(The information here was taken from a guide by OrleanKnight, cudos to him/her)
Getting Started
In the game of Monster Hunter you take the role of a hunter which you design and create in a friendly to use Character Creation system. Several options allow your character to look unique and original, giving choices for hair style, hair color, eye color, skin tone, face shape, face skin, and even starter clothing (Monster Hunter 2). Once you determine a look you can then choose a voice for your character, typically what you will hear as you swing a weapon or take damage.
As the game begins you will have absolutely nothing to your name, only the clothes on your back and the sword in your hands. You will quickly earn a basic sum of money, 1500z, towards either purchasing yourself a basic set of armor, a decent weapon, or items such as Heal Potions to aid you on the hunt. You can not purchase all of these with 1500z; you will have to make your choice of which you need. For new hunters, buying armor is normally the best bet, but for more advanced players a weapon purchase of even items will be the proper investment.
There is plenty of flexibility to allow advanced players to quickly pick up where they left off in previous titles simply by using the knowledge and skills they have accquired to excell at the game's challanges. For new players it is a much different story, since they will have to steadily learn all the features of the game a little at a time. Either through the words of NPCs or just running out onto the field and getting killed -- new players start to grasp the game until it becomes second nature.
With this in mind, the learning curve is extremely steep, even though the game is very easy to pick up and play. Once you think you know everything about Monster Hunter, you'll soon uncover several new tricks which have been under your nose from the very beginning. Such as creating items, traps, and crafting your own weapons and armor. Since the game has no levels, Players can show their level of skill and determination through the armor and weapons they wield.
Conquering a beast allows you to carve up the carcess of your kill and then use the materials you find to create your own choice weapons and armor. In installments such as Monster Hunter 2 and Monster Hunter Portable 2nd, you can further tweak and customize your items by applying Gems. These Gems function like materia in Final Fantasy 7 -- allowing you to enchance attributes to make your weapon even more unique.
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Missions
The actual game itself has two major modes of play, Mission and Town. The Town is where you will exist between Missions, a basic hub where you can prepare yourself for the hunt, purchase items, craft, save, sleep, eat, and choose your next mission. Missions, called Quests in the game, are the bulk of a player's Monster Hunter experience. While on a Quest you can forage for materials (mining, picking plants, and fishing), trade with Veggie Elders, and most importantly, Hunt.
Though the game is entitled Monster Hunter, you will not find yourself hunting down classic examples of Monsters as you may see in Final Fantasy. You will find that most of the beasts you will hunt are either dinosaur type creatures or huge Dragons: the latter more than the former of course. New players will first engage little blue Raptor-type monsters which evolve throughout the course of the game. They are not meant to be a great threat, just more of an annoyance and a great way to help sharpen a player's skill with Camera control and attacks.
The more quests you complete, the more quests will be unlocked. Difficulty in the game is measured via a system of stars. Beginner/Training missions do not have any stars at all, and are basically considered the small baby steps that you'll take as you slowly become a great dragon hunter. Each level of difficulty has quests, which when completed further unlock other levels, revealing more and more of the game world to you.
So new hunters will often find themselves visiting the same map time and time again, but completing new and different tasks within that same space. As they dig deeper into the game, more maps and larger monsters are unlocked, it just takes a lot of time and patience to actually reach that far.
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Weapons
A hunter is often only as good as his/her weapon. With this in mind, there are many types of weapons in the game -- each weapon is a different class which requires a different set of controls and sometimes even armor to use properly.
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Blademaster Type Weapons
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*Sword & Shield
One of the most well rounded weapon types; this weapon combination sports a player with a short sword and shield that is both a fast and deadly. This weapon type is extremely sharp and will cut through most hide before weapons even larger than it can. The shield is quick and easy defense, and the jumping combos allows for the player to land critically hard blows at a very fast pace.
In Monster Hunter 2 this class gets even more an upgrade with an added upper-cut and the ability to use items while still have your weapon and shield armed and ready.
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Great Sword
One of the more popular weapon types because of its massive size and girth, the Great Sword sports some of the best looking weapons in the game. These huge swords swing a path of destruction that can even send team mates flying through the air after just one pass. It's slow, but strong, but not as strong as the hammer.
