Creatures in culture : Bestial beliefs in Monster Hunter
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- Опубліковано 28 жов 2024
- They're terrifying, they're dangerous, they're often hunted due to those points. But what else do people think about monsters? Let's trawl through a lot of carve and quest descriptions to try and find out.
Patreon : / unnaturalhistorychannel
Deviljho is a bad omen in that if you see one It means you're near a deviljho.
A shame not to mention the unmatched cultural significance of the Whetfish
Please explain
@@kape2978 It's a fish. that can double as a whetstone.
@@lucaswinsor4469 I know that, what I need to know though, is the *deepest lore.*
@@kape2978 What deeper lore could you ever need? That alone makes it the most important creature in the entire world.
So begins the "Asking for Whetfish" video countdown
"Rajang is just generally an asshole" made me lose my shit lmao
I mean it is the perfect descriptor for them lol
True @@CCProductions
Well, he is a primate after all lol
Okay, "A king robed in smoke" has no business going as hard as it does.
“Rajang is just genuinely an asshole.” Is one of my favorite quotes to come from these videos right next to the one about Anjanath having a fighting schedule
"When they're not busy fighting other monsters, Anjanath take time out of their busy schedule to fight each other..."
@@g1sunstreaker584 YESS that exact one. Thank you for bringing to this thread lmao
@@VanguardEndeavor hahaha I gotchu homie, I loved that line too and it's stuck in my memory 😂
@@g1sunstreaker584 they both will be now, any time I want to remember them I can come to this video
Finally, Unnatural Anthropology Channel
I love how there are rich and nuanced ideas for monsters and then there's a quest and a quest description where a lady called a jaggi a pervert for harassing her.
Don't forget the Tri/3U quest where a huntress got her pants burned by a Qurupeco and also called it a pervert.
Ok I want screen shots that's hilarious
Adding on to your point of cultures hunting animals to prove their worth and strength, we see this have a role in game. In Iceborne, the BoaBoa of the Hinterlands have a "coming-of-age" ritual where one must hunt a Beotodus in order to prove themselves worthy to the tribe.
Damn, now you mention it I really should have mentioned the boa boa in this. Bambaro also has a large cultural impact for them too
"For every Blos wyvern slain, a dozen more were buried by them first." Damn straight! Spoken like a scholar and a poet, this why I love this channel. (Sips wine)
"Indo-European cultures used to call bears 'honey-eaters', and wolves 'grey ones'."
IIRC, "bee-wolf" is an archaic term for bear, which led directly to the name of Beowulf of Nordic myth.
In Sweden we doubled down on noa-names. The "modern" Swedish word for wolf is "varg" which means murderer/strangler. The proper name which is unusual but still valid to use is "ulv/ulf", which is closely related to the english word "wolf".
I've said it before in other comment sections, but this feels like the right place to really bring it up. One headcanon I ended up having is that along with the royalty comparison, Rathalos are seen as a symbol of prosperity. In some of the games openings, the final shot is hunters looking on at a Rathalos seemingly in reverence. But the main place this comes from for me is MH2, where the video of the Chief founding Jumbo village, where he goes on a long pilgrimage but immediately stops and founds the village on seeing a Rathalos fly overhead, appearing to see it's presence as a sign.
Probably just me putting extra value on the recurring use of the whole series' flagship, but it's one I like.
Related to that, Stories 1 did have a village leader state that monsters are a symbol of nature's bounty/blessing (forgot the exact word he used).
Well if the place is good enough for a rathalos without being an active volcano, surely it must be good enough for a village to settle on! (So long as the rathalos doesn’t mind)
As I said back in the 'Rathalos Rival' video, I believe that, culturally, Rathalos and Lagiacrus are the biggest rivals to the people of the world. Both rulers of their respective domains, even shown as respectful equals to each other in Tri's intro. A stark contrast from the constant violence showcased with Seregios.
Also I feel like it is worth given Rise some credit in regards to how it treated culture. Due to the Rampage, the people of Kamura are generally far more fearful of EVERY monster, given any can appear in the Rampage. This leads to the intros being stylized as folk tales, anthropomorphizing the monsters to give them personality, to explain their behaviors in a human way while also highlighting the danger they can have. Many of them feel like they are structured in a way to keep kids from wondering from the village.
This is even continued on with Sunbreak, with the entire legend of Malzeno and Giasmagorm. As well as exploring, albeit lightly, the effects an Elder Dragon's destruction on a settlement has on it's survivors, Oboro especially.
