Monster Hunter Wilds: How to Unlock All Hidden Armor Sets

Monster Hunter Wilds has a plethora of new armor sets to discover thanks to the vast number of new monster additions to its roster. However, some may not know about the secret armor sets that can be discovered throughout a hunter’s journey.

Typically, hunting a monster rewards players with its materials that can then be used to craft its specific pieces of gear. Not a single large monster in Monster Hunter Wilds does not have a respective armor set, but some armor sets do not have respective monsters associated with them. These secret armor sets can be tricky to pin down and require knowledge about some of the game’s new mechanics to ensure they are obtained.

All Secret Armor Set Locations In MHW

Monster Hunter Wilds features 11 secret armor sets, with some being returning favorites and others being brand new to the franchise. Each set requires a specific material to be obtained in order to be unlocked in the smithy. Certain items may require specific methods in order for them to be obtained that can be illusive.

To start, these armor sets can be obtained once players reach high-rank. The majority of these armor sets revolve around two specific ways of obtaining items. They are Material Gathering and Special Trading, with 1 of the 11 armor sets needing its specific material to be obtained through the Support Ship.

Commission Tickets

The Support Ship is a rotating vendor that can be found at the base camp in the Windward Plains. Whenever it arrives, the NPC running the ship, Santiago, will have a selection of items that can be purchased for Hunter Guild Points. With him being able to leave and come back another time, his inventory will change every time that happens. One of the possible items he could have is called the Commission Ticket. This is the item that will need to be acquired in order to get the secret armor set known as The Commission Armor Set.

Among the Support Ship’s inventory are a plethora of weapons and other items. Obtaining as many weapons from him as possible proved to be useful in increasing the odds of getting a Commission Ticket, since it removes the possibility of other items taking another place in his items for sale. His inventory can also be catered to several preferences, and it is important to have it set on Misc. Items to have the best chance at getting the Commission Ticket.

After the Commission Ticket is obtained, you can go to Gemma and see the new commission set available to be crafted as a new high-rank armor set.

Material Retrieval System

The Support Ship is only relevant to that specific armor set, and the next ones will focus on the Material Retrieval system. Every single location will have at least one NPC that serves as someone who can go out on their own and obtain certain materials for you. While they are useful for obtaining numerous items throughout the world, they also have a chance at bringing you rare material that is specific to the region they are in.

Much like the Commission Ticket, once you obtain at least one of these materials, you will be able to go back to Gemma and see the full high-rank armor set associated with that specific item and can proceed to craft it once you have all the necessary materials. Listed below are the items that are linked to each specific Material Retrieval vendor, their respective locale, and the armor set they create:

Sinister Cloth from Windward Plains (Death Stench)
Great Hornfly from Scarlet Forest (Butterfly and King Beetle)
Drearesite Scraps from Oilwell Basin (High Metal)
Scarred Scale from Iceshard Cliffs (Battle Armor)
Great Hibiscus from Ruins of Wyveria (Melahoa)

All of these Material Retrieval vendors can be managed by Nata at any of your base camps as well, making it easier to access them all at once. If you do not have a vendor for a specific location, that means you may not have completed a certain side quest that will grant you access to them. Once it is completed, they will be present in their respective settlements and can be accessed by Nata.

Special Trading

No other materials are available through this method. To get the last group of items, you will need to focus on Special Trading. Much like the Material Retrieval vendors, there is one Special Trading vendor per location that can also be managed through Nata once they are unlocked. Each vendor will have a random selection of items to trade that will change as time passes, causing their inventory to cycle. One of the many items that can be obtained through these vendors is the final pieces of equipment material to unlock the last secret armor sets.

Depending on what item you are looking to obtain, the vendor will request a specific item to be given in return. At times, the gatherers can give you the items needed for the exchange, but they are not guaranteed. The items to look out for when collecting materials in the wild are called Treasures, which can be found throughout each map and can have varying rarities depending on luck and/or specific environmental conditions.

Higher rarity versions of these treasures are typically what is required to trade for the materials needed for the secret armor sets. That said, what materials they may ask for are random every time their trade list rotates. Meaning, there is no set item to focus on to ensure you get the item you are looking for.

The materials that can be obtained via trading and their respective armor sets are listed below: