Malzeno Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak Guide

By Dave Acuñaon
Monster Hunter Malzeno cover

Malzeno is the flagship monster of Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak and is one of the elder dragons causing a disturbance in Elgado. Players have already experienced fighting against Malzeno through the demo and it has proven to be quite a challenge. Now that Sunbreak is out, hunters who failed the challenge can get their revenge, however this time, Malzeno’s full strength has been unleashed.

In this guide, we will talk about Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak’s Malzeno and share some tips on how to survive and succeed in its hunts.

Malzeno Characteristics

Malzeno has a typical dragon’s body structure with four legs and a pair of wings. It’s theme and look is based on the classical western depiction of a regal vampire, with its pale base color accented by the crimson red and the golden trim of its scales.

It is usually accompanied by Qurio, small winged leeches that fly in swarms and suck the life out of their victims. The Qurios have a symbiotic relationship with Malzeno who offer its protection in exchange for their life force. Malzeno also has the ability to drain the life of its victims, and when hunters get hit by some of its special attacks, they get inflicted with bloodblight.

The Bloodblight ailment slowly drains a hunter’s life, however this can be negated by dealing damage to any monster. This temporary vampiristic powers can become a powerful curse to take advantage of if a hunter knows how to work around with it.

When it enters its rage mode, its skin and scales turn dark and parts of its body will glow red. Hitting these red areas until they disappear will reveal the next glowing part. After all glowing parts are gone, it will revert back to it normal state.

  • Element: Dragon
  • Ailment: Bloodblight and Dragonblight
  • HP: 28,500 – 50,500 points
Malzeno is always accompanied by Qurio

Malzeno Weaknesses

  • Weak Points – Head, Fore Legs, Tail
  • Elemental/Ailment Weakness – Blast, Ice
  • Elemental/Ailment Resistance – Paralysis, Poison, Sleep
  • Resistant Points – Hind Legs, Tail Tip, Wings

If you can target the Malzeno’s weaker sections with blast weapons and ammo, you should be able to knock it out of the air mid-attack. In your encounter with the Malzeno, you will only have a limited amount of time to slash its legs or smack it on the head with blunt weapons. Shooting or attacking its wings or legs from the back is a waste of time.

Remember that the Malzeno has two distinct portions, the tail which is a weak point and the tail tip which is a resistant point. Attacking the Malzeno’s tail area will allow for separate attacks so you can deal more damage, but focusing on the wrong area can prove futile. Focus on the head as much as possible when using Ice, else you’re better off going in with a more devastating weapon.

To avoid being annihilated in a single combo, you might want to go for something with a Defense increase stat. The shield components of the Gunlance, Lance, Sword and Shield, and Charge Blade can be used to mitigate certain of Malzeno’s attacks. A lot of Malzeno’s strikes track you, impact a large area, or are too fast to react to without blocking. Do not be afraid to block.

Malzeno Moves

Malzeno has several deadly moves that can be way too fast to avoid if you are in a bad spot. Once it enters its rage state, most of its attacks can deal bloodblight.

  • Tail Slam and Stab: Malzeno does a front flip and slams its tail on the ground, and then immediately stabs its tail forward. This attack can happen twice in a row. If the tail is glowing red, it will inflict bloodblight to hunters that get hit. The more the stab hits the hunters, the sooner Malzeno enters its rage state.
  • Wing Stab: It wind up one of its wings and stabs it forward and to the ground. It can do this attack twice during its rage state.
  • Wing Flick: It digs one of its wings into the ground and flicks it towards a hunter, sending a shockwave and rocks in their way. During its rage state, it uses both of its wings and sends out two shockwaves of dragon energy.
  • Slam: It curls up while hovering and slams the ground with a high impact. In its rage state, this attack deals dragonblight.
  • Tail Sweep: Malzeno hovers in the air as it whips its tail on the ground in a circle. If the tail is glowing red, it will inflict bloodblight to hunters that get hit.
  • Dragon Energy Explosion: It shoots out a beam of dragon energy into the ground which explodes after a second.
  • Dash Lunge: It curls its body inwards and then springs forward to the direction it’s facing.
  • Instant Dash: It will move to another spot with high speed as if it can teleport. It usually follows it up with an attack. This happens when Malzeno is on its rage state.
  • Blood Orbs: It gathers its Qurio and they form orbs of bloodblight energy that shoot our towards hunters.
  • Grab: It grabs a hunter and sucks on their life force. This attack hastens Malzeno’s transition to its rage state.
  • Ultimate Attack: If Malzeno is left on its rage state for too long, it will do its ultimate attack. It will fly up and spin while firing its dragon energy beam around. It will then shoot out another beam directly downward which creates a huge explosion that then sends out waves of energy around. Afterwards, it reverts to its normal state.