The intros are sometimes maligned for their anthropomorphizing, or just what they actually depict. But it's impossible to deny that they are, objectively, some of the biggest, most direct lenses we've seen into how a culture views monsters, inaccuracies and all.
Yha they called the bear famous for liking honey so much they die to blood lust incarnet and that is funny but think of it this way almost all these animals with out skill can kill you so even a goofy bear would be seen as a threat
Also I don't think what the monster intros show in rise and sunbreak should be taken all 100% fact because it is show to us as a film it has film grain and visual noise on it
I don't know how you'd be able to worship Khezu without it being some fertility deity.
Why would you say that
Never speak again
Brainrot
why are you booing them they're right!
How could you say something so controversial yet so correct? 🥲
5:37 "Viewing then as a local protectors of the lands. Keeping the prey and the predetors in check."
I love this, imagine if in MH Wilds the mh team shows respect enough to the Raths, making them (and other monster) actually living hunters or scavengers that hunts others Dromes and maybe even steal the prey from you, that would be wild
This makes me imagine if, after killing the first monster, when you try to carve it, a Kushala Daora just randomly walks up outta nowhere and starts eating the carcass, and you can’t even carve it because of the wind aura 😂
It could even lead to a new hunt chasing that Rathalos, with some bonus loot to compensate the annoyance lul
You mean... like mh1 intro trailer
I see what you did there
Would be awesome that if you slay enough Raths that it would lead to a stronger surgence of raptor creatures and such.
So you are more likely to get harassed during a hunt or gather.
In sunbreak according to the relics you can gather Kushala Daora was worshipped by the denizens of the jungle island to appease it so that it won't destroy them with its storms. They started rising against it and attacking it with spears marking the first appearance of hunters
If I recall correctly in World the tale of the five describes elder dragons as gods each creating one of nature's elements.
Wasn't.. it Kushala Daora?
@@swampazzo9615 wow I can't believe I mixed up the names lol
@@artenstien7100 i mean speaking in world terms. Kushala is a monster deserving of being forgotten.
"Jemma also has a Kut Ku plushie, too."
Oh no, she turned it into a marketable plushie.
I really appreciate how you address monsters you dislike with the same good faith as those you love. Hell of a lot more mature than I'd be in your place, haha.
I only occasionally watch this channel, I couldn't even tell he had any dislike for any of them 😂
I adore your biology/ecology videos (as an aspiring biology Major myself), but your videos about culture and the setting as a whole are always incredibly informative and entertaining, and it’s an element I think isn’t focused on enough in the games when compared to the biology aspect.
I've said it several times across several forms of social media, but with Wilds seemingly taking a more story-centric approach, I'm hoping to see things like a more direct benefit to catching monsters than the alternate item pool it pulls from. Things like making soil more rich with a Barroth so the plants have a better yield, Anjanath getting used to light the fires at the forge making it cheaper to produce equipment for a time before the monster is released back into the wild, that sorta thing
The amount of food required to keep a pet anjanath would far out way lighting the forge yourself. But collect mud from wild barroths would make a lot of sense
In terms of future topics, I think a video on Lynian ecology and evolution would be really interesting. I've always wondered how Felynes and humans formed a mutualistic joint society, and it occasionally feels like Felynes get the short end of the stick by being the bulk of the labour force in places like Astera.
something interesting i've noticed in descriptions of misions is that when is a human most of the time they want the monster dead for some dumb thing or to test you but when is a felyne doing the request is always the poor thing begging you to take care of it before it devour its entire village.
Also it would be fun to have lynian bosses like king shakalaka again, it always made the world feel more bigger and complex that this tribe of scrimblos of the same species of the cats could have a leader that was so good at figthing it was considered a big monster and rival the hunter in a way.
@@crabby6730 Perhaps "wild" Lynians resent the Guild for allowing such frivolous justifications for hunts whilst their lives are on the line 24/7.
Good idea, though I think you're reaching to create a "racial underclass" narrative with lynians supposedly doing more labor.
For one thing, they are smaller and therefore presumably weaker on average, and have a shorter stride, so they would naturally be out-competed by humans in the majority of manual labor jobs unless there was something else that gave them an edge. Being naturally good at digging could be useful for mining or specifically prospecting, but a mine owner may still prefer men _(if no troverians are available)_ as the main workforce for their stronger pick swinging and faster hauls. Also worth noting about mining specifically is that lynian digging seems to be _(and in X/G/XX/GU Prowler Mode definitely is for the player)_ very superficial - just under the surface so they can breathe and pop out instantly - so they couldn't just burrow like moles in place of traditional mining; the bomb miners in Kokoto and Pokke do have a man-sized tunnel to run into to get your ores.
