Shellsnapper, a heavyweight machine posing a significant challenge for players in Horizon Forbidden West. With its robust armor and devastating attacks, defeating it requires careful strategy and precise execution.
Understanding the Shellsnapper’s mechanics is crucial to overcoming it. This colossal machine boasts a protective shell that absorbs incoming damage and stores energy for powerful counterattacks. Equipped with various weapons, including frost blasters and plasma generators, the Shellsnapper is a formidable opponent that demands respect.
This guide discusses all the different locations where the machine is guaranteed to spawn in Horizon Forbidden West, along with the strategy for overcoming it and reaping the rewards.
Shellsnapper #1 Location
The first Shellsnapper is located east of Scalding Spear, northeast of Rebel Output.
Shellsnapper #2 Location
The second Shellsnapper is located southwest of Camp Nowhere, northeast of Rebel Outpost.
Shellsnapper #3 Location
You need to move towards the beach to get to the next machine. The third Shellsnapper is northwest of Tide’s Reach.
Shellsnapper #4 Location
The last Shellsnapper can be found in the Isle of Sphires, just southeast of Legacy’s Landfall.
How to Defeat Shellsnapper in Horizon Forbidden West?
You’ll need a good strategy to take down the Shellsnapper, a tough machine in Forbidden West. The Shellsnapper’s main weak point is the collection of Chillwater sac on its belly. If you can get them to explode, it will deal much damage. You can use a sharp shot bow with the Range Master valor surge and the Brace Shot weapon technique to explode at least one free sack. To do this, position yourself to get a good line of sight of the ground under the Shellsnapper’s belly, aiming for the ground directly underneath the Chillwater sac.
After exploring the Chillwater sac, you need to aim for the shell bolts (the rectangular components on the perimeter of its shell). These hold the shell on the Shell Snapper’s back, and removing one will make a chunk of the shell fly off, taking the annoying frost blaster cannons with it. You’ll also expose weak points like the plasma generators and kinetic dynamo. To remove shell bolts, you’ll need something that can deal a lot of tear damage, like the Death Seeker’s Shadowhunter bow or the Forged Fire Sharp Shot bow. If you don’t have those, you can use a bow that can fire tear blast arrows, like the Cleaving Sharpshot bow or the Glowblast Sharpshot bow.
When fighting the Shellsnapper, be patient and pace yourself. These machines have a lot of health and can be very annoying, especially when they dive underground for extended periods. Take those opportunities to craft more ammo, heal, and reposition for when the Shellsnapper launches itself out of the ground. To avoid its belly slams, use sliding and dodging, and consider turning on the auto sprint setting to make it easier.
Shellsnapper Loot and Drops
The Shellsnapper in HFW drops a lot of common, uncommon, rare, and very rare loot. Let’s go over all the rewards you will get:
Body Loot
- Metal Shards (100%)
- Purgewater (100%)
- Sturdy Hardplate (71%)
- Shellsnapper Circulator (70%)
- Large Machine Core (69-70%)
- Shellsnapper Primary Nerve (62%)
- Machine Muscle (45%)
- Braided Wire (30-31%)
- Crystal Braiding (28%)
- Luminous Brainstem (28%)
- Metal Bone (28%)
Processing Capsule Loot
- Braided Wire (89-90%)
- Blastpaste (75-76%)
- Sturdy Hardplate (56%)
- Luminous Brainstem (16%)
Shell Bolt Loot
- Shellsnapper Shell Bolt (100%)
Frost Blaster Loot
- Useable Weapon (100%)
Plasma Generator Loot
- Glowblast (100%)
Sparker Loot
- Sparker (100%)
Refining Core Loot
- Braided Wire (89%)
- Blastpaste (75-76%)
- Sturdy Hardplate (56%)
- Large Machine Core (50-51%)
- Shellsnapper Primary Nerve (15%)
- Volatile Sludge (<1%)
Chillwater Sac Loot
- Chillwater (100%)
Resource Container Loot
- Braided Wire (90%)
- Blastpaste (75%)
- Sturdy Hardplate (55-56%)
- Large Machine Core (31%)
- Shellsnapper Primary Nerve (15%)
Acid Canister Loot – Apex Shellsnapper Exclusive
- Metalbite (100%)
