New Player Guide

Rank

The rank system in RDO works just like any leveling system; as you gain experience, you will unlock new items and abilities and you'll be assigned a "rank". Though there isn't really a level "cap" on experience gain, there is a cap for rewards; you will fully unlock all base game items by rank 100, after that point, you will continue to gain xp and rise in rank, but you wont be awarded new item unlocks.

Keep in mind that each rank requires more and more xp to move on to the next, and you will still receive benefits and treasure map rewards every 10 levels, even after you reach Rank 100.

You can easily view your rank by accessing your Player Menu; it will be listed at the top of the menu window, to the right of your player name. You will also be able to freely view any player's rank by locating them in the 'Players' section of that same menu.

Wardrobe

One of the biggest mechanics of RDO is the character customization; in addition to creating a unique custom character appearance, you can also control their clothing and equipment. Though the clothing and equipment items in RDO don't provide armor or stat increases, most are functional in terms of protection from the elements.

Weather and temperature changes will negatively effect your characters stats if your clothing is too hot or too cold; you can create outfits that have a weather rating (hot, average or cold) in the wardrobe and save up to 10 custom ones. You can also store between 3 and 7 of these outfits on your horse, depending on what saddle bags you have equipped.

You can access the wardrobe and create outfits at any General Store, Tailor or at your tent in camp.

Emotes

In proper multiplayer fashion, RDO has many emotes to choose from. You can have 4 emotes actively equipped at a time out of 12 emotes favorited in total. There's no limit to how many emotes you can own but some cost more than others and are locked by role or rank; there are also some emotes that are limited to Outlaw passes or special events. To purchase a new emote, simply visit the Tailor and look at the 'Emotes' section in the catalogue, they will be grouped by style and role.

To use an emote, you will need to equip them by accessing the "Online Options" in your Player Menu; as stated above, you can have up to 12 emotes assigned to this menu at a time (3 per emote category). Once you have them assigned, simply focus on a player or NPC and select the emote action that will be listed on the bottom right of your screen.

If you hold down the emote button instead of just clicking it, the emote will play on a loop and will allow you to "flourish" with a secondary action for that emote. That button will appear when you hold the emote command.

Ability Cards

Ability cards are an extension of your Dead Eye skill; these cards allow you to utilize different abilities while your Dead Eye is active, or they grant you passive perks in and out of combat.

You can have 4 cards equipped at a time; 1 active card that is only effective while your Dead Eye is active, and 3 passive cards that have persistent effects on your damage or stats.

Each card has 3 possible levels of effectiveness; the first level is the base version of the card that you can purchase and equip, and as you Rank up and earn xp, these cards will earn xp with you. You'll be able to level each card up twice, which will make the card increasingly more effective each time.

You can access these cards by selecting "Ability Loadout" from the bottom right of your weapon wheel screen or by choosing "abilities" from the pause menu.

For more information on ability cards, see our Ability Card Guide

Awards

You can think of Awards like achievements or trophies; they are rewarded to the player after the completion of various challenges and will unlock special belt buckles, give you gold and xp. There are a lot of different kinds of awards you can earn and they are all divided into categories depending on their requirements (ex. combat, hunting, horsemanship).

You can also earn some rewards more than once; if you look at the awards in the progression menu, you will be able to hover over them and reset the reward (if it's available) in order to earn the xp and gold again. If the award can be reset, you are allow to re-earn it up to 10 times.

Cores vs Bars

"Cores" are the symbols at the center of each of your characters stat levels on your HUD; they represent a "reserve" level of health, energy or dead eye for your character. When your "bars" are empty, these essentially act as an emergency reserve, but they will drain much faster than the bars. It's also important to know that cores drain over time; though there are external factors that quicken their depletion, your characters cores will slowly "leak" all on their own and you will have to keep replenishing them by eating food. In addition, the condition of your cores also determines the speed at which your bars refill; an empty core means the bar will refill very slowly, and a full core means the bar will refill quickly.

"Bars" are the rings around the cores of your characters stat levels on your HUD; they represent your main amount of health, energy or dead eye. These pools of energy have the capability to refill on their own, but the refill speed is impacted by how full or empty your cores are. These are generally fortified by tonics, not food. Weather is a large contributor to bar refill as well; being too hot or too cold will hinder your bars refill speed.

Health

To upgrade this stat, you can fish, use melee weapons, and hunt with a bow. The improved bow has no rank requirement (it's a newer addition to the game) so I recommend purchasing it as soon as you're able. Using it will raise your health core and bar. Your overall health stat is also impacted by weight; if your character is overweight, you will have a higher health stat.

Health Core

• A full HP core is equal to 20 points of health. Your health core and a fully upgraded health bar combined will equal 120 points of health.

• This core is impacted by injury and temperature. As you take damage from enemies or the elements, your health core will drain slowly. If it empties, you will die when your health bar depletes. To counter the effects of the elements, wear clothing suitable for the region you're in.

Health Bar

• A fully upgraded health bar is equal to 100 points of health; each level of the health bar is 10 points, so as you are leveling your health, it will boost 10 points at a time until it reaches 100.

• This bar shows your primary health reserve and it's impacted by injury of any kind (i.e. fall damage, poison, bullets, the obvious). It will automatically replenish over time, and can be forcibly refilled or fortified by using tonics.