This could explain why almost every cook in the series is a lynian; I recall somewhere in the games _(probably the Moga Village cook)_ a bit of dialogue claiming that lynians are preferred as cooks because of their more delicate sense of smell and taste, but I don't buy that explanation; if you make food for somebody less able to perceive flavor, the eater will want more flavor than the cook would... plus, they're _cats_ - how do they know what monkeys to eat like aside from trial and guesswork? In early games, there was a chance the food your cats make for you could be so bad that you get an instant stomachache and pass out, so rather than lynians being _better_ cooks for humans, than _humans,_ it seems more like they're a massive wildcard where the ones who happen to make good stuff get filtered out from those who don't and the rest go to other jobs like being a Palico or something. More likely: food service is a working-class job that doesn't require much in the way of physical strength or mobility, and also provides a chance for more advancement in social class, since a renowned cook could end up making food for the rich, whereas the manual labor jobs don't have as much chance to reach that level of prestige with the exception of hunters, warriors and craftsmen, which plenty of lynians are.
With that in mind, it could be that the reason the farms in early games are staffed entirely by lynians is that those lynians are part of the native lynian culture in those hinterlands which has passed down knowledge of what sort of things grow well in the soil, where the local ores can be found, when and where the fish turn up, etc. Many would likely prefer to live in human settlements as the stronger buildings and more adept hunters provide greater protection than the typical lynian village seen in hunting maps, and they would be good enough at most jobs that come their way, but these are still human settlements first and foremost, and the upper class or leadership would naturally be mostly human.
@@maddockemerson4603 That's fair. I think I was looking for an issue where there wasn't one, although human-Lynian relations would be an interesting thing to develop further down the line if Capcom were to put more focus on day-to-day life in the Monster Hunter world.
The materials of volcano dwellers like Agnaktor not having much value to the sea faring villagers of Moga is a nice detail and the kind that I hope was explored more.
One of the in-universe anecdotes that I find neat is that the Mizutsune armor is meant to appear like a groom and bride. Fitting for a monster that is exclusively fought in the form of flashy, breeding season males.
Man, I agree that they should implement this reverence for the monsters as more than just flavor text. When they're not trying to use goofy science words to inaccurately describe ecology (I like World but man they say boring, vapid shit) the presence they give to monsters is great. I've recently come around on Magnamalo because of this; sure it looks doofy, but the music, fight, and way all the characters refer to it as an omen of doom is really cool (if only low rank Rise wasn't so easy lol)
Great video, but I wanted to add some things.
I think the Raths are revered as royality simply because they are common enough for your average people to see them in reality while still being rare enough to leave some mystery remaining. While the Dromes or Kut-Kus are basically everywhere, most Elder Dragons are almost fictional for many humans. This leads to the Raths taking over this middleground between "everyday occurence" and "fabled beast".
Secondly I think the Mohrans and especially Jhen Mohran shape the culture of their surroundings somewhat. With Loc-Lac basically worshiping Jhen and it's hunt.
I hope the more anthropological aspect of Monster Hunter is explored more in Wilds. Learning about the symbology of animals in different cultures has always been a big interest for me, so this video was great imo. Keep up the good work
Finally someone talks about this. Its absolutely ridiculous, hearing people who don't have basic media literacy treating in-game folklore as actual biology for these monsters, like how fatalis armor is believed to turn the hunter into a fatalis, or other ridiculous stuff like that.
Oh god I feel that. The number of times I see people take in universe exaggeration, myth, or just plain old inaccurate statement as if it was fact is way too damn high. Basic media literacy is sorely lacking in many people. They never even consider the possibility that everything they see isn't a factual representation of reality. And then you get into things like ludonarrative dissonance. It makes talking about stuff with other fans an exercise in frustration when they can't tell the difference between a game mechanic and narrative.
The idea that the spirit of Fatalis lives on even in the gear you craft is the only fan canon/misinterpretation that I actually kinda like. It strays too far into pure fantasy to be applicable in universe tho, and I agree that it being taken as gospel is stupid.
But it’s still less obnoxious than the people insisting that the Equal Dragon Weapon was ever/still is canon, as opposed to just being an extremely early concept that was ditched before development even began.
