Skip To...
A familiar face is back in Monster Hunter Wilds, but this time, it brings even deadlier combos and new elements that will give any hunter PTSD with added fear, and yes, we’re talking about Rathalos in its Guardian variant. As if a normal Rathalos wasn’t deadly enough, its Guardian version has all sorts of elemental attacks, new moves, and just a whole destructive arsenal. However, it is also a fun fight for the daring hunters out there, and with all the great materials it gives, fighting this creature more than once is highly rewarding.
Guardian Rathalos Weaknesses
Guardian Rathalos is one tough cookie to crack in Monster Hunter Wilds, but fortunately, it has a few weaknesses you can exploit. The real challenge is hitting those weaknesses, but more on that later. For now, you can prepare the following elemental attacks:
- Thunder
- Dragon
So far, you should have at least Thunder-infused weapons if you’re still on Low Rank. If not, Dragon is the best option when fighting Rathalos. In terms of status effects, we don’t recommend bringing any, especially since Rathalos is a fast creature, and its movement will make applying status effects harder. So, focus on elemental attacks instead.
When it comes to weak parts, Rathalos has many you can hit. Its weakest parts are its mouth, tail, legs, and wings. When Rathalos isn’t moving much, it is easy to hit them. However, it’s quite the mobile foe, and melee users will have a hard time hitting it until you start breaking a few wounds. Ranged users usually don’t have a lot of trouble with this fight, so if you’re an expert in both play styles, try bringing a ranged weapon.
Hunt Strategy
If you’re a Monster Hunter veteran, Guardian Rathalos has many of the previous games’ moves in Wilds. However, its Guardian variant adds new mechanics that you need to watch out for. First and foremost are the energy crystals, now known as Wyvern Milk crystals. Whenever Rathalos shoots its Guardian energy and creates crystals, you must follow the same tactic as with other Guardian monsters: hit the crystals with elemental ammo. If possible, grab all the Dragon ammo from around the arena and shoot the crystals so they explode and damage Rathalos. This is the best technique for melee hunters. If you’re a ranged fighter, bring Dragon ammo and just shoot the monster and crystals alike. Other than that, here are a few tips you should follow:
- Melee fighters should focus on the legs first.
- This might be an obvious tip, but melee fighters will have a hard time hitting Rathalos when it is at full health. For that, aim at its legs and open a few wounds. Once you break them and Rathalos falls down, move to its wings or head. Attacking the former will reduce its mobility, while attacking the latter will do more damage. It’s up to you to decide which part you’ll focus on first.
- Don’t try to bring it to another monster’s territory.
- Often, we lure monsters to turf wars, hoping for our target to receive some damage. However, Rathalos is an apex predator, and it’ll make short work of any monster that crosses its path. This will also cause mayhem for you, so don’t try leading Rathalos to an unnecessary fight.
- Definitely use an SOS flare for this one.
- So far, we haven’t recommended any SOS flare usage for fights. Most of them are quite easy and should not give you any trouble. However, Rathalos, even in Low Rank, is a terrifying creature, and bringing an AI companion or other players will make the fight much easier.
Rathalos Materials
Should you defeat Guardian Rathalos, you’ll obtain some great materials that you’ll need to craft some of the final weapons and armor sets in Low Rank. Here’s what you might get:
- Low Rank Materials
- Guardian Rathalos Webbing (Very Common)
- Guardian Rathalos Scale (Common)
- Guardian Rathalos Tail (Common/Severed part)
- Guardian Rathalos Shell (Rare)
- Flame Sac (Rare)
- Guardian Rathalos Certificate (Very Rare/Quest-related)
- Guardian Rathalos Plate (Very Rare/Severed part)
- Guardian Scale (Very Rare)
- Guardian Blood (Very Rare)