Stamina

To upgrade this stat, you have to move. Walking, running, sprinting; all movement has an impact on your stamina. The fastest way to upgrade and improve your stamina core and bar is to sprint - I know it's boring but it's efficient, especially in your camp. Your overall stamina stat is also impacted by weight; if your character is underweight, you will have a higher stamina stat.

Stamina Core

• This core is impacted by sprinting and cleanliness. It will drain on it's own, but will drain faster as you run and become dirty. To counteract the drain, you should eat food and wash your face at camp.

Stamina Bar

• This bar shows your primary energy reserve and is impacted by movement. Sprinting, swimming, sliding down mountains, etc; any kind of taxing movement will drain your stamina bar. It will refill on it's own but can be replenished or fortified by tonics.

Dead Eye

To upgrade this stat, you can hunt and skin animals, craft items and make kills with headshots. Most of the impact to this stat will come from what ability cards you have equipped, so be sure to read your cards and be aware of their impact.

Dead Eye Core

• This core is impacted by use; just like all the other cores, it shows your reserve dead eye pool and will drain on it's own over time. You can think of your dead eye core as your character's "awakeness", resting and drinking coffee will refill this core, as well as some foods.

Dead Eye Bar

• This bar shows your primary dead eye reserve and is impacted by use. Using your dead eye abilities will drain this bar at different rates; it has the capability to refill on it's own (with an ability card) and can be replenished and fortified with tonics and items.

Dead Eye Abilities

• Unlike the health and stamina stats, your dead eye stat comes with special abilities that will effect your character as a whole. You can purchase and equip up to 1 active and 3 passive abilities at a time by accessing your ability loadout from your weapon wheel screen (the command will be listed on the bottom right). Each card has 3 level upgrades that can be unlocked and purchased as you gain xp with them equipped.

• For more information on Dead Eye Abilities, see our Ability Card Guide.

Values

All weapons will have a "bar" of effectiveness in 7 areas: damage, range, fire rate, reload speed, accuracy and condition. Each of these bars represents a value between 0 and 4. The minimum and maximum values will also change based on the ammo type you use, the improvements to the gun and the condition of the weapon. For more detailed information on specific weapons, see our resources section here.

Condition

Your weapon's condition plays a large part in it's effectiveness. As your weapon is used, it's condition will worsen and you will have to use gun oil or visit the Gunsmith to clean it. When your weapon is in poor condition, it will do less damage, fire slower and be slower to reload; the impact isn't terribly significant but it does have an effect. (Gun oil can be looted or purchased from the Gun Smith and catalogue.) You can also equip a "wrap" to each of your larger guns to protect it from the elements and slow the speed of condition loss.

To see your weapon's condition, hover over the weapon while holding open your weapon wheel; there will be an option to "maintain" on the bottom right of your screen. If your weapon is dirty, parts of it's value bars will be in red, this is the effect that your gun's condition is having on it's performance.

Weapon Equipment

Something important to remember is that equipment items such as bandoliers do not increase your ammo capacity in RDO. In the story mode, these equipment items would do just that, but in online, they are purely cosmetic. The only piece of weapon auxiliary equipment that has an effect in online is the purchasing of an off-hand holster.

Off-hand holsters can be purchased starting at Rank 25 from the Gunsmith or Catalogue; these holsters give you the ability to equip a second side-arm weapon and will allow you to dual-wield them.

Weapons

Your character can carry up to 2 side-arms, 1 shoulder weapon and 1 back weapon from your weapon stash at a time. Your melee weapons, auxiliary tools and throwing weapons will always be accessible from your weapon belt (with the exception of your machete), and your other guns and range weapons will be available from your horse's saddle or your camp gun locker.

• Remember, in order to equip 2 sidearms at the same time, you will need to purchase and equip an Off-Hand Holster from the Gunsmith or Catalogue.

Range weapons like throwing knives, bows or rifles will have multiple ammo types. As you rank up and progress, you will unlock the ability to buy or craft these different types; either from the gun smith or by purchasing the crafting pamphlet from the Fence.

You can also customize any weapon you purchase from the Gunsmith by adding improvements; some improvements are cosmetic only (i.e. variants, engravings, carvings) while others will improve range, accuracy or damage.

Guns

• • Revolvers

    • Lower ammo capacity but (generally) higher accuracy and damage compared to pistols

    • Slower reload speed and fire rate

  • Pistols

    • Higher ammo capacity, faster reload and fire rate

    • (Generally) less accuracy and damage compared to revolvers

  • Repeaters

    • Higher fire rate and ammo capacity compared to rifles

    • Lower accuracy and damage compared to rifles

  • Rifles

    • Lower fire rate and ammo capacity compared to repeaters

    • Higher accuracy, range and damage compared to repeaters

  • Shotguns

    • High damage, low range

    • Low accuracy, ammo capacity and slow reload.

Bows

I highly recommend purchasing the improved bow instead of the standard bow.

• • Standard and Improved Bows

    • High accuracy, silent weapon

    • Damage depends on ammo type

Throwables

Throwable weapons like tomahawks and throwing knives are primarily useful as stealth weapons; other throwables like dynamite or fire bottles are much less stealthy and make much more of a boom. (A few of throwable weapons can also be used as melee weapons)

Melee

Melee weapons such as knives and machetes allow you to deal swift and accurate blows to your opponent. They are difficult to counter and can often result in an instant kill if you have enough stamina. (A few melee weapons can also be thrown).

