The huge expansion to Monster Hunter Rise will pin you against many new tough monsters. Of those monsters, the Garangolm will be a challenge. It is the first of the Three Lords you will face on a quest in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak. It is also the first quest that will take you to the new Citadel map.
You will have help on this Urgent Quest from Fiorayne. But if you're not prepared for the new map or monsters, the Garangolm will give you a hard time. That's why you should look no further than this guide for helpful information on how to conquer the first Lord.
Garangolm's Attacks
As huge as Garangolm are, some of their attacks can be surprisingly fast and frequent. In their normal state, they have an attack where they slam their fists to the ground twice while moving toward the target. They also have an odd attack where they'll crawl towards the target after slamming their head into the ground. The Garangolm is also capable of swiping three large rocks out of the ground toward their opponents and lifting up one huge rock to fall down.
When enraged, Garangolm's left arm gains fire elemental properties while the right arm will be water. The previously mentioned melee attacks will deal fire or water damage, depending on the arm used. This includes the fist-slamming attack, which it'll start to use three times. The Garangolm will also have a new attack where they'll propel themselves into the air with an explosion and then come down on you with an eruption of water. As the monster gets closer to being defeated, it'll start using new attacks, such as a clap that'll cause an explosion of steam. This clap is usually done after a hard headbutt towards you or a swipe that launches you into the air.
Garangolm's Strengths and Weaknesses
Garangolm is resistant to Water, Dragon, Poison, Paralysis, and Sleep. They also take less raw damage to their hind legs, torso, and tail. You'll need to focus on the head and arms to get the most damage possible. You'll want to especially focus on the arms when they're enraged, since breaking the elements off will topple them. As for the best elements to use against it, you'll want to use a Thunder or Blast weapon. Fire and Ice also work, but Ice isn't nearly as effective.
Weapon Type Advantages and Disadvantages
It's very important to know which weapons work best. Garangolm resists projectile attacks the most, so it's not the best idea to fight it with any of the Gunner weapons. You'll want to use either a severing weapon or a blunt weapon. Blunt weapons work the best since they deal a bit more raw damage on the monster's arms. A weapon with either good mobility or the ability to shield, counter attacks, or use invincibility frames would work great against Garangolm's fast and heavy hits. Some good weapons for the job would probably be the Hammer, Sword, and Shield, or Insect Glaive with a Blunt Kinsect.
Helpful Armor and Skills
Next up is armor and skills. The Garangolm hits hard, so an armor set with high defense will be beneficial. Alternatively, you can increase your defense with some of the Dango at the Canteen, such as ones that give you the Dango Booster or Dango Defender skill. If you do this and upgrade whatever Master Rank armor you have to the current maximum, you should be fine. As for elemental resistances, it goes without saying that Fire Res or Water Res armor is the best here. Water is the easiest to get hit by since the arm with the Fire element will mostly be used to propel it with the enraged attack, so an armor set with high Water Res would probably benefit you more.
The armor skills you use for this battle can mostly be up to your set or weapon of choice. If you've already got a solid list of skills, you should probably add Tremor Res and Mind's Eye to it. Tremor Res will keep you on your feet against some of Garangolm's attacks. Mind's Eye on the other hand will keep your weapon from bouncing off the Garangolm's armor when its sharpness gets too low (and best believe, it will get low). If you're taking the route of using a weapon with a shield, having some skills that increase how efficiently you block attacks will be useful to you.
Garangolm's Location - The Citadel
Now, let's talk about the Citadel, one of the new maps in the DLC. The Garangolm will generally stick to the left side since that's where the jungle area of this location is. You could run into a Volvidon on the way, so if you want a head start on damaging the Garangolm, you can hit the Volvidon with a Wirebug Skill or two to quickly Wyvern Ride them. A Barioth will also be on the map, so feel free to Wyvern Ride that as well. However, that monster will generally be in the top areas of the map. It's probably for the best to leave that monster for the Follower or wait for it to come to you.
For those that aren't really into Wyvern Riding, go for a Thunderbug to inflict Garangolm with Thunderblight. To do this, start by going to the left of the quest spawn point to see a cliff in the campsite. If you climb that cliff and then climb up the vines of the castle tower, you'll see some Jewel Lilies. Plant a Great Wirebug on it and use it to slingshot yourself ahead. Be careful not to use the second Great Wirebug that'll be in the air at the end. After that, you should see more Jewel Lilies straight ahead. Plant a Great Wirebug there, but once again be careful not to use the second Great Wirebug in the air when using it. When you let yourself fall, look to your left and you should see a Thunderbug a short climb away.
The red arrow showing the player's location is where you'll find the first of the two Jewel Lilies that'll take you to the Thunderbug.
Now you should have a smoother time hunting Garangolm. Even with these tips, the monster can prove to be a challenging and aggravating one. But remember to keep these things in mind, stay calm, and don't give up. You'll definitely find yourself successful on the hunt. Have fun!