Whether you’re looking to grow your income or attack dungeons faster, monsters are your best friend (literally) in Rune Factory 5. Certain monsters can produce a specific item every day, which you can use for crafting and cooking. Others are useful as rides, making your dungeon excursions faster, while others make good battle partners.

Eventually, you’ll want to befriend most of them. But with limited space in your barns, you’ll need to choose wisely. Below, we’ve listed the 11 most useful monsters to tame in no particular order.

Wooly/Fleecy

Cluckadoodle

Buffamoo

Emperor Penguin

Silver Wolf

Flower Lion

Flower Crystal

You can also tame the Spider early in the game. Located in the Kelve Volcanic Region: Entrance, it produces Spider’s Thread—a weaker version of Strong Vine.

Use: Produces Fur for crafting and selling

Locations: Phoros Woodlands: Entrance, Kelve Volcanic Region: Forest Area, Gadeus Grasslands: Entrance

Favorite Item: Wooly Furball

*but they will respond to any repeat gift as they’re easy to tame

Use: Produces Eggs for cooking

Best Location: Phoros Woodlands: Entrance

Favorite Items: Eggs, Bird’s Feather

Use: Produces Milk for cooking; you can ride this monster

Location: Phoros Woodlands: Entrance

Favorite Item: Milk

Use: Produces Bird’s Feather, which can be used to craft any item that needs a “Feather” material

Best Locations: Lake Yumina: Crystal Lake, Meline Crystal Caverns B1

Favorite Items: Pond Smelt, Bird’s Feather

*but they will respond to any repeat gift at a high enough level

Use: Produces Wolf Fang, which can be used to craft any item that needs a “Claws and Fangs” material

Locations: Lake Yumina: Entrance, Gadeus Grasslands: Entrance

Favorite Items: Any type of fur, Wolf Fang, Crystal Fragment

Use: Produces Plant Stem, which can be used to craft any item that needs a “Sticks and Stems” material

Location: Kelve Volcanic Region: Secluded Hot Spring Area

Favorite Items: Plant Stem, Root

Use: Produces Strong Vine, which can be used to craft any item that needs a “Strings” material

Location: Lake Yumina: Secluded Snowy Hot Spring Area, Meline Crystal Caverns: Depths

Favorite Items: Plant Stem, Root, Strong Vine, Stick

Giant Bug

You can also tame the Insect early in the game. Easily found in the Phoros Woodlands: Central Area, it produces Insect Carapace—a weaker version of Pretty Carapace.

Use: Produces Pretty Carapace, which can be used to craft any item that needs a “Cloths and Skins” material

Location: Whispering Woods: Forest of No Return

Favorite Items: Fur, Pretty Carapace, Quality Insect Jaw

Ice Griffin and Flame Griffin

The Dragons

There are five dragons in Rune Factory 5:

Use: A strong battle partner that can use magic; you can ride this monster

Location: Ice Griffin – Lake Yumina: Crystal Lake (South); Flame Griffin – Kelve Lava Caves: Depths

Favorite Items: Bird’s Feather, crystals and crystal fragments that match their element

*but they will respond to most repeat gifts if you’re at a high enough level

  • Black DrakeGreen DragonYellow DragonRed DragonBlue Dragon

Nine-Tailed Fox

How to increase your chances of taming a monster in Rune Factory 5

  • Do not attack it. It resets the affection meter.Brush the monster until the music note icon stops appearing above its head. This will make it friendlier towards you and, thus, easier to capture.Level up. The wider (and higher!) your level gap, the higher its chances of being tamed.

For more help with Rune Factory 5, take a look at some of our other posts here at Pro Game Guides.

Use: A devastating battle partner that will win you the Buddy Battle festival every year

Location: Rigbarth Maze

Favorite Items: Dragon Fang, Dragon Scales, Small Crystal, Crystal Fragments that match the color of their skin

Use: A great early-game battle partner that’s easy to tame; you can ride this monster

Location: Whispering Woods: Depths

Favorite Items: Nine-Tail Fox Bell (which it also drops—meaning you can try taming it as soon as you beat it), Starfall Strawberry, Tempura