How to beat Balahara in Monster Hunter Wilds
Balahara weak points, strategy and items.
Balahara is a Large Monster you first come across while playing through the 'A Hunter's Pride' Chapter 1 main mission in Monster Hunter Wilds, and it's also one that you can hunt repeatedly after you've defeated it for the first time.
This monster is a desert-dwelling leviathan that can create quicksand traps and inflict Waterblight. These traps can be annoying to deal with while hunting a Balahara in Monster Hunter Wilds, and you and your prey can also get sucked into one if you're hunting another monster in the vicinity of a Balahara.
Below, our Monster Hunter Wilds Balahara guide can help you beat the Balahara with tips, weak points, and attack info. We've also detailed Balahara locations, and harvest materials and items to help you completely plan for the hunt ahead.
And for even more help slaying monsters, check out our Monster Hunter Wilds monster list which includes all of the monsters' weaknesses and habitats.
Spoiler Warning: This page contains potential spoilers for Monster Hunter Wilds.
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If you'd like more assistance with your monster slaying, then visit our Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough hub.
Tips for defeating Balahara in Monster Hunter Wilds
Here are some handy tips for defeating Balahara in Monster Hunter Wilds:
- Balahara are vulnerable to Thunder elemental attacks, and attacking its weak points (Mouth, Tail, Head) is the most effective damage you can do.
- Balahara are greatly affected by Paralysis. This can be inflicted with items on hand, or by using items found in the environment.
- Pitfall Traps, Shock Traps, Flash Pods, an Sonic Bombs are also effective on the Balahara.
- Sonic Bombs (and Screamer Pods) are also particularly useful when a Balahara is submerged in the sand.
- Attack Balahara's Mouth after it expels mucus - Balahara's most vulnerable weak point is its Mouth, but you only really get a good chance at attacking it after Balahara has used its mucus spray attack. However, you need to be quick timing this!
- Bring Nulberry - Using a Nulberry will instantly dispel the Waterblight status effect (which decreases your stamina recovery rate) that Balahara can inflict with its mucus attack.
- Repeatedly rolling can also dispel Waterblight.
- If a Balahara climbs a stone pillar while you're fighting it in a cave, use your grapple to pull the pillar down and get the Balahara back down to your level, and to temporarily immobilise it. Then, use your strongest attacks on Balahara while it can't attack you.
- Beware of quicksand pits forming if you're fighting a Balahara on sand.
Monster Hunter Wilds Balahara weak points
To beat Balahara in Monster Hunter Wilds you should focus on attacking it's three weakest points and use Thunder elemental attacks if you can.
The Balahara's three weak spots are: Mouth, Head, and Tail. Its Mouth is a general weakpoint, its Head is breakable, and its Tail is severable. Using attacks imbued with the Thunder element on these spots is the best way to deal with Balahara quickly.
While its Mouth is Balahara's weakest point, it's very hard to actually damage it here, as you have to wait for Balahara to use its mucus spray attack in order for the monster to expose it. So make sure you get yourself into a good position when you see it gearing up for a mucus attack, so you can attack its Mouth (away from the mucus' path) as soon as Balahara opens it.
Monster Hunter Wilds Balahara attacks
The main Balahara attacks you want to avoid are its mucus, and underground lunge moves. Balahara uses its mucus attack almost non-stop, but its underground lunge only occurs later in the hunt, when Balahara starts to burrow underground.
Getting hit by Balahara's mucus can inflict Waterblight, which is a status effect that decreases your stamina recovery rate. If you do get hit by mucus, you can use a Nulberry, or roll repeatedly, to dispel Waterblight.
Balahara's underground lunge is annoying, and potentially deadly, so we recommend using a Sonic Bomb or Screamer Pod when it burrows down, to hurt Balahara and help bring it back to the surface.
The other attacks Balahara uses are: a head lunge, head swipe, and tail swipe. Sticking around Balahara's tail basically always prompts it to swipe you with its tail - which can be a short swipe or a swipe that Balahara winds up to first. So if you see that tail moving, get out of the way quickly!
Lastly, keep in mind that Balahara can also form quicksand pits if you're fighting one on sand. Run away from the shimmering sand as quick as you can to avoid falling in, if this happens.
Monster Hunter Wilds Balahara harvest materials and items
Here are the materials and items you can get from fighting a Balahara, then harvesting materials from its carcass.
Low Rank materials
These are the low rank Balahara materials:
- Balahara Scale
- Balahara Shell
- Balahara Skull
- Balahara Tail
- Balahara Certificate
- Balahara Black Pearl
- Aqua Sac
High Rank materials
These are the high rank Balahara materials:
- Balahara Scale+
- Balahara Carapace
- Balahara Skull+
- Balahara Tail
- Torrent Sac
- Balahara Certificate S
- Balahara Black Pearl
- Wyvern Gem
Monster Hunter Wilds Balahara locations
During your initial encounter with Balahara as part of the 'A Hunter's Pride' main quest, you can simply follow your scoutflies to find their next location and look for the monster icon on your map.
Balahara are native to the Windward Plains. When you're in this region, you'll be notified by a small pop up on the right side of the screen when the Balahara is available, and you can also check the Environment Overview map to see if a Balahara is available to hunt. To make tracking it easier, set up a quest to hunt the Balahara in order to follow scoutflies to its location.
Balahara can be found in area 14 and area 15 of the Windward Plains. Once you engage Balahara in a battle, it tends to run from one of these caves into the sand, stopping to fight you for short bursts, before returning to one of these area 14 and area 15 caves when weakened.
Should you capture or kill Balahara in Monster Hunter Wilds?
If you're looking to harvest specific materials for new armor pieces or weapons, then you should kill a Balahara. However, if you need one for other things, then you should try to catch it. In short, the answer is subjective depending on your current needs surrounding the monster.
If you're looking for more help during your hunts, check out our pages on how to defeat the Alpha Doshaguma and Rey Dau.