Monster Hunter World’s Anjanath might seem like a chump to endgame players, but a T-Rex that can breathe fire is pretty intimidating the first time you run into one. To bring it home (dead or alive), you’ll need to get a good night’s sleep, eat a hearty meal, and choose the right gear.
In this guide, we’ll show you when and where you can initially expect to find the Anjanath, and how to prepare for the hunt. We’ll also suggest some viable builds, let you know where the monster typically hangs out, and offer some strategies for fighting it effectively.
#1 Unlocking the Quest
The Anjanath is a big step up in power from all of the monsters you’ve hunted before, so don’t take the job lightly. The name of the seventh story quest in the game, “The Encroaching Anjanath,” should leave little doubt as to what your quarry is. The quest is unmissable, and you’re required to complete it before you can progress any further in the story.
#2 Preparation
Since this is presumably your first time going up against an Anjanath, you won’t have any notes on it yet. We’re willing to let you have a look at ours.
As you can see, water damage is the way to go if you’re a fan of elemental weapons; you can gather parts to make a decent water sword by farming Jyuratodus, a monster you’ve already encountered in the Wildspire Wastes. Thunder and ice are okay against Anjanath. He’s mostly resistant to dragon damage (but you likely don’t have any dragon weapons just yet anyway), and he’s immune to fire damage, so don’t bother bringing the heat.
For those of you who prefer status effects over elemental damage, poison, sleep, paralysis, and stun are all moderately effective, but blast isn’t a great choice. Don’t forget that putting status effects on your primary weapon isn’t the only option—you can also bring poison- or paralysis-inducing throwing knives.
Be sure to pack your bag with a shock trap, a pit trap, and enough trap parts to craft a few more of each in the field. Anjanath likes to rampage around a lot, so keeping him locked down with traps is helpful. (If you plan to capture him alive, don’t forget to bring a stack of tranquilizer bombs, too.) Other helpful tools include healing potions, health smokers, attack- and defense-enhancing potions, flash pods, and maybe some dung pods.
Lastly, be sure to drop by the cafeteria before you leave. Anjanath’s physical and fire-based attacks both deal heavy damage, so we’d suggest eating a meal that enhances physical or elemental resistance.
#3 Viable Builds
Relative to the gear and skills you’re likely to have by the time you first encounter the Anjanath, he’s pretty strong, but he’s not too bad, so defense-based, speed-based, and hybrid builds can all be good choices. He has a few attacks that are particularly painful, but they’re slow and well-telegraphed, so you should have plenty of time to block or dodge them.
Earplugs, Defense Boost, Divine Blessing, Fire Resistance, and Resuscitation are all good armor skills to equip for this fight. Anjanath likes to roar a lot, especially as he gets low on health, so Earplugs can reduce how often your attacks get interrupted. Resuscitation will briefly improve your defenses if you get set on fire, and the other three are broadly useful defense-boosting skills.
The most important piece of equipment to bring is a water-based weapon, if you have one. If not, prioritize raw attack strength or whichever status effects you prefer.
#4 Finding the Monster
Your prey usually skulks around the northern half of the Ancient Forest, so it’s probably best to get dropped off at the northeast or northwest camp. Once you land, chug whatever buffing potions you brought along, then start poking around for Anjanath tracks. He’s a real nomad, so it shouldn’t take too long to find some.
Note that it’s not impossible to find Anjanath roaming around the southern half of the map, just uncommon. Check there if you can’t find him in the northern sectors.
#5 Bringing the Beast Down
Once you spot your target, stay on your toes. If you’re still a good distance away when he notices you, he’ll likely either roar or throw a fireball at you. Be prepared to block or dodge should he choose the latter.
Anjanath has seven attacks: a tail whip, a stomp, a lunging bite, a terrifying jump attack, a charge, and two different kinds of fire breath. The tail whip deals medium damage and has medium knockdown power, but he’ll usually only employ it if you’re directly behind him.
The stomp isn’t very damaging and he doesn’t use it often, so melee builds can hang out right under his belly in relative safety. Anjanath will frequently bite any targets directly in front of him, and he’ll use the jump or the charge to close the distance if you get too far away. All three attacks can be highly damaging, so keep your shield up or be ready to dodge at a moment’s notice.
The beast’s fire breath is what you should be most worried about. He can launch a single fireball straight ahead or sweep a continuous column of flames from right to left. Both attacks hurt—a lot—but the single fireball is worse. On a direct hit, that attack can one-shot low-level hunters with relative ease.
Be cautious and play defensively if you decide to attack him from the front. If you find yourself on fire but still alive, roll around repeatedly to extinguish the flames. (This is where the Resuscitation skill can come in handy.)
The Anjanath’s weak points are his head and tail (which is severable), so prioritize one or both of those targets. He also has a third weak point: attacks to his neck deal very high damage, but only while he’s charging a fire breath attack. This is a high-risk, high-reward strategy.
If your attack hits—and deals enough damage—before his is ready, you can cancel it, but if you don’t hit hard enough, you’ll likely take a fireball to the face. Whether to employ this tactic or to play it safe and get out of the way is up to you.
At some point during the fight, another large monster will probably come along and decide to join in. For some reason, Anjanath seems to get involved in scraps with other monsters frequently. We say take advantage of it and let them wail on each other if it happens, but if you’d rather deal with Anjanath one-on-one, use a dung pod to chase the other monster away.
In terms of offensive tactics, aim your attacks carefully to ensure they’ll deal maximum damage and don’t get too greedy with combos. A few of Anjanath’s counterattacks, particularly the stomp, are quicker than you’d expect and might catch you in the middle of a combo before you can interrupt it.
Blinding him with flash pods is one way to play a little more aggressively, as you’ll be able to attack harder knowing that his own attacks will be less likely to connect.
Like all monsters, Anjanath will run away when you’ve taken off a decent chunk of his health. If you’re quick, you can drop a trap in front of him before he gets too far and continue the fight without giving him a chance to recover. If he does get away, just follow his new tracks and nip at his heels if you can.
Should he make it to his nest and fall asleep, a classic “stack of barrel bombs to the face” is always a great way to wake him up. You have plenty of time for this fight (50 minutes), so take advantage of it. Exert slow and steady offensive pressure on Anjanath and always be ready for his fire-based attacks. Keep those two rules in mind and you’ll have him trapped or slain before you know it.
You’ve done it! Pat yourself on the back, because that was a significantly tougher fight than any you’ve gotten into so far. The Anjanath parts you receive as a reward will unlock the Anja armor set, which offers solid all-around defense in addition to the useful Marathon Runner, Fire Attack, and Fire Resistance skills. Now that you know how to take down this monster, it’ll be much easier the next 75 times you run into him.
Do you need help with other hunts in Monster Hunter World? We’ve got Pink Rathian, Deviljho, and Bazelgeuse guides too, with more on the way soon.