Wild Horses, Tamed Passions
As you enter the MacFarlane household, Bonnie introduces you to her father, Drew. After listening to Mr. MacFarlane’s rant on the role of government in the west, Bonnie asks you to join her in gathering some new wild horses for the farm. Before heading over to your horse, Bonnie gives you the lasso. It’s an important tool in Red Dead, as not only will it aid you in wrangling wild horses, but it’s also the best way to catch criminals alive.
Mount up and follow the MacFarlanes out to the plains. Once there, you’ll find there’s a small handful of wild horses. Ride up to them, get out your lasso, and rope one. Dismount your horse, while keeping a hand on the lasso, and approach the captured wild horse. To tame this stallion, you’ll have to mount it, and break it. Merely keep John balanced as the horse tries to buck him off. All you have to do is watch which way John is leaning, and tap the left stick gently to keep him steady.
Horse breaking is relatively simple once you’ve managed to lasso the horse. Throughout the game you’ll have opportunities to track and capture other wild horses that have better stamina and speed than the one you currently ride. Lassoing them is always the most difficult part, as you have to steer your horse while aiming the lasso and trying to keep pace with the wild stallion.
After successfully breaking this first horse, Mr. MacFarlane takes it from you, and heads back to the ranch. You and Bonnie will have to catch one more wild horse out in this section before heading back to the ranch. When you return to the corral, Mr. MacFarlane tells you a few of his ranch hands have spotted some more wild horses outside of Armadillo. You and Bonnie head down there to help capture a few more horses.
Once you meet up with the others from the ranch, Bonnie asks you to lead the wild horses into the canyon up ahead. Similar to the way you herded the cattle, just ride up behind the horses to provoke them forward towards the confined space. Just when it appears as if the mission is over, one of the wild horses escapes, and it’s up to you to wrangle it.
This part can either go really quickly or take a long time depending on how good you are with the lasso. The area the horse runs to is littered with cacti, making it difficult to steer your own mount, and get an accurate lasso toss. Once you do manage to capture the horse, simply mount and break it like you did the last two times.
You can catch up with Bonnie back on the path outside of the canyon afterwards. For all your hard work, she allows you to keep the horse you just captured. It’s a decent upgrade over your previous one. Now just head back to MacFarlane Ranch for a little rest, and to save your game, before taking on the next mission from Bonnie.
A Tempest Looms
When you get back to MacFarlane Ranch, Bonnie will be outside the barn waiting for you. No matter what the weather was when you approached, starting the mission will bring on a horrible storm. If you remember, just a few missions ago you brought the cattle out to pasture. Now that the storm is getting worse, Bonnie needs John’s help to bring the herd back to the farm before they scatter, and are lost forever.
Mount your horse, and follow Bonnie out to the fields. There are two separate herds to wrangle. Bonnie will lead you to the first set of cattle, and you’ll have to guide them to the Old Oak Tree. The yellow dot on your mini-map indicates where to go, so just keep the herd together while rounding them up to join the other herd. If you see any stragglers, peel off the main herd, and round them up to get them to return to the group.
As soon as you’ve managed to get the two herds of cattle together, the big tree is struck by lightning, startling the cattle. You’ve got to race in front of the shocked herd, and stop them before they all run off a cliff. There are 21 cattle, and it’s pretty tough to save them all. However, you don’t have to, and bringing back 15-18 is still respectable. Once you’ve managed to get the herd back together, meet up with Bonnie, and you two will lead the cattle back to MacFarlane Ranch.
Once you’re done speaking with Bonnie, it’s time to visit Marshal Johnson again.
