The Murfree Brood is an antagonistic faction featured in Red Dead Redemption 2.
Overview
They are known for being unbelievably cruel and territorial and can perhaps best be described as "horribly inbred yokels who murder, loot and pillage all over", owing to their physical deformities and brutal acts of violence. They rarely wear shirts and are considered by many to be more akin to a horde of animals or savages rather than an actual criminal gang.
History
The Murfree Family first immigrated to the area in the 1700s and lived a comfortable life. After the industrialization of the area, they were forced to seek seclusion in Beaver Hollow. It was here that they began their gradual descent into savagery, and by the year 1899 were known for brutally torturing, murdering and dismembering their victims as well as locking up women they captured before raping and torturing them, often for days on end before killing them. These horrible deeds made them feared all over the Roanoke Ridge area.
Events of Red Dead Redemption 2
Dutch sends Arthur and Charles to clear out Beaver Hollow, to make it safe to host the gang's new camp location. The two sneak through the hollow, silently killing the enemy gang members until the alarm is finally sounded. Intense fighting follows, which results in Arthur and Charles taking the hollow by force. Afterward, Arthur and Charles find a young woman taken hostage by the gang. Arthur manages to gain her trust and takes her to her mother in Annesburg.
The Murfree Brood still survives after the fall of Beaver Hollow and will launch attacks against Arthur. This includes sending a flaming cart down upon him, before attacking him en-masse, attempting to bring him down with sheer numbers. However, it never fully regains the strength it once had.
Members
Missions appearances
- Red Dead Redemption 2
Trivia
- Murfrees are unusually durable, as they have been observed surviving point-blank shotgun blasts, and in some cases even headshots.
- Murfrees are shown to exhibit physical deformities of varying degrees, most likely due to severe inbreeding.
- The Murfree Brood are quite similar to the Skinner Brothers, found in Tall Trees, West Elizabeth, and the Night Folk, found across Bayou Nwa, Lemoyne, owing to all three gangs' extreme brutality, savagery and them being more like a band of crazed serial killers than a gang of outlaws.
- The Murfree Brood may take inspiration from the story of Boone Helm, infamously known as the "Kentucky Cannibal"; Helm was known to be a troublesome individual, who briefly ran a six-man gang. Helm was most notable for his practice of cannibalism, as well as robbing people for a living.
- Another source of inspiration for the Brood may be the story of Sawney Bean, a Scottish man who was said to have been the leader of a 45-member clan in Scotland. The Bean Clan lived in caves, reproduced via inbreeding, and robbed travelers and locals alike, and would dismember and consume them.
- Unlike other outlaw gangs like the O'Driscoll Boys, the Murfrees don't carry any valuables and players mostly receive tonics and herbs from looting them.
- Another difference is that the Murfrees don't camp in the wilderness. Instead, players usually encounter the Murfrees while they are looting some unfortunate travelers' camp.
- In the first few times when players camp in Roanoke Ridge, the Murfrees will come to intimidate players to stay away from the area.