In this Red Dead Redemption 2 Combat Guide, we will guide you on basic combat mechanics of Red Dead Redemption 2 and some tips and tricks on how you can get better at fighting in the game overall. Combat is one of the most important aspects in Red Dead Redemption 2 and you will be spending a lot of time-fighting with enemies whether they are gang members or the law enforcers in the game.
We have curated this Red Dead Redemption 2 Combat Guide in which we will share some tips and tricks with you with the help of which you will get better in the game. We will also detail the different types of weapons that are currently present in the game. We will also detail weapon accessories, how to manage ammunition in the game and how to master the useful feature of Dead Eye unique to the Red Dead Redemption franchise.
Combat Guide – Red Dead Redemption 2
Our Red Dead Redemption 2 Combat Guide details everything that you need to know about combat in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Understanding the Weapon Wheel
The first thing that you must get used to is the weapon wheel in Red Dead Redemption. It is not just a weapon wheel as it shows you the complete loadout including items such as throwables and knives. You will use this weapon wheel to transfer the items between your own inventory and your horse’s saddle.
If you open the weapon wheel, there will be six slots in front of you. They will show Sidearms, Fists, Knives, Longarm Back, Throwables and Longarm shoulder. Sidearms are your smaller weapons such as pistols, revolver, and other smaller weapons. If you want to switch to melee, choose the fists icon. The knife is used for melee attacks but mostly for stealth kills and stabbing people.
Longarm Back and Longarm Shoulder are your slots for rifles, bows and other similar weapons. In the Throwables slot, you can equip different throwables items such as lassos of dynamite which can be excellent for crowd control. Every time you leave your horse, make sure that you take along the items that you will really need for the trip.
Using the Item Wheel
Similar to the weapon wheel, your item wheel allows you to equip different items that complement the weapons in combat and different situations. This wheel will allow you to consume different tonics and provisions. You will also find different other useful items such as camera and binoculars on this wheel.
Looking at the bottom of this wheel, you will find clothes, hunting items, and campfires. You can pick any item you want from the list. Just like the weapons, make sure that you take only useful items while leaving your horse because you have limited space.
Use Cover to Survive Longer
Cover is vital in gunfights and you will not survive in gunfights without resorting to cover for a long time. Sometimes you will engage in gun battles in large areas where a large number of enemies will be shooting at you at the same time. During this time, you will need to resort to cover for a chance of surviving the gun battle.
You can take cover behind a number of things found in the environment which are of sufficient height. You can take cover behind small walls, buildings, large stones, trees and many other things which can be used as a cover. Simply approach the cover location and press R1 or RB to take cover behind them.
You can also fire from the cover by using the normal aiming and shooting buttons. You can look around with R and if you want to stop using the cover, push L towards any direction to move away from the cover. If you want to move from cover to cover, press ‘Square’ or ‘X’ and push the L in the required cover’s direction to move to that cover.
It is vital that you use cover while in gunfights. They will allow you to scan the area up ahead in peace so that you can come up with a strategy to move in for an attack.
Use Stealth for some Easy Kills
In Red Dead Redemption 2, if the enemies are unaware of your location, you can crouch by pressing L3 and move around the area silently to get some stealth kills. It is very helpful for taking out one enemy at a time if you do not want to alert the complete enemy presence in the area.
While crouched, you can approach enemies from behind quietly and knock them out. You do not need a weapon for knocking them out however if you have a knife equipped, you can easily kill them using it. For missions where you can easily complete an objective while using stealth, you can try it out and get the quickest time instead of fighting all enemies at the same time.
Stick to Similar Weapons
Just like horses, sticking to the same weapon for longer periods of time with making you the master of that specific weapon. As you continue to use a weapon, you will gain weapon ranks which will complete your weapon challenges as well as unlock special combat accessories that are later purchased.
You can use any weapon that you like but sticking to a similar weapon will help you rank up quickly in that specific category. You can quickly rank up in all categories by using a weapon in that category for some time and completing challenges.
Mastering Dead Eye
Dead Eye is a very important ability when it comes to combat. It will allow you to slow down time and take less damage for that specific duration. You will be able to kill enemies much easier with this enabled. This is excellent when you find yourself face to face with a large number of enemies and you want to thin their numbers quickly.
To activate Dead Eye, you must first press R3. Once active, you can use R1 to mark your enemies and then press R2 to fire at all marked enemies. To deactivate Dead Eye, press R3 again to return to normal game state. To check how much Dead Eye, you have, you will need to check the Dead Eye Core right next to the Health and Stamina Cores above the mini-map.
As you kill more enemies and perform better in combat, the Dead Eye meter will refill over time. If you want to extend your Dead Eye time and slow down the drain speed, chew some tobacco and your Dead Eye will decline much slowly. If you want to upgrade your Dead Eye so that it has more time and slower drain speed, you can complete some hunting and crafting challenges. Finding collectibles will also upgrade your Dead Eye.
You must be aware of extreme weather conditions as they will severely affect your Dead Eye. Extremely hot or cold weather will not only affect how you use Dead Eye but also its regeneration rate along with many other stats so it is important that your outfit is well suited so that weather effects have minimum effect on your Dead Eye.
