If you’ve ever run headfirst into a Rathian fire breath and got knocked out in one hit, you know how important solid armor is in Monster Hunter Wilds. I’ve lost count of how many hunts I messed up early on because I stuck with my starter Rookie Plate set for three ranks too long, thinking I could out-dodge every attack. That’s where knowing monster hunter wilds how to upgrade armor comes in, because even a couple of upgrade levels can turn a one-shot kill into a glancing blow that leaves you with enough health to chug a potion and keep fighting. We’re breaking down every step of the process, from gathering materials to choosing which pieces to prioritize, so you don’t waste resources on upgrades that don’t move the needle for your playstyle.
What You Need Before You Start Upgrading Your Armor
You don’t get access to armor upgrades right out of the tutorial, so don’t panic if you don’t see the option when you first boot up the game. You’ll need to progress through the first two main story hunts, take down the introductory Doshaguma, and unlock the Smithy in your base camp. The Smithy is marked with a hammer icon on your map, and once you speak to the blacksmith, she’ll walk you through the first basic upgrade for your starter set for free. Beyond that, you’ll need three core resources for every upgrade: Armor spheres (the most common upgrade material, earned from hunts, side quests, and outpost caches), monster-specific materials (like scales, claws, or plates from the monster the armor set is based on), and zenny (the in-game currency, earned from selling extra materials and completing hunts).
I’ve made the mistake of hoarding all my armor spheres early on for “better gear” later, but that’s a waste – even upgrading your starter set to level 3 will get you through the first three low-rank hunts without any issues. If you’re short on armor spheres, there are a few easy ways to farm them fast without grinding long hunts:
- Complete 1-star side quests that reward armor spheres – most take less than 10 minutes to finish, even for new players
- Search hidden outpost caches in every new map you unlock – 70% of the caches I’ve found have at least one low-level armor sphere inside
- Break all monster parts during hunts, even if you don’t need the material for a new set – broken parts have a 20% higher chance to drop bonus armor spheres as a reward
Monster Hunter Wilds How to Upgrade Armor: Step-by-Step Basic Process
If you’re new to monster hunter wilds how to upgrade armor workflows, you might be tempted to upgrade every piece you get your hands on, but hold off until you’ve tested the set for a couple of hunts. Once you have all your materials gathered, the upgrade process is straightforward, but there are a couple of small details that are easy to miss if you don’t pay attention. First, head to the Smithy and select the “Upgrade Armor” option from the main menu. You’ll see all the armor pieces you currently have in your inventory, sorted by body part and defense level.
Hover over any piece to see what materials and zenny you need for the next upgrade level, along with the stat boost you’ll get. Always check the stat boost before you confirm the upgrade – some low-level sets only get 1 or 2 defense points per upgrade, which isn’t worth wasting rare materials on. Once you select the piece you want to upgrade, hold the confirm button to apply the upgrade. You can upgrade a piece multiple times in a row as long as you have the materials, but I recommend stopping if you hit a level that requires a rare monster plate or gem – save those for high-rank sets that you’ll use for dozens of hunts, not low-rank sets you’ll replace in a few hours. If you accidentally upgrade a piece you don’t use, you can sell it back to the Smithy for 70% of the zenny and materials you spent, which is a nice safety net most players don’t know about.
How to Prioritize Which Armor Pieces to Upgrade First
Not all armor upgrades are created equal, and you’ll waste a ton of resources if you upgrade every piece you own equally. I follow a simple priority system that’s worked for me through 100+ hours of playtime, and it’s tailored to both casual and hardcore players. First, prioritize armor pieces that give you skills that match your playstyle before anything else. If you main a greatsword and rely on guard skills to block heavy attacks, upgrade the chest piece that gives you +2 Guard first, even if it has slightly lower base defense than another piece.
Next, prioritize pieces that cover your biggest elemental weakness. If you’re going on a hunt against a fire monster, upgrade your head and chest pieces first, as those take the most damage from frontal fire attacks. You don’t need to upgrade every piece to max level before a hunt – even bringing two pieces up two levels will cut your incoming elemental damage by 15% on average. The only time you should upgrade every piece in a set to max is if you’re planning to use it for endgame tempered hunts, where every single defense point counts against boosted monster attacks. I used to waste armor spheres upgrading leg pieces that gave me irrelevant gathering skills early on, and I ended up short on materials when I found a perfect high-rank set for my build, so don’t make that same mistake.
Hidden Armor Upgrade Bonuses You Might Be Missing
Most players only look at defense stats when upgrading armor, but there are a few hidden bonuses that unlock at specific upgrade levels that can completely change how good a set is. First, every armor set has a set bonus unlock threshold at level 4 for low-rank sets and level 6 for high-rank sets. Once you upgrade every piece in the set to that level, you’ll unlock an extra bonus skill that isn’t listed on individual pieces – for example, the Rathian set unlocks +3 Poison Resistance at level 4, which makes it perfect for hunting other poison-type monsters.
Second, upgrading armor past level 7 unlocks hidden elemental resistance boosts that aren’t shown in the initial upgrade preview. I found this out by accident when I upgraded my Kadachi set to level 8, and suddenly I had 10 extra thunder resistance that I didn’t see listed in the upgrade menu. Third, if you upgrade a piece of armor to max level, you’ll unlock the ability to transmog it for free, so you can keep its stats while using the appearance of another set you like better. You don’t have to use the same set for transmog either – you can mix and match appearances from every set you’ve upgraded to max level, which is a fun bonus for players who care about their hunter’s look. Just don’t waste rare materials upgrading a bad set just for transmog, unless you’ve already got all the endgame gear you need.
At the end of the day, upgrading your armor is one of the easiest ways to make hunts less frustrating, even if you’re still learning how to time your dodges and perfect your combos. You don’t need to grind for hours to get enough materials to make a difference either – even 10 minutes of farming side quests for armor spheres can give you enough upgrades to survive your next big hunt. Now that you know monster hunter wilds how to upgrade armor, you can stop getting one-shot by high-rank monsters and start focusing on the fun part: tracking and taking down the biggest, baddest beasts in the Wilds. If you’re still stuck on what set to upgrade first, start with the one that has skills you use every hunt, and you can’t go wrong.