The adorable poison dealer of Monster Hunter: World, Pukei-Pukei is back for Monster Hunter Rise, making its first appearance during the four star quest A Poisonous Project.
What to Expect
Pukei-Pukei is a Bird Wyvern who is as colorful as he is dangerous. This flying beast spends most of his time shooting poison at hunters from both his mouth and tail. Pukei-Pukei also utilizes his tongue as a whip and incorporates kicks into his attack pattern. Hunters should prepare by making sure they have Antidotes and Herbal Medicine to cure themselves.
Weakness
Hunters should aim for both Pukei’s head and tail to deal the most damage possible. Pukei-Pukei is most weak to Electricity, with Ice and Fire being decent alternatives. Hunters wanting to inflict ailments should be aware that Paralysis and Sleep are highly effective on Pukei-Pukei. Hunters can also inflict Blast and Thunderblight to deal some extra damage.
Attacks
Poison Shot
Pukei-Pukei has two variations of this move, the first being a single shot attack while the second involves three projectiles. Whichever variant is used, dodging the poison is quite simple. Hunters should side step out of the way when Pukei fires the single poison shot, whereas evading the triple shot requires hunters to dash forward or roll off to the side.
That having been said, those using an Insect Glaive or attacking from the air should exercise caution. Pukei-Pukei can fire his poison in the air at hunters, which both inflicts Poison and halts any attacks in progress.
Tail Spray
Pukei-Pukei’s tail is able to store up poisonous gas and spray it out, affecting a large area behind himself. Hunters should be cautious and move to Pukei’s side when they see his tail puff up in the middle. Their focus should be on cutting off Pukei’s tail, in order to lessen the effects of the poison. Without his tail, Pukei-Pukei’s poison cloud only covers a short distance and doesn’t linger as long.
Tongue Whip
Pukei-Pukei has a long tongue that can whip out and attack in a fashion similar to Khezu’s neck attack. Pukei is more likely to use this attack if fighting a ranged hunter, as hitting the hunter allows Pukei to stagger them and fly in for a combo attack. When Pukei raises his head, hunters need to roll to either side in order to avoid his tongue.
Range VS Melee
Range hunters using a bow and the various bow guns should use Slicing Ammo, if available, to sever Pukei-Pukei’s tail. Bow users in particular should focus on Pukei’s head and avoid the poison shots at all costs, while using Dash Juices to maintain stamina and stay on the move.
Melee hunters should also prioritize severing Pukei-Pukei’s tail, as this will make him safer to approach from behind. Once the tail is gone, these hunters should aim for Pukei’s wings and head to stun and stagger him for massive damage. We advise that melee hunters wait to aim for Pukei’s head until he is between attacks, since this window of time allows for substantial damage to be dealt.