@@Keyring7031 Well the EDW is extremely far past what I was thinking lol, but yes it is a completely moronic idea. Although with the direction the portable team and rise have been taking the series, It seems closer by the day.
I did mention before in Teostra's video that i would love to see a video covering the extent of damages monsters can cause to hunters that can end their careers. I don't know how much you could get out of a topic like that asides from element specific blights like Teostra's dander getting in your lungs but a lot of folks really liked the idea.
It's a great idea. Brachidyous being unusual in this regard also comes to mind.
I was just talking about this Topic with a friend for a world building project we are doing. This is literally perfect timing lmao
This is one of those things I love most about subtle lore in Monster Hunter, seeing how different cultures percieve these creatures that they rarely encounter. That's something I think a lot of Pokemon fans get wrong when reading the lore or dex entries, that sometimes people will severely over-exaggerate a creature's powers because of how mystical they are in their culture. Not always meant to be taken literally, but definitely inspires the imagination if you don't know much else about the creature.
I feel like another big part of the Monster Hunter series is what the monsters mean to each individual hunter. Everyone has their own stories and experiences for each monster. For me personally Lavasioth became a symbol a fearlessness after an Azure Rathalos, an Uragaan, the Lavasioth, and myself were all part of one massive brawl. Despite being the smallest monster the Lavasioth stood it's ground and continued to fight against the two behemoths as well as myself.
The Diablos became a symbol of fury and power after I watched one drive away a Deviljho. Making a Jho change his mind about a meal is no small feat. In another instance I witnessed a Diablos straight up suplex a Glavenous. I don't think further elaboration is required for that one.
Or that one scene you can stumble upon, where an Odogaron tries his luck against Vaal Hazak. That alone showed you everything you needed to know about Odogaron, and why someone thought he'd make a good pet. I mean, could you imagine taming and breeding Odogarons for hunters to ride into battle?
Always loved Odogaron, the soul of a hunter in monster form, more than willing to punch WAY above his weight class and skilled enough to get away with it even if he loses.
Chameleos hide having a calming effect is definitely giving “this animal makes people high when they come into contact with it” and it would be really funny to think about monster hunter stoners looking to achieve the ultimate chameleos high
4:53 Re the idea that the people of Kokoto are untroubled by a local Rathalos, the following is a quote from one of the villagers in MHG and Freedom:
“Have you heard!? It is really terrible! I heard the corpse of a carnivorous monster was found on a hill near town! The story goes that it looked like it was chewed upon by a giant wyvern. The men who were at that place made a huge racket screaming "Rathalos is here!” This surely is the end of the village!”
“A giant wyvern... A monster like that near the village will surely be the end of this place.”
Kokoto is near, but ultimately within the borders of the Western Schrade country; a place that is said to have *no* monsters. There are no local Rathalos-when any appear the people become terrified. There’s no quest to kill the local raths because there *are no* local raths, and if there were people would probably be a lot more nervous about it.
That doesn’t mean people never live relatively close to Rathalos-Astera is a prime example of such, clearly being within close reach and eyeshot of Rathalos’s nest atop the Ancient Tree, but nevertheless, this does not apply to Kokoto.
EDIT: Minegarde and Kokoto *are* in the Frontier, which means away from the mainland of western Schrade, and in the presence of monsters. I maintain that Rathalos are typically not that close, and there’s a wide range of potential distance, but it’s not true that they are in places where monsters are not. Even if Kokoto is generally so safe that seeing Velociprey nearby is supposedly rare and a cause for concern.
Odd. There are no such dialogue options in 1, though you can speak to everyone, and I'm a little skeptical at the claim that there weren't resident raths around Kokoto. The map design of the F&H map shows the nest has clearly been lived in for a long time and the raths are currently breeding there, so they must have been there for some months prior to game beginning. The chief is clearly aware and seemingly unbothered by this too, and asks for their eggs. The raths then also have a consistent presence in there in second and fourth gen too and no additional lore suggests this is unusual. F2's Hunting Life magazine also seems to consider resident rathalos in the F&H quite normal too. And the Dos opening shows Rathalos in the area before kokoto was established too.
@@unnaturalhistorychannel Correct. The dialogue was added in G and Freedom, in MH1, the girl just gives you tips about flash bombs (which are very useful for Rathalos).
