Herbalist Challenges

Herbalist Challenges are gameplay challenges which involve gathering and crafting in the single-player of Red Dead Redemption 2.

These challenges must be done in order, progress made before they are activated does not count.

Challenges

• Rank 1: Pick six Yarrow plants.
• Rank 2: Pick and eat four species of berry.
• Rank 3: Craft seven items using Sage as an ingredient.
• Rank 4: Pick five mushrooms and feed them to your horse.
• Rank 5: Craft nine items using Indian Tobacco as an ingredient.
• Rank 6: Pick 15 different species of herb.
• Rank 7: Craft and use five Special Miracle Tonics.
• Rank 8: Use Oleander Sage to craft six poison weapons.
• Rank 9: Pick one of each species of herb.
• Rank 10: Season and cook all 11 types of meat.

Rank 1

Pick six yarrow.

Reward: Herbalist Off-Hand Holster

Rank 2

Three of the berries can be found south of Big Valley trapper.
The last one can be found west of Rhodes.

Pick and eat four species of berry.

Reward: 25 Health XP and $5

• Raspberry - Found everywhere except the Grizzlies, Tall Trees, and Roanoke Ridge, most commonly in The Heartlands
• Blackberry - Found predominantly in West Elizabeth and the western edge of New Hanover
• Evergreen Huckleberry - Found throughout Lemoyne, predominantly in the swamps around Saint Denis.
• Wintergreen Berry - Found predominantly in northern West Elizabeth, southern Grizzlies, and northern Roanoke Ridge, most commonly in the Cumberland Forest south of Fort Wallace.

Rank 3

Craft seven items using sage as an ingredient.

Reward: Herbalist Gun Belt

• Tonics that can be crafted using sage:
  • Potent Bitters (1× Hummingbird Sage/Desert Sage + 1× Burdock Root)
  • Special Bitters (2× Hummingbird Sage/Desert Sage + 2× Burdock Root + 2× Violet Snowdrop/Wild Feverfew)
  • Potent Miracle Tonic (4× Hummingbird Sage/Desert Sage + 4× Indian Tobacco + 4× Alaskan Ginseng/American Ginseng)
  • Potent Horse Stimulant (4× Hummingbird Sage/Desert Sage + 4× Indian Tobacco + 4× Alaskan Ginseng/American Ginseng)
  • Special Horse Stimulant (2× Hummingbird Sage/Desert Sage + 2× Common Bulrush + 2× Wild Carrot)
  • Horse Ointment (1× Hummingbird Sage/Desert Sage + 1× Common Bulrush + 1× Yarrow)
• Note: the requirement is to craft any seven items using Sage, not seven different items. The player can craft the same item seven times and it will count. The easiest to do this with is Potent Bitters, as it only requires 1 each of Sage and Burdock Root, both of which are quite common. Horse Ointment is another good option.

Rank 4

Pick five mushrooms and feed them to your horse.

Reward: 50 Health XP and $10

• When starting this challenge, one is only required to feed the horse with mushrooms; mushrooms already in the satchel count as being picked.
• It is not necessary to feed the horse five different kinds of mushrooms, it is fine if they are all of the same species.

Rank 5

Craft nine items using Indian Tobacco as an ingredient.

Reward: 50 Health XP and $10

• The simplest recipe is Potent Snake Oil, that doesn't need a pamphlet and requires only one Indian Tobacco.

Rank 6

Pick 15 different species of herb.

Reward: 100 Health XP and $15

Rank 7

Craft and use five special miracle tonics.

Reward: Herbalist Holster

• The pamphlet can be found on a plateau south-east of Vetter's Echo, south of Hanging Dog Ranch.
• The ingredients are Yarrow, Burdock Root, and Golden Currant.
• Both Golden Currant and Burdock Root can be found north-west of Annesburg either side of 'ANOK' in Roanoke Ridge on the map. Specific areas where these spawn are Fort Brennand and along the river around the Old Tomb.
• Currant and Burdock Root can also be looted from slain Murfree Brood.
• Yarrow can be found in good amounts near Rhodes, north of Bolger Glade.
• This tonic is also given to the player as a reward for helping William during random encounters.
• Obtaining the Legend of the East satchel early is recommended, as a total of 30 of each ingredient is required to craft five of this tonic.

Rank 8

Use oleander to craft six poison weapons.

Reward: 100 Health XP and $15.

