Hammer Power Charge Always?

[Loren]

Hi,

Is there a reason why not to use powercharge? (With hammer if you press circle with Playstation controller or B with Xbox Controller you have the powercharge.)

All I can think is monster would be too fast/aggressive and I want to react faster. This is really bugging me. Could you please advise?

Thanks,

[MarcoPants]

always charge your hammer. It's so low commitment to do and integral to the effectiveness of the hammer that any time you draw the weapon should be "R2 -> power charge." If that hammer ain't charged, you're doing it wrong

[Loren]

Originally posted by MarcoPants:

always charge your hammer. It's so low commitment to do and integral to the effectiveness of the hammer that any time you draw the weapon should be "R2 -> power charge." If that hammer ain't charged, you're doing it wrong

That's what I figured. But do regular use of hammer any value? Even a limited one? I'm confused about developers adding a new charge with Iceborne expansion and leaving original moveset obsolate yet present.

[ᔑᓭ∴ᔑリ⊣]

i haven't found a use yet, only time i deliberately stopped myself from power charging was when a monster moved away or i notice my stamina going low so i force myself to sheathe the weapon a moment (or drag my hammer closer to the monster before i start charging, so i have more stamina to dodge or etc)
and the other time was when i saw a stunned teammate right next to me, just whack and then continue on my way. that only happened once i think

also, i dont think power charging was added in iceborne? i remember doing it in base game, i only noticed it endgame though so idk

as you say in op, its faster to react. not much more than that
you might want to delay power charging too if you see the monster coming at you, the animation isnt super long but it is long enough that you can still get hit if you aren't careful (happens to me embarrassingly often lol)
there's no dps-related reason or whatever not to powercharge every time. its just overall better

[Loren]

Originally posted by ᔑᓭ∴ᔑリ⊣:

also, i dont think power charging was added in iceborne? i remember doing it in base game, i only noticed it endgame though so idk

I'm referring to B on xbox controller or circle on pc. It makes your hammer glow bright. Not the RT or R2 which you are describing. Can you please check it and advise again?

[ᔑᓭ∴ᔑリ⊣]

Originally posted by Loren:

Originally posted by ᔑᓭ∴ᔑリ⊣:

also, i dont think power charging was added in iceborne? i remember doing it in base game, i only noticed it endgame though so idk

I'm referring to B on xbox controller or circle on pc. It makes your hammer glow bright. Not the RT or R2 which you are describing. Can you please check it and advise again?

yes that is what im talking about, sorry if i wasnt clear

[Scipo0419]

Originally posted by Loren:

Originally posted by ᔑᓭ∴ᔑリ⊣:

also, i dont think power charging was added in iceborne? i remember doing it in base game, i only noticed it endgame though so idk

I'm referring to B on xbox controller or circle on pc. It makes your hammer glow bright. Not the RT or R2 which you are describing. Can you please check it and advise again?

While holding RT/R2, press B/O: Power Charge (Self buff, gives slight increase to damage/stun power and a Flinch Free effect while attacking. Lasts until weapon sheathed or hunter is staggered.)

Pressing B/O without holding RT/R2 is the Big Bang Combo. Power Charge is a slight damage and KO increase, there's no reason not to use it as it doesn't change the rest of your kit.

Edit: double checked, Power Charge is also in base World. The only changes in Iceborne is the ability to slinger burst while charging.

[Loren]

Originally posted by Scipo0419:

Edit: double checked, Power Charge is also in base World. The only changes in Iceborne is the ability to slinger burst while charging.

That part is my mistake then. But what does basic charged attacks have in favor of them? Why not always power charge using B/O? Isn't it always an upgrade with slight speed lost? That was my question.

[FAT WANZER]

Originally posted by Loren:

Originally posted by Scipo0419:

Edit: double checked, Power Charge is also in base World. The only changes in Iceborne is the ability to slinger burst while charging.

That part is my mistake then. But what does basic charged attacks have in favor of them? Why not always power charge using B/O? Isn't it always an upgrade with slight speed lost? That was my question.

faster recovery i think since if power charged for example charge 2 swing higher but recover slower and charge 3 got 1 more hit so recover slower

[Scipo0419]

Originally posted by Loren:

Originally posted by Scipo0419:

Edit: double checked, Power Charge is also in base World. The only changes in Iceborne is the ability to slinger burst while charging.

That part is my mistake then. But what does basic charged attacks have in favor of them? Why not always power charge using B/O? Isn't it always an upgrade with slight speed lost? That was my question.

After watching a few Video Guides. The only difference by having Power Charge active is the Lv3 Charge gets an extra hit or two. You should aim to always have Power Charge active as it's a Damage/Stun buff for all your attacks.

Effectively it's like Insect Glaives Red Buff. You want it active, but you can still attack without it, you're just not doing full damage.