I’m not denying that the Forest & Hills Rathalos nest has seemingly been there for a while but, the relative location of the Forest & Hills is not really that certain, and more importantly, probably not right next to Kokoto. Rathalos would have been sighted by the Hunter on the first egg quest, after all, not by the time that it started leaving corpses near the village. The principal issue is the assumption of proximity. It’s honestly not even really clear that you’re “supposed to” be going to the same place every time you go hunting in the older games, or if that’s an artifact of the limitations of making multiple maps. Especially with the diagetic explanations for why monsters in Town Quests are tougher than monsters in Village quests (supposedly it’s a regional thing… but it’s the same maps…)
The Gen 1 ecology books loosely mark the regions where the maps are relative to the world map, and the Raths and Kutku are marked a pretty significant distance from Kokoto and Minegarde, in map terms. Encyclopedia 1 also refers to seeing a Rathalos fly overhead as being “very rare”.
I don’t know what you mean by the Dos opening. Is this a mid-game cutscene?
Gammoth was also called a mountain god in her armor descriptions- likely because she herds in Popo that sustains Pokke village while also warding Tigrex away (typically)
She’s also described to be high enough in the food chain where even the elder dragons struggle and Ukanlos being one of the few things that can take an adult down
I hope that someday we'll get a Monster Hunter adaptation that actually explores the world's cult and its people more. I might be daydreaming but it'd be nice to see a story that explores the conflict between the Guild, towns, and even some of these monster cultists. It might not be Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon, but hell, I'd settle for something on the level of The Mandalorian's best episodes.
Monster Hunter seems to have largely taken the Star Trek: TNG route of no central conflict coming from the human characters, which I kinda get. I certainly don't want the main story of a game to be from humans fighting eachother, but I do love all the little glimpses we get that humanity isn't just hunters guild.
I'm pretty sure that in lore there are wars between kingdoms that are kinda mentioned but it's never brought up to the hunter because the guild says wars between humans are irrelevant to hunting monsters or something similar
I think he has a video talking about bounty hunters employed by the guild to hunt certain problematic humans
I love seeing monster motifs show up in architecture and clothing (the little Qurupeco courier hats!) and I crave more of that front and center in the culture. People fear monsters, especially dangerous ones, but it's also obvious they admire them.
Silly monster puns are part of the lighthearted fun angle the series shouldn't lose... at the same time I also want to see little idioms and such in NPC dialog that aren't winking so hard at the player.
This was such a fascinating meditation on the philosophy and interaction between humans and animals or "Monsters". I've been a bigger fan of Monster Hunter for its lore than as a game, so this was a really interesting video. They way ideas like nobility, kingship, divine status, war, and peace is really amazing. Layers upon layers of symbolism and meaning, I love it. I think this is perhaps my favorite video on the channel so far. Would love to see a part 2 or other type of followup!
"Rajang is just generally an asshole"
Idk why but that statement in that deadpan voice got a chuckle out of me. Regarding bestial beliefs, I'm surprised you didn't mention the big black dragon upstairs and his reputation as a living God, especially with the fabled Burning of Schrade. If (key word being if) you ever take a shot at Black Dragons, you could lean into that aspect and make it a follow up to this video.
I think that the cultural aspect is the way to go with black dragons since their ecology is just stupid (like for Disufiroa or if we only look at mainline, White Fatalis). But they are seen as legends and the mythological aspect could be really interesting
I never really thought about this aspect in Monster Hunter, but now that I have, it’s definitely a topic I’m a fan of!
I understand that some people call these animal monsters, but its kinda funny how not that many people just call them animals
I wonder if the therm monster is just a therm for animals in the world if minster hunter
probably ?
like Pokemon
they call it Pokemon but in the end the Pokemon are jsut the Animals of this world
i could also see that for certain creatures its jsut Monster
like we call these animals sharks ,,these birds ,,,these Reptiles etc
so maybe its for them the same with these are "monsters
From what I remember, in rise, chameleos’ hammer is meant to represent a god of poison called diamolgo, there is a chance it might differ between populations as in the kamura region chameleos is associated with the dead, which could mean chameleos or diamolgo represent the dead as well as poison
Now whether or not it’s believed chameleos is diamolgo or a sort of effigy for it isn’t directly stated which paints an interesting picture in my opinion
Perhaps people believe disrespecting the dead, heralds in diamolgo (which may be believed to appear as a chameleos) or diamolgo sends a chameleos to torment and attack human settlements by poisoning them and the land
Heres hoping that with Wilds having seamless transition from village to locale, that we get more interaction with the common folk.
