Definition
The sharpness meter on the equipment details page, showing various levels of sharpness
Sharpness is a feature of all melee weapons, visible via the Weapons Craftsman or the Equipment Details page.
Sharpness is represented within a quest by a sword located near the upper left corner of the screen. It only shows the current sharpness of the weapon. It dictates the percentage of damage a melee weapon deals with each strike. It also reflects what the weapon can penetrate.
The weapon's current level of sharpness
At the start of the quest, a weapon will start with its maximum sharpness level. With each successful hit, the weapon's sharpness is reduced, until it shifts to a lower level. (with the exception of the Gunlances' Shelling and Wyvern's Fire, which always reduce sharpness). How long your weapon remains in a level of sharpness is dictated by the length of the respective color, visible in the weapon's details page.
Restoring Sharpness
Sharpness can be restored through sharpening the sword on a Whetstone (bought through a shop or mined) or a Mini Whetstone (a Supply Item). Sharpness can also be restored via using special fish called Knife Mackerel. Whetstones restore a greater deal of sharpness than Mini Whetstones. Also, the animation for sharpening must finish for the item to be successful. If successful, the Whetstone is lost and a prompt will say "Weapon Power Increased". If not, the item will remain in the inventory.
Sharpness Levels
| Main Series Raw Damage Multiplier | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game Name | Red | Orange | Yellow | Green | Blue | White | Purple |
| Monster Hunter | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.125 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Monster Hunter G | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.125 | 1.25 | 1.5 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter Freedom | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.125 | 1.25 | 1.30 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter 2 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.125 | 1.25 | 1.50 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter Freedom 2 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.125 | 1.25 | 1.30 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter Freedom Unite | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.125 | 1.25 | 1.30 | 1.50 |
| Monster Hunter 3 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | 1.50 |
| Monster Hunter Portable 3rd | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | 1.44 |
| Monster Hunter 4 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | 1.45 |
| Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | 1.45 |
| Monster Hunter Generations | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter XX | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.05 | 1.20 | 1.32 | 1.39 |
| Frontier Series Raw Damage Multiplier | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red / 赤 | Orange / 橙 | Yellow / 黄 | Green / 緑 | Blue / 青 | White / 白 | Purple / 紫 | Sky Blue / 空色 |
| 0.60 | 0.85 | 1.10 | 1.325 | 1.45 | 1.60 | 1.70 | 1.80 |
| Online Series Raw Damage Multiplier | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | Orange | Yellow | Green | Blue | White | Purple | |
| 0.5 | 0.75 | 1.0 | 1.125 | 1.25 | 1.3 | 1.5 | |
| Main Series Elemental Damage Multiplier | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game Name | Red | Orange | Yellow | Green | Blue | White | Purple |
| Monster Hunter | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Monster Hunter G | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter Freedom | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter 2 | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter Freedom 2 | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter Freedom Unite | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.20 |
| Monster Hunter 3 | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.20 |
| Monster Hunter Portable 3rd | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.06 | 1.13 | 1.20 |
| Monster Hunter 4 | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.20 |
| Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.20 |
| Monster Hunter Generations | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | N/A |
| Monster Hunter XX | 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.20 |
| Frontier Series Elemental Damage Multiplier | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red / 赤 | Orange / 橙 | Yellow / 黄 | Green / 緑 | Blue / 青 | White / 白 | Purple / 紫 | Sky Blue / 空色 |
| 0.25 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.15 | 1.20 |
| Online Series Elemental Damage Multiplier | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | Orange | Yellow | Green | Blue | White | Purple | |
| 0.25 | 0.5 | 0.75 | 1.0 | 1.0625 | 1.125 | 1.2 | |
Special Notes
- Different monsters require different levels of sharpness to successfully strike. Using a level of sharpness (usually Green) or higher will allow successful attacks, while lower levels will cause the weapon to bounce, a side effect negated by ESP. Additionally, different parts of a monster may need higher or lower sharpness. Monster statuses may also change sharpness requirements, such as Rage, Armor mode, or other special conditions, such as Agnaktors' Cooled lava. Whether a monster is in Low, High, or G-rank also affects what sharpness can do.
- Mining is a good source for Whetstones, which can restore sharpness of a Weapon.
- Fishing is a good source for Knife Mackerel. Knife Mackerel are the fish that look like Pin Tuna, except smaller.
- Even with White or Purple Sharpness, which usually pierce through anything, some monsters like Gravios have parts which cannot be successfully attacked without the use of ESP.