Monster Hunter World - How To Track and Kill Deviljho, Get The Dragonproof Mantle

(Note: This guide was a fully collaborative effort between TJ Denzer and Alex McCumbers)

The World Eater. Godzilla. The Big Pickle? Deviljho goes by many names in the Monster Hunter fandom, but despite a couple silly names, this beast has always been a force to be reckoned with. Much like Bazelgeuse in Monster Hunter World, Deviljho is known to roam areas, attacking anything in its path and often interrupting hunts. For many hunters, this would always result in a sigh or a curse as they ran away or tried to get the demon to leave. If we thought we were safe, we are no longer. Deviljho has arrived in Monster Hunter World.

Deviljho comes as a free update, adding a ton of new equipment, a new mantle, and of course one mean monster to take down. Being a Brute Wyvern like Anjanath or Barroth, Deviljho is able to do many of the same moves as Anjanath, but with some very deadly differences. Aside from the sheer damage output of its muscled body, the Deviljho can also inflict a hunter with Dragonblight, a status ailment that cuts out a weapon’s elemental properties. Deviljho is also a massive creature, able to stand toe to toe with most monsters, even slinging smaller ones around like playthings.

So how does a hunter take down this terrible rex? Well we’ve compiled some of the more general notes about Deviljho, as well as gathered some tips and theory from our own hunts, as well as some tips from other hunters we’ve talked to. While this may not make Deviljho a breeze, this guide will certainly provide some edge in the fight and as any hunter knows, any advantage is worth looking into.

The Path To Engagement

Before we can take down Deviljho, we need to know where one is found. Of course, before being able to hunt one, the player must download the latest patch, which is often downloaded automatically. Also know that this patch is available for all players, PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live is only needed for those that want to play online with others.

In order to find Deviljho, the player must have completed investigating “??? Rathian” Tracks and hunting it in the main questline. After this point, a prompt will alert the player that Deviljho has appeared in the New World. From here, the hunter must go on high rank (6 star or higher) expeditions or optional quests and look for tracks of the Deviljho’s presence. When selecting expeditions, look for new unknown monsters appearing on the monster list when choosing an area to explore. Of course, expeditions can be accessed through the many town exits, as well as the map menu.

The tracking process can be sped up by using gathering gear with skills like Scenthound (increases your scoutflies' gauge fill rate when you find tracks and other traces left by monsters) or Scoutfly Range Up (expands your scoutflies' detection range.). Using these skills, one can easily fill up the tracks in the first expedition and even run into Deviljho where the hunter can either run away, slay the beast, or capture it. After this there will be a quest that tasks the player with hunting Deviljho called “The Food Chain Dominator”.

Normally NPCs with quests will show a yellow explanation overhead, but this “Special Assignment” quest is given by three Lynian researchers with a blue exclamation point over their heads near the Tradeyard of your base. Beating this quest will grant the player the Dragonproof Mantle, a mantle that temporarily boosts Dragon resistance, plus boosts Dragon elemental attacks. This can be later used against Deviljho as a quick and easy advantage.

In summary, here’s how to unlock all of Deviljho’s content:

- Finish investigating and hunting “??? Rathian”

- Go on High-Rank optional quests and expeditions where a new monster is present.

- Search for new monster tracks and find Deviljho, and either fight it or flee

- Get “The Food Chain Dominator” quest from the blue exclamation marked researchers near the Tradeyard

Preparing for Deviljho

This is where the hunt can get serious and if the challenge is just too much, here are some handy tips to keep in mind. First off, let’s take a look at Deviljho’s weaknesses. When it comes to attack placement, hitting the beast’s head or belly is effective with all weapon types and his tail can be severed. Deviljho does put out Dragon damage with breath attacks, with added Dragonblight, but it also weak against Dragon damage as well as Thunder. Status ailments are all effective, but none of them are especially so.

