upgrade Material Types: Aknosom+
Stats: 190 Attack, 25 Fire, Blue Sharpness

Opening with the Schirmscorn I Dual Blades, the Aknosom Tree isn’t overly strong for sharpness or attack, but the weapons do lay down top fire element values. While Infernal Furies of the Fire Tree have a higher element value (30 fire), they cut affinity and are far weaker in attack.

The Aknosom monster appears quite early in the game, becoming available with the three-star Village Quests. Once you find it in the Shrine Ruins, or elsewhere, you’ll find that it’s weak to thunder and water shots to the legs, and blunt whacks to the head – sharp attacks work fine, too.

Toting 190 attack, a small amount of blue but a good amount of green sharpness, and 25 fire element rating, the Daybreak Daggers come in as the best Dual Blades for fire in Monster Hunter Rise.

Mud Twister (Highest Water Element)

Upgrade Tree: Kamura Tree
Upgrade Branch: Almudron Tree, Column 12
Upgrade Materials 1: Elder Dragon Bone x3
Upgrade Materials 2: Golden Almudron Orb
Upgrade Material Types: Almudron+
Stats: 170 Attack, 29 Water, Blue Sharpness

Drawing from one of the new additions to the Monster Hunter universe, the Almudron Tree of Dual Blades is unique in that the weapons take the form of circular blades.

To get the branch underway, you’ll need to hunt the Almudron. It can be found as a six-star hunt in the Village Quests and isn’t affected by the water element. It’s best to attack the head and tail with blades, particularly ones that deal in fire or ice.

The Mud Twister is Monster Hunter Rise’s best Dual Blades for the water element, boasting a hefty 29 water rating. The 170 attack is a bit on the low side, but a good amount of blue and green-level sharpness helps the Mud Twister deal plenty of damage.

Shockblades (Best Thunder Element)

Upgrade Tree: Bone Tree
Upgrade Branch: Tobi-Kadachi Tree, Column 11
Upgrade Materials 1: Goss Harag Fur+ x2
Upgrade Materials 2: Thunder Sac x2
Upgrade Materials 3: Wyvern Gem x1
Upgrade Material Types: Tobi-Kadachi+
Stats: 190 Attack, 18 Thunder, 10% Affinity, Blue Sharpness

In Monster Hunter Rise, the Shockblades aren’t the Dual Blades with the highest thunder element value; that title is owned by the Thunderbolt Blades of the Narwa Tree, which boast 30 thunder. However, the Shockblades carry several other perks that make them the Dual Blades of choice.

The materials needed to commence the Shockblades branch come by battling the Tobi-Kadachi. Weak to water attacks to the head and hind legs, you can commence a hunt for the beast in the four-star Village Quests.

Shockblades don’t have the highest thunder rating, but the 18 thunder combined with 190 attack and ten per cent affinity makes the Tobi-Kadachi Tree’s final weapon a top choice for the thunder element.

Gelid Soul (Highest Ice Element)

Upgrade Tree: Ore Tree
Upgrade Branch: Ice Tree, Column 11
Upgrade Materials 1: Novacrystal x3
Upgrade Materials 2: Freezer Sac x2
Upgrade Materials 3: Block of Ice+ x1
Upgrade Material Types: N/A
Stats: 220 Attack, 25 Ice, Green Sharpness

The novel Ice Tree of Dual Blades upgrades starts with the Gelid Mind I, forged by picking up a Block of Ice. Following the branch, you’ll get weapons with high attack and high ice element output.

You can find a Block of Ice in Monster Hunter Rise by fighting the Goss Harag. The raging beast has a 14 per cent chance to drop a Block of Ice as a target reward, 12 per cent chance as capture reward, and 35 per cent chance as a dropped material. You can hunt the Goss Harag in a six-star Village Quest.

The Gelid Soul Dual Blades are the best for ice element, toting a 25 ice rating. They also offer a hefty 220 attack, but the weapon sharpness only extends as far as a green zone.

Fortis Gran (Highest Dragon Element)

Upgrade Tree: Independent Tree
Upgrade Branch: Guild Tree 2, Column 10
Upgrade Materials 1: Nargacuga Pelt+ x2
Upgrade Materials 2: Wyvern Gem x2
Upgrade Materials 3: Guild Ticket x5
Upgrade Material Types: Ore+
Stats: 180 Attack, 24 Dragon, 15% Affinity, Blue Sharpness

Found towards the bottom of the Dual Blades upgrades page, the Guild Tree 2 branch specialises in taking out monsters that are weak to the dragon element.