How to Beat Malzeno in Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak

  • Malzeno is weak against the Dragon element and its weakest point is its head.
  • As much as possible, try to avoid getting hit with bloodblight-charged attacks to prolong Malzeno’s transition to its rage state.
  • Once Malzeno is enraged, immediately focus on hitting the glowing parts as they become more susceptible to damage, and clearing them right away reverts Malzeno back to its normal state and prevents it from doing its ultimate attack.
  • Throw a Flash Bomb if a teammate gets grabbed.
  • Depending on your skills and gear, you can take advantage of the bloodblight and become more aggressive to negate its effects.
  • If possible, look for a Stinkmink to lure another monster to fight against Malzeno. Usually, the lured monster will make the attacked monster open for mounting, so if Malzeno can be mounted, you can either:
    • Attack the lured monster until is goes down, and then crash Malzeno on to it to also make Malzeno topple over, or:
    • Crash Malzeno into Starburst Bugs if there are any in the area.
Malzeno ambush after hunting Lunagaron

There are three phases in fighting the Malzeno.

Silver – Malzeno First Phase

Malzeno’s first phase is primarily just building up bloodblight, so you should attack cautiously and understand the principles of its attack patterns here. Bloodblight is a new ailment that the Malzeno inflicts with multiple different attacks, including penetrating wing hits, knockback wind blasts, and tail swipes. Although your healing will be greatly hindered for a short period, your attacks will also help you heal, so you’ll have to be extremely careful in combat.

Rage – Malzeno Second Phase

In Malzeno’s second phase, it will become enraged, and its wings will turn a dark red. When Malzeno reaches its enraged mode, its limbs, throat, and tail will be covered in Bloodblight, and its skin will turn pitch black in hue. A lot of deadly combos and teleportation will be unleashed from here on out.

During the course of this mode, Malzeno will be able to move faster, use more powerful moves, and learn new strikes. A teleportation maneuver followed by a Bloodblight backstab attack, chained claw attacks, using its tail to stab you, AoE attacks that provoke earthquakes and throw you up in the air, all of these movements will inflict immense damage, climaxing with a giant ball made of Bloodblight that will explode, shooting homing ground missiles on different directions.

The folding of Malzenos’ wings reveals a multitude of teleports and dashes. Get ready for a move when this happens. Either a tail flip or a wing slam will follow a teleport strike. As they gain greater power, these moves will be used more frequently and from diverse directions. Wirebug dashes behind Malzeno before this move connects, giving you a perfect opportunity to inflict damage on its tail and wings, both of which offer rewards once slain.

Dodge, block and survive. Aside from the fact that it will revert to its original shape after a massive Bloodblight bomb burst, hitting the glowing sections of Malzeno’s body will deal additional damage.

Bloodening – Malzeno Third Phase

Malzeno’s third phase is the most dangerous because all of his attacks have been boosted. It’s difficult to keep track of its combinations, and at some point it’ll start employing an ultimate attack that destroys the stage you’re battling on. Suppress the assault with a strong shield and then counterattack when you’ve recovered.

In addition to the red glow on the tail tip, you will also see crimson patches on its chest area. Target Malzeno’s weak points because if you let him build up too much power, he’ll unleash a blood nuke on you. You can take it out of Bloodening by focusing your attack on these points and causing damage as quickly as possible. If you’re successful in stopping its Bloodening condition, land a stun on its skull, then work the leg or head area until it dies. For the Elder Dragon to be knocked out of Bloodblight condition, it should be able to cure any wounds you have sustained.

Malzeno Drops

  • Malzeno Cortex
  • Malzeno Shard
  • Malzeno Hardfang
  • Malzeno Fellwing
  • Malzeno Hardhorn
  • Bloody Parasite
  • Malzeno Tail
  • Malzeno Bloodstone
  • Dragon Treasure (Account Item)
  • Old Dragon Treasure (Account Item)

Malzeno Armor

Malzeno Armor Set

The Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak Malzeno Armor Set is a Rarity Level 9 Master Rank Armor Set.

The Malzeno Set can be crafted with the following:

  • 100,000 zenny
  • Bloddy Parasite x6
  • Malzeno Bloodstone x1
  • Malzeno Cortex x14
  • Malzeno Fellwing x3
  • Malzeno Hardfang x5
  • Malzeno Hardhorn x4
  • Malzeno Shard x10
  • Malzeno Tail x2
  • Pure Dragon Blood x3

Malzeno Armor Set Skills

  • Malzeno Helm:
    • Weakness Exploit Lv2
    • Wirebug Whisperer Lv2
  • Malzeno Mail:
    • Blood Rite Lv1
    • Partbreaker Lv1
    • Weakness Exploit Lv1
  • Malzeno Braces:
    • Attack Boost Lv2
    • Blight Resistance Lv1
    • Wirebug Whisperer Lv1
  • Malzeno Coil:
    • Attack Boost Lv1
    • Blood Rite Lv2
    • Partbreaker Lv1
  • Malzeno Greaves:
    • Attack Boost Lv1
    • Blight Resistance Lv2
    • Weakness Exploit Lv1

Malzeno Layered Armor

The Malzeno Layered Armor Set can be crafted with the following:

  • 20,000 zenny
  • Outfit Voucher x15
  • Malzeno Hardhorn x1
  • Malzeno Cortex x2
  • Malzeno Shard x2
  • Malzeno Points 25 pts

If you like this Guide, be sure to check out our other Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak articles:

Check out this video by Boss Fight Database showing a hunt against a Malzeno: