The Nakarkos is an Elder Dragon that are introduced in Monster Hunter Generations. It is a mysterious and gluttonous creature that resides in the pit of Wyvern's End, devouring any creature that wanders nearby and adding its bones to its armour. They are also capable of mimicking the abilities of the creatures whose remains it uses, making them exceptionally feared especially when combined with their massive appetites. Thus, thanks to their sheer power and bizarre physiology, the Hunters Guild is unable to classify them as anything other than Elder Dragons.
Physiology[]
The enormous creature Nakarkos resembles a cephalopod. Its large, keen beak and dazzling yellow eyes shine brightly. Its skin is blue, with turquoise bioluminescence specks, as well as darker scales on some areas. The most distinctive aspect of a Nakarkos's body is its self-made bone coating, which it employs for self-defense and concealment. The Nakarkos's face is hidden under regular conditions. It resembles a two-headed skeleton dragon because its two main tentacles are capped with skulls and coated with vertebrae.
Abilities[]
Nakarkos are able to cover their opponents in a mucus that facilitates the spread of the bones that litter the monster's nest among its victims. Along with its ability to fire mucus from the points of its twin main tentacles, it also has the ability to dig under the dirt and surprise adversaries from below. Nakarkos, being a cephalopod, can swim well and feels comfortable in water. The body parts of other monsters have been shown to be substituted by Nakarkos for the skulls of its tentacles, providing it access to a greater variety of resources and implements, such Glavenus' tail. With the focus of their bodies, Nakarkos may release devastating blasts from their mouths or even larger beams from their tentacles that contain Dragon energy. These beams are so powerful that they’ve been noted to damage Nakarkos itself, preventing it from using them repeatedly.
Behavior[]
A beast with an endless appetite, Nakarkos is virtually unchallenged as the apex predator of its domain, considering everything from humans to Flying Wyverns as prey. It has been known to purge entire ecosystems of their inhabitants and has even been recorded devouring an entire village in a single night, hoarding their remains in its lair. Nakarkos's favourite prey is Ceadeus pups, though it itself can be preyed upon by the adults. Unlike other ecosystem destroyers like Deviljho, whose ravenous appetites are fuelled by their endless starvation, Nakarkos are perfectly content to hunt down and eat singular monsters one at a time, knowing that this preserves ecosystems and future food sources. This could imply that Nakarkos gorge themselves purely for the pleasure of eating, making them more malevolent than most monsters. Nakarkos are also remarkably stubborn, almost always returning to their old lairs even after being repelled by Hunters. As Nakarkos drop Time-Worn Ballista Shots when flinched, this could imply that they've attacked humans before, either hunters wielding portable ballistas or kingdoms using larger ones to defend themselves, the latter implying that they could be even more destructive than previously thought.
When hunting, Nakarkos utilise the thick mucus they produce to ensnare and smother prey, being capable of using said mucus to even shoot down airborne targets. They also use this mucus to preserve and adhere bones to their bodies so as to protect their soft tissues. Nakarkos are typically solitary when hunting, often sneaking around to prevent damage to their armour and tender bodies. They are at home on both the land and water but seem to prefer aquatic habitats, with their lairs often having access to the sea. For quick getaways, the Nakarkos can shoot water out of its siphons at high pressure, allowing it to jet away.
Interestingly, upon death Nakarkos fires a beam of Dragon energy into the sky, collapsing the bone formations in its territory. The purpose of this behaviour is unclear, with possible explanations being that it's a misfired last-ditch effort to take down the hunters, or it's a signal for other Nakarkos to warn them of impending danger.
Habitat[]
Although it can survive on land, Nakarkos has evolved to live in aquatic habitats. The Wyvern's End and other underground caverns connected to the ocean or other huge bodies of water are believed to be its lairs. You can easily identify them by the abundance of bones they contain.
Trivia[]
- A debate frequently occurring in the series’s community is whether Nakarkos is a true cephalopod or not, with proponents of Nakarkos being a cephalopod pointing out its cuttlebone and possibility of being highly derived while opponents point out its anatomical quirks that don’t match any known cephalopod. Seeing as a new Cephalopod class has been added, it's possible that Nakarkos could be re-classified if it makes a new appearance.
- Nakarkos received 79th place in the 20th Anniversary Hunters' Choice poll for Top Monster.
- Nakarkos serves as the online final boss for Monster Hunter Generations, being the last monster fought in multiplayer.
