Lion — Call of the Wild Guide: Behaviour, Best Weapons, Strategy & Where to Hunt

The Lion is a class 9 big or wild cat in theHunter: Call of the Wild, found on Vurhonga Savanna. It can reach Legendary difficulty, weighs 135–270 kg. This guide covers how it behaves, when it feeds, drinks and rests, which weapons and ammo to use, how to hunt it, and the best places to find one.

The Lion in the Game

Lion and lioness on a savanna trail Lions crossing the grassland

2 official images from the game's store page. Tap any image to enlarge.

Behaviour

Cats are mostly solitary, cautious and often active when the light is low. They use cover well and can be hard to spot until they move. The larger cats are dangerous and will charge if wounded or provoked.

Daily routine (need zones)

Like every species, the Lion splits its day between feeding, drinking and resting zones. These are the published windows (in-game time). Find the zones on your save, then be there at the right hour.

Best Weapons for the Lion

The Lion is class 9, so you need ammo rated for class 9. Ammo class decides what is legal and clean; the gun mostly changes handling and range.

Our picks:

• 7mm Regent Magnum with 7mm Mag Soft-Point
• .300 Canning Magnum with .300 Mag Soft-Point
• Rangemaster 338 with .338 Soft-Point
• Coachmate Lever .45-70 with .45-70 Soft-Point Flat Nose
• Bow: Hawk Edge CB-70 with 600 gr Broadhead arrow

27 weapons can legally take a Lion. Data from our weapons database; class ranges can change with patches.

How to Hunt the Lion

• Hunt the low-light windows in their need-zone schedule and sit still near cover rather than stalking.
• For the big cats, use a heavy load and keep a follow-up shot ready; never close in on a wounded one.
• Glass edges of thick cover, riverbanks and ridges where cats travel between zones.
• Patience pays: these animals often appear late in a zone window.
• Trophies: only max-difficulty animals can reach diamond. Check the trophy rating with binoculars, use in-class ammo and kill with one clean shot to pass the harvest check.

Where to Shoot a Lion: Shot Placement From Our Own Hunts

These are two lions we took on Vurhonga Savanna, both with the Arzyna .300 Mag Tactical and .300 Magnum Polymer-Tip ammo (it covers classes 7 to 9, and the lion is class 9). Both passed the harvest check with every icon green, and both hits show 100% on the flesh and lung zones. The X-ray view in hit info is the best way to learn where the bullet went.

Hit info X-ray: male lion, shot at 76.8 m Male lion, class 9, blonde fur, silver 41.96 Lioness, class 9, tan fur, bronze 37.36

Screenshots from our own save. Tap any image to enlarge.

What the hit info shows

In the male’s X-ray the bullet came in from the front, went through the front of the chest and finished in the lung, shown as the pink area. That one lung was enough for a clean kill, but the lion still ran 546 m before it dropped. The lioness was hit through both lungs and ran 233 m. Two lions is a small sample, but it fits what you would expect: the more vital organs a shot takes out, the sooner the animal goes down.

Our shot-placement rules for lions

• Aim for the lungs, not the head or the neck. On a lion standing side-on, that means just behind the front leg, about a third of the way up the body. The pink area in hit info is what you are aiming at.
• Wait for a broadside lion if you can. A side-on shot takes both lungs, like our lioness. A frontal shot like the male’s can still kill, but it only takes one lung and the lion runs further.
• Plan on tracking it. A lion shot in one lung can run over half a kilometre. Mark where it was standing, watch which way it goes, and bring your dog or follow the blood trail.
• Never walk up on a wounded lion in the open. Reload, keep your follow-up shot ready and approach from the side. Lions charge when they are hurt.
• Use ammo rated for class 9. The .300 Magnum Polymer-Tip worked on both lions. Our database also lists the .300 Canning Magnum, the Rangemaster .338 and the King 470DB for lions.
• Check the fur. Our male had Blonde fur, which our data lists as a rare lion colour (along with albino and dark brown). It is worth keeping for the collection even if the trophy score is only silver.

How close were these to gold and diamond?

Our silver male scored 41.96. Gold starts at 44 and diamond at 48.5, so he was about 2 points short of gold. The lioness scored 37.36, just under the silver cut-off of 38. A diamond lion has to be a top-difficulty animal, so scout with binoculars and check the level before you shoot.

Best Places to Hunt the Lion

The Lion only lives on Vurhonga Savanna, so that’s where you have to go.

• Vurhonga Savanna: drinks 12:00–15:00; 10 species on the reserve.

ReserveVurhonga Savannadrinks 12:00–15:00; 10 species on the reserve

Trophy Scores and Rare Furs

Rare furs: Albino (Rare), Blonde (Rare), Dark Brown (Rare), Light Brown (Uncommon).

Related Animals

Class 6JaguarIntisuyu

Class 9Bengal TigerSundarpatan Nepal Hunting Reserve

Class 3Eurasian LynxMedved-Taiga National Park, Revontuli Coast

Class 2Mexican BobcatRancho del Arroyo

Class 5PumaIntisuyu, Parque Fernando

Sources: our species database (class, thresholds, need zones and furs compiled from community trackers and checked in game where possible), official store screenshots, and community guides. Compiled October 2026. Spotted something off? Tell us and we'll fix it.