• The bow can also be used as a melee weapon (a very effective one)

PvE Mechanics

• Dead Eye

  • Dead Eye works a bit differently in RDO than in story mode; when playing as Arthur, using these this ability would slow time and would allow you to be more accurate with your shots. In online, however, Dead Eye allows for a range of different abilities like improved damage, defense, accuracy, etc. To use these abilities, you need to purchase and equip 'ability cards'; new cards will unlock as you level up, and each card as up to 3 levels of effectiveness.

  • As you gain xp, those points will be distributed to the ability cards you have equipped; once you've gained enough, you can purchase a higher level of that card which will provide improved effects for each card.

  • For more information on Dead Eye Abilities, see our Ability Card Guide.

• Stealth

  • Though stealth is generally an optional and smaller feature in RDO, it can make life a lot easier for you if you use it right. Stealth is based primarily on sight-lines and sound; to put it simply, if they can see or hear you, you're not being stealthy and they will notify their friends. You can see an enemy's cone of vision by looking at your mini-map.

  • You can make use of cover and silent weapons (throwing knives, tomahawks, bows) to sneak effectively, just remember that enemy sight-lines include bodies of their fallen comrades. So if you nail an enemy in the head with a throwing knife and he lands right in front of another enemy, they will all be alerted.

  • You can also use melee weapons to take down an enemy with a silent kill. To do this, equip your melee weapon and sneak up behind an enemy; you should see a prompt on the bottom right to take them down.

  • If you can get away with it, you can loot and move the bodies of enemies you kill, that way they wont be seen by other enemies patrolling the area.

• Cover

  • Cover is a large part of RDO's combat mechanics. Regardless of your ability cards and health stats, no player can just tank damage all the time; sooner or later, you need to get behind something and heal.

  • Certain obstacles and structures will allow you to duck behind them for cover, only peaking out to aim and shoot.

  • Though the controls are different for each platform, the concept is the same; hit the cover button and your character will dive behind the nearest cover structure. They will keep their back against the structure and you can use your directional controls to scoot from side to side.

  • Keep in mind that some cover structures can take only a certain amount of damage. Things like crates and barrels will eventually break, leaving your character exposed. So use your cover wisely.

• Looting

  • Once you've incapacitated an enemy, you will be able to check their pockets for valuables. Any enemy that appears as an "X" on your mini-map is able to be looted; this includes live targets that have been knocked out or hog tied.

  • Depending on the enemy, they will have anything from petty cash to collectables, so it's always worth taking the time to stop and loot.

  • Unlike story mode however, the money you find will be in small change, not bill folds. So don't expect to be rich from this, it's the items that are worth it.

  • Aside from looting bodies, you can also loot saddle bags on NPC horses you find around the map or in towns.

• Dodging

  • When you have a weapon equipped, you can dodge out of the way and dive to the ground by pressing the jump button while aiming. If you have the Bounty Hunter license, you can also dodge shots on horseback with the same technique.

• POV

  • You can change your view while aiming from one shoulder to the other; the controls are different for each platform but this technique is particularly useful when using cover, to give you a better view.

PvP Mechanics

• Parley

  • This is an anti-griefing mechanic that allows any player to call a cease-fire. If you have been killed at least 3 times by another player or their posse, you will see an option to "parley" on the bottom right of your respawn screen.

  • In the event of a parley, the 2 parties involved will be blocked from harming each other for 10 minutes; this extends to members of the posse as well.

• Feuds

  • On the opposite end of the spectrum from a parley, a feud is a request that can be sent to another player or posse that, should they accept, involves an organized fight that lasts 3 minutes and has a winner based on kills.

Hunting

Hunting is a reliable money making method and is a good source of meat that can be seasoned and cooked. In addition, hunting and skinning also improves your Dead Eye stat and use of a bow increases your health stat.

Different animals require different weapon types and ammo types; for example, animals like squirrels and small birds will require a bow and small game arrows to maintain their quality, whereas animals like moose and buffalo will need a powerful rifle.

-Meat Types

There are 4 types of meat quality in RDO: Low, Medium, High and Superior. This quality has nothing to do with the method used to kill the animal or the quality of the pelt, it has to do with the type of animal. Generally, smaller animals will have lower quality meat than larger animals.

The higher the quality of the meat, the more impact it will have in refilling your cores when cooked.

-Pelts and Carcasses

Every huntable animal in RDO has a rating between 1 and 3 stars; 1 being the lowest quality and 3 being the highest. If hunted correctly (with the right weapon and shot in the right area), this star rating will stay the same once they have been killed and/or skinned. Though this rating has nothing to do with with the quality of the meat, it does effect the worth of the goods.

The higher the quality of the carcass (whole animal) or pelts (skin only), the more money you will receive when selling it and the more it will be worth to Cripps.

-Tracking

When you activate your Eagle Eye skill, you can see items of interest, animals and NPCs glowing while in view. As these NPCs and animals move, they will leave a trail behind that can be seen and focused on while in Eagle Eye. If you choose to track an animal's trail, you can follow a set of highlighted foot prints for a short distance outside of Eagle eye, allowing you to move quickly.

Sneaking and using items like blending tonics can help conceal you from your prey and allow you to get closer, just remember that animals are more sensitive to sound than NPCs are so sneaking is less effective.

Fishing

In order to catch fish, you'll need a fishing rod; the rod unlocks at Rank 14 and can be bought from the catalogue for around $32.00. You will also need bait or a lure depending on what you're wanting to catch.

