Hunters,
Another Driftsmelting Bonanza is around the corner!
During this event, you’ll find more frequent appearances of Quematrice, Rathalos, as well as Glavenus, Tigrex, and others.
A new driftstone, Mysterious Driftstone N, also makes its debut. It may grant the brand-new skill Reflection to armor.
Don’t forget that Base Defense also starts soon! Use driftsmelting to add skills and upgrade your equipment even further in preparation for Riftcharged Barioth!
Dates & Times
Monday, March 2nd, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. – Sunday, March 8th, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (local time)
Event Details
Monster Appearances
Activity is expected to increase for the following monsters.
- Quematrice
- Rathalos (including Riftborne)
- Glavenus
- Tigrex
- Goss Harag
- Garangolm
Event Effects
Driftstone bonus
- Chance of receiving Mysterious Driftstone N from all large monsters.
- Guaranteed to receive one from the featured monsters, as well as from Anjanath, Great Girros, and Deviljho (regular driftstones will not drop).
- Chance of receiving either Mysterious Driftstone N or a Crimson/Azure/Amber/Cyan/Pale/Black Driftstone from all other large monsters.
- Distance required for driftsmelting with driftstones obtained during this event period reduced to 1 km.
Daily Quest reward increase
- Additional Insta-Smelt Solution from Daily Quests distributed between Monday, March 2nd, 2026, at 12:00 a.m. and Sunday, March 8th, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (local time).
- Receive a maximum of 7 over 7 days.
New Driftstone & Driftgem
Collect a new driftstone, Mysterious Driftstone N, and exchange driftstone shards for the new Reflection Driftgem.
- Mysterious Driftstone N may grant your armor one of the following skills: Reflection or Headstrong.
- Reflection Driftgem will grant your armor the Reflection skill.
- More details about Mysterious Driftstone N will be added to the FAQ at a later date.
About the Reflection Skill
Mysterious Driftstone N may grant your armor Reflection.
- Skill name: Reflection
Skill effect: After successfully guarding, returns a very slight amount of damage at close range, proportional to the power of the received attack.
Recommended Armor for Driftsmelting
Check out the recommended armor for driftsmelting during this event!
Reflection is effective with weapons that can guard (sword & shield, great sword, lance, gunlance, charge blade, heavy bowgun) and really shines with a hunting style that guards often while in close proximity to the monster. Be sure to check out the recommended loadout using the lance in-game.
Use driftsmelting to add Reflection to your armor and upgrade this recommended loadout even further!
Guardian Set
- Weapon: Flame Lance, Red Tail
- Head armor: Rex Roar Helm
- Chest armor: Golm Mail
- Arm armor: Barroth Vambraces
- Waist armor: Wroggi Coil
- Leg armor: Golm Greaves
For full details on each piece of equipment, please check the equipment screen in-game.
Limited-Time Quests: Driftsmelting Bonanza!
Take on limited-time quests that include slaying Glavenus and Tigrex. Complete them to earn materials for the target monster!
Limited-Time Quests: Driftsmelting Quest
Take on limited-time quests that involve driftsmelting. Complete them to earn Armor Refining Parts!
Premium Quests
Premium Quests are quests that can be unlocked by exchanging gems in the in-game shop. Complete these quests to earn valuable rewards!
Please check the in-game shop for quest details.
- Purchase Premium Quests:
Monday, March 2nd, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. – Sunday, March 8th, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (local time) - Activate Premium Quests:
Monday, March 2nd, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. – Thursday, April 2nd, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (local time)
Premium Quest Rewards
| Quest | Reward Materials |
|---|---|
| Glavenus Premium Quest |
Glavenus Plate × 5 Glavenus Pyroshell × 10 Glavenus Fang × 10 Glavenus Bone × 15 Glavenus Tailedge × 15 Glavenus Scale × 25 Glavenus Shell × 25 |
| Tigrex Premium Quest |
Tigrex Plate × 5 Tigrex Scalp × 10 Tigrex Claw × 10 Tigrex Fang × 15 Tigrex Tail × 15 Tigrex Scale × 25 Tigrex Shell × 25 |
| Rathalos Style Customization Quest |
Rathalos Plate × 10 Rathalos Primescale × 20 Rathalos Marrow × 40 Rathalos Tail × 70 Rathalos Scale × 300 |
In addition to the above, completing each quest will grant Hunter Rank Points, Season Tier Points, and more. See the in-game Shop for details.
Additional Information
- All hunters who have completed the prologue can enjoy the event content.
- Event quests will automatically become available in the Special Quests tab to all hunters who have completed the prologue.
- Riftborne monsters will only start to appear after you have unlocked 8★ monsters on the field.
- Driftsmelting and driftsmelting quests can be unlocked by completing the pre-season story.
- The pre-season story refers to the period from the end of the prologue to the completion of Chapter 13: Sunderer of the Skies.
- See here for details on how to enjoy driftsmelting.
- Event quests will be available from Monday, March 2nd, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. – Sunday, March 8th, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. (local time). Be sure to complete the quests and receive your rewards between these times.
- The distance required to smelt a driftstone acquired before the event period will remain the same even if it is smelted during the event period, but the distance required for a driftstone acquired by hunting a monster during the event period will remain 1 km after the event period ends.
- The distance required to smelt driftgems obtained by exchanging driftstone shards will remain the same during the event.
- Check in-game for details of the skills granted by driftstones.
- Quests and rewards are subject to change without notice.
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