Well, my biggest idea is this: What dinosaurs other than carnivorous theropods could contribute to a good monster? For me, i think Therizinosaurus would be an excellent choice
A proper Sauropod large monster would be really cool, and could potentially have really fun and unique attacks.
Also, Therizinosaurus was a theropod.
Therizinosaurus was a theropod. If it were to become a Mh Wyvern, it’s gonna be a herbivorous brute Wyvern like Banbaro and Duramboros. Plus, sauropods existed in Mh, just not as typical Wyverns, but as an npc herbivores.
But ngl, I would love to see a Big Monster sauropod, too. I’m more interested in its classification, tho. It can’t be Fanged Wyvern nor Brute Wyvern, for both of them are in Saurischia division of dinosaurs, while Sauropods are in Ornithiscian division. So, I’m more inclined to believe it will be have a newly introduced Wyvern classification, if they were to include a Sauropod as “ Big monster “.
@@Gigantheus note I said carnivorous
@@powerbalancevathelastkitsu2504 I do mention Banbaro and Duramboros. also Kestodon.
@@Gigantheus I mean things that haven't been official yet
Let’s not forget that all of Zinogre’s weapons are titled as “Usurper’s Thunder, etc”, usurper meaning one who ousts rulers from their thrones, regardless of it being a just action or not. So it makes sense that Zinogre becomes seen as a powerful warrior willing and able to displace strong monsters threatening villages. Also, I never knew that fact about Akantor’s name, that’s kickass!
I think one point to note is that Rathalos is not a native species in the new world so anjanath could also be a symbol of rebellion against foreign monarchs.
Another thing with the raths as king/queen is that they are pretty common compared to elder dragons, seregios and astalos who would beat them (and the latter two even preying upon the raths), as raths can live almost everywhere while astalos is only home to forests and such. Though seregios and elders can be found anywhere they are rare compared to rathalos and rathian. So, many people would only know about their existence and see them as king and queen.
Just when I thought this channel couldnt get any better.
A head canon that I've had for how hunters get so much stronger just by wearing animal hides is that the hunter ritualistically adopts traits from the monster they imitate, with higher quality materials and better crafting techniques enhancing this state. This video made me wonder if the reason why across different games, the same armor set might give different skills would be because the hunter would have had a slightly different view of the monster informed by their culture's relationship with/view of that monster.
For example, the rajang high rank 'golden' set mh4u gives challenger and latent power, at the cost of stamina. This could be seen as the caravan hunter interpreting rajang to be a beast that exhibits great power when pressed, but that burst of power comes with the risk of exhausting itself.
However, in mhgu, the same set gives composed (which charges the hunter arts, valor, and alchemy gauges faster) and attack up, while also activating the negative skill taunt. From these skills, it could be said that the wycademy hunter views rajang as a powerful foe that always seems to be getting itself into trouble, but despite its outward simplicity still possesses a secret power that could turn the tide of battle.
Keep Dropping this Content.
9:43 OK. I snorted at that delivery. Good job! 😂
That ending thought about wishing for the series to expand on the smaller stories reminds me of my favorite quest chain. In 4U a woman asks you to get rid of monsters that keep her from travelling places. The final part is a Rathian and Rathalos hunt where she says that they are keeping her from getting home. Amusingly, the way she asks you to hunt the pair of monsters is "DIVORCE ME HOME HUNTER, DIVORCE ME HOME!"
For future video topics, I'd like to see you cover the admittedly limited information on Monster Hunter's prehistory, taking a look at examples of the ancient evolutionary past of the MH world. Things like ancient extinct ancestral species and how they show the evolution of various Monster categories, theories on how MH world looked in the past knowing things like Tigrex used to be far larger on average, Tigrex's own prehistoric build, etc.
Also, I think the embellishments of the Guild's role is misplaced. We already know that, canonically, things were A LOT WORSE without the Hunter's Guild around. Before they began managing hunting worldwide, the world was much like our own throughout the ages, where hunting was completely unregulated and major extinctions seemed to be a real possibility.