Horseback Combat
You can use a variety of weapons while riding your horse. However, it is important to know that your horse will get spooked of enemy presence and loud noises. If you want to combat enemies while staying on your horse’s back, it is vital that you stick to silenced weaponry such as a bow or silenced pistols.
Loud bangs of gunfire and enemy presence in close proximity will cause your horse to become spooked and it might even chuck you off and run away which will result in poor execution of your heroic horse combat. To avoid such situations, stick to silenced weapons.
Fight with Allies
You can also take friends and allies to combat with you. A different number of gang members will be more than willing to support you in your gunfights. They are most helpful when you are fighting the law or trying to take on gang hideouts. Always take some allies with you as extra guns are always useful.
Keep your Weapons in Good Shape
Using weapons for a long time will negatively affect them and they will eventually get rusty and dirty. Such rusted and dusty weapons cannot be used to their full potential in combat hence it is crucial that you keep your weapons in good shape. For doing so, you must regularly clean them and repair them.
To inspect a specific weapon, open the weapon wheel and press R3 to inspect the weapon. If the weapon is dirty or damaged, you can fix it or clean it accordingly. Fixed weapons will ensure that weapons have maximum damage, fastest reload time and cocking. To clean weapons, you will require a basic ingredient called Gun Oil which is easily available at all Gunsmiths.
Visit Gunsmiths Often
You will find many Gunsmiths all over the map of Red Dead Redemption 2. Each gunsmith carries a unique inventory so make sure that you visit each of them whenever you come across one. They will sell items, weapons, accessories and ammunition to you in exchange of money and resources.
Gunsmiths will also allow you to customize your weapons according to your preferences. Customizing and upgrading weapons will make them better, prettier and deadlier in combat hence you must visit Gunsmiths often to keep your weapons upgraded and in good shape.
Types of Weapons
Red Dead Redemption 2 features a wide variety of weapons ranging from revolvers to rifles. We have detailed them below.
Throwables
These are explosives and other melee weapons that you can throw at your enemies to kill them. These include Dynamites, Molotov, Knives and Tomahawks.
Shotguns
Shotguns are excellent at close range and they should never be used for long-range combat. Their sheer force will stop a boar at close range but on the long-range, they will struggle in killing a cat let alone an enemy who is shooting back at you. They are excellent in close-range crowd control as well.
Bow
Your trusty bow and arrows will help you dispose of a lot of enemies silently. It is one of the most accurate weapons in the game and best of all, it is completely silent. We recommend using a bow to kill enemies until the enemies are still unaware of your location.
Revolvers
Revolvers are the trademark weapons for the Wild West. They pack quite a punch but lack in firing speed and reloading. Use them to dispatch some enemies quickly then switch to another weapon instead of reloading to make the most out of them.
Repeaters
Repeaters are excellent in churning out bullets but they lack power and accuracy. Excellent at pinning down enemies to let your allies move in for the kill.
Rifles
Rifles are the best option to choose when it comes to ranged combat. They are deadly at both medium and long-range however they are not very helpful in close range unless you get lucky with a blind shot. Some of the rifles are also equipped with a scope for long-range sniping.
Pistols
Pistols are small firearms with decent firing speed and quick reloads. They are less powerful then revolvers when it comes to damage.
Lasso
Your lasso will be your go-to weapon when it comes to roping animals and people. You can use it to capture enemies alive or taming animals in the wild. To use a lasso, aim and shoot the lasso at the enemy, once they are lassoes, move in and press circle or ‘B’ to tie them up. If you do not tie them up, they will eventually break free.
Special Ammunition Types
In addition to regular ammunition in the game, you also have the option of choosing different special types of ammo for your weapons. You can choose between High-Velocity cartridges for your guns which will increase the penetrating power of your weapons. Express cartridges and explosive ammo increase the damage of all your guns.
If you want to make your shots more accurate and maximize your Dead Eye, switch to Split Point cartridges. Coming to arrows, you can craft a different number of arrows as well in the game. There are Small Game arrows, Poison Arrows, Fire Arrows and Dynamite Arrows to choose from.
Fire Arrows and Dynamite Arrows greatly increase the damage of your arrows. Small Game arrows are special arrows for hunting while Poison Arrows work best against larger enemies to take them down. They also affect enemies in the game.
You can craft these special ammo types yourself or purchase them from Gunsmiths or General Stores.
Customize Your Weapons
Apart from using different ammunition types, you can also customize your weapons with a different number of accessories. When you visit Gunsmiths around town, you will notice that there are a different number of accessories or modifications available for each weapon type.
You can purchase these modifications and upgrades and improve the combat effectiveness of your weapons even more. They will also help in making your weapons more reliable by slowing down their rusting and degradation. You can check out the Trapper store for more upgrades and customizations found in the game.
For more Red Dead Redemption 2 guides, check out our Red Dead Redemption 2 Beginner’s Guide and Crimes Guide.
This concludes our Red Dead Redemption 2 Combat Guide. If you want to add anything to this guide, feel free to use the comments section below.
