The Hand Cannon is the only ranged weapon in Hearts of the Wild besides the Bow. Although it is unlocked later in the game, both weapons fire projectiles (usually from a safe distance), and that’s where the similarities end.
Compared to firearms or ranged weapons in similar monster hunting games, the hand cannon may seem quite basic as it only has a standard shot and a mortar shot, but that’s all on a superficial level.
The hand cannon has three controllable sensors: a heat sensor, a charge sensor, and a ki base sensor. The weapon also interacts with all basic karakuri and includes an enhanced shot system. Additionally, the Hand Cannon has a high skill ceiling due to its complex mechanics.
Combo Mode and Basic Hand Cannon Mechanics
The hand cannon does not have combos like other weapons; it’s a big gun that can do different things depending on input or karakuri. However, there are some introductory steps required for Reinforced Shot. It’s worth considering all the individual mechanics so that players know which ones to use in specific scenarios.
- Normal Shot: Special Attack (Hold)
- Ki Base Placement: Attack 2 (Aiming)
- Place Key Base: Attack 1
- Restore Ki Bases: Special Attack + Attack 1
- Absorb Fortified Ki Base: Special Attack + Attack 2 (on Fortified Ki Base)
- Fortified Shot: Consume Fortified Ki Base, Special Attack + Attack 2 (Guided and Aimable)
- Charge Gauge: A line just above the health bar, basically “ammo” for weapons. When this gauge is empty, regular shots do very little damage.
- Heat Gauge: A gauge directly above the charge bar and health bar, fills up according to normal shots and changes color as the gun heats up. Once the gauge is full, the hand cannon overheats and cannot be used for a short time.
- Ki Base Gauge: To the right of the health bar, represented by 5 octagonal symbols. Each one represents a Ki base, and each gray symbol represents an deployed Ki base, while the blue symbols represent accumulated Ki bases. Players can only have 5 Ki bases active at a time (no specific skills).
Although the process of playing a hand cannon may seem complicated at first glance, it is actually quite simple. Players have standard fire, an ammo reload aura, an ultimatum attack, and a couple of simple sensors to keep an eye on.
In general, the “basic” cycle of hand cannon play is to season the kemono, build up heat, hit them with a fortified ki base, and then look for the right moment to fire a reinforcing shot. Obviously there’s a lot of room for individual playstyles, but that’s where things usually branch off from.
Advanced Hand Cannon Mechanics and Combos
Power Shot is the most reliable way to deal high damage with Hand Cannons, and players with Hand Cannons should always aim to land as many Power Shots as possible. But this is not the only option, and there are several additional attack plans and skills that can be used to activate an empowered shot more quickly.
For example, the hand cannon is a powerful weapon that can be used to enhance the monster hunting experience. She has some interesting interactions with basic karakuri that make her more useful against certain kemono and quick heat generation techniques. Here are some “more advanced” karakuri key mechanics and basic interactions that players will want to know about as soon as possible:
- Karakuri Crate: Bread and butter build variant without Fortified Shot, when a normal shot is used after jumping off the crate, the hunter will use this angled shot that deals scaling damage based on their current heat level. Great for maintaining a constant DPS while managing a heat sensor.
- Spring Karakuri: After launching this Karakuri, the Hand Cannon will fire a “shotgun blast” of regular shots in a fan formation right in front of the hunter. This attack has several different uses, but is mainly used to generate large blocks of heat very quickly.
- Karakuri Heavenly Thread Anchor: He also has this shotgun blast when a Normal Shot is fired after jumping with a Thread boost, which can be better or worse for generating heat and proper positioning than a spring, depending on the circumstances.
- Karakuri Glider: Effectively turns a hand cannon hunter into a gunship, allowing them to fire normal shots and build up heat while still being able to hover and control where their glider flies. Not incredibly “meta” or vital against most Kemono, but it’s a lot of fun to use and has its moments.
- Karakuri Torch: As with any other weapon, using it adds fire damage to the weapon’s attacks for the next small amount of time, and also gives that weapon the ability to set the Kemono on fire (which is a lesser known status ailment). Particularly with a handgun, it adds extra heat per shot during active play, making it probably the best option for storing heat when playing aggressively.
