Monster Hunter Stories 3 Side Quests Guide: Every Companion Story and Reward
You can either rush the main campaign and get obliterated by the endgame bosses, or you can actually do your job as a Ranger and reap the massive rewards hiding in the side content.
I understand the urge to burn through the story. When you have a massive Elder Dragon breathing down your neck, stopping to help a local villager find some mushrooms feels like a massive waste of time. But ignoring the side quests in Monster Hunter Stories 3 is a fantastic way to artificially inflate the game's difficulty. The rewards locked behind these optional missions are not just cosmetic garbage. We are talking about brand new weapon types for your companions, exclusive combination recipes, completely unique Monsties, and massive chunks of experience.
If you are currently struggling to survive and relying heavily on my EXP grinding methods, you need to pause and clear your quest log. I am going to walk you through the multi-chapter storylines for every single companion, followed by a massive directory of every regional subquest in the game.
Companion Side Stories Walkthroughs
Your companions are not just meat shields to distract the boss. Each of them has a four-part questline that unlocks as you progress through the main regions. Finishing a companion's storyline unlocks their secondary Monstie, upgrades their active skills, and usually hands you a brand new weapon to equip them with.
Thea: The Gale Force Porkers
Thea has the most lighthearted questline in the game. You are not hunting massive wyverns here. You are tracking down runaway Poogies and challenging them to street races.
Chapter 1: You will find the first Poogie in the Broadleaf Basin of Azuria. The Swift Swine challenges you to a two-lap race. The steering controls during these races are incredibly floaty, so do not take corners too sharply. Focus on hitting the Zoomshrooms to maintain your speed. Beating this unlocks the Poogie Hunter skill. Chapter 2: Head to the Narrow Passage in Canalta Timberland. This race introduces Slowedstools. Hitting one of these red mushrooms ruins your momentum entirely. Steer clear of them and grab the win to unlock the Water Hunting Horn for Thea. Chapter 3: This one takes place in Tarkuan. A Blood Orange Bishaten is scaring the Poogie away. Consult your monster weaknesses cheat sheet, hit it with Water damage, and clear the track. The race is heavily rubberbanded, so you cannot afford to miss the speed boosts. Chapter 4: The final race is back in Azuria and it is absolutely packed with obstacles. Boulders will actively throw off your steering. Keep a clean racing line to beat Boss Hog and unlock Thea's second Monstie, Gnocchi the Goss Harag.
Gaul: The Dedicated Leader
Gaul tries to handle everything himself. Your job is to step in and turn his basic errands into actual hunting expeditions.
Chapter 1: Travel to Sunpetal Plains and talk to Lievin. He sends you to Mirror Lake to deal with a Purple Ludroth. It is a standard fight that tests your basic combat mechanics. Use Fire damage and claim the Lifepowder recipe. Chapter 2: Master Kol in Sheparden sends you to the Frozen Grotto in Canalta Timberland to hunt a Tetranadon. Fry it with Thunder attacks to unlock the Ice Bow for Gaul and the incredibly valuable Key to Combos. Chapter 3: Head to the Bountiful Dunes mines in Tarkuan. You are basically walking into an ambush against a Shrouded Nerscylla. Bring Fire weapons and cure the poison quickly. Winning this nets you the Max Potion and Ancient Potion recipes. Chapter 4: The finale takes you across Tarkuan and ends in the Glacial Caps of Serathis. You have to put down a Honed Glavenus. Bring heavy Water or Dragon weapons and pay attention to its overheated states. Victory unlocks Sereg, Gaul's Seregios Monstie.
Ogden: The Exotic Hunter
Ogden's storyline is easily the most mechanically interesting. You are tracking down "Exotic" monster variants that require specific triggers to fight.
Chapter 1: You are hunting an Exotic Velocidrome in the Sunpetal Plains. It moves too fast to engage normally. Stand perfectly still under the nearby blueberry tree and let it crash into you. It is incredibly fast in combat, so rely on Double Attacks to mitigate damage. Chapter 2: An Exotic Seregios is hanging around southwestern Canalta Timberland. The catch is that you must have an Arzuros in your active party to lure it out. Do not swap the Arzuros out during the fight or the Seregios will spam a team-wiping scale attack. Chapter 3: Head to Rococo Rocks in Tarkuan. An Exotic Legiana is flying in circles around the pillars. Use a Monstie with a projectile Breath attack and aim ahead of its flight path to knock it down. Break its wings with Thunder piercing damage to keep it grounded. Chapter 4: The final Exotic is a Nibelsnarf in the icy Old Capital Road. It hides underground in the brown dirt patches. Stand on a dirt patch and use a Monstie with the Roar field ability to force it to the surface. Defeating it unlocks Plessie, Ogden's Green Plesioth.
Kora: The Dungeon Crawler
Kora sends you into deep cave networks. These take roughly twenty minutes each, so clear your schedule and bring Monsties that can swim, fly, and break rocks.
Chapter 1: Traverse the Unexplored Cavern in Broadleaf Basin. You will fight through standard early-game mobs until you reach a Purple Gypceros backed by two Bnahabra. Burn the bugs down first and then focus on the boss to get your basic Bomb recipes. Chapter 2: Head to the Subterranean River in Canalta Timberland. The boss here is a Red Khezu. It charges up massive Thunder attacks, so bring Water weapons and do not get paralyzed. This unlocks Kora's Ice Long Sword. Chapter 3: The Scaling Cave in Rococo Rocks holds a Black Gravios and two Ceanataurs. The Gravios boasts massive physical defense, so you need high-tier Water elemental damage to break its shell. You will walk away with the Azure armor set recipe. Chapter 4: The Frigid Pit in Glacial Caps is a maze. Drop down the central hole, ride the updrafts, and avoid the patrolling Deviljho. The final boss is a Diablos. Pack a stack of Sonic Bombs to force it out of the ground. Beating it unlocks Golma the Garangolm for Kora.
Eleanor: The Culinary Expert
Eleanor needs rare ingredients for the Rangers' Mess. You will be using the Lookout Point telescopes to find visual clues across the map.
Chapter 1: Look through the telescope to find Sucklebugs on the Mirror Lake island, a Witherweed by the riverbank, and blast a roaming Paolumu for a Molted Gumshell. Chapter 2: Blast a roaming Arzuros for Aged Royal Jelly. Find Mellowcaps under a pale tree with red leaves. Finally, hunt a Yian Garuga on Mt. Canalta for its stomach. This unlocks Eleanor's Water Hammer. Chapter 3: Grab Hoary Bones across the oasis and buy Poignant Piquant from the sandship vendor. The heavy lifting requires you to hunt an Ajarakan in the mines for its Gallbladder. Chapter 4: No telescopes for the finale. You just have to hunt down three massive targets in the overworld. Kill a Magnamalo in Ashen Pass, a Feral Aknosom in the Narrow Passage, and an Almudron in the Muddled Marsh. Turn in the meat to unlock Dee, Eleanor's Glavenus.
Every Regional Subquest You Are Actively Ignoring
If you see an NPC with a marker, talk to them. I have compiled every single regional subquest in the game so you know exactly what rewards you are working toward.
Yes, it is a massive checklist. No, you should not skip it. If you want to survive the brutal post-game content, you need the skills, recipes, and weapons locked behind these subquests. Get out there, talk to the locals, and clear your log.
