Editing Monster Hunter (section)

==The Lore==
Monster Hunter, not being that serious, doesn't have too much lore outside of the monsters themselves. However, there are tidbits that have been revealed over the years.

First off, at some point, there was an ancient civilization running around. They're responsible for a lot of the ruins and shit you can find in the game. Not much is known about them, probably because they were initially just a remnant of scrapped lore (more on that below). They were also the first to make Dragonator tech, aka [[awesome|giant fuckoff pneumatic harpoons which skewer monsters like a kebab]]. Any modern Dragonator you see in-game was based on the ones they made.

Secondly, there's the Hunter's Guild, essentially an international organization that regulates hunting monsters. Their goal is to balance protecting people with preserving the environment ([[Not as planned|since having the player repeating quests infinitely be canon would quickly lead to environmental collapse]]). They're your employer in each game of the series, having you take out quests where you hunt monsters (or do other tasks for the training-wheel quests so you know the ropes). They also have strict rules against poaching, to the point [[Blam|you get offed if you do it]]. This seems stupid until you realize a poacher could easily piss off an Elder Dragon that could go on to raze a nearby village. [[Commissar|Guild Knights]] are the ones who enforce this rule, being elite Hunters who are trained to also fight other people. The Guild's also kinda shady at times, especially when you get into the territory of Black Dragons.

===The Equal Dragon Weapon===
Decidedly noncanon (for now, anyway) due to being scrapped very fucking early on, but it's notable enough to warrant a mention. It's also good shit to spin off a darker take on the series from in case you want to run a campaign in it or something.

Monster Hunter generally has a nonserious tone, being light on the plot and focusing its worldbuilding on making monsters with actual ecology. There's a few exceptions, but this generally has been the case since forever. However, when the series was just being conceived and no one had cut their first tail, it almost went in the opposite direction. 

In an artbook, it was revealed that a [[Grimdark]] world could have awaited us. A world where the ancient civilization treated monsters, including Elder Dragons, as slaves. ([[Necrons|Where have I]] [[C'tan|heard that before...]])

Naturally, the dragons and other monsters weren't fond of being treated like shit in this plotline and rebelled. Since they had Dragonators and shit, the Ancients could stand a chance, but they decided to go the extra mile into [[Grimderp]] and create an abomination that makes sick fuck [[Honsou]] jealous. The Equal Dragon Weapon, a borderline [[Chaos Spawn|that-which-shall-not-be-named]] created by stitching dead Elder Dragons together and giving the foul creation life. In the ensuing Dragon War, these things would have been basically responsible for driving the Elder Dragons into critically-endangered status as we see them in the game. It also would explain why Fatalis has such a hateboner for humanity. However the mere existence of this thing pissed off monsterkind ''so'' much that the war ended with the ancient civilization destroyed and the EDWs (presumably) exterminated. The artbook shows a dead one, so god help us if we ever see a live one.

It's pretty unknown why this shit got cut, though the leading theory was that the decision to shift to a lighthearted tone meant this had to get the axe.

===Other Races===
Being a fantasy setting, humans are not the only sentient species present in the world. There are quite a few of note, though most descend from the franchise's weird fascination with [[Furry|cat people]].

*'''Wyverians''' - the only other humanoid race in the Monster Hunter world, the Wyverians are basically the [[elf|knife-ears]] but not pricks. They have a large range of size, with there being some unnaturally large individuals (even for them) known to us. They also can be differentiated by the aforementioned knife-ears, having four fingers instead of five, three clawed toes, and longer lifespans. Some possess digitgrade legs and clawed fingers as well. Like the elves, they have a close relationship with nature and have a different way of thinking than humans, but don't mistake that for being pretentious pacifist hippies - the Wyverians were in fact the first Hunters and only stopped being the bulk of the Guild's warriors because humanity was more zealous and efficient at the job. Some still take up arms today.<br />As the name suggests, they're probably descended from Wyverns somehow. How that happened we'll leave to the imagination of well-adjusted folks - we'd rather not have [[/d/]] be the ones coming up with [[Extra Heresy|an explanation]].
*'''Lynians''' - Essentially the setting's [[Beastmen]] except 90% less evil overall with some that are 100% less evil. Much smaller than humans, these gremlins have differing lifestyles that see them either help or bother humanity.
**'''Felynes''' - the cat-people. The Felynes are the ones you most commonly see working with people, since many of them have chosen to integrate into society. Some even assist Hunters, with these fighting individuals being known as '''Palico'''.
**'''Melynxes''' - the ''other'' cat-people. These ones are [[Blood Ravens|kleptomaniacs that, in the wild, steal your shit and take it back to their hideout]]. Some manage to suppress their thievery and work with humans, though.
**'''Grimalkyne''' - the primitive cat-people introduced in World. Being native to the relatively unexplored New World, they have little to no contact, much less experience, with humans and therefore are wary of them. Hunters can work to gain their trust, however, making them provide some of their gear as well as assist in trapping monsters. They're split into several tribes.