What are the Monster Hunter Wilds monsters? The best way for any hunter to prepare for a trip to the Forbidden Lands is to get familiar with all the monsters that call it home.
Our list of monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds includes all that we’ve seen in the open-world game‘s beta. We’ve even thrown in every monster’s species and element, plus a brief rundown of their moveset to help you prepare for the fight. Remember to stock up on supplies and sharpen your sword, axe, or whatever Monster Hunter weapon takes your fancy once the Monster Hunter Wilds release date arrives. Here are all the monsters that await in the Forbidden Lands.
Large Monsters
Here are all the large monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds:
- Ajarakan
- Arkveld
- Balahara
- The Black Flame
- Chatacabra
- Congalala
- Doshaguma
- Lala Barina
- Quematrice
- Rathian
- Rathalos
- Rey Dau
- Rompopolo
- Uth Duna
Ajarakan
Species: Fanged Beast
Location: Oilwell Basin
Element: Fire
Ajarakan is a highly aggressive and agile monster that resembles a scaled monkey. It navigates rocky environments with its powerful forearms, hanging from ledges and leaping upon unsuspecting melee hunters. It’s most active during the Firespring inclemency in the Oilwell Basin and can ignite the protrusions on its back when threatened to inflict Fireblight on its foes. Given its short-tempered nature, you can often find it locked in combat with other monsters that drift into its territory.
Arkveld
Species: Elder Dragon
Location: Unknown
Element: Unknown
Arkveld is the flagship monster in Monster Hunter Wilds, making it one of the toughest challenges for novice and veteran hunters alike. Otherwise known as “The White Wraith,” it has long been thought to have been extinct, though it now remains a threat across the Forbidden Lands. Arkveld uses its armored chain appendages attached to its forearms in combat, and its thick hide can be difficult to penetrate. It’s also capable of flight, so keep one eye on the skies if you’re hunting this beast. As an apex predator, it has no qualms about challenging massive threats like Rey Dau. Our advice? Just get out of the way.
Balahara
Species: Leviathan
Location: Windward Plains
Element: Water
These territorial sandworms burrow deep into the vast sea of desert sand to ambush their prey. While one Balahara is difficult enough, they often form packs to overwhelm larger monsters and immobilize hunters in quicksand traps. You’re not much safer on solid ground, either – Balahara can worm its way up rock walls to spit mud and oil from afar, inflicting Waterblight to shred your stamina.
The Black Flame
Species: Unknown
Location: Oilwell Basin
Element: Fire
As the apex monster of the Oilwell Basin, The Black Flame is a colossal fire octopus coated in slick oil that it can ignite at will. Its enormous tentacles have exceptional reach, capable of catching slow hunters in its iron grip and choking the life out of them. Finally, if all this weren’t enough to give you pause, The Black Flame can – true to its name – unleash fire from its maw, inflicting Fireblight on anyone caught in the blast.
Chatacabra
Species: Amphibian
Location: Windward Plains
Element: Unknown
Chatacabra is a cross between a bullfrog and a gorilla. It charges at foes when threatened, unleashing a flurry of vicious punches with its enormous fists to knock hunters to the ground. Its slobbery tongue allows it to gobble up prey at a distance; it can even use the adhesive properties of its saliva to reinforce its forelimbs with rock armor, lending its punches even more power.
Congalala
Species: Fanged Beast
Congalala is a familiar monster for any veteran hunter, and it returns in all its belching, farting glory to menace hunters in the open world. Its simian musculature means it’s partial to swiping at its foes in close melee, but the bodily gases it releases are the real threat in its moveset. These attacks inflict Stench, a status ailment that stops you from using items. Thankfully, you can neutralize its effects with Deodorant, but that won’t do much against the variable effects Congalala can apply to its belch when consuming the mushrooms it’s stolen from your pack.
Doshaguma
Species: Fanged Beast
Location: Windward Plains, Scarlet Forest
Doshaguma is a territorial lion-bear that typically roams the plains and forests as part of a herd – so if you need to take one down, odds are it won’t be alone. Its sheer size and strength are its key characteristics in battle, as it swipes and snaps with its powerful paws and teeth. It can also throw monster corpses at hunters to knock them to the ground, leaving you vulnerable to a forward charge. You can identify an Alpha Doshaguma in a herd by its larger physique and red face; they’re also prone to aggression, so remain at a distance if you don’t want the herd to descend upon you.
Lala Barina
Species: Temnoceran
Location: Scarlet Forest
Lala Barina might not be one for the arachnophobes, but its creepy-crawly nature is offset somewhat by its fluffy exterior. When threatened, Lala Barina’s thorax opens to reveal a beautiful yet deadly rose in bloom – but don’t admire it for too long. This spindly creature can weave scarlet silk from its mouth, which it uses to snare idle hunters before lashing out with its stinger and mandibles. It also shoots out hairs from its abdomen that can paralyze hunters on contact, so be sure not to venture into its nest unprepared.
Quematrice
Species: Brute Wyvern
Location: Windward Plains
Element: Fire
Quematrice is a crested wyvern that resembles a scaled, fiery cockatrice – and it has the temper to match. You can often find it picking a fight with other monsters over food scraps, leaving you in prime position to swoop in once it’s sufficiently injured. Given its shortened forelimbs, it relies on its powerful hind legs to get around, and as such it can easily be thrown off balance in close quarters. It secretes flammable oil from its tail, which automatically sets alight when struck, so don’t be tempted to run in swinging when going up against this big beastie. Its moveset incorporates a flaming tail swipe attack that sends a surge of fire across the battlefield, inflicting Fireblight to all hunters caught in its wave.
Rathalos
Species: Flying Wyvern
Location: Windward Plains
Element: Fire
Rathalos is virtually the Monster Hunter series mascot, so it should be no surprise that it returns for Wilds. This highly aggressive wyvern controls the skies, swooping down to menace any creatures that wander into its huge territory with snapping jaws and a stream of fire. Alongside Fireblight, it can also inflict Poison thanks to its toxic talons, which can drain the life out of the fiercest hunters. While Rathalos can be a real pest, a full stock of Antidotes and a long-range weapon will help you bring it down.
Rey Dau
Species: Flying Wyvern
Location: Windward Plains
Element: Lightning
Rey Dau is the apex predator of the Windward Plains, so don’t get on its bad side if you want to survive. Its golden scales and massive bulk are lightning resistant, letting it soak up Sandtide inclemency’s storms and unleash a devastating electrical charge from its horned crest. This attack inflicts Thunderblight and crystallizes the sand on its wings into glass blades that empower it in battle. However, it’s not just long-range lightning bolts you watch out for; Rey Dau’s massive wings are a weapon in their own right, tearing hunters to ribbons whenever it swoops down from on high.
Uth Duna
Species: Leviathan
Location: Scarlet Forest
Element: Water
Uth Duna is the apex predator of the Scarlet Forest, on par with Rey Dau as far as deadly monsters go. While it doesn’t seem as lethal as its apex counterparts at first glance, it can reinforce its already thick hide with a protective barrier that it constructs using its bodily fluids and environmental moisture. Consequently, Uth Duna is most active during the Downpour inclemency, capable of cutting through high water levels at speed to snap and swipe at hunters. However, Uth Duna’s most devastating attack sees it burst from the surface and belly flop onto foes, crushing its target and causing a tidal wave to knock any additional foes off-balance.
Small Monsters
Here are all the small monsters in Monster Hunter World:
- Bulaqchi
- Baunos
- Ceratonoth
- Conga
- Dalthydon
- Gajios
- Rathalos
- Seikret
- Talioth
- Yian Kut-Ku
Large or small, the Monster Hunter Wilds monsters can be a real challenge to defeat. We recommend relying on Monster Hunter Wilds characters like Alma and Gemma to help keep you fighting fit – or call on a friend in Monster Hunter Wilds crossplay. Alternatively, check out the best games like Monster Hunter to hone your hunting skills before launch.