A big part of the joy in Monster Hunter Wilds‘ combat system is the ability to choose from a wide variety of weapons earlier in the game with no need to make further progress in the story. The game doesn’t lock away weapon classes behind story progression.

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Besides the amazing variety that it adds to the game, this also overwhelms the player with a lot of choices in the beginning, unless they have been playing this series for a long time. However, those who prefer mobility and fast movement already have an easy choice to make: Insect Glaive.
Suitable Playstyle For Insect Glaive
First of all, let’s get this out of the way quickly: Insect Glaive is not the easiest weapon to use in Monster Hunter Wilds (especially solo). So, if you are a newcomer to the series, or you want a straightforward weapon with easy combos, then Insect Glaive might not be the best option for you.
This weapon actually suits players who like to move around a lot and play with the dodging system in the game. Earlier in the game, if you ask Alma about a weapon for quick moves with high mobility, she will recommend Insect Glaive.
The weapon already comes with a specific combo that launches the player into the air, letting them land aerial attacks while still being able to perform dodges. It’s safe to say that Insect Glaive is one of the best weapons for flanking monsters. The midair combo delivers this functionality with perfect precision, allowing the player to move from one side of the monster to another almost instantly. So, as you can guess, the weapon is quite beneficial for avoiding incoming attacks with no need to parry.
That being said, it is not easy to perform these combos quickly. It will probably take some time for the player to be able to master these combos, especially the midair jumps, as it would require the player to perform the jump and dodge quickly in the correct direction at critical moments of the battle.
How The Kinsect Works In Monster Hunter Wilds
Before talking about the combos available in Glaive, it’s important to understand Kinsect, as it is a crucial part of the weapon that helps a lot with its damage output and even unlocks an immensely powerful combo for the player.
Whenever the player equips the Insect Glaive, a flying insect, known as a Kinsect, will attach to the player’s free hand. The Kinsect’s job is to attack the target, steal a buff from it, and return the buff to the player. Three Kinsect buffs are available in three different colors. The player should launch Kinsect towards different parts of the target’s body to acquire each buff color. While having each buff will slightly increase the attack output, gaining all three of them significantly increases the damage output and unlocks new attacking moves and combos.
There are different ways to order a Kinsect to acquire the buff. This process is referred to as Harvest Extract in Monster Hunter Wilds, which is detailed below.
- Enter Focus Mode: Hold down R2 (PlayStation) / RT (Xbox) / R (PC). Now, a diamond shape should appear below the crosshair, and different colors will be shown inside it when targeting a monster. Press Triangle/Y/LMB to launch Kinsect to extract the buff of the shown color.
- Wait for Kinsect to deal damage to the target, and then press Circle/B/RMB while in Focus Mode to recall the Kinsect and get the buff. Now, you should see one of the buff colors below your stamina bar light on. This will also make your chest armor glow in the same color.
A secondary way of launching Kinsect is to go into the Focus Mode again and hold down Triangle/Y/LMB this time. Wait for the sound cue, and then leave the button. This will send forward the Kinsect, allowing it to deal three consecutive hits to the target. If you look at the Kinsect icon below the stamina, it will show the buffs that Kinsect has collected before recalling it. So, if the buffs are repetitive, instead of recalling the Kinsect, order it to harvest another part of the body with the buff color that you don’t have.
Now that you know how to collect buffs, have a quick look at the buffs that each color delivers:
- Green: Restores health
-
Red: Enables new charged attacks:
- Hold Circle/B/RMB to perform
- Silver: Boosts jump and movement speed
- Orange: Prevents a knockback from the enemy
- Red + Silver + Orange: Unlocks a new combo along with all the buffs above
The last thing to learn about Kinsects is firing them. This is used to unleash a certain type of Kinsect Powder rather than collecting a buff. To fire with a Kinsect, hold down R2/RT/R and then press R1/RB/Shift. This will fire a projectile that does not deal damage to the target but spreads a cloud of dust around it. As soon as the Kinsect itself goes ahead and touches the dust, it receives a color. Now, if the player moves forward and attacks the dust, it will spread a buff based on the color of the dust. Here is what each dust type does:
- Green: Restores health
- Purple: Spreads poison
- Yellow: Spreads paralysis
- Orange: Spreads blast
These colors have nothing to do with the buffs explained earlier. Instead, it is the nature of equipped Kinsect that sets which color of dust they can produce. It cannot be changed for a certain Kinsect. So, if you want other kinds of dust, you need to obtain and equip a new Kinsect.

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Insect Glaive Combos In Monster Hunter Wilds
Insect Glaive features four major combos, three of which are available at any time, while the fourth one only unlocks after collecting all three buffs of Red, Silver, and Orange. Below, you can check out the pattern for the combos:
- Basic Combo: Triangle / Y / LMB > Triangle / Y / LMB > Triangle / Y / LMB > Circle / B / RMB
- Midair Combo 1: R2+X / RT+A / R+Space > X / A / Space > Triangle / Y / LMB
- Midair Combo 2: R2+X / RT+A / R+Space > X / A / Space > L2+R1 / LT+RB / Shift+Side Mouse Button
- Triple Extract Combo: LS Up+Circle / LS Up+B / W+RMB > Hold down Circle / B / RMB to charge the attack, and then leave it to perform > L2+Circle / LT+B Side / Mouse Button+RMB
The midair combo has different variants, as the player can replace the final move with a variety of other moves, such as firing an insect or performing an attack from the Focus Mode category.
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