The Best Turf Wars In Monster Hunter

Monster Hunter: World introduced a dynamic concept that brings the setting of Monster Hunter and its creatures to life in an epic way, by having them fight each other in brutal combat. These creature battles, best known as Turf Wars, can diverge from quick tussles to intense kaiju-like fights.

These battles can leave you awestruck at the monster battles. Turf Wars tend to have the monsters damage each other, opening you up for free hits on both sides. They greatly display the monster’s relative powers, showcase their influence in the environment, and express these creatures’ different rivalries.

10

Diablos clash

Horned Clash

Diablos is one of the toughest monsters of the desert environments throughout the Monster Hunter series. An apex of its environment, very few creatures can stand head-to-head against them, except each other. Diablos, like most animals, real and fictional, engage in territorial disputes, locking horns to establish dominance and a pecking order between them.

In other installments of Monster Hunter, you get to see this as a cutscene interaction between the two monsters, often introducing how aggressive they are even to their own kind. In Monster Hunter: World, you get to see this as a turf war between (usually) a regular Diablos and the black variation. Whoever wins the clash is often randomized, but chances are the more aggressive variant will be triumphant.

9

Rajang vs Kirin

Wrangling For A Snack

Rajang is known lore-wise to be one of the few monsters to actively hunt elder dragons for snacks, in this case, the Kirin. Kirins are also relatively powerful, and it’s believed that their energy is a part of what makes Rajangs so powerful. This wasn’t seen in-game until Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, where Rajang was first introduced, hunting a Kirin for its horn.

You can also see this as a turf war in whichever locales feature the two monsters. Rajang tends to overpower Kirin and go straight to their horns, snapping it clean off for a part break and eating it to briefly power up before letting the poor elder dragon go. This is great for being one of the few Turf Wars where a non-elder dragon unanimously defeated an elder dragon in an even fight.

8

Deviljho vs Diablos

War Of The Desert Devils

Deviljho is one of the most dangerous monsters included in the Monster Hunter: World expansion. Being an invader of multiple locales, Deviljho expresses its place as an anomaly in the food chain by trouncing every apex monster in its wake. The most intense matchup is Diablos, which showcases the casual power of Deviljho.

Diablos is already a tough monster on its own, but Deviljho has the strength to stop the two-horned wyvern in the middle of its charge with its jaws and lift it clean in the air before suplexing it back down, breaking a horn and leaving the apex monster dazed in its place. Any new players getting into Monster Hunter: World would stare in awe at how effortless the Turf War goes.

7

Seregios vs Gore Magala

War Of The Fourth Generation Flagships

The two flagships of the fourth generation installments of the series come face to face in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak. Seregios the thousand-blade wyvern and Gore Magala, the spreader of the frenzy virus. Their Turf War showcases how strong Gore Magal is while also showing how swift, agile, and versatile Seregios is.

The Turf War starts with Seregios going in its signature talon lunge attack before Gore Magala dodges and tackles the flying wyvern with its large wing arms and blasting it with frenzy particles. After Gore Magala’s onslaught, Seregios retaliates by firing its sharp scales at its opponent’s head, knocking it away, and setting it up for a wyvern ride.

6

Zinogre vs Lunagaron

Howling Clash Under The Moon

These two are the most wolf-like of the fanged wyverns, and they have a pretty intense Turf War with each other. Multiple layers to this clash make it a spectacular show of the creatures’ strengths and weaknesses. It makes the two monsters evenly matched in different ways and makes the epic clash rewarding to see.

The clash between the two monsters starts with a brief tussle which is followed by them powering up. For the Zinogre it’s the charged-up thunder state and for Lunagaron it’s the bipedal ice state. After that, they clash with each other. Zinogre’s top-heavy gave it the initial advantage until Luagaron’s bipedal balance helped it wrestle its rival to the ground. It’s a close fight on both ends and it makes you want to root for either monster either way.