Fishing is also has an effect on your character; when you catch and release a fish, you will see a slight increase in health and a boost to your honor level, making this a relaxing way to max our your health and honor.

-Bait and Lures

Different types of fish are attracted to different lures and bait; you can buy these supplies from the Bait Shop in Lagras or from the catalogue. Higher quality bait will attract higher quality fish; as you Rank up, you will unlock higher quality lures that will enhance your fishing experience.

-Meat

Much like hunting, fishing in RDO can be a source of income as well as meat. Smaller fish can be stored in your satchel to be sold or broken down into different types of meat; larger fish can be stored on the back of your horse and cannot be broken down, only sold.

Larger fish (that can be harvested) will offer higher quality meat than smaller fish and different types of fish meat can be used in certain crafting recipes like hunting bait.

Morality

Like in the Story Mode, you actions will impact your honor level; every choice you make lies somewhere on the morality scale. For example, shooting someone will be lower on the morality scale than reviving someone. This concept is introduced to your character in the Land of Opportunity missions, each one will have a major decision to make, and your decision will tip your characters honorability on the morality scale depending on the action you take.

This scale in RDO is a spectrum between 2 sides:

Honor

• Honorable actions are the actions of a "good guy" character; things like helping strangers, healing your horse or teammates, even mercy killing an injured animal will all improve your honor rating.

• High honor is easy to maintain; anytime you care for your horse, you will get honor points awarded.

Dishonor

• Dishonorable actions are the actions of an "outlaw" character; things like antagonizing or harming players and npcs, stealing horses or vehicles, even letting an animal bleed out while hunting will all negatively impact your honor rating.

• Low honor is somewhat more difficult to maintain; for the same reason that high honor is easy, caring for your horse will negate many of your negative honor points.

How does this impact your gameplay? The short answer is that it doesn't really. Your honor level has very little to do with the bulk of your gameplay; unless your low honor was earned through hostility to other players (granting you a high hostility rating), it wont show up publicly or change your visibility.

The only missions that are impacted by honor are the missions in the Land of Opportunities series, specifically the robbery missions. If your honor is high, you will be barred from activating the part of the story involving criminal activity.

Crime

• Like in Story Mode, committing illegal acts will attract the attention of bystanders and local law enforcement and will negatively impact your honor level.

• If witnesses report your crime or lawmen are nearby, you will receive a Wanted Level and a highlighted area will appear on your map.

  • Areas highlighted in WHITE are investigation zones; witnesses have reported your activity in this area and law enforcement is on the way to this zone to investigate. If they locate you, there is a chance they will either become hostile or they will tell you to leave the area.

  • Areas highlighted in RED are wanted zones; law enforcement is en route to this area and they will be immediately hostile towards you. In order to remove the heat, leave this area as quickly as possible.

Old Man Jones

This colorful and judgmental old man has recurring appearances throughout the Land of Opportunities story missions; he has very strong opinions on morality and, outside of these missions, you can visit him at any of his persistent locations around the map to pay him for a morality change (ironic huh?).

You can exchange gold for a boost in either direction on the morality scale; this is especially useful if you're wanting to change your honor for the Land of Opportunity missions but keep in mind that you can do this for free with a bit of effort.

Your Camp

Your camp is your home; in RDO you are a nomad, moving from place to place, and your camp can be moved wherever you are. In addition to providing a rest bonus to your character, your camp has a lockbox (mail box), a campfire, a bed and the Wilderness Outfitters store.

Tent

The quality of your tent determines the rate at which your cores refill while in camp. Simply put, the nicer the tent, the faster you heal; you can purchase different tents and themes from Mr. Cripps in his Wilderness Outfitters store.

• Bedroll

  • Rank unlock: 1

  • Refills cores to 15% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 25% faster when resting in camp

• Lean-To

  • Rank unlock: 15

  • Refills cores to 25% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 50% faster when resting in camp

• A-Frame

  • Rank unlock: 22

  • Refills cores to 35% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 75% faster when resting in camp

• Tall Lean-To

  • Rank unlock: 36

  • Refills cores to 45% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 100% faster when resting in camp

• Open-Air Lean-To

  • Rank unlock: 49

  • Refills cores to 55% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 125% faster when resting in camp

• Covered Lean-To

  • Rank unlock: 55

  • Refills cores to 65% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 150% faster when resting in camp

• Covered

  • Rank unlock: 64

  • Refills cores to 75% when entering Free Roam

  • Cores refill 175% faster when resting in camp

Campfire

• Your campfire is a crafting location; anything that can be crafted in RDO can be crafted here. From cooked meat to tonics, you can make and store items that will replenish your stat bars as well as various ammo types (as long as you have the pamphlet for them).

Lockbox

• Your camp lockbox acts as an in-camp mailbox for rewards, letters and items you purchase from the catalogue. You can use this as a storage box for ammo and supplies by ordering items in bulk from Wheeler Rawson Co catalogue.

Dog

• Outside of owning the Trader role, your camp dog is purely cosmetic. It's only function is to provide fuzzy companionship in camp and to annoy the heck out of Cripps (a win/win honestly).

• If you do have the Trader role, your dog acts as an early alarm system for when your camp is raided by NPC bandits- but this is a Trader-only feature.

Wilderness Outfitters

• Mr. Cripps has a shop set up in your camp that allows you to purchase upgrades for various camp items.

