Exploring the Dragon Element in Monster Hunter Wilds

In Monster Hunter Wilds, the Dragon element plays a unique role. Unlike the more straightforward Fire, Ice, or Lightning elements, Dragon can appear on your weapons to deal damage and on your armor to help you resist damage. However, when someone says a weapon does “Dragon damage,” it’s a bit more complex than just dealing Fire damage, for instance.

If you’re diving into the world of Monster Hunter Wilds, this guide is here to break down what the Dragon element is all about. We’ll go through the monsters that drop Dragon materials and point out which creatures are particularly vulnerable to this type of damage.

Let’s talk about Dragon damage in Monster Hunter Wilds. It’s an element just like Fire, Ice, or Lightning, but it doesn’t quite fit into the usual elemental hierarchy. Instead, Dragon is mainly effective against a specific group of monsters: other dragons. It’s an oddity since usually, monsters are resistant to their own elemental affinities. Still, dragons are especially susceptible to Dragon weapons. However, be warned—they can retaliate with something called Dragonblight. This debuff is exclusive to monsters, so while you can’t use it against them, they can certainly use it on you.

Dragonblight effectively shuts down the Dragon element on your weapon while it’s active. Considering that most elemental weapons sacrifice some of their raw power for the benefits of elemental damage, getting hit with Dragonblight can seriously reduce your effectiveness in battle. If you find yourself facing off against creatures that wield Dragon damage, watch out for Dragonblight and have a Nulberry handy to cleanse it if you get hit.

When it comes to armor, Dragon sets have their vulnerabilities, notably against monsters that deal Dragon, Lightning, and Ice damage.

Now, you might be wondering which monsters you can hunt to craft Dragon weapons. At the start of Monster Hunter Wilds, there aren’t a ton of capital-D Dragon enemies lurking around, limiting your chances to get your hands on weapons imbued with this element. However, if you’re determined to forge a Dragon weapon to take on some of the game’s toughest endgame monsters, you’d do well to hunt these particular beasts:

(Note: Some weapon types may not be able to use materials from the Guardian Ebony Odogaron for crafting.)

So, which monsters should you wield your Dragon weapon against? While Dragon weapons may be a rare find, plenty of monsters are weak to them. Besides the four notable enemies mentioned, you’ll also deal extra damage to all Guardian-type monsters and the series’ iconic wyverns, Rathalos and Rathian.

For those ready to take on these formidable foes, here’s the complete list of monsters where wielding a Dragon weapon will give you an edge. Ready to hunt? Good luck out there!