Spare the Rod, Spoil the Bandit

 is a mission in Red Dead Redemption.

Story
Leigh Johnson asks John Marston to help in silencing a group of outlaws who have been terrorizing a town. They form a posse of Marston, Marshal Johnson, Eli, Jonah and Dell Hopkins and ride out towards Ridgewood Farm.

Mission Prerequisites
Before this mission becomes available, the player must complete:
 * Bonnie MacFarlane mission: "Women and Cattle";
 * Leigh Johnson mission: "Justice in Pike's Basin"; and
 * Nigel West Dickens mission: "Old Swindler Blues"

Mission Objectives
To complete this mission, the player must:
 * Ride with Marshal Johnson to Ridgewood Farm.
 * Follow the circling vultures en route.
 * Free all hostages at the farm.
 * Track the remaining bandits south.
 * Defeat the bandits.

Mission Details
The player will start off outside the Sheriff's office. After getting details of your mission, mount your horse and ride with the Marshal and his men. As the posse nears the farm, they will notice vultures flying high above. After investigating two campsites filled with bodies (make sure not to hang around the campsites too long or you will fall behind), the posse rounds up at Ridgewood Farm. The group searches the area for any signs of life, and afterward Marshal Johnson calls the posse to the barn, hoping to find either survivors or bandits inside.

After the Marshal, deputies and Marston find a horrific display of blood, slaughtered animals and even a stripped body hanging from the rafters, a young girl runs out of the barn, explaining that the bandits are holed up inside the Ridgewood Farmhouse in the middle of the ranch. As the posse then heads towards the house to investigate, bandits pour out and a gunfight ensues.

The group then dispatches all of the bandits and heads inside, watching carefully around the doorways and walls as Marston makes his way upstairs to save the few remaining survivors. You will be able to save a couple before you face up against a bandit using a woman as a human shield. This shot must be just right and executed quickly, or else the bandit will shoot her in the head and you will be forced to restart the mission.

After the violence, the survivors are rounded up and questioned for answers about more bandits. The hostages notify the Marshal of the location of a group of bandits, and the posse sets out in pursuit. Deputy Eli mentions that this looks to be the work of Williamson's brutal gang.

After catching up with the bandits, a cutscene takes place showing Bill Williamson and John Marston talking once again. This time, however, Williamson runs away, sending his gang and right hand man Norman Deek to finish the job. The posse takes cover in a broken-down shack called Mercer Station while fending off the bandits. After two waves of bandits, the mission will end with a cutscene showing Norman Deek getting caught.

Mission Failure
The mission will fail if the player:
 * Assaults or kills Marshal Johnson, Deputy Eli or Deputy Jonah.
 * Assaults or kills Marshal Johnson's, Deputy Eli's or Deputy Jonah's horse.
 * Abandons Marshal Johnson and the deputies.
 * Assaults or kills the hostages.
 * Let's any hostages get killed.
 * Breaks the law.
 * Kills a dog.
 * Commits vandalism.
 * Assaults or kills townsfolk.
 * Dies.
 * Strays too far from the mission location.

Mission Complete Unlockables

 * Winchester Repeater (found)
 * "American Appetites" Part 3 Stranger side-mission

Trivia

 * During the mission the player will receive a Winchester Repeater if they have not purchased one already.
 * It is also possible to skip having to even go inside the farm house. After the barn encounter, shoot all the bandits who come outside on the front porch &mdash; as soon as there's only a few dots left, run around the left side of the house around to the back, and you can shoot the bandits that are upstairs through the windows.
 * There is another mission later on in the game called "Spare the Love, Spoil the Child".
 * If "Jenny's Faith" has not already been completed, Jenny will be seen at the rock where she is laying.
 * Eli can be seen drinking Nigel West Dickens' Elixir before leaving Marshal Johnson's office.
 * A naked castrated man can be seen hanged in the barn.

Video Walkthrough
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Achievement
Completing this mission contributes toward the following Trophy/Achievement: