Catching Panthalus isn't something you'll be able to do early on in Palworld. As with most other legendary pals, this newly-added giant whale is a tricky fight, and what's more, you'll have to complete a quest before you can even face it.

Despite the fact you get the Panthalus quest after the new tower boss added in 1.0, you can actually do it yourself at any time provided you visit the Ancient Civilization Researcher at the Deserted Islet. This means that if you're strong, but haven't progressed the towers much, you can still fight Panthalus and catch it.

How to get Panthalus in Palworld

To catch Panthalus, you first have to unlock its boss fight on the Deserted Islet, a fair way to the north of the Windswept Hills, just north of the Twilight Dunes. It's quite easy to spot, since it's right in the middle of the channel between Ice Wind Island on the left, and the ruins at the southern tip of the Astral Mountains on the right.

Here you'll find an Ancient Civilization Researcher, who will ask you to collect four bones from around the map, beginning the Panthalus quest. Besides being able to reach the researcher, there isn't an unlock requirement for this quest, though Panthalus is a very tough fight.

You also don't need to unlock this quest to find the bones—you can gather all four and then speak to the Ancient Civilization Researcher for the first time after, so it's entirely up to you which order you do things in.

Marine Echobone location (124, -524)

The first bone is on the skull of the giant whale skeleton to the west of where you start in the Windswept Hills. It's really easy to spot at a distance, since it emits a glowing light, so simply fly over and continue west up the skeleton to the skull where you can grab it.

Silent Echobone location (356, -111)

The second bone is a reasonable distance to the northeast of the Windswept Hills, east of the Verdant Brook, and northwest of Eastern Wild Island, right by where the Level 55 Jormuntide hangs out. As with the others, you're looking for a giant whale skeleton.

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Head to the Altar of the Windcaller fast travel point, then go south across the water, over the protruding ribcage (and Jormuntide), to spot the glowing item on a low down bit of bone at the back.

Seafoam Echobone location (-515, -545)

This third bone is located far to the west of the Windswept Hills towards the center of Mount Obsidian. You'll want Level 2 Heat Resistance for this, so wear the Tropical Outfit or Heat Resistant Pelt Armour and keep your fire pals stowed.

Travel to the Eternal Pyre Tower Entrance fast travel, then head due east over the cliff edge to spot the giant skeleton on the right side of the lava pools area below. The item is just inside the skull, which is on the side of the skeleton closest to you.

Tidewind Echobone location (-265, 483)

The final bone is in the north of the Astral Mountains, which are themselves to the far north of the Windswept Hills. If you've already unlocked the Deserted Islet where the Ancient Civilization Researcher is, you could also head there and continue north. You should also bring at least Level 2 Cold Resistance for this icy biome.

From the Land of Absolute Zero fast travel, head west over the cliff and down into the frozen lake where you'll spot the head of the giant skeleton and the item glowing on top of it.

How to craft the Echoing Flute

Now you need to head to the Ancient Civilization Researcher on the Deserted Islet. If it's your first time speaking to them, you'll have to accept the quest first, and then speak to them again. This will get you the Faded Schematic, which you can use to craft the Echoing Flute at any workbench using the four bones you found.

After that, head back to the researcher, speak to them, and interact with the glowing symbols on the stone nearby to unlock the Panthalus boss.

How to beat Panthalus

As with any other legendary pal, Panthalus is really hard. The other way you get this quest is after the newest tower boss, so it's not something you're expected to do early. You also only have ten minutes to defeat them. You'll want to bring strong gear like a Plasma Cannon or Multi Guided Missile Launcher, but most importantly, bring a high level, fast-flying pal you can ride during the fight.

Panthalus's entire arena is water apart from one small island, so land-based pals will get decimated. Being able to fly fast will help you avoid most of the attacks. Once you reduce Panthalus's health fully, it'll collapse and you'll get an opportunity to catch it with a sphere—this is 100% guaranteed, so you can focus on the fight knowing you'll for sure catch the legendary pal at the end.

Sean's first PC games were Full Throttle and Total Annihilation and his taste has stayed much the same since. When not scouring games for secrets or bashing his head against puzzles, you'll find him revisiting old Total War campaigns, agonizing over his Destiny 2 fit, or still trying to finish the Horus Heresy. Sean has also written for EDGE, Eurogamer, PCGamesN, Wireframe, EGMNOW, and Inverse.