Right when Rathian unlocks in Monster Hunter Wilds, Rathalos does too. They are the original power couple, so it makes sense! You don’t get a quest immediately popping up saying where to go to find one or letting you know it’s around, but heading to certain places after reaching a specific chapter means it’s possible you’ll run into one.
Where do I find the Rathalos in Monster Hunter Wilds?
Rathalos decided three areas are his domain in Monster Hunter Wilds. You’ll see it in the Forest, Basin, and Wyveria once you roll credits after Chapter 3 and head into Chapter 4. Unlike Rathian, it doesn’t care for the Plains. Wyveria makes sense, however, considering you can also encounter Guardian Rathalos there.
Since I found Rathalos is slightly less aggressive than Rathian, as I could usually slip past him when exploring or on the way to another hunt and she would never allow that, one of the best ways to find him is to head to the forest. I almost always found it in area 11 in the Forest at nighttime, if he was lurking about. He’ll likely be in the nest sleeping there.
I highlighted his spot on the map below, to help you out:
As usual, killing one means the Quest Counter will offer an Optional Quest for the monster. He also can show up in Wounded Hollow.
If you felt like the first three chapters of the game weren’t challenging, I recommend searching for a Tempered Rathalos after the fourth one for some real fun. (I mean, I enjoyed it.)
How do I beat a Rathalos?
Hey, did you think the Guardian Rathalos fight in the campaign was easy? Well, regular Rathalos is here to remind you this wyvern is 100% not a pushover. We’ve got a Weak Roar to interrupt your attack patterns. We have Minor Wind Pressure, which he won’t hesitate to beat his wings to perform. Like Rathian, he can also Poison you or use his massive AOE fiery attacks to unleash Fireblight. The range of said spread is much larger than a Rathian’s, by the way. However, I found it was less likely he’d inflict his toxins on me, but that absolutely can happen too.
Just like Rathian, Rathalos won’t hesitate to take to the air and dive bomb or slash with his tail. At which point, you should definitely target his tail. Do that enough and you could sever it, which can help you out quite a bit. I found he’ll also take flight less if you manage to break both of his wings. So a good starting point might be to deal with his tail, so it won’t be a threat when he starts flying or if you dart behind him to avoid fire, then go for the wings after that.
Like many monsters in this entry, slash, blunt, and ranged weapons that rely on ammo will all be just about equally effective on him. There are a few spots where a blunt one like a Hammer might be stronger, like his neck, but it’s still very much a situation where you should use the weapon you feel most comfortable with. If it has the Dragon or Thunder element tied to it, even better! However, he is strong against Fire-based attacks.
Like so, so many monsters, Sonic Bombs don’t work on Rathalos. You can try and inflict Poison on it, but it’s the least likely status effect to take. All of the others have a slightly better chance, but none are super effective.
My three top suggestions are to bring Flash Pods (or use Flashflies), pack some Shock Traps, and have Dung Pods in case you’re encountering Rathalos in the Forest or Basin where Rathian also lurks. She could jump into the fight after the initial encounter if he retreats to their shared nest, and you’ll want to drive her away.
What are the Rathalos drops in Monster Hunter Wilds?
If you’re smart and break the Rathalos’ wings right away, then you’ll likely end up with a lot of Rathalos Wings. It’s the most common part. You’re also guaranteed a Rathalos Tail if you sever that. The cut off tail can also result in you getting a Rathalos Ruby and Rath Medulla too, both of which are rare drops. Rathalos Scale+ and Carapace are pretty common. While the Inferno Sac isn’t shown as being tied to his head, twice I ended up getting them after targeting head wounds. You’ll also get a Rathalos Certificate after the fight, as you’d expect. I also believe I got some Monster Keenbones off of it? (Sometimes you take a bunch of screenshots when breaking wounds or carving, and you lose track.)
Now, the tricky part about some Rathalos High Rank equipment is that you need to do some gathering or fight some smaller monsters to make everything. The Rathalos Mail, for example, not only needs six scales, six carapaces, and two tails, but you have to gather up a Dragonbone Relic from a bonepile too. You know those little wingdrake wyverns you’ll see flying in the sky and yank parts off of with your slinger? Well, you’ll have to shoot them out of the sky or attack some when they’re chilling on the ground to get the two Wingdrake Hide+s to make the Rathalos Greaves.
Monster Hunter Wilds is available for the PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC.
Published: Feb 27, 2025 08:00 am