Tips for fighting the Desert boss?

[BahnKnakyu]

Just wondering. There's that grab attack that does a crapload of damage - what is the trigger for it? When can I get close to it, when can I not?

How do you get the thing to flip over on its back? Is there a weak point I can hit when it's not flipped over? What does killing the tentacles do? Is there any significance to the tentacles when they open their claws up and expose that red part (weak point?)

Trying to figure out this boss, but this one doesn't seem as straightforward as the previous bosses.

[Randomness]

The suction and grab is telegraphed by it only having its head barely out of the sand.

To expose it's chest (the weak point), smash up the tentacles.

If you're a force, use Gigrants or Gifoie and laugh.

[Adept]

I think it does the grab attack when he starts sucking in stuff. I just keep spamming dash to avoid it.

To flip it over, kill all the tentacles

Edit: Derp beaten to it

[HFlowen]

You can slip out of that grab just like the rockbear's grab if you button mash.

That might require someone else hitting it though, not sure.

[mnemosy]

Better than spamming dash and easier is to just jump away when you're getting sucked.

[BogusKun]

Keeping behind him when he's not targeting you in parties is very effective... charge attacks should be implemented.

[Shadownami92]

Though if your close to him while he's sucking stuff up you can still get sucked up, even when behind him.

But I'm a Force, so generally you can just keep you distance and Burn Baby Burn!

[gigawuts]

As a hunter I generally just keep my distance until I can tell what attack he's doing. If I see him lowering at all I back off. If I know I'm going to be fighting that boss, I try to bring a hunter NPC specifically to die to get sucked in over and over.

But then even without NPC's he's probably the easiest boss for me to solo. Sword gear is amazing for it, with so many tentacles to keep the bar filled and sonic arrows hitting everything three times.

[Ueno54]

Kill all his arms and he exposes his belly. As mentioned above Gigrants makes him into the most laughable boss so far.

[Windadept]

To be honest he's the most laughable boss to solo for any class.
The only boss that would be tedious for a hunter to solo is Vol Dragon.

[Garnet_Moon]

I've only had 1 death with the many antlions i've fought today as a force, and I gotta say... it's the biggest joke boss in the game. GiGrants or Gifoie or Chain Lightning all the tentacles and he pops up belly first. Rafoie his tummy for 800 per cast. Rinse and repeat.

I can see how it'd be a pain in the ass for hunters though.

Oh, that 1 death? My 2nd encounter with him. I never felt the suction the first time being at range with cards... 2nd was a little too close. He ate me. It sucked. :(

[buri-chan]

If you just focus on the tentacles as a Hunter, you'll pretty much never see the suction attack outside of right after you get his weak spot. Tentacles > Weak Spot > Run in close enough that he doesn't burrow again, but run away immediately > Let a stupid AI partner get sucked in > Use Photon Blast to level everything. Like that I've gotten him...oh, three times for each of the five Josef quests I've done, plus the five for hard mode-- way too many times.

If you encounter him on the highway map, he's impossibly easy; you just have to stand on one of the stacked boxes, and literally none of his attacks can reach you.

[Bibimbap]

You can avoid his suction in 2 different ways. If you just briskly walk away from it he can't even pull you to him, and if you get caught in the middle of something you can always just hold your Photon Blast 'til it's over.

[BahnKnakyu]

You can slip out of that grab just like the rockbear's grab if you button mash.

That might require someone else hitting it though, not sure.

With Rockbear you just have to mash on the analog stick.

I've tried button mashing out of the antlion's grab but I had no luck. Maybe I'm doing it wrong.

[Gamemako]

If you just focus on the tentacles as a Hunter, you'll pretty much never see the suction attack outside of right after you get his weak spot. Tentacles > Weak Spot > Run in close enough that he doesn't burrow again, but run away immediately > Let a stupid AI partner get sucked in > Use Photon Blast to level everything. Like that I've gotten him...oh, three times for each of the five Josef quests I've done, plus the five for hard mode-- way too many times.

If you encounter him on the highway map, he's impossibly easy; you just have to stand on one of the stacked boxes, and literally none of his attacks can reach you.

One of them is easy. Two of them will piss you off to no end as a Hunter. I gave up fighting fair and just walked backwards using the charged shot PA on my Gunslash. The face is a weak spot, and he's always facing you, so just give him what he's asking for. Not the fastest route, but it's reliable and effective. Try to hit him in the face with a melee weapon and he'll either instantly grab you or spin in a circle and hit you from 7 feet above his head. That is, if you don't get clobbered from behind first.