Is the forte of a Palico completely random?

Question

So I'm working towards getting five of every Palico type, but it's proving a bit tricker than I expected. I seem to encounter some types (like healing) all the time, and other types (like support) rarely, which makes getting five of each really annoying. It makes me wonder, though, if the forte a scouted Palico has is completely random, or if there's any sort of bias based on the map, rank, or quest.

Is the forte of a scouted Palico which appears on a quest completely random, or are there factors which influence the forte of a scouted Palico?

Answer 1

The key factors for determining what Palicos you are most likely to encounter are what specific map you are on and whether or not you have unlocked high-rank quests offline (7* Caravan quests). Here is a nifty chart to help you determine where to go to find what Palicos.

As you can see, Beast and Jump Palicos don't even appear until you unlock 7* Caravan quests and Healing Fortes drops in likelihood once 7* Caravan quests are available. Due to this, you probably want to scout as many Healing Palicos as you want before you unlock 7* Caravan quests.