How to catch a Monster Hunter Wilds Whopper

Monster Hunter Wilds change appearance — (Image credit: Capcom)

To catch a Monster Hunter Wilds Whopper is the ultimate fishing challenge, tied to Kanya's quest "The Catch of a Lifetime". A whopper isn't actually a specific species of fish, but a classification that broadly encompasses several large fish that all count, like the Gajau, Gastronome Tuna, or Trevally. They all count for completing the quest, so we'll explain how to catch the easiest Whopper in Monster Hunter Wilds below.

How to catch the MH Wilds Whopper

The Whopper in Monster Hunter Wilds, as mentioned, can include either the Gastronome Tuna, Great Trevally, Gajau or Goliath Squid. Bring any of these back to Kanya, and you'll have completed The Catch of a Lifetime. Before you start fishing for Whoppers, use the Tuff Joint bait which lures in the most common Whopper variants. They can all be found in the Scarlet Forest, in area 17.

Whoppers have their own unique fishing mechanics that kick in once they've bitten the line, wherein you need to exhaust them before you can reel them in. Here's how it works:

Once the fish bites the hook, press R2/RT to start the minigame.
The goal now is to stop the line from reaching too much tension. Match the Whopper's movements with the analog stick to minimise line tension: if it goes left, you go left too. If it goes right, you also go right.
Eventually the fish will temporarily stop moving when it's exhausted. Rapidly press up and down on the analog stick to reel it in.
If the fish jumps in the air, follow its movements with the analog stick as normal, then press R2/RT at the height of the jump to restrain it and exhaust it again.
Once the fish is reeled in to be close enough to the shore, it'll automatically get dragged onto the bank and will be caught!

Whopper locations in Monster Hunter Wilds

There are multiple fish that count as Whoppers in Monster Hunter Wilds, but it seems all of them can be found in Area 17 of the Scarlet Forest, usually around the churning water (though not exclusively). Below we'll list the different Whopper fish and what lures/bait you need to catch them:

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Watch full video here:

Great Trevally: Tuff Joint Bait
Gajau: Duster Rigs
Gastronome Tuna: Tuff Joint Bait
Goliath Squid: Tentacle Jigs (and only shows up at night)

Goliath Squid are the rarest and you won't even have the Tentacle Jigs if you're at this specific point in the quest chain, so definitely use the Tuff Joint Bait as a rule just to draw any whopper from the water and complete the side quest. If the flying Harpios are diving into the water, clear them out with your Slinger to stop them from scaring away the fish first!

Looking for new forms of life in the Forbidden Lands? Check out the location of the Monster Hunter Wilds Gillopod here, or discover the incredibly rare Monster Hunter Wilds Sandstar here!

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Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and Very Tired Man with a BA from Brunel University, a Masters from Sussex University and a decade working in games journalism, often focused on guides coverage but also in reviews, features and news. His love of games is strongest when it comes to groundbreaking narratives like Disco Elysium, UnderTale and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as innovative or refined gameplay experiences like XCOM, Sifu, Arkham Asylum or Slay the Spire. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at Eurogamer, Gfinity, USgamer, SFX Magazine, RPS, Dicebreaker, VG247, and more.