In Monster Hunter 2 this class gets an upgrade, adding in a new hammer-like "charge" ability to which can inflict insane amounts of damage if the attack lands its mark.
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Lance
This pierce type weapon is used to penetrate thick hide and strike where other weapons have a hard time reaching. This weapon provided the hunter with the ability to charge across the map and plow through hordes of enemies on a single pass. This is also one of the only classes which allow you to still attack while under the cover of the huge body-covering shield.
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Hammer
Possible the least popular weapon type, the hammer is the slowest of all weapons by has the greatest power. A hunter can charge up a strike and smash the blunt weapon into a target and create a massive shock wave. Other hammers become more lethal when fully charged, growing spikes and sometimes glowing a strange color.
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Dual Swords
One of the fastest and most deadly weapons of all, the dual swords allows a player to hold a sword in each hand. Attacks are quickly chained together in a "Sword Dance" style than swings blades in every direction. A player can choose to drink away at their own stamina to exploit Berserker Mode which replaced any form of block -- turning the hunter in a bloody killing machine that moves double the pace and inflicts more than double the damage per hit.
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Samurai Sword (Monster Hunter 2/ Portable 2nd)
Much like Great Swords, this type allows hunters to wield giant swords; however, unlike their slow and lumbering bothers the Samurai Blades are swift and vicious. Without any option to block, the player is forced to quickly inflict damage to charge up the Berserker Mode meter. Once full, the hunter will glow red and then be able to move at double the speed and inflict more than double damage for a few seconds of vicious attack.
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Gun Lance (Monster Hunter 2/ Portable 2nd)
Much like the lance, the hunter wields a giant spear and shield. But the gun lance has the ability to shoot an unlimited form of short range ammo which does minor damage. Also, it allows the hunter to not only proceed with doing vicious uppercuts with the weapon -- but at the same time the lance can open up and unleash a massive explosion right upon the target. Once used, the explosive takes time to recharge, but is otherwise unlimited in uses.
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Hunter Horn (Monster Hunter 2/ Portable 2nd)
Brother to the Hammer, the Hunter Horn allows the player to wield a large hammer that can play strange songs which can buff allies and distract enemy monsters.
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Gunner Type Weapons
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Light Bow Gun
If swords and shields are not your thing, than perhaps Guns are. Hunters can take bow guns which are an advanced cross-bow type of weapon. You must carry all the kinds of ammunition which you will need for the gun. Gunners can bring even ammo with Attributes, such as fire, ice, stun, and poison for example.
All bow guns gives the hunter the ability to go into a First Person Shooter mode to get a better fixed aim on their targets. Hunters who use Light Bow guns can run reasonably well and can dodge very easily as well as quickly reload ammo.
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Heavy Bow Gun
Unlike Light Bow Guns, those who use heavy go slower and have a harder time avoiding enemies. It takes much longer to reload the gun and the ammo options are very limited. The trade off is that the Heavy Bow gun does a lot more damage than the light, and is often considered a good trade off for the extreme weight.
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Hunter Bow (Monster Hunter 2/ Portable 2nd)
A Bow and Arrow type weapon which allows you to wield a bow that is bigger than your body. The arrows alone could be considered swords, and you can even use them as such in close combat. Before you fire you can apply potions to your arrows, dipping them in poison for example. Once armed, you can aim at your enemy via an Arch-Meter and get a fixed shot and position. You can then power up your bow to perform actions such as long-shot or multi-shot.
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Dragons
The true challenge of Monster Hunter is not going around beating up on mindless raptors and dinosaurs day in and day out. All the real thrills and fun lies within the engaging battles with massive dragons that loom over you like living, breathing mountains of might, power, and muscle. It is your job to take them down, and only those hunters who are quick witted and skilled can do it with ease.
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Yian Kut ku
A bird-like wyvern with a huge beak and large ears that splay open when it is angered. With its senstive hearing it dislikes loud noises. It is small but fast.
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Blue Yian Kut Ku
May not be much larger than its pinkish counterpart, but this mature Kut-Ku is quite temperamental. Because of its strange appearance, it's often mistake for a bird.