  • Deluxe Campfire

    • Cost: $500.00

    • Speeds up crafting and cooking; adds additional seating for posse members.

  • Stew Pot

    • Cost: 1 Role Token + $650.00

    • Requires Trader Role Rank 1

    • Unlocks the ability to make stew that boosts cores depending on the recipe used.

  • Weapon Locker

    • Cost: 2 Role Tokens (Trader) + $575.00

    • Allows you to store unused weapons so they wont appear on your weapon wheel. (They will still appear on your wheel during instance-based missions like Land of Opportunity chapters and Legendary Bounties).

  • Cripps Outfits

    • Cripps will have a set of 17 different outfits you can choose from (20 if you have all the roles) that unlock as you rise through the ranks in RDO. These are purely cosmetic and have no effect on Cripps or RDO gameplay.

  • Fast Travel Post

    • Rank unlock: 65

    • Unlocks the ability to fast travel from camp to any fast travel location. Keep in mind that you can always fast travel to camp from any fast travel point, but this unlocks the ability to two-way fast travel.

Fast Travel

RDO has a large map; it's the combination of the original Red Dead Redemption map and the new map area (which roughly twice the size of the original) that makes up the bulk of the RDR2 story content. To ease the length of travel, Rockstar has implemented fast travel stations throughout the map that allow you to pay money in order to "teleport" across long distances.

There are 15 major fast travel points in-game (16 if you have the Moonshine Shack) that vary in cost depending on distance. To put it simply, the further you are trying to go, the more it will cost. The trip will be priced between $1.00 and $12.00, and trips to your camp will always be within $5.00.

Horse Cargo

Keep in mind that when you fast travel in RDO, your horse will travel with you. This means that any cargo stored externally on your horse or it's saddle might disappear when you travel or they will prevent you from teleporting all together.

If you have a player or NPC on your horse, you will be blocked from fast traveling until they are removed; and if you fast travel without your horse, any player or NPC will be removed from it.

When you fast travel, there is a chance that you will lose the cargo on your horse. If you have important cargo, travel on foot just to be safe.

Handheld Catalogue

After you've completed (or skipped) the intro and tutorial to RDO, you will have access to the Wheeler Rawson Co. catalogue that was given to you by the post office clerk. You can buy almost any item in the game from the catalogue, just keep in mind that you will be viewing the items through catalogue images, unlike in the shops.

There is also an online version of the catalogue that you can use to buy items for your character in bulk, or search for items in the search bar. It will keep track of new additions to the game, limited time offers, and your character's inventory. Simply log in with your Rockstar account here and try it out! I highly recommend using it to stock up on items in bulk; the items will be sent to and stored in your camp lock box, so you can refill your supplies at your camp after missions. It's a lot handier than clicking through the handheld catalogue or traveling to a shop.

General Store

There is a General Store in every major town in RDO; they're fairly self explanatory, you can browse the catalogue at the counter or look around the shop for items to buy. You can purchase standard supplies and ammo as well as some clothing items. You can also access your wardrobe from a changing room attached to the store.

Keep in mind that the stock of the general store depends on what other stores are nearby. For example, if there's a Tailor in town, the general store wont sell clothing at all.

Tailor

There are only 2 towns with Tailors in RDO: Blackwater and San Denis. You may be thinking, "if I can buy clothes from the general store, why should I use the Tailor?". The answer is simple, you shouldn't care unless you want access to certain role items, special outfits and special emotes. These are not available in the General Store, only in the Tailor. The Tailor is also more convenient (in my opinion) in terms of menu access. Just like in the Gunsmith, the catalogue in the Tailor is limited to only the clothing section, so you're not clicking through as many menus. But that's just personal preference.

Barber

The Barber Shop in RDO works just like the one in GTA V; you can edit your character's make up and hair appearance (to a certain extent). You will also have more hair styles and colors available here than in the character creator, including role-specific and rank-locked hair styles. There are 3 towns with Barber Shops in RDO: Blackwater, Valentine and San Denis.

Keep in mind "Pomade" will change how hair styles look (temporarily) on male characters only, not female characters. And make up styles for the female characters cannot be edited in terms of "intensity" outside of the character creation screen.

Butcher

The Butcher shops in RDO will buy and sell game; you can unload carcasses, fish, etc. to the butcher for money or purchase basic meats for cooking. There are 6 towns in RDO with Butcher Shops: Tumbleweed, Strawberry, Blackwater, Valentine, Rhodes and San Denis.

Keep in mind that selling items to the butcher will not unlock custom garments at the Trapper; those items must be sold to the Trapper in order to unlock them.

Fence

The Fence in RDO is where you go to buy shady items like dynamite, toxic moonshine, or the worst of all, BEANS. But no, really, the Fence sells crafting pamphlets and role weapons like bolas and special machetes. You can also sell loot items to the fence for quick cash (i.e. gold teeth, belt buckles, etc).

There are 5 Fence locations in RDO: Thieves Landing, Emerald Ranch, Rhodes, Van Horn and San Denis.

Gunsmith

The Gunsmith is easily the most vital shop in RDO. Though you can purchase guns and ammo from the catalogue, you can't upgrade or edit them without going to the Gunsmith. This is also where you can purchase gun oil to clean your weapons with.

