It is incredibly intense as you hunt down the Monster. You must remain confident in your team role, as you could be jumped at any moment. But, if things go well for the group, the Monster will be the one surprised.
The easiest time to lose a game of Hunt is during this hunt itself. When a team has trouble tracking the Monster down, they may not face the foe until it has reached its full potential, which means a much tougher fight for the Hunters.
Once the team is dropped into the environment, use everything at your disposal, along with keen eyesight, to track the Monster down. As soon as you touch down, look around for Monster tracks and follow them. These blue markings light up in the direction the beast is moving. Note that a flying Kraken leaves a different print than when it walks.
Tracks are not always available, though. As the beast sneaks, climbs, or wades through water, nothing is left behind. Avoid getting fooled by misdirection, where the Monster takes one route before sneaking back and following another. Sometimes, it is best to split the team up for a better chance at finding it. Be sure to divide into groups of two so that everyone can be saved from wildlife or plants.
You can glean more clues from the environment. Toppled trees, corpses, and birds give away a Monster’s location (or at least whether it came through your location). Scared Birds and Carrion Birds are especially useful, as they give the exact location at that time.
Tracking Equipment
Various Hunter skills help the group with the tracking. Each of the Trappers has their own tracking equipment. Maggie has her Pet Trapjaw, Daisy, Griffin has Sound Spikes, and Abe uses a Tracking Dart Pistol. Bucket’s UAV and Cabot’s Dust Tagging add to your chances of finding the foe.
With Maggie on the team, it is as simple as following the Trapjaw. Daisy attempts to guide you straight to the Monster’s location. As you close in, you must anticipate the enemy’s movement and cut it off. Combine Maggie with Caira’s Adrenaline Field to speed the pet up and reach your target quicker.
Griffin can strategically place his Sound Spikes around in the hopes of tagging the Monster. Use the map to see where the spikes have been placed. As long as the Monster is in the Sound Spike area, it will be tracked.
Abe’s Tracking Dart Pistol can be used on the Monster itself or on the wildlife. He must be within sight to hit them with the dart. If a tagged creature is eaten, then the Monster is marked.
By using Bucket’s UAV skill, his head can be moved throughout the environment to spot the Monster. Bucket remains in his original location, so there may be some catch-up time once found. Cabot drops his tagging dust in an area to mark all nearby life forms. This acts similar to the Dart Pistol.
As you can see, the selected Trapper greatly changes the way the team hunts the Monster. Use this equipment often to track it down. The sooner you find your target, the more of its health you deplete, and the easier it is to take down later on.
Tracking strategies
There are many strategies that you can implement as you hunt down your target. The simplest tactic is to follow the footprints, but a good Monster uses this to their advantage by sneaking and mixing things up.
Try splitting the team up to cover more ground and find the Monster more quickly. Divide into groups of two, putting the Medic and Support into opposite parties. If the Medic duo runs into trouble, a Healing Burst keeps them going. Support’s Cloaking Field helps the other two to ease past any trouble areas, or at least gives them time to sit and wait if they find their objective. The Monster typically moves in circles or straight out, so have the two teams move outward and flank from both sides.
Once the Monster is found, the first decision is whether to engage it immediately or wait until the group is together. Slowing it down with Harpoon Traps, Harpoon Gun, Stasis Grenades, and/or Val’s Tranquilizer Gun makes it easier to remain with the giant. Next, the Trapper must decide to deploy the Mobile Arena or not.
It is easy to get tunnel vision as you hunt for the Monster, but you must stay alert of everything around you. If you are focused on the distance, wildlife or a carnivorous plant can attack when you least expect it. If your full attention is on the nearby area, you may miss a glimpse of your target on the horizon.