If you have ever played Monster Hunter before, you will know the specific strats to help you maximize the number of monster materials you get from every single hunt. If you are new to the series, then you might be in for a treat when we say that capturing monsters is by far the best way to get the most out of each hunt.
To give you a short version, it is actually very easy to capture a monster in Monster Hunter: World. You will first need to get the monster’s health below 30%. Once you do that, place down a trap and lure them into it. Once you have them in the trap, throw Tranq Bombs around their head until you put them to sleep. If you do it correctly, you will capture the monster.
It seems like it would be a piece of cake, and if you know how to do it, it is. If you are new, it will take you a few tries to get it down. Once you finally understand how it works, then you won’t have to kill the monster. We don’t know why you get more for capturing it, but that is how the developers made the game.
We will go over everything you will need to capture a monster and give you specific details on how to craft each item. We will also be answering a couple of questions that new players have about capturing monsters. If you want to know more, make sure to read the rest of the article.
What do you need to capture Monsters?
To capture monsters, you will only need two items. There are 2 versions of one item, so if you want to be 100% sure you have everything when you enter your hunt, make sure you have more than enough to complete your objective. You can only carry one of each Trap, so make sure you take both types just in case you deploy it by accident.
You might deploy a Trap and the monster runs away to a different location. You can pick it up again so you will have to have a backup plan just in case something like that happens. It is also helpful to make sure your friend has one on him as well to make sure you guarantee the capture. If you aren’t prepared, you might need to finish off the creature and not get as many materials.
Here are the items you need to capture Monsters in Monster Hunter: World –
Shock Trap (1x)
How to Craft: You will need to combine a Trap Tool and a Thunderbug to make one of these items
The Shock Trap is by far the best option you can take with you. You can only take one at a time per hunt, so be very careful when you deploy it so you don’t waste it. Make sure that the creature is ready to be captured as well since it might have the strength to get out of it. The best time to deploy it is when it is limping back to its lair.
It has a pretty small area of effect so you need to either deploy it right in from of it when it is trying to get away or when the monster is knocked to the ground. It is best to do it when it is limping though since it is almost a guaranteed capture at that point. These are pretty easy to make so make sure you have plenty for upcoming hunts that you do.
Pitfall Trap (1x)
How to Craft: You will need to combine a Trap Tool and a Net to make one of these items.
The Pitfall Trap is very similar to the Shock Trap, but it does work a bit better. It is harder to craft, but it is worth having on you. Only one can be in your inventory per hunt just like the Shock Trap, so it is worth having both on you to use as a backup plan if you need it. Instead of it being a Shock trap, it deploys a net around the creature blocking them in a small pit.
Either Trap will work the same, so as long as you are carrying both, you shouldn’t run into any issues about wasting them. We have wasted a few Traps because we either deployed them early or the monster ran away so be very careful how you use them. Once you place them down, they can’t be picked up again. If you have multiple people, you can guarantee that capture.
Tranq Bombs (2x-4x)
How to Craft: You will need to combine a Parashroom and a Sleep Herb to make one of these items.
The Tranq Bomb is actually the most important item you need when it comes to capturing a monster. You can actually carry eight on you per hunt so you don’t really have to worry about using them all up. It actually takes a minimum of two Tranq Bombs to complete the capture. Once the creature is caught in your Trap, throw down a couple of Tranq Bombs.
You will want to make sure you throw the Tranq Bombs by the creature’s head or else you might need to use more than that. You could either throw them once the creature is caught in the Trap, or you can throw one before the creature is caught, and then once they are down, throw another and you will most likely capture it if you threw them correctly.
How do you capture Monsters?
Here are the steps to capture a Monster in Monster Hunter: World –
1. Lower the Monster’s health below 30%
The first thing you will need to do is lower the monster’s health until it is less than thirty percent. This can be a bit tricky to understand, but the monsters in the game have no health bars. There isn’t a prompt on the screen telling you that you reach this goal. What you need to do is watch what the creature does.
Once a monster hits that percentage of health, you will notice that it will get tired. Once it is tired, it will start limping away and it will head back to its lair. Once it is limping, you could either catch up to the monster and trap it, or you can try to capture it while it starts to go to sleep. To actually capture it successfully, you will need to make sure it is tired first.
2. Throw down either a Shock or a Pitfall Trap
The second thing you need to do is lay down one of the two Traps we talked about earlier. You could use either the Shock or the Pitfall Trap and all you need to do is lay it down and have the monster walk over it. Once it is in the general area, the Trap will catch them and you will be ready for the next part of the capturing process.
Before you lay down the Trap though, if it is limping, make sure you have enough space to deploy the Trap in front of the monster. If you are worried, just be patient and wait for the monster to return to its lair. You can then throw the Trap down there and take the monster in pretty easily.
3. Use at least 2 Tranq Bombs while the Monster is trapped
The third and most important thing you need to do is to throw down at least two Tranq Bombs right next to the monster’s head. You can wait until the monster is trapped to throw them down, or you can always throw one down by the head before it is trapped to get it to slow down a bit. It is totally up to you how you want to do it.
If you don’t hit the right area, you might need to use more than two, so always keep a full stack on you so if you miss a lot, you will always have more. They aren’t difficult to make, but these are the items you will have to have to finish the capture successfully. If you don’t have them, you will be forced to defeat the monster and get fewer rewards.
4. Capture the Monster
Obviously, once you complete the three previous steps, you will have successfully captured your monster. This will not only give you more than double the materials, but it will also give you a higher chance of finding rare materials. When we started capturing, we actually got the higher-tiered armor a lot quicker than when we defeated monsters.
It will give you the rare materials more often so you won’t have to spend a ton of hours grinding for materials. You will still need to grind, but not as much since it will benefit you to do fewer hunts for more rewards. If you haven’t started capturing monsters yet, we would highly recommend you try it. You won’t regret it at all.
How do you know when the Monster is ready to capture?
As we said before, there is really only one way to determine if a monster is ready to be captured. You will have to wait until they are limping away. If they are running away, don’t use up any resources on them yet because they are just moving to a different location. You will have to wait for them to head back to their hideaway.
Once they are limping, you can capture it however you want to. You can wait till they retreat, or you can run past it and trap them that way. Just make sure you give yourself enough space to deploy the Traps and that the monster is heading in the direction you placed it. If you are new to capturing, try waiting till they reach their spot so you can get the hang of it.
Is it better to capture or kill the Monsters?
There are pros and cons to either capturing or carving a creature. When you capture the monster, you will have to use up the resources to be able to capture it. That means at least 2x Tranq Bombs and 1x Trap. You do get almost double the materials from the monster when you complete the quest. You will also get a higher chance at rare materials with capturing as well.
With carving a monster, you will have more time to knock off pieces of a monster that you only get from cutting certain body parts off. It takes a lot longer to finish the quest and the rewards are not as good. There are times to carve, but most of the time, you should probably capture the monster since it will help you out more in the long run.
Can you capture Elder Dragons?
Eldern Dragons can’t be captured. It sucks, but you will have to defeat the Elder Dragon if you start the quest. A lot of people want them to change this, but it really isn’t as bad as you think. You will need to carve the Elder Dragons to get rare materials, but that is what makes the Elder Dragon fights that much better.
There are a ton of Elder Dragon fights in the game, especially if you have the Iceborne DLC. It is unfortunate that you can’t capture them, but the armor and weapons that you can make with the materials don’t take as many resources as a regular monster does. If you are having trouble with any Elder Dragon, don’t hesitate to ask other people for help.