How to Get the Bandit Mantle in Monster Hunter World
For those who are unfamiliar, the Bandit Mantle is a specialized tool in Monster Hunter World. As such, it can be used to provide the player with a temporary buff in much the same manner as other mantles. In its case, the Bandit Mantle causes enemies to drop trade-in items that can be sold to the Provisioner for Zenny, thus making it a must-have for hunters who are feeling the financial strain.
Why Do You Want the Bandit Mantle in Monster Hunter World?
In total, the Bandit Mantle can result in seven trade-in items. The least valuable is the Chipped Scale, which can be sold for 500 Zenny. Moving on, there are the Large Scale, the Beautiful Scale, the Lustrous Scale, the Glimmering Scale, and the Giant Scale, which can be sold for 1,000 Zenny, 2,000 Zenny, 3,000 Zenny, 5,000 Zenny, and 8,000 Zenny respectively. Based on this, it should be clear that the smart use of the Bandit Mantle can be very lucrative even if it has a duration of just 180 seconds as well as a recharge time of 210 seconds.
With that said, the true power of the Bandit Mantle shows when an entire party of hunters coordinate their use of their respective mantles because the effect stacks. Due to this, an entire party with Bandit Mantles can expect a massive increase in their earnings, particularly if they are going after higher-ranked prey with better drop rates. Considering how expensive higher-level weapons and other equipment can get, it is no exaggeration to say that the Bandit Mantle is one of the most useful non-combat tools that can be found in the whole of Monster Hunter World.
How Can You Get the Bandit Mantle in Monster Hunter World?
Fortunately, getting the Bandit Mantle is pretty simple and straightforward. In short, interested individuals need to complete the optional 5* quest called “Redefining the Power Couple.” Based on the name, it should come as no surprise to learn that they will have to take down both a Rathalos and a Rathian in the Ancient Forest. As for unlocking the optional quest, this can be done by completing both “A Fiery Throne Atop the Forest” and “Horned Tyrant Below the Sands.”
By the point that players unlock “Redefining the Power Couple,” they should be more than familiar with the Ancient Forest. As a result, they should have a general understanding of how they can move from level to level, which will make matters much easier for them. If not, they might want to spend some time hunting monsters that live on the higher levels in the Ancient Forest because both Rathalos and Rathian are capable of flight, thus enabling these two monsters to move from place to place with very inconvenient ease.
First, the Rathalos is the male of the species. Element-wise, the player is best-off with some kind of Dragon-element weapon. However, since “Redefining the Power Couple” is a relatively early mission, they may or may not actually have a good Dragon-element weapon on hand. Due to this, they can make do with a Thunder-element weapon, which isn’t quite as good but should nonetheless prove very useful when wielded against the Rathalos. Unfortunately, if the player has neither a Dragon-element weapon nor a Thunder-element weapon, they might want to just use a weapon of no particular element. This is because neither Water-element weapons nor Ice-element weapons are very effective, while the use of a Fire-element weapon is just downright detrimental. Something that is perhaps unsurprising when the Rathalos is capable of breathing fire.
Speaking of which, the Rathalos has poison as well, so the use of Poison and Blast isn’t particularly useful. Instead, if players want to make use of status effects, they should go for Sleep, Paralysis, and Stun. The Rathalos isn’t particularly vulnerable to any of these three status effects, but it isn’t particularly resistant to them either, meaning that they might be capable of producing the desired effect.
Moving on, the Rathalos is a serious threat because it is a fast flier. As such, it can be very frustrating to fight it with a close-range weapon, particularly one that lacks the reach needed to reach it. Thanks to this, players might be better-off fighting the Rathalos with some kind of ranged weapon. Something that is particularly true if they aren’t confident about dodging the Rathalos’s various attacks from up close. On the whole, there are three attacks that are particularly noteworthy. One is a fire-breathing attack in which the Rathos will unleash its flames in an arc around it while another is a fire-breathing attack in which the Rathalos will spew a fast-moving fireball. The third is when the Rathalos attacks from the air with its claws, which is a huge potential nuisance because those claws are poisonous. Otherwise, it is interesting to note that the Rathalos’s head is its most vulnerable segment, while both its tail and its wings are worth breaking for the purpose of reducing its combat capabilities.
Second, the Rathian is the female of the species. For the most part, it is very similar to its male counterpart. However, there are some significant differences, which is why players should be careful lest they get caught by something seen in one monster but not the other.
For instance, while the Rathian has the same elemental strengths and weaknesses as the Rathalos, it has one difference when it comes to status effects in that it is much more vulnerable to Stun than its male counterpart. Thanks to this, while fighting a fast flier with a close-range weapon is still a hassle, a heavy-hitting option such as a Hammer or a Switch-Axe becomes much more viable when applied to the Rathian’s head with great power as well as great frequency. Besides the head, players will also want to watch out for the Rathian’s tail because that is where its poison is concealed. Fortunately, the tail can be severed, meaning that once that has been carried out, the monster becomes much less threatening. Still, less threatening isn’t the same as no threat whatsoever, as shown by how the Rathian will retain a penchant for breathing fire from the air.