Working through the Hub Quest lines will get you the Guild Tickets needed for upgrades along this branch. It’ll start with the Altair I, upgrading twice to get to the Fortis Gran, which also requires a Wyvern Gem, Nargacuga Pelt+, and 22,000z to get.

There aren’t too many upgrades that specialise in the dragon element for this weapon type, but the Fortis Gran is the best Dual Blades weapon for this, boasting a 24 dragon rating. While its 180 attack isn’t overly impressive, the blue-tier sharpness and 15 per cent affinity more than compensate.

The Kid (Highest Poison Element)

Upgrade Tree: Kamura Tree
Upgrade Branch: Wroggi Tree, Column 8
Upgrade Materials 1: Wroggi Scale+ x4
Upgrade Materials 2: Great Wroggi Hide+ x2
Upgrade Materials 3: Toxin Sac x1
Upgrade Materials 4: Carbalite Ore x3
Stats: 160 Attack, 20 Poison, Blue Sharpness

The Great Wroggi may not be much of a combatant in Monster Hunter Rise, but its materials certainly make the most potent poison-laced Dual Blades in the game.

You can battle the Great Wroggi as a three-star Village Quest or a one-star Hub Quest. Either way, it’s not a tricky monster to beat if you can avoid its poison blasts. It’s particularly weak to blades around the head and the ice element.

The Kid is fairly low in damage output, with 160 attack, and only has a slither of blue sharpness before a decent block of green. Still, it’s all about the massive 20 poison rating to help burn away a monster’s health bar.

Khezu Skards (Best Paralysis Element)

Upgrade Tree: Kamura Tree
Upgrade Branch: Khezu Tree, Column 8
Upgrade Materials 1: Pearl Hide x2
Upgrade Materials 2: Pale Steak x1
Upgrade Materials 3: Thunder Sac x2
Upgrade Materials 4: Carbalite Ore x5
Stats: 150 Attack, 28 Thunder, 14 Paralysis, 10% Affinity, Blue Sharpness

There are plenty of Dual Blades that deal paralysis, and the Rain of Gore along the Jelly Tree branch has a 19 paralysis rating. Still, the Khezu Tree offers a stack of perks alongside its paralysis element.

The Khezu is particularly susceptible to the fire element, with its head and extendable neck being the prime target areas for sharp, blunt, or ammunition hits. You can take on the faceless foe as a three-star Village Quest.

Khezu Skards are the best Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise for the paralysis element and more. They boast a 28 thunder rating, 10 per cent affinity, and 14 paralysis to make them incredibly potent. The attack rating of 150 is rather short, but the other aspects help to keep the Khezu Skards at the top of the pile.

Illusory Frilled Claw (Highest Sleep Element)

Upgrade Tree: Bone Tree
Upgrade Branch: Somnacanth Tree, Column 10
Upgrade Materials 1: Somnacanth Fin+ x2
Upgrade Materials 2: Somnacanth Talon+ x3
Upgrade Materials 3: Somnacanth Sedative x2
Upgrade Materials 4: Wyvern Gem x1
Stats: 180 Attack, 15 Sleep, Green Sharpness

The sleep specialist gear of Monster Hunter Rise can be drawn from the Somnacanth materials, with each of the Somnacanth Tree Dual Blades inducing sleep.

You can battle the Somnacanth in a four-star Village Quest, and while it’s not a particularly powerful monster, its sleep powder can turn the tables in an instant. Its neck is the weak spot to all weaponry, but water, ice, and dragon elements won’t work against the aquatic serpent.

With the Illusory Frilled Claw weapon to hand, you have the best Dual Blades for the sleep element, boasting a 15 sleep rating. Helping its potency, particularly for a status weapon, the Somnacanth-forged weapon has a high 180 attack, as well as a hefty chunk of green sharpness.

Regardless of if you need a certain element, high affinity, or a status-inducing weapon, these are the best Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise for you to target on the upgrade tree.

FAQ

Get some quick-fire answers to a few of your Monster Hunter Rise Dual Blades questions.

How do you unlock more Dual Blades upgrades in Monster Hunter Rise?

More Dual Blades upgrades become available as you progress up the star tiers of the Village Quests and Hub Quests.

What does affinity do for Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise?

Affinity effectively indicates if the weapon will increase or decrease your critical damage rating, depending on if the affinity rating is a negative or positive value.

Which are the best Dual Blades in Monster Hunter Rise?

Different Dual Blades suit different hunts, but overall on base value, the Night Wings or Diablos Mashers look to be the best Dual Blades for most monster encounters. The blast element weapons on offer from the Magnamalo Tree is also worth a look.

This page is a work in progress. If better weapons are discovered in Monster Hunter Rise, this page will be updated.

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