Chatacabra

Every hunter’s Wilds story starts the same way: a big, grumpy toad with rocks on its arms. Chatacabra is the first large monster of the campaign, and it’s a good teacher. It’s loud, it telegraphs everything, and it punishes you just enough to make you pay attention.

Out in the wild

Chatacabra roams the Windward Plains, from the desert and the oasis to the wetlands and an underground den. It’s an amphibian, and it eats with its tongue: a long, sticky thing it fires at prey like Bulaqchi and reels back in. When it gets worked up, it scrapes its forelimbs along the ground until stone and ore stick to the mucus there. That rock armour turns a slap into a wrecking ball, and it reaches further too. Field reports even claim some have swallowed whole barrels mid-charge, which tells you everything about its appetite.

It’s not high on the food chain. Doshaguma and Rey Dau both bully it, and the only plains rival it has a real shot against is Balahara.

Where you meet it

Chapter 1, “Desert Trotters”. It’s the very first big hunt, and new to the series with Wilds.

How the fight goes

Expect big overhead slams with those rock-covered arms. They get faster and wider when it’s angry, and it starts swinging with both arms at once. The good news is that the armour breaks. Smash the ore off its forelimbs and it staggers, loses some of its reach and leaves itself wide open.

Hunter’s tips

• Its tongue is the soft spot. Hit it after a tongue attack or when it is tired.
• Break the rock armour on both arms early. The fight gets a lot calmer afterwards.
• It roams a lot, so use what the map gives you: falling boulders and Flashflies are free damage and free openings.