For those struggling with their usual build, look for armor pieces with high defense and Dragon resistance. For additional damage, use weapons that have Dragon or Thunder elemental damage.  Poison is also viable for some extra damage on Deviljho as fights go on. Also be aware of hidden elements, which will show in parenthesis in the weapon’s stats. This can be unlocked with the skill Free Elem/Ammo Up, but for melee weapons level three of the skill will be needed to bring all of that potential damage out.

A good hunter is always well prepared, which is much easier in Monster Hunter World than past titles. Some items to consider bringing that one might not otherwise are things like Tinged Meat, Drugged Meat, or Poison Meat, which when placed on the field, hungry, hungry Deviljho will usually gobble up even in the heat of battle. Other solid items include Flash Pods and Dung Pods, which are great counters to Deviljho’s pinning attack. Be quick with that slinger though, as Deviljho can do a ton of damage in this instance. Nulberries will heal Dragonblight, as well as other status ailments in case another monster joins the fray. Other than these, bring the usual gear like potions, powders, barrel bombs, whatever has been working with whatever style.

Tools that are handy against Deviljho include things like the Evasion Mantle, which will make dodge rolling easier, the Rocksteady Mantle, which will protect against tremors, roars, and more, or the Vitality Mantle, which will ignore damage for a time. It’s also handy to have Palicoes carry the Flashfly Cage for extra stuns if you’re taking on the hunt solo or with a single ally. Of course, bring a tool that works with whatever character build is being run. In multiplayer, consider what other hunters are bringing.

And that brings up a good point as well. As member of the Monster Hunter International Guide, Thor Tricomi points out, "if you can't do it alone, do it in a group. Deviljho is a hot hunt, so it's easy to find other people going after him."

If you struggle or get frustrated, don't be afraid to send out an SOS beacon or wait for other players to join in on your quest.

All of that said, don't forget to go into battle on a full stomach. Some good stats and skill bonuses from eating can make a pivotal difference in this hunt. In multiplayer hunts especially, Felyne Insurance is handy and will grant an extra continue. This is a Daily Skill and is a little harder to get due to it being based on a percentage chance. Felyne Moxie may also be what saves a hunter from an attack that would otherwise defeat them. Other things to consider are eating for straight defense or elemental resistance. If the canteen seems confusing, try researching how it all works. This tutorial by Gaijin Hunter is especially helpful in considering what do with the food and skills they impart.

The Weapons Of The World-Eater

Finding and prepping for Deviljho is only half of the equation. Now you have to fight it, and for being such a muscle-headed brute, it can also be tricky. That said, there are a few classic tells to look out for. The easiest one to pick out is Deviljho’s rage, which will cause his body to bulge red with energy. The Pickle goes into what we'll call "Spicy Pickle Mode", will be more fast and aggressive, and will have access to several uses of a dragon breath attack. It’s always smart to study a monster before going full tilt on it, but when he sees you, that might be easier said than done.

As mentioned before, Deviljho’s attacks are very similar to Anjanath in many instances. It will lunge to bite you, go for consecutive bites, leap at you from a distance, throw its body sideways, grab you in its maw, bite you, and throw you down, and swing its tail much the same as Anjanath does, but there are a few key differences to look for. Simply put, one of them is that Deviljho is much larger than Anjanath and it makes many of his attacks cover more ground and harder to avoid. Always have a flash or dung pod loaded and ready to go in the fight with Deviljho. We’ll get to why shortly.

When Deviljho lunges into the ground with its maw, beware when it yanks its face back up, because sometimes it will fling rocks at you. When it throws its body sideways, beware the tail as it will curl around and swing at you even following the Pickle’s body attack. When it does consecutive bite attacks, be aware that it can change the direction it goes with its mouth and try to move well outside of its range. When it’s bulging red, it will sometimes rear up and let loose it’s breath attack. This comes in the form of an advancing arc of thick smoke with red electricity to it. Dodging in along the sides of Deviljho’s neck or outside the range isn’t incredibly hard, but if it hits, it can cause Dragonblight, which will seal off all elemental attacks in your weapons. Retreat and use a nulberry immediately to counteract this.