Edit: also you only need to Power Charge once and you have the buff forever until you sheathe or get flinched/sent flying. So with perfect play you will never power charge more than once.

[Loren]

FAT WANZER, I already mentioned faster recovery in my original post. Thank you for emphasizing that point.

Scipo0419, differences of some attacks took my attention too. But I didn't mentioned it to keep it simple. So is it really a redundant mechanic? I'm new to Monster Hunter but I'm startled by one mode being almost entirely redundant.

[Scipo0419]

Originally posted by Loren:

FAT WANZER, I already mentioned faster recovery in my original post. Thank you for emphasizing that point.

Scipo0419, differences of some attacks took my attention too. But I didn't mentioned it to keep it simple. So is it really a redundant mechanic? I'm new to Monster Hunter but I'm startled by one mode being almost entirely redundant.

From what I can tell, the animations for all attacks other than Charge Level 3 are identical even when Power Charge is active. As for redundancy, it's not that it's redundant exactly.

We can use Insect Glaive as an example. Without Red Extract, your attacks are slow and relatively weak, but you're able to attack until you get that Red Extract. Upon getting Red Extract, your animations speed up, gain more hits, and deal more damage. Optimal play would keep Red Extract up as close to 100% of the time as possible. The unbuffed form isn't redundant, as it's there for players who can't keep Red Extract's effects on as efficiently, but it does punish you for not having Red Extract active.

For Hammer, Power Charge gives you a small damage/KO buff and a weak Flinch-Free that lasts until you sheathe the weapon or get flinched through that Flinch-Free effect. The effect should be kept up as close to 100% of the fight as possible, and the loss of overall damage and attacks on Charge 3 serve as a "punishment" while not making it so you just can't attack without Power Charge.

Another Example is Great Sword. You can play Great Sword without ever charging your swings, but you're losing a lot of damage by doing so, that doesn't make those faster uncharged moves redundant as getting any damage in is better than only being able to do fully charged attacks.

Weapon kits are designed around supporting players who REALLY understand the weapon while not making it impossible for players who are learning the weapon to use it.

[FAT WANZER]

Originally posted by Loren:

FAT WANZER, I already mentioned faster recovery in my original post. Thank you for emphasizing that point.

Scipo0419, differences of some attacks took my attention too. But I didn't mentioned it to keep it simple. So is it really a redundant mechanic? I'm new to Monster Hunter but I'm startled by one mode being almost entirely redundant.

free flinch too on power charge if you're good no need brace jewel right?

[Loren]

Scipo0419, I don't know what to say. I never used Insect Glaive. But you say "for players who can't keep Red Extract's effect". That implies you mention something needing skill. Hammer however needs pressing a button when you need a time. I guess I'm looking for depth which is not there. Tier 3 charge being only real difference is all I can see too. It is a straight buff with slightly slower moves then.

FAT WANZER, I don't know about the jewel but I heard free flinch it provides is not very strong. It is for small attacks they say. Nergigante's quick jab attack was show as an example by somebody.

[Prince-Nyan]

The damage increase isn't significant enough to forfeit the mobility/positioning due to requiring weapon always out. Even with the bonus posture, it's not like GS tackle, if the monster uses a different attack than you expect to tank through, due to Hammers commitment swinging, you're getting staggered or killed.

Even against downed monsters, unless you know you can loose the extra downtime activating and using it, which require intimate knowledge for stun/down times due to the poor hammer angles and range, you're gambling and loosing lots of damage opportunities if you misjudge what you can do in that window, including having time to chain knock down as it's recovering.

Rise really cleaned up this problem and added more functionality, which is the best state Hammer has ever been in. If you're adamant about using the power mode, you should get use to unpowered first and get a feel for when you can fit in a delay to use power.

[Qua2ar]

Originally posted by Prince-Nyan:

The damage increase isn't significant enough to forfeit the mobility/positioning due to requiring weapon always out. Even with the bonus posture, it's not like GS tackle, if the monster uses a different attack than you expect to tank through, due to Hammers commitment swinging, you're getting staggered or killed.

Even against downed monsters, unless you know you can loose the extra downtime activating and using it, which require intimate knowledge for stun/down times due to the poor hammer angles and range, you're gambling and loosing lots of damage opportunities if you misjudge what you can do in that window, including having time to chain knock down as it's recovering.

Rise really cleaned up this problem and added more functionality, which is the best state Hammer has ever been in. If you're adamant about using the power mode, you should get use to unpowered first and get a feel for when you can fit in a delay to use power.

Using the power mode is optimal from a dps standpoint. If you get hit and have to sheath, it's your fault.
Rise did hammer dirty, it made you spam impact crater 24/7.
Sunbreak turned it into a fast attacking element weapon, which I don't like, it simply doesn't fit hammer.
In world it's slower but also more impactful in it's sound design, which fits hammer the most.
And while the clutch claw is mostly hated, hammer is one of the exceptions, because it adds a pretty cool attack.