The Red Dead Redemption 2 Mount Shann Mystery might be your new Mount Chiliad obsession

Everyone loves a good conspiracy theory or a mystery to solve, and the Red Dead Redemption 2 Mount Shann Mystery is definitely an intriguing proposition. If you've previously spent time delving deep into the lore of GTA 5 then you'll be familiar with the mystery around Mount Chiliad, which was never really explained in full, and it seems that Rockstar have kicked off another mountainous riddle right here in Red Dead Redemption 2. Not long into your journey you'll guide Arthur Morgan up Mount Shann to complete an unusual mission, but it's obvious that there's more happening up at the peak than first meets the eye.

Could you be the one to solve the Red Dead Redemption 2 Mount Shann mystery? Read on to find out everything we know so far. Warning: there are spoilers for one of the game's biggest secrets in this guide, so continue at your own risk...

I’ve been exploring the Red Dead Redemption 2 map for days now it’ll come as no surprise that it’s full of things you’ll want to spend time investigating. There’s a Ku Klux Klan meeting that keeps happening (and going hilariously wrong), signs of a serial killer who’s leaving clues for you to follow, much like the Infinite 8 killer in GTA 5 and a stack of maps to decipher that lead you to gold.

But perhaps the most intriguing thing I’ve come across so far is an abandoned hut north of Emerald Station. I mean it’s abandoned in the sense that there’s no-one living in it now, but inside you’ll find the bodies of 10 or so people all still in their beds. It’s unclear how they died, but they all seem to have different blood splatters on what’s left of the bedding.

Was this a mass suicide gone wrong? A cult meeting that got overrun by bandits? Or something more supernatural? Given the way the leader on the top table is positioned, looking over the rest of the room, and the creepy music that starts playing as you enter the building I’d lean towards a cult. Something which is supported by a letter, read Sermon, on the table that reads:

At the second hour under the half moon
By the great love and grace of our saviour Kuhkowaba
Voyager of time and galaxies
We cast off our corporal shells
So his vessel can take our spirits to the promised realm
To live in peace and power until the two thousandth year
When we will return for the new chosen
And worship once again at the peak of Mount Shann
In his love we rejoice always

I have no idea who this 'Kuhkowaba' is, and nothing, literally nothing, comes up in a Google search, so this is very much a Red Dead Redemption 2 thing. But there are clues in here to piece together. ”At the second hour under the half moon” can easily to translated to 2am on a night with a half moon. Red Dead Redemption 2 does have a lunar cycle so that part seems ‘solved’ for now The other, rather obvious clue is the line: “And worship once again at the peak of mount Shann”.

Mount Shann is a mountain range located to the North of Strawberry on the west side of the map. The obvious thing to do next is go running up the mountain and wait until 2am on a half moon night for the arrival of a vessel. A UFO maybe? Get to the top of it and you’ll find a mysterious arrangement of stones. But waiting here (I waited until 4am, just in case) doesn’t do anything... yet.

Head back to the shack (you don’t actually need to go up the mountain first) and wait here until around 2am on a half moon night however, just set up a camp, cycling through the nights if you need to, and you’ll soon be welcomed by some very special visitors...

Encountering the Red Dead Redemption 2 UFOs

That’s right, the Red Dead Redemption 2 UFOs are real! They don't do much other than hover above the shack for a little while, but this clearly isn’t the end of the mystery. Why reference Mount Shann at all, if nothing is going to happen up there, and what are all those stones about? This is as far as I’ve got, but I haven’t 100% completed the game, or even the main story, and given that was one of the requirements to make the GTA 5 UFOs appear, I’d be surprised if something similar wasn’t in place here.

That checklist also required it to be raining, so there’s a chance the weather conditions could also play a part in spawning the Red Dead Redemption 2 UFOs. Better yet, It’s entirely possible that there are more huts and notes out there that offer more detail, I just haven’t found them yet. That’s where you come in. As with GTA 5, this is going to take a huge community effort to crack, this is just the start. It could come to nothing, but given Rockstar's past I’m convinced this is the start of a much bigger mystery.