In a minute-long teaser trailer for The Game Awards, Capcom reveals its upcoming expansion will bring hunters to an outpost in the land of Elgado. From there they will be able to take on quests featuring monsters like the brand-new Lunagaron, which seems to be an ice-wielding variant of Monster Hunter World’s Odogaron that takes its “true form” under the silver light of the moon. When the Lunagaron is encountered in the trailer, players are saved by a character who looks strikingly similar to The Argosy trader Rondine.
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Rondine is a Smart Entry Point Into Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak
Rondine is a foreigner to Kamura Village in Monster Hunter Rise, someone who docks her ship at the Buddy Plaza. From there she opens up trading for items like Farcasters and Lifepowder, but also more long-term trade requests that players can send their Palico and Palamutes out to complete. While Rondine also gives players a few quests, her presence is otherwise understated. However, much of the discussion around her character revolves around how strangely refined she is for a merchant, and how she may be keeping secrets.
It seems she will be the one to bring players into Sunbreak. The teaser shows a Lunagaron attack the main hunter and Master Utsushi in what appears to be the Shrine Ruins, only for a character who looks to be Rondine to step in with a Sword and Shield and rescue them. It’s hard to say whether it is Rondine as of this writing, as her hair and outfit are different and an official tweet by Monster Hunter says the player will be beckoned to adventure by “mysterious characters.” Between her purple eyes, crystal earrings, and presence in Kamura it’s perhaps safe to assume this will be the same character revealing her true colors, but if not she could at least be a family member given their similarities.
This would make a smart foundation for the upcoming expansion for a few reasons. The mystery behind Rondine’s presence in Kamura Village is clearly well established as something Capcom was waiting to address, and given she’s a foreigner it makes sense to use The Argosy to open up new areas in the absence of older hubs like Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate’s The Soaratorium. Dialogue when the character fends off Lunagaron suggests she’s there for “a royal matter.”
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With the monsters in Sunbreak seemingly taking their design inspirations from European monsters like vampires and werewolves, in contrast to the base game’s Japanese yokai, it also makes sense for the player to be pulled away from their idyllic village in order to assist with the machinations of a royal family commanding military forces across the world. It’s likely Rondine came to Kamura Village in the first place to scout hunters who can assist in the fight against monsters like Malzeno, whose reveal in the first trailer for Sunbreak shows it reigning over a dilapidated castle.
The Sunbreak expansion is going to give Monster Hunter Rise players a lot more mechanical depth through additions like Master Rank and new Silkbind Attacks for each weapon. However, it will really stand out if it can pull together a narrative that far outpaces the base game’s “defend the village” plot that had to be wrapped up in post-launch content. Leaning on the mysteries behind Rondine is a smart choice to accomplish this, and it will be interesting to see how Capcom builds upon its established characters.
Monster Hunter Rise is available now on Switch, with a PC port releasing January 12, 2022. Sunbreak releases summer 2022.
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