How to Upgrade Your Camp in Red Dead Redemption 2: Boost Morale, Increase Satchel and Food Supplies

During your adventures in the world of Red Dead Redemption 2, the player is closely tied to the Van der Linde gang's camp — a base where men, women, and children with whom he travels across the USA are located. Read this guide to find out what you can do in the camp, how to improve it, and what game activities can be found there!

The camp is a point in space from where the Van der Linde gang plans its attacks, where it rests and gathers strength. In reality, it consists of several wagons in a semi-dismantled state, as well as tents. After completing another story chapter, everyone packs their things into wagons and moves on through the USA. Remember, the camp has its own cash box, not linked to the amount of money in Arthur's wallet.

The key place is Arthur's own tent, the main protagonist. There he can sleep, change clothes according to the weather and comfort, shave, as well as replenish his supplies — ammunition, provisions, medical kits, and potions.

The second most important place is Pearson's wagon. Besides being the gang's butcher and cook, he is also responsible for upgrading equipment and various camp improvements. He also accepts meat and animal carcasses, which will be cooked for your friends as delicious food and boost morale.

Note that next to Pearson's wagon, there's a pot on the fire where you can grab a free bite once a day and, more importantly — drink a cup of coffee. Coffee, in turn, restores the «Dead Eye» ability. Don't forget to take advantage of this when you're about to go on a mission.

The gang leader, Dutch, is located in a tent in the center of the camp. Near him, you can find two important barrels — one has a box on it where you can donate unnecessary junk, valuables, and money, and next to it — Strauss's ledger. Through it, gameplay upgrades are made, such as fast travel, but more on that below.

Don't forget about Strauss's wagon. After a certain period, he has free health mixtures, medicines, and similar items available. If you need more—well, prepare your money.

When you want to have fun, pay attention to the modestly standing table in the corner of the camp. There you can play cards or dominoes with other gang members, while listening to their stories. By talking, you can improve relationships, and even receive a personal quest.

Don't forget about the horses in the stable—they also need periodic care, not to mention developing a relationship with your personal horse.

Remember, the camp serves as a place for rest, a starting point for various missions, and its residents offer different services and optional activities. Also, keep an eye on the three icons in the upper right corner of the screen — health, ammunition, and food. They have three states — white (normal), yellow (supplies need replenishing), and red (supplies urgently need replenishing).

As the Van der Linde gang is on the run, their morale will be at its lowest at the beginning of the game. Subsequent plot events will continue to undermine it, so we advise you to constantly monitor the gang's morale and enhance it, for example, by:

Following these tips, the Van der Linde gang's camp will be well-stocked with provisions and happy, and the player will be rewarded with several advantages. Specifically, finding more items that can periodically be obtained for free at three supply stations: provisions in Pearson's cooking wagon, ammunition in Arthur's wagon, and medicines and other health potions in Strauss's wagon.

As the morale of the gang members grows, the player will easily notice it as the mood of the bandits and their companions will improve, they will complain less and donate more towards his upkeep.

The camp upgrade feature becomes available in the second chapter, after completing a mission for Leopold Strauss. Upgrades are made through a book lying on a barrel next to Van der Linde's tent. There you can find both upgrades and various new features.

Upgrades will require significant financial investments, but they will lead to significant advantages, such as unlocking the fast travel feature or improving the assortment of your supplies and the quality of free items.

The player can increase the camp's budget by contributing directly through donations to the metal tithe container, which is located next to the book.

Let's list all possible updates for the camp and the associated costs. We'll start with the supply line upgrade table (prices in dollars):

Now, we offer you a table of expenses for upgrading the camp's infrastructure:

Pearson can also customize the main character's satchel appearance, increase its capacity for ammunition and medkits, and the number of items carried. In the following table, we've compiled all the necessary information:

To customize the appearance of the camp, simply donate to Pearson the carcass or pelt of a particular animal, sometimes in quantities of 2-4 pieces, and then a wolf head will appear over the entrance to the camp, and over Arthur's cabin will hang the hide or skeleton of the slain animal.

Simply moving around the camp, the player constantly interacts with other gang members in one way or another. This can be discussing current affairs, various aspects of gang life, shared stories, information about an upcoming or taken mission.

In Red Dead Redemption 2, player's fellow gang members regularly invite them to join in on a variety of activities: from board games to outright robbery.

These activities depend on the context of relationships with other characters and are time-sensitive, meaning they can only be performed at specific moments in the storyline.

The following table lists activities in chronological order tied to a specific character. Note that these actions may not always work immediately, some of them are available only at certain times of the day.

To progress towards your goal, frequently return to the camp and interact with companions. This ensures you won't miss any activity.