Got to say, I was not aware of some of the lore you mentioned nor the fact that there is such a sheer volume of it. It was fascinating to hear along with similar situations in our world
"Rajang is an asshole"
This is the hard hitting analysis I've come to expect from UHC
It's either "Rajang/Deviljho is an asshole" or "Magnamalo" ans that is ALL the man has gotta say to get his point across LMAO
Little bit that irked me, the blos wyverns being aggressive because of the Guild specifically doesn’t make sense cause monoblos is what started modern monster hunting. You don’t make a guild for a profession that doesn’t exist yet. Monoblos hunts were likely already very much a tjjng by the time the guild was formed
Late comment, but it’s interesting how different monsters mean things to people because this happens to players too.
Dodogama became wildly popular, memes about the wiggles are everywhere. I get that for many monsters their vibe was by design, but almost everyone I know has favourites they will go out of their way to make the armor of
I love the end of the video talk about the creation and writing of the video
Genuinely I hope that we get Monoblos back in wilds and his introduction is that he completely bodies Rajang
Amazing video, thank you for all the effort you put into it. It was extremely insightful in the way you connected all of the monster examples to real life ones and extrapolated off of it. You do a great job with that in all of your videos I have watched.
just discovered your channel and these videos are so much fun!
A video on flagships and how well they represent the games themes or desing philosophy would be cool.
Since MH has pretty much gone mainstream. I hope they start to give their lore a little more attention
13:07 "For you see, Hunter, you're not dealing with the average Diablos warrior any more..."
I really like this video. A lot more than I initially thought.
Loved it, as always, but especially this one. Monster Hunter is a world on the brink of an industrial revolution, with powder, steam machines and forges that look quite impressive, but on the other hand we have villages and cultures in the most remote places, each with their own deities, omens and such. The more I listened to your video the more I wanted to write stories about this world that we all love and yet know so little about. Who knows what kind of legends, fashion trends and cultural wonders even modest monsters have spurred? Ovbiously some of them are from our own world but it would be awesome to see how it translates to the world of Monster Hunter! Maybe there is a village where newlyweds offer themselves a gift made of Rath' scales to show their devotion to one another. Maybe some dialects imitate the clacking of Agnaktor's beak to punctuate certain things.
So many stories to write... I guess I better start now! Keep up the good work!
Sincerely, another zoologist and afficionado of fantastical creatures, both real and made-up.
I agree a lot with the last thought. I started the saga with MH3 and MH3U, and one of the thing that I liked the most about these games was that feeling of providing resources to the village. There was even an in-game currency called 'Resource points', which you could earn by hunting monsters in the Moga village or by trading certain items. Royal ludroth's 'Quality sponge', for example, is described as "Mature spongy material, sought after for daily use more than for equipment", and was one the items that gave you more Resource points, as Moga villagers probably use it as conventional sponges, or to crafting certain tools. Not only that, but hunting monsters in the Moga woods during free time hunts gave you access to exclusive materials, not used to craft equipment, but to comercially trade with the merchant ship known as Argosy. Descriptions in these special items gave a lot of insight of the uses common people give to certain parts. There were two item called 'Rathian meat' and 'Rathalos ribs', so apparently some pieces of Raths are eaten. Same with Arzuros's 'Savory bear paw' or Plesioth's 'Prime Plesioth'. 'Zinogre head' description said "The head of a Zinogre. Stuff it and hang it for all to see", and 'Diablos heart' was described as "Researchers are studying these for possible cure-all elements". So definitely there is a lot of interesting lore and potential lore in common people thought and utility in monster materials. Hope we could see more of that in future games.
Now I want a four monsters of the apocalypse myth or tale. Deviljho: famine .rajang: war or violence .bazelgeuse chaos or uproar. Three lords of destruction.
Now this, this is peak story telling form the monster hunter crew, looking forward to more monster hunter ecology and culture videos. I can't wait to see what they'll do in Wilds!
There was a book where scientists were asked to analyzed the monsters of Monster Hunter might wanna take a look
This video really makes me appreciate Monster Hunter Tri. It’s probably the most underrated game in the series, and the fact that the devs completely abandoned under-water combat and traversal in the newer titles is deeply tragic and deeply frustrating. Lagi and Ceadeus deserve better.
my favorite kind of documentary
Hell yeah, a video all about beliefs related to monsters, which just like in real life it's always interesting to see and hear !
Holy shit I'm so happy I just found you channel
Since you asked for topics, maybe cooking would be an interesting topic slightly related to this one? How hunters and villagers use the byproducts of hunts for culinary arts and cultural dishes etc etc. Thanks as always for your videos, even though I don't play MH myself I always love your takes and wish there were more channels that delved into science-based speculation like this.