5

Nergigante vs Elder Dragons

Hunt Of The Elders

Elder dragons are personified forces of nature. Very few creatures can match them in combat except other elder dragons. Nergigante is one of them, being a predatory elder dragon that hunts and eats elder dragons. Its hunting preferences are the reason why Nergignate and its Ruiner variant thrive in New World during the Elder Crossing, and their hunts tend to be very effective.

Most elders like Kushala Daora and Teostra have a set of elemental strengths that make them formidable monsters. Despite that, Nergigante practically overwhelms them and wrestles its prey to the ground, pinning them for a triumphant roar. Nerginate will then drag its unlucky opponent across the ground and toss it aside for a knockout, winning against most elder dragons except Velkhana, who pulls a protective ice breath on Nergigante’s neck.

4

Savage Deviljho vs Rajang

Power Vs Gluttony

Here is the clash of two of the strongest non-elder dragons in the Monster Hunter franchise, the World Eater vs Destruction Incarnate. This is the closest to a classic monster matchup you can get with Deviljho being a Godzillaesque monster with a mean appetite and Rajang being a save Kong monster with Super Saiyan power-ups.

The Turf War starts with the Savage Deviljho going in for the kill, lifting the Rajang by the neck in its powerful jaws. Once it was hoisted in the air, the Rajang pried the Deviljho’s jaws open and punched the larger monster to the ground, leaving it reeling on the ground before it lunged up in an attempt to snap at the fanged beast again. Deviljho’s aggressive nature, made worse with the savage variant, means that this Turf War may repeat in the hunt again.

3

Teostra vs Kushala Daora

Dance Of The Elder Dragons

Ever since their introduction in the Monster Hunter Dos and Freedom 2, Teostra and Kushala Daora have been a part of the Elder Dragon trinity that has some form of rock-paper-scissor logic. While the rules of the trinity have been mixed around with other elder dragons like Chameleos, Vaal Hazak, or Namielle, Kushala Daora and Teostra still have a powerful rivalry.

This rivalry is showcased in Monster Hunter World and Monster Hunter Rise, with the two elder dragons flying around each other and their aerial battle eventually knocks one of them down. This Turf War is shared with Velkhana, which is a similarly built monster to these two rivals.

2

Apex Zinogre vs Amatsu

Rivalry Under The Storm

This was yet another iconic Turf War that plays on the story beats of the Kamura and Yukumo regions of Monster Hunter. In the Monster Hunter franchise, Zinogre and Amatsu are played up as fierce, bitter rivals of the world’s mountains. In Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, it was the Amatsu that drove the Zinogre out of its former territory.

In Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, Amatsu makes a startling appearance with freshly updated movesets and formidable power that puts it to scale with the toughest of Elder Dragons. As you progress through the battle, Master Utsushi appears and lures an Apex Zinogre into the fray, and you bear witness to the Turf War. The Zinogre ultimately loses, but it does a number on the Amatsu, and it opens up the opportunity to wyvern-ride the Apex monster for additional damage. This is one of the most cinematic moments in the franchise and tops the appearance of Magnamalo against Allmother Narwa out of sheer spectacle.

1

Primordial Malzeno vs Velkhana

Clash Of The Knight Dragons

This Turf War between Primordial Malzeno and Velkhana is one of the most dynamic clashes in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak. Although the Turf War with the qurio influenced Malzeno and Velkhana was an incredible show of blasted ice and storming explosions, the Turf War that’s triggered while Primordial Malzeno is free of the qurio is much more impactful and creates a more one-sided outcome to the fight.

In a similar fighting style to a paladin knight, The Primordial Malzeno strikes Velkhana with its blade-like wings while blocking the elder dragon’s ice blasts by using its wings like a knight’s shield. Both rival monsters have similar motifs of being knight-like dragons. But in this battle of regal power, Primordial Malzeno comes out on top and knocks Velkhana out of the air.