In between Title Updates, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreakintroduces Event quests as a fun pastime for players to enjoy and earn unique rewards. However, in some cases, these Event quests can also be extremely challenging. This is the case with Dual Threat: A Returning Rush of Red, which tasks hunters with defeating an abnormally large Malzeno and Shaguru Magala.
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak players will need to slay Malzeno and Shagaru Magala at the Citadel in fifty minutes or less. To make matters worse, the Elder Dragons are nearly twice their original size and will be roaming around the area simultaneously. It should perhaps go without saying, but this will be a challenging fight for most hunters.
How To Defeat Malzeno
Of course, hunters can choose which monster to fight first, but Malzeno will be the first to be discussed here. Malzeno is a unique Elder Dragon, in that it can inflict multiple blight attacks and even has a transformation. This monster has two enraged states, the first of which acts as a normal enraged state where the beast will become more aggressive toward players. The second is the transformation into its 'Vampiric" mode. In this state, Malzeno will gain access to new moves, such as Teleportation, and inflict Bloodblight on hunters hit by its attacks.
This form is extremely dangerous and can be fatal for careless hunters. However, it also gives hunters an opportunity to go on the offensive because if Malzeno is knocked out of its Vampiric Mode, players have a large window to deal immense damage to Malzeno. The key is to attack the Qurio-infested parts of the body, such as the head, tail, and forelegs. Dealing enough damage to these parts will topple the beast and knock it out of its Vampiric mode. Using Dragon-element weapons to do so will deal even more damage to the beast. Players should continue to follow this strategy until the beast is eventually slain.
How To Defeat Shagaru Magala
Shagaru Magala is a very different story. While not nearly as complicated of a fight as Malzeno is, the doubled size of the beast makes it far more dangerous than before. Shagaru Magala is the final evolution of a Gore Magala and thus retains most of its original moveset. However, Shagaru Magala does not hesitate to put its increased size and power to good use. It's especially fond of using its enormous wings to swipe players away if they get too close. Not only that, but it also has a few new moves to be wary of.
Shagaru Magala has two rage modes for players to look out for. First, it's Frenzy state, which is reminiscent of the normal Gore Magala Frenzy mode. Shagaru Magala will cloak itself in the Frenzy virus and becomes more aggressive than before while also using more Frenzied attacks.
If a Frenzied attack strikes a player, they will, in turn, receive the Frenzy virus. A new gauge will appear by the player's health bar when afflicted by the virus. If the meter fills out completely, the player's natural healing regeneration will fade which will cause players to take twice as much damage as before. To overcome the virus, hunters should go on the offensive against Shagaru Magala, as dealing enough damage will eventually cause the gauge to dissipate.
Finally, the new rage mode Shagaru Magala possesses is the Ultra Frenzied Mode. When players deal enough damage to the beast, Shagaru Magala will fly up into the air and let out a roar, summoning Frenzy virus pillars from the ground. In this mode, the Elder Dragon gains access to two new moves: the Frenzied Beam attacks.
There are two variations of this attack. The first is a Frenzied Beam, where Shagaru Magala will back up and fire off the beam in a straight line. This attack can be easily avoided, but it will deal massive damage if it makes contact. The second variation is the Sweeping Frenzied Beam, where Shagaru Magala will stand on its hind legs and fire the Frenzied Beam around the area. If players are close to the beast, they should run toward its back to avoid the blast. However, those further away should perform a Dolphin dive to avoid the blow. This attack is considered the Ultimate Move of Shagaru Magala, and, in most cases, can one-shot a player if they are careless.
Like Malzeno, Shagaru Magala is exceptionally weak to the Dragon element. When in its Frenzied modes, players can alleviate some of the stress by breaking the beast's horns to temporarily knock it out of the Frenzied state, allowing them to deal massive damage to it. If they can overcome the virus, players will eventually slay the Elder Dragon.
Unfortunately, the rewards for this nightmarish experience aren't anything to brag about. For successfully slaying the oversized Malzeno and Shagaru Magala, players will be awarded the following Guild Card Titles:
- Exalted
- Outstanding
- Unmatched
- Collected
- Purifying
- Dominating
- Unexpected
- Manifest
- Rotational
- Sacred
They'll also earn exclusive Malzeno and Shagaru Magala rewards, such as body parts and mantles.
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak is now available for the Nintendo Switch and PC.