There are 5 Gunsmiths in RDO: Tumbleweed, Valentine, Rhodes, Annesburg and San Denis

Bait Shop

Pretty self-explanatory, the bait shop sells bait. You can get everything from cheese to special lures here and there's only one shop location: Lagras (in the swamp).

Trapper

Unlike the Trapper in the Story Mode, who was a friendly Canadian man just peddling his wares, Gus is a "renowned big game hunter" with an excellent mustache, scars, and a variety of unique garments that you can unlock by selling quality animals pelts to him for materials (he could also be Canadian, who knows). He'll match or beat the price for game that the butcher offers, but he will only make garments out of certain 3 star pelts and legendary animals and you cannot buy meat from him to cook with.

You do not need the Naturalist Role in order to buy from Gus. Once you have completed the cutscene with Gus and Harriet in Strawberry, you are free to interact with Gus at any of his 6 locations on the map: East of Tumbleweed, southern Tall Trees, west of Big Valley, east of Riggs Station, south-west of Annesburg, and near the fence in San Denis.

Madam Nazar

The "traveling mystic" known as Madam Nazar is primarily a contact for players with the collector role; however, she also sells unique items from every role as well as occasional event items like masks during the Halloween event. She has only 1 location at a time, and it moves every day (isn't that fun?). To keep up with her current location, you can refer to the interactive maps in the resources section here.

Land of Opportunities

Land of Opportunities is a series of story missions that reinforce your character's backstory. These missions are a continuation on the story line that was introduced during the start and tutorial of the game. If you don't remember or you skipped this introduction, here's a brief recap:

You have been framed for murder; a man by the name of Phillip LeClerk was killed in Blackwater just as you came into town and you were whisked away to Sisika Penitentiary to await your hanging date (cheery huh?). A man named Horley breaks you out and introduces you to his employer, Madam Jessica LeClerk, the wife of the man who's murder you were framed for. She asks for your help find out who really did it in exchange for your freedom. (For more information about the Introduction and Tutorial, see our Tutorial Walkthrough here.)

There are 13 Land of Opportunities missions available to you once you've finished (or skipped) the tutorial:

1. Love and Honor

2. The Right Side of the Tracks

3. If the Hat Fits...

4. Where Your Morals Lead You

5. Highly Illegal and Highly Moral

6. Kerosene, Tar and Greed

7. More Than One Way to Earn a Buck

8. Kill Them, Each and Every One

9. Bring a Goddamn Posse

10. The Hanging of Tom Davies

11. These Bastards Can Fight

12. Banks Don't Rob Themselves

13. Destroyed by Grief

All of these missions are repeatable and will effect your character's honor level. These are co-op missions, requiring 2-4 players to complete and can be accessed from their highlighted zone on the map (the first time) or from the Quick Join section in the Player Menu.

Blood Money

As of the update on 07/13/21, there is a new series of criminal activity missions available to you (for free) called Crimes and Opportunities.

To initiate these missions, you meet with a man named Guido Martelli in San Denis and speak with him regarding his network of criminal activity throughout RDO America.

Martelli will explain to you that his underground enterprise is in trouble and that a large sum of special bonds called "Capitale" have gone missing from his organization. These bonds have been divvied up among the petty criminals throughout the RDO map by members of the rival Bronte Gang. Your mission, should you choose to help, will be to partake in various Blood Money Stranger Missions (Crimes) to retrieve the stolen Capitale and other valuables and return them to Martelli.

Once you've recovered enough Capitale, you can trigger an Opportunity mission. These missions involve procuring priceless gems for Martelli from different locations around the map. Each Opportunity mission is centered around one of the gems and the difficulty ranges from 'standard' to 'ruthless'.

In addition to Capitale (which you earn mostly via looting enemies and chests), the missions and Opportunities also reward you with Cash and Gold Nuggets, making these an excellent source of income in RDO.

Stranger Missions

Outside of the Roles in RDO, the bulk of the free-roam content comes from Stranger Missions. These will appear on your map as little peach colored circles with a waving figure inside. These missions are offered by notable NPC's from around the map and the type of mission is determined by who that NPC is. For example, missions from Bonnie MacFarlane will be honorable errands to help her and her ranch; whereas missions from The Boy will be dishonorable jobs that are much less "above board".

These missions also have a cooldown effect after you finish them; once you've completed you task, you'll have to wait 30 minutes before you complete another. However, you can immediately go to another stranger and begin their mission right away. By the time you complete 1-2 more missions, the original one will be reset.

There are 19 strangers in total throughout the map that will offer you missions, for some strangers, the location changes day to day so you can refer to the resources page and view the Interactive Encounter Map here.

Telegram Missions

As of the update on 02/16/21, there are 3 new solo missions that any player can activate just by accessing their mailbox and opening the set of telegrams that were sent to them. There are currently 3 missions available to play, each with a 20 minute cool down, a time based reward scale and a difficulty setting that scales up after completion.

These telegrams were sent anonymously by a mysterious stranger known only as "J"; they can be found under 'Telegrams' and 'A New Source of Employment' in your satchel. There will be 3 telegrams:

1. Outrider

   • This mission involves escorting a wagon with "questionable cargo" through Hennigans Stead. All you have to do is make sure it gets from point A to point B in one piece, but according to the mysterious J, you should expect trouble.

2. A One Horse Deal

   • This mission involves stealing a white Arabian horse from Emerald Ranch and delivering it to a client. You'll need enough ammo to take on the Braithwaites and enough stamina to tame the horse in order to succeed.

