The Bounty Hunter is one of the five Specialist Roles available in Red Dead Online.
Introduction
Bounty hunters in Red Dead Online specialise in tracking down dangerous criminals and delivering them to the authorities. Targets can be captured dead or alive, although bringing them in alive usually earns a larger reward.
To begin the Bounty Hunter role, players must purchase a Bounty Hunter License in the town of Rhodes or obtain one from any Bounty Board if it was not collected during the introductory cutscene. The standard price for the license is 15 Gold Bars, although it is sometimes discounted or even offered for free during special promotions.
Once the license has been acquired, players can visit Bounty Boards across the map to accept bounty missions. Completing these missions rewards the player with cash, gold, and experience.
Prestigious Bounty Hunter
The Prestigious Bounty Hunter License expands the role by adding 10 extra ranks on top of the original 20 Bounty Hunter levels. These additional ranks unlock new equipment, abilities, weapon variants, horses, and special Infamous Bounty targets that appear on bounty boards.
This upgraded license costs 30 Gold Bars.
Bounty Boards
Licensed Bounty Hunters can collect jobs by visiting Bounty Boards located near law offices, train stations, and post offices across the frontier.
The criminals posted on these boards vary greatly in difficulty. Some missions involve capturing a single low-level outlaw, while others require hunting down notorious gang leaders guarded by armed followers.
More difficult missions often include multiple targets, and bringing them all in can be much easier when working with a Posse, since every member receives a share of the reward.
It is also important to remember that capturing targets alive results in higher payouts than delivering them dead.
Rank Abilities
After reaching Rank 12, Bounty Hunters gain the ability to hunt player bounties. These appear when another player has accumulated a bounty of $5 or more.
When nearby, the Bounty Hunter may receive an invitation to pursue the wanted player. The target must either escape or surrender before the time limit runs out.
If the Bounty Hunter successfully captures the player alive, they receive a reward while the captured player is sent to jail. The jail sentence is based on the bounty value: each dollar equals one second in jail. For example, a player with a $20 bounty will spend 20 seconds in jail.
Bounty Hunter Skills
As players progress through the role, they unlock several useful abilities and tools:
- Eagle Eye+ – Allows players to track enemies while sprinting or riding at full speed.
- Focus – Bounty targets appear highlighted in red when using Eagle Eye.
- Reinforced Lasso – A stronger lasso that makes it harder for captured targets to escape.
- Reverse Spin – A gun spinning trick performed with a single pistol or revolver.
- Tonics Satchel Upgrade – Increases storage capacity for tonic items.
- Spin Up – Another revolver or pistol spinning animation.
- Kit Satchel Upgrade – Expands storage space for equipment items.
- Tracking Arrow Pamphlet – Unlocks the ability to craft arrows that help track enemies.
- Reverse Spin Up – A variation of the Spin Up gun trick.
- Ducking – Allows the player to duck for cover while riding on horseback.
- Bolas – A thrown weapon used to entangle and trip fleeing targets.
- Bounty Wagon – A wagon designed for securely transporting captured criminals.
- Perception – Alerts the player to nearby bounty opportunities from greater distances.
- Alternating Flips – A flashy gun spinning trick with a pistol or revolver.
- Dual Gun Spinning – Allows spinning tricks using two pistols or revolvers.
Tips & Tricks
Leveling Rewards
Two of the most useful upgrades for the Bounty Hunter role are the Reinforced Lasso and the Bounty Wagon.
The Reinforced Lasso is much stronger than the standard version, making it significantly harder for captured targets to break free.
The Bounty Wagon allows players to safely transport multiple captured criminals at once. Targets placed inside cannot escape unless the wagon is destroyed.
Targets
Bounty targets behave differently depending on the mission.
Some criminals will actively fight alongside their guards, while others attempt to flee as soon as the shooting begins. During intense gunfights, it can be easy to accidentally kill the target while dealing with their bodyguards.
Using equipment like the Reinforced Lasso and Bounty Wagon helps reduce the risk of targets escaping during capture.
Targets may appear in several different situations. Some are hiding in gang camps, while others may be traveling through the world on trains or wagons, forcing the player to chase them down.
Profit
Among the Specialist Roles in the game, the Bounty Hunter role offers one of the best starting payouts and is also a reliable way to earn gold.
Similar to Stranger missions in Red Dead Redemption 2 Online mode, waiting until the timer is nearly finished before completing a bounty can increase the payout. The reward grows roughly every three minutes of mission time.
Additionally, capturing a target alive always provides a higher reward than delivering them dead.
There are two main types of bounty missions:
Normal Bounties
These are the standard missions available when the player first starts the role. The number of dollar signs on the wanted poster indicates the difficulty level and potential reward.
Legendary Bounties
Legendary Bounties are much more challenging missions featuring unique outlaw characters. Each one includes its own backstory and cutscenes, and they offer significantly higher payouts than normal bounties.
There are 13 Legendary Bounties in total. They can be replayed multiple times, and the difficulty increases after each completion, eventually reaching a maximum of five stars.
To be continued…
This is post 3, of 5 of the specialist roles available in Red Dead Online. The previous post was The Naturalist, and the next post is Collector.
