As the title of the series would suggest, Monster Hunter is all about fighting inventive and skillfully designed monsters. Most hunts will be considered complete if the target monster of the quest is slain, but there are a few quests that require players to capture the monster instead of killing it. Even in quests where capturing is not required, it is still an option for most every monster in Monster Hunter Rise.
In order to capture a monster players will need a trap and tranq bombs. There are two types of traps available for players to use: shock traps and pitfall traps. In order to make shock traps, players will need a thunderbug and a trap tool. In order to make a pitfall trap, players will need a net and a trap tool. Pitfall traps require an extra step as nets also have to be crafted using ivy and a web. As for finding these materials, trap tools can be purchased from Kagero in the village or Maido in the hub. Rondine will also eventually offer nets available for purchase, reducing the number of necessary materials to craft pitfall traps. Which means pitfall traps can actually essentially just be purchased.
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Thunderbugs will still have to be found through more traditional means, in the field or through trading through the Argosy. Rondine will also sometimes sell a select few already made traps. Keep in mind that some monsters are immune to certain types of traps. For example, Zinogre cannot be trapped with a shock trap and Nargacuga will destroy pitfall traps.
Tranq bombs can also be crafted with a sleep herb and a parashroom. Players will need to use two tranq bombs minimum to capture a monster. That definitely adds up to a lot of sleep herbs and parashrooms required in order to regularly capture monsters, but thankfully, as players complete village quests in Monster Hunter Rise, new items become available for purchase at Kagero's and Maido's shops. Tranq bombs are one such item that can eventually be purchased. Notably, bowgunners can also use tranq ammo if they so desire which can also purchased from the stores.
As is to be expected, players can't simply waltz over to a monster, put a trap underneath it, pelt it with tranq bombs and then immediately complete the quest. The monster has to be weakened first. In order to weaken monsters, players don't need to do anything special other than hunt the monster as they normally would until the monsters crosses a certain HP threshold. Once it crosses that threshold, it can be captured.
There are a few ways to tell when a monster is ready to be captured. Perhaps the most obvious one is when the monster flees the area while limping. The hunters will now also call out this behavior to make it even more obvious. If a palico is in a village hunt, it will also have a callout visible on the right side of the screen that the monster can be captured. This does not happen in multiplayer though, even if there is a palico present. Finally, in the upper right corner of the HUD, there are icons for all the monsters in the field. One ready to be captured will have a blue icon underneath it. This method is going to be the most reliable because palicos won't do the callout in multiplayer and sometimes the monster is killed before it starts limping away.
Regardless, once the monster is weakened, it just needs to be trapped and tranquilized. It doesn't matter the order. Players can throw the tranq bombs first and then place the trap or vice versa. Two tranq bombs will be required to knock out the monster, but if they're applied way before the monster is weak enough to be captured, another one or two may need to be thrown when it is weak enough for capture.
Capturing monsters will often result in more rewards at the end of a quest and can affect the drop rates for certain items. Certain monster materials cannot gained from capturing, but can be obtained from carving, but the reverse is also true, so checking out the in game hunter notes to see the drop rates for everything is a good idea for players trying to get specific materials.
Elder Dragons are too powerful for traps however. This means, as one might be able to surmise, they cannot be captured. So when, for example, Chameleos gets added to the game, it will have to be killed in each hunt.
Monster Hunter Rise is now available for the Nintendo Switch. A PC release is slated for 2022.