When the credits roll in Monster Hunter Wilds, the real hunt begins. High Rank unlocks at the end of Chapter 3, transforming the game from a guided adventure into a true test of skill-where tougher monsters, powerful gear, and new mechanics await on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox. If you thought you’d seen everything, think again: High Rank is where the Wilds truly come alive, and only the most prepared hunters will thrive.
As with previous entries, there is a neat split between Low Rank and High Rank, and this guide explains the difference between the two, how tostart High Rankin Monster Hunter Wilds, as well as a list of hunter rank (HR) soft caps.
What is High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds?
High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds is a major progression milestone that marks the transition from the introductory Low Rank phase to a more challenging and rewarding tier of gameplay. Once unlocked-typically after rolling credits on the main story or completing the final boss of Low Rank-players gain access to tougher versions of familiar monsters, entirely new creatures, and significantly improved gear options, including high-rarity weapons and armor sets. High Rank hunts introduce new gameplay features such as Tempered monsters, layered armor, and expanded side activities, while also requiring players to earn Hunter Rank points through hunts and quests to unlock new missions and content. This tier is where the true depth of Monster Hunter Wilds opens up, offering a greater variety of challenges and rewards for dedicated hunters.
Low Rank is essentially the tutorial introducing you to Monster Hunter Wilds. It teaches you the different monster types and how they interact with each other, and more importantly, how you should approach killing each one. This is easily the most approachable game in this franchise, but that’s not to say that everything in Low Rank is easy. That all depends on your weapons, armor, and – frankly – skill.
When you get to High Rank, any semblance of “training wheels” is completely gone. The most immediate difference is, as with all other Monster Hunter games, the very best end-game Low Rank armor is matched by the worst High Rank armor, with new gear very quickly outclassing your finest threads.
This is why you’re often better waiting until you reach High Rank to put serious time and effort into grinding and unlocking armor sets.
As you would expect, unlocking High Rank armor and weapons involves finding High Rank bones and ores, as well as killing High Rank monsters to drop their fancy new monster parts. You will need to farm all of these – and occasionally some Low Rank monsters – for High Rank gear.
It also continues the (excellent) main story, introduces monster species and sub-species, and gives you access to layered armor.
When is High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds, and how do you unlock?
High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds unlocks after you complete the main story content, which typically means finishing all main story quests up to the end credits-usually after Main Mission 3-5 or Chapter 3, depending on how the game labels its progression. Once the credits roll, you’ll return to the game and find that High Rank is now available, with your Hunter Rank cap increasing and new, tougher monsters and gear becoming accessible. In some cases, you may need to complete specific tasks, like capturing a Yian Kut-Ku after defeating the final Low Rank boss, or reaching a certain Hunter Rank (such as HR10), before High Rank quests and monsters appear. From this point, missions are color-coded to distinguish Low Rank (blue stars) from High Rank (orange stars), and you’ll be able to craft and equip stronger High Rank armor and weapons, marking the start of the real challenge in Monster Hunter Wilds.
High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds starts when you Chapter 3 and let the end credits roll. When you return, to Chapter 4, you will see the cap on your hunter rank (known as HR) lift from its current rank of HR7.
There are a few things that change now that you have unlocked High Rank.
- Your previous 1-3 star missions are now known as Low Rank missions. Similarly, all armor unlocked before the credits is listed under a Low Rank section of Gemma’s Smithy.
- From here on out, you will see High Rank armor in its own separate shop pane.
- High Rank missions will also be available, however unlike previous games, these aren’t in their own section. Instead, to simplify the UI, Wilds places these all in a single, contiguous list. To make things easy, High Rank missions (4 stars and above) are color-coded. As you can see, Low Rank missions have a blue star, while High Rank missions have an orange star:
Another thing to be aware of is that the progression through the game changes. As you play, you will sometimes notice that your HR isn’t going up after completing a hunt. That’s a sign that you have hit a new soft cap. Our dedicated guide to “’Investigate the regions and raise your HR” explains how to progress through this vague goal.
HR soft caps list in Monster Hunter Wilds
Monster Hunter Wilds features several Hunter Rank (HR) soft caps that gate your progression as you advance through the story and post-game content. These soft caps prevent your HR from increasing further until you complete specific milestones or chapters. Here’s a concise list of the known HR soft caps and the points at which they are lifted:
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End credits: HR7 cap lifted
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Chapter 4-1: HR8 cap lifted
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Chapter 4-2: HR15 cap lifted
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Chapter 4-3: HR20 cap lifted
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Chapter 6-1: HR40 cap lifted
After each of these milestones, your HR can increase until you hit the next cap. The hard cap for HR in Monster Hunter Wilds is currently unknown, but, based on previous titles, it is expected to eventually reach HR 999 after all story and post-game caps are cleared.
Here are some of the High Rank milestones, and the caps they unlock:
- End credits: HR7 cap lifted
- Chapter 4-1: HR8 cap lifted
- Chapter 4-2: HR15 cap lifted
- Chapter 4-3: HR20 cap lifted
- Chapter 6-1: HR40 cap lifted
We don’t currently know the HR hard cap in Monster Hunter Wilds, at the time of writing, but if this game is like Monster Hunter World (the spiritual predecessor), we expect that there will be story missions and soft caps up to HR 100, after which the hard cap of HR999 will come into play. However, this will likely form part of Wilds’ long-term road map.
When does High Rank officially begin in Monster Hunter Wilds
High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds officially begins after you complete Chapter 3 and see the end credits roll. Once you return to the game in Chapter 4, you’ll unlock your first High Rank quest, which starts with capturing a Yian Kut-Ku in Story Chapter 4-1. This transition also lifts the Hunter Rank (HR) cap from HR7, introduces tougher monsters, and gives you access to new gear and features exclusive to High Rank.
Is reaching Hunter Rank 10 the only requirement to unlock High Rank in Wilds
Reaching Hunter Rank 10 is not the only requirement to unlock High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds. To access High Rank, you must:
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Complete all main story quests in Low Rank,
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Reach Hunter Rank 10 (HR10),
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Defeat the final boss of Low Rank,
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Return to the hub and talk to the Guild Master to officially unlock High Rank quests.
Simply reaching HR10 is necessary, but you also need to finish the main story and specific key quests to trigger the transition to High Rank.