3. Rich Pickings

   • This mission is a stealthy one. You'll be asked to infiltrate the mayor's mansion in San Denis, steal some pricey goods and deliver them to your client.

Random Encounters

During your travels in free-roam, you'll occasionally come across random people or animals of interest. Some might ask for help, some might attack you, but all are worth stopping for. Random encounters often provide collectables, gold or treasure maps as a reward. Just keep in mind that they really are random, so there are no guarantees for them to spawn.

If you want to know where they're likely to spawn, you can refer to the resources page here and look at the Interactive Encounter Map.

Play Style

There are 2 styles a player can choose while playing RDO; these play styles are designed to change the dynamic of Free-roam gameplay depending on a player's preference.

• Defensive

  • You will take 20% less damage from other players (provided you do not retaliate)

  • You cannot be meleed, lassoed or hogtied by other players

  • You can not be head shot by other players, nor can you land head shots on others

  • You cannot use aim assist game mechanics

  • If you initiate hostile contact, you will be removed from Defensive Mode and will be given a hostility penalty that will bar you from Defensive Mode for a short amount of time

  • If you form a posse while in this mode, the mode will be extended to posse members; alternatively, if you join a posse that is playing in Offensive Mode, you will no longer be in Defensive.

• Offensive

  • This is the default play style in RDO

  • You will receive full damage from other offensive players

  • You will be unable to mark or head shot defensive players

  • If you are in a lobby that allows it, you are able to use aim assist mechanics

Hostility

Actions that you take against other players in RDO will affect your 'Hostility Level'; this level can be seen by other players in the lobby and is represented through color.

• Peaceful players have not been hostile towards other players recently; they will be visible only within a small range and the penalty for attacking them will be higher than other hostility levels.

• Aggressive players have been somewhat hostile towards other players recently; this is the first level of hostility a player gains and it will make them visible on the map at a moderate range. Consistent attacks against a player with this hostility level will raise your hostility moderately.

• Hostile players have been actively hostile towards other players recently; these players can be seen on the radar from a long distance and are barred from using the defensive playstyle until their hostility recedes. Attacking these players will not increase your hostility level.

• Immediate Threat players are actively hostile towards you or a member of your posse specifically. You can retaliate against these players if you are in defensive mode, and attacking these players will not increase your hostility. As long as they are actively hostile against you, you will be able to see them at a far distance on your radar.

Posses

A posse is essentially a party system. Any player can create a temporary posse of 4 players, but to create a permanent larger one, you will need to pay a fee.

• Temporary Posses- a free 4 man posse that will be deleted when closed or when the posse leader logs off

• Persistent Posses- a paid permanent posse that can hold up to 7 active members (including the owner) and 10 persistent members in total. You can name this posse and it will be saved, even if you stand down temporarily.

While in a posse, members will share rewards from missions and encounters, even if not present during the activity (although some missions will pull posse members into a new instance)

• Posse members will also share a campsite; while in a posse, Cripps will pack up your camp and you will temporarily move to the camp owned by the posse leader.

• Posse members can also take part in posse activities such as races, feuds and fishing contests.

Daily Challenges

Each night, at midnight CST, a list of tasks is uploaded to RDO; completing these tasks will reward your character with gold. There is a standard list for general free-roam tasks and another list for players that own the Role DLCs.

This is going to be your most reliable source of gold (without roles). You can complete up to 7 general challenges and 9 role challenges each day; each challenge will give you up to .10 gold. Completing just one challenge a day will allow you to build up a "streak" of up to 28 days. Each level of this streak will multiply the amount of gold you are awarded and upon the streak reset on day 28, you will be awarded a treasure map.

Treasure

Treasure maps in RDO are a guaranteed source of gold and cash. Although acquisition of the maps isn't easy, each map will always give you between .5 and 1.5 gold bars, as well as between $50 and $150 of in-game cash. They will also often have ammunition, tonics, or items you can sell to a Fence.

As of right now, there are really only 2 guaranteed ways to receive treasure maps: ranking up and daily challenge streaks.

• At the end of your 28 day Daily Challenge Streak, you will receive a treasure map with your gold bonus, and then it will reset. This can result in 1 map per month.

• Once you hit Rank 10, you will receive a treasure map as a reward. You will receive another map every 5 levels after that.

Other methods are based purely on chance or purchase of an Outlaw Pass.

• Gang Hideout encounters are rarer events, but once complete, you can loot the bodies and the gang leader for a chance at finding a treasure map. To see possible hideout spawn locations, refer to the Interactive Encounter map here.

• Treasure hunters are random encounters involving an NPC treasure hunter; some hunters are willing to sell you their map for $5.00, others will act defensively and hide their maps. Regardless of their reactions to you, every treasure hunter can be hog tied and looted to receive a map for free. To see possible Treasure Hunter spawn locations, refer to the Interactive Encounter map here.

• Hidden maps can be found pinned to trees throughout RDO; these are rare random encounters that are more likely to spawn at night. To see possible map tree locations, refer to the Interactive Encounter map here.

• Maps can also be given occasionally during special events or as aa reward for having Prime Gaming connected to your account.

Roles

This is just a brief overview of the RDO Role system; we are currently working on a separate guide section for the roles that will be coming soon.

