Lala Barina weakness, location, and strategy in Monster Hunter Wilds

Lala Barina is one of the new creatures lurking in Monster Hunter Wilds. The twitchy spider moves erratically, and to make matters worse, its thorax can open to resemble a blooming rose. It’s a beautiful spectacle, except for the spores that can paralyze you and a deadly tail attack awaiting within the petals.

Despite being one of the first encounters of the main story, you shouldn’t underestimate Lala Barina, especially if you’re planning on getting its full armor set and weapons. This guide covers the Lala Barina weaknesses and resistances to prepare accordingly, where to find it, and the best strategy to defeat the new not-so-friendly neighborhood in the block.

You’ll first encounter Lala Barina in Chapter 1, during the Forest Findings main mission. As such, all you need to do to unlock the monster is progress through the questline.

Lala Barina is usually found in the Forest biome, but there’s a chance of seeing it in Wyveria during the post-game (once you finish Chapter 3). In the former, the most common spot is its own den in 4. If not there, the areas surrounding 12 and 13 are a safe bet to find it.

How to prepare for Lala Barina

Lala Barina is part of the main story of Monster Hunter Wilds. As such, its encounter is likely to fit your Hunter Rank at that corresponding moment. I was able to complete the hunt on my own using fairly weak gear. If you have a weapon with Fire as its main element, you’ll have the advantage of targeting an elemental weakness. But I wouldn’t recommend you go out of your way to grind materials and create one just for this fight.

Since the encounter occurs during a main mission, you’ll be thrust into the fray after the introductory cutscene. As per usual, whenever you’re asked if you’re ready to depart, make sure that you’re carrying regular and mega potions with you. If you’re short on the latter, take a lap around the biome and loot any honey you come across.

In addition, don’t forget to eat — you can use the portable BBQ to grill a meal. Increasing your health and stamina are good shouts, and you can use ingredients like Wild Herb as finishing touches to boost your elemental resistance, which is fairly common.

For later encounters, carrying a few Torch Pods will be beneficial — if either you or one of your teammates have a ranged weapon with Flaming Ammo, even better. All in all, there are far more dangerous monsters than Lala Barina. The trick is avoiding its paralyzing attack, as well as the tail stings, which can be deadly in quick succession.

As one of the first monsters in the game, Lala Barina’s elemental resistances are fairly straightforward. Lala Barina’s recommended elemental attack is Fire, which encompasses Flaming Ammo, Torch Pod, as well as skills like Fire Attack, Critical Element, and Charge Master — in addition to your own weapon’s properties.

You can find a breakdown of Lala Barina’s elemental weaknesses and resistances below:

Lala Barina’s weak point is its Tail. Both its Claws (x2) and Petals can be broken as well.

Before diving deep into combat strategy, here’s the breakdown of Lala Barina’s weak points:

For details about what to expect in terms of attacks and general behavior, the following section has you covered.

Lala Barina attacks and strategy

It’s not just a marketing spiel — Lala Barina’s behavior and move set are genuinely different than your usual Monster Hunter foe. The trick is in how it prepares before an attack, usually doing one or two movements almost in a rhythmic pattern. This, in turn, is quite helpful for memorization.

Let’s start with close-quarter moves. If you’re facing Lala Barina head on, it will likely try to use its front legs to attack you from above (signaled by lifting one arm, opening the claws) or from the side (signaled by moving one arm to the side and opening the claws). If you’re behind the monster, it’ll likely try to use its legs to attack from above (signaled by lifting a leg twice up in the air), which have more range.

When you gain some distance, the spider can also rush toward you and follow up with short, quicker hits in front of its head by closing the claws to bridge the gap. This usually happens after Lala Barina jumps away, which tends to be in pairs. Other jumps are shorter and are only for repositioning itself.

All of the above is manageable with a bit of practice. The issue is when Lala Barina opens its thorax like a blooming flower — basically it’s equivalent to being enraged, although it can happen quite often. During the state, the monster can do the following:

For most close-quarter attacks, the key is simple memorization, but also moving around the spider. Since it has to take a few steps before each move, this grants you a window to continue damaging it. Using sidesteps rather than full dodges might help when you’re feeling more confident. You’re going to want to avoid the tail sting, which you can wait out for a second while Lala Barina prepares it to dodge roll, and then keep an eye out to see if it follows up with another sting to dodge again.

The spores might seem scary at first, but don’t panic. When they’re in the air, they usually float on one spot while slowly falling to the ground. You can easily move around them or just step away from where the affected area — unless busy with your Palico or another teammate, Lala Barina will come to you. You can also attack the spores to destroy them, although I recommend doing so if you’re using weapons like the Great Sword or the Switch Axe, which can open up a path with a swift swipe attack without exposing you to close quarters. But again, if you don’t want to risk it, either wait for the spores to hit the ground or dodge out of the way.

All in all, Lala Barina isn’t a complex encounter in Monster Hunter Wilds, as long as you avoid its biggest attacks. While its tail is its weak spot, it might take a while to actually be able to hit it. During the first few fights, focus on successfully dodging it, and target its legs and head instead to create wounds. Once on the ground, go for the tail or at least the petals around it. Lastly, whenever the monster is hanging from the ceiling, it’ll be prone to being stunned to the ground if you manage to attack it a few times.

If you’re wondering what the Lala Barina drops in Monster Hunter Wilds are, you can find a handy list below:

If you’re looking for other creatures to fight, our monster list provides a full rundown of every encounter, while we have specific guides for Doshaguma, Nu Udra, Guardian Rathalos, Rey Dau, and Ajarakan.