A Few More Tips on Hand Cannon Mechanics
Of course, there are other systems and mechanics in Cannon’s gameplay besides Karakuri’s attacks and regular shooting. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of these additional mechanics:
- Fortified Shot depletes the charge meter incredibly quickly, meaning it will be a very short laser burst if the player is not standing in a Ki base while firing. So, don’t forget to stay on the now regular Ki Base after absorbing her Fortified Energy, or reposition and place a new Ki Base before firing a full Fortified Shot.
- Much of the high-level handgun gameplay revolves around canceling the animation (which is actually a fantastic system) to save time, or retreating from an attack to prevent its potential absence. Players can cancel the animation using Karakuri’s quick build menu to place something in the middle of the animation and shorten it, or even collapse to quickly cancel the animation depending on the particular animation.
- The best use of canceling this animation is to use it to reduce the time it takes to manually place a Ki base.
- Any charge indicator currently left is irrelevant to heat generation. players who have optimized heat building and quickly place a fortified ki base usually don’t even care if their charge gauge is empty while firing, as it will still replenish when they set up their fortified shot at a fortified ki base.
How to Fight Kemono with a Hand Cannon
There are two main build branches that hand cannon users can choose from: those that focus on getting as many boosted shots as possible, and those that are based on staying near maximum heat and using regular shots or karakuri box attacks to inflicting permanent damage.
Each build is applicable to use, but their gameplay is slightly different. Hardened shot oriented builds are more focused on generating heat in a safe place; Heat-based builds are much closer and more individual to Kemono thanks to Karakuri’s box attacks.
So, that’s a lot of theory and explanation on how to use a hand cannon. But how does the minute-to-minute gameplay of a hand gun user actually happen? How are people supposed to make split-second decisions with this thing in a single player game? Here is an example:
- Despite what the basic weapon mechanics have to offer, Cannon users are usually incredibly mobile, rarely standing and firing at Ki Bases for more than a few seconds.
- Use spring karakuri to dodge securely in any direction in a pinch, and also use a shotgun blast to create immediate heat. In the meantime, use Sky Thread (and its mid-air shots) in fights against a very fast Kemono or when a hunter wants to instantly increase their heat gauge.
- Chain Trap and Harpoon Fusion Karakuri are the hand cannon user’s best friends, either one gives them enough time to fire a Fortified Shot almost completely while Kemono is completely helpless.
- Crossbow and Flare Fusion Karakuri (when unlocked) are also great windows to use Fortified Shot if used against a flying Kemono.
- Taking the time to collect Tsukumo to increase the hunter’s Sky Thread is worth it, as the Hand Cannon user will usually burn through their Sky Thread pretty quickly.
One of the most important things to remember about Wild Hearts is not to rush. Kemono doesn’t regenerate outside of active combat, Cannon can stay up to Power Shot for a few minutes, and Ki bases don’t disappear after a short amount of time.
This allows Cannon users to focus on the perfect repositioning and creating the perfect moment for a juicy Power Shot.
Why choose a hand cannon?
Finally, why should you choose a hand cannon? How is it different from the other seven weapons in Wild Hearts? The hand cannon is best for players who:
- Love the idea of being a walking tank/railgun.
- Want to inflict status ailments on the Kemono like it’s their only job.
- For example, using heavy and damaging weapons in games, but not particularly important Hammer or Nodachi.
- Fight melee in monster hunting games especially with camera in Wild Hearts.
- I like the concept of more “complex” weapons with multiple sensors to keep an eye on, but don’t want to dive into complicated mechanics.
The Hand Cannon is a ranged weapon that can only be used in Hearts of the Wild. It’s perfect for players who like the concept of ranged weapons but don’t like bows.
At the time of this writing, the game has been out for a little over a week, so there will almost certainly be new tricks and tips for this weapon over time. But for now, that’s all a player needs to know before committing themselves fully to this beloved weapon.
Wild Hearts is out now on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.
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