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Cephadrome
The alpha monster form of the Cephalos. Larger and armored with black scales, they fit the appearance of a leader perfectly. Their fins hold a paralyzing toxin.
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Gypceros
A wyvern that can generate bright flashes of light with its prominent head crest. Its rubbery hide resists damage, and it can spit poisonous substances. It's quite timib however.
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Purple Gypceros
A very large counterpart to the Gypceros, this creature is extremely poisonous. His thick rubbery hide is highly sought after as the perfect lining for lightning resistant armor.
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Rathalos
Male wyvern the keeps a nest and patrols its patch of territory from the air in search of prey. Its claws are filled with a poison that weakens its quarry.
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Azure Rathalos
This ruler of the heavens exploits the skies like no other and keen eyes zero in on faraway targets. He is commonly believed to have a precious stone imbedded within his tail.
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Silver Rathalos
The supreme King of the Rath family, this crafty wyvern dominates the sky like no other. His sharp claws can pierce through even the thickest armor, instantly injecting poison.
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Rathian
Female version of the Rathalos wyvern. Unlike its male counterpart, it usually patrols its territory from the ground. Its tail spikes are filled with a deadly poison.
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Pink Rathian
A more mature version of the Rathian, this pink counterpart is clever and strong. She is commonly believed to have a precious stone imbedded within her tail.
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Gold Rathian
The supreme Queen of the Rath species, this wyvern is extremely territorial. Unlike her mate she often stalks the ground and devastates prey with her poisonous tail spikes.
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Khezu
Loathsome wyverns that live inside caves. Near blind, they detect by smell. They are capable of generating electric shocks, which they use to paralyze their prey.
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Red Khezu
This cave dwelling wyvern detects prey with an extremely keen sense of smell. When provoked they can defend themselves with shock fields and a mind-numbing scream.
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Plesioth
An enormous, flightless, aquatic wyvern with wings that have evolved into fins for swimming. Although superficially fish-like, they can move on land as well. They love frogs!
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Green Plesioth
This massive, flightless, aquatic wyvern as dominion of the land and of the sea. Their extreme power and love for frogs is almost impossible to match.
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Basarios
A wyvern found in volcanic zones. They are the juvenile form of the Gravios. They have a steel-like carapace that requires powerful weapons to crack, and they emit a poison gas.
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Gravios
A large wyvern found in volcanic zones. They posses a fiery breath attack and the ability to emit a sleeping gas. They also have extremely hard scales that deflect weapons.
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Black Gravios
This massive wyvern is prone to live in volcanos where its diet of rare minerals can be quenched. He often emits of burning sulfuric gas, a nasty side effect of eating firestone.
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Monoblos
A large-horned wyvern found in desert zones. Their giant horn makes their attacks very dangerous, and their ear-splitting roar is the bane of hunters.
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White Monoblos
The horn upon their snout is as beautiful as it is deadly. These wyverns have a much thicker hide than normal Monoblos, so they are not to be underestimated.
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Diablos
A two-horned wyern found in desert zones. They are capable of burrowing into sand to attack prey from below. Generally believed to be related to Monoblos.
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Black Diablos
With the fury of a bull, this wyvern is extremely temperamental. Often found in the desert, he burrows beneath the sand and rams with his incredibly hard horns.
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Lao-Shan Lung
A giant dragon few have seen and lived to tell the tale. When on the rampage it wreaks havoc on all in its path. The guild has built a fortress to repel the beast, but will it hold?
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Azure Lao-Shan Lung
Also known as the Giant Ashen Dragon, this fearsome creature is so huge that not even the great fortress can hold it back for long.
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Yian Garuga
A breed of Yian Kut-Ku with a hard black shell and a long mane. Known for its trap avoiding slyness and poison loaded tail, it is a particularly evil wyvern, so beware!
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Kirin
The Kirin is said to glow a faint blue, but so few have seen it that details are scarce. It is apparently capable of calling forth lightning at will.
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Fatalis
A legendary black dragon said to have prowled these lands from the days of old. Many skilled hunters have sought to challange it, but none ever return.
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Crimson Fatalis
A dragon of unimaginable evil lurks in the burning wastes. His awesome might and power make him a true challange for any hunter.
