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Horizon Zero Dawn

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Deadliest Game

By
Jarrod Garripoli
&
Nathan Garvin

After finishing up the Hunters’ Blind sidequest, you will automatically be given this errand. Speak with Talanah, who says you need to improve your reputation within the lodge, which you can do by hunting down a Thunderjaw and a Stormbird, bringing in a trophy from each. Both of these are probably the top tier in terms of difficulty in the game, especially if you don’t know what you’re doing. If you haven’t purchased Carja Sharpshot Bow, then you might want to do that, as the Tearblast Arrows make the fight against the Thunderjaw, at least, a lot easier.

A good location to hunt the Thunderjaw on the map (left). Use its own disc launcher against it to do major damage (right).

The easiest place to find a Thunderjaw is west of Cut-Cliffs, literally right next to a campfire. The Tearblaster or Tearblast Arrows will be extremely helpful here, as using these to break off certain parts will make the fight more manageable. The Thunderjaw has two cannons, one on each side of its mouth, which it will use to spray bullets in your direction. The Disc Launchers will fire some discs that shoot lasers at you, but knocking these off will allow you to pick them up. Each one has eight shots and they do some great damage to the Thunderjaw.

Unfortunately, hiding from the dinosaur isn’t a thing, as it has a radar on its back, unless you destroy it. As one would expect, its main body has no weaknesses, but is strong against shock. There are both Blaze and Freeze Canisters on the Thunderjaw, so using the appropriate elements will make them explode and deal major damage. It’s not clear when it starts using the following attack, but it will shoot some lasers from its mouth in a fan pattern, straight ahead.

Its melee attacks can be a little hard to deal with, especially considering its size. The one where it sort of lunges at you has a small delay and there’s not enough room to dodge sometimes, so you’ll get hit. The Shadow Ropecaster can be a huge help in bringing down the beast, as it is defenseless for a few attacks while it’s tied down. Combine this with the disc launchers you can use against it, the Thunderjaw will go down in no time. If you can get far enough away and bait attacks like the mouth lasers, which is extremely easy to dodge, then pelt it with either a Sharpshot Bow or fire arrows (preferably Triple Shot).

You can easily find a Stormbird by going just outside of the western exit of Daytower. It has a wide array of shock-based air-to-ground attacks, so having some Resist Shock Potions will help a good bit. Its main body doesn’t have any weaknesses, but it is strong to shock, unsurprisingly. It has both a Blaze and Freeze Canister on its back, with the latter being more towards the head. The Lightning Gun on its chest allows it to use ranged shock attacks, so destroying that will get rid of those. There are a total of six Engines on its wings, which it uses for a divebomb attack.

The Stormbird will alternate between a large shock blast and smaller ones while in the air, but it can’t do this should you remove the Lightning Gun. If you see it fly high into the air, it’ll be ready to deliver a divebomb, so run away. After it has done the divebomb, the Stormbird will stay on the ground for a bit, which is your chance to go after the Engine pieces. The Tearblaster from the previous quest works wonders here, but the Tearblast Arrows also work, although it might be a little hard to hit them.

When the Stormbird flies high into the sky, it’s going to do its divebomb attack (left). Use the Ropecaster to keep the Stormbird grounded (right).

Other attacks include some lunges where it will peck its beak to the ground multiple times, as well as a tail sweep. One of the other annoying attacks is when it flaps its wings once to create a gust of air that does damage you; it can do this either on the ground or in the air. The Shadow Ropecaster might be your best friend in this battle, as four or so shots will bring down the flying beast. Also, if you have access to freeze arrows, use those on the front set of canisters, and fire arrows on the back set. Once it is dead, loot the trophy and if you have both of them, return to Ahsis back at the Hunters Lodge to find he isn’t there and nor is Talanah. Speak with Ligan downstairs to finish the Errand.

Objective Reward
For bringing back the Thunderjaw and Stormbird trophies 6,000 XP / Extraordinary Reward Box
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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Sony Interactive Entertainment
  • Platforms,
    PC, PS4
  • Genre
    Action RPG
  • Guide Release
    16 February 2017
  • Last Updated
    7 December 2020
  • Guide Author
    Nathan Garvin, Jarrod Garripoli

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Taking place one-thousand years in the future, colossal machines have overrun and dominated the land, forcing humans to regress to tribal societies who have to survive off the land. Where did these behemoths come from? With a love for technology, it is up to Aloy, an outcast of her Nora tribe, to uncover the mysteries of her world. Take to the open world to explore, fight the metal monstrosities and learn all about the wonderful world of Horizon: Zero Dawn.

Version 1.2

  • Basic mechanics, including exploring, gathering, fighting and crafting.
  • Completion of every single side mission and errand in the game.
  • Collectibles and locations section updated (Banuk Figures, Vantage Points, Bandit Camps etc).
  • A thorough walkthrough of the main story missions.
  • A complete walkthrough of every single side mission in the game.
  • Strategies on how to defeat each of the enemies.
  • A full trophy guide.
  • Full Frozen Wilds DLC guide.

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