• Oleander Sage can be found in Bayou Nwa.
• Poison weapons:
  • Poison Throwing Knife.
    • Crafted with an existing throwing knife and Oleander Sage.
    • The pamphlet to make it can be found under the floorboards in an abandoned shack, North of Saint Denis cemetery, near the train and roadways. Alternatively, it is the reward for completing the bison hunting companion activity with Charles in chapter 2.
  • Poison Arrow.
    • Crafted with an arrow, a Flight Feather and one Oleander Sage.
    • The pamphlet to make it can be found in a lockbox located outside the Mysterious Hill Home.

Rank 9

Pick one of each species of herb.

Reward: 150 Health XP and $20.

• List: Plant Gathering in Redemption 2#Types of Plants and Herbs.
• There is no in-game checklist for this. It is highly recommended to make one and keep track manually. Anything found prior to unlocking this rank does not count, so the compendium is not a reliable source of tracking.
• Be aware that Lady Slipper Orchids may not be counted until the completion of the second job in 'Duchesses and other Animals' in Chapter 4 (unlocked after completing 'The Gilded Cage').
• If the player picks orchids before they get the request to collect them during Duchesses and other Animals quest in Chapter 4, part of the species will stop spawning after a certain number of orchids of the same species were picked (this number is equal to the number in the Algernon's list minus one). If that happens before the player starts to pick plants for the Rank 9 of Herbalist Challenges, the player won't be able to collect those orchids and will have to wait until the Algernon's request in Chapter 4. Here are all the numbers of orchids that shouldn't be exceeded before the player starts to pick plants for Herbalist 9, if they want to pick all the orchids for this challenge before Chapter 4:
  • Lady of the Night Orchid - 13
  • Lady Slipper Orchid - 6
  • Moccasin Orchid - 8
  • Acuna's Star Orchid - 1
  • Cigar Orchid - 5
  • Ghost Orchid - 3
  • Rat Tail Orchid - 8
  • Spider Orchid - 3
  • Night scented Orchid - 3
  • Clamshell Orchid - 3
  • Queen's Orchid - 3
  • Sparrow Egg Orchid - 8
  • Dragon's Mouth Orchid - 3
• Prairie Poppy grows in Great Plains, so it can be picked up if Pinkerton agents are avoided (the best time to do this is before "The First Shall Be Last" mission in Chapter 2 is started - there are some Prairie Poppy plants not far from that mission starting point near Blackwater, that can be picked without agents spawning at all).
• English Mace grows mostly in New Austin, but traces of it can be found in Ambarino, east of O'Creagh's Run.
• Blackcurrant, Wild Feverfew, Desert Sage, and Red Sage can be found only in New Austin, which is inaccessible for Arthur unless using tricks.

Rank 10

Season and cook all 11 types of meat.

Reward: Herbalist Bandolier

• Meats have to be seasoned with either Oregano, Creeping Thyme, or Wild Mint.
• The 11 types of meat are:
  1. Exotic Bird (Parakeet, Parrot, Pelican)
  2. Tender Pork Loin (Boar, Peccary, Pig)
  3. Plump Bird (Chicken, Goose, Turkey, Rooster)
  4. Big Game Meat (Alligator, Bear, Cougar, Panther, Wolf)
  5. Prime Beef Joint (Bison, Bull, Cow, Oxen)
  6. Succulent Fish (Sockeye Salmon, Steelhead Trout)
  7. Game Meat (Duck, Pheasant, Rabbit)
  8. Flaky Fish (Redfin Pickerel, Perch, Chain Pickerel, Rock Bass, Muskie, Lake Sturgeon, Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass)
  9. Crustacean (Crab)
  10. Gristly Mutton (Goat, Ram, Sheep)
  11. Mature Venison (Buck, Deer, Elk, Moose, Pronghorn)

Tips

• The player must obtain the Legend of the East satchel as soon as possible, as this allows them to carry up to 99 plants of any type at the same time.
• The player must collect any and all Burdock Root, Yarrow and Currant they find while doing the early challenges, as this makes Challenge 7 much faster to complete. The same applies to mushrooms, Sage and Indian Tobacco, although the challenges that require these plants aren't nearly as time consuming.
• Near the entrance to Limpany, the player can find nearly 11 Wild Mints, and as Wild Mint is an herb for seasoning, the player can easily collect them and season all 11 types of the meat they've collected for challenge 10. Additionally, Painted Sky is also a good place to find herbs for seasoning and it's just across the river from Limpany.
• Low-quality meats such as Gritty Fish, Gamey Bird, Stringy and Herpetile cannot be seasoned.

Video Walkthrough