Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate is coming out soon (this upcoming March), so we wanted to catch you up on what’s new and exciting about this game. In MH3U, there are a variety of weapon types you can choose from; so, let’s take a quick look at each individual weapon type. Today, we’ll start with the Sword and Shield .

As you’re done creating your hunter, you should notice he or she carries around a small shield on one hand and a short sword on his or her back. This weapon set is the Sword and Shield – and there is a very good reason the game gives it to you as a starting weapon: it is one of the most well-balanced weapons in the game. But don’t be so quick to underestimate this weapon’s size and strength. While it is definitely recommended for beginners, mastering the ins and outs of the Sword and Shield can lead to devastating results.

What the Sword and Shield lacks in strength and reach, it certainly makes up with speed and versatility. And because it’s such a light weapon type, you can still move around with it in your hands without sacrificing too much of your running or swimming speed. On top of that, it is the only weapon type that allows you to use items with it drawn – novice hunters can take advantage of this feature to heal and recover stamina, while more seasoned hunters will use this to maximize damage with a combination of traps, bombs, boost items and successive rapid strikes.

The other major feature of this weapon is the shield. As you might expect, it is primarily used for blocking, but that’s not the end of it. The shield also adds another layer to the offensive arsenal since you can use it to cause impact hits, which can bring monsters to a knock out (dizzy) state if you hit their heads frequently enough. With some hands-on time, you will find that you can use shield strikes in the middle of your 4-hit combo or as stand-alone moves, adding even more intricacies to master.

There’s clearly a lot to practice, digest and master here, but that’s it for today. Make sure you catch the monster overviews on the Monster Hunter blog and keep your eyes open for more info on Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate as we approach its March 2013 release – you can guarantee your copy by pre-ordering it from the Capcom Store.