If you’ve spent any time browsing Monster Hunter Wilds’ endgame armor sets, you’ve probably come across the sleek, stealth-focused Shadowveil set that requires a rare, hard-to-find material: sinister cloth. A lot of players stumble when they first try to track down this resource, since it’s not listed as a drop for most common monsters, and the game gives almost no direction on where to find it. I wasted two full evenings running random high-rank hunts before I figured out the exact sources, so this guide will walk you through every step of how to get sinister cloth in Monster Hunter Wilds, no guesswork required.
How to Get Sinister Cloth in Monster Hunter Wilds: Core Farming Methods
Sinister cloth has three reliable sources, and you can mix and match these methods depending on your playstyle and current progression. If you’re still working your way through high-rank content, you can start earning pieces before you unlock master rank, but drop rates are significantly higher once you hit the endgame. You don’t need any special gear to get started, though a few quality of life skills will speed up the process significantly.
The three most consistent ways to earn sinister cloth are outlined below, with exact drop rates and requirements to help you plan your runs:
- Shrouded Nargacuga Broken Tail/Claw Carve: 18% drop rate per carve on high-rank or master-rank hunts, with an extra 12% chance for an additional piece if you capture the monster instead of killing it
- Corrupted Mire Hidden Gold Chests: 22% chance to get 1-2 pieces of sinister cloth when opened in master-rank expeditions, with no combat required to access most of these spawn points
- "Shadow of the Swamp" Smithy Side Quest Reward: Guaranteed 3 sinister cloth for completing the quest on any difficulty, available as soon as you unlock high-rank hunts
You can also get sinister cloth as a random reward from weekly event quests focused on dark-element monsters, but drop rates are far lower than the three core methods listed above, so I don’t recommend farming event quests specifically for this material. It’s just a nice bonus if you happen to be running event content for other rewards.
Pro Tips to Farm Sinister Cloth Faster
Even with the core farming methods down, you can cut your total grind time in half with a few small tweaks to your loadout and hunt strategy. I tested these tricks over a week of farming, and I went from getting 2 pieces per hour to almost 7 pieces per hour, which made crafting the full Shadowveil set way less of a chore.
First, make sure you have Geologist Level 2 equipped on your armor set before you run Corrupted Mire expeditions. This skill gives you a 50% chance to get extra rewards from chests, which applies to gold chests too, so you can double the number of sinister cloth pieces you get per chest. It also works for ore and bone gathering nodes, so it’s a useful skill to have even when you’re not farming for this specific material.
Second, bring a palico with the Thief Skill Level 3 on all your Shrouded Nargacuga hunts. This skill lets your palico steal up to two extra items per hunt, and sinister cloth is one of the items it can pull from the monster. I’ve had runs where my palico stole two pieces of cloth before I even broke the monster’s tail, which saves you from having to run extra hunts.
Third, if you’re farming Shrouded Nargacuga, always capture it instead of killing it. Capturing gives you two extra reward rolls at the end of the hunt, which drastically increases your chance of getting sinister cloth. You don’t even need to kill the monster to get the carves from its broken parts, so once you break the tail and both claws, you can trap it immediately to wrap up the hunt faster.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Farming Sinister Cloth
I made almost every possible mistake when I first started farming this material, so I can tell you exactly what not to do to save yourself time and frustration. A lot of these mistakes come from vague community tips that are either outdated or just plain wrong, so you don’t have to waste hours testing them like I did.
The biggest mistake I see players make is farming low-rank Shrouded Nargacuga hunts. Low-rank hunts will never drop sinister cloth, no matter how many parts you break or how many times you capture the monster. The material only starts dropping once you unlock high-rank content, so don’t waste your time running low-rank runs hoping for a lucky drop.
Another common mistake is opening regular wooden or iron chests in the Corrupted Mire hoping to find sinister cloth. Only hidden gold chests in the biome can contain this material, and they only spawn in specific, out-of-the-way locations like cave ledges and behind waterfalls. You can spot them from a distance by their faint gold glow, so you don’t have to waste time opening every chest you come across.
Some players also skip the "Shadow of the Swamp" side quest because they think it’s too hard, but it’s actually one of the easiest high-rank side quests in the game. You just have to track down and take a photo of a Shrouded Nargacuga in the Corrupted Mire, no combat required. You can do it in 10 minutes or less, and you get 3 guaranteed pieces of cloth for your trouble, which is enough to craft two pieces of the Shadowveil set right off the bat.
Best Armor & Weapons to Craft With Sinister Cloth
Sinister cloth is used for a small number of endgame items, but every piece of gear that requires it is worth the grind, especially if you prefer stealth-focused or fast-hitting playstyles. You’ll need 12 total pieces of sinister cloth to craft every item that uses it, so plan your farming runs accordingly.
The most popular item is the Shadowveil Armor set, which is widely considered one of the best light armor sets in the game for solo play. It gives +30 stealth, which makes most monsters ignore you unless you attack them first, +25 critical eye to boost your affinity, and a unique passive that turns you invisible for 10 seconds after you roll. That passive is perfect for dodging big monster attacks and getting in extra hits without drawing aggro, especially if you play a fast weapon like dual blades or longsword.
You can also use sinister cloth to craft the Shadowstrike Longsword, which has 210 raw damage, 15% base affinity, and 30 points of dark element damage. It’s one of the strongest longswords in the game for fighting light-element monsters like Paolumu and Legiana, and its sleek black design is a fan favorite for fashion hunters too. It only requires 4 pieces of sinister cloth to craft, so it’s a great first item to make if you don’t have enough material for the full armor set yet.
There are also a few smaller craftable items that use sinister cloth, like stealth mantles and trap upgrades, but these are mostly quality of life items that aren’t as high priority as the armor and weapon. If you have extra cloth left over after crafting the gear you want, you can use it to make these items, but I’d recommend focusing on the Shadowveil set first if you’re still building out your endgame loadout.
At the end of the day, farming sinister cloth doesn’t have to be the tedious grind a lot of players make it out to be. Start with the free 3 pieces from the side quest, run a few Shrouded Nargacuga hunts with your thief palico, and pop into Corrupted Mire expeditions every so often to open gold chests, and you’ll have all the material you need in just a few hours. Whether you’re farming to craft the full Shadowveil set or just need a few pieces for your favorite weapon, following these steps will make the process of getting sinister cloth in Monster Hunter Wilds far less frustrating than it was for me when I first started.