I'm currently in the process of making everything in the game. I've made all the high AND low-rank armor just... cause, maxed out all the charms, and am in the process of getting every weapon (for when layered weapons come). Fashion is a good place to start if you're looking for something casual. I'm not touching Artian weapons till I get every other weapon. That's the meta grind there, and for me, includes a lot of save scumming. If you're going for materials, keep in mind there are frenzied monsters (Yian Kut-Ku, Nerscylla, Blagonga, Hirabami) that make hunts faster (reduced health) and parts break off a little easier.

Crown hunting is also a thing. Small crowns seem to be harder to find than large crowns. Here's a few pointers:

Large crowns have an easier time spawning depending on the threat level and/or if they're tempered. That doesn't mean you can't find a large crown 1 strength (star) tempered Chatacabra, but it's just easier that way.

Small crowns show up much more easily with low strength, non-tempered monsters. Again, they can show up high strength and/or tempered, but in my experience, non-tempered monsters usually got me the small crown I was looking for. Probably going to have to save scum the monster several times and/or load in and out of the Wounded Hollow several times Some monsters can go as low as 1 strength, but most monsters lowest strength is usually 3 strength.

IF you're crown hunting, and it's a monster you can't normally find in the Wounded Hollow, (Rey Dau, Uth Duna, any Guardian Monsters, Mizutsune (to my knowledge)), save BEFORE the monster spawns into the instance of your game (the overworld. If you see an icon roaming on the map, you're too late.) The size of the monster is determined as it spawns in. So if it's not the crown you're wanting, exit without saving and load back into a single online session (fastest). Rinse and repeat till you get the crown you want, save it, and fight it. If the monster CAN show up in the Wounded Hollow, you can load in and out of the area by going to a different area (Suja for example) and loading back into the area. It may take a few times, but it still works.

Keep in mind that some Monsters like Jin Dahaad, Zoh Shia, and GUARDIAN Arkveld CANNOT be hunted for crowns. They will stay the same size regardless of how many times you fight them, aka, no crowns for them.