How to Defeat Pukei-Pukei in Monster Hunter Rise

The Monster Hunter Rise monster line-up features tons of classic monsters, but also a few newcomers that are sure to become mainstays in the series. This is pretty much what happened in Monster Hunter World, as a few monsters that made their debut in the previous game returned in Monster Hunter Rise.

Among these returning monsters from Monster Hunter World is Pukei-Pukei, a monster that looks fearsome but it ultimately not a major threat. Here’s how to make it even less of a threat.

Overview

Pukei-Pukei is a Bird Wyvern that made its debut in the previous entry in the series, Monster Hunter World. Despite its big size and viciousness, the monster isn’t particularly strong, as its slow movement speed makes it easy to avoid attacks and retaliate quickly. Make sure to bring a weapon capable of dealing either Thunder or Ice damage to deal even more damage to the monster, and make the fight considerably shorter.

Where to Find Pukei-Pukei

Pukei-Pukei can be found in the Shrine Ruins, starting in Area 3, the Sandy Plains, starting in Area 6, and the Flooded Forest, starting in Areas 2 and 10. The monster will move around, so check out the nearby areas to locate it in case you cannot find it in the starting ones.

How to Defeat Pukei-Pukei

Poison Protection

Most of Pukei-Pukei attacks, like the Poison Spit and the Poison Tail Spray, inflict Poison, which can become very annoying if left unattended. As such, it is advisable to have some sort of protection against the ailment to avoid having to use items to heal it, prolonging the fight, and possibly leaving yourself open, depending on the weapon type you are using.

Used Flanking Attack. It’s Super Effective!

As the Pukei-Pukei’s poison attacks come from the head and the tail, it’s easy to avoid them as long as you manage to stay on the monster’s sides. While this prevents you from going for the weak points, it’s definitely better to play it safe until you feel confident enough in taking Pukei-Pukei straight on.

So Many Openings

Despite the annoying Poison status ailment, Pukei-Pukei is not a very dangerous monster, mostly due to its slow speed and long recovery time for most of its attacks. The long recovery time means that you can easily target the monster’s head, its weak spot, pretty much every time it is done with an attack, letting you deal max damage and make the fight considerably shorter.