Roles are essentially DLC that add more content to your RDO experience; they open up new missions, items, horses, etc. There are 5 Roles available to buy (as of February 2021):

• Trader

  • Partner up with Cripps to start your own company

  • Deliver goods, hunt for animals and collect supplies

  • Unlocks camp upgrades, the Kladruber, hunting wagon and other items

• Bounty Hunter

  • Put bad guys behind bars for money (and gold)

  • Gain access to bounty boards and player bounty hunts

  • Unlocks access to the Prestigious License, bounty wagon, the Breton and other items

• Collector

  • Work for Madam Nazar as a collector of various rare items

  • Collect plants, tarot cards, jewelry and more; sell them as a set for a higher price

  • Unlocks enhanced binoculars, the Criollo, and other items

• Moonshiner

  • Partner with Maggie Fike restart her illegal moonshine business

  • Fight Revenue Agents, take out rival moonshiners and sell your own illegal moonshine

  • Unlocks the moonshine shack and speakeasy, the Norfolk Roadster and other items

• Naturalist

  • Side with Harriet or Gus as they try to hunt or preserve Legendary Animals

  • Kill poachers, study Legendary Animals and sell their pelts to Gus or complete a collection of samples for Harriet

  • Unlocks sedatives, the wilderness camp, the Gypsy Cob and other items

Free-Roam Events

Free Roam events are activities (usually PvP) that will pop up as invites while you are in a Free Roam lobby; each event is different and some are role-specific, but all the events will result in some sort of timed trial and competition.

Role-specific events like Trader or Collector events will require you to have the role to join. If you are part of a posse, the posse leader must own the roles in order to join and bring the group.

These events have a relative schedule that they follow, you can view it online by accessing our resources page here.

• Series

Series missions, unlike Free Roam events, will have stationary map markers that are a consistent part of the RDO map. Once activated through the Quick-Join option in your Player Menu or at their persistent mission marker location, you will be pulled into a matchmaking lobby where you will wait until the lobby is full enough to begin.

You can also send invites and prepare your character from this menu; depending on the challenge, you will be allowed to change outfits, purchase ammo and previsions and clean your guns.

• Challenges

Much like Free Roam events, Competitive Challenges will show up as invites while you're in a Free Roam lobby. Challenges, however, are specifically PvP, designed to pit you against other players to earn the highest score in a "challenge" scenario (i.e. head shots, sidearm kills, etc).

Benefits

Benefits are offers and rewards given to players by Rockstar. You can access these benefits by opening the pause menu and selecting 'Benefits'; from there you will be able to see all the offers associated with your account.

This section will house coupons for horses, clothing, items, etc and will also be where you'll find any currency rewards or free item rewards from weekly updates or Outlaw Passes.

Outlaw Pass

There are usually around 2 Outlaw Passes released by Rockstar each year; these passes require gold to purchase and will give the owners special rewards available to those who own the pass. They can be purchased through the catalogue or the pause menu in the Benefits section and will permanently bind that pass to your account.

Every player in RDO will receive experience and will Rank up in the Outlaw Passes while they are active, however, only players that own the pass will receive the pass rewards. This means that you can wait to purchase the pass until you have completed all the ranks of the pass and receive all of the rewards at once.

The passes generally will give you clothing items, satchel upgrades, coupons, gold and other various items; the past 4 passes have given the player at least 30 gold back as part of the rewards.

Currency

It's no secret that the economy in Rockstar games isn't the most balanced; while I can't tell you the science behind the "worth" of the different forms of money, I can tell you the different between them and what they're used for. There are 3 types of currency in RDO:

• Cash

  • This is the standard and most common form of money in RDO and the easiest to earn. It's used to purchase any standard item and is also what the game will use to pay for your stable and camp upkeep fees.

  • You can earn cash from nearly every mission you complete, Free Roam events, selling goods and looting

• Gold

  • This is the "dynamic" currency in RDO and is the most difficult to earn. It can be both earned in-game in the form of "nuggets" (10 nuggets = 1 gold bar) and purchased through Rockstar with real-world currency.

  • It's used to purchase specialty items, roles and Outlaw Passes; additionally, you can use gold to bypass most cash and Rank requirements on in-game items.

• Tokens

  • This is the Role-specific currency in RDO. These tokens are awarded as you Rank up in each role and they are required in tandem with gold or cash to purchase most Role items.

  • You can use these tokens from the 'Progression' section in the pause menu or in-store while purchasing specialty items and unlocks. The token will unlock the item, but you will need cash or gold to purchase it in-game. For example, you can unlock the option to buy the Norfolk Roadster using tokens, but purchasing the horse in-game will require cash.

I did it so you don't have to! Here is what happens when you delete your RDO character:

You will lose everything.

Rockstar isn't kidding when they give you the warning that reads "All data and items will be deleted. This includes Rank Unlocks, Role progression, Role items, The Outlaw Pass, Club Rewards, any Rewards & Offers benefits, all weapons, mounts, ammunition, and Camp items".

"Rewards & Offers" includes your daily challenge streak as well. It will be reset to level 1 when you create your new character.

"Role progression" doesn't just mean your level, it means the entire role. If you delete your RDO character, you lose the entire role, it will no longer be associated with your account. You will have to buy it with gold again. So make sure you're willing to lose everything before you commit to deleting your character.

What will you keep?

You get to keep any unspent currency. Any cash or gold in your bank account will transfer over to your new character and will be available as soon as you spawn into free-roam.

You also keep your achievements (not your in-game awards) as they are attached to your Rockstar account, not your character.