I laughed way too hard at the part where you just said you've no idea how they got generosity from lions.
We've also got the modern term of "going apeshit" for throwing a tantrum and whatnot.
I'm surprised you didn't bring up their importance in Stories (both of which involve a powerful Rathalos and their bonded companion)
I love this kind of in universe cultural view of the monsters.
This video was amazing! and he didnt even mention the riders or their games!
Great video. I think flavor of these kinds of things being missing in World due to the lack of descriptions can’t be understated, especially with the potential to explore the aboriginal cultures of the New World.
I wonder if you'll make one for the spin-off series Monster Hunter Stories and their Riders. The difference between the Riders and the Hunters in their approach and philosophy is already a great topic, the implication of the Riders taming methods and consequence of potentially disrupting the natural order could make for a good video.
Very cool video. I remember you touching on this topic in your Yian video where you contrasted the association of luck and fortune with Kut-Ku and the legitimate dread and hatred that Garuga had earned for itself. I was a little surprised Garuga wasn't mentioned here after you reiterated Kut-Ku but, by then you'd be recapping the other video lol
Since you've made this video regarding the cultural influences that monsters can have, perhaps the next step might be to investigate Monster Riders. I imagine you're not too keen on the magic system of Kinship Stones, but there might be something to say about the proclivity of animals to be trained by people. There are countless examples of this happening with crocodilians and big cats, as examples.
15:10 I always knew I wasnt alone
Damn can't imagine how the desert nomads fell after the guild make their Lord their biggest enemy.
Love that ceadeuos theme music!
I just realized how good Wilds going in a more ecological area would be for your channel, and how much potential the seemingly less advanced tribe, or possibly tribes, could be for a video such as this, and I feel a bit silly for taking so long to realize that lol
unrelated to the video but. i remember the April fools video where you put genprey in the wilds trailer and then we actually got to see a new prey type bird wyvern in the new trailers so that's hype.
I always found the cultural beliefs in Monster Hunter to be the most believable folklore and opinions around its creatures like outside of elder dragons and a few exceptions people's beliefs surrounding them are no different to actual animals.
Great Video as Always ! Love that the World building/ culture besides hunting in the Monster Hunter World 😊
Maybe an Idea for Video or Just a funny ecology though Experiment that i do often when daydreaming: where in our World would some of the Monsters of Monster Hunter life. Are there Special Locations/ Land where they can trive, whould they hunt the herbivores of our World ( Like barioth hunting Moose in Kanada, lagiacrus hunts big schools of fish Side by Side with Dolphins and sharks, the raths travel all over Afrika and follows the Migrations of the giant herds of Zebras or Something)
Just a Little funny though that i use from time to time xD
Thanks as Always for your great Work !😊
Thank you, not just for the insight but also calling Rajang his true name, A-hole!
I love this channel so very much 💖
Awesome video, man! Thank you!
Also, do you plan to ever invite Sawyer Lee again for another collaboration video in the future?
You two are the most interesting people on UA-cam, and you can talk about literally anything and still make an interesting and exciting video: for example, books and movies recommendations or even coop playthrough of Monster Hunter
I dare say we shall collaborate again
The whole Zinogre vs Amatsu (or vs dragons in general) thing also is a nod to ancient chinese mythology: Tigers were considered rivals to dragons, and were oft depicted fighting, or as stand-ins for yin and yang.
This one’s really good. MH has always had a culture to it I really like.
I love this channel for highlighting how well MH world building is. I felt it in 3U well but each game seems to wane in its sense of being real and lived in, and being less hunter sim and more action game. I hope we get more or perhaps a 3rd off shoot like mainline and portable that doubles down on the hunter sim aspects.
Many Elder Dragons are revered as gods, and I'm of the fervent belief that Melynxs worship Chameleos and actively show this through their incessant thievery in-game.
I really like this topic and I haven’t though of it much
Ain't no way my science biology man is talking about culture today!
I got to pull you up on the big screen on this one.
6:30 potencially a reference to Alchemy. Or even a Eclips, refering to White Fatalis enterring trought a Gate.
Interesting to take a look into the different ways a monster can influence MH society over the mere hatred and/or fear towards certain species
The desire for the horns of the Hunters is interesting, when you consider the weapon designs of Rajang Weapons. The Lance, Sword and Shield, and Charge Blades' shields all have the horns as a prominent fixture on their shields. From a practical standpoint, this is kind of silly. But as a status symbol among hunters, this makes a lot of sense,