Capcom’s massive expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds now has a face for its Elder Dragon threat. Gundoraja, a storm-bending Elder Dragon, emerged from the dark clouds hanging over a new sky locale during the September 3 State of Play, alongside a returning Lao-Shan Lung, a grown-up Nata, and a new piece of gear that changes how all 14 weapon types fight.
Quick answer: Ascendance launches in 2027 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam. To start it, you need a copy of Monster Hunter Wilds, Hunter Rank 40, and completion of the 7★ assignment “Awaking From a Dream.”
What you need to play Ascendance
Ascendance is an expansion, not a standalone release. It sits on top of the base game and inherits everything already in Wilds, then adds Master Rank as a new quest tier above the existing content. Three conditions gate entry, and all three are checked against your save.
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Base game | A copy of Monster Hunter Wilds is required |
| Hunter Rank | HR 40 |
| Quest | 7★ assignment “Awaking From a Dream” completed |
| Platforms | PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Steam |
| Release | 2027, no specific date confirmed |
If you have not started Wilds at all, the free Prologue Demo covers character and Palico creation, the opening story beats, and all 14 weapon types. Demo save data carries into the full game, so nothing you do there is wasted.
Gundoraja, the new storm-controlling Elder Dragon
Gundoraja is a newly discovered Elder Dragon that bends storms to its will. It appears out of the heavy weather sitting over the expansion’s sky region, and the reveal footage frames it as a serpentine flier wreathed in lightning. Capcom has not formally named a flagship monster for the expansion, so treat Gundoraja as the headline new Elder Dragon rather than a confirmed flagship.
That focus is deliberate. Elder Dragons are the narrative core of Ascendance in a way they never were in the base game, where Arkveld was not classified as an Elder Dragon at all and Zoh Shia was a Construct.
Lao-Shan Lung and the Madoi Stronghold
The story opens with Lao-Shan Lung appearing without warning in the Forbidden Lands. The Expedition Team fights it and loses. The damage is severe enough that the Guild and the people of the Eastlands build a fortification, Madoi Stronghold, specifically to survive the dragon’s return.
That setup points to the classic Lao-Shan Lung format. Footage shows a multi-stage siege built around defensive walls, cannons, and other emplaced weapons rather than a conventional hunt, with the dragon’s sheer scale as the pressure.
The Skybound Eyrie locale and the time skip
Several years pass between the end of Wilds and the start of Ascendance. During that gap the mist covering Wyveria’s skies finally lifts, exposing the Skybound Eyrie, a region of islands floating above the clouds. It holds open landscapes, ancient ruins, and endemic life that has never been catalogued.
Traversal leans on the terrain. Wind updrafts launch your Seikret upward, letting you glide between islands instead of climbing, which is where the expansion’s title does double duty as both a story beat and a movement system.
Nata, the young Keeper from the base game, has grown into a full member of the Expedition Team by the time you reach the Eyrie. He guides hunters through the region alongside his Wudwud partner, Bangard.
Boost Bracer: how the new combat gear works
The Boost Bracer is a gauntlet worn on the hunter’s left arm, activated through the Slinger. Aggressive attacking fills its gauge. Once it is ready, a Boost Driver attack triggers the temporary Boost state, and during that window your hunter gains enhanced attacks and combos specific to whichever of the 14 weapon types you are carrying.
The intent is to create openings with a Boost Driver, then convert that opening into damage while Boost is active. Capcom is rolling out the per-weapon actions over time through its official channels, so individual weapon breakdowns are still arriving.
Note: Boost sits on top of existing Wilds combat rather than replacing it. Nothing in the base game’s moveset is being removed to make room for it.
Every monster confirmed so far
Alongside Gundoraja, Araketa is the other formally introduced newcomer. It is a Bird Wyvern that flies in packs, using powerful air currents released from its wings to cover long distances at speed. Pack leaders issue distinct calls that coordinate the group’s movement, which suggests fights against multiple birds working in formation rather than a single target.
| Monster | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gundoraja | New Elder Dragon | Controls storm clouds; emerges over the Skybound Eyrie |
| Araketa | New Bird Wyvern | Pack flier; uses wing-generated air currents for high-speed flight |
| Lao-Shan Lung | Returning Elder Dragon | Drives the opening story; siege-style encounter |
| Kushala Daora | Returning Elder Dragon | Appears in reveal footage |
| Unnamed black monster | Shown, unnamed | Emerges from a Doshaguma corpse; jaw splits partway down its body |
The unnamed creature is the strangest thing in the footage. It pulls itself out of a dead Doshaguma, and its jaw opens well down the length of its body, which reads as a symbiotic or parasitic relationship rather than a straightforward predator.
Ecosystem changes and Guardian monster territories
Lao-Shan Lung’s arrival is not just a story event. It sets off ecological disturbances across the Forbidden Lands, and investigating those disturbances is a running thread through the expansion. Abnormalities appear in familiar regions, and Elder Dragons start showing up where they previously did not.
The most direct consequence for hunts is that Guardian monsters expand their habitats into new areas as the ecosystem shifts. Expect to run into them in places the base game never put them.
Ascendance was first revealed at Summer Game Fest on June 5 under director Takuro Hiraoka, and the State of Play showing is the first substantial look at what it actually plays like. More weapon-specific Boost actions and additional mechanics are still to come, and there is no confirmed release date beyond the 2027 window. If you plan to jump in, the practical move right now is getting a Wilds save to Hunter Rank 40 and clearing “Awaking From a Dream” so nothing stands between you and Master Rank when it arrives. Full details live on the official Ascendance site.