One of the most notably different things Deviljho will do is use other monsters to attack you. It picks up most small monsters (we’ve seen it carry nearly all Fanged Wyverns like Tobi Kadachi and Great Girros at this point) and will swing them at you from its maw like a club. This includes several bashing and lunging attacks, but the most notable among them is an attack in which Deviljho will plant the monster in its maw on the ground and sweep it in an arc, doing heavy damage. Beware of this one the most as it is easy to spot, but also easily the most deadly of a monster-assisted Deviljho attack.

All of these attacks can seem daunting, but it’s worth noting that they can also all be guarded against (even the breath). The one that you have to watch out for is Deviljho’s bite grab, which is unblockable without the help of a Guard Up skill on any of your armor. In this attack, Deviljho will pick you up, bite you, and throw you down on your back like Anjanath, but unlike Anjanath, Deviljho will attack almost immediately after to try to kill you. This is why it’s important to have those flash or dung pods ready. You need to fire one into its face immediately to give you enough time to get to your feet or it will really hurt you quickly.

How To Kill A Pickle

All of this said, there are many different ways to hurt Deviljho effectively. Thunder and Dragon element weapons are what it is most weak against, so consider equipment and skills that bolster those two properties. Though most status effects work briefly on Deviljho, poison seems to be the easiest to inflict on the beast works on it can supplement your damage nicely as well.

Pitfall Traps and Shock Traps also work, though Deviljho can swing its head at you from inside a Pitfall for damage and Shock Traps will only hold it for a couple seconds when it’s not seriously injured. Even so, flash flies also work for blinding and stunning Deviljho briefly and that makes the Flash Cage Palico gadget pretty useful for some free hits. If you’re going for a capture on the beast, both will work, though the Pitfall Trap seems to keep Deviljho in place longer for you to be able to throw down enough tranquilizer bombs to get it done. Once you weaken Deviljho to where a skull is showing over its icon in the mini-map, two tranquilizer bombs on a trapped Deviljho will capture it.

Just beware the front of Deviljho in a Pitfall Trap. As Monster Hunter International Guild member Kendrick Washington points out, even if the Deviljho is in the trap, "it will still attack in a cleave around around it. Behind it or off to the side is safest."

Mounting also works like normal on Deviljho and it doesn’t have any particularly unique attacks that will drain your stamina and throw you off. Getting a knock down on Deviljho off the mount is particularly important because it gives you access to its tail. Deviljho’s tail is severable and you can carve it, but because of its size, Deviljho’s tail is usually high enough that it can be difficult for most normal weapon attacks to reach it. Attacking it from cliffs or knocking the beast over is the only effective way to get in some serious damage on it.

Keep in mind where you’re hunting Deviljho and what monsters are present as this can be either a problem or a boon. It can pick up most smaller wyverns, but it does not appear to be able to lift other Brutes or Flying Wyverns. Even better, most monsters and will attack Deviljho on sight. Bazelgeuse in particular has “Turf War” clash with Deviljho that will deal enormous damage (over 1400 in our hunts) to both creatures, but monsters like Uragaan will also lay into Deviljho and pull its attention if they see it. So if you see an area like the Elder Crossing brimming with large monsters in compliment to Deviljho, consider hunting it there.  Just try not to be caught in the middle of a fight. Let the other monsters do the dirty work for you and take advantage when you see a chance.

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With all of this knowledge at your disposal, you should have everything you need to take on the Deviljho effectively by yourself or with a party. Practice makes perfect and once you’re fully aware of everything we mentioned here, you’ll be collecting Deviljho parts and putting together some absolutely stellar gear. Moreover, you might be further equipped to answer some SOS and help other hunters along on their Deviljho hunts (for your take in the material collecting, of course).

Want to know more about the details of Deviljho’s release or the balance made to various weapons and gear in the last patch? Then you’ll want to check out the full 2.0 patch notes.