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| “ | A flying wyvern that was considered extinct according to documents left behind by the Guild. Their wings have a unique, chain-like blade that can extend and retract freely to reap their prey. They feed on elemental energy absorbed through these chainblades, and are able to convert the energy to unleash dragon element attacks. | „ |
| ~ Arkveld's entry in the Hunter's Notes |
The Arkveld is a species of monster introduced in Monster Hunter Wilds, serving as the game's flagship and secondary antagonist/final boss of its High Rank story. A species of Flying Wyvern known to wield the Dragon element, Arkveld prowled the Forbidden Lands, using its chainblades to subdue opponents and drain their elemental energy. While previously thought to be extinct, the presence of an egg laid by a Guardian individual has allowed flesh-and-blood Arkvelds to re-establish themselves in the ecosystem.
Why aren't they heroic or villainous?[]
While the Guardian Arkveld is considered villainous for its actions against the ecosystem which were motivated by other factors, regular Arkveld are mostly predators minding their own business which don't hurt people unless for survival. Furthermore, the individual that rampaged later on was driven berserk by the Frenzy Virus, giving it moral agency issues.
Appearance[]
Arkveld is a quadrupedal Flying Wyvern covered in shaggy white fur, gray scales on its underside and armour on its back and wings. Its head is adorned with a thick white scute that extends into two curved horns on its side and a sharp upwards-curved point on top. Its lower jaw is also adorned with thick white scales, while its bears a small white horn on its nose. Arkveld's most prominent features are its wing chains: long lengths of tendon dotted with hard bony structures that it weaponises, which it can split in two if needed. Its wing membranes are rather small and covered in white fur, though it can still fly. When draining energy, Arkveld's chain tendons glow bright blue.
Abilities[]
Arkveld is an exceptionally powerful Flying Wyverns, with a level of strength, durability and stamina exceeding most other monsters. It can beat down most monsters with ease, showcasing an incredible agility that allows it to maneouver around prey and strike at them with ease. The chainblades attached to Arkveld's wings are also incredibly strong, allowing it to grapple onto and restrain foes, with an Arkveld being sighted throwing a Rey Dau to the ground, killing it from the impact, with a single chain. Furthermore, Arkveld can fly despite its wings being composed of nothing more than fur tufts, allowing it to launch aerial assaults on foes.
Arkveld also possesses a mastery over the dreaded Dragon element, which it can enhance its attacks with or produce devastating explosions with. Using its chainblades, Arkveld can sap the elemental energy of any monster it meets, converting it to Dragon energy in the process. As a result, Arkveld is almost completely immune to any elemental attacks, being capable of absorbing a Rey Dau's electrical beam mid-air. Arkveld can also absorb energy from monsters that don't utilise it such as Guardian Doshaguma and Gore Magala. The version of this attack Guardian Arkveld wields is potent enough to kill an Uth Duna simply from draining its energy, meaning that regular Arkveld might possess a similar lethality.
Behaviour[]
Belligerent and aggressive, Arkveld is known to be an incredibly dangerous monster that will feed on literally any monster that it can get its hands on, likely a result of it lacking an ecological niche. In battle, Arkveld has proven to be a ruthless but skilled predator, using its chains as multi-purpose tools of attack and defense, allowing it to face off against both hunter and monster alike. In fact, Arkveld utilises these chainblades to execute surprisingly complex maneuvers, allowing it to prey on even powerful monsters like the Apexes.
However, as Arkveld's preferred victims are the Apexes, it is also rather susceptible to the Frenzy Virus spread by Gore Magala and its kin. This is because the virus can spread through the Landspires and become accumulated in the elemental energy-rich bodies of the Apexes, causing Arkveld to take up an incredibly high dose when it feeds on them. As a result, Arkveld's behaviour becomes even more hostile and it seems to gain a sadistic streak, seemingly guffawing at Rey Dau's futile attempt to use its electric blast before killing it effortlessly.
Habitat[]
As a newly revived species, Arkveld has no known habitat, instead wandering as a nomad. It has thus far only been found in the Forbidden Lands, but its existence in the records of the Hunters' Guild suggests it used to span a much greater range, leaving its fossils behind in the process.
Trivia[]
- While not outright stated, it's implied that the Arkvelds fought in game are a population of Guardian Arkveld that managed to achieve monsterhood, seeing as it's established Guardian Arkveld can do that and it's impossible for the egg laid by the Guardian Arkveld to have grown up to adulthood in the time between Low Rank and High Rank.
- Alternatively, it's possible that Arkveld had indeed survived in the Forbidden Lands all these years, only emerging after the deaths of its Guardian counterpart and Zoh Shia.
- Arkveld only possesses a unique turf war against Rey Dau, with all other turf wars involving it absorbing its victim's energy after knocking it down prior.
- The only Apex monster Arkveld doesn't have a turf war against is Jin Dahaad, presumably thanks to the latter's colossal size.
- Arkveld is the flagship monster of Monster Hunter Wilds.
- It is also, currently, the final boss of its base game High Rank storyline.
- Arkveld is the first Functionally Extinct Species encountered in-game in the Monster Hunter series.
- It is the only large monster in Wilds to appear in all locales as an invasive monster.
- Arkveld has a pin attack where it grabs the hunter in its chains before bashing them over the head. This can be interrupted by using any slinger ammo on it.
- Interestingly, Arkveld's chains glow during this attack and the hunter's HP slowly decreases, implying that Arkveld is absorbing it.
- Arkveld's weapons are named after the Knights of the Round Table from Arthurian mythos. The same holds true for its Guardian counterpart.
