Head to the Elder’s Recess for Tempered Elder Dragons in Monster Hunter: World

Feb 12, 2018

Hunters who have progressed quite a bit in the game are now focusing on hunting tempered monsters. You can obtain an item called “Decorations” which are part of the end-game content, and you need to hunt down Tempered monsters for a +8 charm or full custom upgrades for your gear.

A player learns about “tempered” monsters after slaying Xeno’Jiiva in the story mode. When tempered, a monster stays enraged almost the entire fight. For some monsters, this dramatically increases their difficulty and has led to many frustrated hunters.

However, it is natural that more difficult monsters give you more satisfying rewards. Hunters are now putting in their best efforts to hunt them down, and there’s an elder dragon at the end of this chain of hunts. A lot of parties have been banding together to take down the tempered elder dragon.

The problem is that finding a related quest itself is not an easy task. The tempered monster quest can only be found by searching for a track, and although the list of monsters can be determined depending on the type of track or clue, with the vast amount of monsters, it can be difficult to predict. Moreover, you need to find quite a few tracks in order to get the investigation quest.

Hunters who have been playing the end-game content are using 2 methods to find the right tracks:

1. Find the best route and investigate yourself, and gather tracks; and/or

2. Find an SOS flare and enter, help hunt down the monster and gather tracks.

Be sure to look in the right area if you’re looking for a specific monster. If you are looking for an elder dragon quest, you need to investigate the map with that monster or wait for an SOS flare of that monster.

The first option is good for managing your time, as you can participate in the quest whenever you are free to do so. Of course, the tracks can be random so you may need to spend some time finding them. The latter case may be difficult, since finding an appropriate party isn’t always easy, but it is sure to give you some tracks. Therefore, if you have a group of people to play with, it is highly recommended that you do the tempered quest together because the track you gather during the quest will often lead you to the next tempered quest.

However, if you are uncomfortable with party play, or need the first track to do the tempered quest with your friends, you might need to spend some time doing investigations.

If you are in this situation, go to the Elder’s Recess for investigation. It will give you the tracks of the elder dragon faster than any other places.

Things to prepare before going off

The investigation starts with Hunter’s Headgear and Felyne

Before you leave, you need to create a “Hunter’s Headgear a” at the Smithy. This is a must-have gear crafted from Jagras materials and is helpful in investigating tracks with both Scoutfly Range Up and Scholar.

▲ It helps you more when upgraded with Stealth and Geologist

When your gear is ready, it is time to prepare meals. Of course, you can’t always prepare meals in advance as it has a random factor. However, it still provides considerable benefits, so it is better to check it out before heading out for an investigation.

▲ Although it’s random, it is worth checking out

Tracks of 3 elder dragons in the Elder’s Recess

Why the Elder’s Recess?

The preparation is complete once you craft Hunter’s Headgear. Then, why does it have to be the Elder’s Recess? Below is the list of reasons:

1. The tracks of 3 elder dragons can be found in this area - Kushala Daora, Teostra, and Nergigante

2. The map is not that big with a relatively short route from the camp

3. Doing investigation quests such as finding ore is easy

This route was first introduced by one YouTuber and is now loved by many solo-playing hunters.

The route only takes around 3 minutes at maximum to go through, and you’re quite unlikely to encounter large monsters on this path. The number of monster tracks you can expect to collect is 3. The type of investigation quests will vary as well due to the diverse kinds of tracks.

Of course, the probability of finding each track varies. Although the track of Kushala Daora is almost definitely there, it is not so with Teostra and Nergigante. Nevertheless, the chances are still relatively high enough.

To the camp in area 8

Do not forget misc items such as Monster’s Dung and Godbug

The first objective is area 4, the top of the high mountain where the Kushala Daora’s lair is located. Obtain honey near the entrance of the camp, and climb the right wall across area 3. You can also obtain the monster’s dung if you go down to area 2 to the left of the camp entrance. It is a material for crafting Slinger Ammo, and cannot be made at the Botanical Research Center, so it is recommended that you take some if you have time.

▲ The location of monster’s dung, you don’t really need to gather them though

You will find a couple of items such as ore, Adamant Seed, and Blazenut on the way from area 3 to area 4. You can also do ore/plant investigation quests as well.

Climbing up to the top with Wedge Beetle after the first wall will dramatically reduce the time. Besides, it’s fun, so why not?

Moving to the central hill will then let you find a track of Kushala Daora. It almost definitely appears in the area, and it is recommended that you visit regardless of whether you need the item or not because of the location you will go to next.

▲ Kushala Daora’s track is located on the top of the hill

Move to area 9 by jumping off to the west on the map. The destination is the entrance of area 14 where you’ve spent a considerable amount of time looking for Nergigante in the past. You can find some ore and plants in this area too. Don’t be disappointed if you can’t find the Nergigante’s track, as it is quite random.

The last destination is area 12, which is right next to area 9. If you move south on the minimap, you will find Teostra’s track before moving to the next area.

▲ This is also random, but it felt easier to spot than Nergigante’s track

After searching these spots, you can then return to the base after gathering a few other items on your way back. The rest is just repeating this process.

Of course, getting the tempered elder dragon quests isn’t easy even though this is one of the fastest ways to find tracks. It still takes some time to encounter the first quest even with this route.

It surely is a tedious task. I myself am also spending lots of time investigating when I don’t really have a solid objective to accomplish. However, if you still haven’t had a chance to encounter the tempered elder dragon quest, the Elder’s Recess is definitely a recommended place to start your search.